Book Review: Half a King (Shattered Sea, #1) by Joe Abercrombie
Cover art designed by Micaela Alcaino
Half a King by Joe Abercrombie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: The Shattered Sea (Book #1 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Post-Apocalypse
Pages: 416 pages (Paperback Edition)
Word Count: 81,000 words
Published: 3rd July 2014 by Del Rey and Harper Voyager
I shouldn’t have worried. Half a King is a fine example of Young Adult epic fantasy done right.
“… Never worry about what has been done. Only about what will be.”
Here we are. The final set of Joe Abercrombie’s books that I had not finished yet. It is no longer news that Joe Abercrombie is one of my top favorite authors of all time. The entirety of The First Law World is indeed my favorite grimdark fantasy series ever. And his recent publication, The Devils, was an unrelenting fun ride I absolutely enjoyed, too. But despite how much I loved Abercrombie’s works, his Shattered Sea series, somehow, has always eluded my reading time. It sat there waiting. Patiently. And I’m glad this year is the year when I decided to finish the last three books by Abercrombie that I haven’t read. The result? As expected, it was another great reading experience.
“If life has taught me one thing, it’s that there are no villains. Only people, doing their best.”
The story in Half a King, the first book in The Shattered Sea trilogy, follows the tale of Prince Yarvi. Yarvi is the disabled and reluctant heir to a divided kingdom, and he vowed to reclaim the throne he never wanted. But first he must survive cruelty, chains, and the bitter waters of the Shattered Sea itself – all with only one good hand. Born a weakling in the eyes of a hard, cold world, he cannot grip a shield or swing an axe, so he has sharpened his mind to a deadly edge. Gathering a strange fellowship of the outcast, he finds they can help him more than any noble could to achieve his objective.
“You may need two hands to fight someone, but only one to stab them in the back.”
It is a common activity among book readers and reviewers to immediately compare Half a King to Abercrombie’s most famous work and debut novel, The Blade Itself. Unfortunately, I am no exception to this. But I promise this is not done in a bad way. As most readers said, Half a King is not as good as The Blade Itself. I pretty much consider The Blade Itself as one of the strongest character works done in a first book of a series. However, and this is the most important part, just because Half a King or any books in The Shattered Sea is not as good as an installment in The First Law World does not instantly conclude that The Shattered Sea is not worth a try. Yes, it is essentially a toned-down version of The First Law, but it still tops many fantasy books I’ve read to date. In some way, I do feel some parts of The Shattered Sea became the backbone of The Devils. Take a read at these two quotes. First, from Half a King:
“When you’re in hell, only a devil can point the way out.”
And next, from The Devils:
“When you’re headed through hell, you need a devil on your side.”
Additionally, found family and also a misfit crew drive the narrative of Half a King. There’s, of course, a correlation between Yarvi and Abercrombie’s infamous disabled character, too. Sand dan Glokta from The First Law. But they’re completely different kinds of characters. The only similarity they share is that they have physical disability. Yarvi is young. Unlike Glokta, Yarvi’s disability has been there since birth. And yet, he is chosen to become the next king due to his birthright as a prince. His disability and his fascination with wisdom and politicking triumph over his willingness for combat.
“The wise wait for their moment, but never let it pass.”
I found Yarvi and his harsh journey in Half a King to be a compelling underdog story. I wanted him to succeed when I read the book. It was satisfying seeing him form a new band of misfit crew to achieve his mission. Having read the remaining books in the series, it actually feels bittersweet seeing how much Yarvi has developed since his naive and innocent days in Half a King. Without spoiling anything, let’s just say The Shattered Sea, despite being catered to younger readers, is never intended to be a happy-go-lucky story.
“Glorious victories make fine songs, Yarvi, but inglorious ones are no worse once the bards are done with them. Glorious defeats, meanwhile, are just defeats.”
I can say with confidence that Half a King retains Abercrombie’s strengths as a storyteller in The First Law World or The Devils. Great characters, memorable quotes, addictive writing style, vivid battle scenes, and strong dialogues. All of them are still here in Half a King. But to go back to the beginning of this review, expect them to be toned down or adjusted to younger readers than exclusively adult fantasy readers. The book, as it was for me, will most likely be predictable. But predictability doesn’t instantly mean a bad thing. If that’s the case, no one would enjoy rereading a book. At the end of the day, execution matters most. And for the targeted audience, Half a King accomplished its objective without losing its quality.
“It is so often the small things overlooked which leave our schemes in ruins.”
If you, like me, are a fan of The First Law World or The Devils by Joe Abercrombie, and for whatever reasons or negative reviews you’ve heard about the trilogy, you neglected to try The Shattered Sea, I implore you to rethink your decision. There’s no need to worry. In fact, in the middle of my worst reading year, Half a King and the rest of The Shattered Sea became one of the most engrossing reading experiences of the year. They may not be up to the standard of The First Law World, but man, it’s always a good time to be reading Abercrombie’s prose.
“But enemies, as his mother used to say, are the price of success.”
Picture: Half a King by Jon McCoy
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