Europe stares into the abyss.
Plague and famine stalk the land, monsters lurk in every shadow and greedy princes care for nothing but their own ambitions. Only one thing is certain: the elves will come again, and they will eat everyone.
Sometimes, only the darkest paths lead towards the light. Paths on which the righteous will not dare to tread . . .
And so, buried beneath the sacred splendour of the Celestial Palace, is the secret Chapel of the Holy Expediency. For its congregation of convicted monsters there are no sins that have not been committed, no lines that will not be crossed, and no mission that cannot be turned into a disastrous bloodbath.
Now the hapless Brother Diaz must somehow bind the worst of the worst to a higher cause: to put a thief on the throne of Troy, and unite the sundered church against the coming apocalypse.
When you’re headed through hell, you need the devils on your side.
Format: Paperback
Pages: 576
Imprint: Gollancz UK
Publication date: 13/05/2025
Series: The Devils v1
The Devils
By Joe Abercrombie
Review by Josh
In an alternative history of Earth, the Catholic Church has split between the powers of Her Holiness, the Pope in the Vatican, and the ruler of Troy. With the ever-present threat of a future Elven invasion, the Pope wishes to see the church brought back together. And so a task force is prepared, led by the woefully unprepared Brother Diaz and sent to place the once-lost princess back on the throne of Troy. Such a dangerous mission needs some dedicated muscle - in come the titular 'Devils', a motley band of miscreants including a jack-of-all-trades adventurer, an aristocratic vampire, a sometimes invisible elf, a tortured necromancer, a forgetful werewolf and a man who can't die.
Full of darkness but with a buoyant humour to match, The Devils is a deeply engrossing fantasy tale with plenty of twists and turns to keep you engaged. For fans of John Gwynne, Christopher Buehlman, and The Fireborne Blade.
