The Trouble With Peace
A while back, I did a review of Joe Abercrombie’s A Little Hatred. the first book in his new Age of Madness trilogy. It was the first work of fantasy by a heretofore unknown writer to absolutely wow me since the 1980s, when I encountered Neil Gaiman’s Sandman series. Abercrombie’s writing was absolutely brilliant—strong, unforgettable characters, an amazingly detailed and realistic world, and scenes that flashed like lightning, searing themselves onto your consciousness. All while leavened by a wry and dark sense of humor.
I just read the second book in the trilogy, The Trouble With Peace.
It’s even better.
The plot line is a slow build-up to revolution and war, ending in a battle scene you will never forget. This does not glorify war—quite the opposite. Think of all the great (anti) war novels and films you’ve seen, from All Quiet on the Western Front to Slaughterhouse 5; Peace takes its place amongst them. It details the furtive and futile machinations leading to war (including one hilarious sequence where two opposing leaders are seeking favor from a neutral party in a whore house, with neither being aware of the presence of the other) and in a protracted sequence, the bloody and awful battle itself, and the sheer horror of the aftermath.
The main characters are mostly familiar from Hatred: King Orso, riven by self-doubt and self-loathing, which curiously become strengths as the story goes on. Arch Lector Sand dan Glokta—Old Sticks, whose feared lair is the House of Questions, the Lubyanka of the Union. Savine dan Glokta, daughter of Old Sticks, an imperious and beautiful socialite, vicious and cruel businesswoman, but shattered and undermined by her experiences being caught in the middle of a peasants’ rebellion in Hatred. Vick dan Teufel, an ex convict working as a spy for Old Sticks. Judge, mass murderer and champion of the oppressed, who is the one character who reminds me of someone from outside of Abercrombie’s world: the Joker. Stour Nightfall, the great wolf, reluctant ally to Leo dan Brock, the young lion. Brock is a great heroic warrior whose weakness is that he is too judgmental for his own good.
There are at least 100 characters of note in the series, but the miracle of Abercrombie’s writing is that each are so skillfully and masterfully carved from his imagination that the reader is never at risk of forgetting who is who. His ability to instantly create unforgettable characters rivals that of Stephen King.
I mentioned that in Hatred, there were no firearms and magic had a relatively minor role. In Peace, they introduce primitive cannon to the series (“Cannon?” “Some word they have in Angland.”), fearsome devices as likely to kill those firing them as they are the targets. And it’s becoming clear the Order of Magi will be a force to be reckoned with by the survivors of the climatic battle.
It’ll probably be a year or so before the third and final book of the trilogy comes out. In the meantime, I’ve got Abercrombie’s first trilogy, The First Law, to read, and a second, The Shattered Sea, plus several stand-alone novels. It’s a universe I’ll greatly enjoy exploring.