Half a King cover art

Half a King

Shattered Sea, Book 1

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Half a King

By: Joe Abercrombie
Narrated by: Ben Elliot
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About this listen

A classic coming-of-age tale set in a vivid and richly-imagined world from Sunday Times bestselling author Joe Abercrombie.

‘Joe Abercrombie is doing some terrific work’ GEORGE R.R. MARTIN

Prince Yarvi has vowed to regain a throne he never wanted. But first he must survive cruelty, chains and the bitter waters of the Shattered Sea itself. And he must do it all with only one good hand.

Born a weakling in the eyes of his father, Yarvi is alone in a world where a strong arm and a cold heart rule. He cannot grip a shield or swing an axe, so he must sharpen his mind to a deadly edge.

Gathering a strange fellowship of the outcast and the lost, he finds they can do more to help him become the man he needs to be than any court of nobles could.

But even with loyal friends at his side, Yarvi’s path may end as it began – in twists, and traps and tragedy…

©2014 Joe Abercrombie (P)2014 HarperCollinsHarperCollins Audio FictionHarperFiction - Fiction Audio - Digital Fantasy Fiction Heartfelt Royalty

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Editor reviews

Sunday Times best-selling author Joe Abercrombie has created a richly detailed fantasy epic in Half a King, Book One of the phenomenal Shattered Sea audiobook series, unabridged and narrated by American actor Ben Elliot. Young Prince Yarvi is an embarrassment to his father. He is small and intelligent, a far cry from the muscled thugs in the kingdom. It is in exile that he finds friends who accept him for who he is and together they form an army. Setting out to reclaim his right to the throne, Yarvi can use only his mind as the ultimate weapon. Available now from Audible.

Critic reviews

‘Abercrombie writes fantasy like no one else’ Guardian

‘This is my favourite Abercrombie book yet’ PATRICK ROTHFUSS

‘Joe Abercrombie is fast becoming my favourite writer. HALF A KING is a remarkable achievement — thrilling, enthralling, and relentless. The action is frenetic, the characters are as sharp as the blades they wield, and the humour is biting. It's sure to garner him a whole new legion of fans’ DEREK LANDY

‘Enthralling. An up-all-night read’ ROBIN HOBB

‘HALF A KING can be summed up in a single word: Masterpiece’ MYKE COLE

‘With eye-popping plot twists and rollicking good action, HALF A KING is definitely a full adventure’ RICK RIORDAN

‘A magnificent, captivating world.’ James Dashner of MAZE RUNNER
All stars
Most relevant  
so disappointed after reading the before they hang series. missing the sarcastic wit, not a bad novel though.

a real disappoint

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I love Abercrombie's writing style but he's really predictable. I had the same feeling as with Giselle's storyline in The First Law series: he can sell me really well sense of imminent danger and the fight scenes are always a blast, but I can tell what's going to be the fate of most of the characters in advance which takes a good chunk of the fun. It doesn't help that Ben Elliot is THE WORST narrator I've ever encountered for fantasy books. I pushed forward IN SPITE OF him.

I could've narrated it better

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I was recommended this awhile ago and thought that it was going to be only an okay story, but no it was pretty good.

I was surprised at how good it was.

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It's a good book but the story is long and detailed for the first half and more fast paced towards the end. It seems a bit rushed.

Good story but a bit rushed

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Would you listen to Half a King again? Why?

Yes. I always like to return to a good book.

What other book might you compare Half a King to, and why?

Some similarities to Prince of Thorns.

Have you listened to any of Ben Elliot’s other performances? How does this one compare?

I don't think I have heard him perform before but he is very good. I would pick up other books narrated by him.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I really liked the characters and hopefully they will return in another adventure.

Any additional comments?

I have read all of Joe Abercrombie's adult books and I have enjoyed them a lot. However, I was getting a little tired of his particular genre but this book comes highly recommended

Abercrombie does YA very well indeed

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What made the experience of listening to Half a King the most enjoyable?

Great Narration and a fantastically written story. It has all the swashbuckling and twists and turns of a great classic. Thoroughly enjoyable from the first page.

Excellent Book

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Pretty sure Glokta is impossible to top but this a damn fine story. I liked this a lot - manageable length, engaging believable characters and an intelligent twist. Top work Joe !

Great story

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Would you listen to Half a King again? Why?

I would definitely listen to Half a King again, I really like characters also I wasn't sure about the narrator at first so may have not been listening as closely at the beggining, but I got used to him... he did great job.

What did you like best about this story?

I really like the development of the characters I really think Prince Yarvi is a great protagonist he grows so much as a character.

Have you listened to any of Ben Elliot’s other performances? How does this one compare?

I've never listened to Ben Elliot before, but I think he did a good job. Not sure if he was as good Steven Pacey in the previous Abercrombie books, by comparison his character voices sounded relatively similar to one another.

A great listen!

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I listened to this trilogy twice without realising it was YA. Fabulous characters, no less than you'd expect from Abercrombie - no simple goodies and baddies here - with twists and turns all over. Can't wait for his next book but in the meantime I'll listen to everything he's published over and over again. They get better each time.

I listened to this trilogy twice without realising

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While a good yarn, it certainly doesn't come across as an Abercrombie novel. Some good characters but probably only one that will be memorable.

Enjoyable but without the usual Abercrombie grit

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