Joe Abercrombie, as I have seen, some people’s favorite author and they love every page that he writes. For me, I was not the biggest of fans. A quick overview of the story: a religious man gets selected to lead a secret 13th branch of the religion which oversees The Devils, a name given to those that have broken the rulings of the church beyond the average means, such as being a werewolf, or a Black Art Magician. Their task is to travel across Europe to the city of Troy and bring the Princess to her Throne. The Europe that I mention is an alternate timeline where the religion is run by females, the Savior was a woman, and instead of a crucifix its a wheel/circle. The novel had heart, comedy, and action scene to fill anyone’s cup. Not only that but the book has multiple POVs, and we got to see inside the head of every member of this brigade. It had the makings of an excellent read, but for me it just did not land.

The Bad

Something that I saw in the reviews for this book is that it is funny. And there are a lot of jokes within the story, and it just felt too much for me. It felt like every scene had a joke in it, either by something someone said or whatever the character was thinking. There were these heart felt scenes that we would learn about the traumatic past of a character and then someone would say something and the moment was gone. I understand that can be how life is but for every single moment? Two characters kiss and then one just vomits all over the floor, which is funny but it got tiring every single time. I think what made me mad the most was that this is a weird group of people put together, each so strong in how they were written but they were all a punchline and it just chipped away at the foundations of each character, each plot point, and it removed me from the story a lot. If you like humor and when everyone is a jerk and get under each other’s skin, then this is for you. Its not badly written or even badly thought out but I am just not the one for this type of writing.

Another thing that frustrated me was the characterization. Now hear me out, they are The Devils so they are deemed the villains of the Holy Church but my gods, only two of them had any actual growth. No matter how many times their backs were against the wall or times they thought their lives were over, they just stayed the same. The novel started so strong, each character felt so different and flawed, which is what helped me sink my teeth into it, but they just stayed there. One character was the loudest with their thoughts and I thought they would be the most to change and I was sadly disappointed. In addition there were such abrupt transitions, where character would have a heart felt convo and then the next chapter would start and it had been a week that passed, and we have to use context clues to see what happened after. I know there is limited space but I would have rather had one less battle and more growth and conversation between the group.

My last thing was the plot events, plot twists, and the like were predictable for me. The pacing was quick, seeming to jump days, in the matter of a few pages, so we lost a little of the in-between material leaving the novel to really rely on these big events and big reveals to keep going forward. Because of that there became a rhythm of travel, fight, reveal, connect and then start over again. So by the end I was just ready for the next reveal that the plot twists at the end I felt well before they happened.

The Good

The fighting sequences were superb. Everything felt so detailed and thought out and was just fun. It felt like I stepped into a video game where I was overpowered and slowly started losing my health but remembered all of my abilities and then crush the opponents. Each character was showcased in each battle (for the most part) because of the multiple POV and it was fun. Jumping from the Magician to the Werewolf was abrupt but it broke up the slog of a fight and gave us a chance to see how special each person was.

Joe Abercrombie does a great job setting a scene. From the religious warfare and political intrigue, I knew what was going on. I knew who Alex was, and I loved her from the start. I also understood who Brother Diaz is and grew to love him as the story progressed. These two characters were similar in having dreams, being offered something unexpected and I was with them every literal step of the way. Though the other characters were important, the story revolved around Alex and Diaz and their travels impacted them.

In addition Abercrombie did a great job with thinking of plot holes and did a great job covering them up and making sure everything was sound. I would give a specific but I want to avoid spoilers but know things were very interesting and everything felt tied up.

Rating

A strong 3 star book. I liked my time with it, I laughed and rolled my eyes but it is not something I will likely pick back up for a re-read.

Zero tears from me.

Final Thoughts

I liked this book but I did not love it. I see where this book has its market and its people that are going to love it. Those that like funny, action packed, fast moving, motely crew will fall in love with this book. The story was captivating and had me turning each page but it was not until the end that I felt at the edge of my seat and it was only for a short moment.

I enjoyed my time with The Devils and I know there are people out there that will love this book a lot and I even know a few I would recommend this too.