5 stars for A Clash of Kings (A Song of Ice and Fire book 2) by George R. R. Martin.
This time round, I make no mistake of taking on another standalone or series after I am done reading A Game of Thrones. I move on to book 2 to continue my adventure of the Seven Kingdom of Westeros almost immediately, in fact, before I even sit down to write and post my review of A Game of Thrones.
A Clash of Kings is as good as A Game of Thrones if not better. Summer is gone and there are now four kings in the realm. Well, this makes good sense to understanding given the title. On top of the voices of old in Book 1, two new voices are added here (even as only one is being removed). First, we have a smuggler-turned knight, Ser Davos Seaworth or otherwise known as the Onion Knight. He plays the part of seeing to the happenings in Dragonstone and matters related to Lord Stannis. The other new voice is that of Theon Greyjoy, a ward in name to the Starks of Winterfell, but a hostage in truth. From his eyes, we are told that nothing has changed, yet everything has. I certainly do not envy this character. How much joy can there be with a family name such as Greyjoy?
Signs and dreams and omens continue to be a harbinger of later events. It is interesting to see how different characters interpret the signs according to their roles which in turn affect what they choose to believe in. The fine red tail of the comet visible in the sky throughout the realm is a very good example. To name a few, in Riverrun, it is said the red comet is a herald of a new age; a messenger from the gods. The Septon of Winterfell is of the view that it is the sword that slays the season with summer coming to an end while Old Nan who has lived longer than any in Winterfell insists it is the dragons.
To think that when I read book 1, I feel that the story is swamped with characters, but book 2 makes the numbers in book 1 pale in comparison. Here, more characters come on board but more also dropped dead. Some characters are easy to dislike and it makes no matter when they are killed off. But there are those I am very surprised and sad to see them go.
Then, there is the fantasy aspect in A Song of Ice and Fire series which excites and entices me to keep reading. There is the ancient wisdom and the magic of old. There is the secret speech of dragonkind. There is the good magic and there is the bad magic. There is the intriguing children of the forest. There are the green dreams and the wolf dreams. There are the shapechangers; beastlings. There are the dead men walking. And there are the trees with eyes grown. There are the wargs and giants and mammoths, all coming back alive.
For a story that comes with a devil of details, it seems that everything is happening at the same time. There is the King in the North. There is the King in the South. There is the King on the Iron Throne. There is the King in the Narrow Sea. And then, there is the Queen across the water. There are battles and there are wars. There are winners and there are losers. But no matter, sitting a throne is a thousand times harder than winning one. And so, I will continue on with book 3 A Storm of Swords to see how long the winner can sit on this throne.
Publisher: Bantam; Reissue edition
Publication date: 5 Sep 2000
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A comet the colour 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 at 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.
*Blurb from Goodreads*
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