Thoughts yes, a direct answer, mmmmnot really sigh.
That is, after reading ASoIaF I kept bringing it up with some my friends and, since this was literally the first fantasy book I had read, they were falling over themselves to recommend other authors.


In this context, I began reading Abercrombie’s The Heroes – so I can at least attest he’s an able author, I certainly wouldn’t qualify buying one of his books as a waste of money under no circumstances.

On the other hand, I couldn’t finish the book. For no fault of its own I might add.
I also abandoned The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch while having gone through a third of the book or so. Again, for no fault of its own.

Both The Heroes and The Lies of Locke Lamora are very, very well written, the plot is masterfully weaved, the personages are vivid and the colour and gritty realistic portrayal of warfare characteristic for this new type of fantasy, introduced in the past decade or so, is there. However smart though, they’re pure adventure books. They lack the in-depth world-building which ASoIaF offers; in Martin’s books you continuously gather details, hints and subplots which allow you to guess the demographics, the economical details, the social interactions, the military potential, the technology available – you discover the world thought of by Martin as a modern day historian would by delving into a chronicle.

Abercrombie and Lynch... how should I put... they build up a world for their characters, while Martin tends to build up characters to populate his world. In the beginning of their books, this difference is merely a nuance, a few chapters in it becomes too prominent to ignore.

Hope this gives you an idea as to where Abercrombie goes with his prose.