Story: 4/5 
 1: Being Vague, rambling plot with no little believable storyline 
 5: Ripping yarn, clever, thought provoking 
 The fourth book in this related series happens (i believe) 3 years on. The story focuses on a three day battle between the Union, lead by a now very competent and likeable General Kroy and our old friend Black Dow, with lots of personality this time round. 
 This is a harsh story, 3 days of battles and lots of character interaction between times. To pull off this type of story you need to be excellent at character writing. Abercrombie does it easily. His ability to draw you into individualsis phenomenal, given that the story is set over 3 days only, we see some amazing development, all driven from traumatic experience that make the story completely believable. 
 There is no simple good vs evil in this story. I came away after reading this with the constant thought of 'war is a complete waste of time, effort and lives'. 
 Characters: 5/5 
 1: Unrealistic/unbelievable. Feel nothing for these characters 
 5: Fully engaged with the characters, believable. Researched. 
 Again, Abercrombie shows his brilliance in character development. Calder, Finree and Craw were an enjoyment to watch grow. You could not get three more different characters, yet each I feel like i know personally. Finree especially showed that Abercrombie can take on a challenging female role and build on it. 
 I think the story is typified in the telling of one young soldier of the north, who left his farm to seek his glory and earn his name. His character completely changes throughout the story and when he finally makes it back to his farm, a completely different person altogether he asks his mum how his brother is, she replies 'Same, you weren't gone more'n a few days'. This stopped me in my tracks. All that we had read, all that we learned, all that people changed and it was just 3 days. 
 Bayaz plays a part in this again, shows himself to be the scariest badass wizard around. His sharp tongue and ability to belittle anyone and everyone is a joy to read. Abercrombie again finishes off the book showing us just how much power Bayaz has and forces us to question our thoughts on whether is indeed one of the good guys. I'd prefer to go up against Suaron. 
 Read Weight: Solid 
 Fluffy, Light, Solid, Heavy, Struggle 
 Nothing light about this. The battle scenes are gruesome. A dark book with a grim setting, describing the follies of war. 
 Engagement: 5/5 
 1: Not fussed about finishing 
 5: Could stay up all night 
 I failed at keeping pace with the reading group. Once I got past halfway, there was no stopping me. I had to finish it. 
 Recommend: 4/5 
 1: Would advise you to read something else 
 5: Go read it now. It is THAT good 
 Whilst it is a standalone story with almost all new characters, I would not recommend this as a start out Abercrombie book. The story is heavy and dark and I think appreciating Abercrombies skill with recognising his character development made for a much better read. Start with First Law, then come back to this.