It wouldn’t have been as impactful if the timeline had been linear. I wasn’t sure at first but I think it makes the novel come together a lot better. I do like the way the novel shifts timelines.

What a queen! Literally! Held the fort down long enough for Jorg to have his moment and saved his life. Put a little bit of humanity back in his icy heart. I think he also grounded Jorg a little bit. I understood why he had to die but I really wish he didn’t. I also love when the MC pulls off moves that outsmart the enemy and the way Jorg isn’t afraid to pull unfair moves out In order to win. I do really like the Easter eggs of things familiar to our world placed throughout the story. I knew that it could somehow come into play when he mentioned going back to find the builders body, but didn’t expect it to be used in this way. I wonder whether the rest of the army knew who they’d been fighting for?Īnd secondly, the Colt he pulled out to defeat Egan within seconds, playing dirty in typical Jorgy style. Egan certainly was not expecting him to know. I wonder whether this was known information, and how Jorg actually found out about it. I mean the guy created a freaking avalanche!īut the two plot twists at the end, first, that the Prince of Arrow was not in fact Orrin, but Egan, which Jorg of course knew. Throughout the whole book I was constantly impressed with Jorg’s ability to come up with strategic war plans to deplete the Prince of Arrow’s army using non-traditional war tactics. I’m almost too scared to read book 3 because of how nicely this one finished. But playing fair was never part of Jorg’s game plan.I’ve just finished reading this book and my god did I love the ending. But King Jorg is not a good king.įaced by an enemy many times his strength Jorg knows that he cannot win a fair fight. Every good king knows to bend the knee in the face of overwhelming odds, if only to save their people and their lands. Every decent man prays this shining hero will unite the empire and heal its wounds. First though he must gather his own pieces, learn the rules of play, and discover how to break them.Ī six nation army, twenty thousand strong, marches toward Jorg's gates, led by a champion beloved of the people. He saw the game and vowed to sweep the board. The long road to avenge the slaughter of his mother and brother has shown Prince Honorous Jorg Ancrath the hidden hands behind this endless war. The land burns with the fires of a hundred battles as lords and petty kings fight for the Broken Empire.

I’ve walked from pawn to player and I’ll win this game of ours, though the cost of it may drown the world in blood… To reach greatness you must step on bodies, and many brothers lie trodden in my wake. The second book in the Broken Empire series, Lawrence takes his young anti-hero one step closer to his grand ambition. Artwork: 5 full-color interiors by fan-favorite artist Jason Chanĭouble-Signed: Mark Lawrence & Jason Chan

King of Thorns by Mark Lawrence