Joe Abercrombie knocks it out of the park again with his fifth entry into the incredible First Law series. Patreon: / lostindiscovery Twitter: / lost_discovery #firstlaw #theheroes #joeabercrombie
I loved how he switches perspective in that one battle. Following one character till he dies then switching to the character who killed him, so engaging.
My eyes usually glaze over at military stuff, but this book was so intricately plotted and deftly characterised. It didn't let up but it also went through enough peaks and troughs in the action to keep me going without burning out. I think I enjoyed it so much because of how much it changes the world and repositions some of my favourite characters for the Age of Madness, though. And as always, it was bloody hilarious.
I think that's part of why it was so strong.. You can more or less ignore all the military tactics and just enjoy the character's inner struggles and individual arcs.
This is the book that Abercrombie did to show off how good he is. His battle scene are second to non and he can make you more invested in a character with two sentences than other authors in a book. But from the standalone I like red country the most.
Bremer dan Gorst was my favorite His inner dialogue is SO GOOD I loved how it would go from one side to the other mid battle. 3 crazy days in the north
I loved all three First Law standalones, but I think The Heroes was my favorite because of the cast of characters. Glad to hear you loved Gorst as much as I did! I loved being in his head, and it was amazing seeing the results of the incident at Cardotti's from Best Served Cold. I loved Craw too. I feel like he's one of the only half-decent people in this brutal world.
My plan was to read the First Law trilogy at the halfway point of my Wheel of Time read through and today is finally that day! So excited to finally get started on this series. Already on the first Glokta chapter and it’s amazing.
@@tetashome That scene is amazing and hilarious and the way it ties into The Heroes with its repercussions is also amazing. Personally I prefer The Heroes overall as it’s probably Abercrombie’s best work.
Thank you for this. I was so looking forward to your thoughts on The Heroes. I groaned a little when you said spoiler free🙄, however you nailed it despite my concerns. Now I can’t wait to hear the more meatier review. Totally agree, it is indeed a brilliant look at the futility of war/battle. We are thrust onto a tumultuous emotional roller coaster tears, laughter, horror and suspense. It is so good. I still thank you for recommending this author.
So glad I found your channel since I loved this review of one of my favorite books of all time! Absolutely agree about the incredible character work with Gorst and Craw!
these are my favorite books of all time and this book is the one i've read the least. It's still better than everything I've read from the top recommended fantasy authors.
The best thing about this book was the death scene montages in each of the battle scenes. Going from POV to POV as they slaughter each other was so well put together. You develop a kinship to each character, regardless of allegiance, and then Joe just murders each and every one.
I've always thought Bremer was inspired by Mike Tyson (and I'm not alone). He's not massively tall like the mountain. Rather, he has an incredibly powerful build with no neck whatsoever, moves incredibly fast despite his bulk and given that ridiculous speed and power he is able to redefine the way how fighting happens. He also has this high pitched voice.
Glad you liked this one Christian! The Heroes is an interesting one for me. When I first read it, I didn't put in on that same pedestal as Best Served Cold for example. Its on the same level as The Blade Itself (for me). But it may be the one I most look forward to rereading as I'm pretty sure I will like it even more the second time. I adore Gorst. And I'll give a shoutout to my favorite non-POV character Black fuckin' Dow. He rules.
Lol. I just came from your One Piece vids and now I feel stupid suggesting First Law in the comments there XD I have yet to read this, been so lazy this year but this review makes me want to pick it up now!
Despite being my least favorite Abercrombie book it is still a really awesome book. The way it switches from one character to another is so cool i have never seen that in any other book.
There is a scene with both of those characters in a scene (Glokta and Gorst) later on in Joe's 2nd main trilogy where neither is the POV and you're just sitting there like "god I wonder what is going on in their heads right now."
I'm about to finish the Last Argument of Kings and the way you described Brema's inner dialogue just made me think about that character in a whole different way since you don't get his perspective in the main trilogy.
I read an Abercrombie ages ago and didn't enjoy it. Since you're vouching for him I think I shall give him another go. Now I'm not going to watch the rest of the video since I'd like to go in blind. Thanks mate.
No worries man! He has a very distinct tone so if you get a fair way in and still aren't feeling it don't force it on my account. Hopefully you enjoy the books though :)
@@LostinDiscovery I read that Abercrombie book whilst binging on David Gemmell, probably one of my all time favourite authors, so I think that may have tainted my initial opinion. I trust your opinion though. I've committed to buying and trying at least one novel, start to finish, I'm just reading up on where to start then I'm going for it 🤣 I'm always on the hunt for a fantasy fix.
I am reading before they are hanged and I am hooked. Can't wait to read the rest of them. Also I heard The First Law is a trilogy. So does that mean that the best served cold and heroes are prequels?
Full Reading Order: The Blade Itself Before They Are Hanged Last Argument of Kings Best Served Cold The Heroes Red Country Sharp Ends (Short Story Collection) A Little Hatred The Trouble with Peace The Wisdom of Crowns 😎
Have you ever read Sharp Ends? The Short Story Collection? They are so good, i definetly recommend it. You also get more of Curden Craw which is one of my favorite characters so far, maby just below ninefingers (i have read the original trilogy and all the standalones, i have not read Age of Madness yet) i honestly hope we get some more short stories or novellas with Curden Craw as the POV i love that character so much
I loved "The Heroes" Is this the best of Abercrombie.....Damn you Abercrombie....I also love ..."Best Served Cold "....Abercrombie you really are a Grimdark Lord....You dare to make me choose between these two books......Ha....I say Abercrombie is the Grimdark Lord.....
In the heat of the battle: GORST! GORST! GORST! GORST! GORST! He discovers he's alone and everyone around him is dead, puts his head down, and walks back to camp. No. No heroics were performed Sir.
I’ve seen that a lot of people think that this is the worst stand alone and I don’t understand why. This book is awesome. Love how much Black Dow was in it. He seemed more intelligent in this book, and I also found myself really liking Calder as well whereas before I didn’t care at all about him. Tho to be fair I sorta felt that way about shivers before best served cold. A weird thing I found also was that in the first trilogy I figured that because you can read gloktas thoughts, was the main reason people like him so much. If you couldn’t, he’d just seem like a sicko. But for me it was the opposite effect with Bremer dan Gorst in this book. I thought he was an absolute g in the trilogy, especially by the end with the eaters and shit. He was so loyal. But reading his thoughts made me realize that even if someone is cool they might still be fucked in the head. Gorst was a selfish and horny asshole in this book. But I loved it because it didn’t feel like his character changed because he still acted like he would’ve before around other people, but with the context of his thoughts it just brings him into a new light for me. I was also pleased to find out that the guy that shivers pushed in Cardottis was in-fact him. I had been wondering about that since that scene in best served cold lol
A huge mountain of a guy with a high pitched voice???!!! Pfft-- OH my gosh. Ohhh my gosh! This reminds me so much of... Pfft-- 😂🤣🤣 Just you wait. In One Piece.. UwU
(Spoiler, I'll try to keep it vague) The hardest I've laughed out loud at a line of dialog in a book is when Finree says, “Well. At least you say what you really think.”
So a few months back I had an idea for a novel that was a single siege taking place in three days, one day being one act. Guess who was both disappointed and happy when he finally read the Heroes.
