The much anticipated conclusion to The Age of Madness trilogy has finally arrived and it is time to figure out how the mess created in the first two books sorts itself out. Since this is a Joe Abercrombie book, it doesn't really matter who the winners and losers are because there is little difference between the two. The Great Change is upon the Union and those who have brought it forth believe that to change the world they must first burn it down. The North isn't faring much better as Rikke struggles to keep the throne she so deftly acquired through her use of the Long Eye. So will your favorite characters make it to the end of the trilogy alive? If they do, will they wish they were dead?

This book is heavy on politics and societal change as everyone vies for a place of power in the new world order, but the bodies still manage to pile up in the process. It is easy to get a case of whiplash from turning your head to see who is in power from one minute to the next, which makes it challenging to anticipate how it is all going to end. Whether or not this all leads to a satisfying conclusion for the trilogy will come down down to how much you care about the characters. If your care a lot about them then you will be in for a wild ride, but if you care little for the characters and are here for the bigger story then you will likely be bored. I, for one, prefer the characters from the original series, but I care just enough about this new batch to feel like this book was time well spent. Once again, it was the North that provided the more interesting storyline for me by far, as Rikke and her cohorts turned out to be far more entertaining than the personalities battling it out in the Union. Although I do have to acknowledge the reveal towards the end of the Union storyline was definitely intriguing.

Steven Pacey is his usual awesome self as the narrator of the audiobook and this is a series that is definitely worth listening to for his performance alone.