 Sharp ends is the opportunity to see the Kessel Run. It's uh, it's just a delight. I don't know how you made it this far. Yeah I was, I was an asshole. Oh you want some more? Hey guys it's Leigh Ann and I'm here today to talk about Sharp ends by Joe Abercrombie. Sharp ends is the collection of short stories that take place in the world of the first law and no you cannot skip it and no you cannot read it first. No you cannot read these books in any order other than publication order. I said what I said. But Sharp ends is a delight to read if you have read all of the books that come before it in the world of the first law because this book delivers both new characters that you have not seen before in the world of the first law. They're totally new, brand new, but also has plenty of opportunities to see characters that you have met in the world of the first law in other books in settings that you're not used to or seeing them do things that you heard about because it's part of their legend, part of their reputation, some event kind of like the Kessel Run that Han Solo is famous for having done or achieved or whatever. I've never seen the movie solo but I believe you see the Kessel Run in Solo which makes sense. So the Sharp ends is the opportunity to see the Kessel Run for like all the characters that have one. So for example is this more than I'm going to tell you? I don't think so. As we know Glockta in the first law trilogy is is heavy duty crippled because he was captured by the Gherkish and tortured as a prisoner of war. But you hear about how he was this like amazing fighter. He was a complete asshole, very cocky because he was handsome so he had all the ladies all the time and he was a dick to all of them. And he had just an ego that was off the charts and he was obviously extremely humbled by, well it's humble makes him sound like he's like now Super Zen. I mean he's just been brought low and he frequently reflects upon how he used to have all these things. He used to be all these ways and like he's pretty self-aware about being like I was I was an asshole. Not that he's not still an asshole but he's yeah he recognizes like how he definitely if he met him like if if crippled Glockta had to encounter pre-crippling Glockta how much he would hate himself. But all that to say in Sharp ends you get to see Glockta pre-crippling back when he was the bee's knees which is just it's amazing to it's not like it's the most amazing short story by itself but because you know Glockta so well and you've heard so much about how what he used to be like to actually see what he used to be like it's just it's just fun. And then you have Logan nine fingers who again you've heard plenty about his reputation from before the events of the first law so you get to see some of that in sharp ends. There is I always say this that like my example or my the reason I give the example for a reason for why you have to have read the books that come before it is that in red country there is something that going on in red country that is the reason that is we have a short story in sharp ends is the result of that. I don't know how to say it it's not spoiler is it spoilery? I don't think it's I feel like I can say this it's not very spoilery because it doesn't say anything about like what happens but anyway so there's somebody in red country that is like writing down events and so one of the the short stories in sharp ends is what he wrote down. That may not sound very interesting but I promise you it is especially if you listen to the audiobook because this is once again read by Stephen Pacey except for that story. That story is read by Joe Abercrombie. It's uh it's just a delight. There are also characters that are brand new that are doing things and interacting with things that are familiar if that makes sense so they themselves aren't characters that you've heard of at all or seen before they're not like minor characters that are now thrusting at the spotlight they're new but they they're paths cross with characters that you have seen in other books so the character that's familiar to isn't the focal point of the story but they like pop in and it's just it's overall it's just a good time if you enjoy the world of the first law and you just want to like beep up around and just experience little snippets of things going on in the world of the first law be they before the events of the trilogy after the events of the trilogy etc etc it's just it's almost like fanfic I guess like I've never really been a person to read fanfic and I've never other than the fanfic I read for a video that was first law fanfic I've never actually that I can recall actually read fanfic I don't think that I have I feel like the enjoyment that people derive out of fanfic like the reason fanfic exists being that people just kind of like want to see more of their favorite characters just doing things it doesn't have to be like a whole 300 500 700 page arc it's just like I want more snippets of scenes opportunities for these characters to interact or for two characters that never had the opportunity to interact to finally see them interact um and it's just I mean it's written by Joe Evercrombie so it's not like the shitty pale attempted version so it's just an opportunity to to basically have the author say oh you want some more it's like an encore if that makes sense like if you've gone to like a music performance and you know you want an encore and he's like okay you know I could do you a few more so that's what this kind of feels like it feels like he's written all these long books like the trilogy and then all these standalone that are very long and involved and it's a whole plot arc and sharp ends is like the encore you're like okay like I can do you a few more and it's just it's great it gives you the opportunity to see these little things that like there isn't anywhere that they would necessarily fit in a larger book there's nowhere that you could put this stuff that it would make sense to have it in a full book but it's never the less fun to see it it's great to see it and we love to see it I think my favorite short story is that's hard I mean obviously LACTA is my favorite character so I mean the first time I read this I was the most excited about seeing LACTA young and it's still um really fun to see but I think I still derive the most just sheer enjoyment just like delight from the short story that is the one that Doe Abacame reads that is inspired by or like a spin-off of Red Country even though Red Country is my least favorite book but the short story in sharp ends is worth the time of reading Red Country 4 I just it's a good time I that's all I can say about this like what else can you say about it I mean this might be my favorite short story collection that I've read in general but it's helped by the fact that all of this does take place in the same world so most short story collections you have to like you're introduced to a whole new setting and situation and characters that you have to orient yourself in and then get through the story and then the whole the next one is like a completely new again and it's very jarring and disorienting and that's one of the reasons I don't like short story collections but this has the benefit of all taking place in the world of the first law so it's not like each one is jarringly like whole different world different situation different characters that you have to not figure out it's all in the world of the first law so it's just there it's great it's it's I didn't give it five stars because I just I don't feel right giving someone like this five stars because it doesn't feel like it required as much of the author or of me as the reader as a full book that has taken me through this whole plot arc and this whole journey and this incredible character study but even so like as I've said many many times character Joe Abercrombie's character work is what mainly shines in his books his ability to write three-dimensional characters that leap off the page um but once so it's once again impressive that the characters that are brand new that aren't like glocked a young the ones that you're meeting for the very first time in sharp ends that in such a short period of time he has once again managed to write fully fleshed out three dimensional characters that you're that already feel like you know them probably as well as you know the characters that are from the full novels and again you cannot skip it because new information is told to you in sharp ends it isn't all just like let's see glocked a young there is new information that you need in order to read the new trilogy yes you can read the new trilogy without reading anything else before but why would you do that when it is so much more interesting and so much more rewarding when you've read everything that came before it just why why would you so I can't say too much more about sharp ends it's just it's great it's short if you like this world and you like his writing style then you're gonna have a good time so don't skip it if you don't like this world and you don't like his writing style I don't know how you made it this far and you're thinking that you want to give his writing a go by just trying out sharp ends and seeing how you do with that before you read a full book don't do that because this won't make a whole heck of a lot of sense to you because you'll be like okay so this glocked guy seems like a prick why do I care you care because you ran the first long trilogy so yeah let me know in the comments down below if you've read sharp ends if you like sharp ends if you dislike sharp ends if you went against every bit of advice that I would give you and you read this first or if you read it in some other kind of random spot in the order like you read the late itself before they were hanged and then sharp ends and then back to last argument of kings I mean like what why so if you did that feel free to let me know so that I can chastise you for it um whenever you want to let me know I post videos on Saturdays other random times as well but I think Saturdays so like and subscribe join my patreon if you feel so inclined and I'll see you when I see you bye