I’m really not sure why there is such a sharp divide in opinion (among some) between Circe and Song of Achilles. After reading both, I think both are excellent and even unintentionally cohesive — I sensed so many similarities between Circe and Patroclus. Ultimately, I think Song of Achilles is the better story, but Circe has the better characters. It’s close, and ultimately a matter of preference. Madeline Miller is an incredibly skilled author, and I would not be surprised in the least if her books continue to be in print for decades to come.

Right… at the end of Book 3 I’m still not really sure how I feel about The First Law. On one hand, I breezed through all three books and more or less enjoyed myself. On the other hand, I was bored almost 50% of the time.

Joe is a fun writer. His words can genuinely make me laugh. But his worldbuilding is skimpy. His taste is questionable. I never got sick of Glokta clicking his spine and his one-sided beef with the inventor of stairs. I definitely got sick of the way other characters and events seemed to run together in a one-dimensional mush. As a reader, there was a constant tension for me reconciling the famed brutality of the series with silly, unrealistic story movements.

For a better trilogy, I think these three novels could have been condensed into the first two books, with Book 3 concluding our threads in a different way. I realize that Joe’s other books continue the story, but I don’t think I want to continue. I’m tuckered. I’m left having read a trilogy I generally enjoyed, but which sorely lacked a meaningful story kernel or thesis.