Best Served Cold

Another pulpy home run, IMHO.

Realism in a completely unrealistic setting is what makes all of Joe Abercrombie's books (or at least all that I have read) ones that I am not at all ashamed to turn friends on to.

I have been a closet fantasy/adventure fan my entire life, starting with David Eddings' Belgariad and Mallorean, which I must have read 15 times, but to my shame, only shared with a few people.

Many fan/ad books later (I should say, many dissapointing fan/ad books, and a few good ones), I ran across George R.R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" series. Here, I thought, is a series with no magic, no dragons, nothing to prevent me from sharing it with those of my friends who really have never "gotten into" Costume Fiction. I was right, except for the intimidating, door stopping size of each book, not to mention the labrynthine plot, character interactions and locations.

Great books, George R.R. Martin's, but not for the casual reader.

I stumbled across Abercrombie while reading a "Maxim" (or something very much like that) in an airport. In it was a review for "Best Served Cold".
No chance I will be reading that book if it was reviewed and approved by a "Toolrag" like that, I thought.
Of course, desperate for something to read which had nothing to do with my job, I did get "The Blade Itself" within a week and was hooked from the get. I eventually understood that what made the book appropriate for "Maxim" is what makes Joe Abercrombie so fresh as an author of fan/adventure; he is accessible and direct, seemingly concsious of avoiding that which is often "cringe-worthy" in other books of a similar ilk.
Like "Blade" and the rest of "The First Law" series, "Best Served Cold" is gritty, has a compelling Anti-hero protagonist, plot and cast of characters. It is not at all flowery or idealistic, and seems to consider all of the selfish, beastly things that real people consider, and sometimes do. The characters swear, a lot, just like all of the people I know. There are absolutely No Elves, No Unicorns, No fainting fair maidens.

I think I mentioned David Eddings and George Martin in the beginning of this review because I find a parallel between them and Abercrombie.
In books by all of these authors, the characters have swords and odd names, to be sure. There may be a magician or two, of course, but the one thing that ties these authors together is that one truly wants to know what happens next in the books. You are angry if left with unanswered questions, frustrated when the book ends and you have to wait to get the next one.

I have a suspicion (which I know is true in the case of Eddings) that none of them take the fan/ad genre very seriously, and are not fans of it. They write good books, interestingly paced and concocted, without the frippery that normally goes with the genre. Are they selling themselves short? Who cares!

In short, if you are the kind of person who can get all the way to the front of the line at the bookstore holding a book with a cover like this one, you will be glad you did. If you aren't, more's the pity... You are really missing out. Take a chance, buy it online and get ready for some low guilt escapism.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

A bashing good romp

X rated talk, R rated gore, racetrack action, "everybody" selling out "everybody", all the ingredients for a page turning tale you will find hard to put down.
The characters all show their warts, making them real, if a bit frustrating at times.
Our heroine is stabbed, clubbed, kicked, and broken, if that was not enough, thrown out the castle window, down the mountain.
Now begins her slow battle to first heal, then begin the job of retribution
She collects the most disreputable band of miscreants you could find to assist her in bringing the 7 who were responsible for her misery to justice. Their interaction adds meat to the storyline and is great fun.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

A great sword and sorcery fantasy

Nineteen bloody years of civil war with no end in sight as each side of the armed conflict claims the high road, but those living in Styria know differently as hostilities and atrocities are the norm. Duke Orso thinks he can end the war and be named King of Styria for doing so. He believes assassinating infamous General Monza Murcatto, a bloody mercenary known rightfully as The Snake of Talins, is all he needs to do.

The attempt fails though Monza is severely injured and her brother is dead. As she heals, she vows to cut off the heads of Orso and his collaborators. She brings together a team of killers who have no consciences or care about collateral damage. They kill Orso and his six co-conspirators, but now Orso's family and that of his dead partners vow vengeance.

Returning to the world of the First Law saga, Joe Abercrombie provides his fans with a great sword and sorcery fantasy that contains his trademark dark humor and gender bending cast. The story line is fast-paced from the moment Orso sets up the failed assassination and never slows down as vengeance fuels each side to raise the ante. BEST SERVED COLD is simply a super thriller in which a head count has literal connotations.

Harriet Klausner

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Best Served Anytime! (But better after Reading the First Law Trilogy)

Best Served Cold is undoubtedly one of the best books I have read in a long while. I enjoyed this as much, if not more, than the whole First Law Trilogy. As George R. R. Martin says, "Bloody and relentless...his best yet." And I can only agree. The story of bloody handed revenge is quite graphic, and with each inventive death, the reader is left wondering how will the next one die? With seven "heroes" (and heroes is used VERY loosely),and seven villains, the balance could go either way (Although truthfully, when have you seen the protagonist fail?) Monza and her gang of convicts, mercenaries, torturers, and poisoners wreak havoc amongst the seven men who murdered her brother, one slit throat or poisoned wineskin at a time.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Another great book!

Another grand slam! This is a book for adults.

As always you are never let down & you never see the twists coming. Characters & plots are well developed. This isn't about good vs bad, it depends on whose side your on. Very gritty, bloody & realistic. For those of you who have read a lot of fantasty than you will love this ride. Not your everyday story where you know what is gonna happen. This book did have a lot more sex scenes which I think could have been left out & didn't move the story along which is why I didn't give the book a 5.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Great read!

What a journey! Beautifully written!

Violent, crude, and boring

The opening chapters seemed to hold promise, but the story quickly degraded into nothing more than a string of violent and crude encounters. By the middle of the book, the story was just dragging as nothing new or interesting seemed to happen for chapters at a time.

Favorite so far this year

Believable characters, unforgettable motives, non stop action. This fantasy world is not for the faint of heart. Despite his complaints about how far Mr. Abercrombie will go for a joke, I credit this book with getting my brother reading fantasy again. Excellent dialogue and fight scenes, plus a whirlwind of vivid if annilated settings. Worth a read every year.

Would highly recommend

Twisted , brutal, fantastic adventure. Can't wait for his next

Brutal but Compelling

This book is undoubtedly one of the most brutal adventures I've read in quite some time, if not ever. But I found it amazingly compelling despite each of the characters being twisted in their own ways. Definitely one of the more interesting stories I've read in a while, one of the few to be able to really surprise me! But don't look for the happy ending with all the answers to make things okay.

Vengeance - who doesn't love that?!?!?!

Picked up the sample on my Nook and quickly ordered the book.

I have really enjoyed this story. Reminds me of the Black Company series of stories by Cook. Mercenaries and all the nastiness that goes with them.

I would recommend this story to anyone who is into dirt, blood, swords, and battle. And all the psychological torment that goes with selling the death of others for money.

Monza is a great character and her 'team' all add additional shades of black to this dark story of 'right, good, & just' vengeance.

Enjoy

Killer excellent!

Joe Abercrombie is the master of dark fantasy. If you don't like on the edge of your seat adventure, cold blood thirsty characters, brutality, & guts and gore, do not read this. Abercrombie's works are not for the faint at heart. I liked this even better than The First Law Trilogy! I loved that he incorporated many of the characters from The First Law into this stand alone book. What an ingenious twisting tale! Although providing closure, the ending made way for a new beginning and the possibility for this story to be a series. If only...

Long live Inquisitor Glokta!

Abercrombie takes books to a whole different level with this one. Every chapter makes you want to read more, until you slowly realize you are devouring this book. His characters stand alone and other writers(yes,even the old ones)could learn a thing or two from his style of character progression. His battle sequences are frighteningly realistic and he brings the carnage(meaning his characters aren't always in control of every battle or conflict,and that a stray arrow or spear does exsist in fantasy worlds). Actaully all his books are this way and are breaths of fresh air to the fantasy genre. To make a long story short, easily, one of the most phenominal books ever written! Its truly magnificent, otherwise I would not have wasted my time telling you about it!

I am disappointed...Mr Abercrombie

The Blade Itself, Last Argument of Kings and Before They Are Hanged were wonderful stories. They processed characters you could love and love to hate. But Best Served Cold is just that...Cold. There was not one character you could like or even root for. I was sadly disappointed. All the characters were mean, sadistic and just plain evil. I love your writing style and will look for future books, but will read sample chapters if available before I purchase. I do urge folks to read his first 3 books.

Joe Abercrombie is a great story teller.

Pure entertainment. After reading this book, I needed more so I read his First Law trilogy. Now I'm just waiting for his next.

Wicked good

I recommend this one. This is so good, intense.

Best Served Cold

Joe Abercrombie still delivers on the fighting, gore, and violence while weaving a fantastic plot that keeps you looking over your shoulder. Monza Murcatto (the Butcher of Caprile and the Serpent of Talins, to name a few of her titles) and her brother, Benna are the Grand Duke Orso's best and highest praised mercenary. Hungry for power and fearful for his throne, Orso is aware of Monza's popularity with the people. She and her brother were poor farmers, but when their father died, they were brought up in the army; how to fight, how to read reading, and learning the strategies of Stolicus. Monza does not even see it coming. Orso, along with the League of Eight, has Monza and Benna beaten to death and thrown down a mountain, like garbage. Benna will never recover from being run through, but miraculously, Monza is still alive, barely, landing and lying on top of her brother.
Starving for revenge, for her brother's death and for her crippled body, Monza employs the Northman Shivers, an infamous and funny poisioner Morveer and his apprentice Day ("caution always"), an insane, obsessive compulsive, prisoner from Safety Friendly, an old acquaintance, Nicomo Cosca, and others. The problem is not the seemingly endless amounts of money Monza has at her disposal. (More of that later, in the story.) But, you can never trust a killer, poisoner, Northman, or traitor to not stab you in the back. To add even more spice, are the assassin Shenkt, the Eater Ishri, and the already known Carlot dan Eider. Monza and Shivers do sleep together (f*@#), but I don't believe it has anything to do with being in love with one another. She is attracted to his optimism to be a better man. But can he, when it is Monza's fault that he lost an eye?

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

great read

this was one of the best books ive read in awhile. if cursing, blood & gore, and a bit of sex offends you do not read this book. for everyone else drop what you are doing and go buy this book now. you wont be disappointed. the only thing bad about this book is that it had to come to an end.

Abercrombie grim, gritty, gory at times gruesome-and Great!

Great book. Great writer. Some of the most interesting charecters in fantasy. Not quite upto par with his previous trilogy-but he had 3 books to work with. Still an awesome read. Well worth the hardcover price for those who collect great fantasy. I will be reading everything this man writes.