A Clash of Kings

A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 2

By: George R.R. Martin

Narrated by: Roy Dotrice

Length: 37 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

A comet the color of blood and flame cuts across the sky. And from the ancient citadel of Dragonstone to the forbidding shores of Winterfell, chaos reigns. Six factions struggle for control of a divided land and the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms, preparing to stake their claims through tempest, turmoil, and war.

It is a tale in which brother plots against brother and the dead rise to walk in the night. Here a princess masquerades as an orphan boy; a knight of the mind prepares a poison for a treacherous sorceress; and wild men descend from the Mountains of the Moon to ravage the countryside. Against a backdrop of incest and fratricide, alchemy and murder, victory may go to the men and women possessed of the coldest steel...and the coldest hearts. For when kings clash, the whole land trembles.

©1999 George R.R. Martin (P)2004 Books on Tape, Inc.

Critic reviews

Locus Award, 1999

"A truly epic fantasy.... The novel is notable particularly for the lived-in quality of its world, created through abundant detail...for the comparatively modest role of magic...and for its magnificent action-filled climax.... [Martin] provides a banquet for fantasy lovers with large appetites." (Publishers Weekly)

"Fans of epic fantasy should appreciate this lavishly detailed sequel to A Game of Thrones." (Library Journal)

"Dotrice's range of vocal tones, from gravelly and commanding to silkenly dangerous, creates a mood of insistence that holds the listener captive throughout the epic story." (AudioFile)

"Grabs hold and won't let go. It's brilliant." (Robert Jordan)

Good Rendition

Roy Dotrice sometimes has a bit of an issue switching between a narrative voice and one of the characters'. Nevertheless, he did better in this book than the first and does the story justice.

Another Great book in the series

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, its a great second book and even if your not a fan of the show you will be of the books.

What other book might you compare A Clash of Kings to and why?

Can't think of any sorry

Have you listened to any of Roy Dotrice’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes the Game of Thrones book one. Same great story telling

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes but you will be with out sleep if you try it.

Any additional comments?

They only thing I did not like about this audiobook was the chapter breaks. It stop the chapter in the middle of a sentence and then pick right back up on the next chapter. And if you haven't seen season 2 of the TV show you might want to start with the book first or if you have this just gives you a hole lot more background.

Long enjoyable listen

This book took me a year to finish but it was worth the money I spent on it. I liked having this novel around as a solid back up for when I got tired of my current selections. Since there are multiple plots and characters it gave me time to digest everything that was going on and made the listen more enjoyable. I never know what to expect from George R. Martin. Although by now it seems most characters have their good and bad sides to their personalities there seems to be a lot more villains than those I would like to root on. I just hope they all don't get killed. Overall, the book lives up to its name. War seems to be going on everywhere and there are many possibilities for the future stories. I enjoyed watching the HBO TV series along with this recording. They parallel fairly close to one another and the acting is excellent.

Good, but too much magic.

The story was at the same level as A Game Of Thrones. However, I preferred how underplayed magic in that book was, leaving you to wonder if magic was real or just folk lore and superstition. However, in this book, the use of magic is gratuitous and over-the-top. The Harry Potter world's use of magic may have been more toned down.

An Astounding Epic Story Set to Become a Classic

What did you love best about A Clash of Kings?

The writing and character development is amazing. You start reading and find that you simply cannot put it down. I listen to the audiobook and read it on my Kindle after work a second time and enjoy it just as much. Not many books can do that.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Jon Snow the Bastard of Winterfell. Though he was always unfortunate in his birth and despised by his father's wife, he still took all the ills afforded one of his station and came to be as honourable as his sire.

great

like in a game of thrones, the narrator is good, but different voices for different characters would be excellent

The reader makes the book

Mr Dotrice is my hero in this bloody saga.

I often forget he is there as we wend our way through the Seven Kingdoms, but in the end, his is the voice I hear narrating our joint adventures, even though I overlay his Tyrian with Peter’s.

His power is mightier than he knows.
Kudos, of course, to Mr. Martin who spawned all, and to the producers and Audible for helping me bring it home.

fantastic

these are amazing books made so much better by mr dotrices reading. fantasy comes alive in these stories

Irritating narration

You would think that with the mega blockbuster that is the Game of Thrones franchise, Audible would have another version of the audiobook with a better reader. As another reviewer said, Dotrice reads descriptive texts well, but most of the voices are irritating to say the least (especially Tyrion Lannister and Ser Davos). Don't get me started on the female voices. If Audible does release a version of the series with a new narrator, I wouldn't complain if the pronunciation of names and places were brought more in line with the way they're pronounced on the show (thinking of the Harry Potter audiobooks narrated by Jim Dale)

Captivating

Stunning sequel with many twists and turns. Narrator tries to change voices for different characters, but isn't completely successful. Still makes for pleasurable reading/listening.