Kaffe · a free reading list
Books like The First Law
Grey characters, sharp humour and war with no clean winners.
A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin
If you haven't read it: grey characters, betrayal and consequences that stick.
+ Widescreen epic fantasy, well delivered and hard to stop reading once you're in.
− The ending offers little resolution: it is very much the first part of a longer story. (summed up from Wikipedia (reception))Promise of Blood by Brian McClellan
Flintlock fantasy that opens with a coup. Gunpowder mages, gritty politics and solid action.
+ A compelling plot with an inventive gunpowder magic system and a realistic, hard-choosing lead.
− Starts slowly, and the traitor-hunt subplot gives the reader too little to go on. (summed up from Fantasy Book Review)Blood Song by Anthony Ryan
A warrior tells how a brutal order raised him to kill. A darker coming-of-age story.
The Darkness That Comes Before by R. Scott Bakker
Very dark, philosophical epic for readers who want grimdark at its heaviest.
The Blacktongue Thief by Christopher Buehlman
Witty, violent and full of a voice Abercrombie fans tend to enjoy.
+ Packed with magic, mayhem and mischief, with an artfully drawn world and characters.
− The trust between the two leads grows implausibly fast; dense going at times. (summed up from Publishers Weekly)
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