Lee Hunts

I just finished reading Red Country by Joe Abercrombie. This is the ninth novel of Abercrombie's that I have read, leaving only the Sharp Ends collection remaining. And I'm not motivated to go to that one, so we'll see when that happens. This book is inspired by Westerns. The premise is quite simple: Shy South returns home to find that her younger siblings have been kidnapped, their caretaken killed. So, she sets out with her cowardly stepfather to track down the man responsible. The largest appeal here is the character cameos, which I cannot mention without spoilers. This book is definitely my least favorite of the nine that I have read. I found the characters to be less interesting except for a few, and the plot and setting did not compensate to my liking. Additionally, my reading experience was rather split. I was rather detached from everything in the beginning, but I actually grew to like everything as the story continued. Despite the low ratings for Abercrombie, I sti...

I just finished reading The Heroes, which is the second standalone novel written by Joe Abercrombie. This book is an account of three days of battle over a hill between the forces of the North, led by Black Dow, and the forces of the Union. The book is not plot driven, but rather focuses on the characters and the theme over the course of this very short period. Overall, the book is good. I don't think this one is near the top of my rankings for Abercrombie, especially surprising because I knew this one was a favorite among fans, but the book was still enjoyable, all around. Overall (No Spoilers) I think Whirrun of Bligh is my favorite character in the story. The audiobook gave him more or less the same voice as Casca, which made me draw a connection, though I'm not sure there are many more parallels. Either way, the voice was perfect. And the fight he has in the latter part of the book was both unexpected and amazing. I'm conflicted about how it ended, but not because I dis...

I just finished The Wisdom of Crowds, which is the third book in the Age of Madness trilogy, by Joe Abercrombie. As such, this book concludes the narrative that began in A Little Hatred and picks up in the immediate aftermath of The Trouble with Peace. What follows is a tense and epic tale mirroring key historical events that I won't mention for the sake of keeping this spoiler free. The Weaver's plans have finally kicked into gear, and now we get to the frenzied climax and the resulting horror of his actions. This book was quite simply amazing. I think it brought Abercrombie's best trilogy to a close. Overall (No Spoilers) Almost everything that I have to say about this story is positive. I'm not sure that there are any negatives at all, though I might have a nitpick here and there. The best part of the story, of course, is how everything comes together in the end. This book concludes the trilogy, ending the story in a manner that I felt was perfect. I will have to sav...

I just finished reading Best Served Cold, by Joe Abercrombie, which is his take on the . . . you guessed it . . . romance story. As such, the book opens with the main character being betrayed, her brother being killed, and then her being thrown off a mountain to her death. Her survival was a miracle, and from there she plots her revenge, swearing to take down seven men that were present at the time of her betrayal. This book is similar to Before They Are Hanged in that there is a ragtag team of people who all hate each other at the center of the story, struggling to work out their differences. The change is that these people all have prior histories, and one's filled with betrayal and killing, adding an interesting backdrop to the story. I really enjoyed this story. From beginning to end, I was engaged, and despite the revenge story structure being straightforward, the story is unpredictable and fun, with Abercrombie's twists on the story making it only better. Overall (No Spoi...

I just finished reading The Trouble with Peace, which is the second book in the Age of Madness Trilogy by Joe Abercrombie. This book picks up right where A Little Hatred left off, in the aftermath of the war and uprising that took place in the aftermath of the previous book. The book, as the name suggests, is about the peacetime, and also the problems that surface which drive us right back to war. The directions that the characters go are unpredictable and exciting, and the climax of the story makes the set up well worth it. I have not read any of his stand alone novels, but based on what I remember of the original trilogy and the first of this trilogy, I think this is my favorite Abercrombie novel that I have read to date. The character work is amazing, as ever, and there was a strong plot that drove the story forward from beginning to end. Overall (No Spoilers) The final climactic confrontation is by far my favorite part of the story. But, the nature of the sequence prevents me from ...