Having once again fallen into chaos, the Circle of the World returns to the Age of Madness as though the wars have been won for now, Joe Abercrombie shows us that an absence of conflict can be as much of a problem itself. This is indeed The Trouble With Peace.
Picking up almost directly after the end of A Little Hatred we once again join our new cast of characters in the world of the First Law. Leo dan Brock is basking in the victories he has achieved in the last novel, Savine dan Glokta is alternating between her life collapsing around her and making something of herself, Prince Orso is finding terrifying new responsibilities while feeling stuck in a moribund power structure, Rikke struggles with the Long Eye, Broad doesn't know whether he is a man of peace or war, Vick struggles with her role in the Union, and Clover is trying to stay alive beneath the capricious and violent shadow of Stour Nightfall.
I admit to not quite knowing what to think going into this book. It raised the stakes in a way I hadn't seen used by Abercrombie before. He wasn't giving us any indication of an imminent war at the end of the last book, the status quo seemed to be god. Of course, by the end of the first third of the book that's all been thrown out the window as men's ambitions are never satiated!
This book was, compared to much of Abercrombie's other work, a sort of slow burn. The machinations of our protagonists built over time, and the results definitely took time to get to the payoff. The final act of this book though, was spectacular, but more on that in a moment.
Savine dan Glokta, Leo dan Brock, and Prince Orso arguably took center stage for this piece. They had the most view point issues by far, and over all, managed to drive the plot almost in spite of the presence of other characters. I do think that this series has, overall, shaped up to almost be about the main characters of Savine, Leo, Orso, and Rikke, with the others being more of a supporting cast to these four characters machinations.
That said, this book was the most political and bathed in conspiracy and backstabbing since arguably Last Argument of Kings and Best Served Cold, and it had many call outs to Best Served Cold which absolutely endeared it to me. Those two books contained some of Abercrombie's best pushes towards political backstabbing and personal vengeance, as well as amazing battle scenes. Though The Trouble With Peace is a lot less bloody than those two, it doesn't disappoint when it comes to battles or treachery. The slow burn plot does an excellent job of giving us reasons to root for both sides of the emerging battle lines, and it makes it quite impressive as the two factions end up coalescing around various characters, and the lengths each character is willing to go to because each character believes so firmly in their cause.
I believe that this book works well because A Little Hatred built up these characters so that we could care about them. That they now have competing ambitions in a time of peace makes it so much more tense as you get led along through conspiracy, webs of lies, and competing ideas and ambitions which pits these men directly against one another. It means that the stakes are very real, and as the book comes blazing towards its conclusion you get a number of shocks and feel real tension for our main characters as they come up against obstacles both on and off the field of battle. I won't spoil where that battle takes place, but boy does it take everything Abercrombie has built on since the last few installments and really make it shine.
The finale honestly blew me away. It combined some of Abercrombie's best work in writing well plotted violence, the tension he can create for both combatants and non-combatants, and the sheer pull of characters. He shows the push and pull of a battlefield in ways that, quite honestly, many people who write military fiction often fail to do. The ground pounders view to the commanders view lets you see the chaos, the violence, and the blood and mud. I loved that about his writing and anyone who loved his standalone The Heroes won't be disappointed by what he manages to craft here. Then the aftermath of the battle, and the actions of the victors, just adds an entirely new layer of excellence.
Personally, I don't feel this will become my favorite book of his. It takes much of what he does well and combines it, but I do think that some of the pacing felt off. The characters and their flawed actions were all very well executed, but I don't think it had the same stakes as say, Best Served Cold or Before They Are Hanged. While it is an excellent middle book, which reintroduces us to some of our favorite characters from the previous series, I did honestly think something was missing overall. Perhaps it was that the main four I highlighted felt like they received more attention so that the secondary characters all felt like a supporting cast where in A Little Hatred they played more central roles and had more agency. It also might be that I felt that a few of the revelations were not as well foreshadowed as they might have been.
All that being said, I sincerely enjoyed this book and roared right through it in a couple days. Fast paced and it never once drags and gives you a bit of everything you enjoy about Abercrombie. Characters are maimed, people claim the ashes of victory, and many new and scary revelations are brought to the forefront. It is just more proof that Abercrombie remains an excellent writer.
No comments:
Post a Comment