You have finished the last page of The First Law, and now comes that peculiar ache—the one that settles in when beloved scoundrels must be left behind. Fear not, dear reader, for I shall be your guide through shadowed lands where heroes are flawed, mercy is scarce, and the darkness holds treasures most glittering.
These thirteen books understand what you have come to love: that the world is rarely kind, that villains may win, and that the most fascinating souls are often the most morally complicated. Come, let us venture forth.
The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
In the city of Camorr, where canals glitter like stolen jewels and every shadow conceals a knife, there lives a most remarkable thief. Locke Lamora is his name, and lying is his art—practiced with the dedication of a master painter and the conscience of a particularly charming snake.
This tale of the Gentleman Bastards weaves brotherhood and betrayal into a tapestry so cunningly constructed that one cannot help but gasp at its reversals. Lynch writes with wit as sharp as any blade his characters carry, and the loyalty between thieves burns brighter than any honest man’s oath. George R.R. Martin himself has praised this cunning work, and so must you give it your attention.
The Black Company by Glen Cook
Before grimdark had a name, Glen Cook gave it a heartbeat. Here is a tale of mercenaries—not the noble sort who rescue maidens, but the weathered, world-weary kind who fight for whoever pays and try not to think too hard about it.
The Company serves the Lady, who may well be evil incarnate, and their chronicler Croaker writes their deeds without heroic flourish. This is military fantasy stripped of romance, yet somehow, impossibly, it finds warmth in camaraderie and dark humor. From this wellspring flowed Erikson’s Malazan and so many others. The grandfather of grimdark deserves your reverence.
Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence
What if the hero of your story were a monster? Jorg Ancrath is fourteen years old, leads a band of murderous outlaws, and has already committed acts that would make devils blanch. Yet Lawrence performs a sorcery most peculiar: he makes you follow this terrible boy through a broken, post-apocalyptic Europe, and somehow—impossibly—you begin to understand him.
The Broken Empire series blends medieval fantasy with the ruins of our own world, and Jorg’s voice, sharp and unapologetic, cuts through every page. This is not comfortable reading. It is, however, unforgettable.
The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang
Here is a story that begins in a military academy and descends into the very mouth of war’s horror. Rin is an orphan who fights her way into the most elite school in the Empire, only to discover she possesses a power drawn from ancient, terrible gods.
Kuang draws upon the real history of China’s twentieth century—the Opium Wars, the devastation of the Second Sino-Japanese War—and does not flinch. Unlike Abercrombie’s sardonic wit, this tale trades humor for fury. It is grimdark that matters deeply, that asks what we become when survival demands monstrous choices.
The Blacktongue Thief by Christopher Buehlman
Kinch Na Shannack owes the Thieves’ Guild a fortune for his education in lock-picking, knife-fighting, and several useful magics. Lying in wait to rob travelers, he chooses most unwisely: a warrior-woman handmaiden of the Death Goddess, on a quest he cannot escape.
Buehlman brings the polish of a seasoned comedian to his prose—Kinch’s narrative voice crackles with dark humor that Abercrombie fans shall recognize as kin. Giant battle ravens, goblin wars, and murderous forests await. Grimdark Magazine declared it an instant classic, and they spoke true.
Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb
FitzChivalry Farseer is a royal bastard, trained in the shadows to become his grandfather’s most secret weapon. But Fitz is no mere instrument of death—he is achingly human, prone to terrible choices and blessed with a wolf-bond that makes his isolation all the more poignant.
Hobb writes slowly, yes, building character with the patience of a sculptor. This is grimdark of the soul rather than the sword, where the wounds that matter most are invisible. If you loved Glokta’s inner torment, Fitz’s journey through loneliness and duty shall find a home in your heart.
A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin
One cannot speak of morally complex fantasy without kneeling before this iron throne. Martin changed everything—proving that fantasy could be ruthless, that beloved characters could die, and that politics might cut deeper than swords.
The great houses of Westeros scheme and betray while winter approaches from the north, and Martin weaves their fates with a historian’s patience. Not purely grimdark, perhaps, for hope flickers in unexpected places, but the realism of its violence and the depth of its intrigue made Abercrombie’s own work possible.
Priest of Bones by Peter McLean
Tomas Piety returns from war to find his crime empire stolen, his people scattered, and his city changed. He is an army priest, a gang leader, and a man of surprisingly firm principles—at least when it comes to which sins he will not tolerate.
Picture The Godfather dressed in fantasy garb, and you approach the truth of this tale. McLean writes trauma and its aftermath with devastating clarity, and Tomas’s voice—calm, pragmatic, quietly menacing—recalls Croaker’s chronicles. Grimdark gangster fiction of the highest order.
Low Town by Daniel Polansky
The Warden was once a soldier, then a secret agent, and now he is simply a drug dealer surviving in the worst corner of a rotting city. When children begin to die in his territory, old instincts awaken.
Polansky blends fantasy with noir in the tradition of Raymond Chandler—his prose is hard-bitten, his protagonist morally tarnished, and his mysteries twist like alley cats in a fight. If you crave Abercrombie’s cynicism distilled into a detective’s tale, here is your poison.
Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames
Not all grimdark must be grim! Here is a tale of aged mercenaries dragging themselves off the couch for one last impossible quest—their glory days behind them, their joints aching, their bellies perhaps a touch expanded.
Eames treats adventuring parties like rock bands, complete with tours, groupies, and booking agents. The humor sparkles, but beneath the jokes lies genuine heart: fathers protecting daughters, old friends keeping promises. Think Abercrombie’s humor amplified, with monsters and mayhem aplenty.
Malice by John Gwynne
In the Banished Lands, a prophecy tells of God-War between angels and demons, to be fought through human champions. Young Corban, training to be a warrior, finds himself pulled toward a destiny he never sought.
Gwynne writes epic fantasy in the classic mold—sprawling battles, giant warriors riding bears into combat, direwolf-like companions—but with modern darkness threaded through. Winner of the David Gemmell award, this series bridges old heroism with new brutality.
The Court of Broken Knives by Anna Smith Spark
They call her the Queen of Grimdark, and she has earned her crown. Across a desert toward a legendary city marches a company of mercenaries, among them a beautiful, terrifying young man named Marith whose secrets could end empires.
Smith Spark writes with poetic density—her prose is beautiful and bloody and strange, unlike anyone else in the genre. This is grimdark as literature, demanding more of readers and rewarding them with one of fantasy’s most complex protagonists.
Empire of Silence by Christopher Ruocchio
Hadrian Marlowe will become known as the Sun Eater, destroyer of worlds. But first he is a young nobleman fleeing his father’s plans, lost among the stars, seeking purpose in a galaxy-spanning empire.
Ruocchio blends space opera with fantasy sensibilities—palatine houses, gladiatorial combat, alien mysteries—and writes with the confidence of classic masters. Dune and Name of the Wind are touchstones here, but the dark grandeur belongs entirely to the Sun Eater.
Your Next Dark Adventure Awaits
Each of these thirteen books offers something precious: worlds where shadows have weight, characters whose flaws make them real, and stories that trust readers to handle uncomfortable truths. Joe Abercrombie opened a door for you. These authors invite you further in.
Choose your poison, dear reader. The darkness awaits.
