In the Limelight - Simmons, Kearney and Abercrombie

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Everybody's been talking about Drood these days. "Drood" is the new novel by Dan Simmons, mastermind behind many prestigious award-winning novels, such as Hyperion (one of my all-time favorites), Ilium, Carrion Comfort, Song of Kali and others. His opus spans genres, from science fiction and fantasy to horror, mysteries and thrillers (often within the same novel). His 2007 novel "The Terror" made a (lifelong) fan out of Trin as well.
Drood is being officially released later today (February 9) both in US and UK, and me&Trin are both eager to read it. If you are wondering about the meaning of the word 'Drood'; "The Mysteries of Edward Drood" is the final novel by Charles Dickens that was left unfinished at the time of his death and thus the fate of the main protagonist remains undisclosed. Simmons' "Drood" draws heavily on historical facts about Dickens to create an engaging narrative, but spices it with fictional elements, just as he did with "The Terror". And the word on the street is that it's terrific.

The other interesting news that I've come across - thanks to our fellow blogger Adam (The Wertzone) - is that Paul Kearney signed a deal with Solaris for two more books set in the world of "The Ten Thousand". Early titles are "Corvus" and "Kings of Morning". This sounds very promising, since Kearny will be given a chance to expand on the sometimes scetchy world of the Macth. At the moment I'm reading and enjoying "This Forsaken Earth" which is the sequel to [...]the very decent, but short of brilliant[...] "The Mark of Ran". A bit of advice for those who don't like to start reading unfinished series , the final book in "Sea Beggars trilogy" was written, but never released, due to the fall out with his publisher at the time. The good news is, though, that Kearny's new publisher, Solaris, supports him to finish the project, but they have to wait for the rights to the books that Bantam US is clinging to to expire, before they can give the green light for the final volume which is to be realeased in an omnibus together with the first two books.

Last but not least: a while ago I've written about the fabulous UK cover for "Best Served Cold", the upcoming novel by Joe Abercrombie, one of the most recognizable names of the new wave of epic fantasy writers, due to be released this summer. Every since the US cover leaked out, there have been heated debates over the blogosphere whether they are any good or not (I tend to agree with the argument that the UK cover looks superior by far): A Dribble of Ink: part 1 & part 2, Grasping for the Wind, Fantasy Book News & Reviews, Dark Wolf's Fantasy Reviews, Pat's Fantasy Hotlist to name just a few. Orbit responded to the tirade in this article, revealing all the pruposed covers, giving insight into their creative process and explaining their pick, which is all very considerate and nice, but that doesn't change the fact the cover doesn't look any prettier for it. I might be too harsh to the US cover, I've seen plenty worse, but when you have something to compare it to, well... you can't help but wonder. But I leave you decide for yourself:
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US Cover -------- vs. -------- UK Cover

Eye Candy Covers VIII

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Joe Abercrombie, author of the much acclaimed epic fantasy trilogy "The First Law" (you can read our review of the second book: "Before They Are Hanged"; and the double review of the last book: (1) "The Last Argument of Kings" & (2) "The Last Argument of Kings"), announced the final artwork for the UK version of his forthcoming novel "Best Served Cold" (it's scheduled for an April 2009 release) and if you don't mind me saying: it looks bloody fantastic! Joe is enthused about the artwork as well...

"Best Served Cold" is set in the same world as "The First Law" trilogy, but stands on its own. Judging from the prior trilogy we are up for some great fun! You should be adding this book to your shopping list for the next year...

Joe Abercrombie – Last Argument of Kings (Thrinidir's Book Review)

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Foremost, this is not a double post. The review below was written by my colleague BlindMan and here you are about to read my thoughts on the book. I'm not trying to oppose him or sway you to agree with my views; all this is, is just an alternative side to the story....

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A prime example of a world full of bitter, cynical, world-weary, Machiavellian...you probably see where I’m going?
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Mr. Abercrombie managed to become the most reviewed and talked about fantasy author on the internet chat rooms, blogs, review sites and other related web-pages since his debut effort “The Blade Itself” merely two years ago. I’ll go about this review in good faith that you are already familiar with his first two book in “The First Law” trilogy or that you’ve at least heard or read about Joe Abercrombie – if not, than you can read Trin’s review of “Before They Are Hanged” (the second book of the trilogy) or my article, which I wrote in anticipation of the upcoming release of “Last Argument of Kings”. That being said let me continue with the review.

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“Last Argument of Kings” is the third and final book of “The First Law” series; and what a majestic conclusion it is! The last third of the book is one of the crispiest, refreshing and mind-blowing endings I’ve been privileged to read…ever. But before the gist of this review, let me recap the story briefly (argumentably without much spoiler material).

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---Logen Ninefingers rejoins his friends in the bloody northern campaign set against Bethod – the self proclaimed King of Northmen, after the failed quest for “The Seed” he partook with Bayaz venturing into the furthest reaches of the World. Dogman, Thunderhead, Black Dow, Grim Harding and the rest of the stoic Northmen have some tough battles ahead of them and even hardest lessons to learn. The Union loses its king just before the impeding Gurkish invasion with Mamun, the first apprentice of Prophet Khalul, and his hundred Eaters at the fore. Jezal dan Luthar finds himself stretched between his affliction for Ardee West and his new acquired position. The misshapen Superior Glokta dan Sand has only his guile to keep his head from rolling of his shoulders while juggling several conflicting loyalties he finds himself trapped into. The good mentor Bayaz, First of the Magi, searches for every available means to stand against Mamun and his Eaters. Ferro’s heart remains set on vengeance and its not due to change soon. Last but not least, Major West finds himself in charge of the Union army in the North after the unfortunate demise of Lord Marshal Burr.

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This novel remains epic fantasy to its core, but what a delightfully twisted core it is. Expect the unexpected and bear this in mind – nobody turns out what he appeared to be in the beginning. There are some surprisingly torturous conversions and new revelations along the way, especially when concerning our main protagonists. Logen and the Northmen shine the brightest for the better part of the book. I have to admit that I found the happening in Adua uninteresting at times and some of the chapters concentrating on Jezal, Ferro, Bayaz and even Glokta surprisingly dull and repetitive. Glokta, my personal favorite, wearied me down with his constant and peevish whimpering which actually lost its humorous dark edge for a while. But this all changes drastically when Abercrombie starts to knot the loose threads together in a grand finale. This occurs when the gist of action moves from the North into Adua, where the final cards are played out. Glokta, I’m delighted to say, has some hidden aces up his crooked sleeve, so my irritation and fears were laid to a serene rest.

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“Last Argument of Kings” is not made of diamonds, but it can have its worth measured out in solid gold. If I had a few reservations about the book well into the second half of its length the ending chapters blew them all to dust. The plot is pretty straightforward and the writing quite brash in its simplicity, but that does not detract from novels worth as it gives Abercrombie ample opportunity to polish his other qualities and he succeeds at that with flying colors. I’ll say this though, if you found “The Blade Itself” or even “Before They Are Hanged” not to your liking then stay away from this one – in essence nothing really changes, it only brings gloss to what went before.

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Mr. Abercrombie…Evil Fruitcake (our mascot) approves heartily.

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(4 out of five or a wand-length short of almost perfect - and we are talking a bout a smallish wand)

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~ ThRiNiDiR ~

Joe Abercrombie - Last Argument of Kings (BlindMan's Book Review)

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---Both princes are dead. Countryside is in flames. Adua in an uproar. The king is on his deathbed and a new king needs to be elected. The high and mighty are trying to muster as many votes as they can using any means necessary. And Superior Glokta is one of those recruiting.

---The expedition is back. Seed or no Seed, Jezal is just as happy to be closer to the woman he was dreaming about on the voyage to the end of the world. Confusing as he finds his reputation of a fop changing into a hero overnight Adree's hands keep him occupied enough not to care. In those confusing instances when it happens in front of his very eyes the possible worries are quickly explained away by his wise mentor, the First Disciple Bayaz.

---Ninefingers is home as well, in cold and bloody Northland where war still rages. Back home and back to his old ways. His surviving companions now lead by Dogman are fighting on the side of the Union, gathering the warriors that dislike the new kingdom Bethod wrought. But it's impossible to say who the carls hate more – the self-proclaimed king, or the almost mythic Bloody-Nine returned. Bethold is fighting on his home ground. He dug in his army in strong defensive positions, and only putting all the eggs in one basket might bring him out to attack. It's also quite possible, that this bold plan will turn into desperate last stand...

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Sorry folks, but I can't write this one without at least some small hints at how the things will turn out, so if you haven't read the book yet, you should consider stopping right here.
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*possible spoilers ahead*

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Joe Abercrombie's third book of The First Law trilogy bears the title: Last Argument of Kings. It's a quaint enough quote from the French cannons of old, but truth be told - it could just as well be entitled Life isn't fair. The sentence itself occurs often enough and I can find no better way to describe the overall ambiance of the book. The characters we had thought developing, growing and transmuting in previous books now show their true, flawed self - a bloodthirsty psychopath, spineless romantic, terrified cynic, vengeful sociopath, coldblooded puppeteer… Abercrombie has also decided to forgo the concepts of (just) reward and redemption that are so often found in fantasy literature and rather insists that the only thing that really counts is might and, perhaps, payment for services rendered.
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Revolutionary as this idea might sound, Abercrombie's delivery is not on the level with his previous standards. Throughout the book I could not shake the feeling of a rushed and unpolished job. Characterization that made sure that the characters would grow on us is either gone or shallow. Behavior changes almost in an instant, as if the reader has (in previous two books) read nothing but self-delusions and lies, and when the push came to shove those just disappeared into thin air. But even then the sudden changes would demand more of an explanation or description, not just a simple flip of the switch that Abercrombie seems to employ.
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Book rushes toward the end, trying to describe all that happens and in consequence oversimplifies the human factor. In my opinion, Abercrombie would be better off changing his plans and deciding to write a quadrilogy. The tales could be told entwined around two great events - one in the Northland and another in the city of Adua. That would give him enough room to explore in detail the growth of characters, their 'relapses' or even possible outside (i.e. magical) intervention that may have been the reason behind them.
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What bothered me even more is that while the tale ends, the book brings no true closure. I've tried to make a short inventory of my expectations when it comes to fantasy while writing this review, trying to decide if I've come to expect 'happily ever after' to find such a feeling. As self-serving as it might sound I've came to the conclusion that that's not really the case (yet). I don't know if Abercrombie plans to write more books set in this universe, or even with the same characters (even after writing all this, I still hope that Ninefingers can hold his breath for a REALLY long time), but that is the only explanation I can think of for such an emotionally unresolved ending.
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Last Argument of Kings is an average conclusion after two promising books. It's still an afternoon well spent, but it will probably take away any intention you had of rereading the trilogy after a year or two.

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The number of Fruitcakes I deem this book worthy of is:

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~ BlindMan ~

Joe Abercrombie - Before They Are Hanged (Book Review)

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---If the first novel of The First Law trilogy plummeted into the fantasy genre as a delightfully refreshing and innovative subversion of (epic) fantasy tropes, “Before They Are Hanged” delivers a heightened style into the mix, it also triples the action and multiplies the humor. Simply put– Abecrombie managed to write a rock-hard sophomore effort; and the best of it is that he managed to keep the plot interesting and simple at the same time - skillfully avoiding the danger of making it too dense or convoluted and therefore detract the attention from the biggest strength of the first two books in the trilogy – c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n.
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---Although it did not take him long to put out the sequel of “The Blade Itself”, Abercrombie matured as a writer somewhere in-between the books, learning from the experience of writing “The Blade Itself” and its shortcomings. In the first instalemnt, he acted unsure at some parts of the novel, relying heavily on his (otherwise cracking) sense of humor and at times the story just felt a bit confusing. The humor is as dark and as present as in the first book but even subtler this time around, with Glokta clearly stealing the show displaying his bitter irony and world-weariness. The plot itself evolved somewhat from a light-fantasy fare interwoven with humor and occasional gritty scenes, to a more realistic setting where webs within webs of conspiracies, backstabbing politics, raging battles and endless lust for power flourish. At the same time however, “Before They Are Hanged” still manages to retain the lighter elements of its predecessor. Characters remain realistic and quite unusual, although sometimes a bit stereotypical (prevalently the gentry) – but still a good distance from the typical fantasy geezers I’d say.
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---It might come as a surprise, but Abercrombie doesn’t pay heavy attention to detailed world-building; or at least that’s how it appears at first. The narrative in “Before They Are Hanged” does not baffle the reader with the depictions of land or people, but regardless to that Abercrombie stands triumphant, because the reader easily conjures up in his mind the fictional world of the book down to its grittiest details. The catch is that Joe inserts many simple, but shrewd observations into his characters’ dialogue and uses the occurring events themselves to build up stones, paths, trees, houses and walls and the rest of the surroundings. The final result is a more or less completed image of the world, acquired without having to read through boring descriptions of the world and (sometimes) tedious info-dumps.
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---The one flaw - if you could call it that, of his subtle world-building is that the reader can easily lose track of time. Joe jumps from one scene to another in order to keep the action unabated and manages not to flounder in the hellish tempo of all the activities that are going on. That, unfortunately, costs him a bit when it comes to the perception of the passing of time; the voyage to the end of the world, which takes months, seems to last only about weeks or so. Mind you, I didn’t find this very off-putting, since I read the book in one reading, devouring it in one afternoon – what I want to say is that Abercrombie keeps only the interesting parts and skips the potentially boring ones but it might bother some of you, who enjoy and prefer the process of telling of a story in favor of relatively bare and goal-driven plot.
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---Another fallacy that still plagues Abercrombie's writing is predictability (but that changes with the third book, I can tell you that now :) and unusually so if you consider the unpredictability of a couple of protagonists.
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*minor spoilers ahead*

---For example, Jezal - a high-brow noble with a slight but undeniable potential to become a bearable, if not worthy companion in the first book - now, unsurprisingly, grows into a skilled fighter with a rational touch to everything he does, thus being a bit easier to cope with and maybe being even slightly likable. The situation with Glokta is somewhat similar. He expects to be killed (in one way or another) throughout the book and is so sure of his inevitable demise that he says (monologue) his goodbyes at every possible occasion. If the reader is not completely naïve or a beginner, he doesn’t actually believe in Glokta’s imminent demise It therefore comes as no surprise when Glokta manages to stay alive and ‘well’. But that is actually ok, since he is one of my favorite characters, if not the favorite.

*end of spoilers*

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---“Before They Are Hanged” will not be remembered for its arguably pedestrian plot, neither can it boast with great epic battles or vivid world-building, but it nevertheless holds your unwavering attention up to the end. The book is strong on humor and sharp dialogue, not to mention how it manages to render (rather than avoid) many clichés. It is true that it sometimes feels a bit predictable, but that doesn’t spoil the reading experience at all. Quite on the contrary, “Before They Are Hanged” is one of the more enjoyable fantasy books I’ve read - not to mention the fact that I can hardly remember the last time I laughed so hard and so often while reading a work of fiction. Strongly recommended.
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~ Trin ~

In The Limelight: "The Last Argument of Kings" by Joe Abercrombie

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~ In The Limelight ~

Meaning: At the centre of attention.

Origin: Limelight is an intense white light which is produced by heating a piece of lime in a flame of burning oxygen and hydrogen. The effect was discovered in the 1820s by Goldsworthy Gurney and the application of the process to create a bright light was developed by Thomas Drummond around 1825. It was widely used in 19th century theatres to illuminate the stage and was first used in a public theatre at Covent Garden in London in 1837.

Clearly, actors who were the centre of attention on stage being said to be in the limelight. The figurative use, to people or things that were the centre of attention outside the world of theatre, came into use around the turn of the 20th century. (source)

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We have only a few days more to wait now for the official release of Joe Abercrombie's conclusion to The First Law trilogy, which is one of the most popular fantasy works in progress over the last couple of years. It's a modern take on and the subversion of fantasy clichés, it mocks and reveres them at the same time. The knack at making you have an intense relationship with the characters is the undeniable strongpoint of Abercrombie's writing. He managed to invented some of the most visceral and memorable characters to date with the life weary barbarian Logen Ninefingers and the dashing hero-gone-torturer Sand dan Glokta that shine above others. Abercrombie's ability to make you almost feel each blow that the characters throw at each other as well as making you duck in front of the book during these passages doesn't fall far behind his skill at characterization.

The people who had the privilege to read and review the advanced reading copy (ARC) of "The Last Argument of Kings" all seem to have in common the thought that the conclusion to the trilogy dwarfs its predecessors in quality and scope and give the book perfect scores almost unanimously. At this moment it seems that mr. Abercrombie is one of the rare few who actually managed to improve with each subsequent novel and for the time outdistanced himself from his peer writers (Patrick Rothfuss with his postponed sophomore effort; and Scott Lynch with his sub par sophomore book) by a fair margin.

As I absolutely loved the first two books ("The Blade Itself" and "Before They Are Hanged") I am most eager to get my clutch on "The Last Argument of Kings" which will be released on the twentieth of March. Since I was a bit disappointed by Erikson's "Midnight Tides" and still have two more books to read before "Toll the Hounds" surfaces (30.June); and there is yet no official word from GRRM's publishers on the release of "A Dance With Dragons" (a fall release is the soonest but not the most possible) as well, therefore is this probably my most anticipated realease for the year. And to stir the proverbial cauldron a bit before I stop with my praise galore - It would be no surprise if "The First Law" is conceded the title of the trilogy of this decade in a few years time. Watch out! Joe the cookie mons...hmmm...Joe Abercrombie has just entered the building!

Here are some reviews of "The Last Argument of Kings" to whet your appetite:

Sandstorm Reviews,

A Dribble of Ink,

Graeme's Fantasy Book Review,

The Genre Files,

The Wertzone,

and Pat's Fantasy Hotlist

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~ Thrinidir ~