The Not a Book Club Club discussion

Theres not a character I didnt like.

I'm still not very interested in Yarvi. I like reading about how he uses his ministerial training to compensate for his hand, but at the same time I'm bored with it.

Anyone besides me think the Captain reads like a female Nicomo Costra? Seems to me he recycled the character.

Nothing seems to be your standard badass, looking forward to his back story though; he'll almost definitely be the brawn to Yarvi's brains.

Looking forward to seeing the next step in things, now thay his tenure on the ship is over.

I'm liking Yarvi quite better now, he seems to have stopped wallowing in pity every few minutes and the character is showing some nice development.

I haven't read any other Abercrombie book so no idea about the Nicomo Costra part. She does remind me of characters in other stories.

I am liking Yarvi a bit more also. He seems to be hardening all around and working with a bit more guile.

The captain does seem a bit Costraish but think that is mainly due to her being a drunk. Depends on what she does when she comes back that will really cement her similarities or originality.

Looks like all of the "good guy" named characters escaped the sinking ship so no real loses besides Trigg who had to go at some point.

The world seems interesting so far but would like to get a bit more into it.

I agree so much potential.

I think that all of Abercrombie's characters live in such brutal circumstances that I didn't have instant sympathy but getting there.

@Bill, in addition to the drinking, she's always waxing lyrical about her achievements. Those were the two personality traits that made me think of Costra.

Rabindranauth wrote: "@Bill, in addition to the drinking, she's always waxing lyrical about her achievements. Those were the two personality traits that made me think of Costra."

True. I wonder if it was intentional or not.

Nicomo Cosca is a very memorable character that I like quite a bit from the first law series, so I will forgive Joe even if it does seem largely recycled through the captain in this book (man she's got a long name). Though I think your larger than life sea-faring pirate captain would share a lot of these attributes.

Yarvi continues to man up (half-man up?) as I hoped, for if there is one thing that is hard to sympathize with, its a whining, self-pitying character that doesn't at least attempt to make the best of what life has dealt him.

I agree with others that there was a missed opportunity to give characters more depth + background, but at 300 plus pages, not a lot of room, and the action/plot is moving along nicely, so I won't complain too much.

The book has grabbed me enough that I was up till 2am and made it about 80% through, leaving just enough to listen to the rest during my commute to and from work today. It may not be the most complex, nuanced book I've read from Abercrombie, but it sure is fun.

I have just read this section and am glad it has picked up. Once you knew he was going to be a slave on a ship you kinda knew what was going to happen - make a friend, make an enemy, escape.
I think this section was there to mainly introduce all the characters for the plot. The only one i was interested in was Nobody. Who is he? Where did he get his blade skills from? How/why was he a slave? And a slave for this boat/captain.
The others have the potential. Like Sumael - she got a key but never left - why?

As a by product, Yarvi has taken a step back for me. Yeah, its his story, and he has shown that his mind is superior to his brawn - but i don't have much of a connection. Hopefuly this change in the third part.

As for the world, it feels like a whistle stop tour of the whole lands. Maybe we will visit some of these areas again in another book. So far we have been given a load of place names, but nothing much about the culture or people. The only exception was the Shends. I thought this encounter could have been expanded a little more. All the fear building up to the landing - and it was washed away in one sentence.

I may come across as a little critical of the book, but i am enjoying it. It is a YA book and i think i keep forgetting that.

I'm with you guys here - the length of the book isn't doing the story justice. I'd love more all-around depth. I like Yarvi but find him a little bit flat as a character.

I also see the Cosca comparison.

This was a pretty typical 'main character forced into slavery' section with the usual cruel owners, development of a fellowship with fellow slaves, escape plans etc. That being said much like part 1, while it was predictable it was still well-written and enjoyable. Nothing seems a badass character and I'm interested to learn more about him. And yup the Captain, a flamboyant, extroverted drunk, is pretty much a rehash of Cosca (especially from Red Country) which is disappointing given that Abercrombie's characters are normally so original and brilliantly written.

Seems like i agree with most of you. So far I still find this predictable but still enjoyable.

I like the main character a bit more, but I still don't care that much.

Right now I'm most interested in Nobody.

I'm also the most interested in Nobody. I was kind or surprised that most of the slaves were killed. I wonder if we will see the named ones again. I also think reuniting with the mother won't go well.

hehe...I'm planning to go to his signing in SF next week. I wonder if he'll get annoyed or use the exact same response when someone asks the same question :)

Kaleb wrote: "Didn't his mither say something about his Uncle being lost at sea?"

Yeah.