A Clash of Kings
Ratings1,172
Average rating4.4
A Clash of Kings est le deuxième volume de la saga « A Song of Ice and Fire » de George R.R. Martin. Publié en 1998, deux ans après A Game of Thrones, il reprend le récit là où il avait été interrompu à la fin du premier volume. Difficile de parler de ce roman sans évoquer l'histoire du premier, je préviens tout de suite que ce billet risque de dévoiler des éléments majeurs du premier roman : j'invite donc ceux qui n'ont pas encore lu A Game of Thrones et ont l'intention de le lire à ne pas poursuivre la lecture de cet avis.
Après la mort du roi Robert Barathéon et l'exécution d'Eddard Stark sur les ordres du jeune roi Joffrey, héritier de Robert mais en réalité le fruit de entre la reine Cersei et de son frère Jaime Lannister, les Sept Royaumes sont au bord de la guerre civile. Les prétendants au Trône de Fer engagent leurs forces dans la bataille et ce roman nous permet d'être en première ligne à travers le regard de plusieurs personnages :
- Tyrion Lannister, frère cadet de Cersei et Jaime Lannister, Main du Roi par interim pendant que son père Tywin Lannister mène ses troupes contre les opposants au roi Joffrey
- Catelyn Stark, née Tully, veuve d'Eddard Stark et mère de ses cinq enfants, dont Robb, le nouveau Roi du Nord
- Sansa Stark, fille de Catelyn et Eddard Stark, « fiancée » de Joffrey mais surtout otage de la famille Lannister à King's Landing
- Arya Stark, l'autre fille de Catelyn et Eddard Stark, qui a fui King's Landing après l'exécution de son père grâce à l'aide de Yoren, un homme de la Garde de Nuit
- Bran Stark, fils de Catelyn et Eddard Stark, héritier de Winterfell et du Royaume du Nord, Prince de Winterfell en l'absence de Robb, parti au Sud
- Jon Snow, fils bâtard d'Eddard Stark, membre de la Garde de Nuit qui protège les Sept Royaumes grâce au Mur géant qui borde le Nord
- Daenerys Targaryen, dernière survivante de l'ancienne lignée royale, exilée à l'Est, et surtout « mère » de trois dragons depuis la fin du premier volume
- Davos Seaworth, un ancien contrebandier, fait chevalier après le siège de Storm's End par Stannis Barathéon, frère de Robert et prétendant au Trône de Fer qu'il sert loyalement depuis
- Theon Greyjoy , fils aîné de Balon Greyjoy, otage de la famille Stark depuis l'échec de la rébellion de son père contre le roi Robert il y a dix ans, et compagnon de Robb Stark
Quant au prologue, il nous permet de découvrir Stannis Barathéon et son entourage par les yeux du Maester Cressen, son vieux conseiller qui se méfie de Melisandre, une prêtresse qui gagne chaque jour en influence sur son maître, héritier légitime du Trône de Fer.
On notera que l'éventail de personnages est plus large que dans le premier volume. Même si elle reste majoritaire (cinq personnages sur les neuf narrateurs contre six sur huit dans le premier tome), la famille Stark laisse plus de place aux autres personnages. C'est sans doute l'histoire qui veut cela : puisque le royaume vit une terrible guerre civile qui divise les familles nobles, il fallait de nouveaux personnages qui suivre le récit aux quatre coins de Westeros. C'est sans doute dans ce tome que l'idée de George R.R. Martin d'avoir des chapitres avec des narrateurs différents trouve tout son sens, puisque cela nous permet de suivre la guerre au plus près de l'action et des intrigues.
C'est un vrai plaisir d'avancer dans le récit avec les yeux des différents personnages, même si tous n'ont pas le même degré d'intérêt. Mes chapitres préférés sont ceux de Tyrion Lannister, car ils nous permettent de découvrir les intrigues à la cour et la préparation de la bataille contre Stannis Barathéon, apogée d'un roman épique. J'ai particulièrement apprécié de pouvoir assister au déroulement de cette guerre civile à travers différents points de vue, ce qui permet de s'éloigner d'un manichéisme parfois trop évident. Bien sûr, la famille Stark reste présentée comme les « gentils » de l'histoire, mais comment prendre parti entre le rigide Stannis Barathéon (et l'inquiétant Melisandre qui l'accompagne) et les Lannister (représentés par la garce Cersei et le génial Tyrion) ? On retrouve là aussi la richesse et la complexité des personnages, l'un des points forts de cette saga.
Je dois dire que ce tome est à ce jour mon préféré de la série : là où A Game of Thrones était une introduction étonnante et passionnante, A Clash of Kings entre complètement et magistralement au coeur de l'histoire. C'est épique, c'est riche, c'est étonnant, c'est parfois drôle, parfois émouvant, et toujours passionnant. Un régal.
A worthwhile follow up to the first book that doesn't really reach the heights of the previous installment, yet it does have a lot of character building and set up for the next and arguably best book in the series.
The end of A Clash of Kings snuck up on me. That's something I hadn't really thought about before, especially with an 874 page monster like this, but it can happen with an ebook. I'm reading along, eager to know what happens next. The chapter ends, I go to the next page, and - Appendix? What do you mean, Appendix! That's nonsense, there's got to be more story here than that! I want to know what comes next, dammit! GIVE ME THE STORY!As it happens, I can start reading [b:A Storm of Swords 62291 A Storm of Swords (A Song of Ice and Fire, #3) George R.R. Martin http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1298429990s/62291.jpg 1164465] whenever I like, unlike all those poor folk who read this book when it was first released. I think I might need to stop and read a few other books first, though. I did read today's big announcement regarding [b:A Dance with Dragons 2782553 A Dance with Dragons (A Song of Ice and Fire, #5) George R.R. Martin http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1301849720s/2782553.jpg 2936175], but there's no way I can stretch the next two volumes out to last through more than two months until book five actually comes out. I'm sure the delay will be worth it, though!One thing [a:Sam Chupp 11847 Sam Chupp http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1219698183p2/11847.jpg] and I have discussed is Martin's marvelous subtlety with magic. It's only barely there at all throughout A Game of Thrones, and can easily be dismissed by anyone who doesn't have direct experience of it. It grows stronger in A Clash of Kings, but it is still something that just about anyone in the Seven Kingdoms would say belongs in tales for children. Not relying on magic for plot takes more discipline as an author, and holding back as he is says a great deal about Martin's careful pace.
Some of the battles made for tedious reading. At the end, I'm still interested in the characters' fates, so on to the next one.
After completely failing with book one, I got hooked on the show and decided to give the second book a shot. Managed to finish the book and season finale in the same evening.
The book was terrific, but I just couldn't get in to everyone's backstory. I loathed Stannis (maybe that's the point?), got so bored with Catelyn Stark weeping over her totally unimportant father (glad they cut that out or the show). Arya's chapters were far and away my favorite, Tyrion as well. I need to read short books for a while after finishing the behemoth, but I'm definitely roped in for book 3.
I liked this to start with. It was greatly written as per Martin's style. BUT during the end it got a bit weary to read, but a good read nonetheless.
Better than GoT, still picking up the pace. By this point I'd fallen in love with a few characters (hi Sansa, Dany, and Theon!), and was rapidly getting invested in the fate of Westeros. Three stars again because while I liked it, I didn't love it.
I think its amazing how much I care about almost all of the characters in this series. Even if I didn't at one point there will be a scene that makes my heart reach out to them. That being said trough the whole book I didn't know who I wanted on the iron throne but by the end I was yelling the king in the north!
Masterful on so many levels. I knew the key story beats and twists from the show, but the story, battle descriptions, prose, world-building & characters still blew me away. I can only imagine how reading this first might have floored me.
Great read, continue in the same vein as the original, and if you didn't know by not this is something of an epic saga so settle in for the long hall with this series.
At this point, I'm just happy I started reading this series after 5 books had already been published. Now that I've got a grip on the characters and have read beyond what's been put on HBO, I'm enjoying the story a lot more. That said, I still find Catelyn and Jon Snow to be rather dull points of view regardless of what action is going on around them. I'd like to read an entire book just from Tyrion or Arya's perspective though.
I spent a lot of time waiting for GRRM to hurry up and get back to the characters I actually was interested in, but of course by the time I got to the end I was ready to buy book 3 and keep going. It's not the best thing I've read but it doesn't entirely suck.
Originally read in January 2005. Re-reading the series as part of the lead-up to the Dance of Dragons release.
Finished reading this a while ago, but have gotten behind on my review-writing.
Well, first of all, let me say that when I finished A Game of Thrones, I jumped headfirst into A Clash of Kings, as I was very excited by the ending of the first book, and could not wait to find out what happened next. The first book felt very much like a beginning, and I was convinced that the next book would keep the momentum that the first book had ended with. Sadly, I was rather mistaken. It has taken me nearly seven months to get through this second book in the series, with my attentions and interest being diverted by nearly a dozen other books in the meantime. I have been following the Read of Ice and Fire on the Tor website, and have endeavored to stay ahead of their pacing so that I don't have any major events spoiled for myself, but some weeks that goal was all that compelled me to read this book.
Now, while I crawled through the pages, I still have to insist that this is a good book. The writing is fabulous, the characters are complex, and the plot is brilliantly constructed. And yet, I found it hard to want to read this book. I think part of it is that the world Martin has created is so dark. I mean, even when the characters are making quips, there is a brooding undertone to it all. So I really had to be in the right frame of mind to sit down and focus on these pages... which apparently I haven't been in much over the past few months. Though when I am in a mood to read it, I actually did find a lot of this book to be quite enjoyable.
So, despite the long time it took me to read this book, I actually have to say I like it better than the first one. The plot has thickened, the characters have developed, and the action has increased. And, well, Martin does know how to build to an ending. I found that I have grown fonder of certain characters, and I now have at least a few people I am rooting for, even if they all seem to be on opposing sides. I also found that I had a much greater appreciation for the richness and complexity of the world he has created as well. And I can't emphasize enough how good the ending is - although it took me months to read the first two-thirds of the book, I flew through the last few hundred pages in a matter of hours. Like the end of the first book, I am now very excited to move on to the next in the series. At this point I feel like we are deep enough into the story that the pacing can be a bit quicker, and that more information about the characters, plot, and world can be revealed without overwhelming the reader. Of course, after two books I am starting to think that GRRM likes to take things slow and build up to his exciting endings, but I am still hoping that my renewed interest and enjoyment will propel me through the next book a bit faster than this one. Of course, only time will tell, but with any luck I should be doing the next book review sometime before December!
Just as page-turningly good the second time around. Bring on the TV series, I'm ready.
I finally finished this book. It took me almost two months. It was a slog for me.
Just as brilliant as the first in the series. Awesome read. I don't normally read this type of book, but these books are fantastic.
My only problem with this book was that there were too many names. But other than that, perfect as ever.
More details, more devils
The second entry in the Song of Ice and Fire Saga, A Clash of Kings, written by George R.R. Martin begins a bit slowly, but introduces us to new viewpoint characters, such as Stannis Baratheon, the true heir to the Iron Throne. It's quite clear by the end of Kings however, that those with the most gold and swords aligned with them can claim the throne for themselves.
The book titles have very closely followed the events of the books. In the first entry, A Game of Thrones, there is much political positioning, backstabbing, and plans being laid. It truly was a game of thrones. In A Clash of Kings, though there is still many politics going on, it truly is a clash of kings. At the beginning of the novel, there are four kings in Westeros, and fighting is occurring in all parts of the land.
The most intriguing character in the series so far, Tyrion Lannister, is serving as Hand of the King, in the stead of Joffrey's Grandfather, Tywin Lannister, who is busy fighting a war against Robb Stark. Tyrion quickly impresses with his shrewdness and aptitude for subterfuge. He has never quite shined as he does in Kings.
Though the novel is fantastic, it doesn't flow as quickly as did Thrones, and seems to wander a bit. Still, the events in the book can't be discounted. Without giving it away, suffice it to say that things are coming unraveled in Westeros, and the Reader may be surprised by how vulnerable every character is–whether we get to see through their eyes or not. Indeed, it's one of the draws to the series: no character is ever safe. New characters are frequently introduced, secondary characters slowly become more important, and major characters can be killed off and replaced. It's a refreshing change of pace from so many other novels (especially series-based books) that fail to truly put their antagonists in jeopardy, or seriously threaten their main characters. The author makes no such assumptions; everyone is cannon fodder.
A Clash of Kings takes place primarily in two locations: Winterfell, and King's Landing. Though we are taken all over the realm, to places like Riverrun, and Pyke, we don't spend nearly as much time there. We also get to go beyond the Wall for a huge portion of the book, and see how that story is beginning to unfold. Jon Snow has become yet another major player in the series, and continues to be enthralling to read about.
In the end, A Clash of Kings is a great read, and continues to develop one of the greatest Fantasy sagas of all time.
A Clash of Kings, is a great, fast read. Like other readers, I appreciate the complexity Martin lends his characters, and I think Tyrion, the Imp, is the most interesting character in the book– simply because he is the conduit through which we learn of much of the action in the book, which centers around the intrigues at King's Landing (where he seems to be the only figure with any moral tendencies at all). I also enjoy that some of the foreshadowed developments are finally beginning to take place, i.e., the rediscovery of elements of magic in the world, what with Daenerys with her dragons and the delving into what mysteries lie behind the Wall in the north (after a disappointingly long time without any information about the mysterious “Others”, who, alas, aren't really that elaborated on in this installment either)
A Clash of Kings a solid 4-star rating as a very enjoyable read, and I look forward to picking up the next book in this series.
Finally finished it!
Wow! What a great follow up to A Game of Thrones. I am eager to get onto the rest of the series. However, I have several books to read between now and the time I get to A Storm of Swords.
On to the next one!! A Storm of Swords... The narrative is fantastic although to descriptive at certain parts but it really keeps you reading and reading without wanting to drop the book...