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Half a King
Joe Abercrombie
A classic coming-of-age tale set in a vivid and richly-imagined world from Sunday Times bestselling author Joe Abercrombie.‘A fast-paced tale of betrayal and revenge that grabbed me from page one and refused to let go’ GEORGE R.R. MARTINPrince 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…
Copyright (#uc67b686d-1cee-56ec-ac7e-52245bc21f8a)
HarperVoyager
An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF
www.harpervoyagerbooks.co.uk (http://www.harpervoyagerbooks.co.uk)
First published in Great Britain by HarperVoyager 2014
Copyright © Joe Abercrombie 2014
Map copyright © Nicolette Caven 2014
Cover layout design © HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2015
Cover photographs © iStock (detail of cloaked man); Shutterstock.com (http://Shutterstock.com) (all other images)
Joe Abercrombie asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.
Source ISBN: 9780007550227
Ebook Edition © January 2015 ISBN: 9780007550210
Version: 2017-11-23
Praise for Half a King: (#uc67b686d-1cee-56ec-ac7e-52245bc21f8a)
‘Joe Abercrombie does it again. Half a King is another page-turner from Britain’s hottest young fantasist, a fast-paced tale of betrayal and revenge that grabbed me from page one and refused to let go’
GEORGE R.R. MARTIN, author of A Game of Thrones
‘Fast-moving, gritty and violent, Half a King will not disappoint Abercrombie’s legion of followers’
Guardian
‘Another great tale from a master. His medieval, post-apocalyptic land is full of such brilliant banter it would find a laugh at a funeral. It is macabre, menacing and Machiavelli himself would have enjoyed the way half-handed “hero” Yarvi triumphs’
The Sun
‘Enthralling. An up-all-night read’
ROBIN HOBB, author of Fool’s Assassin and the Realm of the Elderlings novels
‘Joe Abercrombie is fast becoming my favourite writer. The action is frenetic, the characters are as sharp as the blades they wield, and the humour is biting’
DEREK LANDY, author of the Skulduggery Pleasant novels
‘As Jarvi gets to know his motley band of renegades, you feel you are meeting real characters underneath the stubble and the grime. It’s this quality that both grounds the fantasy and lifts the book onto another level, so while it grips like a bear hug, it warms like a bear skin’
Daily Mail
‘Half a King is woven with a narrative of delightful cunning as we have come to expect from Joe Abercrombie. This is a “to read in a day” kind of book’
British Fantasy Society
‘Bloody awesome. A must-read’
BEN KANE, author of the Spartacus novels
‘Classic Abercrombie, and yet also something unexpected – grimdark fantasy for people who aren’t necessarily very young’
SFX, 5 Star Review
‘I’ve been a fan of Abercrombie’s stuff for years. His world–building is great, his characterization is marvellous, he writes an amazing action scene. I think this is my favourite Abercrombie book yet. And that’s really saying something’
PATRICK ROTHFUSS, author of The Name of the Wind
‘One of the most gripping books I’ve read for a long time. Once this plot has its teeth in you, it will not let you go’
Fantasy Book Review
‘Abercrombie’s stellar prose style and clever plot twists will be sure to please both adult and teen readers’
Publishers Weekly, Starred Review
‘Half a King isn’t merely equal to Abercrombie’s previous work; it is his finest novel to date and the one that may one day make him a household name’
Tor.com (http://www.Tor.com)
‘It’s lightning fast and filled with a wonderful collection of rogues, villains and two-faced bastards’
Sci-Fi Now
‘Half a King can be summed up in a single word: Masterpiece … It’s a coming of age story. It’s a Viking saga. It’s a revenge tale and family drama and the return of the prodigal son. But most of all, it’s this: a short time alongside people as weak and blundering as we are, and in the midst of it all, as heroic. What a wonderful book’
MYKE COLE, author of Control Point
‘A gripping novel, structured to keep its tension at a constant nail-biting pitch’
Strange Horizons
‘The author’s economical voice gives a clear and unsentimental account of events sordid, beautiful, or, often, a blend of the two. Abercrombie’s Shattered Sea is a fantastic yet believable backdrop to Yarvi’s struggle, a vivid imaginary land to which both habitual and newly minted grimdark readers will happily return for Half a King’s projected sequels’
Seattle Times
‘Holy crap this is a good book … Half A King is full of all the adventure I’ve come to expect from Abercrombie and a tenderness I never knew he had. There’s infinitely more to Joe Abercrombie than we ever thought’
SAM SYKES, author of Tome of the Undergates
‘The joy of Half a King lies in its simplicity. The story is briskly told but it packs the necessary essentials: treachery, dangerous men, women who are not what they seem, duels, and moral dilemmas’
The Daily Beast
‘Joe Abercrombie’s storytelling is more concise in Half a King and as sharp as ever with wit and deft prose’
Fantasy Book Critic
‘This is as skilful and as enjoyable a read as any Abercrombie I’ve read to date, and often much subtler’
SFFWorld
‘Joe Abercrombie’s Half a King serves as a reminder that there are considerable virtues yet to be found by efficient, on-the-ground storytelling propelled more by plot than by setting, with crisp dialogue, humane characters, and a distinct inward spiral of rapid-fire events’
Locus
‘A sympathetic main character, a fast-paced plot, and plenty of neat world-building. Highly recommended’
io9
Dedication (#uc67b686d-1cee-56ec-ac7e-52245bc21f8a)
For Grace
Better gearThan good senseA traveller cannot carry
FromHávamál, the Speech of the High One
(#uc67b686d-1cee-56ec-ac7e-52245bc21f8a)
Contents
Cover (#u8500b7d4-6716-5a1c-adbb-2bd9d5ed387c)
Title Page (#ud0267f58-849c-5f0c-8a48-bd1e0a834aca)
Copyright
Praise
Dedication
Map
I: The Black Chair
The Greater Good
Duty
A Way to Win
Between Gods and Men
Doves
Promises
Man’s Work
The Enemy
II: The South Wind
Cheapest Offerings
One Family
Heave
The Minister’s Tools
The Fool Strikes
Savages
Ugly Little Secrets
Enemies and Allies
One Friend
Death Waits
III: The Long Road
