Cards on the table, despite many many recommendations, this was my first Abercrombie read. I wasn't sure at first if it was right jumping into this new series, but I can now say with confidence, if you've not read any Abercrombie before, this is an excellent place to start. The Devils is fantastic. It's that simple. It's a violent fantasy, full of selfish, brutal and unlikeable characters that you can't help but love. We meet our ensemble of dangerous misfits early on, and the book is all about exploring these characters throughout an epic journey, in bloody battle but also in-between. My favourite parts were the quieter moments seeing the social side of our cast. The story did feel slightly formulaic in places, but when you have a misfit crew with a mission, that's kind of expected. What works so well is how we don't have cliché justifications for dark pasts, but instead spend time with them as-is, socialising with each other and just getting by as best they can. I laughed way more at this book than expected, and ultimately enjoyed the character interactions far more than the violent fight scenes. My only quible, perhaps unfairly, is that in a couple of instances I wanted the combat to end sooner. It was well written and kept a good pace, but I always wanted back to the conversations. If you're on the Abercrombie fence, now is the time to jump in.

As someone who has never read Joe Abercrombie before I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, other than an interesting sounding plot. It's safe to say my expectations were exceeded and now I need to read every book he's ever written! I adored this story and all the amazing characters in it. They're such a rag-tag bunch that shouldn't work well together but absolutely do and they feel like family by the end. I particularly love Balthazar, the 3rd best necromancer in Europe, his character growth is *chefs kiss*. If you like hilarious, action packed fantasy with found family you will love this book. Seriously, I rarely laugh at books but I laughed out loud many times throughout. I can't wait to read the rest of the series! Thank you to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

High stakes fantasy with humour and heart. It's multi-pov so you really get to know each of the characters, and they are all diabolically fantastic and infused with Abercrombie's signature needling wit. It is, if I may say, devilishly good fun. Thief (albeit not a very good one) Alex finds out she's the long lost princess for the throne of the city of Troy, she embarks on a perilous journey to the city to reclaim her birthright, but with several powerful and violent cousins in the way the Pope sends her The Devils, a rag tag group of morally questionable and extremely dangerous antiheroes, some forced into church servitude, others volunteers. Expect vampires, werewolves, necromancers, sorcerers, knights, elves, and so much more. There's been a bit of a trend in fantasy lately for antihero team up books, thinking Tchaikovsky's Spiderlight, Kings of the Wyld, The Maleficent Seven etc so this is a great addition. The Devils is such a fun ride and will be perfect for fans of comedic fantasy like Dungeon Crawler Carl but also for fans of Buehlman's The Blacktongue Thief, Dragonlance, DnD, and this is going to sound odd but I think Marvel movie fans would love it too. Anyways, book 2 The Heretics will be out in May 2027. Oh and James Cameron has bought the rights for a film adaptation and you should always read the book before the film right?

As a huge fan of Joe Abercrombie’s First Law series, I was both excited and saddened to hear that his next trilogy would be something totally new. Saddened because the First Law world is one of my favourite fantasy series, but excited to see what he’d come up with next – this was one of my most anticipated reads of 2025. It’s not a huge surprised to hear that I absolutely loved The Devils (I’d read Abercrombie’s shopping list – you know it would be endlessly entertaining). The Devils is and action-packed book fuelled by Abercrombie’s trademark wit, grit, and humour. This book takes place is a world that is both familiar and alien. A Medieval world in which many of the great, ancient cities never fell, the Saviour of the Catholic church is a woman who died on the wheel, and elves are very real (and will probably eat you), I immediately tumbled into this world and loved every step. This is the kind of book that makes me long for a Fire and Blood-style book just about the history – the lore is deep. Abercrombie writes with exquisite detail and creates a world that’s lush and feels so incredibly real. As usual, the characters are the stars of the show. The story revolved around Alex, a street urchin plucked from her life in the gutter when it’s discovered she’s actually the long-lost Princess Alexia, heir to the throne of Troy, and the mission to get her to Troy alive to claim that throne before her psychopathic cousins murder her. There’s only one group who can do it – the Chapel of the Holy Expediency, which can also be described as the Pope’s suicide squad. As you’d expect with one of his books, the cast of characters is where The Devils really shines. In true Abercrombie fashion, everyone is complex and multifaceted; completely horrible, homicidal, and so damn loveable. They’re monsters by most people’s definitions, but you can’t help but fall in love with this ragtag group of misfits. The chemistry between the cast is incredible, whether they’re working together or annoying each other to the point of murderous rage. He is an absolute master of dialogue and character interaction, and his skill is absolutely on display in this book. Although I have a soft spot for everyone, I particularly loved Vigga the werewolf (who doesn’t?), Sunny the elf, and Balthazar the much put-upon magician. The Devils is a rollicking tale of violence, action, and absolute mayhem. If you’re a fan of the First Law series, I really think you’re going to love The Devils.

This really blew me away - from the world-building to the storytelling to the character development; every single aspect of The Devils is honed to perfection. I never really considered giving this less than 5 stars the whole way through, it was so consistently entertaining and well written. As a standalone adventure, any readers new to Abercrombie’s writing need to take this opportunity to reconsider that life choice immediately. The Devils feels exactly like a fantasy version of Suicide Squad, with a selection of condemned monsters forced into service to do the pope’s bidding, under the guise of the Chapel of the Holy Expediency. The word ‘Monster’ is explored thoroughly in this book; every member of the unwilling congregation is sinister and morally corrupt in their own way, but they all have their own unique identity and interesting character arc alongside the main plot. For a book featuring a lot of powerful and dangerous monsters, it is excellently balanced to show how scary the individuals can be, without trivialising their mission. Did I mention how funny this book was? The world is as dark as you’d expect from Abercrombie, but with a bleak sense of humour that's as biting and funny as ever. Combined with the regular action and fight scenes, pretty much all of them ugly, you get a veritable sea of blood and guts that give the gallows humour all the context it needs. The Devils really does a wonderful job of making you fall for the most horrible characters! Whilst I feel the story resolves in a satisfying way, I really hope there’s future instalments in the world going forward.