Readers of books in the "fantasy" genre would be forgiven for holding their breath during the first 50 pages of a new book or series, hoping beyond hope that the standard plot devices that seem absolutely mandatory for these works will manifest in an interesting, compelling, or enjoyable fashion. After all, you are just going to be disappointed if you expect the plot devices to deviate from formula.There will be a young protagonist who doesn't yet realize he (or she) is the CHOSEN ONE. There will be a mysterious older character who appears innocuous but will soon become mentor and explainer of important plot points. There will be a force of EVIL that no-one quite believes in any more but may be AWAKENING. And there will be a journey of some kind, accompanied by companions who are either far more powerful than they seem or utterly disposable. Oh, and there will be some sort of magic system that you and the protagonist learn together as things move along.The remarkable thing about the genre is that so many authors manage to use this formula and still produce truly wonderful, escapist reads. Patrick Rothfuss comes to mind as delivering a fresh, compelling, and beautifully written world for us to enjoy.Which brings us to Prince of Thorns. Our protagonist is a 14 year-old boy who has a sword and a horse and appears to occupy a world with the de rigeur medieval level of technology. He's telling the story in the first person, which is a bit odd. He also appears to be a sociopath, which is also a bit odd. There are references to magic, which is comforting, but there is also an increasing cadence of references to familiar-sounding place names and historical events. At first, you might think: well this is one lazy author who can't even bother to make up his own fantasy world. It soon becomes apparent, however, that you might actually still be in Kansas. At this point, you may find yourself flipping back pages in your e-reader (or using the table of contents if you have figured out how) and going to the map at the very start of the book. You turn it sideways and add some water to reflect rising sea levels, and suddenly things start to look familiar. What you're reading might be a mashup of Mad Max and the Lord of the Rings. With some Sopranos thrown in.In other words, enough of the comfortable fantasy novel formula remains for traditionalists, but there is a creative and very engaging twist. You realize you honestly don't know where all this might end up, and that's very refreshing.I really enjoyed this first book of the series and find myself well into the second still fully engaged with the story. I highly recommend this series. This review is about the whole Broken Empire series.I cannot say that I actually liked it, but if you like psychological stories, it may appeal. It is a very bizarre tale where the main character is totally unlikable and you have to get into books two and three for the story to grab you but by the end, you really care about his fate.Addition: I just scrolled down through others' reviews. It seems that MOST, not all, of the ones that liked it were men and MOST of the ones that bashed it were women. I just think that anyone who reads this has to know that it is not light entertainment and that you have to want to know why the character acts as he does. That is the whole point of the story. His motivations are key and the obvious ones are not always the true ones.
What do You think about Prince Of Thorns (2011)?
action pact from start to finish, with a different style than im used to, but i enjoyed the book
—Luckys153
Clever moments and entertaining enough not to give up but didn't leave me wanting more.
—rover
easy read and the story wasn't gripping. not impressed.
—vampirelladan
