From the Bookshelf of Sci-fi and Heroic Fantasy…

The Blade Itself (The First Law, #1)

Joe Abercrombie

Start date: September 1, 2012

Finish date: September 30, 2012

Discussion: Book Discussions

Why we're reading this: Contemporary Group Read
[close] Contemporary Group Read

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

Showing 2 of 250 topics — 8,801 comments total

Book Discussions

"Cyteen" by C.J. Cherryh
By deleted member · 48 posts · 102 views

last updated May 24, 2025 11:25PM

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke
By deleted member · 46 posts · 150 views

last updated Mar 28, 2025 02:28PM

showing 10 of 18 topics view all »

What Members Thought

Dec 04, 2016 Jim rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 1audio, fantasy, 2fiction, 3series

Oops! Apparently I forgot to write a review for this & went straight on to the next book. I just finished it. Both were excellent. It's a fairly standard fantasy world with magical magic, although there are some real limits & hints of better rules. What makes this so good are the characters & the politics.

The politics are basically straight forward at first blush. The nobles are spoiled jerks & everyone is out for themselves. There are some hints, but they don't really evolve until the second bo ...more

23 likes · Like · see review

Oct 12, 2009 kellyn rated it it was ok

Moving this to the 'saving for later' shelf even though I most likely won't pick it up again. The story was entertaining and although a bit predictable, interesting characters pepper the story. It was exciting and I was drawn into caring about the outcome of the story and it's characters.

I didn't care for the gruesome descriptions of torture, fight sequences, and chilling details of some of the characters' backgrounds. But I suppose that's what you should expect when the praise on the back call ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Oct 27, 2010 Tom rated it really liked it

Shelves: hard-copy

I took an odd (not advised) approach to Joe Abercrombie's world here in reading Best Served Cold and The Heroes BEFORE reading this book, which is the first book of his "First Law" trilogy. So I'm seeing characters here (Black Dow, Bayaz, Bremer van Gorst etc.), already knowing where they will end up further down the road. This both giveth and taketh away... adding an interesting depth to the read, but stealing away some surprises.

I also think my read order here gave me some perspective on Abe I took an odd (not advised) approach to Joe Abercrombie's world here in reading Best Served Cold and The Heroes BEFORE reading this book, which is the first book of his "First Law" trilogy. So I'm seeing characters here (Black Dow, Bayaz, Bremer van Gorst etc.), already knowing where they will end up further down the road. This both giveth and taketh away... adding an interesting depth to the read, but stealing away some surprises.

I also think my read order here gave me some perspective on Abercrombie's unique "voice." This book seems tamer than either Best Served Cold or The Heroes. Maybe my perspective is skewed, again, by my knowledge going into the read (this was Abercrombie's first big hit); but it seems like the signature Abercrombie-gritty-action-violence is toned down a bit. Maybe because he was trying to break softly into the genre? It's still present... this is not a cuddly-Hobbit-type fantasy for pre-teens by any stretch... but it's not front and center either. Court intrigue and character interplay are where the plot turns... violence less so.

We follow a few different protagonists, obviously all heading on a collision course... or maybe a "collusion" course? In any event, there are a lot of character pieces moving on the board. Very GRR Martin-ish in this way. And similarly to GRR, these characters are all shades of grey... some sympathetic, but none clearly "heroes" and none clearly "villains"... well... maybe with the exception of Arch Lector Sult. That guy is just a complete A-hole. But all act with motivations, desires, grievances, history, misconceptions, etc.

Perhaps the most sympathetic is Logen Nine-Fingers, who, after separating from his countrymen and nearly dying, tries to set aside the reputation of being a right bastard. He's thoughtful and introspective... until the blood lust comes on, of course. Then all bets are off. Runner-up for most-sympathetic is probably Inquisitor Glotka, a man broken by torture who has now become a torturer himself. Bitter and cynical, choking on the irony of his life; but also realistic and driven - he's the "police investigator" of the story, I suppose.

Not sure of the explanation for the wizard Bayaz's long life - or maybe time-jumping? Or what exactly the Shanka are invading from the north... are they truly animal/other/alien? Or is that just straight-up racism from the northerner perspective? I guess I'll find out in the next two volumes. ...more

Like · see review

Aug 14, 2013 Tani rated it really liked it

Shelves: male-author, 2013, fantasy

This one thought about being five stars for a while, but didn't quite make the cut. I think where it lost me was when it started putting multiple viewpoints into the same chapter. It felt too abrupt, after spending 75% of the book with each character for a more prolonged period. The change interrupted the flow of the story pretty severely for me. I love the way that Abercrombie writes his characters, though. They're kind of asses, but they're realistic, and they all feel like they have opportuni ...more

Like · see review