Finally, the Age of Madness comes to an end! With civil war, revolution and bloody cunning, the world of the First Law is finally brought into a new era with The Wisdom of Crowds.
Picking up almost immediately after the events of The Trouble With Peace we return to the Union in the aftermath of the pulse pounding events of the recent civil discord, only to find more civil discord awaits! King Orso has arrived home expecting his subjects to fete him as a hero, instead he finds a sullen population who seem to hate him more than ever. From political favorite to disgraced traitor, Leo dan Brock doesn't know whether he can expect execution or imprisonment. His wife, Savine dan Brock nee Glokta, is in much the same straights, waiting for the fates of her children to be decided.
In the far north Rikke of the Long Eye must now match wits with the cunning Black Calder, all while having to depend on the loyalty of the most disloyal man in the North, Jonas Clover.
Once again Abercrombie brings his dark and humorous take on the world to the fore, and he does it in a few surprising ways. Some uplifting, others very potently disturbing. There are revolutions, battles, and terrifying leaps of faith. Here we explore the darker side of national mass movements, and see a few familiar notes from history, and with some familiar sinister characters from the events of A Little Hatred.
In truth, much as I love Abercrombie, I came away both awed and a little disappointed by this book. It is still a stellar read which ties all the characters together, and explores the power of shared trauma and deadly political intrigue, but it seems to set up more subtle hints for the future than it does resolve major issues for the here trilogy as a whole. I did appreciate though, how well the characters grew and changed, and just how downright ruthless many of their actions became. It made for an amazing reversal of where so many started, and a very tragic end for some.
That being said, the reveals for the overarching mystery of this trilogy were amazing, and some of the final scenes left me slack jawed in how powerfully they were written! The twists must be read to be believed! It also gave a rather terrifying vision for the future of this story, and one I sincerely hope is eventually investigated!
A solid ending to a good trilogy.
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