Official Littafi Logo (2)
Africa Fantasy News Blog Shop

The Trouble With Peace (The Age of Madness #2) by Joe Abercrombie

It’s a real-life lesson in leadership, an allusion to pretentious saviour-Stalins and Christ-Hitlers who believe that they can change the world by breaking it first.

Akinwale
Published on November 8, 2021
2 min read
The Trouble With Peace

Incredible, stunning conclusion to a fantasy epic by one of the very best in the business.

My respect for Abercrombie has quadrupled in the reading of this book. Such is his ability to weave words with a natural deftness that comes from the same wellspring of creativity as the likes of Brandon Sanderson and Steven Erikson.

He doesn’t write the lengthy epics of the former, but his works are just as good.

The Trouble With Peace is a bloody, GrimDark read of mind-boggling twists and turns. If there’s one word to qualify the happenings in the books, it’s BETRAYAL. There are enough betrayals in here to make Judas Iscariot’s crime against Jesus Christ seem like a marriage proposal.

Anyone reading Joe Abercrombie’s books is advised to not develop too much of an attachment with any of the characters. None of them has any real scruples. Here, you’re likely to have a murderous character make noble-seeming decisions (mentally applauding their new-found insightful redemption, even), only to find out that their stone-cold back-stabbing hearts never froze all along.

In the same vein, seemingly noble characters end up having made stupid, selfish decisions in the name of heroism. It’s a real-life lesson in leadership, an allusion to pretentious saviour-Stalins and Christ-Hitlers who believe that they can change the world by breaking it first. It is true that the worst damage can stem from the best of intentions. But when analyzed deeply from within, it is found that the supposedly good intentions stem from selfishness and arrogant presumption to be the best person to effect such a change.

The Trouble With Peace is an excellent read filled with witty, smooth, suave writing that is, in turn, amusing, thought-provoking, and sobering. Never was a set of characters so grey in mind, body, and soul.

I look forward to seeing how it all ends in The Wisdom of Crowds. Top-quality read, this.

Written by Akinwale

The Tyrant Overlord. Fantasy buff and avid football fan.

Share your thoughts

    Top Posts
    Cartoon Characters That Were Villains

    Top 30 Cartoon Characters That Were Villains

    Our list rounds up the top 30 cartoon characters that were villains, each one more wonderfully wicked than the last.

    Funny Cartoon Characters

    20 Funny Cartoon Characters Sure to Crack You Up Good

    There are some outright funny cartoon characters who exist solely to crack you up, loud, hard, and with zero apology.

    8 Most Popular Marvel Superheroes, Ranked

    8 Most Popular Marvel Superheroes, Ranked

    Every Marvel hero brings something to the table. But if we had to pick the top 8 most popular Marvel superheroes, who would make t...

    Top 50 Mythical Creatures in Folklore From Around The World

    Top 50 Mythical Creatures in Folklore From Around The World

    While this isn’t an exhaustive list, it comprises some of the most popular mythical creatures from around the world.

    8 Funny Movie Characters For Lovers of Dark Humor

    8 Funny Movie Characters For Lovers of Dark Humor

    Sometimes we unintentionally find humour in the most unlikely places. These characters deliver the perfect mix of wit and moral di...

    Dalinar Kholin (Gerva Perez ArtStation)

    Top 10 Dalinar Kholin Quotes from the First Arc of the Stormlight Archive

    As a warrior, leader, and seeker of honor, Dalinar Kholin’s words often carry deep meaning. Here are ten of his top quotes i...

    The Strongest Spiderman Versions, Ranked

    The Strongest Spiderman Versions, Ranked

    Spider-Man is one of the many superheroes from the Marvel Universe whose stories shaped many childhoods. Who is your strongest Sp...

    Subscribe to our newsletter

    SUBSCRIBE AND GET A WEEKLY DOSE OF OUR NERDY CONTENT FOR YOUR DIGEST