Fantasy Hardships

Joe Abercrombie's recently begun YA series.

There really isn't much to say about this. It's a by the numbers YA fantasy novel and holds little of the grimness of Abercrombie's First Law series (even though I've seen claims to the contrary).

One thing that did stood out to me was the way the protagonist grew into his new personality. Often, such a shift takes place suddenly, which makes it seem odd. Here, however, the transition is a smooth one. The slow turning of a dial rather than a switch being flipped.

Final verdict:

Solid.  If you like fantasy of a young person overcoming hardships and becoming a better person than before, than this is the thing for you. The only thing you might get hung up on is the world building which is a bit marginal in my opinion. But considering how much I myself read, I doubt this will matter to most.