Linda Nagata: the blog at Hahví.net

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Scoundrel Lit

November 24th, 2012

I just finished reading my first Joe Abercrombie novel, Best Served Cold, including an interview at the end of the book in which the author is asked about the genre of “scoundrel lit”:

“I tend to think of it as ‘unheroic fantasy,’ but certainly there seems to be a real current within epic fantasy lately toward darker, grittier, more morally ambiguous, more character-centered writing.”

Suddenly I have a subgenre in which to place the Puzzle Land books–The Dread Hammer and Hepen the Watcher–with their murderous protagonist, Smoke.

I do have to admit that Smoke is not entirely bereft of qualms and affections. Still, “scoundrel lit” is a pretty good description.

Posted on: Saturday, November 24th, 2012 at 10:35 pm
Categories: My Books.
Tags: , ,

2 Responses to “Scoundrel Lit”

  1. Paul (@princejvstin) Says:
    November 25th, 2012 at 3:04 am

    I’m pleased Fred Kiesche and I were able to steer you right in picking an Abercrombie novel to try.

  2. Linda Says:
    November 25th, 2012 at 7:06 am

    Indeed, and thank you! I thought it was really well done. My only quibble was that it was so long! 900+ pages according to Amazon. I’m a slow reader, so if I’d known that at the start I probably would have been scared off–so it’s a good thing I didn’t. 🙂