A Clash Of Kings - A Review by Nevermore

As A Clash of Kings begins, we're introduced to a new element in the world - a priestess of a god who is now coming into vogue in Westeros, and is being even more popularized by the stern, rightful heir to the Iron Throne: Stannis Baratheon. Questions are raised about this priestess and her god throughout the prologue, is she a sorceress? What kinds of powers does her god bestow? Throughout the book we begin to see this new force unfolding in the ever-escalating war, and it certain begins to turn quite a number of things on their head.

Whereas the first book contained very little of the "fantasy" aspect, seeming more like a piece of historical fiction in a land that never truly existed with tiny elements and references to fantasy, this book starts to show the turn to a full-on fantasy novel, particularly in the tale of Daenerys Targaryen, who now travels with a very small band, and, of course, her beloved newborn dragons. Her tale definitely picked up intrigue from the previous book for me - but it still feels terribly disconnected from the rest of the happenings in the book. I'm quite certain that everything will come crashing together soon in the series, but until then, Daenerys's story still feels a bit out of place, even though she's definitely tied to Westeros, particularly with tales of her father's deeds coming to light, providing a deeper understanding of the Targaryens as a family, even if Daenerys isn't the monster her father or brothers were.

Jon Snow's tale suffers much of the same fate as Daenerys as he travels north from the Wall to investigate the disappearances of rangers, leaving the politics and wars of the land behind to look into a bigger threat. However, this larger threat helps connect him to the rest of the world and, indeed, puts some things in perspective as the kings in the south fight their wars, a darker danger looms on the doorstep, and Jon is right on the front lines of that conflict.

The stories of the Baratheons, Lannisters, and Starks remain fascinating as ever, of course, with Theon Greyjoy turning into a character of much greater importance in the series, as well. The war continues on, with several contenders to the various thrones of Westeros - some seeking to return to the old ways of the Seven Kingdoms, while others seek to preserve the united kingdom under the Iron Throne. The expert way Martin weaves together each character's tale - often leaving at a cliffhanger and hinting at the possibilities of each character's fate in other chapters makes everything that much more riveting.

A Clash of Kings introduces several new characters into play, some new favorites, some to be reviled, but all of them absolutely fascinating. While many names are thrown at the reader, the important ones do stick, and every single person has their part to play. Martin manages to keep every single one of them separate, as well, each with their own agenda and intrigues, all of them very real and very interesting.

I anxiously await starting on A Storm of Swords, as soon as I have more tokens from Audible to purchase it with.

Unfortunately, I do not always have a lot of time to sit and read, so I experienced A Clash of Kings as an audiobook, which I downloaded from Audible.com.

Roy Dotrice once again narrates in this book, and continues to do a great job giving distinctive voices to each character. Some characters do end up sounding quite similar, but never characters that cross each other's paths, so there's no real confusion in that. He very nicely adds drama and suspense with his pacing, and you'll certainly end up on the edge of your seat during the most exciting moments of the book (of which there are plenty.)

If you're interested in downloading this audiobook, you can click the picture or simply follow the following link: A Clash of Kings on Audible.com