brilliant years

I received this book through the GoodReads give-aways and was really excited about it when the pretty hardcover book arrived.

Prince Jorg has witnessed his mother and younger brother being murdered. As his father is clearly not going to avenge the murder of his wife and son, Jorge runs away from the castle and starts a life of violence.

Now, like many others have said, you will love this book or you will hate it. Admittedly, when I started reading I had doubts. The book is written from Jorg's point of view and his words bite. The first few chapters I couldn't make up my mind on what I thought about the book. I kept wondering what the point of the book was, with all its seemingly purposeless violence, and it kept me curious enough to continue reading. Why exactly is Jorg so full of hate? That question is answered soon enough through the flashbacks, but it just raises more questions. What does Jorg want, what is his goal? Why does he do the things he does?

Well, that is when the plot really starts moving. Throw in a big plot twist and this book becomes mightily interesting! So interesting that I raced through the latter half of the book, eager to find out more, and I was not disappointed.

I was happy to find out that this book is the first volume of what will be a trilogy and I am looking forward to the rest of the series! The only disappointment of this book is that I wish I had read it in English instead of Dutch. The language in the book is strong, and Jorg's tone is painfully sarcastic most of the time. I can't help but wonder what he would sound like in English.

[edit] It's interesting how, after rethinking a review more than a year later, your opinion can change. Only somewhat, though. I still like the book, and I think I still want to read volume 2. But when I was standing in a bookshop, holding King of Thorns in my hand, I was having doubts. I really, with all my passion, hate the the main character Jorg. I object to everything he does. Still, I think a book about an extreme anti-hero that you can impossibly feel any empathy for can be interesting in itself. From what I read of the blurb of King of Thorns, I don't think Jorg will become a good person and I am glad of that. I don't want to like him or to start feeling empathy for him, and I sure as hell hope the author doesn't suddenly make him a hero, a 'cool' person or a nice person. Here's me crossing my fingers!