Ratings66
Average rating3.8
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY TIME AND THE WASHINGTON POST • LOCUS AWARD WINNER “The Shattered Seas trilogy has worked its way into a very exclusive group of my favorite fantasy novels of all time.”—James Dashner, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Maze Runner “A fast-paced tale of betrayal and revenge that grabbed me from page 1 and refused to let go.”—George R. R. Martin “I swore an oath to avenge the death of my father. I may be half a man, but I swore a whole oath.” Prince Yarvi has vowed to regain a throne he never wanted. But first he must survive cruelty, chains, and the bitter waters of the Shattered Sea. And he must do it all with only one good hand. The deceived will become the deceiver. Born a weakling in the eyes of his father, Yarvi is alone in a world where a strong arm and a cold heart rule. He cannot grip a shield or swing an axe, so he must sharpen his mind to a deadly edge. The betrayed will become the betrayer. Gathering a strange fellowship of the outcast and the lost, he finds they can do more to help him become the man he needs to be than any court of nobles could. Will the usurped become the usurper? But even with loyal friends at his side, Yarvi finds that his path may end as it began—in twists, and traps, and tragedy. BONUS: This edition includes an excerpt from Joe Abercrombie’s Half the World. “Tremendously entertaining . . . lightning-fast and filled with a wonderful collection of rogues, villains and two-faced bastards . . . From the first chapter [Joe Abercrombie] wastes no time as the reader is swept up in a gripping tale of betrayal and revenge.”—SciFi Now “Once this plot has its teeth in you, it will not let go. . . . Abercrombie’s masterful storytelling means that everything, from the characters that you come to love and despise, to the sprawling world that is explored, is enthralling.”—Fantasy Book Review “Abercrombie’s Shattered Sea is a fantastic yet believable backdrop to Yarvi’s struggle, a vivid imaginary land.”—The Seattle Times “Intriguing characters . . . nonstop action.”—Chicago Tribune “Half a King is my favorite book by Joe Abercrombie so far, and that’s saying something.”—Patrick Rothfuss “As in all Abercrombie’s books, friends turn out to be enemies, enemies turn out to be friends; the line between good and evil is murky indeed; and nothing goes quite as we expect. With eye-popping plot twists and rollicking good action, Half a King is definitely a full adventure.”—Rick Riordan “Enthralling! An up-all-night read.”—Robin Hobb “Polished and sharp, perhaps his most technically proficient novel yet . . . I dare you to read the first chapter and try not to turn the next page.”—Brent Weeks “Half a King can be summed up in a single word: masterpiece. It’s a coming-of-age story. It’s a Viking saga. It’s a revenge tale and family drama and the return of the prodigal son. But most of all, it’s this: a short time alongside people as weak and blundering as we are and, in the midst of it all, as heroic. Far too short a time, as it turns out. What a wonderful book.”—Myke Cole “Half a King is full of all the adventure I’ve come to expect from Abercrombie and a tenderness I never knew he had.”—Sam Sykes
Featured Series
3 primary booksShattered Sea is a 3-book series with 3 primary works first released in 2014 with contributions by Joe Abercrombie.
Reviews with the most likes.
Audiobook was amazing. The story itself had less to no fanatsy elements and was more of a character development story for the prince. The ending was nicely done with the revelations.
It's been a while since I last listened to an audio book on physical media. I started out listening to books-on-tape, but lately it's all been audio downloads. Which is why I had to scramble to find a CD player for this book. I wound up listening to most of it my car.
A couple of weeks before I received the audio book I met author Joe Abercrombie at Jean Cocteau Theater in Santa Fe, NM, where he was reading and signing with Cherie Priest, at an event hosted by George R.R. Martin. He's an amusing speaker, embracing his grimdarkness with a wink and a smile. He read a chapter from “Half a King”, providing a nice preview for the recorded book.
The audio book is narrated by John Keating, speaking with a wide variety of voices and accents, all of them sounding very British, but well-suited to Abercrombie's tale.
Young Yarvi, second son of the king, has been groomed for the ministry because he has a withered hand. He can't fight with sword and shield, but he's learned all his other lessons well, even though he isn't aware of his skills at the story's beginning. When his father and brother are ambushed and killed, he must take the throne. He rashly swears an oath to avenge his family and embarks on a journey of betrayal, suffering, and self-discovery. He survives by accepting his fate and learning from it.
In a sense, this is a coming-of-age novel, set in a harsh and occasionally bloody landscape. That's to be expected from Abercrombie, whose other books follow squarely in the grim footsteps of Martin's “Song of Ice and Fire” saga, but “Half a King” steers clear of sex and excessive violence, offering a more thoughtful narrative that focuses on the people Yarvi meets, how he learns from them, and learns about himself. I found this aspect of the book compelling, all the way through to the end.
There are more books to come in this world. Yarvi's story has just begun. I think it will be worth the effort to keep reading.
This audio book has 8 compact discs, 9.25 hours of audio, and tracks every 3 minutes for easy bookmarking.
Abercrombie is an author I've been meaning to read for a while. I picked up this series for this reason, and I'm glad I started with Shattered Sea.
Half a king is an interesting book. The story unfolds rather quickly, the character's development is fun to see, and the the plot is enjoyable. The only thing that struck to me as odd was the ending. Nothing wrong with it. Actually, it was a perfectly good ending, so I don't know how this can be the first of a trilogy. However, I'm going to continue the series just to see where it goes.
Even though I can't say this is my favorite book, I can definitely say it made me want to read Abercrombie's adult books. They seem promising!