The Blade Itself
Book One
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4.3 • 265 Ratings
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- £5.49
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- £5.49
Publisher Description
'Delightfully twisted and evil' GUARDIAN
'Highly recommended ... seek it out' Joe Hill
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...
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
British newcomer Abercrombie fills his muddled sword-and-sorcery series opener with black humor and reluctant heroes. Logen Ninefingers, a barbarian on the run from an ex-employer who's now king of the North, finds his loyalties complicated when he switches sides and becomes a valuable source of intel to the beleaguered Union. Glokta, a torture victim turned torturer, gets roped into securing the Union's position against both the invading Northmen and the incompetent Union king and council, and ruthlessly wields his skills in attempts to weed out traitors. Foppish Jezal, a preternaturally excellent swordsman, manages to win the contest to become the Union champion, thanks to a little help from Bayaz, a mage with his own agenda. The workmanlike plot, marred by repetitive writing and an excess of torture and pain, is given over to introducing the mostly unlikable characters, only to send them off on separate paths in preparation for the next volume's adventures.
Customer Reviews
Masterpiece
This is an outstanding story that is well paced, intricately detailed and immersive. The characters are nuanced and well fleshed out and most impressively, seem to take on different tones depending on how they interact with one another to how they do separately, which is the mark of a truly talented character author. If I had one criticism, it’s difficult to imagine with the scale and geography or the world at times, but this didn’t impact the story negatively for me. This is simply an outstanding piece of fiction.
Amazing
The best book trilogy since game of thrones. A true price of art. Wouldn’t be far fetched to think this will be on our TVs on day.
And it just gets better
This is not my favourite book. It was, for roughly a day or two. Then I read the sequel, which is somehow better. Then I read the finale, which blew me away completely.
Joe is, to me, the best author currently writing in the English language. He has yet to write a bad sentence.
Buy this book and fall in love with words and swords and the subtlest of magic.
Then discover that the cruelest of men also make the most sympathetic characters in the hands of a master of fantasy. Simply the best series I have ever read.