Perfect, perfect, perfect, except that it peaked possibly too soon, and while the remaining 100 pages were great I felt as though the book could have stopped at any point therein and shifted the remainder of the content to the next book.

I love the new characters, particularly Rikke (as one is meant to) and Isern, and the changes to the world since the prior books. This story's events take place roughly 30 years after the end of [b:Last Argument of Kings|944076|Last Argument of Kings (The First Law, #3)|Joe Abercrombie|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1302062699l/944076._SY75_.jpg|929012], and perhaps 20 years after the intervening novels. Among other changes, the land of The Union has been changed by the advent and proliferation of industry, with a distinct lack of social or environmental safeguards against the inevitable effects. The cluelessness and denial of the upper classes towards the impact of all of this on the working classes creates the necessary background for violent uprest, which is what you came here to see. Meanwhile, war continues in the North as it has for generations, with a new set of upstart warriors striving for glory. The trilogy's events are forecast by a premonitionary vision in the opening chapters, in which a wolf eats a sun, and a lion eats the wolf, and a lamb eats the lion, and an owl eats the lamb. The first couple of agents represented by these icons are immediately obvious. I had a prediction about the next which was cast into doubt by the end of the book, and the final players in the sequence remain undisclosed. I can hardly wait for the sequels.

I have to say, there was one revelation late in the book that completely gobsmacked me, although if I were a more thoughtful reader I might have predicted it. I tend to ride along with the story, rather than stop and try and predict what is going to happen next. With Abercrombie, this leaves me frequently pleasantly suprised.

I also have to say, if something terrible happens to Rikke, I am going to be pissed. I accept as given, though, that something terrible is most likely going to happen to her, because this is an Abercrombie series. I can handle something emotionally terrible, but please don't maim her or rape her. I could not take that.

I am one who dismisses the idea that [b:Best Served Cold|2315892|Best Served Cold|Joe Abercrombie|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347732723l/2315892._SY75_.jpg|2322406], [b:The Heroes|9300768|The Heroes (First Law World, #5)|Joe Abercrombie|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1375671200l/9300768._SY75_.jpg|12879765], and [b:Red Country|13521459|Red Country (First Law World, #6)|Joe Abercrombie|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1333663008l/13521459._SY75_.jpg|19082135] are standalone novels, because they are integral to the story of the First Law world that began in Abercrombie's initial trilogy. Still, A Little Hatred is written in such a way that you can thoroughly enjoy it without having read any of the prior books or only the first trilogy, so have at it. But, having read everything else adds extra enjoyment, so my highest recommendation is to do yourself the favor of reading the rest first, but also to give yourself time in between each book. Over time I have developed a Theory of Abercrombie, which is that his books are best enjoyed when spaced apart, at the risk of starting to feel the "grimdark schtick" that can come on when you absorb too much of this stuff in a short time.