Review: Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence

Title: Prince of Thorns

Author: Mark Lawrence

Series: The Broken Empire #1

Genre: Dark Fantasy

Publisher: Ace

Publication Date: August 2nd, 2011

Edition: Kindle Edition, 333 pages

Source: Library

Purchase: Amazon US | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | BAM

Synopsis:

  When he was nine, he watched as his mother and brother were killed before him. At thirteen, he led a band of bloodthirsty thugs. By fifteen, he intends to be king…

  It’s time for Prince Honorous Jorg Ancrath to return to the castle he turned his back on, to take what’s rightfully his. Since the day he hung pinned on the thorns of a briar patch and watched Count Renar’s men slaughter his mother and young brother, Jorg has been driven to vent his rage. Life and death are no more than a game to him—and he has nothing left to lose. But treachery awaits him in his father’s castle. Treachery and dark magic. No matter how fierce his will, can one young man conquer enemies with power beyond his imagining?

Review

This is my first time reading true Dark Fantasy. I've read other books that call themselves dark fantasy, but after reading this, those feel a bit sugary.

Jorg is probably the worst kind of person, thoughtless murder, among other things. But what I like about that aspect of his character is that he never tries to pretend that he's anything but a shit person. He knows and uses it to his advantage as often as possible.

This is told from first-person perspective, and I've heard that some people struggled to read it because they didn't like being inside his head. I personally didn't have any difficulty with that, not sure what that says about me though.

There were chapters that were set four years previously, shortly after he was thrown in a briar bush depicting how he first met his band of "brothers", and how he was set on his path. It was a nice way to show what happened in the past that made him who becomes without the dreaded info-dump.

There are a number of side characters, many of them I didn't really bother to remember as they don't really play that big of a role in what is going on. Not to mention that most of them were given nicknames by the MC because he too seems them as expendable. Sir Makin and the Nuban are really the only ones he seems to remotely like, maybe even care for.

The only complaint I have for this book is that he really doesn't act his age. He's supposed to be 11- 14 through most of the book. I kept thinking he was older than 14, he acts like somebody in their mid-20s. Granted, people who go through trauma are often forced to grow up faster, and that could have been the case with him. But, he also doesn't talk like someone who has spent their formative years with thug-like people who likely can't read.

I really enjoyed this book though, and I am eager to read the rest of the trilogy. Mark Lawrence has quickly become a favorite author.