Coming down from the blaze of excitement that accompanied daily posting during Best Served Cold Artwork Week, it occurs to me that it’s been a very long time since I addressed any reviews of my work. I couldn’t allow a review of the First Law trilogy over at Tor.com by Jason Henninger to pass without comment, though. The article is probably best avoided by any unfortunate souls who haven’t read the books yet, riddled as it and its comments are with spoilers, but for the rest of you…
“In general, I loved the series. I found it perfectly paced, brutal, funny, shocking and lyrical.”
Well, that’s very nice. That’s lovely. No problems at all. This is the kind of review that more of you should be–
“I have one problem with it, though.”
WHAT?
“The third book, The Last Argument of Kings…”
Last Argument of Kings, Jason, there is no ‘the’, but pray continue.
“…seems like it should be a conclusion. The word last in the title implies that surely?”
Yes it does.
“The number of reviewers in the front matter gushing about how great the ending is would indicate, to my gullible mind anyway, that this is indeed the end of the story.”
Yes it is.
“Oh sure, most of the story ends. Not all. Certainly not all. There are chunks on unchewed plot-meat still sitting on the table, waiting for a carving. The final chapter is even called “The Beginning.” How the fuck is that a fucking ending, Joe?”
Well, Jason, the last chapter is called “The Beginning” in the same way that the first chapter is called “The End”, that’s fucking what! It’s a fucking ace fucking ending, actually, I’ll have you know! I get, like, loads of emails saying how ace it is! Maybe it’s just TOO ACE FOR YOU! All about the circularity of history, and how life, unlike fantasy, has no neat endings, and how the end of every conflict contains the seeds of the next, and, and, and, and LOADS of other clever, high-brow shit what I can’t be arsed to think up right now, that’s what! Yeah! What are you saying anyway? That not neatly closing off every loose thread of a story is some kind of uncommon and major offence–
“Not entirely ending a story despite all appearances to the contrary is, in the SF world, a pretty common and minor offence. So, no worries, Mr. Abercrombie. I don’t want to torture you over it very much. And on the glass-half-full side it means this incredibly talented writer has more to offer. I look forward to it.”
Oh. Well. Incredibly talented, you say? Well. That’s very nice, then. Hmm.
Forget I spoke.
16 comments so far
Heh. That had a certain beautiful symmetry that makes me want to read The Blade Itself again.
And why not, I say, why not?
To the bookshelf!
“It’s a fucking ace fucking ending, actually, I’ll have you know!”
LOL Joe, this comment cheered me up no end. You tell him. Where’s that bannister gone when you need it? 😉
You will write about the Bloody-Nine again. Yo will, you will I fuckin’ tell you!
You fucking tell him Joe. The beginning can not very well be the end without the end being the beginning now can it. That’s what’s so illogical about it, I mean, what’s the point of living if you don’t have a dick?
3 AM & I can't spell banister. Shock, horror, gasp.
*You
I can’t take people seriously who claim LAoK has no real ending. Tish and pish to that…
Lolz Joe, now you’re just preaching to the choir…
But yea, its silly to see a reviewer who doesn’t know the nature of his game. At least some of your fans pwnd him in the comments *cheers*
“…seems like it should be a conclusion. The word last in the title implies that surely?”
it does if you take argument as “conflict / quarrel”.
i thought it went more along the lines of “course of reasoning”, thus no final conclusion implied in the title Mr.Henninger.
“All about the circularity of history, and how life, unlike fantasy, has no neat endings, and how the end of every conflict contains the seeds of the next, and, and, and, and LOADS of other clever, high-brow shit what I can’t be arsed to think up right now, that’s what!”
amen.
i guess the book’s finer nuances are not for everyone to appreciate. 🙂
besides, the whole story unfolds on the backdrop of the ages old conflict of the magi and their respective lineage.. that i never expected to be resolved in the course of the three novels.
Heh. You tell ’em, soldier. And it was an ace fucking ending.
Meh! the ending was ok. It could have done with a cunning use of spoons.
Masrock
Didn’t he ever see the Lion King? The whole Circle of Life thing obviously passed him by.
There is no ending….only new beginnings. Now I sound like Yoda.
Nah, I’m gonna agree with the criticism. You can claim all you like that not having an ending was really just a clever, pomo way of having an ending, but really LAoK just read like the middle book of any of the other sprawling fantasy series out there (and I suspect that that’s exactly what it is), with just enough resolution to keep Robert Jordan Syndrome from setting in.
The books were fantastically entertaining though.
Thanks all for the slavering support.
Except you, Jack. Evidently the ending was JUST TOO ACE for you as well.
I’ve got to say Joe, you really shit the bed with the “ending”. Or is it the fucking beginning? All I know is, there had better be more or you are a real prick.
Dude, that was for lack of a better word, fucking amazing.
– Joe, I've never read or posted on a blog before but that review of the review made me laugh and point at the screen and talk to it with no one else in the room! I said, as i pointed, "Now I like this guy!" Yeah, your trilogy was fresh and cool, and Best Served Cold was loads of fun!