I just finished reading The Devils, by Joe Abercrombie. An imposing 560 pages, the novel starts off exquisitely with Brother Diaz pounding through the scenic hallways of the Celestial Palace unexpectedly on-time for his meeting with the Pope. The description of the scene renders a cinemagraph as clear as day, infusing the reader with the knowledge that this scene will exist on any given day and we are being given a glimpse into business as usual.

The novel develops from there, and never quite lives up to that first scene, but Abercrombie’s aspiration to sell the film rights of this novel remain clear throughout. I enjoyed that it didn’t take itself too seriously, culminating in the fantastic scene in which Shaxep appears. However, having reached this lofty height, I wish Abercrombie had taken the remaining time to flesh out the characters and build to a dramatic conclusion. While we certainly received an epic conclusion, the drama was entirely lacking due to the overly irreverent tone.

I selected the image of Vigga-wolf instead of the novel’s cover art because, at its core, this really was the story of the wolf. And the wolf’s story was damned disappointing, in predictable grimdark fashion. I’m ok with being disappointed on that front. Anything else would have strained suspension of disbelief.

Overall, the novel was tons of fun.