Dave Edmunds's Reviews > The Devils

3.75 🌟's

"Everyone’s scared all the time… The brave ones are just good at pretending.”

Initial Impressions

I’ll be straight with you — I adore Joe Abercrombie. The First Law trilogy might just be my favourite fantasy series of all time. When it comes to character writing, Stephen King sits at the very top for me overall — but in fantasy? Joe Abercrombie is the undisputed champion.

What makes him so good is the way he writes people — broken, flawed, brilliant, and utterly unforgettable. Glokta, Logan Ninefingers, Ferro… they feel like living, breathing figures who stick with you long after the last page. That’s hugely important for me in any book, but especially fantasy.

So when Abercrombie launched into The Devils, I was eager to see if he could pull it off. And while it’s sharp, bloody, and full of the wit I love from him, it doesn’t quite scale the same heights as First Law.

The Story

Brother Diaz gets handed command of the Chapel of the Holy Expediency — a crew of supernatural “devils” (a vampire, a necromancer, an elf, and my personal favourite, a female werewolf). Their mission is to escort Alex, a woman with a claim on Troy’s throne, through enemy lands where betrayal is as common as a Geordie with no shirt in winter.



Here’s the thing you guys — it’s fast, bloody, and packed with classic Abercrombie turns: backstabbing, black humour, and characters making catastrophic decisions you can’t look away from. The journey is entertaining, but it never quite lands the same gut-punches as his best work.

The Writing

No surprises here — Abercrombie’s prose is still razor-sharp. Short, punchy sentences. Wit that cuts as deep as the violence. He switches from bleak to funny without breaking stride, which keeps the story alive and unpredictable.

There’s a lighter touch here than in the First Law — more overt humour, more wink to the reader. It works most of the time, but occasionally it blunts the darker edges. Still, when it comes to voice and timing, he’s up there with the best.

The Characters

And here’s where things get messy. You don’t read Abercrombie for bland caricatures — you read him because he owns character. Glokta, Logan, Ferro — they dwell in your mind long after the book is done. That’s the bar here.

That said — Vigga is exactly the kind of spark you want. She’s a ferocious, unpredictable werewolf who shifts between human and wolf with a raw edge, and she stole every scene she appeared in. She’s just my type of girl — I’d happily take her out for a candle-lit meal at my local kebab shop.



Alex, the young thief with royal blood, I found slightly annoying. Not unbearable, but some of her choices and dialogue rubbed me the wrong way. For a character carrying so much of the plot, she didn’t win me over.

Balthazar, the necromancer, was a real highlight however. Dark, eccentric, and laugh-out-loud funny in places, he brought that perfect mix of menace and comic relief. Every time he showed up, the whole story lifted — you never quite knew if he was going to crack a joke, raise the dead, or both at the same time. Easily one of the most enjoyable members of the crew.

The rest of the team — Brother Diaz, Sunny the elf, Baron Rikard the vampire — all have their moments, but compared to the giants of the First Law series, they’re lightweights. Vigga and Balthazar show the potential was there; the others just didn’t leave the same kind of mark.

Final Thoughts

The Devils is a strong, entertaining fantasy adventure with plenty of bite. Abercrombie still writes like a man who knows exactly what he’s doing, and there’s a lot here to enjoy. But when you’ve created characters as good as Glokta and Logan, the bar is sky high — and this one doesn’t clear it.

It is what it is — a good book, fun to read, but not First Law level.

Think of it like seeing your favourite band live. The new songs are good, you nod along, but what you’re really waiting for is when they finally unleash the classics.

And that’s the thing with The Devils — enjoyable, bloody, sharp, but not quite unforgettable. Or to put it in plain English: I’d happily go for a pint with Vigga and Balthazar, but the rest of the crew can do one!

Thanks for reading and...cheers!