A Clash of Kings
A Song of Ice and Fire: Book Two
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4.6 • 4.2K Ratings
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
THE BOOK BEHIND THE SECOND SEASON OF GAME OF THRONES, AN ORIGINAL SERIES NOW ON HBO.
Here is the second book in the landmark series that has redefined imaginative fiction and become a modern masterpiece.
A CLASH OF KINGS
A comet the color of blood and flame cuts across the sky. And from the ancient citadel of Dragonstone to the forbidding shores of Winterfell, chaos reigns. Six factions struggle for control of a divided land and the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms, preparing to stake their claims through tempest, turmoil, and war. It is a tale in which brother plots against brother and the dead rise to walk in the night. Here a princess masquerades as an orphan boy; a knight of the mind prepares a poison for a treacherous sorceress; and wild men descend from the Mountains of the Moon to ravage the countryside. Against a backdrop of incest and fratricide, alchemy and murder, victory may go to the men and women possessed of the coldest steel . . . and the coldest hearts. For when kings clash, the whole land trembles.
A GAME OF THRONES • A CLASH OF KINGS • A STORM OF SWORDS • A FEAST FOR CROWS • A DANCE WITH DRAGONS
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The second novel of Martin's titanic Song of Ice and Fire saga (A Game of Thrones, 1996) begins with Princess Arya Stark fleeing her dead father's capital of King's Landing, disguised as a boy. It ends with the princess, now known as Weasel, having led the liberation of the accursed castle of Harrenhal. In between, her actions map the further course of a truly epic fantasy set in a world bedecked with 8000 years of history, beset by an imminent winter that will last 10 years and bedazzled by swords and spells wielded to devastating effect by the scrupulous and unscrupulous alike. Standout characters besides Arya include Queen Cersei, so lacking in morals that she becomes almost pitiable; the queen's brother, the relentlessly ingenious dwarf Tyrion Lannister; and Arya's brother, Prince Brandon, crippled except when he runs with the wolves in his dreams. The novel is notable particularly for the lived-in quality of its world, created through abundant detail that dramatically increases narrative length even as it aids suspension of disbelief; for the comparatively modest role of magic (although with one ambitious young woman raising a trio of dragons, that may change in future volumes); and for its magnificent action-filled climax, an amphibious assault on King's Landing, now ruled by the evil Queen Cersei. Martin may not rival Tolkien or Robert Jordan, but he ranks with such accomplished medievalists of fantasy as Poul Anderson and Gordon Dickson. Here, he provides a banquet for fantasy lovers with large appetites--and this is only the second course of a repast with no end in sight. Author tour.
Customer Reviews
Can't wait for book 5!
Read it a decade ago in paperback but when the show came out I decided I needed a reread and I must say it was just as good as I remembered.
Saw other readers complaining about people dying and to that I say "valar morghulis". All men must die. Don't like it? Don't read this book but if you do read it I hope you enjoy the story as much as I do.
Book you can't put down.
I hope the HBO series does the book justice..
Excellent!
This book is a thrill ride from beginning to end. To get the most out of it you need to read the first book before this one however. From a "Game of Thrones" I was hooked. The moment I finished "Game of Thrones" I started reading this book with hardly a pause in between. If you like a story about warring faction, ancient houses and magics, if you like high fantasy but want them to paint a believable world for you to travel through then I say don't miss this series of books. The only thing that keeps me from rating the book five stars is some awkward feeling sex scenes an after the end of the first book the pace of the beginning of this one seemed a bit slow but boy does it pickup. Enjoy this. Don't miss it.