• The Blade Itself

  • The First Law: Book One
  • By: Joe Abercrombie
  • Narrated by: Steven Pacey
  • Length: 22 hrs and 15 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (9,094 ratings)

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The Blade Itself  By  cover art

The Blade Itself

By: Joe Abercrombie
Narrated by: Steven Pacey
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Publisher's summary

Inquisitor Glokta, a crippled and bitter relic of the last war, former fencing champion turned torturer, is trapped in a twisted and broken body - not that he allows it to distract him from his daily routine of torturing smugglers.

Nobleman, dashing officer and would-be fencing champion Captain Jezal dan Luthar is living a life of ease by cheating his friends at cards. Vain and shallow, the biggest blot on his horizon is having to get out of bed in the morning to train with obsessive and boring old men. And Logen Ninefingers, an infamous warrior with a bloody past, is about to wake up with plans to settle a blood feud with Bethod, the new King of the Northmen, once and for all - ideally by running away from it.

But as he's discovering, old habits die hard....especially when Bayaz gets involved. An old man with a terrible temper and a pathetic assistant, he could be the First of the Magi, he could be a spectacular fraud, but whatever he is, he's about to make the lives of Glokta, Jezal, and Logen a whole lot more difficult....

©2010 Joe Abercrombie (P)2010 Orion Publishing Group

What listeners say about The Blade Itself

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    6,038
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    2,187
  • 3 Stars
    601
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Performance
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    38
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Story
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    4,958
  • 4 Stars
    1,891
  • 3 Stars
    564
  • 2 Stars
    122
  • 1 Stars
    92

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Very good

Awesome characters. Great development. Compelling story. I'm looking forward to listening to the next one!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Of Course

Joe Abercrombie and Anthony Ryan are the two best fantasy writers alive. This lead off installment to the series will have you hooked, and the performance is perfect.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
  • Al
  • 08-27-13

Stellar

Any additional comments?

I'm a huge fan of this genre. This is one of the best series i've read. It's graphic and adult themed which is essential in telling such a story.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Total Enjoyment

Where does The Blade Itself rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I have listened to numerous audiobooks - this one would be in the top 5.

What about Steven Pacey’s performance did you like?

Loved Steven Pacey's performance - he can separate characters with apparent ease - his voice never sounds forced.

Any additional comments?

I started this series after reading Game of Thrones series and have enjoyed it every bit as much - if not a little more!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Dark and Twisted Fantasy With a Sense of Humor

Any additional comments?

The Blade Itself is dark, melodramatic, and a great deal of fun. This is not your typical epic, go on a quest and save the world kind of fantasy. Instead we are thrust into a world of morally ambiguous anti-heroes – a disfigured torturer, an arrogant nobleman, and an infamous warrior with a checkered past who all cross paths and eventually find their fates align in the shadow of an impending war. There is intrigue, drama, a great deal of action, lots of twisted humor, and plenty to enjoy in this first entry of Abercrombie's First Law Trilogy. Steven Pacey is one of the top two or three fantasy narrators working today. This is an audiobook series that no true fantasy fan should be without. Even if you've read the series (as I have), get the audiobook and read it again.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Best narration ever

Which scene was your favorite?

Ah my old enemy......

Any additional comments?

This has to be the best narration I have ever heard, the storey is great the characters are so real but what makes this one of best is the narration. This is winner on all counts, value for credit, believable magic not overused, believable flawed characters, engaging storey and did I mention the best narration. And to top it off there are two more in the series as well as two side novels. Win win win

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Marvellous Performance

Best voice actor I’ve heard. You’d swear the cast included Derek Jacobi, Peter Jurasik and Michael Caine.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Wonderful

I can not say enough good things about Steven Pacey. I could listen to him read the phone book.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Best Fantasy I've read in years

Loved the characters. The pacing is fantastic - never a dull moment. This is definitely in the realm of darker / adult fantasy the likes of George RR Martin and Peter V. Brett.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

good narrator and characters, story is just ok

the narrator was great, and the characters were very well developed. the story was a bit lackluster and never really got me hooked.

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