People keep telling me twitter is a wonderful thing, but I have given it a wide berth lest the quarter of my life that is not spent on the internet ends up spent, well … on the internet. Or perhaps the twinternet. But next week, to celebrate the release of The Heroes and etc. I shall be twittering answers to questions, or possibly answering questions twittered at me, or doing something involving a fusion of twitter and interviews. At 4pm. On Thursday 27th. Via Waterstones.
Aw shucks, you got a question for me, here’s a link. Or is it a twink?
Some folks have been asking me when (twen?) various e-book (twe-book? Alright, I’ll stop now) editions of The Heroes (especially UK kindle) will appear since they seem to be not available. All I can say is that I am told they should appear on the day of publication in the UK (27th Jan) and US (7th Feb). The enhanced edition will be appearing a little later. Sorry about that, I can only deny all responsibility and blame anyone in range. Hey, perhaps it’s YOUR fault.
In other news, I am guest editing the newsletter of my UK publishers Gollancz this month. Guest editing is perhaps somewhat glorifying my role (what, me? Glorifying?) but you can bet I cracked some dodgy jokes at the start of it. You want to keep up with all that is forthcoming from the UK’s leading genre imprint, why, you can sign up for it here.
In even more other news, SciFi Now have reviewed The Heroes:
“It’s an excellent tale and arguably Abercrombie’s best book yet, not just as an enjoyable continuation of his saga, but also as his tightest writing to date. Its pace really showcases his talent for differently voiced and realistically motivated characters … any genre fan can enjoy what’s one of the best fantasy books of the past year.”
5 stars, in case you were wondering. You weren’t wondering? Well, er, still 5 stars!
Another opinion comes from Jared at Pornokitsch, and what an opinion it is:
“The Heroes is Joe Abercrombie’s fifth book, and what a book it is … The First Law was great, Best Served Cold was brilliant and The Heroes is truly masterful.”
Then there’s 5 stars from Fantasy Faction:
“If you have read Abercrombie’s work before I have little doubt you will find this his best release to date… The fight scenes are sharper, pointier and more realistic. There is better character development. And finally, the narration is darker, grittier and even more seamless than ever. For a standalone novel to achieve so much is simply incredible”
And 5 stars from Fantasy Literature:
“The Heroes is brilliant storytelling … Joe Abercrombie’s latest book should be at the top of your list and even if you have not yet read the previous novels that are set in this world, you should still read The Heroes. Gritty, harsh, powerful storytelling that takes you into the crucible of combat and lets you see how the perception of the hero is not always the reality of the hero.”
I guess you could say people seem to like it so far. I take nothing for granted, of course. I’m sure there will be some deeply unpleasant reviews just around the corner. When I see one, you can bet you’ll know all about it…
24 comments so far
Wow. Gee, guess you got me sold.
Excellent(twi-xcellent?) news…
(I’ve blatantly just come up with Twix’ new ad campaign right there).
I am very much looking forward to more reviews, particularily those like discussed in your blog post “People Suck, War is Bad, and the World is a Bottomless Shithole”.
I’m one of those people that agreed 100% with Elizabeth Vail’s review. I loved most of the First Law trilogy but disliked the nihilistic ending (Joe’s counterargument was that bleak shitty endings are realistic, etc. but that’s not the point). Anyway, I was disenchanted and didn’t touch Best Served Cold with a 10 foot pole. If the The Heroes turns out to just as bleak and nihilistic, I won’t pick it up either.
This is not an attack on your fans or your writing direction. Different strokes for different people. I hate “torture porn”, others love it, whatever, that’s life. I’m just waiting eagerly to see if me and like-minded readers are part of the target market for The Heroes and future books.
Pff .. Twitter is just too sad for words… so I wont waste anymore.
Any news about your proposed Irish signing? Belfast is lovely this time of year…
[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Gollancz, Suzanne McLeod and Jon Weir, Sam Sykes. Sam Sykes said: RT @Gollancz: The Joe Abercrombie will be tweeting answers to questions soon. Got a question? Go here (then there) http://bit.ly/f6zb8o #fb […]
I guess nothing like varied opinions on what one thinks of a trilogy. I thought the ending was amazing, and the ending to best served cold is nothing like the ending to the trilogy(granted for the most part anyways). Now i dont know whats coming with the heroes. could be good, could be bad, could be in the middle, and honestly i like the fact i dont know what in the hell ending will be thrown out next…Who wants a happy ending after every book? jesus this is dark fantasy for a reason!
Sitting on a Fence: How can you 100% agree with a review of a book you didn’t touch with a 10 foot pole?
Anyway, the reviews so far for the new book suggests that it isn’t all sunshine and lollipops, so maybe this series isn’t for you.
Wow, I know they said earlier than anticipated, but this was much earlier! WOOHOO!! Can’t wait!
The following items have been shipped to you by Amazon.com:
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Amazon.com items (Sold by Amazon.com, LLC) :
1 The Heroes $15.66 1 $15.66
Shipped via USPS
“i like the fact i dont know what in the hell ending will be thrown out next… Who wants a happy ending after every book? jesus this is dark fantasy for a reason”
Well, it’s not a black-and-white choice of happy or sad ending. George RR Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire is also dark fantasy but there are also rays of hope (likeable characters to root for, good fortunes for some) to counterbalance the bleakness.
The escapist desire for a somewhat happy or bittersweet ending shouldn’t be confused with predictability or lack thereof; many famous plot twists, from Fight Club to Sixth Sense to Usual Suspects to Shutter Island, were not exactly happy endings but still allowed for the existence of some “good” conscientious characters. Hell, after pushing the envelope for dark fantasy, possibly the most unpredictable ending that Joe could write is a realistically “happy” one — which admittedly may not be his style, but simply goes to show that predictable != dark.
Well Mr.Fence this is why you should have gave best served cold a try. That is the very definition of bittersweet!! and george RR martin will finish those books after joe is done with his next 4(and even then who knows)…. truly dark indeed :0/
Is George RR Martin still alive?
I read A Game Of Thrones and it totally blew me away, I made my friends read it, even my dad and guess what, yes they loved it too…. BUT! too long between books have left us with a heavy heart, as all we do now is visit his website and check the old dude is still with us and pray for the news the next book is comming soon and that he will actually finish it before he departs this mortal coil.
Troy, correct me if I’m wrong, but from the few previews I’ve read, BSC is as happy like the ending of the Holocaust and bittersweet like the death of a depraved serial killer at the hands of another depraved serial killer.
Thank you Sitting on a Fence, Godwins law. /thread
Certainly deserved the 5 stars!!! Glad to see the community is in agreement 😉
I bought the book a few days ago from the store. After reading first 50 pages I felt that I had to read it through in one go. Now after finishing it I must say that it left me quite speechless, fantastic work there Joe, I love it!
If u read the trilogy u never would have seen best served cold ending the way it did! Its got a count of monte cristo feel to it. hahaha i like your description of it though…..makes me wanna re-read it :0D
oooo.. email from amazon. my order has been dispatched!
Dude I want the uk cover way better then the american one. Cheers to the king of dark fantasy!!!
Joe – I’m actually a bit gutted, I compared you to bleedin’ Homer, and that’s the best quote you could pull from the review? HOMER!
(And not Simpson)
And back on topic, I think the ending of TFL isn’t “unhappy, it is appropriate to the rest of the series. To mop everything up with happy Unicorn powder would’ve been immensely disingenuous.
Now I’m obsessively checking my e-mail…
Damn you, Amazon, you fucker! Where’s mine!?!
Joe!!! The Heroes arrived at my PO Box earlier today, guess what? I’m in the middle of a blizzard…..No way i can make it out, I thought about walking the 4miles to the Post Office to get it but decided otherwise lol
The doorbell just rang and I have it my hands. The first paragraph is promising, I like it. Some bastard already has a review on Amazon US, and he offers an *outline* of the plot. Fortunately, I stopped myself in time. Sayonara.
You’ve got a good man there in Jon Weir. He was ready to resend me another copy of The Heroes because I hadn’t recieved my signed copy from your “Twinterview”. Needless to say, the copy arrived in the post this morning (live in Canada)and I was excited. Thank you, Joe, for taking all the time you do for your fans. We appreciate it. I look forward to reading it!