Half a King (Shattered Sea Book 1) Kindle Edition

Almost made the mistake of not reading ‘Half a King’, and I am seriously glad I didn’t! The begging wasn’t to my taste, it felt slow and boring, the characters annoying and the story cliche. However, I decided to continue reading and trust the author, as I have greatly enjoyed Abercrombie’s other series, and my first impression did not survive for long. I ended up reading the entire book in one evening and plan on doing the same with the second part tomorrow.There might be no better words to describe the story other than ‘exhilarating’ and ‘enrapturing’, as I could not wait to find out what happened next by the end of each chapter.The character development of the protagonist, and even the supporting cast, deserves a special mention. This is among the best fantasy coming-of-age stories I have ever read. I loved seeing the protagonist mature and change his worldview, seeing how he acted in the begging and how he behaves differently later in the book based on his experiences; it should be the standard, but in many books the characters feel like robots with fixed, programmed, personalities that will keep producing the same responses regardless of the past outcomes. Always a pleasure to see characters evolve, I believe it makes a story more immersive - I would even say real, be it fantasy or not.Strongly recommendThis book is also a lot less bloody then the First Law stories, so for anyone who likes Abercrombie’s morally grey characters but not the gore, this would be great.

Not his best work, but I will take Abercrombie when I can get it. Whatever he writes I will read because it's still so much better than the normal drivel available. His trilogy was great, but it might be a while until Joe or anybody, tops Red Country. This book actually reminded me more of Robin Hobb books. But she does this style so much better. If you like this book go ahead and read Hobb's "Fool" series. That's a mind-run for sure.I don't want to give away any spoilers so here goes:He does a good job of dragging you through the main character development from a timid scholar to a person driven to the edge. Instead of sword or sorcery this protagonist uses different tools. It's creative in a way that Abercrombie usually is creative, but this time his character doesn't have a smash-and-grab last resort to everything. There are plenty of violent parts, for sure. Maybe not what you expect. But, unexpected character bonding happens (this isn't new to Abercrombie readers). And it still has the mystery of "do you think it will end how you think it will end"?I certainly prefer his previous characters that had developed "morals", or integrated into civilization in their old age but still reverted to smash-and-grab when times called for it. But this new tactic of using a wayward protagonist that can be pushed to his edge is actually a good story line. Not because we know it from every other story, but because there will be a completely brutal end to it all. And almost never the happy one you would expect.So, this is not the kind, moral-of-the-story bulls*** read, nor the slaughter, magic, epic demons read. Most Abercrombie readers will have expectations, but this is not the blood-on-your-face read that we're used to having in our hands.I've already pre-ordered the next book. That's how much I liked this one. I recommend it. It's a good, fast read. I look forward to the story with characters furthering their arc and understanding what else is in their paths.

Yarvi has only one hand. Which in his mind makes him half a man. His father and just about everyone around him has been telling him this since he was a small child. How Yarvi managed to survive his birth and early childhood in this situation, in a relatively realistic medieval setting where a baby with such a deformity would most likely have been killed; is NOT the subject of Half a King. It is basically just the main thing you have to get past if you’re going to like this book or get into it. I found it quite easy to do this. Especially considering the EXCELLENT writing by Mr. Abercrombie. Half a King is the best novel I’ve read this year. It is fast paced, complex, engrossing in every way, and a REAL page turner. I often found myself slowing down reading so that I could enjoy the story for a little while longer. Especially toward the end, where I could see my remaining page count dwindling. I wanted to stay in that world for as long as I possibly could. There were no throwaway characters, everyone of them seemed lovingly crafted and gave you the sense that they were all real people. Not just cardboard cutouts that were created for a scene or a chapter. The way that the author weaves a little politics into the book just to make some aspects of the story relevant but then never returns to the subject is masterful. The setting was impressively created, everything had a real sense of brick and mortar. Which essentially means that nothing seemed to be created just for a scene or just for a series of scenes. Every where the characters went seemed to be there waiting for them, not created for them. Very few books pull this off with any kind of regularity. I know that this book is a the first in a series but it definitely reads like a standalone. There are VERY FEW novels these days that do that. I was very impressed at how the author handled the ending. Once you read the ending, you will look at the entire book differently and I love books that do that. Half a King will make anyone with an even remote interest in fantasy happy. I would say that if you love the Game of Thrones television show you will love Half a King.

After finishing the First Law Series, this was just the thing to scratch my grimdark itch. Classic Abercrombie here.

Even though I first read this a few years ago I enjoyed it every bit as much this time round. I really enjoy his style of writing. He even does the coming of age element really well. Great story, characters, action and humour are never in short supply. As I have the next two books in my collection I shall enjoy diving into the next part right away. After all the intrigue, backstabbing, battling for revenge and a surprising turn of events the story is far from over.

Eu gosto muito dos livros do Joe Abercrombie. Gostei muito do estilo de escrita da trilogia A primeira Lei, este estilo é bem diferente, mas muito bom, da mesma maneira. O livro em inglês transmite uma ideia completamente diferente ao meu ver, muito bom de ler!

that is a kind of book that you dont think to read and the day after it is already finished, excellent style , captivating caracters

A great story about treason, murder and an oath for revenge. But when you are set to kill a King you need all the help you can get, and Yarvi finds himself trusting his life in the hands of slaves with many talents.