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reviewed The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie (The first law. Book 1)

Joe Abercrombie: The Blade Itself (Paperback, 2007, Gollancz) 4 stars

Logen Ninefingers, infamous barbarian, has finally run out of luck. Caught in one feud too …

Review of 'The Blade Itself' on 'Goodreads'

2 stars

Reading this I almost, at times, felt like I was getting somewhere. The constant shift of view was quite refreshing, and some of the characters very memorable. Yet for all that, the style where we don't actually learn anything other than through dialog or little bits and pieces at a time, almost being drip-fed, does tire easily.

The action was quite good, but everything seemed a little over the top and the farcical humour was far too outlandish and silly for my liking. I didn't really gel with anybody, nor have any feelings about the world, so the only reason I'll have for picking up the next is idle curiosity.