Abercrombie, Joe 1974-

PERSONAL:

Born December 31, 1974, in Lancaster, England; married; wife's name Lou; children: Grace. Education: Studied at Manchester University.

ADDRESSES:

Home—London, England. Agent—Robert Kirby, United Agents, 7 Soho St., London W1D 3DQ, England. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Freelance film editor.

WRITINGS:

"FIRST LAW" SERIES

The Blade Itself, Gollancz (London, England), 2006, Pyr (Amherst, NY), 2007.

Before They Are Hanged, Gollancz (London, England), 2007, Pyr Books (New York, NY), 2008.

Last Argument of Kings, Gollancz (London, England), 2008.

SIDELIGHTS:

Joe Abercrombie is a British freelance film editor. Born in Lancaster, England, on December 31, 1974, Abercrombie went on to study psychology at Manchester University. He hoped to rewrite the fantasy genre but was initially unsuccessful in his attempts. After relocating to London and working as a freelance film editor there, he began writing fantasy again with the "First Law" series.

Abercrombie described his use of humor in a SFF World interview, commenting: "Humour is key, I think. I didn't want to do something that took itself too seriously, or something that was full on slapstick. Life is neither one or the other. It's funny and it's horrible, often at the same time. I didn't make a big effort to make it amusing—I'm not sure that you can, really. I just tried to amuse myself as often as possible. It seems to have worked for some people. For others, not at all. That's humour, I guess." In an interview in SFX, Abercrombie suggested tips he follows in setting up a fictional universe. Abercrombie noted that "when it comes to world-building, less is so much more. Poring over your maps and getting the names of your months in elvish isn't necessarily wasted time, but remember that it's very much secondary to the task of actually writing…. The world is the sets, and the best sets ever are never going to make up for rubbish acting, script, camerawork, editing and direction. The things that make a fantasy novel good are the same things that make any other novel good. Interesting characters. Sharp dialogue. Effective action. Plot twists you don't see coming." In a second interview in SFX, Abercrombie explained his characterizations, remarking that "a psychopathic barbarian with a bloody past, a grotesque crippled torturer with no mercy and no morals, and a sneering, self-obsessed user are not on the face of it the most sympathetic of characters. I think if they become likable, or at least interesting, it's because we get to know them very intimately, to understand their motivations and their histories, to think of them as real people. Hopefully they're funny, which helps a lot. Hopefully they're surprising, which helps a lot more."

Abercrombie published his first novel of the "First Law" series, The Blade Itself, in Britain in 2006. One year later, it was released in the United States. Barbarian Logen Ninefingers is running from his former boss, who has recently become the king of the North, and finds refuge with the Union, providing them with useful information about the North and its leader. Also with the Union, Glotka, a hero who was brutally tortured by the authorities, now serves as its chief Inquisitor, attempting to purge traitors from the Union. With Bayaz the Mage's help, swordsman Foppish Jezal wins the Union's contest to become its champion fighter. Each of these antiheroes act primarily for their own benefit in their interactions with each other and with the many secondary characters.

A contributor to SFF World described the novel as "a promising start" of a new series. The contributor claimed that, "as this is a first book, there are a few little lapses in phrases that clunk a little, though not as many as perhaps expected. Some of the place names are a little too reminiscent of others." The same contributor concluded that The Blade Itself is "a surprisingly good debut novel, perhaps rather protracted, but if you like many of the recently published dark fantasy … then this is worth a read." Siobhan Carroll, in a review for Strange Horizons, noted that "while Abercrombie does not skimp on plot or action, he is clearly more interested in what's going on inside characters' heads than the results of a bandit attack around the corner," adding that "he handles his characters well." The contributor remarked that "fans of character-driven epics who are willing to take their heroes with a grain of moral ambiguity should add this novel to their ‘must read’ list," concluding that "The Blade Itself is a smartly-written, sophisticated debut with compelling characters, a complex plot, and style to burn." A contributor to SF Signal recalled that the novel "has been praised elsewhere for its wit and fight scenes. Accolades that are well justified. Too often, many fantasy stories are weighed down by their own self-importance and take themselves too seriously. … Abercrombie shows that humor can go a long way to energizing a story, and putting a human face on characters."

Asgard, a contributor to Blog Critics, said that the novel "is an entertaining debut by a talented new author" and suggested that readers "looking for a new fantasy author who is not encumbered by the traditions of the genre" should read the series. A contributor to Publishers Weekly noted that the plot is "marred by repetitive writing and an excess of torture and pain."

John Berlyne, writing in SFRevu, stated: "What's so enjoyable in Abercrombie's work is the sense one gets that all these people have lived a life outside the confines of this story. They are all rounded, solid and beautifully rendered characters and they all interact with a chemistry that makes for great and highly entertaining reading. Abercrombie's skill in this extends to his minor characters too, and there are plenty of them," adding that "it is truly rare to come across a novel so richly populated with folks, all of whom could be successful protagonists in their own novels." Berlyne described the account as "an extremely impressive debut," noting that "in Joe Abercrombie it brings us a writer who oozes promise. This is surely a novel as sharp as its title."

Before They Are Hanged was published in Britain in 2007 and came out in the United States in 2008. The second book in the series begins with the Northmen invading the Union's Angland province. Colonel West, a low-class man who rose to his rank through his bravery, finds his civilized notion of warring is literally losing ground to the Northmen as more and more of his cities are captured. Glotka continues to deal with his debilitating condition while benefitting from his high-ranking position, both given to him by the same people. Bayaz leads Logan and a group of followers in a quest to find the Seed, a tool that will open a portal to the demon world.

Justin Thorne, writing for the Web site SFF World, commented that "Abercrombie injects his sense of humour throughout but these laugh-out-loud moments do not detract from the fact that Joe has an incredible insight into the human condition. His characters are on a physical journey and one of spirit and learning. Battles and sex are handled with grit and realism and elements of the fantastic creep into the story as if they absolutely belong there. Joe's background in movies is present in his cinematic style of storytelling that this reviewer is very much a fan of." Thorne concluded that "Before They Are Hanged is an excellent sequel from an author writing compelling, character-driven, adult fantasy, for readers who want to be entertained as well as challenged." Siobhan Carroll, writing for the Web site Strange Horizons, found that "the novel's weakest part deals with the adventuring party. Despite his good intentions, Abercrombie cannot seem to resist the conventions of a dungeoneering quest plot." Carroll concluded, however, by saying that "Abercrombie's Before They Are Hanged is a strong follow-up to TheBlade Itself. It lacks the previous novel's freshness and exploratory plotlines, but it provides a solid middle to what promises to be a noteworthy epic fantasy trilogy. And Abercrombie is a writer to watch: at his worst, he's still pretty good, and I'm interested in seeing what his iconoclastic cynicism and sharp prose can produce outside the heavy framework of high-fantasy conventions."

John Enzinas, writing in SF Site, mentioned that the characters "are limp and listless, like vegetables left too long in the fridge. They've lost the crispness and freshness they had when we first saw them." Enzinas concluded, however, that "even with the weakness of the quest storyline, it is still a tight little piece of fiction." A contributor to Publishers Weekly called the story both "grim and vivid," concluding that it is "suffused with a rich understanding of human darkness and light."

The final novel of the trilogy, Last Argument of Kings, was published in Britain in 2008. The king of the Union is dying as the people revolt and the nobles attempt to take his crown and title for themselves. Glotka resorts to blackmail and threats to wield his own form of power, while Logen and Jezal find that they must continue fighting. Bayaz holds the key to saving the world, but there are serious risks involved.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Bookseller, June 17, 2005, "New Fantasy Writer for Gollancz," p. 15; December 9, 2005, review of The Blade Itself, p. 31.

Publishers Weekly, August 6, 2007, review of The Blade Itself, p. 174; January 21, 2008, review of Before They Are Hanged, p. 159.

ONLINE

Blog Critics,http://blogcritics.org/ (January 2, 2008), review of The Blade Itself.

Dribble of Ink,http://aidanmoher.com/ (March 4, 2008), Aidan Moher, author interview.

Fantasy Book Critic,http://fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com/ (October 10, 2007), author interview.

Joe Abercrombie Home Page,http://www.joeabercrombie.com (March 4, 2008), author profile.

Neth Space,http://nethspace.blogspot.com/ (October 29, 2007), author interview.

Omnivoracious,http://www.omnivoracious.com/ (October 24, 2007, October 26, 2007), Jeff Vander-Meer, author interview.

Pat's Fantasy Hotlist,http://fantasyhotlist.blogspot.com/ (December 7, 2006), author interview; (March 18, 2007), author interview.

SciFi.com,http://www.scifi.com/ (November 28, 2007), John Joseph Adams, review of The Blade Itself.

SFF World,http://www.sffworld.com/ (July 31, 2006), review of The Blade Itself; (September 8, 2006), author interview; (March 6, 2007), Justin Thorne, review of Before They Are Hanged.

SFRevu,http://www.sfrevu.com/ (March 4, 2008), John Berlyne, review of The Blade Itself.

SF Signal,http://www.sfsignal.com/ (March 4, 2008), review of The Blade Itself.

SF Site,http://www.sfsite.com/ (March 4, 2008), John Enzinas, review of Before They Are Hanged.

SFX,http://www.sfx.co.uk/ (April 20, 2007), author interview; (April 30, 2007), author interview.

Strange Horizons,http://www.strangehorizons.com/ (August 16, 2006), Siobhan Carroll, review of The Blade Itself; (June 20, 2007), Siobhan Carroll, review of Before They Are Hanged.

UK SF Book News,http://www.uksfbooknews.net (March 8, 2007), Darren Turpin, author interview.