The First Law
This is a series where I wasn't sure what to expect, though I had read some general reviews about it. I was therefore pleasantly surprised when I was immediately gripped by the first chapter of the first book, which introduces Logen, who along with Glokta, a character I was aware of from the reviews, are both very well-written and interesting characters, both of whom share a self-deprecating sense of irony about their lot in life.
Glokta, as a character, is both disturbing and fascinating and the chapters revolving around him are a guilty pleasure to read.
Logen and the other Northmen are also wonderfully engaging characters, being down-to-earth and practical in their approach to situations.
While being a dark story overall, with an abundance of torture, murder and violent deaths, there is also an abundance of dark humour and sarcasm built in that makes this addictive reading.
While there is an interesting plot holding the story together, I would say it's the interactions between all the various characters and the groups they are in, together with their development in response to the situations they find themselves in, and the consequences of the actions they take that make this a truly fascinating series to read.
The Blade Itself: The First Law: Book 01
Inquisitor Glokta, a crippled and increasingly bitter relic of the last war, former fencing champion turned torturer extraordinaire, is trapped in a twisted and broken body - not that he allows it to distract him from his daily routine of torturing smugglers.
Nobleman, dashing officer and would-be fencing champion Captain Jezal dan Luthar is living a life of ease by cheating his friends at cards. Vain, shallow, selfish and self-obsessed, the biggest blot on his horizon is having to get out of bed in the morning to train with obsessive and boring old men.
And Logen Ninefingers, an infamous warrior with a bloody past, is about to wake up in a hole in the snow with plans to settle a blood feud with Bethod, the new King of the Northmen, once and for all - ideally by running away from it. But as he's discovering, old habits die really, really hard indeed...
...especially when Bayaz gets involved. A bald old man with a terrible temper and a pathetic assistant, he could be the First of the Magi, he could be a spectacular fraud, but whatever he is, he's about to make the lives of Glotka, Jezal and Logen a whole lot more difficult...
Format
Kindle EditionDate Acquired
8th June 2020Retail Cost
£9.99Number of Pages
536Year Read
2021
Before They Are Hanged: The First Law: Book 02
Bitter and merciless war is coming to the frozen north. It's bloody and dangerous and the Union army, split by politics and hamstrung by incompetence, is utterly unprepared for the slaughter that's coming. Lacking experience, training, and in some cases even weapons the army is scarcely equipped to repel Bethod's scouts, let alone the cream of his forces.
In the heat-ravaged south the Gurkish are massing to assault the city of Dagoska, defended by Inquisitor Glokta. The city is braced for the inevitable defeat and massacre to come, preparations are made to make the Gurkish pay for every inch of land ... but a plot is festering to hand the city to its besiegers without a fight, and the previous Inquisitor of Dagoska vanished without trace. Threatened from within and without the city, Glokta needs answers, and he needs them soon.
And to the east, a small band of malefactors travel to the edge of the world to reclaim a device from history - a Seed, hidden for generations - with tremendous destructive potential. A device which could put an end to war, to the army of Eaters in the South, to the invasion of Shanka from the North - but only if it can be found, and only if its power can be controlled ...
Format
Kindle EditionDate Acquired
23rd May 2022Retail Cost
£5.49Number of Pages
644Year Read
2023