I think I’m done with Abercrombie - Age of Madness.

Agree with you. I just finished Trouble with Peace last night and will start Wisdom today because I have it. But I am having to force myself through them because they are getting predictable. I thought the First Law was better so far.

I haven't read the spoilers, but I do have a bit of apprehension about the same thing. I don't mind dark fantasy, but too much becomes just as unrealistic as fairy tale happy endings.

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he was going to make sure everyone would lose. 

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Spoilerish ...



I mean, this isn't true for all the main characters, one of them pretty much wins all across the board.

And his three one off books between the two trilogies don't have everyone lose either.

Neither does his half a king series.

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I mean, this isn't true for all the main characters, one of them pretty much wins all across the board.

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Major Spoilers:
















If you’re referring to Savine - yeah she ends up in the position she may have dreamed about, but she’s married to someone she hates and snorts coke on the reg to manage her PTSD. She also watched the only man she loved hang. Does not seem happy.
If you’re referring to Rikke- Abercrombie can’t let her win without then giving her a prophetic dream of destruction to come, and also introduces us to Black Calder’s other son who will clearly be coming for her. Not to mention she betrayed Orso.
Leo is mutilated and in constant pain, repressed, and miserable.
Vick got the closest to a happy ending only because she chooses to disappear.
Broad? Just when he is reunited with his family, he’s sent right back out to kill and suffer again.
Orso? Well…

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Is there a non spoiler version of your post? Curious as to know why without any spoilers. He's one of my all time favorite authors but those three are the only ones I haven't read.

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Without specific spoilers - the characters we’re supposed to care about either lose bigly, or win in a way that leaves them miserable, or become despicable people.

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He's one of my all time favorite authors but those three are the only ones I haven't read.

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If you love all his other books I'd imagine you'll like these too, there is no dropoff in quality. And there are a ton of callbacks to the original trilogy and the one off books.

Spoilers

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How on earth did she betray Orso exactly?

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Oh, I don’t know. How about by spending the night with him then handing him over to Leo to be hung by the neck until he was dead? Orso ended up the most sympathetic character in the series. Handing him over to die definitely puts Rikke in the despicable category.

Then the last description of Rikke: “She forced a queasy smile onto her face” before lying to her people about the prophetic dream. Doesn’t sound “completely positive” to me. Sounds kind of miserable. This is my point - Abercrombie can’t help but undercut any potential happy ending.

Glotka probably “wins” by his definition. But he was only a peripheral character in this trilogy. .

Spoilers

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Wtf are you talking about? At no point did this happen.

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Ok. You obviously missed a major plot point or haven’t finished the 3rd book. The chapter is “Of Your Heart a Stone”. Here’s when it happened, during Rikke’s visit to Adua following her victory in the North. Orso had escaped prison but couldn’t get out of town, so he comes to Rikke for refuge and she sleeps with him, then betrays him to Leo the next morning:

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Rikke spoke slowly, softly. As if she was trying to convince herself. “The North has been through the fire, Orso. I put it through the fire. If it was just about me…” She grimaced, then snapped the words angrily. “But I’ve all those people to think about now! They need peace.”

“And I’m the price, I suppose.” Orso glanced from Glaward, to Brock, to Jurand, to Isern, to Shivers, and back to Rikke. “You promised to fight with him against me. Then you broke your word. I’m what it costs you to get back in his good graces. If he even has any, these days.”

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The bracelets snapped shut around Orso’s wrists. One could almost hear the discomfort in Glaward’s voice. “Hope that’s not too tight, Your…” “No, no,” said Orso. “Most comfortable fetters I’ve worn, and I’ve tried on quite a few lately.”

He took one last look at Rikke, sitting there in the sunlight, at the head of the table. He would have liked more time with her. But he supposed it had never been very realistic. “Peace between the North and the Union.” He gave a little chuckle. “Honestly, it’s a far better legacy than anyone expected from me.” And he strolled jauntily out into the hall.

Well, as jauntily as you can in chains.

Which isn’t very.

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In Orso’s next POV chapter, Brock hangs him.

Spoiler

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Though even then, there was really nothing she could have done to save him permanently at that point without getting taken down herself. Or destroying the North to the point there would be nothing to come back from.

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All true. Doesn’t make it any less of a betrayal. I just don’t like the way Abercrombie seems to want us to like his characters less. He certainly has a style, and he’s sticking with it.