It doesn’t last, sure, but the titular argument of Abercrombie’s latest takes a stab at determining why. The grim conclusion is that taking sides in governing a nation – even if it’s crystal clear that one is trying to ‘do the right thing’ – is that it’s going to lead to dangerous division and potential war.

Ask Orso, a ne’er-do-well prince who finds himself crowned King far earlier than he had imagined. He grew up thinking his father was a terrible King as there was nothing that seemed to get done. But as Orso settles into the role, he realizes that keeping a delicate balance of power between all the nobles of the Open and Closed Councils as well as the true power players behind the curtain is the real challenge of his kingly duties. A good king is a king that manages to keep the peace, even if terrible sacrifices must be made from the less fortunate sect of society to appease the wealthier side. It’s a terribly unfair system, but such is the nature of power and wealth.

The straw that breaks the camel’s back is a case of rape and murder from a member of the Open Council, who is also the son of one of the most powerful nobles in the country. The rapist and murderer’s act was witnessed by fourteen citizens in a tavern, clear as day, and should be an open-and-shut case in court. Orso’s judgment should be quick and merciless for such a vile criminal. But the machinations of nobles aren’t to be underestimated, and a long-simmering hatred of Orso’s family has turned this case into an opportunity for treachery and mutterings of a coup.

Orso’s story is Adua is one of three stories that eventually merge. We also jump back into Angland, visiting our old friends Leo, Rikke, Clover, The Great Wolf, and various other Northmen and Anglanders who are itching for action. And across the continent, Vick is working some political magic while investigating some rebel groups who might turn the tide in a coming war. Each story shows a different perspective from different levels of society at what peace means, and what drives a person to fight.

And there is fighting. It couldn’t be an Abercrombie book without a The Little People chapter, a chain of POVs that depicts the horrors of war as the reader leaps between one minor character’s point-of-view to another.

This one has it all. The Trouble with Peace is a quintessential Abercrombie story that draws pieces from all seven First Law novels before it. It features all your returning favorites: trademark humor, horrifying violence, grim wisdom, and an ending that will leave you craving for more. At this point, would you expect anything less?

When I read A Little Hatred, the first volume in Joe Abercrombie’s new saga, I had not yet fulfilled the long-standing promise to myself to read his First Law trilogy, yet still I managed to enjoy the new story very much, despite missing the connection with past events and characters contained in the previous books. Now that I have managed to catch up with that past, I am finally able to appreciate all the subtler nuances of story and characterization that make this world one of the best creations in the genre. And what an amazing journey this was!

As the title suggests, peace is not an enduring status in the Circle of the World: the political scene in the Union is still in flux and the newly named king Orso finds himself hemmed in between the rock of social unrest and the hard place of his own advisory council, whose disdain for his ruling abilities is barely concealed. Savine dan Glockta lost much of her prestige after the harrowing experiences of the Breakers’ revolt, and her need to regain the standing she enjoyed compels her to make alliances whose wisdom might not survive the harsh light of day. Leo dan Brock, Lord Governor of Angland - the buffer state between the Union and the “barbaric” North - still pines for triumphs and glorious battles and is far too easily drawn into a dangerous conspiracy by shrewd politicians harnessing his brawn in service of their subtly nefarious brains.

Things are hardly better in the North, where the self-declared king Stour Nightfall is bent on attacking again the Union to expand his territories, meanwhile bolstering his rule through violence and cruelty, not only against opponents but also against those of his own men foolish enough to raise objections. As a first step he sets again his sights on Uffrith, the domain of the Dogman, where Rikke, the old hero’s daughter, is trying to come to terms with her prescient gift - the Long Eye - and is ready to undergo the most harrowing of rituals to harness that power and put it to the service of her people.

This is the bare-bones premise from which The Trouble With Peace takes flight, developing into a tale of convoluted political schemes, social unrest, conspiracies, revolution and, above all, an engrossing examination of the human soul filtered through conflicting desires and shameful or tragic paths. Where the action scenes remain among the most engagingly cinematic I ever encountered - alternatively focusing on heroic feats and very human moments of pure terror and cowardice - Joe Abercrombie’s storytelling shines the brightest when he shapes his characters, be they the main ones or the secondary figures, who get just as much attention and detail as everyone else, contributing to the richness of the narrative canvas. A shining example of this careful design comes from the portrayal of a bloody act of sabotage that is relayed several times from the point of view of a number of different people: the repetition of events helps to create a three-dimensional picture not just of the fact itself, but of the societal medium in which it happens and the way its members figure into it.

What’s most extraordinary in this story is that the moral ambiguity of the characters works both ways, with no clear definition of right or wrong, and the main examples of this grey area are King Orso and Leo dan Brock: while the narrative focus is on either one of them, it’s easy for the reader to sympathize with him, to see his reasons or at least to understand where they come from, but once the point of view shifts to the other one, the same happens, making us realize that truth and righteousness are simply a matter of perspective. Both characters have their merits, narratively speaking, because if on one side Orso seems to grow into his role, finding strength and the foundations of his role through the troubles he has to deal with,

He sometimes could hardly face breakfast, was alarmed by the notion of choosing a shirt, but epic disaster appeared to have finally brought out the best in him.

on the other Leo comes across as an ultimately tragic character, one who is driven by high ideals toward a very dangerous, very uncertain path.

Savine dan Glokta’s journey continues on the controlling and manipulative trail that was her peculiar modus operandi from book 1, but a part of her ruthless self did get lost during the Breakers’ tumults and the traumatic experiences she endured, so it appears here as if she lost both the edge and the keen foresight that once allowed her to be always five moves ahead of her opponents. Despite a constant show of willpower, and a relentless drive that propels her toward any goal, it’s clear that some key element of her personality is now missing, exposing her to fate’s vagaries in an unprecedented way.

Rikke’s character arc, on the other hand, moves in the opposite direction: from the half-savage, tormented girl plagued by unwanted and uncontrollable visions of the future, she grows here into her own woman - and one ready to pay the price necessary to harness her gift and turn it into the tool she needs to lead her people. She became my favorite character in this book, both for the combination of strength and gallows humor that allows Abercrombie’s peculiar narrative style to shine even more, and for the way she transforms into a crafty leader, the perfect embodiment of this world’s survivor, one who knows that shrewd manipulation and back-stabbing politics are the best weapons she can wield.

If the main protagonists do indeed carry the story on their proverbial backs, the secondary figures are just as fascinating, offering complementary points of view and enhancing the sense of full immersion created by the novel: Caul Shivers, Broad, Isern-i-Phail or Vick dan Teufel - just to name a few - enjoy their own share of the limelight, adding depth to the events being carefully built before our own eyes, and the biggest surprise, toward the end of the book, comes exactly from two of those “lesser” players. As the novel seems ready for an epilogue, with the narrative threads brought to what looks like a neat wrap-up that made me wonder if this was not set as a duology, the end is carried by two of those secondary figures - one from the previous trilogy and one from the newest arc - whose actions open the door to what promises to be an amazing, gloriously devastating finale I can hardly wait for.

Thankfully, I still have the stand-alone books in this saga to sustain me while I bide my time…

Rating: 10/10

Thank you to Will, Patricia and Gollancz for sending me an ARC. I was provided an ARC for my honest thoughts, and all thoughts expressed in this review are my opinion.

The Trouble With Peace is the aptest and accurate title to ever describe this book of such magnitude. I finished this in one day (apparently I can consume 500 pages but not 700!) and I am amazed. Not only at the technicality of keeping numerous events in this massive world from not veering off the chart, but through the way Joe has managed to keep such a complex style of politics simple! I was immersed in the politics of the Union a lot more than I expected to be. I wasn’t expecting to relate with so many characters. Be it a politician, a wounded veteran (and there’s a lot of them) and scared soldiers (also a lot of them), and young recruits. This is no small world. This is a very big world, a very complex world, and keeping in-check of all the politics reminds me of so many historical parallels, and at one point when I read industrial, I thought, the wait is this the fantasy version of Anno 1800?

The dialogue is engaging, not a moment is wasted at all. The world-building is well done. I’m caring more about the world-building than I am before. It feels like this takes all the fantasy stuff and gives it a fresh coat of paint. There’s no part I didn’t enjoy. Though while I’d wish to reveal the story, I’m keeping it non-spoiler because there’s a lot of stories here. It’s def continuing from book 1 but here’s the thing. It doesn’t feel grim-dark. You can get into this book if you haven’t read book 1 (Spoilers! Go read Book 1, its amazing! xD). But let me tell you which characters I liked and which I didn’t like the most.

I loved Orso’s development of maturity across his arc, but I did feel that he was too stubborn sometimes. Orso in my opinion has the most interesting characteristic of any King out there. I like his regal stance, his cleverness, his ability to adapt to situations that are thrown across his way. Orso represents in some kind of way, the Charles I of Austria-Hungary in WW1. Cue the historical context: In WW1, the Austro-Hungarian Empire was pretty much a corpse shackled it’s to a competent ally, Germany. It was corrupt, it was broken internally, having to house so many nationalities (A theme you will def find in this book a lot.), and the passing away of Franz Joseph in 1916 caused a tremendous blow to the Empire internally.

Charles had a useless general named Conrad that practically would have been a better commander in the Imperial German Army than the Austrian Army. The Austrians were completely unprepared for WW1, and they were taking the brunt of aggressive Russian attacks, especially the Brusilov Offensive that shattered the morale and backbone of the Austrian army. Charles inherited the throne of Austria but soon it went bascially something like this: A lot of his subjects revolted against him, and then declared independence. Charles was trying to keep the Empire united and tried to negotiate Austria Hungary’s exit from WW1 but the allies were having none of it. Charles even went and allowed the Empire to transform into a federal union. Boom. Independence. Bu the end of 1918, Hungary declared independence, Croats, Serbs, Czechoslovakia were just parts of the empire that broke away. Charles had to renounce participation but was soon dethroned by the Austrian Parliament in April 1919, and exiled to Switzerland. He was then, if I remember, exiled to the Portuguese colony of Madeira, after his second attempt at reclaiming the throne.

This is why I am finding comparisons between Orso and Charles of Austria. I’d say this is the alternate version of Charles in a fantasy context. This is what if, he was giving breathing room to expand his power perhaps? I’ve been watching a lot of series of WW1 episodes from the Great War (a great history youtube channel done by Time Ghost) that show and demonstrate the complexities of politics within WW1. While of course, the combat is medieval in many senses, it reminded me of Pike and Shot warfare quite a lot. Austria-Hungary is neglected out of the study I find, and its a perfect way for authors to pick inspiration from. Bear in mind, this is what came to my mind when I read the first opening chapter.

As for Savine, I didn’t agree with many of the decisions she made. But I cannot help but admire her cunningness. Her ability to manipulate and betray. She is cruel, vindictive, yet brave, solid and a strong lady that knows what she wants. I just feel that she needs to get out of these lands and start fresh. A new empire maybe. She reminds me of Catherine of Russia for one and Empress Theodora of Byzantium. Her father has the wittiest lines that you will be mind-blown at. And Bayaz. I feel this guy needs an entire series of his own. He’s such an interesting character I wished to see more of him. I also liked Clover and his ability to see the situations four steps ahead of everyone else. There are so many characters you’ll love it. And Leo. A bit prejudiced, but he is an innocent man that I feel that he needs to go away from fighting and start a new life. He needs to see whether he can become mature or not.

The action in this book is not as action-packed. I however feel that’s good. It shows the politics and the characters that make those moves. That said, I did want to see more scenes of Orso a lot more. I felt more related to him. I do feel that Savine’s time with Zuri could maybe have been shorter. I also feel that Joe pretty much covered the rest of the story – but maybe some more distinguishing between the Open and Closed Council would also add some more elements. I feel there needs to be a map because this world is big. I wanted to look at a world map and see where Joe referenced other nations, other people. Because he does a lot. There was an Arabic inspired world, and he referenced that character from there. I do wish we will start to see more of the world from other culture’s perspectives as well.

I do wonder if dragons exist in this universe. Plenty of characters, plenty of politics, and it sets things up nicely for the third novel. I just felt by the end, I knew the story, it picked up the pace so well I was like, no. No. No! There was more! There was more to this! And it finished quickly. Just when it got right there. A real cliff-hanger. It’s a lot to summarise, but I enjoyed this story a lot. A total of 10/10 from me. Great novel. Great stuff

And we're back again!

To say The First Law universe is deserving of all accolades so by far an understatement. Joe Abercrombie delivers some of the best prose in fantasy as he somehow brilliantly infuses this grim world on the brink of an Industrial Revolution with a steady stream of witty banter. This sequel to A Little Hatred is what dreams are made of.

The world is as detailed as ever, and as vividly realised. The Trouble With Peace feels like it went back to it's roots. If you loved The Blade itself, you're going to love this sequel. War has broken out once again and the two enemies are not who you would ever expect. The portrayal of a border region, laced through with the scars of old conflicts, is both affecting and effective. Old friends can become foes on the toss of a coin here, and people are struggling. It is one of the most highly anticipated fantasy books of 2020 and whether you’re already acquainted with this world or not, (uhhh you better read start from the beginning!) there’s a good reason for that. Strong writing, characters that jump off the page, great pace and an ending that leaves you wanting more. What more can I say.

I read a copy of The Trouble With Peace via ARC provided by the publisher for an honest review.

It's difficult for anyone to take my First Law reviews at face value because they know that I am a huge Joe Abercrombie fan. What they might not know is that I can be extremely subjective when I put on the "book review goggles." And that's what were going to do here.

The Trouble With Peace picks up not long after the end of A Little Hatred and continues to develop this next generation of First Law characters Abercrombie formed there. What is different this go around versus what we saw last time is those characters take the spotlight. The classic characters that remain are very much tertiary characters this go around and it feels like the torch has been sufficiently passed without ever disrespecting those beloved characters.

But if you think you had the story direction figured out for this new trilogy in A Little Hatred, I'm here to tell you to throw those expectations out of the window. This book has the usual levels of shock, death, gore, explicit content, and "oh my god!" twists, but it's some of the POV character decisions this time that are surprising. It's nothing new in a Joe Abercrombie book to say you can't distinguish who is good or who is bad, but this go around the characters are so grey you might need to turn on an extra light while you read.

Rikke, Leo, and Savine have crazy character arcs this go around that I certainly didn't expect to see go the way that they did. Whereas Clover, VIck, and Broad continue to evolve from the characters that were established before. And, if you even have to ask, the body count is high.

Some Easter eggs for longtime First Law fans will be noticeable early. For the "should I read the standalone books?" crowd, Best Served Cold is almost required reading for this one to fully grasp who some of these characters are. But in the end, if A Little Hatred wasn't really your bag, this probably won't be the book to change your mind. If you're all in on this world Joe has created, it'll feel like putting back on that favorite pair of faded blue jeans.