Is The Devils Clean? Profanity and Content Guide for the Audiobook

I picked this up the week it dropped, and I'll be honest with you: Joe Abercrombie does not write books that apologize for themselves. The Devils is a full-throttle grimdark fantasy, and the content profile reflects exactly that. Over 25 hours of runtime you're looking at 1,070 tagged segments across every major category, and the violence alone accounts for nearly 48 minutes of filtered material, including a severe scene in Chapter 51 that runs three and a half minutes straight without a breath. The profanity is relentless rather than shocking, woven into the fabric of how these characters talk, which means even with filters running you'll still feel the grit of the world. The slur count is worth flagging separately: 28 of the 30 segments land at the severe end, so if that category matters to your household, turn that filter all the way up and don't second-guess it. Chapter 69 is the single busiest chapter in the book at 47 segments, and the sexual content clusters into scenes rather than scattered moments, which means filters will pull out chunks of several minutes at a time. You'll lose about an hour and 43 minutes total if you run everything, which is real time on a 25-hour listen. This is the original, cleaned up, and Abercrombie's voice and story survive the filters intact because the bones of the writing are that strong. My honest recommendation: this one is for adult fantasy fans who want the full Abercrombie experience with the edges softened. Run profanity, slurs, and sexual content filters at minimum. If you're sensitive to extended battle violence, add violence too.