Mark Lawrence

A tale of blood and treachery, magic and brotherhood

Prince of Thorns

When he was nine, he watched as his mother and brother were killed before him. By the time he was thirteen, he was the leader of a band of bloodthirsty thugs. By fifteen, he intends to be king...

It’s time for Prince Honorous Jorg Ancrath to return to the castle he turned his back on, to take what’s rightfully his. Since the day he hung pinned on the thorns of a briar patch and watched Count Renar’s men slaughter his mother and young brother, Jorg has been driven to vent his rage. Life and death are no more than a game to him—and he has nothing left to lose.

But treachery awaits him in his father’s castle. Treachery and dark magic. No matter how fierce his will, can one young man conquer enemies with power beyond his imagining?

Geoffrey Froggatt

I love evil protagonists and revenge stories, so naturally I was drawn to this book as it has both. Content warning for violence, rape, sexual assault and gore. From being a privileged royal child, raised by a loving mother, Jorg Ancrath has become the Prince of Thorns, a charming, immoral boy leading a grim band of outlaws in a series of raids and atrocities. The world is in chaos: violence is rife, nightmares everywhere. Jorg has the ability to master the living and the dead, but there is still one thing that puts a chill in him. Returning to his father's castle Jorg must confront horrors from his childhood and carve himself a future with all hands turned against him. Mark Lawrence's debut novel tells a tale of blood and treachery, magic and brotherhood and paints a compelling and brutal, and sometimes beautiful, picture of an exceptional boy on his journey toward manhood and the throne. The first 40% of this story didn’t grip me despite how intrigued I was by the world and its characters, but something changed around the 42% mark once the reader learns exactly how Jorg’s mother and brother died. I was very interested in the world, the characters and the history, but I wasn’t as engaged by this story (as a whole) as I wanted to be. I had heard that this story was brutal and savage, but I wanted it to be more brutal and savage. This story may technically be classified as grim-dark, but I wanted it to be much darker. I still rated it three stars as I liked the premise itself, and I will definitely be reading the rest of the books in the trilogy. I just wish I got more out of this.

shelby mosel

Prashanth Srivatsa

Dark and gritty, the Prince of Thorns weaves a tale of vengeance in the midst of political warfare, a bloodbath where conscience only lurks in shadows. Led by a spiteful anti-hero and his entourage of misfits and cutthroats, this is a brilliant debut from Mark Lawrence in the never-enough genre of fantasy.

Aishling

So I finally finished this book after about 2 weeks. The main reason it took so long, was the writing style. I can only describe it as old vocabulary, very difficult to read for me. I had to read the same sentence more than once to understand it.

Aside from that the story was brilliant. I didn't even read the synopsis going into it so I was constantly surprised. All I'd known is that the main character was an anti-hero and that's exactly what I got.

If your a fan of game of thrones, I'd say you'd like this. I only compare the two as they are both written in a similarly old vocabulary and they're both pretty violent.

After witnessing the murder of his mother and brother and leading a band of bloodthirsty thugs, Prince Honorous Jorg Ancrath returns to his father's castle and his birthright, but faces treachery and dark magic once he arrives.

Prince of thorns

Savindi Jinasena

I’m not entirely sure if this book is popular in North America because I haven’t heard too much about it, then again I tend to live under a rock sometimes. That being said, from what I gather Jorg’s character has sparked a lot of controversy because he is a sociopath and is a very young character. However after reading Prince Of Thorns Jorg reminded me so much of Joffrey Baratheon from A Game Of Thrones and I’m not sure which one is worse to be honest. If you have read both books, I’d definitely like to hear your thoughts on the two characters.

First off, this is the first book that I’ve read that has a setting which combines both Post-Apocalyptic and fantasy elements and I have to say Lawrence’s execution of this world is brilliant. In my opinion the length of the book is perfect and (my edition was just shy of 325 pages) allows the book to be fast paced which kept my attention. The book is not overly descriptive which I appreciate, but there were certain parts where I wish there was more description because it would have helped me understand the story better. The time shifts in Prince Of Thorns was done well because chapters concerning the past were labeled “Four Years Earlier” which helped to understand the story.

As for the plot, I enjoyed it a great deal. The story follows Jorg in his quest to avenge the death of his mother and younger brother William. However he becomes sidetracked in his thirst for revenge for some reason and instead goes on killing rampages with his band of brothers. However as the book reaches its climax readers will find out the subplot which in turn becomes the main plot (to my understanding) taking over and it makes Jorg more analytical and ruthless in his need for revenge.

As for the Characters, Jorg literally drives the story.Though he is an anti-hero, Jorg is a compelling literary character. Yes he is ruthless and he does unforgivable things, but at the same time he is smart and charismatic. As soon as the story starts he has a pull on you and you can’t exactly stop yourself from being drawn in. While Jorg can be best described as an ‘undiagnosed sociopath,” you can’t help but have a soft spot for him. As a reader you wonder if his traumatic experiences as a child shaped the teenager he has become or did he always have this mean streak? Either way it is interesting to see that even Jorg comes to question his motivations towards his actions. You see his internal struggle as he tries to not care but there is a part of him, however small that does care. And it’s one of the best aspects of the story as you witness this sociopath reasoning with himself over his decisions. Some readers may not be able to bear Jorg as a character, but if there is one admirable trait in him, it’s his honesty.

Minor Spoiler

At the end of the book, Jorg says

I’ve grown, but whatever monster might be in me, it was always mine, my choice, my responsibility , my evil if you will. It’s what I am, and if you want excuses, come and take them.

I didn’t particularly care for the secondary characters except for Makin and the Nuban. I found Jorg’s brief meetings with Jane interesting because she saw right through him. Katherine, Jorg’s Step Aunt is a character that I’m curious about. I wanted to know why she seemed to care so much about Jorg despite knowing him for a matter of days. I hope we get to see her in the sequel King Of Thorns which comes out later this Summer.

There is much violence and gore in this book and I can understand some readers getting turned off by it, I don’t know why, but I didn’t seem to mind too much despite being utterly grossed out at one part of the book. I’m wondering if King Of Thorns will be the same if not more violent.

Overall, Prince Of Thorns was an enjoyable read. As I said before it was fast paced, exciting and intriguing. I was able to read it in two days and I was left wanting more. I have to confess that Jorg was able to seduce me with his charisma and he definitely is an unforgettable character. For a debut novel, I thought Lawrence did an excellent job with the writing and world-building. There were some beautiful prose and quotes. I’m definitely looking forward to reading King Of Thorns.

My Rating: 4.5/5

Would I recommend it? I personally would, but I can understand readers being turned off by it.

Sade A

"We play the game of thrones with pieces like Count Rener, pieces like your father. pieces like you, perhaps"
  

ummmmmm okkkkayyyyyyyyyyyy

Hands down one of the most underwhelming books and characters ever!!!!!! Like holy shit snacks, Jorg was supposed to be bad ass?? He was supposed to make your skin crawl??? Really??? Dude just sounded like a whiny brat.
  "oh the thorns, i can feel them holding me back, oh this guy is making sense but i don't want to hear it, might as well knife him."
 UGH!! I think the only part in this book that got a rise out of me was when he busted up that glass tree.. that was fun.

Also ugh, the whole flowery speech thing, 

  
    "Something tickled at me, the ghosts of whispers colder than the wind"...
  
 I sincerely think characters should only talk like this in an SJM's book or in a poetry book. Why are you rhyming?? and why was that door thing in chapter 33 talking like some sort of Terminator? 
"External sensors malfunctioning. Biometrics offline". Are you joking right now? Biometrics??? really?? biometrics???
Terminator door thingy: State your name and password
Jorg: Can you open the door i asked
Terminator door thingy: That information is classified. Do you have clearance??
LOL... these are people that are using the word feck and other old english and all of a sudden the author is throwing in biometrics, name and password and clearance?? really?? 
NAH UH


Also i have to tell you, i am thoroughly unconvinced that Jorg knew how to fight. So far everything was just plain luck or he fell down at the right time or a horse kicked him at the right time..

and really though what is this book about? Like what is the freaking empire? why is the empire broken? who broke the damn thing? Maybe the answers lie in the subsequent books but this was not good enough to make me want to step back into this world.


  All in all, this book doesn't cut it. Sticking a wannabe sadistic character in a book does not mean that book is going to magically turn into a good book.

BOOK ONE IN THE BROKEN EMPIRE TRILOGY “Prince of Thorns deserves attention as the work of an iconoclast who seems determined to turn that familiar thing, Medievalesque Fantasy Trilogy, entirely on its head.”—Locus When he was nine, he watched as his mother and brother were killed before him. By the time he was thirteen, he was the leader of a band of bloodthirsty thugs. By fifteen, he intends to be king... It’s time for Prince Honorous Jorg Ancrath to return to the castle he turned his back on, to take what’s rightfully his. Since the day he hung pinned on the thorns of a briar patch and watched Count Renar’s men slaughter his mother and young brother, Jorg has been driven to vent his rage. Life and death are no more than a game to him—and he has nothing left to lose. But treachery awaits him in his father’s castle. Treachery and dark magic. No matter how fierce his will, can one young man conquer enemies with power beyond his imagining?

Lauren

CW/TW for sexual assault. Prince of Thorns wants to be a grimdark anti-hero story and is unfortunately just an exhaustingly navel-gazey slog from the perspective of yet another snarky teen boy genius. Fourteen year old Prince Jorg leads a band of cutthroat outlaws and wants to become king by fifteen. Will he grow or change, face his own fatal flaws, or even face any kind of interesting obstacle in this book towards that goal? Nope, not really.
Presumably Jorg was supposed to eventually be relatable—not even likeable, but interesting, at all, in a human capacity—and just never was.
I wouldn't have finished it if I hadn't promised to read together with a friend who also didn't enjoy it. 
A month after reading a physical copy, I found out I'd owned it on Kindle already and DNFed it years ago without remembering. I'd put it down immediately after the first chapter's pointless shock factor sexual assault, apparently. 
I'm interested in reading dark stories that include difficult subjects, but to what end? Prince of Thorns didn't make any of its nasty attitude worth it. I would have been intrigued by a well-written, despicable character, but Jorg was frankly tiresome.
This review is coming around four years later because I'm /still/ baffled and annoyed by this book every time I remember I own it.

Elizabeth Neill

I had to make myself to finish this book :(

Francis Buggey

It was ok. Took me a while to finish it. It got incredibly good at the end which is exciting. debating if I want to read the other two.

** spoiler alert **
           Note from 2022: I wrote this review when I was 12 or something, and it's gotten a lot of views since then. I look back at it now expecting to cringe, but I honestly still agree with the spirit of what's been written, even if I would go about it a different way if I wrote it now. But for the sake of transparency, I guess I'll leave it how it is. It has seemed to resonate with some people, and made other people quite angry. I also think that author ML, beyond this initial debut series, has written some cool books and has gotten better (whether consciously having gotten similar feedback from elsewhere along the lines of what is mentioned in this review, or just bc his writing in general got better as he wrote more books — funny how those things kind of go together) with a lot of the issues that got me fired up back in 2011. I liked his Book of the Ancestors series and gave those good reviews on this site. Anyway, if you're still here to leave an angry comment in 2022... can I ask... why bother?

--

Cw: rape

Well, I did it. I finished it to the last page, mostly so I could review it like this. Give me a medal, because I was very much tempted to drop it when within the first few pages, the protagonist manages to rape two women and murder a few others just 'cause. More on this later.

This book was the metaphorical equivalent of some /r/morbidreality bullshit. Palahniuk pulls this shit too, but at least he does it well. Lazy writing. Lazy lazy lazy lazy lazy. It's like filming a trainwreck and presenting it unedited because Oh man look at it! It's Art! It's Edgy! But it's honestly lazy and ineffective and there's just way better stuff out there than this.

I am not protesting the use of rape as a plot device, however sickening I might find it personally. This book starts out with the plundering and burning of some small town in the country. Jorg is seen giving several less-than-stable orders to his men about what exactly they can do about the absence of material wealth, and points them in the way of several farm girls. Cue rape. Just 'cause. It's just so tiring to see men engage with sexual violence when it suits them as a rushed characterization job, then turn around and give the women in the book absolutely no agency or discernible personality. The two juxtaposed are just...so tiring, and utterly uninteresting. 

And why is it that every white male author writes shit like this literally for the sake of being edgy and cool? This was senseless, baseless — there was simply no point. Why am I expected to be sympathetic to the main character when he pulls shit like this?

There was a great quote I'm going to bring up that was directed at ASOIAF, but it will work here:
Tons of trolls have thrown out the “but THINGS WERE JUST LIKE THAT BACK THEN!” argument ad nauseum. Which is total bullshit, of course...

I just want to ask, why is it whenever producers/directors/writers want to demonstrate “gritty historic realism” it’s ALWAYS RAPE? It’s always sexual violence toward women/girls. 

You know what would be gritty historic realism? Dysentery. GoT has battles and armies marching all over the place. You want to show “what things were like back then”? Why aren’t we seeing 500 guys by the side of a road puking and shitting their guts out from drinking contaminated water while the rest of the army straggles along trying to keep going? Or a village getting wiped out by cholera? Or typhus, polio or plague epidemics?

I'M GOING TO GO AHEAD AND ANSWER WHY PEOPLE DON'T SEEM TO WANT TO DO THAT — No one wants to see that shit. Interesting. 

Anyway, let's move on to the other characters.

Wait. What other characters?

Jorg IS the main character, but, I mean, seriously, it's almost as if the most important supporting characters around him were just plot devices in living flesh and bone and nothing more. No development. Totally flat. Lifeless. Existing to only complement the already-gritty-edgy-omgimsocool vibe of the main character. Don't they get any development? At all? 

Another point — one redeeming part of this book could have been female representation, but... what did you DO to Katherine, for fuck's sake?

We have her stand there as Jorg starts to strangle her near the end. That's what you do to her. Here we have that recurring motif of violence against women, where every girl is either raped or beaten and don't exist in this insipid, too-edgy plot in their own right. 

In case you couldn't figure it out, I do not recommend this book.

Christian Huss

This is probably the most amazing dark fantasy novel that I have read all year! The story follows the young Prince Jorg on his quest for revenge. This teen anti-hero is quick witted and has an agenda that will cause the entire empire to fall to its knees. Jorg seems to view the world and its contents as grand pieces in a large game of chess and he will stop at nothing until the one man who killed his mother and brother is erased from the face of earth. However, Jorg is unaware that he may be just another pawn in a game with a much darker force moving the pieces. I absolutely can't wait to read the next installment in the series!

Nat Welch

I really enjoyed this book. Good mixture of dark humor, tragedy and fantasy.

Aleena Korell

“Tell me, tutor,' I said. 'Is revenge a science, or an art?”

If you want to like your protagonist... then I maybe wouldn't recommend The Broken Empire series.
If you want to love your protagonist with a stubborn but entirely irrational love even as you read of him murdering someone, again, in his pursuit of his revenge and his crown, then this is the book for you.

Jorg may be my favorite narrator. Ever. A philosophical, rather murderous, Plutarch-loving, revenge-seeking and-- though diabolical-- quite self-aware fourteen year old who speaks/acts/leads like a 35 year old. Except he leads like no other leader would have the courage (lack of sanity?) to-- with no holds barred, no sacrifices he would not be willing to make. And that's no exaggeration. His intelligence and self-assessing, not to mention his love for his dead little brother and of course his wit and lighthearted quips, make him seem like he might just be redeemable-- if he wants to be. He doesn't. 
....Or does he?

Jorg, you terrifying, maniacal little warrior genius. I shouldn't love you, but I do.

Tom Turner

Having read The Book of the Ancestor series last year and absolutely l loved them, I was hesitant to read The Broken Empire. Tried was because I was lead to believe that BOA was a step up from BE. So I assumed I would be disappointed. What clicked with me and made me take the plunge was reading that Mark Lawrence based Jorg, our brutal protagonist on Alex from Anthony Burges' A Clockwork Orange. I had also heard that the reason why people didn't consider it as good as BOA was that they couldn't connect to study a horrible protagonist. It would be interesting to know, had I read Prince of Thorns without knowing this tidbit of trivia, whether I would have fallen into the trap of misunderstanding this book as others had. But I do definitely feel that this knowledge greatly enhanced my understanding and therefore enjoyment of the book. I would even go as far as saying I might even like it better than BOA, and that's saying something!

celeste

i reread this because i wanted to finish this trilogy but now i don't think i'm interested in continuing. the book bored me, the magic system is vague and confusing, the constant repetition of 'when you play the game of thrones' feels straight outta ASOIAF, and the characters are not interesting me. should i stay for jorg and because this series is grimdark? meh i don't think that's enough for me.

Igor Medeiros

Um personagem que não me conquistou, então terminar a história não foi tão fácil assim.

Daniela V.

"(...)Hate will keep you alive where love fails..."

Prince of Thorns is the first book of The Broken Empire trilogy. It's a character-driven fantasy book set on a post-apocalyptic Europe. I think it's very challenging for a fantasy book to be set on the future when the majority of them take us back to the Medieval Era.

As I stated before, the story is driven by the main character, Jorg Ancrath. He is a prince that has escaped his castle and what is left of his family. He is full of hatred because his mother and his little brother were brutally murdered by Count Renar, four years earlier, while Jorg was watching hanging in a briar thorn bush. Those scars have apparently marked him for life.

The story is told from the perspective of thirteen-year old Jorg, leader of a band of outlaws and some chapters work as flashbacks to tell us what happened 4 years ago.

If you are looking for a heroe, don't read this book. Jorg Ancrath is prince, king and emperor of anti-heroes. He destroys things, he murders people, he rapes women. Although, at the end of the book we get to question all of that. It is a complex story, there are lots of magic, so everything must be questioned. I don't want to give away much information so I'll stop talking and put a quote:

"(...)You’re a piece in somebody else’s game, and all you’ll earn from it is a sword through the stomach, unless you redeem yourself in the next twenty seconds..."

Overall, it's an amazing story, but a few things didn't work out for me. The secondary characters are mildly developed. I've already started the second book of the series, so I can tell you the development gets better.

But my main concern is the lack of information on how this future world turned into an almost medieval one again, how the Empire broke and what really happened the Day of a Thousand Suns. At the beginning of the book I was very disoriented because of this, but some of the last chapters give us an insight in some of these situations.

Also, I liked the duality of Jorg at the end of the book, and I really think we'll encounter someone very different on the second book. And also, a man of eighteen, so maybe my problem trying to figure out how a boy of thirteen could do the things he did won't be an issue anymore.

"(...)Blood is on these hands, these ink-stained hands, but I don’t feel the sin. I think maybe we die every day. Maybe we’re born new each dawn, a little changed, a little further on our own road. When enough days stand between you and the person you were, you’re strangers. Maybe that’s what growing up is. Maybe I have grown up..."

So read it without judgement and enjoy the wonderful prose of Mark Lawrence.

Beta Febrianita

"Hate will keep you alive where love fails."

When he was nine, he watched as his mother and brother were killed before him. By the time he was thirteen, he was the leader of a band of bloodthirsty thugs. By fifteen, he intends to be a king.

Well if those alone can't make you read this book, let me give you another reason, Jorg Ancrath. The first few chapters paint a picture of a young boy, a heartless fourteen year old runaway prince with his band of ragged bloodthirsty thugs intend on burning, killing people and raping women. But deeper into the book, you begin to discover layers behind his persona. He's one of the most complicated character I've read, one minute you want to kiss him, and the next you just want to throttle him dead. 

This book solely depends on Jorg, Jorg being a heartless killing machine, and him showing mercy and compassion. It's like a full swing emotion pendulum reading this book.

"I looked into my own darkness. I knew what it was to be trapped, and to watch ruination. Each day the memories weigh a little heavier. Each day they drag you down that bit further. You wind them around you, a single thread at a time, and you weave your own shroud, you build a cocoon, and in it madness grows.” 

Oh right, the sweet revenge. It's a really slooooww process getting there, but what I truly love about this book is how Jorg stops at nothing to gain his goal. First, his rightful throne, and finally his revenge.
And his ways of doing things blow my mind.

"Tell me, tutor, is revenge a science or an art?"

Lorien O'Brien

Giulia 

#medievalathon

Era esattamente quello che mi serviva dopo una lettura mediocre (per non dire di peggio). In alcune parti non si capisce molto bene cosa succede, ma personalmente adoro gli anti-heroes quindi per me non c'è stato nessun dubbio sul rating *-*. 

Sono molto curiosa di sapere come continuerà la storia :D

Prince of Thorns

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