Synopsis:
Superior Glokta has a problem. How do you defend a city surrounded by enemies and riddled with traitors, when your allies can by no means be trusted, and your predecessor vanished without a trace? It’s enough to make a torturer want to run – if he could even walk without a stick.
Northmen have spilled over the border of Angland and are spreading fire and death across the frozen country. Crown Prince Ladisla is poised to drive them back and win undying glory. There is only one problem – he commands the worst-armed, worst-trained, worst-led army in the world.
And Bayaz, the First of the Magi, is leading a party of bold adventurers on a perilous mission through the ruins of the past. The most hated woman in the South, the most feared man in the North, and the most selfish boy in the Union make a strange alliance, but a deadly one. They might even stand a chance of saving mankind from the Eaters. If they didn’t hate each other quite so much.
Ancient secrets will be uncovered. Bloody battles will be won and lost. Bitter enemies will be forgiven – but not before they are hanged.
Review:
Say one thing about Joe Abercrombie, say he knows how to write stories.
I only read my first Joe Abercrombie book last month and was blown away by how unique it was. Joe has, like the best fantasy and sci-fi authors, torn up the rule book for how to write a story and carved out his own rules so that it will forever remain even as Bayaz, The First of the Magi goes back to the mud, eventually.
I found that while I really enjoyed The Blade Itself, fascinated by the aforementioned unique style and the well loved characters that it felt like a set-up book. Not much plot to go by and mainly character introductions, stories and personalities being drawn out from the pages. Before They Are Hanged continues the fantastic characters and style, building on it with just a hint of plot. It’s just enough to show you the book is going somewhere and it’s all that is needed since the stakes for the characters get bigger and they themselves get deeper.
Before They Are Hanged is a direct continuation of The Blade Itself and continues with the same characters, I don’t think adding any new POVs but does add new secondary characters who are actually almost as interesting as the main characters which is quite a feat since they don’t get as much time on the page as the main characters yet still manage to make an impact in your imagination.
I have to say that I really enjoyed or maybe appreciated is the right word, the introduction of a thicker plot to the story. It isn’t needed because the characters are brilliant but it really complimented Joe’s creations that I knew what they were trying to achieve on a wider scale, which in turn definitely turned this from a good 4* book to a phenomenal 5* book.
The characters are the main highlight of this series so far and this book doesn’t let you down. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to learn more about the characters and their personalities, even finding that my previous favourite, San Dan Glokta, now has a rival in Colonel West. I don’t know what it is about West but I didn’t like him lots in the first book (more than Jezal mind you) but in this he became one of the two POVs I couldn’t wait to read more about. Other characters also got better for me. Ferro with her rough attitude, Jezal with his pompousness and even Quai with his meekness all changed. Ferro became someone who was just trying to survive to get revenge, Jezal showed himself as being scared and out of his depth prompting sympathy and Quai had grown into quite the apprentice, occasionally showing that he knew information above his station. This growth stood out for me because he is probably the POV that gets the least amount of talking time yet I felt his growth was one of the biggest, even if it wasn’t displayed on the page.
This book not only developed the plot and characters, but the worldbuilding and lore. I found that I was treated to more information about the magic in this world, the laws, the creation of the world and more areas to explore. I loved seeing stuff involving an Eater because this is, for me, unorthodox magic. Now that’s a terrible term to use but what I mean is that the magic in this book is raw and undefined, it’s not magic wands and spells. It’s a magic that is not fully understood and in a way that has its own appeal.
There are some page-turning sections in this book which I loved. I especially liked the parts involving San Dan Glokta and his defence of the city against the Gurkish emperor. It was exciting, interesting, tense and fun. I wanted Glokta to do something rash and cause a scene and of course he didn’t disappoint but somehow manages to get out of the mess unscathed, even showing some heart.
I listened to the audiobook of this one and read the physical at the same time because I have ADHD and find it hard to concentrate sometimes. I found the immersive experience fantastic again and Steven Pacey is so talented as a voice artist that without him providing voices to the characters I can only dread what they might have sounded like in my brain. From aggression to sexual noises, accents to fighting, he does it all professionally and with vigour. This book is all the better for having Steven narrate it.
This is the middle book in a series that is now over 14 years old. This is a middle book that doesn’t just prod along the story or characters until the final book like some other middle books and instead raises the stakes, digs deeper into the world and paints more colour into the characters, further bringing them to life.
Say one thing about Joe Abercrombie, say he knows how to write stories.
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