Joe Abercrombie | |
|---|---|
 Abercrombie atSwecon in 2012 | |
| Born | Joseph Edward Abercrombie (1974-12-31)December 31, 1974 (age 51) |
| Occupation | Author |
| Nationality | English |
| Education | Lancaster Royal Grammar School |
| Alma mater | University of Manchester |
| Period | 2004–present |
| Genre | Fantasy |
| Notable works | The First Law Shattered Sea The Age of Madness |
| Website | |
| joeabercrombie | |
Joseph Edward Abercrombie (born December 31, 1974) is an English author ofepic fantasy books and a film editor. He is the author ofThe First Law andThe Age of Madness trilogies, as well as other fantasy books in the same setting, and a trilogy ofyoung adult novels. His novelHalf a King won the 2015Locus Award for best young adult book.[1][2]
Abercrombie was born inLancaster, Lancashire,England. He was educated atLancaster Royal Grammar School andManchester University, where he studiedpsychology.[3] He has a wife, Lou.[4]
Abercrombie has been an avid player of video games since his childhood. In an interview withEdge magazine, Abercrombie stated that video games have been a big influence on his writing, including early interest intext-based adventure games and historically based strategy games such asCivilization andAge of Empires. Other favourite games of Abercrombie's includeElite,Dungeon Master,Street Fighter II, andRed Dead Redemption.[5]
Abercrombie had a job making tea at a television production company before taking up a career as afreelancefilm editor. As a freelance film editor, Abercrombie found himself with more free time than previously. With this time, he reconsidered a story plot he conceived while attending university.[2][3]
Abercrombie began writingThe Blade Itself in 2002, completing it in 2004. It took a year of rejection by publishing agencies before Gillian Redfearn of Gollancz accepted the book for a five-figure deal in 2005.[3][6] It was published byGollancz in 2006 and was followed in the succeeding two years by two more books in the trilogy calledBefore They Are Hanged andLast Argument of Kings.[4] In 2008, Abercrombie was a finalist for the John W. Campbell award for Best New Writer.[7] That same year Abercrombie was a contributor to the BBCWorlds of Fantasy series, alongside other contributors such asMichael Moorcock,Terry Pratchett andChina Miéville.[8]
In 2009, Abercrombie released the novelBest Served Cold. It is set in the same world as The First Law Trilogy but is a stand-alone novel. He followed withThe Heroes(2011) andRed Country (2012), both again set in the world of the First Law Trilogy. The three standalone novels were later collected into an omnibus edition under the nameThe Great Leveller.[9]
In 2011, Abercrombie signed a deal with Gollancz for four more books set in the First Law world. In 2013,HarperCollins' fantasy and children's imprints acquired the rights to three books by Abercrombie, aimed at younger readers. The three standalone but interconnected novels were released as the Viking-influencedShattered Sea trilogy.[6]
In April 2022, Tor announced that it had acquired a new trilogy from Abercrombie at auction.[10] The first book in the new series,The Devils, was released in May 2025.[11] In June 2025, it was announced thatJames Cameron's production company acquired the rights toThe Devils, and that Cameron and Abercrombie would write a script together after Cameron completed work onAvatar: Fire and Ash.[12]
Abercrombie contributed to the fourth season of theNetflix animated anthology seriesLove, Death & Robots, which was announced for release on May 15, 2025. He wrote the screenplays for two episodes: "Spider Rose", based on a story byBruce Sterling, and "Golgotha", adapted from a story byDave Hutchinson.[13][14] He also wrote the episode "Mason's Rats" from the third season, a whimsical tale about a war between a farmer and a group of intelligent rats that live in his barn.[14]
| Series | Book | Date |
|---|---|---|
| TheFirst Law trilogy | The Blade Itself | May 2006 |
| Before They Are Hanged | March 2007 | |
| Last Argument of Kings | March 2008 | |
| Standalone novels | Best Served Cold | June 2009 |
| The Heroes | January 2011 | |
| Red Country | October 2012 | |
| Age of Madness trilogy | A Little Hatred | September 2019 |
| The Trouble With Peace | September 2020 | |
| The Wisdom of Crowds | September 2021 | |
| Short story collections | Sharp Ends | April 2016 |
| The Great Change (And Other Lies) | September 2023 |
TheAge of Madness trilogy is set in the same fictional world as theFirst Law books during an industrial revolution.[15]
All short fiction is collected inSharp Ends: Stories from the World of the First Law (April 2016) andThe Great Change (And Other Lies) (September 2023).[16]
| Story | Published in | Notes[17][18] |
|---|---|---|
| "The Fool Jobs" | Swords & Dark Magic: The New Sword and Sorcery anthology (June 2010) and inSharp Ends. | Features Curnden Craw and his dozen in events prior toThe Heroes. |
| "Yesterday, Near A Village Called Barden" | As an extra in theWaterstones hardcover version ofThe Heroes (2012)[19] and inSharp Ends. | Focuses on Bremer dan Gorst on campaign prior toThe Heroes. |
| "Freedom!" | As an extra in theWaterstones hardcover version ofRed Country (2013)[19] and inSharp Ends. | Focuses on the liberation of the town of Averstock by the Company of the Gracious Hand. |
| "Skipping Town" | Legends: Stories in Honour of David Gemmell anthology (November 2013) and inSharp Ends. | Features the couple pairing of Shevedieh (Shev) and Javre, Lioness of Hoskopp. |
| "Some Desperado" | Dangerous Women anthology (December 2013) and inSharp Ends. | Features Shy South on the run during her outlaw days beforeRed Country. |
| "Tough Times All Over" | Rogues anthology (June 2014) and inSharp Ends. | Follows courier Carcolf and the circuitous route one of her packages takes through the city of Sipani. It also features Shev and Javre. |
| "Small Kindnesses" | Unbound: Tales by Masters of Fantasy anthology (December 2015) and inSharp Ends. | Features Shev. |
| "Two's Company" | Online onTor.com (January 2016)[20] and inSharp Ends. | Features Shev and Javre, a "female Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser style thief and warrior odd couple." |
| "A Beautiful Bastard" | Original toSharp Ends. | Features Sand dan Glokta. |
| "Hell" | Original toSharp Ends. | Shows the fall of Dagoska through the eyes of a young acolyte. |
| "Wrong Place, Wrong Time" | Original toSharp Ends. | Features Monzcarro Murcatto. |
| "Three's a Crowd" | Original toSharp Ends. | Features Horald the Finger and Shevedieh. |
| "Made a Monster" | Original toSharp Ends. | Features the chieftain Bethod. |
| "The Thread" | As an extra in theWaterstones hardcover version ofA Little Hatred and inThe Great Change (And Other Lies). | Follows a thread of fabric from raw material to finished product, and the lives whose hands it passes through. |
| "The Stone" | As an extra in theWaterstones hardcover version ofThe Trouble With Peace and inThe Great Change (And Other Lies). | Follows a diamond from discovery to finished product, and the lives whose hands it passes through. |
| "The Point" | As an extra in theWaterstones hardcover version ofThe Wisdom Of Crowds and inThe Great Change (And Other Lies). | Follows an ingot of iron from discovery to finished product, and the lives whose hands it passes through. |
| "The Great Change" | Original toThe Great Change (And Other Lies). | Follows the creation and evolution of the Great Change. |
"Tough Times All Over" won aLocus Award, and "The Fool Jobs" and "Some Desperado" received nominations.[21]
| # | Book | Date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Half a King | July 2014 |
| 2 | Half the World | February 2015 |
| 3 | Half a War | July 2015 |
| # | Book | Date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Devils | May 2025 |
