Halfway through 2025, I can safely say that The Devils by Joe Abercrombie is the best book I’ve read so far this year. It’s a laugh-out-loud, character-driven fantasy with harrowing action, massive set pieces, brutal betrayals, and a bittersweet ending. In other words, it’s classic Abercrombie. I was hooked after the first chapter. Maybe even…
In preparation for a recent vacation that included several days in Bavaria, I read The Ludwig Conspiracy by German author Oliver Pötzsch. The novel concerns the mysterious death of King Ludwig II of Bavaria in 1886. Ludwig, known sometimes as “Mad King Ludwig” or the “Fairy-tale King,” built some of the most eccentric and fantastical…
I really enjoyed Richard Swan’s Empire of the Wolf series, so I was eager to read Grave Empire, which is set in the same world, albeit hundreds of years later. While it doesn’t quite match the gripping quality of the earlier trilogy, Grave Empire presents an intriguing premise and shows promise as the new series…
Everything comes to an epic, violent conclusion in Joe Abercrombie’s Last Argument of Kings, the final book in his First Law Trilogy. This book is the most spectacular in the series, wrapping up—for the most part—the two main plotlines and a myriad of subplots. Some of these conclusions are quite satisfying; others, not so much….
On a long plane ride back from Africa, I had the chance to finish Camelot by Giles Kristian. This completes my journey through his trilogy of historically based Arthurian novels, even though I read them out of order—mistakenly beginning with Arthur. All three were excellent, and I’m honestly torn about which of them is my…
I began Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie as soon as I finished the first book in his First Law Trilogy, The Blade Itself. Book 2 picks up shortly after the events of the first and offers much more insight into the fascinating history of Abercrombie’s world. Before They Are Hanged has a more…
After finishing Arthur by Giles Kristian, I dove straight into Lancelot, his first book based on Arthurian legends. Written in the first person from Lancelot’s point of view, it offers the most unique portrayal of the famous warrior I’ve come across, along with a fresh take on his love story with Guinevere. Nearly half the…
It’s been almost twenty years since The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie was first published. I had seen it on the shelves of my local Barnes & Noble for years but only got around to reading it this past December. I found it to be an odd yet entertaining entrée into his First Law Trilogy,…
Three weeks into the New Year, I’ve made good progress on the sequel to The Fae Dealings, my first story rooted in the legends of King Arthur, Merlin, and Morgana le Fae. In the process, I had the pleasure of finishing Arthur by Giles Kristian as part of my research. Suffice it to say, I…
Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence is an intriguing grimdark fantasy with the most extreme antihero I’ve encountered in fantasy literature.
A hectic work month has set me back in keeping up with this blog, but I have a brief reprieve this week, just long enough to write a review of a recently finished novella, The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss. This is the first book I’ve ever read that warns readers they…