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The Grim Company #1
The Grim Company
The difference between a hero and a killer lies in the ability to justify dark deeds. But this is the Age of Ruin. And there are no heroes...
Five hundred years ago, the world was destroyed in the celestial Godswar. Seeking to throw off the shackles of the deities who created them, a cabal of mages rose up and made war upon the Gods. Though they won out, it was at a great cost: the ensuing cataclysm brought forth the Age of Ruin to the world.
Five hundred years later, the world limps on, seemingly winding down to an inevitable end. Dystopian city states have arisen, each presided over by one of the Magelords who first made war.
Corrupted, near-immortal, and far too powerful, those wizards who once sought to free the world now make war upon each other, while the helpless populace limp on from day to day.
Into this blighted world, steps Davarus Cole, a boy obsessed with notions of heroism and adventuring, who burns to do great deeds. One night, in a reckless act, Cole gets himself into a brawl with the authories. He quickly finds himself sent away from the city, where the world still groans from the ancient cataclysm, and the corpses of Gods lie deep beneath the bedrock, leaking wild, uncontrolled magic into the world.
Five hundred years ago, the world was destroyed in the celestial Godswar. Seeking to throw off the shackles of the deities who created them, a cabal of mages rose up and made war upon the Gods. Though they won out, it was at a great cost: the ensuing cataclysm brought forth the Age of Ruin to the world.
Five hundred years later, the world limps on, seemingly winding down to an inevitable end. Dystopian city states have arisen, each presided over by one of the Magelords who first made war.
Corrupted, near-immortal, and far too powerful, those wizards who once sought to free the world now make war upon each other, while the helpless populace limp on from day to day.
Into this blighted world, steps Davarus Cole, a boy obsessed with notions of heroism and adventuring, who burns to do great deeds. One night, in a reckless act, Cole gets himself into a brawl with the authories. He quickly finds himself sent away from the city, where the world still groans from the ancient cataclysm, and the corpses of Gods lie deep beneath the bedrock, leaking wild, uncontrolled magic into the world.
400 pages, Hardcover
First published February 4, 2013
365 people are currently reading
13913 people want to read
About the author
Luke Scull
14 books913 followersLUKE SCULL is a British author and videogame designer. Luke’s first novel, The Grim Company, was shortlisted for the Gemmell Morningstar Award and earned a starred review from Kirkus as well as praise from the Guardian, the Sun, and the Daily Mail. Luke’s game design credits include several acclaimed titles for Ossian Studios. He has worked on The Witcher, Neverwinter Nights, and Baldur’s Gate franchises and is currently design lead for several projects.
You can keep up to date with Luke’s various projects by following him on Twitter at @Luke_Scull and visiting his website at www.lukescull.com
For book-specific monthly updates, join his mailing list and receive the short story “A Ring to Rule Them All” absolutely free!
You can keep up to date with Luke’s various projects by following him on Twitter at @Luke_Scull and visiting his website at www.lukescull.com
For book-specific monthly updates, join his mailing list and receive the short story “A Ring to Rule Them All” absolutely free!
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April 9, 2025I read the last four or five chapters in one go and really enjoyed all the threads converging in a good old fashioned siege/punch-up.
The Grim company has been described as part of a new wave of fantasy, led by writers such as Joe Abercrombie (I've not read Abercrombie so I can't comment on any similarities). To my mind though it actually feels quite retro, albeit with bad language. There's plenty of talk about 'realism' these days - and this book didn't have that George RR Martin 'real feel' to it for me. That's not a condemnation - fantasy doesn't have to go down that path - the only similarities for me were the gore, and the fact that things very often don't turn out rosy.
We have a large cast with all manner of characters, the two main points of view being a barbarian/northman hero who strikes a note somewhere between L. Sprague de Camp's aging Conan and Terry Pratchet's Cohen (much closer to the former), and a young trainee hero with inflated ideas about his own skill and importance. The northman felt comfortably familiar, the slightly crap hero took a me a while to enjoy but I did warm to him and he's certainly the more original.
I might even call the book a romp - despite all the death and disaster Luke's tale actually felt rather upbeat to me - perhaps because of the good humour and stoicism of one of the main protagonists and the comedy value of the other.
The best part about The Grim Company is Luke Scull's imagination, which is darn good. I loved many of the ideas, the gods cast down by men, their corpses littering the world, the various magics of the magicians who did it, and the way they govern the world in the aftermath, the magical powers/skills of their underlings... it's a great playground for fantasy.
The story wanders through a variety of violent situations wherein our scattered characters kill monsters, bad guys, good guys, and neutral guys before being slowly drawn back together for a grand finale. This for me was the high point where a lot of the build-up pays off.
Two small quibbles at the end involve (slight spoilers):
A lot is left unexplained/unexplored and in the dying pages even more questions are raised, so there's plenty of go left in the story yet - which is good because there's a trilogy to fill.
Luke Scull has a very distinct style and an imagination bursting with intriguing ideas. It's definitely worth giving him a chance to see if his tale can sink its hooks into you!
The trilogy is now complete and I have all three, but need to find the time to read book 3.
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Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter #prizes
...
The Grim company has been described as part of a new wave of fantasy, led by writers such as Joe Abercrombie (I've not read Abercrombie so I can't comment on any similarities). To my mind though it actually feels quite retro, albeit with bad language. There's plenty of talk about 'realism' these days - and this book didn't have that George RR Martin 'real feel' to it for me. That's not a condemnation - fantasy doesn't have to go down that path - the only similarities for me were the gore, and the fact that things very often don't turn out rosy.
We have a large cast with all manner of characters, the two main points of view being a barbarian/northman hero who strikes a note somewhere between L. Sprague de Camp's aging Conan and Terry Pratchet's Cohen (much closer to the former), and a young trainee hero with inflated ideas about his own skill and importance. The northman felt comfortably familiar, the slightly crap hero took a me a while to enjoy but I did warm to him and he's certainly the more original.
I might even call the book a romp - despite all the death and disaster Luke's tale actually felt rather upbeat to me - perhaps because of the good humour and stoicism of one of the main protagonists and the comedy value of the other.
The best part about The Grim Company is Luke Scull's imagination, which is darn good. I loved many of the ideas, the gods cast down by men, their corpses littering the world, the various magics of the magicians who did it, and the way they govern the world in the aftermath, the magical powers/skills of their underlings... it's a great playground for fantasy.
The story wanders through a variety of violent situations wherein our scattered characters kill monsters, bad guys, good guys, and neutral guys before being slowly drawn back together for a grand finale. This for me was the high point where a lot of the build-up pays off.
Two small quibbles at the end involve (slight spoilers):
A lot is left unexplained/unexplored and in the dying pages even more questions are raised, so there's plenty of go left in the story yet - which is good because there's a trilogy to fill.
Luke Scull has a very distinct style and an imagination bursting with intriguing ideas. It's definitely worth giving him a chance to see if his tale can sink its hooks into you!
The trilogy is now complete and I have all three, but need to find the time to read book 3.
Join my Patreon
Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter #prizes
...
May 20, 2022
4.5 Stars! I quite enjoyed this, I mean there were some parts to skim over but still. I enjoyed the audio too! I loved the characters, especially Jarek The Wolf 🐺🖤😏
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
July 29, 2015
Originally reviewed at Bookwraiths Reviews
When I think of a grimdark novel, what comes to mind is an ultra-violent, amoral, uber realistic story where good guys don’t even finish last . . . they get slaughtered before the race even begins! Something along the lines of this.
Okay, maybe, that isn’t completely fair, but we all know the sub-genre is known for those elements I mentioned above. And when I returned to reading fantasy a few years ago, this “new” fantasy didn’t agree with me at all. So much so that I actually wrote a blog post bemoaning my disillusionment with the whole sub-genre entitled "Why Grimdark Isn’t For Me."
Fast forward a few years. I’ve read more grimdark books. Some I’ve loved. A few I’ve thought were “meh.” Most I’ve thought were entertaining enough. Now, though, I’ve encountered something I never thought possible: A fun grimdark!
Okay, I know that “fun” term sounded sacrilegious. Please, take a deep breath, put the fist down, and sit back in your chair, I will explain everything.
Now, Luke Scull starts The Grim Company out with a proverbial grimdark middle finger. This takes the shape of a whole city being destroyed by magic while it’s terrified citizens can do nothing but stand there waiting for it to happen. A cataclysm that opens this book out in a most shocking and spectacular way.
The pace slows down considerable after this, but instead of a frantic sprint, a reader finds himself in a slow but steady marathon. The world’s delicious history being slowly revealed piece by piece. Characters are introduced, thrown into the mix. Amoral philosophy begins to make its appearance. Fights are bloody, brutal affairs with body parts flying. And the strong aroma of grimdark begins to permeate every page.
As for that world, Scull has dreamed up an epic, grimdark wonderland, fully realized and impeccably unveiled. It is a land mired in the Age of Ruin; a slow death that began five centuries ago when a group of wizards arose during the Age of Strife (An epoch were the world’s religions allied to exterminate all users of magic.) and killed their persecutors and the gods they worshiped.
You heard that right. These sorcerers hunted down and slaughtered every deity known to exist, casting some from heaven itself. All that remains of these divine beings are their slowly decomposing corpses; some of which do not seem to be completely dead yet, but can still be heard moaning as miners tear out their magical flesh and blood to empower the deicidal wizards. For after the Godswar, these “god-like” wizards didn’t go away but carved up the decomposing world into fiefdoms. All humanity shepherded toward the end of everything by the very people who had ushered in the slow death of creation.
While it is implied that many of these deicidal wizards still live, the story here focuses on the struggle between only four of them: Salazar of Dorminia, The White Lady of Thelassa, Marius of Shadowport, and The Shaman of High Fangs. A conflict that revolves more around their need to obtain the last great source of magic in the world rather than any desire to increase their earthly dominions (because, honestly, those are pathetic excuses for the lost civilizations from the past.)
Ensnared in this wizardly conflict is a cast of colorful characters. Davarus Cole is a young man, who has been reared to be a hero in the mold of his deceased father, and into his hands has been placed an ensorcelled weapon that is destined for the heart of Salazar. Plotting beside him at the rebel meetings is an orphan woman named Sasha, who views all men with the disdain that they deserve. Brodar Kayne and Jerek the Wolf enter the tale as highlanders on the run from the minions of the Shaman of High Fangs; men of action who are united together in a strange bond of friendship, even though they are as different as light from day. Far to the north, the sorceress Ylandris dreams and plots to become even greater than the Shaman himself. And in Dorminia, Salazar’s Supreme Augmentor (Augmentors are magically enhanced “super soldiers” of the wizards.) is a man named Barandas; a bastion of goodness and virtue who commits evil, because he believes that “a strong man does what is necessary and not always what is right.” And rounding out this merry cast is Eremul the Halfmage; the last wizard remaining in Salazar’s city, though the price for his escape from the wizard’s magical purge years before were his legs.
With this motley group of people (and a few more minor players) Scull weaves an entertaining grimdark that is two parts amoral, ultra-violent fantasy and one part fun epic adventure. A viciously dark escapade that is somehow fun!
Even the moody, philosophical comments contained in the narrative don’t depress as much as make you laugh at their absurdity, such as when Eremul is counseled “[N]ot to lament the loss of your legs. Instead celebrate the fact they liberated you from the evil you would have otherwise committed — yet by virtue of that simple fact, you possess only half the evil of a man” or will have you nodding along in agreement, as when Eremul observes that “It would seem that men possessing the qualities to serve the city in the highest capacity were difficult to find. Deceitfulness, cowardice, shameless arse-lickery. Why haven’t I been made a magister yet?” Hell, even comments that might offend your sensibilities don’t really irk you . . . too much. For instance, when one character muses that “The difference between a hero and a killer lies only in the ability of the former to justify every dark dead they perform to anyone who cares to listen. Even themselves. Especially themselves” or when another proclaims that the “The longer one lives the more one understands that there is no inherent goodness in the world” they all fit into the overall narrative so snuggly that it doesn’t sound like an author proselytizing but rather the characters coming alive before your eyes and letting you get to know them.
Naturally, there are vicious physical confrontations and dazzling sorcerous displays in The Grim Company. As I mentioned earlier, the beginning of the book begins with a major one. However, it continues from there, albeit at a slower pace, providing enough episodes of blood and guts carelessly scattered across the pages to satisfy even the most ardent grimdark fan. So if that was a major concern of yours, hopefully this news lays such doubts to rest.
By this point, I’m sure you can detect that I really liked this novel. Honestly, it was a nice surprise; one of those times when I was not expecting much and got a lot more than I bargained for — in a good way. Yeah, yeah, I know grimdark isn’t suppose to be labeled “fun,” but I’m just telling the truth here. The Grim Company is a fun grimdark fantasy. Sure, it has all the gory, moody elements of the usual grimdarks out there, but Scull mixed in a wonderfully deep, complex world with a storyline that had enough good, old-fashioned fun to lighten the read, so that it was FUN. Hell, I think even the “Grimdark” Reaper had a smile on his face after finishing this one.
See he is smiling? You don’t see it? Huh, I would have sworn he was smiling.
When I think of a grimdark novel, what comes to mind is an ultra-violent, amoral, uber realistic story where good guys don’t even finish last . . . they get slaughtered before the race even begins! Something along the lines of this.
Okay, maybe, that isn’t completely fair, but we all know the sub-genre is known for those elements I mentioned above. And when I returned to reading fantasy a few years ago, this “new” fantasy didn’t agree with me at all. So much so that I actually wrote a blog post bemoaning my disillusionment with the whole sub-genre entitled "Why Grimdark Isn’t For Me."
Fast forward a few years. I’ve read more grimdark books. Some I’ve loved. A few I’ve thought were “meh.” Most I’ve thought were entertaining enough. Now, though, I’ve encountered something I never thought possible: A fun grimdark!
Okay, I know that “fun” term sounded sacrilegious. Please, take a deep breath, put the fist down, and sit back in your chair, I will explain everything.
Now, Luke Scull starts The Grim Company out with a proverbial grimdark middle finger. This takes the shape of a whole city being destroyed by magic while it’s terrified citizens can do nothing but stand there waiting for it to happen. A cataclysm that opens this book out in a most shocking and spectacular way.
The pace slows down considerable after this, but instead of a frantic sprint, a reader finds himself in a slow but steady marathon. The world’s delicious history being slowly revealed piece by piece. Characters are introduced, thrown into the mix. Amoral philosophy begins to make its appearance. Fights are bloody, brutal affairs with body parts flying. And the strong aroma of grimdark begins to permeate every page.
As for that world, Scull has dreamed up an epic, grimdark wonderland, fully realized and impeccably unveiled. It is a land mired in the Age of Ruin; a slow death that began five centuries ago when a group of wizards arose during the Age of Strife (An epoch were the world’s religions allied to exterminate all users of magic.) and killed their persecutors and the gods they worshiped.
You heard that right. These sorcerers hunted down and slaughtered every deity known to exist, casting some from heaven itself. All that remains of these divine beings are their slowly decomposing corpses; some of which do not seem to be completely dead yet, but can still be heard moaning as miners tear out their magical flesh and blood to empower the deicidal wizards. For after the Godswar, these “god-like” wizards didn’t go away but carved up the decomposing world into fiefdoms. All humanity shepherded toward the end of everything by the very people who had ushered in the slow death of creation.
While it is implied that many of these deicidal wizards still live, the story here focuses on the struggle between only four of them: Salazar of Dorminia, The White Lady of Thelassa, Marius of Shadowport, and The Shaman of High Fangs. A conflict that revolves more around their need to obtain the last great source of magic in the world rather than any desire to increase their earthly dominions (because, honestly, those are pathetic excuses for the lost civilizations from the past.)
Ensnared in this wizardly conflict is a cast of colorful characters. Davarus Cole is a young man, who has been reared to be a hero in the mold of his deceased father, and into his hands has been placed an ensorcelled weapon that is destined for the heart of Salazar. Plotting beside him at the rebel meetings is an orphan woman named Sasha, who views all men with the disdain that they deserve. Brodar Kayne and Jerek the Wolf enter the tale as highlanders on the run from the minions of the Shaman of High Fangs; men of action who are united together in a strange bond of friendship, even though they are as different as light from day. Far to the north, the sorceress Ylandris dreams and plots to become even greater than the Shaman himself. And in Dorminia, Salazar’s Supreme Augmentor (Augmentors are magically enhanced “super soldiers” of the wizards.) is a man named Barandas; a bastion of goodness and virtue who commits evil, because he believes that “a strong man does what is necessary and not always what is right.” And rounding out this merry cast is Eremul the Halfmage; the last wizard remaining in Salazar’s city, though the price for his escape from the wizard’s magical purge years before were his legs.
With this motley group of people (and a few more minor players) Scull weaves an entertaining grimdark that is two parts amoral, ultra-violent fantasy and one part fun epic adventure. A viciously dark escapade that is somehow fun!
Even the moody, philosophical comments contained in the narrative don’t depress as much as make you laugh at their absurdity, such as when Eremul is counseled “[N]ot to lament the loss of your legs. Instead celebrate the fact they liberated you from the evil you would have otherwise committed — yet by virtue of that simple fact, you possess only half the evil of a man” or will have you nodding along in agreement, as when Eremul observes that “It would seem that men possessing the qualities to serve the city in the highest capacity were difficult to find. Deceitfulness, cowardice, shameless arse-lickery. Why haven’t I been made a magister yet?” Hell, even comments that might offend your sensibilities don’t really irk you . . . too much. For instance, when one character muses that “The difference between a hero and a killer lies only in the ability of the former to justify every dark dead they perform to anyone who cares to listen. Even themselves. Especially themselves” or when another proclaims that the “The longer one lives the more one understands that there is no inherent goodness in the world” they all fit into the overall narrative so snuggly that it doesn’t sound like an author proselytizing but rather the characters coming alive before your eyes and letting you get to know them.
Naturally, there are vicious physical confrontations and dazzling sorcerous displays in The Grim Company. As I mentioned earlier, the beginning of the book begins with a major one. However, it continues from there, albeit at a slower pace, providing enough episodes of blood and guts carelessly scattered across the pages to satisfy even the most ardent grimdark fan. So if that was a major concern of yours, hopefully this news lays such doubts to rest.
By this point, I’m sure you can detect that I really liked this novel. Honestly, it was a nice surprise; one of those times when I was not expecting much and got a lot more than I bargained for — in a good way. Yeah, yeah, I know grimdark isn’t suppose to be labeled “fun,” but I’m just telling the truth here. The Grim Company is a fun grimdark fantasy. Sure, it has all the gory, moody elements of the usual grimdarks out there, but Scull mixed in a wonderfully deep, complex world with a storyline that had enough good, old-fashioned fun to lighten the read, so that it was FUN. Hell, I think even the “Grimdark” Reaper had a smile on his face after finishing this one.
See he is smiling? You don’t see it? Huh, I would have sworn he was smiling.
January 18, 2016
"It is better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation."
I've used that quote many times to reinforce to students how important it is to be original when composing a essay. It's so easy to be influenced by a journal where you believe part of it answers the question to which you are posed perfectly. Perfection is a myth, something we strive to but find it frustratingly impossible to obtain - but maybe the perfection you seek should be from your own mind and thoughts, not other's. Aspire is different to inspire, don't you think? I believe this is a problem with The Grim Company - please read on.
My main problem with The Grim Company was that I had read the story before, or something very similar to it. There are too many parallels to other stories I've read by writers such as Joe Abercrombie, Glen Cook and more so, George R R Martin. Of course writers are going to be influenced by other writers, but for me this wasn't a original story. I'm going to try to explain why I think this and also my relative disappointment with the characters created by the author - this being they (to me) came across lifeless and devoid of, well, character.
Grim Company is a debut high/dark/grimdark fantasy trilogy by Luke Scrull. The Gods are dead, slain by the Magelords some five centuries ago. Humanity is on its own, but now they are ruled by those mages. There is one who can challenge the mages, Davarus Cole who has Magebane - a weapon that makes him impervious to sorcery. Cole has a destiny, to become a hero. He yearns to slay Salazar, a Magelord who rules Dormina with a tyrannical flair. To help him reach this goal, he has The Shards, who are a group of rebels - although Cole finds himself held back by their leaders lack of action, Garrett.
While this is going on, demonic forces are gathering to the north. The only thing standing between them are a loose confederacy of Highlander tribes (basically Vikings). A Shaman, who commands these forces - meanwhile he is pursuing the former Sword of the North, Bordar Kayne, who fled along with Wolf aka Jerek to the south. Their paths become entwined with members of the Shard.
In-between this we're presented with the Eremul , the Halfmage, a mage who Salazar let live on account he hides his magical abilities and turn informant. Life's a bit crap for Eremul, as he is half the man he use to be, literally speaking. His manservant Issac, helps Eremul get around (so to speak) and turns into a rather adapt aide for both his master and, well everything he turns his hand to.
There is another side story going on (four in all) which introduces the reader to Ylandris, a sorceress, who seduces the King of the North so she can realise her dream of becoming queen. What she begins to realise is that the King isn't really in command and finds herself thinking how to depose the Shaman aka Magelord of the north.
So here's my problem with the characters - Bordar Kayne personality is devoid of anything that would appeal to the reader. It's wooden, like it's been hammered out and played out by the writer many times over for perfection. The author does describe The Sword of the North as 'in his prime' many times over - but then continually reinforces to the reader how he is old and flagging, aches and pains override his ability to fight. However he seems to walk through anything thrown at him. It doesn't help as Bordar dialogue read like it was forced by the writer to give him some ounce of personality. Now his companion Jerek is likeable up to a point, but after a while his personality grated at him. It was like he was thrown in only to give it a Mark Lawerence-esque "fuck, cock and cunt" linguist lesson to the reader. I've no problem with rough language in a story. After a while, you just think that character has nothing to offer but that 'fun' trait. He is easily prone to violence, even a flipping alchemist annoys him, for no reason other than being one. Females, he doesn't like females... 'cunts' apparently. In fact the only person he 'half' likes is Kayne and even then they almost come to blows.
I want to talk about Davarus Coles, possibly the worst leading character I've ever come across in any fictional story I've read. I'm not just saying this for impact or trying to be 'edgy and cool' - he sucks! Seriously, the story goes he has a destiny; to follow in his father footsteps and become a hero. Fine, understandable in a way. He is neither the anti-hero which some of George R R Martin's and Mark Lawrence present us in their stories, but a insufferable, deluded, annoying, whining git. He rather reminds me of that person who big themselves up constantly, but when it comes to doing something, they fall way short. He has such cliché lines like; "I'm a hero, this is what I do." I get the author has written this character that way, but too much 'page time' has been given to a character who actually brings nothing to the story.
Having said that I did end up rooting for the bad guy, Salazar - wrong? Maybe, but then the heroes in the story weren't really written in a way where I'd end up rooting for them. We end up finding out why he helped kill the gods and why he is so hard on his people. It's explained in a way where you feel for the bad guy! The Magelords may have become ruthless and unforgiving in their rule, but once the explanations is there, well I felt it was justified to a point. The Halfmage was interesting in his witty retorts to those who mocked him. The story isn't helped by dialogue that (as I've mentioned) seemed to be forced out by the author - I'm trying best to explain how the majority of main characters came across to me; false and lifeless would be the best analogy I can come up with.
There are some interesting world creations though; The Augmentors, sort of a magically enhanced police force appealed. They are a extension of Salazar's power and gifted with differing abilities such as; enchanted armour, blurring speed, never tire, etc. Talking about magic, I wanted to mention that I'm not a fan of fantasy with heavy magic involvement within its pages. However Luke Scrull does make the magic subtle mostly. Mind you, on a genocide scale.
I think the real problem with The Grim Company is that there is no defined protagonist or anti-hero. There doesn't seem to be any real antagonist either. Salazar isn't such of a bad guy, that was my conclusion towards the end. Another issue for me was the predictability of where the story was going. Something many reviewers have mentioned but glazed over. The story is very A-B, you know where Cole is heading. I've mentioned Salazar.
So the last thing I wanted to mention was how similar part of the story is to GRRM. To the north we've got demonic powers looking to come south and devour the people of Trine in The Grim Company. The people are weak, both those who are defending the north and those south - due to civil war and a populace being ruled in a iron vice. GRRM - same thing when you think about it. Though the powers north are presented as a more 'natural' evil. There is civil war in Game Of Thrones the north is weakened due to the death of Ned Stark, due to this civil war for the crown. The Grim Company a death of a important Magelord weakens the people. The Demons are coming and the people are near powerless to stop them - well unless Kayne goes back north and walks through them. Much like this novel.
Apologies if I sound a little cynical - I found the similarities to similar to a few other author stories. Imitation is fine, but there is a limit surely. I did enjoy a few of the characters as mentioned, but didn't find the story original enough to warrant me liking it more. In fact it borrowed heavily from other fantasy novels, in my opinion. I'm not suggesting plagiarism as it's not. Maybe you will find it differently, in which case I hope you do.
I've used that quote many times to reinforce to students how important it is to be original when composing a essay. It's so easy to be influenced by a journal where you believe part of it answers the question to which you are posed perfectly. Perfection is a myth, something we strive to but find it frustratingly impossible to obtain - but maybe the perfection you seek should be from your own mind and thoughts, not other's. Aspire is different to inspire, don't you think? I believe this is a problem with The Grim Company - please read on.
My main problem with The Grim Company was that I had read the story before, or something very similar to it. There are too many parallels to other stories I've read by writers such as Joe Abercrombie, Glen Cook and more so, George R R Martin. Of course writers are going to be influenced by other writers, but for me this wasn't a original story. I'm going to try to explain why I think this and also my relative disappointment with the characters created by the author - this being they (to me) came across lifeless and devoid of, well, character.
Grim Company is a debut high/dark/grimdark fantasy trilogy by Luke Scrull. The Gods are dead, slain by the Magelords some five centuries ago. Humanity is on its own, but now they are ruled by those mages. There is one who can challenge the mages, Davarus Cole who has Magebane - a weapon that makes him impervious to sorcery. Cole has a destiny, to become a hero. He yearns to slay Salazar, a Magelord who rules Dormina with a tyrannical flair. To help him reach this goal, he has The Shards, who are a group of rebels - although Cole finds himself held back by their leaders lack of action, Garrett.
While this is going on, demonic forces are gathering to the north. The only thing standing between them are a loose confederacy of Highlander tribes (basically Vikings). A Shaman, who commands these forces - meanwhile he is pursuing the former Sword of the North, Bordar Kayne, who fled along with Wolf aka Jerek to the south. Their paths become entwined with members of the Shard.
In-between this we're presented with the Eremul , the Halfmage, a mage who Salazar let live on account he hides his magical abilities and turn informant. Life's a bit crap for Eremul, as he is half the man he use to be, literally speaking. His manservant Issac, helps Eremul get around (so to speak) and turns into a rather adapt aide for both his master and, well everything he turns his hand to.
There is another side story going on (four in all) which introduces the reader to Ylandris, a sorceress, who seduces the King of the North so she can realise her dream of becoming queen. What she begins to realise is that the King isn't really in command and finds herself thinking how to depose the Shaman aka Magelord of the north.
So here's my problem with the characters - Bordar Kayne personality is devoid of anything that would appeal to the reader. It's wooden, like it's been hammered out and played out by the writer many times over for perfection. The author does describe The Sword of the North as 'in his prime' many times over - but then continually reinforces to the reader how he is old and flagging, aches and pains override his ability to fight. However he seems to walk through anything thrown at him. It doesn't help as Bordar dialogue read like it was forced by the writer to give him some ounce of personality. Now his companion Jerek is likeable up to a point, but after a while his personality grated at him. It was like he was thrown in only to give it a Mark Lawerence-esque "fuck, cock and cunt" linguist lesson to the reader. I've no problem with rough language in a story. After a while, you just think that character has nothing to offer but that 'fun' trait. He is easily prone to violence, even a flipping alchemist annoys him, for no reason other than being one. Females, he doesn't like females... 'cunts' apparently. In fact the only person he 'half' likes is Kayne and even then they almost come to blows.
I want to talk about Davarus Coles, possibly the worst leading character I've ever come across in any fictional story I've read. I'm not just saying this for impact or trying to be 'edgy and cool' - he sucks! Seriously, the story goes he has a destiny; to follow in his father footsteps and become a hero. Fine, understandable in a way. He is neither the anti-hero which some of George R R Martin's and Mark Lawrence present us in their stories, but a insufferable, deluded, annoying, whining git. He rather reminds me of that person who big themselves up constantly, but when it comes to doing something, they fall way short. He has such cliché lines like; "I'm a hero, this is what I do." I get the author has written this character that way, but too much 'page time' has been given to a character who actually brings nothing to the story.
Having said that I did end up rooting for the bad guy, Salazar - wrong? Maybe, but then the heroes in the story weren't really written in a way where I'd end up rooting for them. We end up finding out why he helped kill the gods and why he is so hard on his people. It's explained in a way where you feel for the bad guy! The Magelords may have become ruthless and unforgiving in their rule, but once the explanations is there, well I felt it was justified to a point. The Halfmage was interesting in his witty retorts to those who mocked him. The story isn't helped by dialogue that (as I've mentioned) seemed to be forced out by the author - I'm trying best to explain how the majority of main characters came across to me; false and lifeless would be the best analogy I can come up with.
There are some interesting world creations though; The Augmentors, sort of a magically enhanced police force appealed. They are a extension of Salazar's power and gifted with differing abilities such as; enchanted armour, blurring speed, never tire, etc. Talking about magic, I wanted to mention that I'm not a fan of fantasy with heavy magic involvement within its pages. However Luke Scrull does make the magic subtle mostly. Mind you, on a genocide scale.
I think the real problem with The Grim Company is that there is no defined protagonist or anti-hero. There doesn't seem to be any real antagonist either. Salazar isn't such of a bad guy, that was my conclusion towards the end. Another issue for me was the predictability of where the story was going. Something many reviewers have mentioned but glazed over. The story is very A-B, you know where Cole is heading. I've mentioned Salazar.
So the last thing I wanted to mention was how similar part of the story is to GRRM. To the north we've got demonic powers looking to come south and devour the people of Trine in The Grim Company. The people are weak, both those who are defending the north and those south - due to civil war and a populace being ruled in a iron vice. GRRM - same thing when you think about it. Though the powers north are presented as a more 'natural' evil. There is civil war in Game Of Thrones the north is weakened due to the death of Ned Stark, due to this civil war for the crown. The Grim Company a death of a important Magelord weakens the people. The Demons are coming and the people are near powerless to stop them - well unless Kayne goes back north and walks through them. Much like this novel.
Apologies if I sound a little cynical - I found the similarities to similar to a few other author stories. Imitation is fine, but there is a limit surely. I did enjoy a few of the characters as mentioned, but didn't find the story original enough to warrant me liking it more. In fact it borrowed heavily from other fantasy novels, in my opinion. I'm not suggesting plagiarism as it's not. Maybe you will find it differently, in which case I hope you do.
February 6, 2017
Why does this book only have a 3.7 rating???!?!? It was awesome!
Great characters - check
Character building / great character arcs - check
Interesting world / back story - check
Great twists and turns - check
Great ending - One of the best I've read in a fantasy book (so...check!)
Cole, one of the main characters was absolutely fantastic. A blundering, delusional 'hero' who provides many a funny moment and was definitely the highlight of the book for me.
As far as I can tell from reading some reviews, this book gets marked down for being too much like Joe Abercrombie's The Blade Itself. I actually thought the Grim Company was better! That's saying something as TBI is fantastic!
Give it a chance, it won't disappoint. I recommend the audiobook version.
Great characters - check
Character building / great character arcs - check
Interesting world / back story - check
Great twists and turns - check
Great ending - One of the best I've read in a fantasy book (so...check!)
Cole, one of the main characters was absolutely fantastic. A blundering, delusional 'hero' who provides many a funny moment and was definitely the highlight of the book for me.
As far as I can tell from reading some reviews, this book gets marked down for being too much like Joe Abercrombie's The Blade Itself. I actually thought the Grim Company was better! That's saying something as TBI is fantastic!
Give it a chance, it won't disappoint. I recommend the audiobook version.
November 21, 2017
"Civilization functions only because strong men do not permit weaker men to indulge their baser instincts.
Freedom and liberty are the means by which anarchy reigns – and anarchy is the natural state for men to freely express the evil that lurks within them. Within all of them. Within you."
I see a lot of comparisons being made between this book and Joe Abercrombie’s The First Law Trilogy.
To be honest, I don’t remember much of The First Law trilogy except that it was boring. So if that was the main comparison between these two - then I agree.
With underwhelming plot, uncharismatic characters and messy worldbuilding Luke (like Joe before him) simply have so little else to offer in his book.
Nevertheless, I applaud the effort, and I’m positive that with so many plots and sub-plots left wide open we’ll get much more to explore in future books.
So, what does a person do when he’s struggling with heat, boredom and reading slump?
Turns on air condition, pretends to do some craftsmanship or simply goes out on a beach with his friends?
Nonsense!
He takes very divisive grim-dark fantasy book in order to find hidden meaning in the fact that some readers enjoyed it while others not so much.
Because if something my unnatural love towards very divisive movie called Man of Steel thought me is that “where’s divisiveness – there’s potential for greatness”.
Wrong. (Not about Man of Steel, that movie still is a master piece of superheroes origin.)
I was wrong about this book.
“Grim-dark Fantasy’s Last Hurrah” my ass.
The book starts with a magical tsunami.
Great. I approve. Every book needs its strong beginning.
And where do you get more distinguished beginning than mass-murdering 40 000 people in an instant?
But here comes the first problem: the fact that we get to read about that moment through the eyes of a drunker who beats his wife, simply leaves you kinda apathetically - meh – for their misfortune.
I mean, yeah, sure, I’m sorry for at least 39 999 innocent people, and probably one cat who was briefly mentioned (I think), but like, I can’t be emotionally invested already in third page, come on...
Now, if we saw this moment from cat’s perspective, I’m certain someone somewhere would break a record in fastest weeping while reading a book.
Me? I’m more of a dog person, so…
But okay, let’s give it a benefit of a doubt and hope it will serve bigger narrative. (Spoiler alert – it doesn’t.)
But why have I mentioned that problem with characters difficulty to grip you and make you emotionally invested?
Because this is the problem that goes throughout the entire book.
And my main problem with it.
Characters are simply uncharismatic pile of shitheads and dimwits.
And all starts with most annoying, pompous, self-important, mutton-headed, supine turd and jack off:
Davarus Cole.
Hero in wanting.
A delusional fuck up who lives in a bubble of belief that a birthright grants you predestined warranty of grandeur.
Now, I wouldn’t mind it if that was part of his character build up in the story; if he somehow, over the course of various sorts of mishaps he endured, learns some valuable lesson.
But no, he began his story as a fuck up and stayed like that until the very end.
I mean, for fuck sake, how naïve you have to be to believe a grizzly, three-fingered, stinky rapist can actually watch your back and consider him to be your friend?
No one’s that stupid. Except for Davarus Cole, obviously.
Also, if someone’s name Sasha, what do you actually achieve in calling her Sash?
It’s-Just-One-Fucking-Letter!
Shove yourself off the cliff, please.
Second place of most annoying character belongs to:
Jerek the Wolf. Or longer for Jerk.
Master of staring contest. Undefeated champion of sulking.
Oh, and if by chance you win an argument against him, you’ll probably get to see his solid ass running towards the woods instead of accepting that he’s wrong.
A 12 year old Highlander in a body of a grown man.
You too, shove yourself off the cliff.
Now, group of more uncharismatic and boring characters than annoying:
Supreme Augmentor Barandas character so forgettable that for more than half of the book whenever his chapter came up, I thought:
“Oh wonderful, a new character”;
Ylandris basically a female version of dimwit Davarus Cole. Less stupid, however, because when she was affronted by a rapist she had enough of brain-cells to run;
Sasha harsh character, harsh as Clint Eastwood in his prime, of even harsher past;
Brodar Kayne character you’ll find as sympathetic as you'll find sympathy for your menstrual cycle;
Group of main baddies, wizards such as:
Salazar, Emperor Tyrant of Dorminia,
The White Lady of Thelassa in the South and
Shaman of High Fangs, crazy shapeshifter and twitcher of the North.
Many of you did nothing more in this book then usurping valuable space for better narrative, worldbuilding and characterization of those who actually had something to contribute.
Which leads me to two (fucking hell, just two) redeemable characters:
Eremul, legless foulmouthed half-mage and his apprentice, mysterious buffoon Isaac.
Range of their characterization went from tragic martyrs and unlikely heroes to comic relief ones.
In essence, everything that was lacking in every other character of this saga was shoved in these two.
And somehow it worked. For them at least.
Not everything is that bad as characterization.
Worldbuilding isn’t stellar, but it’s passable.
There is much to improve since this is a debut novel, and there is enough mystery left here and there to tweak your curiosity.
Magic system is also interesting and slightly reminiscent of Steven Erikson’s in Malazan Book of the Fallen with their main source for magic coming from corpses of Gods themselves that have in ancient past fell from the sky.
All in all, would I recommend this book?
To people who annoy me - sure.
July 16, 2013
Full Review originally at Fantasy Book Critic
ANALYSIS: The Grim Company is Luke Scull’s debut title and Head Of Zeus secured it for a six-figure sum. Stefan alerted me to the book’s existence over at Civilian Reader. With an ever-intriguing blurb and terrific Spartan cover art, I contacted HOZ for a review copy to which they gladly obliged. I read it on a weekend while stuck at Minneapolis airport and those 7-8 hours were spent reading this book cover to cover. I was thoroughly entranced by it and I think Luke is going to be another British phenomenon like a certain editor-turned fantasy writer nearly seven years ago.
The story begins with a prologue event that is mentioned in the story rather scarcely but plays a very important role in the eventual build-up of the story and its main plot points. We are introduced to Davarus Cole, self-thought hero, fledgling revolutionary and a narcissistic fool all rolled into one. Davarus believes himself to be a hero destined for greatness as was his father Ilarius Cole and he has a special dagger to fulfill his destiny as well. Brodar Kayne is a barbarian from the High Fangs in the North fleeing his homeland for reasons revealed later in the story. He’s a formidable swordsman that is accompanied by a surly twin-axed warrior who goes by Jerek the Wolf. Both these Northmen are reputed warriors and will soon be caught up in destiny’s claws. Yllandris is a sorceress and concubine to Magnar, king of the High Fangs whose hunger for power will see her scale all opposition both mental and magical.
Then there’s Eremul the legless wizard who’s cruelly but rather aptly titled Half-mage. He resides in Dorminia trying to live as decent a life possible given his circumstances. Few know of the hatred that powers him and fewer still know his true intentions. Then there’s Barandas, Supreme Augmentor and Salazar’s most trusted warrior who lives as honorable a life possible among scum and is the lone lotus in a pool of mud. Lastly there is Sasha who is from the same group that Davarus belongs to but is more devious than Davarus will ever be. There are a few other characters that are given the spotlight in minor amounts but this is the main character cast. Lastly there’s the world itself, which bears explanation, as its also equally vital as one the POV characters.
Here’s the gist of the magic system and the world history. Precisely five hundred years ago, a score of wizards invaded the realm of the Gods and tried to defeat them. Amid this brazen attempt only thirty-odd returned and were heralded as MageLords who supplanted the godly pantheon they themselves had killed. This Deicide shifted the power onto the humans elevating them to a completely different evolutionary level however the world fell apart in the process and the divine magic is also slowly being depleted. These MageLords fight among themselves to hoard more power and therefore the known world is constantly in a state of flux. Chief to the story are Salazar the ruler of Dorminia, The White Lady of the City Of Spires and Mithradates the Shaman of the High Fangs, there are others who merit a brief mention but do not come into play in this volume. The main reason for the war between these mages is over the hoarding of crystals that serve as repositories of wild magic.
This is the primary setting of the story and was the biggest draw of the storyline for me. This crumbling world wherein Deicide (I don’t know why but I like that word a lot) occurred and now the Age of Ruin is ascendant, is like manna for world-building geeks. It partly reminded me of the world showcased in the Godslayer Chronicles by James Clemens and like Clemens; Luke Scull gives his own slant to a world wherein the Gods are dead at the hands of their creations. Secondly the characterization is pretty top notch, even though the author uses fantasy stereotypical characters such as aging barbarian, disgruntled low-level mage, handsome fool, and devoted warrior fighting for the wrong cause. He makes these characters their own and while we might find their facsimiles in previous books by fantasy legends such as David Gemmell, Glen Cook & Joe Abercrombie, these characters aren’t diminished in any way by such comparisons. With a rather large character cast, the author competently handles all his characters and gives different viewpoints in the various happening of the story.
The characters are what make this story irresistible as we are given access to characters across the moral spectrum, most of them are grey to begin with but it is even more fun to read about character conflict and moral underpinnings with characters such as Barandas, Eremul, Yllandrius and Brodar Kayne. The author gives us tremendous insight into their thoughts and not to mention several large doses of snarky humor and witty dialogue. This will be the point that will remind a lot of readers of Joe Abercrombie and to a lesser extent even Scott Lynch. Not to repeat comparisons from previous reviews but it’s very easy to say if you like J. Abercrombie's or S. Lynch’s work then this title is a shoo-in for you. That’s no knock on Luke’s writing and plotting skills but a genuine compliment that his debut is refreshing enough to offer his own twists on things while adhering to regular fantasy tropes. Lastly the pace of the book and plot twists definitely aid in the read as the reader is constantly switched from POV characters as well location to give us a panoramic feel to the story. The climax while being as complete as the first volume of a trilogy can be offers enough crumbs to entice the reader for the next volumes.
I didn’t think that there were any negatives to this debut however on an objective note, people tired of gritty storylines and morally grey characters will not find anything to alter their opinions here. Secondly while the author goes for a very grim outlook in his dialogue, some of it just comes across as awkward at a few instances. While this point is certainly subjective for readers, I felt that this could be overlooked as a minor debutante foible. Lastly this debut is very characteristic of “grimdark fantasy” so be forewarned before picking up this debut. However for those thinking on giving this one a pass, know that you would be missing out on one of the best debuts of this year for sure.
CONCLUSION: Luke Scull delivers a fantastic story that is ripe with action, strong characterization and a tight plot. This debut novel will have most readers turning pages as quickly as possible and leave them eager for the sequels. The Grim Company is truly an EPIC fantasy debut that shows all the characteristic strengths of the genre whilst managing to avoid almost all its pitfalls. This is one debut not to be missed and marks Luke Scull as one of epic fantasy’s talented debutants.
ANALYSIS: The Grim Company is Luke Scull’s debut title and Head Of Zeus secured it for a six-figure sum. Stefan alerted me to the book’s existence over at Civilian Reader. With an ever-intriguing blurb and terrific Spartan cover art, I contacted HOZ for a review copy to which they gladly obliged. I read it on a weekend while stuck at Minneapolis airport and those 7-8 hours were spent reading this book cover to cover. I was thoroughly entranced by it and I think Luke is going to be another British phenomenon like a certain editor-turned fantasy writer nearly seven years ago.
The story begins with a prologue event that is mentioned in the story rather scarcely but plays a very important role in the eventual build-up of the story and its main plot points. We are introduced to Davarus Cole, self-thought hero, fledgling revolutionary and a narcissistic fool all rolled into one. Davarus believes himself to be a hero destined for greatness as was his father Ilarius Cole and he has a special dagger to fulfill his destiny as well. Brodar Kayne is a barbarian from the High Fangs in the North fleeing his homeland for reasons revealed later in the story. He’s a formidable swordsman that is accompanied by a surly twin-axed warrior who goes by Jerek the Wolf. Both these Northmen are reputed warriors and will soon be caught up in destiny’s claws. Yllandris is a sorceress and concubine to Magnar, king of the High Fangs whose hunger for power will see her scale all opposition both mental and magical.
Then there’s Eremul the legless wizard who’s cruelly but rather aptly titled Half-mage. He resides in Dorminia trying to live as decent a life possible given his circumstances. Few know of the hatred that powers him and fewer still know his true intentions. Then there’s Barandas, Supreme Augmentor and Salazar’s most trusted warrior who lives as honorable a life possible among scum and is the lone lotus in a pool of mud. Lastly there is Sasha who is from the same group that Davarus belongs to but is more devious than Davarus will ever be. There are a few other characters that are given the spotlight in minor amounts but this is the main character cast. Lastly there’s the world itself, which bears explanation, as its also equally vital as one the POV characters.
Here’s the gist of the magic system and the world history. Precisely five hundred years ago, a score of wizards invaded the realm of the Gods and tried to defeat them. Amid this brazen attempt only thirty-odd returned and were heralded as MageLords who supplanted the godly pantheon they themselves had killed. This Deicide shifted the power onto the humans elevating them to a completely different evolutionary level however the world fell apart in the process and the divine magic is also slowly being depleted. These MageLords fight among themselves to hoard more power and therefore the known world is constantly in a state of flux. Chief to the story are Salazar the ruler of Dorminia, The White Lady of the City Of Spires and Mithradates the Shaman of the High Fangs, there are others who merit a brief mention but do not come into play in this volume. The main reason for the war between these mages is over the hoarding of crystals that serve as repositories of wild magic.
This is the primary setting of the story and was the biggest draw of the storyline for me. This crumbling world wherein Deicide (I don’t know why but I like that word a lot) occurred and now the Age of Ruin is ascendant, is like manna for world-building geeks. It partly reminded me of the world showcased in the Godslayer Chronicles by James Clemens and like Clemens; Luke Scull gives his own slant to a world wherein the Gods are dead at the hands of their creations. Secondly the characterization is pretty top notch, even though the author uses fantasy stereotypical characters such as aging barbarian, disgruntled low-level mage, handsome fool, and devoted warrior fighting for the wrong cause. He makes these characters their own and while we might find their facsimiles in previous books by fantasy legends such as David Gemmell, Glen Cook & Joe Abercrombie, these characters aren’t diminished in any way by such comparisons. With a rather large character cast, the author competently handles all his characters and gives different viewpoints in the various happening of the story.
The characters are what make this story irresistible as we are given access to characters across the moral spectrum, most of them are grey to begin with but it is even more fun to read about character conflict and moral underpinnings with characters such as Barandas, Eremul, Yllandrius and Brodar Kayne. The author gives us tremendous insight into their thoughts and not to mention several large doses of snarky humor and witty dialogue. This will be the point that will remind a lot of readers of Joe Abercrombie and to a lesser extent even Scott Lynch. Not to repeat comparisons from previous reviews but it’s very easy to say if you like J. Abercrombie's or S. Lynch’s work then this title is a shoo-in for you. That’s no knock on Luke’s writing and plotting skills but a genuine compliment that his debut is refreshing enough to offer his own twists on things while adhering to regular fantasy tropes. Lastly the pace of the book and plot twists definitely aid in the read as the reader is constantly switched from POV characters as well location to give us a panoramic feel to the story. The climax while being as complete as the first volume of a trilogy can be offers enough crumbs to entice the reader for the next volumes.
I didn’t think that there were any negatives to this debut however on an objective note, people tired of gritty storylines and morally grey characters will not find anything to alter their opinions here. Secondly while the author goes for a very grim outlook in his dialogue, some of it just comes across as awkward at a few instances. While this point is certainly subjective for readers, I felt that this could be overlooked as a minor debutante foible. Lastly this debut is very characteristic of “grimdark fantasy” so be forewarned before picking up this debut. However for those thinking on giving this one a pass, know that you would be missing out on one of the best debuts of this year for sure.
CONCLUSION: Luke Scull delivers a fantastic story that is ripe with action, strong characterization and a tight plot. This debut novel will have most readers turning pages as quickly as possible and leave them eager for the sequels. The Grim Company is truly an EPIC fantasy debut that shows all the characteristic strengths of the genre whilst managing to avoid almost all its pitfalls. This is one debut not to be missed and marks Luke Scull as one of epic fantasy’s talented debutants.
August 6, 2015
My favourite fantasy read or rather my favourite fantasy listen this year so far.
It's grimdark Abercrombie style. In fact this is what you'd get if Abercrombie got together with himself and had a baby - ie Abercrombie... just with a fouler mouth.
And if you are into audio books then audio is the way to go for experiencing this book. Joe Jameson is as good for this book as Steven Pacey is for the First Law books.
To continue the First Law comparisons - there's the aging northman champion who is out of favour with his king. There's no Nine Fingers but there is a guy called Three finger. There's a cripple who has trouble walking - seeing as he has no legs. I guess that makes him half a mage - and that's what he's called in the book ie The Half Mage.
Unlike the First Law books there is plenty of magic in the world. The world is ruled by Mage Lords who murdered the gods, casting them down from their lofty plains. Where the gods have crashed to the earth unstable energies are unleashed tearing the fabric of reality to release unnatural creatures into the world.
Anyway, this is a story of heroes, and anti-heroes. Villains and Vixens. Mage battles as well as good old fashioned steel on steel. The pacing was excellent. Was not bored for a moment. I'm straight onto book 2.
5 stars.
It's grimdark Abercrombie style. In fact this is what you'd get if Abercrombie got together with himself and had a baby - ie Abercrombie... just with a fouler mouth.
And if you are into audio books then audio is the way to go for experiencing this book. Joe Jameson is as good for this book as Steven Pacey is for the First Law books.
To continue the First Law comparisons - there's the aging northman champion who is out of favour with his king. There's no Nine Fingers but there is a guy called Three finger. There's a cripple who has trouble walking - seeing as he has no legs. I guess that makes him half a mage - and that's what he's called in the book ie The Half Mage.
Unlike the First Law books there is plenty of magic in the world. The world is ruled by Mage Lords who murdered the gods, casting them down from their lofty plains. Where the gods have crashed to the earth unstable energies are unleashed tearing the fabric of reality to release unnatural creatures into the world.
Anyway, this is a story of heroes, and anti-heroes. Villains and Vixens. Mage battles as well as good old fashioned steel on steel. The pacing was excellent. Was not bored for a moment. I'm straight onto book 2.
5 stars.
November 1, 2014
I started this book 3 times before I got into it. It has some flaws and for a while I was sure that the book would get no more from me that a 3 and a low 3 at that.
The world is one that is (as has become popular lately) very dark and gritty... And it really, really wants to be dark and gritty. It wants you to KNOW without a doubt how dark and gritty it is. If it could it would shout at you as you walk by, "SEE HOW DARK AND GRITTY I AM!!!!!!" IF some form of word for "dung" can be used in a description it will be. "Turds" are mentioned as laying around seemingly on all surfaces and in all places. The great "f" word is used so often as to become almost yawn worthy.
I mean we shoot for dark, gritty, crude and just plain obscene.
And the book accomplishes it.
So anyway in spite of wading through mud mixed with dung the book manages to be (in my opinion of course) very slow. We take our time getting to know all the players. Many of them (if not all) you have probably met before. Happily as the story goes on these characters shape up and the story becomes very absorbing.
In the end, I liked it.
I did find the end a bit odd as when the story winds up we get one pretty predictable outcome and one hard left that was (for me) unexpected.
Now for the bad news...this is another where you will look and see the cover etc. of the next book...but when you read the fine print you find it's not out till next year.
Oh well...
Recommended. enjoy.
The world is one that is (as has become popular lately) very dark and gritty... And it really, really wants to be dark and gritty. It wants you to KNOW without a doubt how dark and gritty it is. If it could it would shout at you as you walk by, "SEE HOW DARK AND GRITTY I AM!!!!!!" IF some form of word for "dung" can be used in a description it will be. "Turds" are mentioned as laying around seemingly on all surfaces and in all places. The great "f" word is used so often as to become almost yawn worthy.
I mean we shoot for dark, gritty, crude and just plain obscene.
And the book accomplishes it.
So anyway in spite of wading through mud mixed with dung the book manages to be (in my opinion of course) very slow. We take our time getting to know all the players. Many of them (if not all) you have probably met before. Happily as the story goes on these characters shape up and the story becomes very absorbing.
In the end, I liked it.
I did find the end a bit odd as when the story winds up we get one pretty predictable outcome and one hard left that was (for me) unexpected.
Now for the bad news...this is another where you will look and see the cover etc. of the next book...but when you read the fine print you find it's not out till next year.
Oh well...
Recommended. enjoy.
April 11, 2022
💀 DNF at 23%. Go me and stuff.
It is a truth generally acknowledged that Glen Cook has ruined me forever. This might quite possibly explain why this book left me feeling like...
Pretty much, yes.
The end.
🗒 Note to self : please avoid any book called The [insert any adjective but "Black" here] Company like the bloody plague from now on.
January 5, 2018
3 stars because hidden in the mess were some really fun ideas (like the transcended) and because I really liked Brodar Kayne, though I’ve met him elsewhere. That being the main problem with the book, the unshakeable feeling that I’ve read it all somewhere else before. And better. Probably by Joe Abercrombie.
It all felt off, but since I apparently already own the next in the series, I’m going in....
It all felt off, but since I apparently already own the next in the series, I’m going in....
April 7, 2022
*** 4.55 ***
“Those with nothing but vengeance to live for are condemned by their own bitter victory.”...
This was much better than I expected. There are a bunch of great reviews of this book, so I am not going to try to add to them. However, I noticed a lot of them talk about contemporary tropes in the Fantasy genre and how this book follows a lot of them. I personally have no idea why reviewers have issues with what we call "tropes". Tropes are such, because they work. They get books sold and read, and persist because we, the readers, keep asking for more, keep returning to our "comfort" reads and continue perpetuate those said tropes. The thing about tropes is that every theme in art eventually becomes a trope, we just want to see our artist, authors or musicians do them in interesting ways and to the best of their abilities, which is hopefully good for the rest of us. I always come back to the composers of the romantic movement and their hundreds and hundreds "variations on a theme", or as we call it, a trope. I think what people love most about all different medium tropes is the shorthand of the language, be it musical, written or visual, something we are familiar with on such ingrained level, that we don't need explanations and our brains feel they can deal with it from just mare suggestion of the structure. Even the most abstract of painting schools has a certain language, and the artist counts on our familiarity with it in order for us to relate. There are many different tropes, styles, and variations, and each has their fans and haters. But no matter which group you are in, as long as it is done well, you can admit the value of the creation and validate its existence.
So, if people feel that the contemporary Grim Fantasy Movement and its realism and prevalent crassness at times, is something they like or dislike, I say to each their own. As long as you like the product, who cares what "tropes" it follows and if it is innovative or not. Is it well thought out? Is it well imagined? Is it well executed? Are all those qualities woven together in a manner that makes you forget everything else while you engage with it? In the case of The Grim Company, the answer to all of those questions is YES! So, for this reader, the author and his work deserve my attention and gratitude for all the work which has gone into this story. Thank you:) Looking foreword to the next instalment:)))!
“The world’s full of wonder,” he said. “Or at least horror that looks wondrous from afar.”...
Now I wish you all happy reading and may you find what you Need in the pages of a Good Book!!!
“Those with nothing but vengeance to live for are condemned by their own bitter victory.”...
This was much better than I expected. There are a bunch of great reviews of this book, so I am not going to try to add to them. However, I noticed a lot of them talk about contemporary tropes in the Fantasy genre and how this book follows a lot of them. I personally have no idea why reviewers have issues with what we call "tropes". Tropes are such, because they work. They get books sold and read, and persist because we, the readers, keep asking for more, keep returning to our "comfort" reads and continue perpetuate those said tropes. The thing about tropes is that every theme in art eventually becomes a trope, we just want to see our artist, authors or musicians do them in interesting ways and to the best of their abilities, which is hopefully good for the rest of us. I always come back to the composers of the romantic movement and their hundreds and hundreds "variations on a theme", or as we call it, a trope. I think what people love most about all different medium tropes is the shorthand of the language, be it musical, written or visual, something we are familiar with on such ingrained level, that we don't need explanations and our brains feel they can deal with it from just mare suggestion of the structure. Even the most abstract of painting schools has a certain language, and the artist counts on our familiarity with it in order for us to relate. There are many different tropes, styles, and variations, and each has their fans and haters. But no matter which group you are in, as long as it is done well, you can admit the value of the creation and validate its existence.
So, if people feel that the contemporary Grim Fantasy Movement and its realism and prevalent crassness at times, is something they like or dislike, I say to each their own. As long as you like the product, who cares what "tropes" it follows and if it is innovative or not. Is it well thought out? Is it well imagined? Is it well executed? Are all those qualities woven together in a manner that makes you forget everything else while you engage with it? In the case of The Grim Company, the answer to all of those questions is YES! So, for this reader, the author and his work deserve my attention and gratitude for all the work which has gone into this story. Thank you:) Looking foreword to the next instalment:)))!
“The world’s full of wonder,” he said. “Or at least horror that looks wondrous from afar.”...
Now I wish you all happy reading and may you find what you Need in the pages of a Good Book!!!
July 1, 2017
2.5 Stars
I'm almost angry enough at this book to give it a one star.. This a great book???? Pfftttt!!!
Also it's becoming increasingly clear that for the most part, authors in the sub genre of grim dark are more concerned with how foul (in terms of curse words) their characters are and describing how people's intestines are falling out to give diddly squat in terms of an amazing plot.
The plot, the characters, everything about this book was flat, Like my gawd!! it felt like they were all freaking bored of their lines. So lifeless, no spirit whatsoever except it was to say fuck or some other inventive curse word. On the one hand you had a delusional MC (however given how little page time he had, that title is up for discussion) who was beyond stupid, like holy crap how did noone stab his brains out??? , then a bunch of people you're not even sure fit into the whole scheme of things. Every character in this book felt like they were doing their own thing with big middle finger to the central theme of the series. Which really when you think about it even, this book is missing.
I know people can curse. Heck i know people can be killed in inventive ways that'll make your jaw drop and your eyes go wide (You might not know this Luke Scull, but chances are most of your readers have read at least one book about psychotic killers with inventive killing methods), what i would really like you to do is write a book that seems like it's going somewhere and characters that actually contribute to the plot. Look at Sasha for example, one minute the girl was normal next thing she's always angry and snorting nacortics???? TF!!!
All in all this book fails to deliver, if you're looking for a bunch of people hurling out curse words at every turn and gore. This might be the book for you. However in terms of an engaging plot, it really doesn't cut it.
October 25, 2014
I started this book 3 times before I got into it. It has some flaws and for a while I was sure that the book would get no more from me that a 3 and a low 3 at that.
The world is one that is (as has become popular lately) very dark and gritty... And it really, really wants to be dark and gritty. It wants you to KNOW without a doubt how dark and gritty it is. If it could it would shout at you as you walk by, "SEE HOW DARK AND GRITTY I AM!!!!!!" IF some form of word for "dung" can be used in a description it will be. "Turds" are mentioned as laying around seemingly on all surfaces and in all places. The great "f" word is used so often as to become almost yawn worthy.
I mean we shoot for dark, gritty, crude and just plain obscene.
And the book accomplishes it.
So anyway in spite of wading through mud mixed with dung the book manages to be (in my opinion of course) very slow. We take our time getting to know all the players. Many of them (if not all) you have probably met before. Happily as the story goes on these characters shape up and the story becomes very absorbing.
In the end, I liked it.
I did find the end a bit odd as when the story winds up we get one pretty predictable outcome and one hard left that was (for me) unexpected.
Now for the bad news...this is another where you will look and see the cover etc. of the next book...but when you read the fine print you find it's not out till next year.
Oh well...
Recommended. enjoy.
The world is one that is (as has become popular lately) very dark and gritty... And it really, really wants to be dark and gritty. It wants you to KNOW without a doubt how dark and gritty it is. If it could it would shout at you as you walk by, "SEE HOW DARK AND GRITTY I AM!!!!!!" IF some form of word for "dung" can be used in a description it will be. "Turds" are mentioned as laying around seemingly on all surfaces and in all places. The great "f" word is used so often as to become almost yawn worthy.
I mean we shoot for dark, gritty, crude and just plain obscene.
And the book accomplishes it.
So anyway in spite of wading through mud mixed with dung the book manages to be (in my opinion of course) very slow. We take our time getting to know all the players. Many of them (if not all) you have probably met before. Happily as the story goes on these characters shape up and the story becomes very absorbing.
In the end, I liked it.
I did find the end a bit odd as when the story winds up we get one pretty predictable outcome and one hard left that was (for me) unexpected.
Now for the bad news...this is another where you will look and see the cover etc. of the next book...but when you read the fine print you find it's not out till next year.
Oh well...
Recommended. enjoy.
September 2, 2016
I liked this book.
The end is predictable, the characters have all been seen before and the plot is too simple and yet, I couldn't put this book down.
Perhaps partly this was because I kept hoping that on the next page there would be that dramatic break-through I was hoping for. That didn't really happen.
I also found the world described to be too bleak and depressing. What irked me most was how most of the population are so unlucky, unimportant and suffering or dying for no good reason and yet the main characters are extremely lucky, tenacious and borderline immortal.
There were some well rounded characters who made up for the other, far-fetched ones and the whole book is very fast, gritty and an excellent debut.
I am looking forward to the next installment in the series.
Besides, I have a strong suspicion that not all who appear to be killed in this one will remain dead in the next book...
The end is predictable, the characters have all been seen before and the plot is too simple and yet, I couldn't put this book down.
Perhaps partly this was because I kept hoping that on the next page there would be that dramatic break-through I was hoping for. That didn't really happen.
I also found the world described to be too bleak and depressing. What irked me most was how most of the population are so unlucky, unimportant and suffering or dying for no good reason and yet the main characters are extremely lucky, tenacious and borderline immortal.
There were some well rounded characters who made up for the other, far-fetched ones and the whole book is very fast, gritty and an excellent debut.
I am looking forward to the next installment in the series.
Besides, I have a strong suspicion that not all who appear to be killed in this one will remain dead in the next book...
April 17, 2022
Loved this book! Fantastic story, characters and world building. So easy for me to get sucked into and carried away.
Cole was a bit of a ham. He reminded me of this dude.
I loved how the story ended with Cole. Left so much growing room for future books. Future books... yeah, I think that's another issue.
I might bite the bullet and get the next book because I love Wolf and how the whole story is unfolding.
Cole was a bit of a ham. He reminded me of this dude.
I loved how the story ended with Cole. Left so much growing room for future books. Future books... yeah, I think that's another issue.
I might bite the bullet and get the next book because I love Wolf and how the whole story is unfolding.
March 1, 2015
In Australia we chant “Scull scull scull” when someone is drinking a beer at extreme speed. It’s a hairy man boof head thing from the cave dwelling days. Anyway I finished this book last night and found chanting saying ‘Scull scull scull’!
The Gods have been killed by a bunch of mages who have stepped into their void and taken over. How can a son watch his mother burn?
One of the reasons this book worked for me is that the Author pulled together some of my very favourite character types and plot lines and then twisted them into his own style and on more than one occasion shattered my expectations.I started writing this review half way through to keep track of some notes and then pretty much had to start over by the end of the book, and I could not have enjoyed it more.
We have a major character Brodar Kayne, once known as the Sword of the North who has the feel and the look of Druss the Legend until we learn his opinion of ‘the code’ is that it can go shaft itself. This guy has a seriously damaged story that unfolds and reveals itself beautifully. You will feel genuine sympathy for this character….and his knees.
Another of our main characters is a young land called Davarus Cole, who I found to be incredibly likeable. He knows he is a hero because his dad was hero and gave him a heroes’ weapon…or so he has been told. His major problem, in his mind, is that he is living in a world of people who simply don’t realise it yet. So both, good naturedly and hap hazardly I might add, he sets out to show them how awesome he is. However unlike Neo in the Matrix he knows his path before he has walked it leading to frustration and impatience, when it is unrecognised by others.
When Scull does really well is interweave all his different threads together so that by the time you get half way through you have an equal interest in all parts of the story. Normally I might find myself reading one thread that I am not as into, but in this case I was just as interested in the one character as another.
I cannot recommend this highly enough.
The Gods have been killed by a bunch of mages who have stepped into their void and taken over. How can a son watch his mother burn?
One of the reasons this book worked for me is that the Author pulled together some of my very favourite character types and plot lines and then twisted them into his own style and on more than one occasion shattered my expectations.I started writing this review half way through to keep track of some notes and then pretty much had to start over by the end of the book, and I could not have enjoyed it more.
We have a major character Brodar Kayne, once known as the Sword of the North who has the feel and the look of Druss the Legend until we learn his opinion of ‘the code’ is that it can go shaft itself. This guy has a seriously damaged story that unfolds and reveals itself beautifully. You will feel genuine sympathy for this character….and his knees.
Another of our main characters is a young land called Davarus Cole, who I found to be incredibly likeable. He knows he is a hero because his dad was hero and gave him a heroes’ weapon…or so he has been told. His major problem, in his mind, is that he is living in a world of people who simply don’t realise it yet. So both, good naturedly and hap hazardly I might add, he sets out to show them how awesome he is. However unlike Neo in the Matrix he knows his path before he has walked it leading to frustration and impatience, when it is unrecognised by others.
When Scull does really well is interweave all his different threads together so that by the time you get half way through you have an equal interest in all parts of the story. Normally I might find myself reading one thread that I am not as into, but in this case I was just as interested in the one character as another.
I cannot recommend this highly enough.
August 20, 2020
In the end I did enjoy this book but it took until about 3/4 of the way through for me to really engage. Partly this could be attributed to it being the first book in a trilogy, maybe. It just took too long for the characters to be developed and for me to care about anyone. By the end I did want to know what was going to happen to them next, so I'll probably continue the series at some point.
My main gripe is that there was no innovation, but abundant immitation. The characters were Joe Abercrombie look-alikes to the point of embarassment. They were distractingly similar to Abercrombie's characters but nowhere near as good. And there was huge potential for grimdarkness in a world where all the Gods were murdered, but that wasn't exploited. It was mentioned as having happened but with no depth, no darkness. Maybe that will come in a later book?
Overall not grimdark enough for me. Definitely a fantasy adventure-quest, and some bad things have happened to good people in the past, but none of the grimdark blurring of good and evil, no smack in the face dark plot shockers, no setting aside one's moral compass...
I'll have to see how the trilogy develops and hope for the best (worst).
My main gripe is that there was no innovation, but abundant immitation. The characters were Joe Abercrombie look-alikes to the point of embarassment. They were distractingly similar to Abercrombie's characters but nowhere near as good. And there was huge potential for grimdarkness in a world where all the Gods were murdered, but that wasn't exploited. It was mentioned as having happened but with no depth, no darkness. Maybe that will come in a later book?
Overall not grimdark enough for me. Definitely a fantasy adventure-quest, and some bad things have happened to good people in the past, but none of the grimdark blurring of good and evil, no smack in the face dark plot shockers, no setting aside one's moral compass...
I'll have to see how the trilogy develops and hope for the best (worst).
January 19, 2014
4 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum http://bibliosanctum.blogspot.com/201...
Okay, I can be pretty out of it sometimes. I picked up Luke Scull's The Grim Company on account of all the positive buzz surrounding the book, and ended up loving it. But the thing is, I didn't read many reviews or any information about it ahead of time, so it wasn't until weeks after I finished the book that I finally found out about all the comparisons made to Joe Abercrombie, an author whose work I adore as well.
In retrospect, I suppose there were a lot of parallels, but at the time I can honestly say I didn't get that vibe at all, other than the fact both authors write grimdark fantasy about gruff and tough barbarian warriors who love to swear a lot (not a distinction held by any one specific author in the industry, really). In the end I'm glad I went into this book blind, because I found that Luke Scull's writing shone through with his own style, not to mention the heavy focus on magic and other unique ideas found in his book made me consider it entirely on its own merits.
When it comes to a gritty fantasy adventure, we're definitely starting out on the right track with a story that spans far and wide in terms of locale and history, featuring settings from palace halls to the northern remote highlands. Five hundred years ago, the Magelords killed the gods and now their tyrant Salazar rules the empire of Dorminia. Meanwhile, his greatest adversary the White Lady plots his demise from across the Broken Sea and seeks to free the people. Far away from both, demonic forces plague the remote mountains in the north.
Caught in the middle of this kerfluffle is a motley crew of misfits and outcasts all linked to the events, trying to hold everything together. And on this topic, I have to say the characters in this book are just as diverse, though it would be tempting to pigeonhole each into the all too familiar fantasy archetypes. But upon first inspection, I feel their traditional roles belie their unique personalities and colorful pasts.
Take Davarus Cole, for example, the hero who knows he's the hero and won't let you or anyone else forget that for a second. He's so full of himself and deluded in his self-importance that I just couldn't help but love him and indulge in him like you would a spoiled little kitten, even as I gleefully anticipated that sweet moment the truth will blow up in his face. Then there's Jerek the Wolf, a supporting character in the shadow of the more prominent Brodar Kayne, but it was the former I took to, due in no small part to his loyalty as well as talent for cursing which would make even a longshoreman blush like a schoolgirl.
And indeed, what surprised me the most is the streak of wry humor which ran through the story, which made the book a lot less grim than I'd anticipated. This was simply a very enjoyable and entertaining read, and I don't know if there's any more I can add to that.
Because I knew so little about The Grim Company before I read it, I also didn't know anything about its publication history and the fact new indie publisher Head of Zeus first acquired the rights to the trilogy after winning a fiercely contested auction in a six-figure deal. Yes, they were that confident about it. And now I understand why.
Okay, I can be pretty out of it sometimes. I picked up Luke Scull's The Grim Company on account of all the positive buzz surrounding the book, and ended up loving it. But the thing is, I didn't read many reviews or any information about it ahead of time, so it wasn't until weeks after I finished the book that I finally found out about all the comparisons made to Joe Abercrombie, an author whose work I adore as well.
In retrospect, I suppose there were a lot of parallels, but at the time I can honestly say I didn't get that vibe at all, other than the fact both authors write grimdark fantasy about gruff and tough barbarian warriors who love to swear a lot (not a distinction held by any one specific author in the industry, really). In the end I'm glad I went into this book blind, because I found that Luke Scull's writing shone through with his own style, not to mention the heavy focus on magic and other unique ideas found in his book made me consider it entirely on its own merits.
When it comes to a gritty fantasy adventure, we're definitely starting out on the right track with a story that spans far and wide in terms of locale and history, featuring settings from palace halls to the northern remote highlands. Five hundred years ago, the Magelords killed the gods and now their tyrant Salazar rules the empire of Dorminia. Meanwhile, his greatest adversary the White Lady plots his demise from across the Broken Sea and seeks to free the people. Far away from both, demonic forces plague the remote mountains in the north.
Caught in the middle of this kerfluffle is a motley crew of misfits and outcasts all linked to the events, trying to hold everything together. And on this topic, I have to say the characters in this book are just as diverse, though it would be tempting to pigeonhole each into the all too familiar fantasy archetypes. But upon first inspection, I feel their traditional roles belie their unique personalities and colorful pasts.
Take Davarus Cole, for example, the hero who knows he's the hero and won't let you or anyone else forget that for a second. He's so full of himself and deluded in his self-importance that I just couldn't help but love him and indulge in him like you would a spoiled little kitten, even as I gleefully anticipated that sweet moment the truth will blow up in his face. Then there's Jerek the Wolf, a supporting character in the shadow of the more prominent Brodar Kayne, but it was the former I took to, due in no small part to his loyalty as well as talent for cursing which would make even a longshoreman blush like a schoolgirl.
And indeed, what surprised me the most is the streak of wry humor which ran through the story, which made the book a lot less grim than I'd anticipated. This was simply a very enjoyable and entertaining read, and I don't know if there's any more I can add to that.
Because I knew so little about The Grim Company before I read it, I also didn't know anything about its publication history and the fact new indie publisher Head of Zeus first acquired the rights to the trilogy after winning a fiercely contested auction in a six-figure deal. Yes, they were that confident about it. And now I understand why.
April 26, 2013
The Good: A promising debut set in a truly epic world, with gritty, relatable characters, and a page burner of a plot (yes, that's right, a page burner).
The Bad: In my opinion I don’t think there is a lot that is BAD about ‘The Grim Company’ – I’ve seen the pointed finger on a lot of reviews, but I’ll try and clarify my thoughts on the ‘grimdark’ and ‘Abercrombie mk2’ here.
The Ugly Truth: The Grim Company is a hugely impressive debut. Yes, it’s Grimdark. Yes, it’s comparable to Joe Abercrombie. But if you’re going to write a grimdark novel OF COURSE you’re going to be compared to JA. It’s like writing a novel about elves and dwarves but hoping not to be compared to Tolkien. What the Grim Company does do, and does very well, is entertain. It’s unashamed of its roots, which to me is all that counts. Don’t shout and scream that it’s ‘just a copy’ – it’s not. It’s a tilt of the hat, a nod in the direction of, but in my opinion it’s a very strong contender in today’s fantasy market able to stand on its own two legs (unless you’re an unfortunate mage like Eremul, of course!).
For Those That Like: David Gemmell, Brian McLellan, magic based stories, grimdark, gritty characters, tyrant-overthrowing-plots, and oh alright then I’ll say it, JOE ABERCROMBIE.
The gods are dead.
Magic is dying.
Freedom isn’t far off being terminal, either.
Dorminia is a city under siege from within. The Tyrant of Dorminia rules with the approach of: hear no evil, see no evil, do no evil. ‘Evil’ being anyone with motive to oppose him. His mindhawks can hear the thoughts of the people, the city watch see everything, and if anyone steps out of place then Salazar’s magically powered Augmentors sort it out. Swiftly.
But ‘evil’ is in the eye of the beholder. One man’s hero is another man’s villain. Salazar himself is a hero for overthrowing the gods hundreds of years ago, but what about the men who seek to overthrow Salazar?
Two ageing barbarians, one with bad knees and the other with a bad temper, aren’t your typical everyday heroic pair. Nor is a cocky hot-headed youth who claims to be a hero at every opportunity. And a ‘half mage’ with no legs barely scratches at being 'half man', and there’s no such thing as a ‘half hero’. But together with a band of rebels, they seek to bring down Salazar and liberate Dorminia.
Luke Scull’s ‘The Grim Company’ is his debut novel, and the opening to a brand new epic fantasy series. ‘The Grim Company’ is a story of the unlikeliest companions thrown together to bring down an enemy that even the gods couldn’t defeat. The odds of their success are grim (see what I did there? Ok, I’ll stop!).
You need a fitting start to a tale in which the gods are dead. It needs to be a cataclysmic intro, something world-shattering to live up to the epic setting. What to choose, what to choose…oh, I know! A tidal wave. Eureka. Wait…
…A TIDAL WAVE?!? In the first five pages?
Certainly sets the tone, doesn’t it?
‘The Grim Company’ comes out swinging, and throughout it doesn’t pull its punches. Look, I’m not going to go into the similarities that other reviewers have pointed out just yet, because I think that ‘The Grim Company’ can stand on its own two feet and fend for itself in terms of originality. Sure it’s grimdark fantasy, which is all the trend at the minute, but it has its own unique spice. I won’t bore you to death with examples but here’s a tidbit for you. Without spoiling anything, Scull introduces the concept of deep-sea mining at one point in the story. DEEP SEA MINING IN A FANTASY?!? Stick that in your originality pipe and smoke it. Then you have the concept of the Augmentors, warriors with a specific talent or trait magically magnified. Yes, this concept (or at least the base idea of it) has been used numerous times in fantasy, but it’s execution in the story is fantastic and makes for some fantastic character development and twists.
Scull shamelessly man’s his ‘Grim Company’ with the unlikeliest of heroes, even though each stereotype is likely to appear in every other grimdark fantasy novel out there. BUT, and I must emphasise this point, BUT Scull does it SHAMELESSLY. Ageing barbarian with aches and pains, getting too old for the life of a warrior; a crippled and bitter intellect, seated at the heart of a conspiracy yet he can’t sit down or stand up without risking sh**ting himself; and a hopeful young hero, talented, brave, destined for greatness, that is if he can stop his ego from running away from him. They’re all familiar to a fantasy fan, but don’t be put off by thinking this is a copy-paste cast. It’s a testament to Scull’s writing that he can take such familiar characters and breathe new life into them. I myself fell in love with the characters. Yes I can see the similarities. Do I care? No. They’re individual to me.
The plot and the setting are fantastic. Who doesn’t like an epic backdrop to a fantasy? And it doesn’t get much better than dead gods who corpses leak magic. Seriously, top this, go on, I dare ya.
Scull’s style is refreshing. I mean when you weigh it all up he has PACKED ‘The Grim Company’ with ideas and characters. When you try and list them all down, it seems like it won’t work on paper. There's just so much going on. But it does. It really, really does. The pacing is fantastic, never relenting. It’s not so much a page turner as a page burner.
But the heart of the matter, I guess, the thing that everyone wants to know:
…is ‘The Grim Company’ just another grimdark, or is it (as a minority of reviews/readers suggest) a blatant copy of other things out there (He-who-shall-not-be-named!).
In my opinion?
NO!
‘The Grim Company’ is its own story. I used this word earlier, SHAMELESS. It is shameless in its use of characters, tone, and even word choice. But what does it have to be ashamed of? Nothing if you ask me. It’s a damn good read from a damned good author. I’m not going to point out the similarities for you, because in my opinion that’s not me doing justice to Luke Scull or ‘The Grim Company’.
If every reader in the known world wants to know the TRUTH about this similarity binge, I’ll give you a truth. You might not be able to handle it, but here it is.
Is ‘The Grim Company’ a mirror of Joe Abercrombie’s ‘First Law’ series?
No.
As a debut novel, ‘The Grim Company’ is better.
The Bad: In my opinion I don’t think there is a lot that is BAD about ‘The Grim Company’ – I’ve seen the pointed finger on a lot of reviews, but I’ll try and clarify my thoughts on the ‘grimdark’ and ‘Abercrombie mk2’ here.
The Ugly Truth: The Grim Company is a hugely impressive debut. Yes, it’s Grimdark. Yes, it’s comparable to Joe Abercrombie. But if you’re going to write a grimdark novel OF COURSE you’re going to be compared to JA. It’s like writing a novel about elves and dwarves but hoping not to be compared to Tolkien. What the Grim Company does do, and does very well, is entertain. It’s unashamed of its roots, which to me is all that counts. Don’t shout and scream that it’s ‘just a copy’ – it’s not. It’s a tilt of the hat, a nod in the direction of, but in my opinion it’s a very strong contender in today’s fantasy market able to stand on its own two legs (unless you’re an unfortunate mage like Eremul, of course!).
For Those That Like: David Gemmell, Brian McLellan, magic based stories, grimdark, gritty characters, tyrant-overthrowing-plots, and oh alright then I’ll say it, JOE ABERCROMBIE.
The gods are dead.
Magic is dying.
Freedom isn’t far off being terminal, either.
Dorminia is a city under siege from within. The Tyrant of Dorminia rules with the approach of: hear no evil, see no evil, do no evil. ‘Evil’ being anyone with motive to oppose him. His mindhawks can hear the thoughts of the people, the city watch see everything, and if anyone steps out of place then Salazar’s magically powered Augmentors sort it out. Swiftly.
But ‘evil’ is in the eye of the beholder. One man’s hero is another man’s villain. Salazar himself is a hero for overthrowing the gods hundreds of years ago, but what about the men who seek to overthrow Salazar?
Two ageing barbarians, one with bad knees and the other with a bad temper, aren’t your typical everyday heroic pair. Nor is a cocky hot-headed youth who claims to be a hero at every opportunity. And a ‘half mage’ with no legs barely scratches at being 'half man', and there’s no such thing as a ‘half hero’. But together with a band of rebels, they seek to bring down Salazar and liberate Dorminia.
Luke Scull’s ‘The Grim Company’ is his debut novel, and the opening to a brand new epic fantasy series. ‘The Grim Company’ is a story of the unlikeliest companions thrown together to bring down an enemy that even the gods couldn’t defeat. The odds of their success are grim (see what I did there? Ok, I’ll stop!).
You need a fitting start to a tale in which the gods are dead. It needs to be a cataclysmic intro, something world-shattering to live up to the epic setting. What to choose, what to choose…oh, I know! A tidal wave. Eureka. Wait…
…A TIDAL WAVE?!? In the first five pages?
Certainly sets the tone, doesn’t it?
‘The Grim Company’ comes out swinging, and throughout it doesn’t pull its punches. Look, I’m not going to go into the similarities that other reviewers have pointed out just yet, because I think that ‘The Grim Company’ can stand on its own two feet and fend for itself in terms of originality. Sure it’s grimdark fantasy, which is all the trend at the minute, but it has its own unique spice. I won’t bore you to death with examples but here’s a tidbit for you. Without spoiling anything, Scull introduces the concept of deep-sea mining at one point in the story. DEEP SEA MINING IN A FANTASY?!? Stick that in your originality pipe and smoke it. Then you have the concept of the Augmentors, warriors with a specific talent or trait magically magnified. Yes, this concept (or at least the base idea of it) has been used numerous times in fantasy, but it’s execution in the story is fantastic and makes for some fantastic character development and twists.
Scull shamelessly man’s his ‘Grim Company’ with the unlikeliest of heroes, even though each stereotype is likely to appear in every other grimdark fantasy novel out there. BUT, and I must emphasise this point, BUT Scull does it SHAMELESSLY. Ageing barbarian with aches and pains, getting too old for the life of a warrior; a crippled and bitter intellect, seated at the heart of a conspiracy yet he can’t sit down or stand up without risking sh**ting himself; and a hopeful young hero, talented, brave, destined for greatness, that is if he can stop his ego from running away from him. They’re all familiar to a fantasy fan, but don’t be put off by thinking this is a copy-paste cast. It’s a testament to Scull’s writing that he can take such familiar characters and breathe new life into them. I myself fell in love with the characters. Yes I can see the similarities. Do I care? No. They’re individual to me.
The plot and the setting are fantastic. Who doesn’t like an epic backdrop to a fantasy? And it doesn’t get much better than dead gods who corpses leak magic. Seriously, top this, go on, I dare ya.
Scull’s style is refreshing. I mean when you weigh it all up he has PACKED ‘The Grim Company’ with ideas and characters. When you try and list them all down, it seems like it won’t work on paper. There's just so much going on. But it does. It really, really does. The pacing is fantastic, never relenting. It’s not so much a page turner as a page burner.
But the heart of the matter, I guess, the thing that everyone wants to know:
…is ‘The Grim Company’ just another grimdark, or is it (as a minority of reviews/readers suggest) a blatant copy of other things out there (He-who-shall-not-be-named!).
In my opinion?
NO!
‘The Grim Company’ is its own story. I used this word earlier, SHAMELESS. It is shameless in its use of characters, tone, and even word choice. But what does it have to be ashamed of? Nothing if you ask me. It’s a damn good read from a damned good author. I’m not going to point out the similarities for you, because in my opinion that’s not me doing justice to Luke Scull or ‘The Grim Company’.
If every reader in the known world wants to know the TRUTH about this similarity binge, I’ll give you a truth. You might not be able to handle it, but here it is.
Is ‘The Grim Company’ a mirror of Joe Abercrombie’s ‘First Law’ series?
No.
As a debut novel, ‘The Grim Company’ is better.
November 7, 2015
Very enjoyable for the most part. Maybe the ending was a little rushed compared to most Epic fantasy I have read but perhaps thats NOT necessarily a bad thing as waaaaay too many of the genre of late have been overlong & drawn out. In fact on reflection i kinda enjoyed that!
Characters are very engaging, maybe...... could have been fleshed out a little more but we did get enough to keep us hooked by ways of a slow release over the chapters which included a few flashbacks & off shoot stories. PLUS....
It’s a trilogy which i didn’t realise at the start, thought it a series, so needless to say there’s one or SIX cliffhangers but it’s all good as the story comes to a conclusion of sorts at the end of The Grim Company.
Magic is involved, through it demons, magelords, augmenters or “The Breathern” plus an assorted witch or coven. Battles & adventures a plenty & all very adult in its context along with the characters who range across the ages. It worked for me & had plenny of dark humour, also didnt take itself too seriously & be overtly complex with huge world building & complexities.
Well worth a read for those that enjoy Grimdark
Characters are very engaging, maybe...... could have been fleshed out a little more but we did get enough to keep us hooked by ways of a slow release over the chapters which included a few flashbacks & off shoot stories. PLUS....
It’s a trilogy which i didn’t realise at the start, thought it a series, so needless to say there’s one or SIX cliffhangers but it’s all good as the story comes to a conclusion of sorts at the end of The Grim Company.
Magic is involved, through it demons, magelords, augmenters or “The Breathern” plus an assorted witch or coven. Battles & adventures a plenty & all very adult in its context along with the characters who range across the ages. It worked for me & had plenny of dark humour, also didnt take itself too seriously & be overtly complex with huge world building & complexities.
Well worth a read for those that enjoy Grimdark
February 18, 2013
http://www.into-the-fire.net/2013/02/...
I first heard the name Luke Scull—and by the way, what a totally excellent name that is for a writer of fantasy fiction—somewhere around the middle of last year. Scull's debut novel, The Grim Company, had just been the subject of a fierce, six-way bidding-war, with brand-new publishing house, Head of Zeus, eventually claiming victory with a bid described as being somewhere in the “strong six-figure” section of the ballpark.
The first of a trilogy, The Grim Company isn’t released until the 1st of March, but Head of Zeus have already released the first two-thirds of the book in the potentially groundbreaking form of an Epic Free Sample. It’s a bold and unusual step from a fledgling publisher, and while the author has admitted to ‘arching an eyebrow’ when the idea was initially suggested, having devoured the first three-hundred pages of his book in less than a day, I really don’t think he has anything to worry about.
The Grim Company is, quite possibly, the most accomplished epic fantasy debut you will ever read. [disclaimer]Of course, having only read two-thirds of the book, there’s always the chance of things going to shit in the final act. Oh, and it might not be to everybody’s taste. The story takes place in a world utterly devoid of baffling, apostrophe-riddled proper nouns. So far, nobody’s been raped. And the most powerful being in the entire world is, in all likelihood, a woman. [/disclaimer]
The worldbuilding is succinctly done, with Scull eschewing the endless info-dumps, bloated description, and philosophical navel-gazing that all too often suck the life from tales tackling such lofty themes. Instead, his tight, concise prose delivers just enough information to allow the reader to plunge in and enjoy the story.
And what a story. It seems that Scull has taken everything I love about the genre (mighty, god-like wizards; political intrigue and skulduggery; the tortured, tragic hero; Lovecraftian demon-monsters running amok in the wilderness), set the magic sliders to maximum, and woven an exciting, fast moving story that presses all my buttons.
While I should point out that on the face of it, there’s nothing here that hasn’t been done before, Scull’s focused, bloat-free approach, coupled with an engaging, easygoing style makes for an absolutely cracking read.
Fans of Abercrombie will love it, especially those who feel he’s been somewhat miserly with the magic in his latest books.
Speaking of Abercrombie, if you were to conduct a poll asking fans of the genre to list their all-time favourite characters, chances are Logen Ninefingers wouldn’t be too far from the top of that list.
Step forward, Brodar Kayne. Haunted by the memory of a terrible, violent tragedy, the immensely likeable Kayne is like an older, slightly-cuddlier version of Abercrombie’s digitally-challenged barbarian. It’s still early days, but from what I’ve seen so far, Scull has big plans for this guy, and it’s surely only a matter of time before Kayne is elevated to the blood-soaked pantheon of ultimate fictional badasses.
I’ll finish by saying that as good as The Grim Company is, it's by no means perfect. But seeing as perfection is nothing more than an ever-distant, abstract impossibility, who really gives a shit?
I first heard the name Luke Scull—and by the way, what a totally excellent name that is for a writer of fantasy fiction—somewhere around the middle of last year. Scull's debut novel, The Grim Company, had just been the subject of a fierce, six-way bidding-war, with brand-new publishing house, Head of Zeus, eventually claiming victory with a bid described as being somewhere in the “strong six-figure” section of the ballpark.
The first of a trilogy, The Grim Company isn’t released until the 1st of March, but Head of Zeus have already released the first two-thirds of the book in the potentially groundbreaking form of an Epic Free Sample. It’s a bold and unusual step from a fledgling publisher, and while the author has admitted to ‘arching an eyebrow’ when the idea was initially suggested, having devoured the first three-hundred pages of his book in less than a day, I really don’t think he has anything to worry about.
The Grim Company is, quite possibly, the most accomplished epic fantasy debut you will ever read. [disclaimer]Of course, having only read two-thirds of the book, there’s always the chance of things going to shit in the final act. Oh, and it might not be to everybody’s taste. The story takes place in a world utterly devoid of baffling, apostrophe-riddled proper nouns. So far, nobody’s been raped. And the most powerful being in the entire world is, in all likelihood, a woman. [/disclaimer]
The worldbuilding is succinctly done, with Scull eschewing the endless info-dumps, bloated description, and philosophical navel-gazing that all too often suck the life from tales tackling such lofty themes. Instead, his tight, concise prose delivers just enough information to allow the reader to plunge in and enjoy the story.
And what a story. It seems that Scull has taken everything I love about the genre (mighty, god-like wizards; political intrigue and skulduggery; the tortured, tragic hero; Lovecraftian demon-monsters running amok in the wilderness), set the magic sliders to maximum, and woven an exciting, fast moving story that presses all my buttons.
While I should point out that on the face of it, there’s nothing here that hasn’t been done before, Scull’s focused, bloat-free approach, coupled with an engaging, easygoing style makes for an absolutely cracking read.
Fans of Abercrombie will love it, especially those who feel he’s been somewhat miserly with the magic in his latest books.
Speaking of Abercrombie, if you were to conduct a poll asking fans of the genre to list their all-time favourite characters, chances are Logen Ninefingers wouldn’t be too far from the top of that list.
Step forward, Brodar Kayne. Haunted by the memory of a terrible, violent tragedy, the immensely likeable Kayne is like an older, slightly-cuddlier version of Abercrombie’s digitally-challenged barbarian. It’s still early days, but from what I’ve seen so far, Scull has big plans for this guy, and it’s surely only a matter of time before Kayne is elevated to the blood-soaked pantheon of ultimate fictional badasses.
I’ll finish by saying that as good as The Grim Company is, it's by no means perfect. But seeing as perfection is nothing more than an ever-distant, abstract impossibility, who really gives a shit?
June 17, 2016
Well it was good to be back reading something that held my attention for a while. Scull has certainly got the talent to write a great story and whilst I think this was a pretty good beginning, I am hoping to see a little more depth in the writing in the next book.
So what do I mean by that? Well, the characters were pretty good, with some nice interaction and some nice quirky characteristics, the world building was very good, the story was... a bit different, no real interesting magic system and certainly no explanation on how magic works, it just is. But I think was made it a 3 star and not a 4 star for me, was there are quite a few moments of laziness on the part of the author. Instead of developing a scene, he just allowed it finish it early by making an announcement and having everyone follow along. A case in point, would be when Cole tries to convince all the tough old men on board a ship to join him in uprising, he is a snotty, full of himself 20 something and with one or two sentences he has a up rising in the palm of his hand.
So all in all, i enjoyed and I do look forward to picking up book 2.
So what do I mean by that? Well, the characters were pretty good, with some nice interaction and some nice quirky characteristics, the world building was very good, the story was... a bit different, no real interesting magic system and certainly no explanation on how magic works, it just is. But I think was made it a 3 star and not a 4 star for me, was there are quite a few moments of laziness on the part of the author. Instead of developing a scene, he just allowed it finish it early by making an announcement and having everyone follow along. A case in point, would be when Cole tries to convince all the tough old men on board a ship to join him in uprising, he is a snotty, full of himself 20 something and with one or two sentences he has a up rising in the palm of his hand.
So all in all, i enjoyed and I do look forward to picking up book 2.
February 17, 2013
In my summary of Fantasy reads of 2012 , I made the point that I was rather disappointed that I hadn’t found a new Epic Fantasy that had really engaged me, despite many being heralded as such. (Of those, The Red Knight by Miles Cameron came closest.)
Being honest, it has made me a little wary of any ‘new’ Epic Fantasy. And I must admit I did approach this one with a little trepidation.
In summary, it’s not perfect. But it is the best Fantasy debut I’ve read lately, and I think many will like it.
Cue cover blurb:
“The grey granite walls of Dorminia rise to three times the height of a man, surrounding the city on all sides save for the south, where the Broken Sea begins. The stone is three-foot thick at its weakest point and can withstand all but the heaviest assault. The Crimson Watch patrol the streets even as Salazar's Mindhawks patrol the skies. The Grey City was not always so. But something has changed. Something has broken at its heart. Perhaps the wild magic of the dead Gods has corrupted Dorminia's Magelord, as it has the earth itself. Or perhaps this iron-fisted tyranny is the consequence of a lifetime of dark deeds... Still, pockets of resistance remain. When two formidable Highlanders save the life of a young rebel, it proves the foundation for an unlikely fellowship. A fellowship united against tyranny, but composed of self-righteous outlaws, crippled turncoats and amoral mercenaries. A grim company. But with the world entering an Age of Ruin, this is not a time of heroes...”
OK: got your attention?
I suspect that that description is all that many would wish for. The book echoes many of the popular Fantasy authors, with the gritty nihilism of Joe Abercrombie and the characterisation of David Gemmell, whilst tapping into the world-spanning breadth of GRRM and the irreverence of Glen Cook’s Black Company. There’s a touch of Steven Erikson’s Malazan in there, too, in its back-story, its gods and magelords. Dealing with many of the Fantasy tropes is not always a bad thing, as it gives us common ground on which to work, and as I’ve said often enough before, sometimes it’s the journey, not the destination, that counts on these things.
And yes, that journey does sound quite exciting. However, my initial reading of the first few pages were, it must be said, rather disappointing. The first few pages were a worrying misstep. A man, having left bruises on his wife previously, returns to his house to be rewarded with a hot cooking pan in the face, before being swept away in a city-swallowing deluge of water.
Oh dear. My initial enthusiasm was rather subdued.
As I kept reading there were other issues for me. Some of the dialogue used was rather unconvincing, as it tried too hard to sound tough:
“What he said was, ‘Now get the fuck out of my sight before I shove this dagger so far up your dick eye it tickles the back of your throat with your balls!’ ” (page 14)
From this example (and many others), it’s clear that this is not family-friendly Fantasy, nor does it try to be. Here Luke is clearly going for an Abercrombie vibe rather than, let’s say, a David Eddings. Some readers will welcome this and be unperturbed about the plethora of sexual and genitalia references, volatile swearing and bodily function references throughout. I can handle that as much as the next man (or woman), but for me, it was so often used that it began to feel unnecessarily obtrusive. The copious references to arses and what could be/would be/ should be done to them, for example, would make a proctologist proud, but ‘in the end’ became irritating (see what I did there?) Whilst it could be said that such matters are rather typical in today’s gritty novels, here at times it detracted from the rather important point of showing and telling me what important is going on.
And what is going on in The Grim Company (as the title might suggest!) is at times rather depressing. There’s a lot of nasty stuff here, horrible characters doing atrocious things, in ways that have become rather common in Fantasy at the moment. The ‘New Gritty’, so to speak.
Such unremitting bleakness can be quite wearing for the reader, although it can be done well. Again, in that tone there is perhaps a similarity between this book and Joe Abercrombie’s novels. Where it works for Joe and not here, however, is that there isn’t so much of the deadpan gallows humour we get with the Nine to counterbalance the darkness, that knowing tone that the reader accepts as understandable. There is humour herein, but it is dark.
All of the above does make the book sound terrible. Or at the very least, not a book for me. And there was a point at about fifty pages in where I nearly, nearly gave up, for those reasons.
But wait. After this rather impressive wobble at the beginning, when we get to the meat of the tale (as it were), things improve rather. After about one hundred pages, things get really quite interesting. And halfway through, at about 250 pages, I was hooked.
It is perhaps the range of characters and what they have to do that propel this multi-threaded epic tale. There is a lot going on. It is a world where magic is in decline. Wild Magic can be mined in this world because it exists as crystalline residue left by dying Gods at the time of the Godswar. It is used by the Magelords as a resource that is used to create Augmentors, their elite bodyguards, whose numbers are in decline. The magic is also wanted by a group of Dorminian rebels, known as the Shard, who hope that their procurement will enable them to strike back at Dorminia’s oppressive Magelord, Salazar. The task is taken on by a motley crew.
One of the rebels, Davarus Cole, is a young, naive, self-obsessed character destined for greatness – at least in his own head. The Shard also enlist weary Highlander mercenary Brodar Kayne (rather reminiscent to me of David Gemmell’s Druss) and his foul-mouthed and eternally grumpy sidekick, Jerek the Wolf, to go at great risk to the Wailing Rift, where the magic can be found.
Elsewhere, Salazar is not only under threat from the rebels but also a competing Magelord, The White Lady, Magelord of Thelassa. Barandas is the Supreme Augmentor, leader of the Crimson Watch, sworn to protect Salazar from his many enemies who ends up defending Dorminia against a major attack.
Legless Mage Eremul (cruelly nicknamed the Half Mage) is perhaps this book’s Glokta. He treads a fine line between fulfilling the needs of the Magelord and assisting the White Lady in his downfall.
Half a world away, the sorceress Yllandris is a scheming social climber, who as concubine to Magnar, King of the High Fangs, clearly has designs on power. Magnar, a young and intelligent leader, finds himself dealing with local skirmishes whilst at the same time seeing his lands being attacked by Abominations, mutated magical creatures from The Devil’s Spine.
All of the above might suggest that we’ve been here before, but what Luke has done is take a bunch of rather tired tropes and even unpleasant people, but then managed to do interesting things with them. Not all is what we think it will be and Luke does a sterling job of subverting some of the reader’s expectations, especially at the end.
The fight at the end is particularly worth applause, as Luke’s fight scenes are really very good for a debut writer: exciting, gory, not too many nor too repetitive, a fault many new writers make. What wins most at the conclusion is that, despite my concerns and niggles, in the end I cared about the characters and wanted to know more.
In summary: a book that conforms to “the New Gritty” and ticks all the right boxes for those demanding more of the same. After some initial wobbles, once the book settles in it becomes a real page-turner.
My initial impression was that it was a brave effort and a pretty good debut, though little more than that. At the end, I felt that it was one of the best recent debuts of Epic Fantasy, which, whilst not being perfect, is certainly much better than the other new Epic Fantasy novels I’ve read recently. One of those books that I’m pleased to say won me over, to the point where I think I can say that Luke has a bright future in Fantasy. I’m looking forward to the next book, with interest.
Being honest, it has made me a little wary of any ‘new’ Epic Fantasy. And I must admit I did approach this one with a little trepidation.
In summary, it’s not perfect. But it is the best Fantasy debut I’ve read lately, and I think many will like it.
Cue cover blurb:
“The grey granite walls of Dorminia rise to three times the height of a man, surrounding the city on all sides save for the south, where the Broken Sea begins. The stone is three-foot thick at its weakest point and can withstand all but the heaviest assault. The Crimson Watch patrol the streets even as Salazar's Mindhawks patrol the skies. The Grey City was not always so. But something has changed. Something has broken at its heart. Perhaps the wild magic of the dead Gods has corrupted Dorminia's Magelord, as it has the earth itself. Or perhaps this iron-fisted tyranny is the consequence of a lifetime of dark deeds... Still, pockets of resistance remain. When two formidable Highlanders save the life of a young rebel, it proves the foundation for an unlikely fellowship. A fellowship united against tyranny, but composed of self-righteous outlaws, crippled turncoats and amoral mercenaries. A grim company. But with the world entering an Age of Ruin, this is not a time of heroes...”
OK: got your attention?
I suspect that that description is all that many would wish for. The book echoes many of the popular Fantasy authors, with the gritty nihilism of Joe Abercrombie and the characterisation of David Gemmell, whilst tapping into the world-spanning breadth of GRRM and the irreverence of Glen Cook’s Black Company. There’s a touch of Steven Erikson’s Malazan in there, too, in its back-story, its gods and magelords. Dealing with many of the Fantasy tropes is not always a bad thing, as it gives us common ground on which to work, and as I’ve said often enough before, sometimes it’s the journey, not the destination, that counts on these things.
And yes, that journey does sound quite exciting. However, my initial reading of the first few pages were, it must be said, rather disappointing. The first few pages were a worrying misstep. A man, having left bruises on his wife previously, returns to his house to be rewarded with a hot cooking pan in the face, before being swept away in a city-swallowing deluge of water.
Oh dear. My initial enthusiasm was rather subdued.
As I kept reading there were other issues for me. Some of the dialogue used was rather unconvincing, as it tried too hard to sound tough:
“What he said was, ‘Now get the fuck out of my sight before I shove this dagger so far up your dick eye it tickles the back of your throat with your balls!’ ” (page 14)
From this example (and many others), it’s clear that this is not family-friendly Fantasy, nor does it try to be. Here Luke is clearly going for an Abercrombie vibe rather than, let’s say, a David Eddings. Some readers will welcome this and be unperturbed about the plethora of sexual and genitalia references, volatile swearing and bodily function references throughout. I can handle that as much as the next man (or woman), but for me, it was so often used that it began to feel unnecessarily obtrusive. The copious references to arses and what could be/would be/ should be done to them, for example, would make a proctologist proud, but ‘in the end’ became irritating (see what I did there?) Whilst it could be said that such matters are rather typical in today’s gritty novels, here at times it detracted from the rather important point of showing and telling me what important is going on.
And what is going on in The Grim Company (as the title might suggest!) is at times rather depressing. There’s a lot of nasty stuff here, horrible characters doing atrocious things, in ways that have become rather common in Fantasy at the moment. The ‘New Gritty’, so to speak.
Such unremitting bleakness can be quite wearing for the reader, although it can be done well. Again, in that tone there is perhaps a similarity between this book and Joe Abercrombie’s novels. Where it works for Joe and not here, however, is that there isn’t so much of the deadpan gallows humour we get with the Nine to counterbalance the darkness, that knowing tone that the reader accepts as understandable. There is humour herein, but it is dark.
All of the above does make the book sound terrible. Or at the very least, not a book for me. And there was a point at about fifty pages in where I nearly, nearly gave up, for those reasons.
But wait. After this rather impressive wobble at the beginning, when we get to the meat of the tale (as it were), things improve rather. After about one hundred pages, things get really quite interesting. And halfway through, at about 250 pages, I was hooked.
It is perhaps the range of characters and what they have to do that propel this multi-threaded epic tale. There is a lot going on. It is a world where magic is in decline. Wild Magic can be mined in this world because it exists as crystalline residue left by dying Gods at the time of the Godswar. It is used by the Magelords as a resource that is used to create Augmentors, their elite bodyguards, whose numbers are in decline. The magic is also wanted by a group of Dorminian rebels, known as the Shard, who hope that their procurement will enable them to strike back at Dorminia’s oppressive Magelord, Salazar. The task is taken on by a motley crew.
One of the rebels, Davarus Cole, is a young, naive, self-obsessed character destined for greatness – at least in his own head. The Shard also enlist weary Highlander mercenary Brodar Kayne (rather reminiscent to me of David Gemmell’s Druss) and his foul-mouthed and eternally grumpy sidekick, Jerek the Wolf, to go at great risk to the Wailing Rift, where the magic can be found.
Elsewhere, Salazar is not only under threat from the rebels but also a competing Magelord, The White Lady, Magelord of Thelassa. Barandas is the Supreme Augmentor, leader of the Crimson Watch, sworn to protect Salazar from his many enemies who ends up defending Dorminia against a major attack.
Legless Mage Eremul (cruelly nicknamed the Half Mage) is perhaps this book’s Glokta. He treads a fine line between fulfilling the needs of the Magelord and assisting the White Lady in his downfall.
Half a world away, the sorceress Yllandris is a scheming social climber, who as concubine to Magnar, King of the High Fangs, clearly has designs on power. Magnar, a young and intelligent leader, finds himself dealing with local skirmishes whilst at the same time seeing his lands being attacked by Abominations, mutated magical creatures from The Devil’s Spine.
All of the above might suggest that we’ve been here before, but what Luke has done is take a bunch of rather tired tropes and even unpleasant people, but then managed to do interesting things with them. Not all is what we think it will be and Luke does a sterling job of subverting some of the reader’s expectations, especially at the end.
The fight at the end is particularly worth applause, as Luke’s fight scenes are really very good for a debut writer: exciting, gory, not too many nor too repetitive, a fault many new writers make. What wins most at the conclusion is that, despite my concerns and niggles, in the end I cared about the characters and wanted to know more.
In summary: a book that conforms to “the New Gritty” and ticks all the right boxes for those demanding more of the same. After some initial wobbles, once the book settles in it becomes a real page-turner.
My initial impression was that it was a brave effort and a pretty good debut, though little more than that. At the end, I felt that it was one of the best recent debuts of Epic Fantasy, which, whilst not being perfect, is certainly much better than the other new Epic Fantasy novels I’ve read recently. One of those books that I’m pleased to say won me over, to the point where I think I can say that Luke has a bright future in Fantasy. I’m looking forward to the next book, with interest.
December 26, 2020
My first toe-dip into Grim-Dark Fantasy and I was surprised at how much I liked it. Of all the definitions of Grimdark that I found I like this one the best: described as fiction "where nobody is honorable and Might is Right"
That about sums it up.
L. Scull takes us into a world where god-like mage lords rule, maim and kill their loyal subjects without second thought. And, those said subjects in turn plot to kill off the mage lords. This is a universe set in a medieval environment, made up of various races, abominations created from past wars, and several levels of magic.
There are some great characters. Two of my favorites being 2 curmudgeonly old guys, who actually turn out to be the heroes. Loved them.
Not for those who want happy endings.
That about sums it up.
L. Scull takes us into a world where god-like mage lords rule, maim and kill their loyal subjects without second thought. And, those said subjects in turn plot to kill off the mage lords. This is a universe set in a medieval environment, made up of various races, abominations created from past wars, and several levels of magic.
There are some great characters. Two of my favorites being 2 curmudgeonly old guys, who actually turn out to be the heroes. Loved them.
Not for those who want happy endings.
July 24, 2017
The reviews, for The Grim Company, have been mixed. And, after reading the first book of the trilogy, I can see why that is the case. (Spoilers throughout)
The Grim Company is set in a post-apocalyptic world, where the gods have been slain by the various mage lords, who know rule over the people several hundred years later. The idea for the world—corpses of the gods still littering the land, being harvested for use in magical items, is quite interesting and one of the high points of the story. However, on the book cover and hinted throughout the book, it is said that the world is dying. There is not much evidence of this, aside from the occasionally unexplained walking corpse/monster. I would have loved to have seen more evidence of the dying world, making everything seem more “grim.”
That brings me to the characters, starting with Cole.
Ultimately, the plot was a bit recycled, though Scull makes the telling fun. I couldn’t help but root for the characters, even Cole, toward the end. There is definitely potential, here, and I’d like to see Scull develop as a writer. In fact, I already purchased the next book to see if that happens, and I’ll plan on seeing the series to the end.
The Grim Company is set in a post-apocalyptic world, where the gods have been slain by the various mage lords, who know rule over the people several hundred years later. The idea for the world—corpses of the gods still littering the land, being harvested for use in magical items, is quite interesting and one of the high points of the story. However, on the book cover and hinted throughout the book, it is said that the world is dying. There is not much evidence of this, aside from the occasionally unexplained walking corpse/monster. I would have loved to have seen more evidence of the dying world, making everything seem more “grim.”
That brings me to the characters, starting with Cole.
Ultimately, the plot was a bit recycled, though Scull makes the telling fun. I couldn’t help but root for the characters, even Cole, toward the end. There is definitely potential, here, and I’d like to see Scull develop as a writer. In fact, I already purchased the next book to see if that happens, and I’ll plan on seeing the series to the end.
June 15, 2017
When I started the Grim Company I didn't know what to expect. Perhaps, I thought, it would be a mildly entertaining story with a decent cast. Well let me tell you that I am pleasantly surprised. This was very good.
The world is in turmoil. Hundreds of years ago the Gods and Mages of the world had a battle. The mages won. Well the handful that survived became Magelords- godlike beings in their own right. Their rule varies from cruel to strict to controlling. But, it is fair to say some are worse than others.
One of the worst is Salazar, the Magelord of Dorminia. Davarus Cole hates the Magelord and has joined a Rebel group that is planning to kill him. Davarus Cole wants nothing more than to be a great hero, like his deceased father, though his own ability to be a hero is in doubt, being great even harder. Throw in two Highlanders (think Norsemen), one of whom is a slightly over-the-Hill warrior who was once Sword of the North (think a supreme warrior), the other is known as the Wolf. Add in a legless wizard and his stupendously multi-talented manservant Issac, a deeply angry girl named Sasha and this is the basis for the Grim Company.
I will not ruin any more of the plot- it's worth your time to read. This is truly a well written and exciting story. I was very surprised at the level of dry and dark humor that is prevalent throughout this story. It's tongue in cheek, without making this a silly story or taking away the violent nature of the tale. The fight scenes are exciting and well done. The characters all have their own style. I am a fan of the Sword of the North, the Wolf and I thought Issac and Davarus Cole were both excellent in their particular roles. It is rare an action-fantasy adventure elicits chuckles from me, but this one certainly did. Luke Scull has a way with making very serious and action oriented scenes become rather funny in a way. Davarus Cole has some of the best moments for things like that.
Also the story, even though it could have been very simplistic, has a lot of layers. That also impressed me. Not everything is as it seems. As the story progresses certain things become more clear the relationship between the Sword of the North and King Magnar; The Augmentors and their interest in Davarus Cole; the White Lady and her servants...there are many different layered stories here. In fact the ending was actually surprising.
So if you're looking for a dark, grim fantasy world full of violence and action-but always well stocked with dark and dry humor in the oddest of places-I highly recommend this great story.
The world is in turmoil. Hundreds of years ago the Gods and Mages of the world had a battle. The mages won. Well the handful that survived became Magelords- godlike beings in their own right. Their rule varies from cruel to strict to controlling. But, it is fair to say some are worse than others.
One of the worst is Salazar, the Magelord of Dorminia. Davarus Cole hates the Magelord and has joined a Rebel group that is planning to kill him. Davarus Cole wants nothing more than to be a great hero, like his deceased father, though his own ability to be a hero is in doubt, being great even harder. Throw in two Highlanders (think Norsemen), one of whom is a slightly over-the-Hill warrior who was once Sword of the North (think a supreme warrior), the other is known as the Wolf. Add in a legless wizard and his stupendously multi-talented manservant Issac, a deeply angry girl named Sasha and this is the basis for the Grim Company.
I will not ruin any more of the plot- it's worth your time to read. This is truly a well written and exciting story. I was very surprised at the level of dry and dark humor that is prevalent throughout this story. It's tongue in cheek, without making this a silly story or taking away the violent nature of the tale. The fight scenes are exciting and well done. The characters all have their own style. I am a fan of the Sword of the North, the Wolf and I thought Issac and Davarus Cole were both excellent in their particular roles. It is rare an action-fantasy adventure elicits chuckles from me, but this one certainly did. Luke Scull has a way with making very serious and action oriented scenes become rather funny in a way. Davarus Cole has some of the best moments for things like that.
Also the story, even though it could have been very simplistic, has a lot of layers. That also impressed me. Not everything is as it seems. As the story progresses certain things become more clear the relationship between the Sword of the North and King Magnar; The Augmentors and their interest in Davarus Cole; the White Lady and her servants...there are many different layered stories here. In fact the ending was actually surprising.
So if you're looking for a dark, grim fantasy world full of violence and action-but always well stocked with dark and dry humor in the oddest of places-I highly recommend this great story.
August 13, 2017
An excellent, easy-to-read, fast-paced Heroic Fantasy. Pretty much right on the mark in exactly what I prefer in a Fantasy novel. Very similar to Paul S. Kemp's Egil and Nix novels, or James A. Moore's fantasy works, in immediacy and swift moving, clean and clear-eyed prose. A genuinely great treat that I heartily recommend ahead of more popular works in the genre. Move this one up your reading list!
May 2, 2013
Read The Review Here: http://thefoundingfields.com/2013/05/...
“Gritty fantasy has a new and enthralling addition to its ranks. If you’re a fan of Joe Abercrombie or George RR Martin, then this is one you’ll want to have under your radar.” ~The Founding Fields
I first came across this book after hearing about it on Civilian Reader, and upon finding out that it was pretty cheap on the Kindle Fire (only £1-ish), I decided to snap it up and give it a try. After all, I love gritty fantasy, but with so many already established names in the genre, what new things could Scull bring to the table that we haven’t already seen before? I was interested to find out, and I ended up tearing my way through this debut tale. However, it’s not without its flaws though, and I’ll explain what they are towards the end of the review.
"This is a world dying.
A world where wild magic leaks from the corpses of rotting gods, desperate tyrants battle over fading resources, impassive shapeshifters marshal beasts of enormous size and startling intelligence, and ravenous demons infest the northern mountains. A world where the only difference between a hero and a killer lies in the ability to justify dark deeds.
But even in this world, pockets of resistance remain. When two aging warriors save the life of a young rebel, it proves the foundation for an unlikely fellowship. A fellowship united against tyranny, yet composed of self-righteous outlaws, crippled turncoats and amoral mercenaries. A grim company, indeed…"
As expected, The Grim Company is the opening volume in a new Fantasy trilogy, which bears the same name as its title. If you’ve any doubts about it being a weak addition to the already established ranks of dark fantasy then you should put them aside, for Luke Scull has crafted a debut tale that will keep you hooked right the way through, with a strong story, interesting characters, a harsh outlook on the world and a very interesting plot. Whilst this may not be the most original debut ever, The Grim Company’s biggest achievement is easily making you feel like you’re not reading an Abercrombie-knock off. The book is firmly its own novel.
Character wise, Scull delivers some tried and true archetypes such as Davarus Cole, a man who believes that it’s his destiny to be the leader, the most awesome character of them all and lead the people against the evil that oppresses them. However, Cole is actually not all that likable, and comes across as a bit of an arrogant prick at times, with a warped view of how things should work and often ignores what is happening right in front of him. We also get the likes of Eremul the Halfmage, a sorcerer spared by the evil ruler Salazar that followed a purge which left other magic users in disarray, Brodar Kayne, a man who was once Champion of the Shaman and is now in hiding from his former master, among others, who are an interesting cohort that, along with the plot of overthrowing the lord ruler can sometimes echo Brandon Sanderson’s The Final Empire, but obviously with a gritter tone.
If you were put off by Abercrombie’s novels or are one of the few people who don’t like A Song of Ice and Fire, then The Grim Company will probably not be your cup of tea. Even though the book comes across as too cliche from the description that I’ve just given you and the blurb, especially with the evil leader being named Salazar, you’ll find that Scull is in familiar territory, he knows what waters he’s treading in as do you. The book also benefits from being action packed, engaging and truly a page-turning read, and once you’ve started, you won’t stop. There are however, as mentioned earlier – a few shortcomings that prevent The Grim Company from matching the likes of Abercrombie and company.
The author tries to get across a very grim setting in his book, but sometimes, the dialogue comes across as awkward in places. It also doesn’t really bring anything new to the table, for we’ve seen everything in The Grim Company before. There’s nothing that screams new and original, however – if you want a fun read from one of the hottest debut authors of 2013, The Grim Company will probably be your best bet. I was considering giving The Grim Company a slightly lower rating at the start of the review, but I’ve decided that I’m actually struggling to find that many flaws in the book as I attempt to pick it apart in this review.
VERDICT: 4/5
“Gritty fantasy has a new and enthralling addition to its ranks. If you’re a fan of Joe Abercrombie or George RR Martin, then this is one you’ll want to have under your radar.” ~The Founding Fields
I first came across this book after hearing about it on Civilian Reader, and upon finding out that it was pretty cheap on the Kindle Fire (only £1-ish), I decided to snap it up and give it a try. After all, I love gritty fantasy, but with so many already established names in the genre, what new things could Scull bring to the table that we haven’t already seen before? I was interested to find out, and I ended up tearing my way through this debut tale. However, it’s not without its flaws though, and I’ll explain what they are towards the end of the review.
"This is a world dying.
A world where wild magic leaks from the corpses of rotting gods, desperate tyrants battle over fading resources, impassive shapeshifters marshal beasts of enormous size and startling intelligence, and ravenous demons infest the northern mountains. A world where the only difference between a hero and a killer lies in the ability to justify dark deeds.
But even in this world, pockets of resistance remain. When two aging warriors save the life of a young rebel, it proves the foundation for an unlikely fellowship. A fellowship united against tyranny, yet composed of self-righteous outlaws, crippled turncoats and amoral mercenaries. A grim company, indeed…"
As expected, The Grim Company is the opening volume in a new Fantasy trilogy, which bears the same name as its title. If you’ve any doubts about it being a weak addition to the already established ranks of dark fantasy then you should put them aside, for Luke Scull has crafted a debut tale that will keep you hooked right the way through, with a strong story, interesting characters, a harsh outlook on the world and a very interesting plot. Whilst this may not be the most original debut ever, The Grim Company’s biggest achievement is easily making you feel like you’re not reading an Abercrombie-knock off. The book is firmly its own novel.
Character wise, Scull delivers some tried and true archetypes such as Davarus Cole, a man who believes that it’s his destiny to be the leader, the most awesome character of them all and lead the people against the evil that oppresses them. However, Cole is actually not all that likable, and comes across as a bit of an arrogant prick at times, with a warped view of how things should work and often ignores what is happening right in front of him. We also get the likes of Eremul the Halfmage, a sorcerer spared by the evil ruler Salazar that followed a purge which left other magic users in disarray, Brodar Kayne, a man who was once Champion of the Shaman and is now in hiding from his former master, among others, who are an interesting cohort that, along with the plot of overthrowing the lord ruler can sometimes echo Brandon Sanderson’s The Final Empire, but obviously with a gritter tone.
If you were put off by Abercrombie’s novels or are one of the few people who don’t like A Song of Ice and Fire, then The Grim Company will probably not be your cup of tea. Even though the book comes across as too cliche from the description that I’ve just given you and the blurb, especially with the evil leader being named Salazar, you’ll find that Scull is in familiar territory, he knows what waters he’s treading in as do you. The book also benefits from being action packed, engaging and truly a page-turning read, and once you’ve started, you won’t stop. There are however, as mentioned earlier – a few shortcomings that prevent The Grim Company from matching the likes of Abercrombie and company.
The author tries to get across a very grim setting in his book, but sometimes, the dialogue comes across as awkward in places. It also doesn’t really bring anything new to the table, for we’ve seen everything in The Grim Company before. There’s nothing that screams new and original, however – if you want a fun read from one of the hottest debut authors of 2013, The Grim Company will probably be your best bet. I was considering giving The Grim Company a slightly lower rating at the start of the review, but I’ve decided that I’m actually struggling to find that many flaws in the book as I attempt to pick it apart in this review.
VERDICT: 4/5
December 8, 2018
Maybe 4.5*? Bad language and bloody battles, I enjoyed it! My main criticism is that it was too fast paced and skirted over some of the plot point. Needed more pages!
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