by The WandererAuthor: Mark Lawrence
Publisher: Ace
Genre: Epic Fantasy, Grimdark
Series: Broken Empire Book Two
Pages: 449
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Honorous Jorg Ancrath is now King of Renar, but with a massive army on his doorstep his reign looks like it’s going to be a short one. King of Thorns turns out to be a much more introspective and balanced novel – at least in terms of character development – than it’s predecessor. Jorg has some morality and compassion now, but he’s far from what you would call a good person.
The biggest problem with King of Thorns is its structure, which isn’t balanced. The four years earlier sections often feel like an obstacle in this novel, rather than a wealth of interesting information. Furthermore they occupy about two thirds of the story. An unwelcome plot twist at the end also weakens what was turning out to be some of the most exciting and well written battles’ in the series. Nevertheless, Lawrence delivers a solid sequel, but a couple of issues kept nagging at me.
