“In Alex’s experience, the Almighty sides with the favourites, and once you’re hoping for angels to even the odds you’re proper fucked. But she had a sinking feeling she’d been proper fucked for a while and had only just realised.”
Abercrombie is back with a mad vengeance in The Devils, and holy smokes, it’s just full-on crazy mode from page one. This brand-new dark fantasy adventure might be utterly unhinged and possibly a bit too long, action-packed and tongue-in-cheek for its own good, but god damn it, if it didn’t end up being one hell of a delightful, deranged, and diabolically wild ride anyway.
Coming fresh off Age of Madness, which I finished just 3 weeks ago and which instantly became a new all-time favourite, I was fully ready for The Devils to become my new obsession. I mean, talk about a damn strong premise: we are transported into an alternative version of medieval Europe, where the Pope is a 10-year-old girl and carnivorous elves are a constant looming threat. And the plot? A prissy priest is tasked with restoring the lost heir of Troy to her rightful Throne and unite the sundered Church, except said heir is just a plucky street thief, and they will need the help of a dead-tired knight, a pompous magician (sorry, correction, wizard), a geriatric vampire, a horny and angry werewolf, a woman with endless skills, and an invisible elf to complete their suicide mission. For the love of all that is holy, say less… I was SO here for it!
And oh, how I wish I could come here and tell you that I was hooked from page one, but unfortunately the first half of The Devils was honestly quite a rocky ride for me. I mean, it’s not that I was ever bored what with all the madcap action, hysterical character dynamics, and ridiculously high fun-factor, but I personally think that Abercrombie somewhat forgot that less is more sometimes. There’s truly no denying that the man is funny and that he can write a damn good action scene, but to me the almost episodic nature combined with the frequent POV switches during the first two (of four) parts of The Devils really hindered my personal investment. Both the relentless action scenes and slapstick humour just felt unforgivably dull, repetitive, and exhausting to me due to that lack of emotional connection, and I honestly felt like the hellish journey to Troy would never end.
But you know what, somewhere along the way I either started to adjust to the style of The Devils or Abercrombie’s inexplicable storytelling magic just started to work its charm on me yet again, because the second half of this story was pure gold to me. The closer we come to Troy, the more intimate and character-driven the scope becomes, and the more the humour shifts from being mostly theatrical and crass towards the more quintessentially clever, witty, and sardonic style that I have come to love and expect from Abercrombie.
Moreover, I simply can’t deny that these characters turned out to have way more hidden depths and emotional complexity than I had initially given them credit for, and the satisfying revelation of some of their tragic backstories honestly broke me a little in the best way possible. For me, Balthazar Sham Ivam Draxi and Vigga were easily the most hysterically amusing of the bunch (even if I wanted to strangle them the most as well), but it was Sunny who completely stole my heart; please don’t ask me why I related so deeply to an anxious (and arguably neurospicy) invisible elf, okay? Honestly though, I think they all brought something unique to the table, and I ended up loving each and every one of these morally deficient oddballs in all their flawed, broken, obnoxious and messy glory.
And do not get me started on the reluctant yet strong found family vibes (and romantic feels, including some tender queer love!!) that started to develop as they all bonded throughout all the crazy trials and tribulations that they had to endure together. Yes, The Devils might be dark and crazy and a bit too wild at times, but it also hits some serious notes and has a surprising amount of heart. I personally really appreciated the authentic exploration of trauma, mortality, morality, redemption, sexuality and regret through their diverse lived experiences, and all the quiet moments of reflection/introspection as well as some brutally honest and vulnerable character interactions tugged on my heartstrings in ways I was totally not prepared for. Also, you can always count on Abercrombie to deliver some subtle yet searing critique on religion, royalty, classism, the futility of war, and the hypocrisy and depravity of humanity, we love to see it.
What can I say, my stubborn determination and blind faith in Abercrombie’s storytelling skills were more than rewarded, and by the end I was so invested that I ended up staying up way too late to finish this book because I was simply so anxious about everyone’s fates. Honestly, just when I thought I did not care about the political drama and feared that this story was going to be disappointingly predictable, Abercrombie just did what Abercrombie does best and subverted all my expectations by delivering some of the most wicked twists and turns that had me cackling out loud in utter mad delight.
Ultimately, The Devils is not The First Law, which is either going to be a good or a bad thing depending on your reading tastes and expectations. For me, the highs ended up mostly outweighing the lows, and despite the fact that this book has a semi-satisfying self-contained arc, I am now desperate for more because I simply need to know what is to come next for all my precious dastardly devils. So, if you don’t mind a bit of crass humour and you like your dark fantasy to be action-packed, satirical, and full of memorable anti-heroes with way too loud personalities, then I think The Devils should be a match made in hell for you.
