Say one for Before They are Hanged; say it's a good book. ( )

The story continues to be interesting and the characters engaging. I'm looking forward to the next book. ( )

A good fantasy world with characters that build with depth and interest. I am a little surprised at how little fighting and battles there are. I look forward to the finale in book three. So many loose threads have been created in the first two books, that I wonder how Abercrombie will be able to tie things up neatly in one final novel. ( )

This second volume of The First Law trilogy breaks the unwritten law of fantasy trilogies, that the middle volume should be a bit of a disappointment or a lull between the bracketing main books. Instead, it has plenty of action, surprises and character development, as it follows the three main threads of West and the group of Northmen that Logen formerly led, the perils of Inquisitor now Superior Glokta, and the group of travellers led by the First of the Magi, Bayaz, which includes Logen, the southern escaped slave Ferro, and the arrogant young Jezal dan Luthar.

West has been posted to the army group "led" by the foppish and generally useless Crown Prince, Ladislas, heir to the throne, and his pack of cronies, while the rest of the army is commanded by West's competent but ailing superior, Lord Marshal Burr, who has to contend with two generals who hate each other. His ability to speak the Northern language means that it is he who deals with the small group of Logen's former Named Men, now led by Rudd Threetrees, who have volunteered to assist the Union army against the might of the self-styled king of the Northeners. West, who continues to suffer guilty recrimination at his lashing out at Ardee, his alcoholic sister, in book 1, eventually becomes instrumental to the resolution of the story (in volume 3) in a way that neither he nor the reader could guess at the time.

Glotka has been packed off to Dagoska, a coastal city on the southern continent, and a colony of the Union, to take on the thankless task of its defence against the might of the Gurkish Emperor, his army of thousands and his evil Prophet (really a fellow mage and enemy of Bayaz) plus undead superhuman zombie Eaters. To add spice, Glotka's predecessor has mysteriously disappeared and he is tasked with finding and punishing the guilty. Plus he must rebuild the defences without any money from his superior, Arch Lector Sult. Along the way, despite his preoccupations with his own infirmities, he discovers a grain of compassion in his character.

Bayaz leads his ragtag band on a long quest through the Old Empire to a remote island where they seek the Seed, a weapon made of the magic of the Other Side, created in the time before demons were banned from this side of reality. Along the way some of the characters change, or seem to, through their experiences.

I enjoyed this volume with the development of the various characters. At last it was explained exactly how Ferro is able to act like a comic superhero. Jezal, whom I disliked in book 1, became tolerable. And more was revealed about the long ago past when Bayaz's master Juvens was murdered by the Master Maker, including Bayaz's part in those events. Although, being the dark story that this is, not everything is as it seems, as book 3, which I finished before writing this review, has revealed.

The only thing that holds this back from a full five stars for me is the continuing lack of a role for believable women characters. Ardee, whom I find irritating, hasn't much of a role since, apart from anything else, the main action of the book is set well away from the capital. Ferro continues to be irritating for different reasons, although it becomes clearer why she is the way she is, and a bit part female character, Caitlin, shows signs of becoming interesting but then is killed off. ( )

I have read a few reviews that have disliked this book but I think it is a perfect "second" book in a trilogy. There is character growth, legend building, and enough tension build up to make one look forward to reading the third and final book. It works exactly as it is intended. ( )