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    King of Thorns
    King of Thorns
    King of Thorns
    Audiobook13 hours

    King of Thorns

    Written by Mark Lawrence

    Narrated by James Clamp

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    The follow-up to Mark Lawrence's thrilling debut novel Prince of Thorns, King of Thorns continues the tale of antihero Jorg Ancrath. After wresting back control of his kingdom from those who murdered his family, Jorg sees the land erupt with hundreds of battles fought by lords and petty kings. More daunting still, he faces an enemy many times his own strength. Jorg may not be able to win this battle in a fair fight, but he wields a rage and cunning that just might even the odds.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateAug 7, 2012
    ISBN9781464048289
    King of Thorns
    Author

    Mark Lawrence

    Mark Lawrence is married with four children, one of whom is severely disabled. His day job is as a research scientist focused on various rather intractable problems in the field of artificial intelligence. Between work and caring for his disabled child, Mark spends his time writing, playing computer games, tending an allotment, brewing beer, and avoiding DIY.

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    Reviews for King of Thorns

    4/5

    521 ratings25 reviews

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    • 3/5
      I was a little disappointed as I thought it did not live up to book one for me (which I thoroughly enjoyed). A little ponderous for my taste.
    • 3/5
      I think the writing in this series is fantastic, but the brutality is really wearing. It took me a long time to finish this book. It didn't hold my interest like the first. And I found the flashbacks both distracting and confusing at times. It was mostly Jorg running around and killing people. I did enjoy getting to know Katherine a little better, and Miana looks like she's going to be interesting. But the continuous violence just bored me after awhile. And many episodes where I was just asking, why are we having to sit through this? But I am still intrigued by the world and will eventually read the third installment. Just not soon.
    • 4/5
      Jorg is driven ~~ by anger, by revenge, by pure stubbornness. He has molded his life to this cause and refuses to let the sorcery’s kingmakers force his hand. He is willing to pay the price for his ambition….,
    • 4/5
      This is the second book in The Broken Empire series, and continues the story of Jorg. It is now four years later than the first book, and finds Jorg getting married. On his actual wedding day, he is also under attack from the Prince of Arrow. Most of the book covers events that happened four years prior, where the first book left off. These events not only build a more defined character in Jorg, but many events that lead up to the current time.

      I enjoyed reading this book a bit more than the first one, I think because things were explained in additional detail. Events take place in a post-apocalyptic world, with portions of what I consider our technological age (and a bit further than us) that still exist and can be used. Lawrence has added in what I consider to be mutations, in that "magic" can be used. Otherwise, it is a return to the medieval times as far as armor and weapons. Jorg is a character I have enjoyed learning of, through the past events of his life that made him the ruthless and bloody leader he is. Every page turn I wonder what evil is Jorg going to come across, or use, to accomplish what he sets out to do. Looking forward to the next installment in the series!
    • 5/5
      Jorg Ancrath has taken his uncle's throne at the age of fourteen and is aiming for the emperor's throne. His brothers, well, most of them, are still with him. But the handsome and good Prince of Arrow also wants the emperor's crown and the odds are definitely with him. Okay, I devoured this book, wanting to see what happens next to Jorg and his somewhat diminished gang. It's a totally enthralling story and world. I still don't know what to make of Jorg; he has inspired passionate debates about his role in this book at my house: is he a hero (maybe), an antihero (maybe), a villain (maybe).Jorg is mellowing a little as he matures but that doesn't say much. He's carrying the ghosts of the thousands of people he's killed, and that does have an impact on a man. I really like Miana; she reminds me of Lyanna Mormont from GOT. It's another great story in a unique world, and I can't wait to see what happens next.
    • 5/5
      Mr. Lawrence really knows how to keep me glued to a book and I appreciate that very much. Oh how I love Jorg Ancrath, this boy, I mean man now, is the darkest, grittiest, foulest guy I have probably ever loved in a book.I loved how we got to know more about what happened after Jorg became King and the years weren’t just skipped over to make a sequel . We got a combination of past and present and I enjoyed that.I adore the relationship between Jorg and Gog, I enjoyed seeing another side of Jorg that wasn’t just, death death death, sure he has ulterior motives to helping Gog but you could read the care he had for him. He seems to be a bit more aware of people around him and how they effect him and make him feel and it’s nice seeing him react to it.He is still quick to kill, but he thinks them through a little more now (well some of them)Also that twist with the Arrow brothers, you would think with all the fantasy I have read in my life I would have seen that coming but nope, I didn’t, I failed to see that coming. And little Miana, this girl, this girl, yes I love her, she isn’t a dainty girl who needs protection, she is pretty dark and foul herself and I love that.Also I will rage if anything happens to Makin I love him dearly.
    • 4/5
      As with the previous installment, this book is full of reprehensible actions, violence, blood, and strange phenomenon. Jorg, now King, recounts how he settled into life as a monarchy, the years leading to the current place we find him, battling invaders of his stolen land. Lawrence once again employees the first-person narrative, divided between the present and the past. It could be confusing, but Lawrence uses a deft hand in weaving the narrative, building the past and present into one final conflict. And giving the reader a few twists and turns and at least one “Oh, didn’t see that coming” moment. It still has the trademark GrimDark quality – people die - badly, violently, painfully. Jorg is still selfish, still cruel, still using people for his own ends. And yet, you find yourself hoping he succeeds. As this is a post-apocalyptic future of our own work, I often wondered how Lawrence would explain the magic that clearly exists. In this book, he does, a little, and in a way that makes sense to me. It’s almost believable. Worth reading if you enjoy dark and violent stories with intriguing plots.
    • 5/5
      This book is, in almost every way, better than the first. The world-building and how magic can exist when these books take place in a post-apocalyptic future is more thoroughly explained. Jorg's personality and decisions are called into question. Were they really his own? Or was he guided by others for most of his life? Is he really the reprehensible man we all know because of who he is, or because he was molded that way? Ultimately we don't know. It's up to the reader to believe how much of Jorg is "nature vs. nurture" if you will.

      The writing was beautiful, the small glimpses into the history of the world are great, and Jorg is as always an entertaining badass who takes no shit from anyone, only now he actually has grown up a bit. Enough to know regret, and enough to understand loss and remorse. Even if they're only small doses compared to a well-adjusted human being, they are definitely a sign of growth and change.

      Katherine appears in the story mostly through first-person diary entries, which are actually quite good. I found myself liking her character quite a lot.

      Other than that, don't know what to say. Read my review of the first book. It's mostly more of the same, while adding to Jorg and Katherine's respective depth as characters.

      And I said it when I read the first book and I'll say it again. These remind me so much of The Book of the New Sun tetralogy but far more entertaining and accessible. If you tried reading those and like them in theory but have had trouble getting into them, I would highly recommend this series.
    • 5/5
      The second book of Broken Empire is really awesome. I enjoyed every moment of this book.Prince of Thorn is good but this sequel is brilliant.you walk by Jorg, You realize with him and know what he would do after.Every page of this book is just perfect.“We’re built of contradictions, all of us. It’s those opposing forces that give us strength, like an arch, each block pressing the next. Give me a man whose parts are all aligned in agreement and I’ll show you madness. We walk a narrow path, insanity to each side. A man without contradictions to balance him will soon veer off.”
    • 4/5
      This is a continuation of Prince Jorg's story as he is now sitting on the throne of his uncle who killed Jorg's mother and brother. Along with the interesting new characters picked up during the first episode, Jorg decides to try and return home and show his father he is alive and full of vengeance. He finds his father remarried and his stepmother pregnant with what is expected to be the new heir. His new aunt, Katherine, a beautiful woman scarcely older than he, is learning to enter the dreams of others like Jorg's nemesis, the dream walker named Sageous. The story of the further adventures are interspersed with flashbacks of his life and chapters from Katherine's diary which help to fill in more holes in his story. All the while, a new threat is menacing from the Prince of Arrow who arrives at the site of his new throne. How will this new king manage to hold on to his kingdom. At hand are relics from the time of the Builders who have surprising weapons that Jorg is not at all shy to use to his advantage.I am looking forward to some time to finish this trilogy.
    • 3/5
      This story still has the same effect as the first book, is the protaganist a hero or villian? He takes counsel from his darker side sometimes yet does things that are very alturistic at others. You root for him and then at times wonder if you should or not.

      The story moves in two parts through the book going back and forth between four years before a seige starts to the actual seige where Ancrath's lone castle is being attacked. They fill in the blanks for the four years throughout the book. The best part is how the author sets up difficult situations for the protaganist and comes up with novel ways of him overcoming them. It has a satisfying conclusion but we all know there will be more to come.

      I read this in an evening, it is a bit longer than the first book.
    • 4/5
      The first half of this audiobook was slow and for some reason I was having trouble following the story, so much I thought the narrator was different from first book, but it wasn’t, it was still James Clamp. Things got better in the second half and the ending was one that left me dying for next book, Emperor of Thorns.
      Although I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I did first book, I can honestly say it’s still a pretty good book (audiobook).
    • 5/5
      At first the style of this book threw me off, but after a few chapters in I grasped the different timelines and started putting pieces together. I love Jorg's character and watching him transform into a different man. It was funny to read how underneath many of his choices were reasons that were good and he didn't want to admit growing soft. I wonder how much it is the box that changed Jorg or maturity.I enjoy reading about our technology slowly being incorporated into this medieval world, it brings a refreshing originality and it is almost comical to hear Jorg's thoughts on things we know so much about.
    • 3/5
      Just when you think Jorg has a heart he goes full sociopath. There comes a point when the anti-hero is no longer the anti-hero but full blown villain (the names that should go in place of villain are much stronger). Lawrence tells a good tale and the writing is much better than the first novel. I wanted to give it a three or four, but I have such disdain against Jorg I just couldn't go there.
    • 5/5
      The pressure is on Jorg to fill his father's shoes. Unfortunately for him, his coronation was greeted with a six nation army- twenty thousand strong, coming to defeat his noble cause. But then again, Jorg didn't really go about getting a throne in the most noblest of fashions. Clearly, the odds are stack against him but Jorg never ever plays fair. The best bit about these books are the science aspects. Lawrence has a paper that says he's a science man who can do good science things so that qualifies him to speak science in his epic fantasy world.
    • 3/5
      Now 18 year old Jorg Ancrath sits uneasily on his throne in one of the 99 kingdom's of the empire. Determined to become elected the first emperor of all the kingdoms in an age, Jorg must battle the Prince of Arrows, necromancers and his own past and guilt. King of Thorns bounces between Jorg's wedding day, in which the Prince of Arrows is also laying seige to his highland castle, to events that occurred four years earlier.What I find most interesting about this series is that the main character, Jorg, is not a "good guy". In fact it can easily be argued that he is a villain. Jorg is only slightly less murderously impulsive then he was in the first book. However because he is the main point of view character it is easier to feel a certain amount of sympathy for him. Interestingly his nemesis, the Prince of Arrows is presented as being the archetypical hero, which much purer motivations for wanting the kingdoms reunited. It will be interesting to see if the third installment continues along this line.
    • 3/5
      So on the strength of the first book read the second but this constant 'backtracking' the chronological events which was new and rather surprising so kept my interest is now beginning to wane. Not tempted on the final book in the series just yet.
    • 3/5
      I prefered the first book. This one tries to have a similar style, but... the violence isn't there - and if it is, it's not "random" or excessive like it was in the first book - thereby losing most of the "shock" value that was in the first book. I liked the hardcore sociopathism of the first story - that is what made that book more than a boy's growing up in a fantasy world. This book is exactly that: a story about a boy growing up... and I didn't care in the slightest. Without the shock/violence and unexpectedness that was present in book one, this is just a lame 'boy treks through the countryside' story.That, and the flashback method of telling the story seems to be more intrusive this time - about half the book is told in flashback, and just enough is told to leave us in "suspense" until the next flashback. I prefer the suspense to come from the plot, not the writer doling out dribs and drabs of backstory.Overall, it was only a fraction as good as the first book, and if I had read this one first, I certainly wouldn't have continued with the series. I won't be reading the next one.
    • 5/5
      Just spectacular work. This one surpasses the first, and I really didn't think that was going to happen. The best fantasy series being written today in my humble opinion! The narrative is complex with two time strands, journal entries and a fascinating injection of old memories. I can't even get close to explaining it in a review and in many ways it's not even what did it for me. The prose is just brilliant. Poetic without being wordy, powerful, and susinct.
    • 5/5
      Well, this was intense. I think I have some kind of book hangover, most of you will know the feeling: you finish a great book and there’s a hole left inside of you. You want more, but there isn’t anything more to read. You’re staring at that last pages, thinking: “What the hell just happened here”.
      That’s kind of how I feel at the moment. I’ll need some time to process this book, think about it a few days, let everything settle in my mind.

      The book is split into two storylines: one in the present, 4 years after Jorg took Renar Castle and one in the past, 4 years earlier, right after Jorg became King. We also get a little insight in Katherine Ap Scorron’s thoughts as Jorg reads her diary entries, scattered across the land by the wind due to an event we can only guess at, but when reading the prologue, you know something big has/is going to happen.
      I always seem to have a little trouble with split storylines. It’s totally my fault though, I’m an impatient kind of person. If you dangle bits of information in front of me, hinting at some kind of mystery that will be solved further on in the book, I get impatient. That’s why I wanted things to move along a little bit faster somewhere around the middle of the book. I wanted to know what happened the day Jorg went to Père Lachaise. That doesn’t mean the book wasn’t fast paced, it was! I just really wanted to know what was in the box. Bad trait of mine? I guess.
      The fact that I did want to know so badly kept me reading on without pause though.

      Back to the story. So, Jorg is King now! But he hasn’t had the chance to properly warm his throne when Prince Charming comes along. Handsome, wavy golden hair, strong, kind, a knight in shining armour. Needless to say, I didn’t like him. This Prince of Arrow seems to think he’s the one to take the Emperor’s throne (destined maybe?), feed the poor and bring peace to the torn and scattered countries. Nope, if I want an Emperor, it’s going to be Jorg.
      Great right? Though Jorg would definitely make a worse Emperor than the Prince of Arrows, I still want Jorg to win. That’s how much I’ve grown to like him.
      To be fair though, Jorg seems a bit kinder in this second installment of the Broken Empire Trilogy. Although he doesn’t want to admit it, he’s changing, he cares.
      A big part of him is still consumed with hate and the echoes of the hurt that has haunted him all these years, and there are dark forces digging its claws into him, so bad little Jorgy isn’t entirely gone.

      There were a few moments that really touched me: the scene with Janey, the things that happened under Halradra and Justice, poor Justice, got some sad sighs out of me.
      I really loved the way the author kept me guessing. “Is this another mindtrick or is this real?”, “Is this Sageous again, or Chella? Or am I just being paranoid?” You knever know where the things you read are going to lead you (and Jorg), it’s an adventure for Jorg aswell as for the reader.
      It’s great to see how things unravel, or seem to unravel (you never know for sure with this book). Every moment can get a new, razorsharp edge when you turn the page, something you didn’t expect and leaves you doubting all the others things that happened.
      The writing was brilliant, but I didn’t expect anything less after reading Prince of Thorns. There’s always something more behind the things the author writes, something intelligent. The style he uses in his books is something I’ve never encountered before and I like it!
      I want more!
    • 5/5
      This was a book I received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review, so thank you to Ace books and Penguin for this most excellent reading opportunity. The cover of Emperor of Thorns proclaims, "All reigns must end..." and I have to say, the prospect of getting my hands on this third installment of The Broken Empire series and finding out what will become of Jorg Ancrath made this one of my most highly anticipated fantasy novels of 2013.I was not disappointed at all. A caveat for this review, though: this being the final book of the trilogy, the following summary and my subsequent thoughts may contain possible mild spoilers for the two books that came before. In any case, Emperor of Thorns would not serve as a good starting point for someone new to this series; best to start with book one, Prince of Thorns, in order to watch the main character grow and develop throughout the course of these books.Indeed, Jorg Ancrath is twenty now; the boy prince has become a king, the ruler of seven nations. But where there is more, Jorg will always want it. He has set his eyes on becoming the emperor, a position decided only by vote during a truce period which comes every four years, when the rulers of a hundred fragmented kingdoms of the empire convene for an event called Congression. In the hundred years of the interregnum, however, no one candidate has managed to secure a majority of the vote.But Jorg has plans to change all that. On his journeys across the broken land, he has made even more discoveries about the mysterious Builders of their past, and he will use their secrets and technology to suit his purposes. And yet, equally as ambitious and bloodthirsty as Jorg is The Dead King, watching events unfold from beyond the veil. Jorg may take care to guard his fears and weaknesses, but the Dead King and his necromancers and army of lichkin are waiting, ready to strike at Jorg where he is most vulnerable.As with the previous book King of Thorns, this one also takes us through different timelines in Jorg's life, with one thread following Jorg on his journey to Congression and the other focusing on events "Five Years Earlier." There are time-jumps aplenty, which makes rereading the first two novels a fine idea, but the author also includes a handy little refresher crash course before the prologue. Or you might be like me: whenever I came to a memory or flashback sequence in this book, I found it easy to figure out when and where in time I am using clues like which one of Jorg's companions or acquaintances are still alive! Those familiar with Jorg's character likely won't be surprised to hear you can form a rather complete history using the impressive trail of death and destruction he leaves behind, but more on that later.Let me just say now that it has been a pleasure following Jorg on his anti-hero's journey, watching him mature from a boy to a man. But Jorg has never truly been young in the first place, not really; he's seen way too much death, betrayal, cruelty and brutality for that. Yes, he is a selfish, violent, deeply disturbed and deplorable character, but above all, he's also honest and unashamed of everything he is. That and the fact the only predictable thing about him is his unpredictability made him a very interesting character to follow.Still, I suppose you could say I've never really felt connected to Jorg, because believe it or not, I actually find it very hard to relate to someone I honestly think is quite insane. And the years since the first book have in no way cooled his temper or impudence. However, in spite of it all, I still like him. I can't help but be drawn to this refreshingly original protagonist who calls himself a "broken boy" and wraps himself up in his anger to escape his past. So, can I really find it in myself to fault Jorg for going all Kill Bill Medieval-style on his enemies or anyone who even looks at him wrong? Not really, no.The thing I love best about this series, though, is that nothing is as it seems. I've mentioned before in the past that the first two books contain relatively familiar fantasy ideas, except Mark Lawrence takes them all and spins them on their head. The third book is no different at all, and pretty much every chapter past the midway point contained something that made me stop reading, shake my head and go, "Whoa." There are just so many unexpected surprises, and even the setting itself is a twist, which I remember was a huge mind-blowing moment for me when I read the first book. Emperor of Thorns explores that setting a lot more, and we're seriously treading into genre-bending territory here.And finally, WHAT AN ENDING. Needless to say, readers who have been following The Broken Empire up to this point will have no excuse to miss this. Even though Mark Lawrence wrote in his Afterthought that this will be the last book in this series, I don't find myself overly upset. I'm actually quite satisfied with how everything wrapped up. I am just grateful there is an ending, and to me, it was perfect.
    • 5/5
      In this second book of The Broken Empire series, Jorg Ancrath is now the king of Renar, the small highland kingdom once ruled by his uncle, the man who murdered Jorg's mother and brother. Like the first book, it switches between the present and four years previous. It also switches between Jorg's narrative and Katherine's journal. In the present, it is Jorg's wedding day to a woman he has never met. It is also the day he is to meet the Prince of Arrow on the battlefield. In the past, we learn what led to this day and hints at secrets so horrible, Jorg has had to have his mind stripped of memories or go mad with them.Now that Jorg has rid his head of outside influences (literally), he is developing a conscience, albeit a rudimentary one. Even he believes that the Prince would make a better, more compassionate Emperor. Still, he's Jorg and he wants what he wants and will fight for it with his new army and his remaining road brothers. Despite the fact that he is outnumbered, he has more than a few tricks up his sleeve and surrender is not an option.Jorg has to be the most likeable unlikeable anti-hero in all of fantasy. You know that Jorg is a rapist, a cold-blooded killer and you know that the Prince of Arrow is the better man. Yet, it is hard not to root for Jorg. This says a lot about author Mark Lawrence's talents as a writer. Often, the middle book in a series is really just a setup for the end. Not so here. This story is so fast-paced, so full of twists, turns, and false trails that it will make you dizzy. Some reviewers have called Lawrence one of the best writers of fantasy fiction around and, after reading this book, it is easy to see why.
    • 4/5
      The second installment from Mark Lawrence, one of my favourite debut novelists from 2011. I loved the style and technique that Mark showed in his first book Prince of Thorns, the young challenged man at odds with himself, everyone and the world. In this book it takes a different path almost. Mark mixes up the current storyline with flashbacks from four years prior, and the main protagonist Jorg has gone from a surly teenager to a man almost grown, but with these chapters from his past thrown in. It had the potential to be quite confused and jumbled, but as soon as I got into the story, it flowed well, and there was a smoothness about it that kept my interest piqued and wanting me to carry on reading. Love or hate Jorg, Mark had done a brilliant job creating such an interesting, disturbing, complex character. I can;t help but empathise with him at points when reasons told from his perspective, logic and reasoning, but then i also disagree with him too. For me, I love his 'brothers' and the supporting characters that we get glimpses of throughout. My only fault would be that not enough of these are given in the book for my liking, and I hope the third isntallment Emperor of Thorns does give more time and embellish on these snippets we are given on these characters that have such great potential. All in all, Jorg delivers again, with some fantastic storytelling, some great new ideas, battles, tactics and I am very much looking forward to seeing him and hearing from him again!
    • 5/5
      This second book in the Broken Empire series was just as fun, dark, twisted, and delectable as the first book. It starts out four years after the end of the first book. It is King Jorg's wedding day and the Prince of Arrow is on his doorstep with his very large army. The book goes back and forth between this day and to four years earlier when he and his Brothers set out to find a fire-mage who can help Gog control his abilities with fire. They end up going on a longer and more complex quest. We also get snippets of Katherine's journal. I thought they were a nice little break from the otherwise constant viewpoint of Jorg and was a great way of letting us get to know the characters of the Prince of Arrow and his brother, Egan. It made one of the twists at the end all the more obvious to happen (obvious after the fact for me; I didn't see it coming, but it made sense after it was revealed).Lawrence also reveals a lot more about the world and time period in this book. In the first book, the author hinted at when and where this series takes place, though many readers probably picked up on those clues. But there's no hinting in this book. Other reviewers probably have spoiled this information, but I'm going to leave it up to the readers to find out. I do think Lawrence did a really good job with this setting. It's familiar, but unique at the same time - a nice melding of the new and old.What did I learn about Jorg in this book - he really does not like to be told what to do. Jorg is fascinating - he's cruel, brilliant, and sarcastic. I can see why his men are devoted to him. "Red Jorg." Kent said in a whisper as I passed."Red would be good, Kent. But I fear I am darker than that."
    • 5/5
      It's rare to find a trilogy or series where book 2 outclasses book 1. Book 1 is matured over years and book 2 pushed out to a timetable. But this is one of those rare occasions. A longer, more complex book that demands both your intelligence and attention, and rewards both very richly. It's a more complex and involved story than book one. Jorg is growing up but still has a hard edge. A very hard edge! The prose are wonderful, powerful and poetic description and very original world building. A great ending too. A real climax with no cliff hanging. I loved it.