The Blade Itself
Joe Abercrombie, 2006
A journey into a world of morally bankrupt heroes, brutal warfare, and the cynical observations of men who have seen too much.
Feels like dread, defiance and melancholy. About war, morality and identity.
A page from the book
A piece of violence that doesn't hurt, but reveals everything about the secret language of power.
Something dug into the Bloody-Nine’s back, but there was no pain. It was a sign. A message in a secret tongue, that only he could understand. It told him where the next dead man was standing. Joe Abercrombie.Abercrombie's prose is often characterized by its unique blend of brutal violence and unexpected wit, a style he has cultivated throughout his career.
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Questions readers ask
- What is The Blade Itself like?
- Feels like dread, defiance and melancholy. About war, morality and identity.
- What should I read after The Blade Itself?
- If you liked The Blade Itself, try Fourth Wing (Rebecca Yarros), Stranger in a Strange Land (Robert A. Heinlein) and American Psycho (Bret Easton Ellis).
A taste of the feed
The bargain at the heart of every dragon bond, in two sentences.
A dragon without its rider is a tragedy. A rider without their dragon is dead.
Fourth Wing · Rebecca Yarros
The crushing weight of a moment that changes everything.
Jill put a hand to her mouth and screamed. Smith’s face had been completely blank. Now it became tragically forlorn as he realized that he must have chosen wrong action at the cusp. He looked imploringly at Jill and began to tremble. His eyes rolled up; he slipped slowly down to the grass, pulled himself tightly into a foetal ball and was motionless.
Stranger in a Strange Land · Robert A. Heinlein
The mistake that doesn't look like one until later.
The moments that define lives aren’t always obvious. They don’t scream LEDGE, and nine times out of ten there’s no rope to duck under, no line to cross, no blood pact, no official letter on fancy paper. They aren’t always protracted, heavy with meaning. Between one sip and the next, Victor made the biggest mistake of his life, and it was made of nothing more than one line. Three small words. "I’ll go first.
Vicious · V.E. Schwab
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