drea
Although I don't read much fantasy, this book has many elements from other genres that I like more: character-driven, purely introspective action, and above all, the rejection of the dualism of good vs evil. In this grimdark story, the world sucks, and so do its characters and institutions. I loved the cynicism at times, but I didn't particularly appreciate the handling of some characters. My favorite arc was (as I think it was for many readers) Glokta's, followed by Jezal's. The others were handled in a fairly repetitive way, but I'll wait until I finish the trilogy to judge better. I attach some quotes I saved from my reader.
You carry on. That's what he'd always done. That's the task that comes with surviving, whether you deserve to live or not. You remember the dead as best you can. You say some words for them. Then you carry on, and you hope for better.
If he was being completely honest, he didn’t really enjoy smoking. It made him feel a bit sick, but it was very fashionable and very expensive, and Jezal would be damned if he would miss out on something fashionable just because he didn’t like it.
To genuinely know, to understand, even one blade of grass would demand a lifetime of study. And the world never stops changing. That’s why we retreat into specialization.