A Clash of Kings

913 pages and misery of 5 months finally come to end.

Great continuation of the series, It reminds me of The Empire Strikes Back.... unfortunately I get the feeling a lot of the books will be like that. One reviewer said of the series “If you like closure when you read you wont find it here” by the third book I wholeheartedly agree, I am one of those souls. The endlessly unresolved tension is starting to drive me slightly crazy. I'm mostly through the the third book now and it's getting hard to keep reading.
It seems the only resolution you get in this series are when people die, I have no doubt that the only escape or peace the characters will experience is in death. I would love for the series to prove me wrong however I think I'll be taking a break from the series after this next book. I love seeing characters beat down and struggle to rise against odds in impossible fantastic situations, much like life there is usually no end to it, but the small victories are to ultimately disappointing for everyone involved (for my tastes at least).
I still very much enjoy the writing, styling and development. It has inspired me to continue Joe Ambercrombie's The Blade Itself trilogy, they have very similar feels to them, should be fun! cheers!

Another hit from Martin! This book answered my desire for more magic in the series, though it was a bit more dark than I had anticipated. Nevertheless, the author succeeded in further developing his world without falling into the traps of becoming redundant or contradictory. The addition of new characters made the text a bit more complex than the first installment, but the continuation of plot development involving familiar characters helped to minimize confusion. Again, another book that was almost impossible to walk away from!

When people ask me what books I reach for, I tend to say, “Oooh, fast-paced thrillers that throw you right into the deep end,” so it may be surprising to some (and, let’s be honest… myself!) that I’ve just finished the second book in the Game of Thrones series, A Clash of Kings.

For context, I didn’t watch the show as it was airing (I wasn’t entirely under a rock though; I did know of it and admittedly wondered what all the hype was about!) and only watched the first series last year.

But these books? I said it after I read Game of Thrones, and I’ll say it again: George R.R. Martin’s work is truly fantasy at its very, very best.

Dark, beautifully written, with the best characterisation I’ve ever read; moving, settings you can picture with remarkable ease; villains, monsters, conflict… need I go on?

This is 900-odd pages of fantasy excellence. I couldn’t put it down and found myself unbelievably absorbed in the trials and tribulations of the story. Just fantastic.

The third one is even longer, and the story has already gone deeper than I ever prepared for, so I am so excited to get round to it… just don’t ask me when!

Ii cried real tears wtf , maester luwin death killed me , he love bran and rickon so much , he was so loyal , he didnt deserve that , i am devastated , hardly ever did i really cry for a charachter even ned , but tbr for ned i saw it coming , yk its common knowledge

i will rate each pov

catelyn , mostly boring , but the renly chap and her last chapter were great , and her inner monologue destroy me , love her charachter tho
daenerys , all chapters but the house of the undying were boring and not engaging , dany go to quarth , demand armies , people say no girl , dany feel betrayed , but the house of the undying sequence was great i loved it
sansa pov , i did like her here poor girl , liked her war scene , hardly ever do we see the non warrior pov of the war , she was great loved her chapter

tyrion , strong chapters overall , kinda fell off toward the very end
jon , i liked to see what beyong the wall , specially that the others fascinate me , and i want more ghost

bran , great chapters , i really liked them
arya , good , i loved her chapters


luwin death devastated me

Undeniable story… but so many parts where I’m reminded it’s written by a man. Does GRRM have an OBSESSION with gang rape? I’ll let the world decide…

Better than GoT, still picking up the pace. By this point I'd fallen in love with a few characters (hi Sansa, Dany, and Theon!), and was rapidly getting invested in the fate of Westeros. Three stars again because while I liked it, I didn't love it.

Continua excelente.

The world does not deserve George R.R. Martin and the tales he tells.

This book left me shook to my core. I am completely and utterly shooketh.

I said before that the first book in the series was the most immaculate novel I've ever read but I was wrong. THIS ONE IS! I am sure I will continue to be wrong in the future.

I don't know how GRRM does it but he followed up GOT with a phenomenal continuation of the story. The characters, the plot, the treachery, the drama, OH THE DRAMA! He makes you fall in love with the Starks, Tyrells, Baratheon's (some) even more, and if you prefer the villain's like myself, you will fall deeply in love with the Greyjoy's, Lannister's, Bolton's, and the Hound. Oh, the Hound has won my cold, dead, heart. So has Theon Greyjoy, my heart bleeds for his BDE.

I seriously thought GRRM was done dishing out the surprises with the ending of the first book but boy was I wrong. I was wrong in every way. The surprises just keep coming and they get better and better each time. This book has nearly left me speechless. I say nearly because I will clearly continue to rave about how amazing it is.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This book was absolutely breathtaking. I LOVED it. The characters were memorable and had distinct voices. The plot line of this book held my attention and was unique, and the pacing was fantastic. These books often stay with me for a long time. After finishing, I can't stop thinking about it. An absolute must read, and now a favorite of mine. Highly Recommended!

A worthwhile follow up to the first book that doesn't really reach the heights of the previous installment, yet it does have a lot of character building and set up for the next and arguably best book in the series.

Masterful on so many levels. I knew the key story beats and twists from the show, but the story, battle descriptions, prose, world-building & characters still blew me away. I can only imagine how reading this first might have floored me.

Somehow, I find this book darker than the first one of the series, despite the lack of as notable heart-wrenching death at the end. This book is the last step before plunging down the pit of terrible despair that the author has prepared for us in the other books. The last book where hope still lingers and the most difficult for it.
I love it though. It made me love Tyrion where I just liked him in the first book. It made me like Catelyn where I hated her in AGOT, which goes for Sansa as well.
I loved seeing the awakening of magic and itched to see more of it.

Another masterpiece by one of the most talented butchers in literature.

6/10

Martin did it again with a 5 star book. So much deceit, so much action, so much sadness...also so much incest, yuk! Sansa redeemed herself a little bit in this one, not by doing anything great but not screwing up either. Dany is shaping up to kick some tail. Tyrion just keeps on getting screwed over, poor guy. Can't wait to read the next, even larger book!

A Game of Thrones ends on a somewhat bleak but inspiring note- the man who we believed a protagonist is slain, the impossible happens when dragon eggs hatch- but then we start A Clash of Kings on an even bleaker note. We finally meet Stannis, who I have been disappointed but also intrigued by. We get two new POV characters, in an attempt to even out the bias of the narrative- someone had to replace Ned Stark's POV in King's Landing and we must see Stannis and his plans through the eyes of another POV. I must admit GRRM's avoidance of making the claimants to the Iron Throne (aside from Daenerys ofc) or to a throne at all, is ingenious. We judge the characters as if we were in their camp, not being privy to their inner thoughts and only being able to analyze their dialogue and actions.

A Game of Thrones ???????????????A Clash of Kings ???????????????

This is the furthest I have made it through the series so far, and I enjoyed this book so much. I genuinely don't have any complaints. We got deeper into the plot, and explored deeper into the world and it was all great to read. I flew through the book.

One small note, I finished the book using my library because I could login and read from work (it's dead in the evenings). I have been putting off finishing the book because I was at 93% which would have left around 60 pages to go and I wanted to read it all in one sitting. Turns out the appendix and acknowledgements start at 94% and I could have finished it in work a week ago....

Awesome as usual.

I think I'm just not into the plotting and planning because that's mostly what this book felt like to me. I enjoyed the first book a lot and maybe this is just setting up what's more to come because I didn't feel like much of the planning came to fruition. But I finished!

Fin'd Jan 5th?

Precise rating: 4.5 ⭐

A Clash of Kings est le deuxième volume de la saga « A Song of Ice and Fire » de George R.R. Martin. Publié en 1998, deux ans après A Game of Thrones, il reprend le récit là où il avait été interrompu à la fin du premier volume. Difficile de parler de ce roman sans évoquer l'histoire du premier, je préviens tout de suite que ce billet risque de dévoiler des éléments majeurs du premier roman : j'invite donc ceux qui n'ont pas encore lu A Game of Thrones et ont l'intention de le lire à ne pas poursuivre la lecture de cet avis.

Après la mort du roi Robert Barathéon et l'exécution d'Eddard Stark sur les ordres du jeune roi Joffrey, héritier de Robert mais en réalité le fruit de entre la reine Cersei et de son frère Jaime Lannister, les Sept Royaumes sont au bord de la guerre civile. Les prétendants au Trône de Fer engagent leurs forces dans la bataille et ce roman nous permet d'être en première ligne à travers le regard de plusieurs personnages :

- Tyrion Lannister, frère cadet de Cersei et Jaime Lannister, Main du Roi par interim pendant que son père Tywin Lannister mène ses troupes contre les opposants au roi Joffrey

- Catelyn Stark, née Tully, veuve d'Eddard Stark et mère de ses cinq enfants, dont Robb, le nouveau Roi du Nord

- Sansa Stark, fille de Catelyn et Eddard Stark, « fiancée » de Joffrey mais surtout otage de la famille Lannister à King's Landing

- Arya Stark, l'autre fille de Catelyn et Eddard Stark, qui a fui King's Landing après l'exécution de son père grâce à l'aide de Yoren, un homme de la Garde de Nuit

- Bran Stark, fils de Catelyn et Eddard Stark, héritier de Winterfell et du Royaume du Nord, Prince de Winterfell en l'absence de Robb, parti au Sud

- Jon Snow, fils bâtard d'Eddard Stark, membre de la Garde de Nuit qui protège les Sept Royaumes grâce au Mur géant qui borde le Nord

- Daenerys Targaryen, dernière survivante de l'ancienne lignée royale, exilée à l'Est, et surtout « mère » de trois dragons depuis la fin du premier volume

- Davos Seaworth, un ancien contrebandier, fait chevalier après le siège de Storm's End par Stannis Barathéon, frère de Robert et prétendant au Trône de Fer qu'il sert loyalement depuis

- Theon Greyjoy , fils aîné de Balon Greyjoy, otage de la famille Stark depuis l'échec de la rébellion de son père contre le roi Robert il y a dix ans, et compagnon de Robb Stark

Quant au prologue, il nous permet de découvrir Stannis Barathéon et son entourage par les yeux du Maester Cressen, son vieux conseiller qui se méfie de Melisandre, une prêtresse qui gagne chaque jour en influence sur son maître, héritier légitime du Trône de Fer.

On notera que l'éventail de personnages est plus large que dans le premier volume. Même si elle reste majoritaire (cinq personnages sur les neuf narrateurs contre six sur huit dans le premier tome), la famille Stark laisse plus de place aux autres personnages. C'est sans doute l'histoire qui veut cela : puisque le royaume vit une terrible guerre civile qui divise les familles nobles, il fallait de nouveaux personnages qui suivre le récit aux quatre coins de Westeros. C'est sans doute dans ce tome que l'idée de George R.R. Martin d'avoir des chapitres avec des narrateurs différents trouve tout son sens, puisque cela nous permet de suivre la guerre au plus près de l'action et des intrigues.

C'est un vrai plaisir d'avancer dans le récit avec les yeux des différents personnages, même si tous n'ont pas le même degré d'intérêt. Mes chapitres préférés sont ceux de Tyrion Lannister, car ils nous permettent de découvrir les intrigues à la cour et la préparation de la bataille contre Stannis Barathéon, apogée d'un roman épique. J'ai particulièrement apprécié de pouvoir assister au déroulement de cette guerre civile à travers différents points de vue, ce qui permet de s'éloigner d'un manichéisme parfois trop évident. Bien sûr, la famille Stark reste présentée comme les « gentils » de l'histoire, mais comment prendre parti entre le rigide Stannis Barathéon (et l'inquiétant Melisandre qui l'accompagne) et les Lannister (représentés par la garce Cersei et le génial Tyrion) ? On retrouve là aussi la richesse et la complexité des personnages, l'un des points forts de cette saga.

Je dois dire que ce tome est à ce jour mon préféré de la série : là où A Game of Thrones était une introduction étonnante et passionnante, A Clash of Kings entre complètement et magistralement au coeur de l'histoire. C'est épique, c'est riche, c'est étonnant, c'est parfois drôle, parfois émouvant, et toujours passionnant. Un régal.

A spellbinding second volume of immense character and plot development. Masterfully done.

I am an old done man, grown giddy as a child again.

“I am sorry for your loss as well, Joffrey,” the dwarf said.
“What loss?”
“Your royal father? A large fierce man with a black beard; you'll recall him if you try. He was king before you.”

Was there ever a war where only one side bled?

Varys smiled. “Here, then. Power resides where men believe it resides. No more and no less.”
“So power is a mummer's trick?”
“A shadow on the wall,” Varys murmured, “yet shadows can kill. And ofttimes a very small man can cast a very large shadow.”

“There are ghosts everywhere,” Ser Jorah said softly. “We carry them with us wherever we go.”

“Because it will not last,” Catelyn answered, sadly. “Because they are the knights of summer, and winter is coming.”

Perhaps magic was once a mighty force in the world, but no longer. What little remains is no more than the wisp of smoke that lingers in the air after a great fire has burned out, and even that is fading.

It is not what we do, so much as why we do it.

“Sleep is good,” he said. “And books are better.”

“A grey man,” she said. “Neither white nor black, but partaking of both.”

There are no shadows in the dark. Shadows are the servants of light, the children of fire. The brightest flame casts the darkest shadows.

I am a creature of grief and dust and bitter longings. There is an empty place within me where my heart was once.

She walked fast, to keep ahead of her fear.

Night gathers, and now my watch begins. It shall not end until my death. I shall take no wife, hold no lands, father no children. I shall wear no crowns and win no glory. I shall live and die at my post. I am the sword in the darkness. I am the watcher on the walls. I am the fire that burns against the cold, the light that brings the dawn, the horn that wakes the sleepers, the shield that guards the realms of men. I pledge my life and honor to the Night's Watch, for this night and all the nights to come.

A Clash of Kings, is a great, fast read. Like other readers, I appreciate the complexity Martin lends his characters, and I think Tyrion, the Imp, is the most interesting character in the book– simply because he is the conduit through which we learn of much of the action in the book, which centers around the intrigues at King's Landing (where he seems to be the only figure with any moral tendencies at all). I also enjoy that some of the foreshadowed developments are finally beginning to take place, i.e., the rediscovery of elements of magic in the world, what with Daenerys with her dragons and the delving into what mysteries lie behind the Wall in the north (after a disappointingly long time without any information about the mysterious “Others”, who, alas, aren't really that elaborated on in this installment either)
A Clash of Kings a solid 4-star rating as a very enjoyable read, and I look forward to picking up the next book in this series.

Update: 09/04/2015

If you'd like to read this review on my blog.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars.

A Clash of Kings is the second novel of the A Song Of Ice and Fire series, that follows right where we left off in Game of Thrones. In this book, we finally see what those terrible Games that we so heard talking are about, and all of the characters are in a difficult situation, with terrible things happening around, but it all just starts...

Great book, really. So much things happened, so much went down, and so much is coming. This was just mind blowing.

I have to say, this book was so long. At first, when I read those first few chapters, I thought I was for sure never going to finish this in the near-almost-far future. There was just so much information dump in those first 200 pages, and not much things happening really. It took me a while to get used to it, and to actually start to fill the excitement.

But once I went through those, God did it get good. The book gave so much character development to every character. I'm finally redefining who is to trust, who is a btch, who is not as bad as one initially thinks. And yet he didn't give us as much as to know everything. I still doubt every single character. Because they change so easily. Everybody lies, everybody keeps secrets, everybody dies and everybody learns to survive by playing the Game of Thrones. It's so intense, but so good.One of the best improvements was my views of Tyrion Lannister. He is such a cute, smartsy pants, intelligent and kind motherfcker. Might have a tiny crush for a tiny man. I think that he's probably one of the smartest characters in this book (not the most clever, that could be discussed) and he's also really thinking like a real king. He should be king. But at the same time, he's not really apt to be king of such a violent and war ridden town. So the Hand's King fits him. And I swear, every single conversation he had with Cersei, was the best part of this book. I've wasted every single flicky tap (still don't know it's name) marking all of the whimsical and witty conversations they've had. I love their relationship (even thought it's the worst sister-brother relationship.) I will show you some of the quotes I've marked of them, and some of Tyrion talking around, but maybe they could be a little spoilery, so it'll be under a spoiler mark. View to your own danger.

In a conversation with Joffrey... The dwarf smiled crookedly. "All sorts of people are calling themselves kings these days."In a conversation with Cersei... "I'm sure I don't know. That fool Eddard Stark accused me of the same thing. He hinted that Lord Arryn suspected or...well believed...""That you were fucking our sweet Jaime?"She slapped him."Did you think I was as blind as father?" Tyrion rubbed his cheek. "Who you lie with is no matter to me...although it doesn't seem quite just that you should open your legs for one brother and not the other"She slapped him."Be gentle, Cersei, I'm only jesting with you. If truth be told, I'd sooner have a nice whore. I never understood what Jaime saw in you, apart from his own reflection."She slapped him.Another conversation with Cersei... "I will not suffer to be called a whore!"Why, sister, he never claims Jaime paid you.And another... "What a disgusting little worm you are. Myrcella is my only daughter. Did you truly imagine that I would allow you to sell her like a bag of oats?"Myrcella, he thought. Well, that egg has hatched. Let's see what color the chick is. "Hardly a bag of oats. Myrcella is a princess. Some would say this is what she was born for. Or did you plan to marry her to Tommen?"And adrenaline driven Tyrion... "You won't hear me shout out Joffrey's name," he told them. "You won't hear me yell for Casterly Rock either. This is your city Stannis means to sack, and that's your gate he's bringing down. So come with me and kill the son of a b*tch!"

Oh, Tyrion <3

Moving on, I thought that chapter PoVs like Arya's were very enjoyable. She's doing some really extreme moves, and her life's kind of miserable right now, but I love her.

Also, Sansa no longer annoys me as massively as she used to. I'm still kind of bitter of her, but it's slowly fading. And I feel kind of sorry for her, at times. She's a nice girl, and she's finally growing up.

But then there were chapters like Davos, and Theon, that honestly bored me to death. Davos more than Theon. Like, Davos is to much of a suck up for me, and he never says anything interesting. And Theon is too stupid and blind and egocentric for my taste. When is Joffrey and his head-cutting when you need it?

Then there were Bran and Caitlyn chapters. Those were the ones that could be boring at points, but then really interesting, and then back to boring, and then exciting. Those were ok, I guess.

And my love, my dear love, Daenerys. God she's so lost. I hate that. I want her to stop being so misguided, and for her to step up her game. And even thought that, I loved every single of her chapters. I always do. She's such a great character, and I root for her like crazy. And yes, I believe she's the real queen. Because Dragons. That by the way, DRAGONS. But the things that bothers me most, is that her chapters are so damn apart. #TheStruggle

John Snow chapters were a little bit annoying at times, because of all this wall walking and warnings that we've heard before. But for the rest, they were very interesting. But at the same time I think that a little bit more could have happened, excluding the ending, of course.

Another new character, Melisandre. I'm so fcking terrified of that btch. Like, no, no, NO.

As for what plot concerns, that was intense. In A Game of Thrones nothing had really happened,it was just starting. And in this book, things started happening. But the amazing thing is that I know it's only the beginning. I can feel so many things coming. I do have to say, all the misery and despair found in this book was hard. Man, I love this series.

And lastly, small spoiler section.

Man was I scared when Theon was lying about Brann and Rickon's death. And not because I thought it was true, but because I thought that my beliefs of it being fake weren't true. Like what happened when Eddard Stark died in the last book (In case you don't know, since the moment he was killed till the end of the book, a good 100+ pages, I thought he was still alive.) I knew it wasn't true, I mean, not enough proof for me. But there was this small tiny doubt.Funny moment. When Sansa finds out she got her first period. In that moment, I swear we were all Sansa Stark.John Snow and the wildlings. The f*cking f*ck.Melisandre and her dark magic stuff. The f*cking f*ck.And that whole strange connection with the wolfs and the Stark kids was amazing. But now it just made me feel worse that Lady is no longer alive. And for like the whole length of the book, I was expecting that somewhere along the way Arya was going to have her reunion with Nymeria. But no, never. ;-; And I'm so mad that Arya never killed Tywin. But yeah, I knew that wasn't happening. And her ending was just crazy. I really really want her and Caitlyn to get together.And also, the battle of Casterly Rock was bad ass. I loved it, so many things happened, and all those characters, and that ending. My dear Tyrion Lannister is not dying, he's going to stand up and rule up all of your asses.Lastly, that scene where Daenerys enters that weird ass palace. That was even better! All those prophecies they showed her, all the things to come. And how she destroyed those b*tches up with dragons. God I love Daenerys.

This book had such great endings for every character. A bunch of crazy stuff happened, and everything gave a complete 360 degrees turn. I have this saying that I love...

“If things aren't going great, then don't worry, it won't last. And if things are going great, be aware, it won't last.”