Joe Abercrombie stripped the fantasy genre down to its bones and added a twist of real-world grit. His writing is sharp, darkly funny, and sometimes downright ruthless, much like his characters. I’ve devoured The First Law and The Age of Madness, and, let me tell you, I’ve highlighted so many quotes that my books practically glow in the dark. But let’s not get carried away here; I’ve picked 20 of the most memorable ones that offer a perfect glimpse into Abercrombie’s dark worlds. Enjoy!
1. “Life is a series of things we would rather not do.”
― Last Argument of Kings
2. “Some people can never forgive being forgiven.”
― The Wisdom of Crowds
3. “You should laugh every moment you live, for you’ll find it decidedly difficult afterwards.”
― Best Served Cold
4. “When you tell a lie, you have to sound like you believe it. Goes double for the ones you tell yourself.”
― A Little Hatred
5. “You were a hero around these parts. That’s what they call you when you kill so many people the word murderer falls short.”
― Best Served Cold
6. “When you’re in hell, only a devil can point the way out.”
― Half a King
7. “You make yourself too hard, you make yourself brittle too. Crack once, crack all to pieces.”
― Best Served Cold
8. “All you can do is take each day as it comes. Try and do the best you can with what you’re given. You won’t always do the right thing, but you can try. And you can try to do the right thing next time. That, and stay alive.”
― The Heroes
9. “It is easy to forget how much you have, when your eyes are always fixed on what you have not.”
― The Heroes
10. “Every man has his excuses, and the more vile the man becomes, the more touching the story has to be.”
― The Blade Itself
11. “I have learned all kinds of things from my many mistakes. The one thing I never learn is to stop making them.”
― Last Argument of Kings
12. “There was no such thing as luck. Luck was a word idiots used to explain the consequences of their own rashness, and selfishness, and stupidity. More often than not bad luck meant bad plans.”
― Before They Are Hanged
13. “Luck is a woman. She’s drawn to those that least deserve her.”
― Last Argument of Kings
14. “Loyalty’s a dangerous foundation. Tends to wash away in a storm. Self-interest stands in any weather.”
― The Heroes
15. “Strange, how the best moments of our lives we scarcely notice except in looking back.”
― Red Country
16. “A man who doesn’t want opinions should keep his own mouth shut.”
― Before They Are Hanged
17. “The memories of our glories fade, and rot away into half-arsed anecdotes, thin and unconvincing as some other bastard’s lies. The failures, the disappointments, the regrets, they stay raw as the moments they happened.”
― Best Served Cold
18. “Fighting every fight you’re offered doesn’t make you a big man, it makes you a fool.”
― A Little Hatred
19. “The trouble with running is wherever you run to, there you are.”
― Red Country
20. “There’s no disappointment like getting what you’ve always wanted.”
― Half the World
Love Abercrombie’s wit as much as I do? Share your favorite quotes and tag The Rockle on social media – we’re everywhere! And if you’re after more fantasy book quotes, check out our other collections:
📖 10 Iconic Pathrick Rothfuss Quotes
⚔️ Funny Quotes From Fantasy Books
📜 20 Powerful Mark Lawrence Quotes
🌌 Neil Gaiman’s Memorable Insights
🕰️ The Wheel of Time in 20 Quotes