Book 3), Half a War (Shattered Sea

Solid ending to the trilogy. It's not near as thrilling as the Before They Were Hanged series, but Father Yarvi is complex enough to keep you interested in his schemes and the final outcome. The nod to modern technology took some of the thrill from the ending. I would have preferred a gritty final battle with the best swordsmen on each side squaring off.

This last book redeemed the series for me after the unnecessarily graphic sex scene in the second book moved into teen romance novel for a time. I didn't see the end coming which made it all the more satisfying. I will recommend the series with a caveat about the second book.

He spent a lot of time building some really good characters that we find out without any fanfare.....died......come on......the last book built Brand I to a hero about to emerge.......he should have killed Bright Yilling.......

Contains spoilers - I very much enjoyed the first two books in this trilogy, but was very disappointed by the third. I really grew to like Thorn and Brand in Books 1 and 2, but really missed them in Book 3. Too many new characters at the expense of those we've grown to care about. And I wasn't thrilled that Yarvi turned out to be a traitor and a bully. Finally, the whole elf-magic weaponry discussions turned out to be wholly unsatisfying. There is a short description of lighting in tubes, which I assumed to be fluorescent lights, at the armory in the elf city. So we're to believe that 15th century-like folks can just pick up a weapon built by an advanced, but extinct, culture, and simply master their use immediately? Sure, maybe they should have also just jumped into a starfighter and laid waste to the High King from the sky? Also, there is a discussion of a slow sickness that effects those that went on the elf-city expedition and didn't get "magic beans". I assumed that referred to some kind of radiation sickness. But there was no further discussion of it nor any explanation of how Skifr got those magic beans. Kinda sad, because this series started out strong.

Oooo This was a brutal one. Every character we've grown attached to return and new ones are introduced for the final battle that will change everything, for those who survive. Author Joe Abercrombie doesn't hold back from the roughness of war and the toll it takes. I was surprised with the routes some characters took, especially Father Yarvi, but all of it led to a satisfying ending. At first I was a little let down, but after some reflection, I realize this is the right ending for the trilogy and wouldn't want it any other way. New characters Skara, Raith, and familiar face Koll are very engaging. Skara is a strong and fantastic female hero. Raith started off as a jerk but his story quickly drew me in and I found myself liking him. Koll has a complex journey and I was glad to see his story end the way it did. I'd heard that these books were excellent, and I was so happy to believe those words. This is one of the best fantasies I've ever read and highly recommend it to anyone who loves light fantasy with intrigue, betrayal, romance, and wicked power struggles. Not to be missed!

Half a War is the conclusive third book in Joe Abercrombie's Shattered Sea saga. It follows on smoothly from the events at the conclusion of Half a World and we find ourselves witness to the politics and events surrounding a very shaky alliance of nations. These nations of once bitter enemies being Vansterland ruled by The Breaker of Swords and neighbouring Gettland whose monarch is The Iron King. (You don't get nicknames like those anymore...) Their association is only held as it is at this time due to the imminent war with The High King with his gathered support of the majority of the world's military.

Although all the colourful character's from the prior two books who we have grown to love, respect, not trust, amongst other emotions are present here, the novel mainly follows two new editions to the narrative. The first of these new players is the young self-doubting Princess Skara from Throvenland who is ill-prepared for the brutality of this world and the war which threatens her homeland. The second is Raith, Vansterland's ruler's swordbearer whose traits are that he is a violence-loving, war hungry, emotionless brute. We closely follow their journies and the way that they changed and grew during the book's progression, whilst evaluating where their place in this world was and what they aspired to be. It is intriguing to see how their decisions cause ripples throughout the story as they change their, and others ultimate destinies. These two characters do cross each others paths throughout the book and it is really intriguing how they interact yet I will not say anymore regarding that point as I do not wish to spoil the story.

This trilogy is not as complicated as a large amount of modern fantasy. Abercrombie does not feel the tale would be enhanced with advising us about fourteen thousand years of history and in addition, unlike some tales from this genre, the God's and their attributes are easy to follow in the simplistic and self-explanatory nature of their names. Mother Sun, Father Earth, Mother War etc... These factors make me believe that a younger audience would appreciate what is printed here, moreso than some of the "Swords and Sorcery" books that are out there. Hell, we even have a couple of love stories in the mix for good measure.

One of the main concepts in this story is that only half a war is won with swords. There are a wealth of individuals who support this side of the war spectrum including Bright Yilling and Thorn Bathu. The other side is more focused on what can be achieved and won with the mind as seen by the cunningness of Farther Yarvi and Koll amongst others. It may be that both sides will be just as influential in the unfolding of the events.

There are twists and turns aplenty to look forward to as well which come across with such high impact because we only follow one side of the warring factions point of views and therefore have no idea what the other alliance are plotting or doing at any time apart from rumours, hearsay and the messages delivered from other nations by birds.

We are blessed with everything you could wish for from a fantastic fantasy finale including epic warrior showdowns, betrayals, sieges, love ones lost, battles on the bow of ships etc... The saga is wrapped up nicely and is fulfilling to those who have dedicated numerous hours into this world. It is anything but predictable. It also seems like Abercrombie could return to write future novels in this universe should he wish going forwards.

The only real gripe I had is minor and that is the fact that characters seemed to traverse the landscape of this world ridiculously fast so they appear at the next important plot point conveniently. In previous books, these journies would have taken much longer than the time that passes on the occasions here.

I think I will pick up The Blade Itself next and just see how different the worlds are.

James :) - If you have a spare two minutes then check out my blog@ [...]

3.5 Stars

I have loved this trilogy and I have to admit that I feel somewhat guilty about the fact that I didn't rate this final book in the trilogy as high as the two prior books. I base my rating strictly on my enjoyment of the story and I just didn't enjoy this book as much as the first two books. These books are the only books by Joe Abercrombie that I have read and I guess I had hoped for an ending that would feel satisfying and a little bit of happily ever after. This final book left me rather depressed and there was no happily ever after to be found.

The book focuses largely on Princess Skara. Princess Skara witnesses the murder of the king, her grandfather before she is whisked away to safety by Blue Jenner. She must now step in to rule the kingdom but first she must ensure its safety. I liked a lot of things about Skara. I liked the fact that she stepped up and proved to be a natural leader. She was able to pick people as her support that may be an unconventional choice but the right one for her. She was also able to win over the staff she was assigned so that they became loyal to her. Princess Skara proved to be a strong leader despite her age and lack of experience.

Even though I liked Princess Skara, I have to admit that I liked the central characters in the first two books more and I was thrilled to see all of the characters that I have grown to love come together in this book. Every character in this trilogy is so unique and colorful and the changes that have occurred with each one of them over the course of the trilogy has been astounding. Some of the characters I have liked more and more with each book while other characters have become harder to like. I really think that the strength of this trilogy is in the characters.

This book was just as exciting as the prior books in the trilogy. There were lots of fighting and action scenes and at times the story was rather bloody. There was also a lot of war planning and political maneuvering in this book. Princess Skara is in a delicate position to take over her kingdom since she is both young and female. She is forced to make decisions at times that will put herself and her kingdom in the best position.

I enjoyed quite a lot in this book. The section of the book where we finally get to see a little more of the elf city was very interesting. I really liked some of the characters that had an important role in this book. Raith was a fantastic character and I think that Koll and Rin grew a lot in this book. There were also some things that I didn't care for as much in this book. There was one character's death that I didn't see coming that really bothered me. The fact that the death happened outside of the story being told made it worse. If that character had to die, I would have at least liked to have it happen withing the focus of the story. I really wanted to the story to end in a hopeful manner but that wasn't the case. I was left feeling rather depressed when I realized how far some characters had been able to fall.

I would recommend this book to others. This is a trilogy that is really best to be read in order so I would recommend that readers new to the trilogy start with the first book in the series. I will be looking forward to future works by Joe Abercrombie and I am actually hoping that there may be other books set within this world at some point in the not so distant future.

The conclusion to Abercrombie's Shattered Sea fantasy trilogy, Half a War follows a story begun in Half a King and continued in Half the World. The first book introduced Yarvi, a prince born with a crippled hand, who events pull unwillingly onto the throne amid a storm of interstate intrigue that leads to his removal from royal obligations and into literal captivity.

If you haven't yet read the previous books in this series I recommend that you do. Half a War is an excellent conclusion to an impressive and deceptively simple series. Starting as something classifiable as YA fiction, and filled with a sense of some brightness and hope, the series progresses into greater complexity. Characters increasingly, and more easily make moral compromises for 'the greater good', or prove incapable of the heroism that their world - and perhaps the reader - expects of them. By this third book the series approaches closer to fitting Abercrombie's Twitter handle, LordGrimdark. Not as extreme as some epic fantasy may get, Shattered Sea does pass beyond what I would consider a tone for YA. The sense of hope for a better world, of pursuing any pureness of character falls into decay, leaving settlements with options that are less bad, and acceptance of personal imperfections within a broken, harsh world.

The series thus has a gritty realism that should be familiar to anyone paying attention to the politics of 2016, in the United States, Britain, or beyond. The strengths of this series of fantasy novels from Abercrombie is the detached, authentic way he deals with characters, allowing them to make immense sacrifices in this story of their lives (particularly Yarvi's in the full scope). There is little complexity to the plots or the overall goals of the characters. But how are they going to get from A to B? How they are going to rationalize the best path? And what must they allow, or do to themselves and one another, for the betterment of the people they are responsible for? What does success look like? What does failure? And does something lie in between those two outcomes? These are the questions that the Shattered Sea series is concerned with.

In wrapping up the series Half a War focuses fairly equally between the different protagonists: Yarvi who was the focus of the first book, Thorn who was the focus (with Brand) of the second book, and Princess Skara now added as a major component of this third book. Although the series as a whole is clearly Yarvi's story - and oh what development he goes through! - introductions of each other protagonist never felt disappointing for long to this reader. I didn't mind pulling away from direct points of view through Yarvi because those providing the new points of view were just as compelling. Secondary characters were equally brilliant, despite their faults, compromises, or failures.

For any fans of fantasy with a 'classical' feel, but modern sensibilities, or those looking for complexity and tones of realistic darkness/despair without fully going down a 'Red Wedding' sort of route, this series should appeal. If you've already read Half a King, but not the others, you really should discover where Yarvi's journey, his service to his kingdom and its people, take him and those he uses.

Disclaimer: I received a free advanced electronic reading copy of this from the publisher via the First-Reads program from Goodreads in exchange for an honest review that originally ran on Reading1000Lives.com

WORST in the series. This book took every character you had become attached to in the first two but oks and either left them out or ruined them entirely. Princess Skara was ridiculous and by the end very annoying. Her wearing chain mail was just stupid. The abortion was unnecessary and I'm not sure why he decided to include it as it added nothing to the story. Thorn became a set extra and Yarvi an evil villain. Just a terrible waste for a series that started off strong and deserved a better ending.

Half a War by Joe Abercrombie is the concluding volume in the Shattered Sea trilogy, and what a conclusion it is! This review will contain spoilers for the previous two volumes in the series if you haven’t read them yet, so consider yourself warned.

Joe Abercrombie has written a great series in the Shattered Sea trilogy, and while Half a War is a very good book, the series as a whole is even greater than the sum of its parts. While characters continue from book to book, the focus shifts to a new character in each book. Half a King introduces Yarvi, Half a World introduces Brand and Thorn Bathu (love her!), and Half a War introduces us to Princess Skara. Each of these characters makes a journey from the beginning of the book to the end, at least spiritually, but it is Yarvi who takes the greatest journey from the beginning of the series to the end.

Yarvi was always wise and “a deep cunning man”, yet the events in the first book removed whatever naivety remained and set him on a course of vengeance that isn’t complete until the final pages of the last book. The magnitude of his actions and their consequences hits him and you like a load of bricks. Even a deep cunning man cannot foresee every twist and turn of a complicated plan.

Half a War brings to fruition the conflict with Grandmother Wexen and the High King. Villain Bright Yilling is chillingly ruthless and frighteningly confident making him a fitting counterpoint for the coming of age Princess Skara, who balances her own cunning with a desire to do good and protect her people. The only character I really didn’t care for in this book, and the series for that matter, was Skara’s erstwhile love interest Raith. I never took him seriously and he never really seemed to have a purpose. His was the only character journey that I didn’t really buy.

Besides the main characters, a number of secondary characters are well written and interesting in their own rights. One of the things that sets this series apart is the sheer volume of interesting and complex characters. Not everyone makes it out alive and every victory comes with a cost. The characters at the end of the book are not the same as the ones at the beginning, and you feel their pain. Yarvi in particular has an objective in mind from the very beginning, but the ruthlessness and the sacrifice with which he pursues it isn’t fully revealed until the very end.

The world-building and plot of this book and this series are interesting, but it is all in service of the characters. And I absolutely loved these characters, warts and all. I read the first book in the series and listened to the audio version of the last two. If you want a real treat, listen to John Keating’s narration of these audiobooks. He does an amazing job bringing these characters to life. The character voices are distinctive and entertaining. One of the best jobs of narration I’ve listened to.

I highly recommend this book and this series. I was fortunate to receive an advance copy of this book.

My review today is for Half a War (Shattered Sea Book 3) by Joe Abercrombie.

I was very excited for this book, so much so that I pre-ordered it and not-so patently waited for it to come out. I was not disappointed. This is the final installment of the Shattered Sea series. It was not a surprise that once again there is a shift in protagonist. I was expecting this after having been surprised by this move in the second book. As it turns out the new characters are once again great additions. Princess Skara, Vansterland warrior Raith, and Father Yarvi’s apprentice, Koll are the new kids in this book. Their stories intertwine in a variety of twist and turns. Skara and her story are at the forefront this time, and the book revolves around her plot. We still get the characters from the previous books making their way though this story. It is a nice blend of new characters with the recurring ones that we know and love.

As with the first Two books the story telling is top notch, Characters are intriguing and you get invested. The world is a wonderfully brutal viking paradise, the way I like them. This book seems like it could be a little more gritty than the first two books, and for me that is a plus. Overall a great offering by Mr. Abercrombie. I think a slight step below the first two books but still a very good book. The only negative is I was not quite happy with the ultimate fate of Yarvi. I wish it could have ended differently for the deep cunning Minister, I had grown rather fond of the character. In any case This was a fantastic series and I am now a big fan of Mr. Abercrombie. I can’t wait to read his other books that I have acquired while reading this series. I am also very anxious to see what comes next in the Joe Abercrombie bibliography!

As you know if you have read my reviews before I am not about long reviews with synopsis and spoilers. I just give my opinion on my experience with this book and you can take it from there. Now on to the next book.

4/5 STARS - mightythorjrs

I have been a fan of Joe Abercrombie since he first wrote his First Law Trilogy back in 2009. Abercrombie is famous for being one of the founding fathers of Grimdark Fantasy, meaning his books are dark, full of amoral characters, and full of violence. Because of this, I had no idea how he was going to transition his writing style into that of a young adult fantasy trilogy, which the Shattered Sea series is.

I should have never worried.

Abercrombie proves his mastery in his chosen field as an author with the Shattered Sea series. Not only has Abercrombie retained a high level of action and intrigue, but he has also retained the complexity of characters and character development that originally drew so much attention to his First Law Trilogy. Villains are portrayed as heres, heroes act in a villainous fashion, and everything in between. My personal favorite characters in the series were Brand and Kroll, as both of these characters were plagued with indecision as to whether greatness by traditional methods or a quiet life with the possibility of happiness was their goal, and the waring risks and plights that came with each of these decisions in obtaining these goals. That said, fans of Breaking Bad will absolutely love Abercrombie's books whether the be adult or young adult.

Oc course, an issue that had only been hinted at in previous books in the series, but is much more thoroughly addressed in Half a War, are the Elf Relics. These relics and their ruins and the history associated with them are positively jaw dropping in what they reveal, to the point that while I don't want to give anything away, I will say that after completing this final book in the trilogy that I went back to the beginning to re-read the series because of the stark change in light that this information reveals.

All in all, I loved Half a War and the entire Shattered Sea Series, and readers of all ages will find themselves swept away by this story. The characters develop and are plagued with conflicts and indecision, the plot is fast paced, filled with intrigue, and non stop action, and the writing is just plan superb. That said, if you are looking for a book where everyone ends up happy and there are clear cut good guys and bad guys, with easy decisions, that's fine, but then this is not the book for you. However if you're looking for a book that will keep you up all night finishing it, and will leave you staring at the last pages wanting to know more, then readers need not look any further.

http://whatchamacallitreviews.blogspot.com/2015/07/half-war-by-joe-abercrombie.html

After reading the first two books in this trilogy (Half a King and Half the World) I shouldn’t be surprised about how amazing Joe Abercrombie’s writing is. But here I am, stunned at this beautiful conclusion of the Shattered Seas trilogy. Let me tell you, I was not ready for this trilogy to end. If you read either of my reviews for the first two books, you’d know that I absolutely loved them and I knew Half a War wouldn’t disappoint. From amazing character growth to fast paced adventure, Abercrombie had me on the edge of my seat until the last page.

Now, as per the first two, we are introduced to a new main character in the book. Skara is a princess and at first I wasn’t sold on her. Because lets be honest no one can compare to Thorn Bathu *heart eyes*. I figured Skara to just be this whiny little princess who is putting on a big kid face instead of stepping up like I’d expect her to. But page after page she left me rooting for her more and more. Despite the fact that she was dreadful at times, she grew into one of the strongest women in the book. And that all on it’s own should be enough to make you want to read this. Abercrombie continually writes these amazingly real strong female main characters.

I feel like Abercrombie is the King of writing characters. From the first book on, every character that is introduced gets so delicately intertwined into the plot. So to get such deep character development within one book and then within the whole trilogy, each and everyone of them feel real. He makes you feel what they feel, he builds them up in front of you and then he tears them down just show you that they can build themselves back up again. He makes you love them and then he rips them from you and breaks your heart a hundred times over. This trilogy is not just about the fight for the Shattered Seas, it’s the fight within oneself, to be better, to be worse, to fall and get back up. So kudos for the strongest characters I’ve ever seen come to life in books.

There was never a moment where I could just stop and breathe while reading this. The plot was so vast and each character wove a new thread in it, but it never once felt heavy. I never felt like I was drowning in descriptions or too many characters or plot points at once. Everything and everyone had their place that they fit perfectly into.

Half a War isn’t sugar coated with romance or coddling, it’s thrown in your face with violence, betrayal, greed, blood thirst, and reality. From chopping heads off to poison to burning of whole villages, the violence almost made you want to cover your eyes and read between the cracks of your fingers. Death was no stranger to the Shattered Seas, Abercrombie was definitely not shy when it came to death. After reading book after book, you learn not to get too attached because at any moment, they’d be snatched away. And let me tell you, my heart broke multiple times just reading Half a War. You never see it coming either, it’s just like that, one minute they are they and the next they aren’t. It’s shocking and surprising but real.

Now, most books drop in ratings due to the romance and such, but again, Abercrombie wrote it perfectly. He even had me swooning over a couple that I absolutely adored. Here’s the thing though, it wasn’t instant love, there wasn’t love at first sight, there was no huge focus on it. Sure, there was insinuated sex, kissing, marriage even, but never in your face, it never happened at a snap of your finger. It was messy, and hurtful and heartbreaking but it always felt like a natural progression.

And, as always that brings me to the end of the book, which blew my mind. The intensity, the intrigue, the ‘whaaaaaaat?!’ moment, that brought everything together. It was exactly how an amazing trilogy should end. With me crying and thinking to myself “how the hell did I miss that?!” So again, kudos.

I could post another checklist, or a ton of amazing quotes that hit super close to home. But really, if you’ve read all three of these reviews and haven’t picked up this trilogy then you are depriving yourself of truly amazing reads.

This month marks the completion of Joe Abercrombie’s ‘Half a Trilogy’ (Okay, it’s actually called the Shattered Sea Trilogy) with the July 28th release of Half a War. Those who have been following the adventures of Yarvi, Thorn, Brand, and Kings Uthil and Grom-gil-Gorm in their quest to free the Shattered Sea from the iron grip of the High King and Mother Wexen need wait no longer. All of these characters from ‘Half a King’ and ‘Half a World’ have returned and new ones have been added to the trilogy’s pantheon of heroes.

Foremost among the new characters introduced in this final volume is Skara, a 17 year-old princess from Throvenland, a neighboring country whose king, Skara’s grandfather, and minister are murdered by the High king’s agents in the opening pages as the young princess watches helplessly. Skara escapes and makes her way to Thorlby to enlist the aid of the Gettlanders and Vanstermen in recapturing her kingdom. Now a queen, Skara becomes the centerpiece of the book as she uses all the wit and wiles she has been taught to bend her two allies to her will. This is a job made much more difficult as the newly formed alliance between Gettland and Vansterland is fragile on the best of days and threatening to collapse on the rest.

Queen Skara makes a remarkable character, a strong female character that is seldom seen in fantasy. She knows what she needs to do and makes it happen despite the tremendous odds stacked against her.

While I enjoyed this book, I think that Abercrombie ended the second book too far from the finish line to neatly wrap up all of the threads in a single volume. I found the flow from scene to scene, or battle to battle was occasionally a bit clunky like he was trying to cram in more information that would fit comfortably. One thing that I did like about the end was the way Abercrombie handled the evolution of his characters, for better or worse. Some matured while others were inevitably corrupted by their hatred. That was well done.

Bottom line: As a master fantasist, I was glad to see Abercrombie try his hand at Young Adult fiction. I also appreciate that he was able to write and publish an entire trilogy in just under two years. George R. R. Martin could learn a thing or two from him.

* The review book was based on an advanced reading copy obtained at no cost from the publisher in exchange for an unbiased review. While this does take any ‘not worth what I paid for it’ statements out of my review, it otherwise has no impact on the content of my review.

FYI: On a 5-point scale I assign stars based on my assessment of what the book needs in the way of improvements:
• 5 Stars – Nothing at all. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
• 4 Stars – It could stand for a few tweaks here and there but it’s pretty good as it is.
• 3 Stars – A solid C grade. Some serious rewriting would be needed in order for this book to be considered good or memorable.
• 2 Stars – This book needs a lot of work. A good start would be to change the plot, the character development, the writing style and the ending.
• 1 Star - The only thing that would improve this book is a good bonfire.

I was excited to finish the Shattered Sea trilogy since I enjoyed both of the first two books. There's something so satisfying about finishing a series.

Each of the books shifts focus to a different narrator. The main narrator of HALF A WAR is Skara, a princess who sees her family slaughtered. She's traumatized and in exile, but she's also a queen now. She must figure out how to be more than a figurehead and rescue her country from war. Half a war is political shenanigans, and I love political shenanigans. (What I didn't love is how many times characters express that sentiment. Half a war, it's the title, we get it.)

The protagonists of the previous two books do appear. Yarvi is used very well. He's changed from who he was at the beginning of HALF A KING, and do many of the characters' points of view he's one of the villains. Even though we only got a third of his journey through his eyes, it's been an intriguing one to watch. I didn't think Thorn and Brand, from HALF THE WORLD, were used as well. In fact, I rather disliked how they were treated in this book.

The Shattered Sea trilogy is composed of three very different coming-of-age stories. Skara's story is probably my favorite of the three. I admired the balance between her inexperience and her ability to learn quickly, listen wisely, and act decisively. The co-protagonist, Raith, didn't impress me as much. He's a brutal fighter annoyed at being traded to Skara like a thing, but he does think she's hot. His character development felt inorganic, especially when Skara's was right there being done smoothly and neatly.

I thought HALF A WAR was a strong ending to the series. The main storylines come to satisfying conclusions, but not completely neat ones that are false to what comes before. The previous stories are built on, although too many elements from HALF THE WORLD fall to the wayside. And Skara is the strongest protagonist of the series, which definitely gives the story a boost. I think HALF A WAR will definitely satisfy fans of the Shattered Sea trilogy.

Continuing the formula of the earlier books, the third book features a new central character: Princess Skara of Throvenland. As war erupts across the Shattered Sea, the High King’s army invades wasting everything in its path. Skara is smuggled from the royal palace as it’s overrun and flees to the protection of her cousin, Queen Lathlin. At first a sobbing girl who’s lost everything, she quickly realizes she’s her country’s only true hope. As the last surviving member of the royal family she’s been elevated from 18-year old princess to Queen overnight. The forces loyal to her are insignificant, but she still has the political clout of her title, years of training in diplomacy, and a shrewd cunning. Throvenland will be claimed by the war’s victor unless she can use her skills and wits to achieve a political salvation.

Abercrombie does a great job portraying the insecurities of a teenage girl bravely rising to the challenge before her. Skara feels 18, but she also feels like a Queen. It’s really exciting watching her skillfully manipulate two kings to ensure the outcome needed for her people. She makes hard choices and places the welfare of her nation above herself. She doesn’t always make the right choice, but she makes believable, human choices that you experience with her, just like Yarvi and Thorn in the earlier books.

Among the new characters, Bright Yilling is delightfully evil as the High King’s warhound, a merciless killer who worships death.

I really love this trilogy. They’re all great character driven adventures that pack a lot of content in an economy of words. The main characters are mostly teenagers, but there’s no YA pandering, making these books very accessible to teens and adults.

This book ties off the main threads, but there's plenty of room for revisiting the Shattered Sea and these characters should Abercrombie choose to.

Highly recommended.

I was underwhelmed by Half a King, the novel that started Joe Abercrombie's latest epic series. While I still think the deus ex machina required to make its plot work stretched credibility, my esteem for and enjoyment of that book is has increased greatly now that I've had a chance to read Half the World and Half a War, the remaining books in the Shattered Sea trilogy.

These three books manage to be both great product for the Young Adult market while staying absolutely true to the unromantic vision of fantasy we've come to expect from Abercrombie. Though each book contains a romance, none of them are fairy tales. Relationships undergo periods of uncertainty, others of joy and some of great sadness.

Through it all there's intrigue, great battles and larger than life heroes. But there aren't really villains - or at least only a very few - due to the rotating point of view characters in each book. The protagonist of the tale's first act can hardly be trusted by the conclusion; the heroine of the second book a monster for parts of the third. The author has made use of the notion that we're all heroes of our own story and villains of someone else's in writing and promoting this series, and he has succeeded without question in making that a central theme.

I still can't say that I loved The Shattered Sea...The First Law trilogy and the books in that world remain my favorite Abercrombie works. For all the literary craft and inventiveness on display in these books to cross genre and utilize the device of rotating narrators to new effect, the author leans pretty heavily on fantasy tropes like societies "left behind" by great cultures and magic actually being what the audience knows as science.

But I still recommend it wholeheartedly to fans of Abercrombie or 21st century sword, sorcery and political intrigue. If you're like me and weren't sold on Half a King...continue on with The Shattered Sea trilogy. You won't be disappointed.

In this final installment to the "Shattered Sea" trilogy, new teenage characters Princess Skara and Raith, and returning character Koll have pivotal roles to play in resolving various conflicts that Father Yarvi of Gettland hopes would be to his advantage or satisfaction.

Yarvi's conflict with the High King of the Shattered Sea and his evil minister, Grandmother Wexen, has come to a head. The latter have amassed a huge army that's closing in on Yarvi and allies on land and sea.

Koll has become Father Yarvi's trusted apprentice, on his way to becoming a minister if he so chooses.

Princess Skara is the lone royal survivor of Throvenland who has fled to the relative safety of supposed ally Gettland, after Bright Yilling -- the High King's Champion -- has half-burned her homeland to waste, before the allied forces of Gettland and Vansterland commanded respectively by Kings Uthil and Grom-gil-Gorm could come to Throvenland's aid.

Raith is King Grom-gil-Gorm's cup filler, sword bearer, and trained killer assigned to "watch over" Princess Skara and will have a special role to play in determining the princess' fate.

The alliance forged between former enemies Kings Uthil and Grom-gil-Gorm against the High King has been and remains a tenuous one. Somehow, however, Princess Skara, who seems to have the same gift of cunning as Father Yarvi's, manages to talk the two into helping her recapture a Throvenland fortress that happens to also have strategic importance to the alliance.

The task would not be an easy one, however, and when the alliance gets wind of the overwhelming odds against them, Uthil and Grom-gil-Gorm begin to have second thoughts again. Just when the alliance gets close to crumbling, two unexpected events occur, one of which is the fortuitous arrival of Yarvi's magical-elf-relic-stealing-witch-friend Skifr, who presents to Yarvi a time-critical but also dangerous plan on how to turn the tide of the war in the alliance's favor. Realizing that the entire alliance would be more likely to go along with the risky plan if he has Princess Skara's vote, Father Yarvi attempts to win the princess' support.

Doing what has given him prior success, Father Yarvi chooses the lesser evil to hopefully attain what he perceives to be the greater good. This time, however, he will come to really regret some of his actions, and in Princess Skara, he would find his potential match, in terms of secretiveness and cunning.

The novel concludes with readers knowing definitely what happens to every major character. Readers who have read the trilogy's first two installments will know by now that it is during the concluding parts of a novel that the author reveals what "lesser evils" had Father Yarvi committed in order to hopefully turn the odds in his favor. As always, one or more of those "evil" acts -- but probably not all of them -- will come as a complete surprise. The difference this time is that some of those evils really make Father Yarvi a much much darker character, which was personally a disappointment to me.

Other disappointments include some very contrived dialogs and scenes involving villain Bright Yilling's interactions with "good guys" Kings Uthil and Grom-gil-Gorm. Overall, however, I found the Princess Skara, Raith, and Koll characters in this novel interesting and well developed.

The conclusion to Joe Abercrombie's latest trilogy is more an elaboration than an evolution, but for many readers that will be no bad thing. Characters new and old are preparing for a rebellion against the High King, but the chances of success are so slim that the only way to win may be worse than losing. That's the kind of thing cover copy usually tells us, but one of the nice things about the Shattered Sea trilogy is that it isn't just empty hype. Abercrombie works to imbue his situations with genuine moral ambiguity, which can make for a bleak reading experience but is honest to the ruthless warrior culture of the setting. The only drawback is that these ambiguities, and the way they're explored, are much the same as in Half a King, first and finest of the trilogy, and Half the World, the less successful middle book. With a faster pace and a greater sense of narrative urgency (not to mention romantic subplots that are less trite), Half a War improves on Half the World, but the air of sameness remains. Each of the three new point-of-view characters is a clear parallel to one of the three from the previous books, and the final twist in each volume is identical, albeit on an increasing scale. Even the prose style becomes overly familiar, with the characters' cheerfully insulting banter and the thematic reflections on honor, battle, and the greater good piling up so much they could be the tools for a drinking game. And yet, at its best the book is so compelling that one simply tears through the repetitive material without stopping to think about it. Established Abercrombie fans will certainly find Half a War rewarding; those new to him might be better served by beginning with Half a King, which works as a standalone, and deciding whether they like that one enough to read two longer books in the same vein. I certainly did, and I look forward to seeing what Abercrombie does next.

I received an advanced review copy (ARC) of "Half a War" by Joe Abercrombie in late June so I figured I should both read it and review it.

I'm still not sure why I was selected to receive the ARC but I'm glad I was. I had already read the first two books in the series, "Half a King" and "Half the World" and I had fully planned on reading this one anyway so it was kind of nice to get it for free. So there is your disclaimer; I was compensated a copy of this book before I ever wrote this review.

As with each of the prior books in the series the primary characters are young, about 17, and the story is told from from their perspective. In "Half a King" the primary protagonist was Yarvi. Yarvi continues to play a prominent role in "Half the World" but the focus moves to two other young characters in Brand and Thorn.

The same pattern holds true with "Half a War." Yarvi and Thorn are both featured in this book (and Brand in passing) but two new young leads appear to take us through this final tale in the triology - Princesss Scara of Throvenland and Raith - a berserker warrior from Vansterland who has sworn fealty to Grom Gil Gorm. In addition two these two a younger character from "Half the World", Koll, plays a more prominent role as he has reached the correct age (around 17) to be one of the protagonists.

"Half a War" is the conclusion to the story that started in "Half a King" and as such it continues to be focused around the slowly building war between the Grandmother Wexen and her puppet the High King and the nations of the north; Vansterland, Throvenland, and Gettland.

Abercrombie does a nice job, as usual. I really enjoyed the pacing of the book and his harried descriptions of battle from the berserker perspective of Raith is really good; in fact he does one of the best jobs I've seen of capturing the breathless feeling of blood raged battle.

Skara is a little dull at times and, while she is described as having deep cunning I felt like her character was a little flat and uninspired through most of the book. She improves some as the tale progresses - but overall I felt like Abercrombie missed a chance to develop a really interesting character.

I thought it was interesting how Raith is shown to evolve over the course of the book but much of his evolution seemed rushed and unlikely considering his nature at the start of the tale. I appreciate that Abercrombie doesn't drag the book out forever but Raith's growth seemed unrealistic considering the apparent time frame of the book.

Overall I enjoyed the book quite a bit even though I think, perhaps, it was the weakest of the three. I probably liked them in descending order as a series even though I liked Thorn and Brand more than Yarvi, Yarvi's story in book one was probably the most interesting.

“Folk aren’t just cowards or heroes. They’re both and neither, depending on how things stand. Depending on who stands with them, who stands against. Depending on the life they’ve had. The death they see waiting.”

This final volume of the Shattered Sea trilogy, Joe Abercrombie once again shows us why he is included among the very top tier of today’s writers of fantasy fiction. He abandons most of the usual fantasy tropes and tells a much more realistic and gritty story. The good guys and the bad guys are not so easily identified. Sometimes, just when you think you understand where the point-of-view character in any particular chapter is headed, when you think you’ve read this script before, Abercrombie’s characters surprise you.

This is the climax of the trilogy of course and as the title implies, the coming war is finally here. The events of the first two volumes culminate here and the numerous characters are faced with their individual destinies. Just as in the last volume, “Half the World”, Abercrombie keeps the overall story fresh by switching to two major point-of-view characters for this tale. This time it is Princess Skara and the warrior Raith who provide the main perspective for us. The war itself is large but the focus is on the individual characters and their roles, whether in the shield wall or in planning the battle response. There are a fair number of romantic pursuits among the characters and, just as in life, not all end with a happily-ever-after result. It’s an emotional novel, more so than the first two I would say. In fact this one reminded me much more of Abercrombie’s earlier novels.

Many of the story lines come to a point of completion but not all and it seems likely that Abercrombie may have some plans for the future that might still involve these characters. If so, I will be ready and waiting.

Highly recommended.

War has arrived in Throvenland and the young princess Skara has been left the only one able to speak for its future. But can the remaining people of Throvenland plus the armies of Vansterland and Gettland, with their uneasy truce, hope to defeat the combined forces of the High King?

I really enjoyed the second book in this series, Half the World, but this third was, as the title suggests, all about war. It doesn’t make for particularly light reading. Everyone is out for revenge, but when it comes it only leads to an empty feeling. Plenty of people die in nasty ways, plenty of innocents as well as the hardened warriors.

The characters are what makes this series special. In Half a King, we heard Yarvi’s story, in Half the World it was Thorn and Brand’s story and in this third book there are three points of view – Skara, the young Queen of Throvenland, Raith, a warrior of Vansterland and Koll, Father Yarvi’s apprentice. The stories all tie together and previous characters play parts in later books. Having three points of view in Half a War really allows the story to spread out more and see what’s going on in multiple camps, but at the expense of character development – each character gets a bit less page time, and we don’t always get to see the characters grow.

I really thought that Half the World was the better book in this trilogy, but it’s well worth reading all three to round out the story.

There’s plenty of room for more stories in this world, but this book had a very satisfying ending to it – all the pieces slot together and most people got mostly what they deserved. Read this series if you like Game of Thrones or other gritty high fantasy.

I received an ARC copy of this book and I was giddy with delight! Joe Abercrombie is one of my favorite writers and this, the conclusion to the Shattered Sea trilogy, is a book I have been drooling for since I finished the second installment. To receive this book for free, and ahead of general release, was pure bliss. Which is why it pains me to give this four stars rather than five.

I started reading and was immediately wrapped up in Abercrombie prose bliss - no one else writes like Joe, and this was his trademark delightful prose from the very first page. I was ripping through the pages and enjoying the heck out of myself until about halfway through the book when I realized that the plot was lurching forward in such a straight and predictable line that I was growing bored. Heretofore now, I've never felt an Abercrombie book to be predictable. Yet this book had very, very little in the way of plot twists. The POV characters also switched again to another set of previously unmet people. Changing the protagonists from one book to the next in the trilogy was a brave thing for Joe to do, and I applaud him for trying it. Ultimately I can't say that I enjoyed it though. I could have happily just stuck with Yarvi as the lead throughout the trilogy.

So, in the end, I did enjoy this book a lot, I screamed through it quickly, was pleased to have read it, and found it a decent wrap up to the series, but also found it a little predictable, perhaps a little rushed, and not quite as thrilling as the first two books. It's definitely worth reading, and it's definitely enjoyable, but I think I would have enjoyed it even more if the protagonists didn't keep changing every book.

I *loved* the first two books in the Shattered Sea trilogy: HALF A KING and HALF THE WORLD. So to say I was looking forward to the conclusion, HALF A WAR, is an understatement. I like my fantasy dark and gritty, and Joe Abercrombie certainly delivers on that -- and the Viking feel of the series doesn’t hurt, either.

HALF A WAR is the perfect title for this book, because half the war against the High King is fought in battle and the other half is fought with words. The two main characters of HALF A WAR each fight in their own way. Princess Skara, who loses her family and country to the High King’s men can only use words and her cunning to save what’s left of Throvenland. Raith, Grom-gil-Gorm’s sword bearer, only wants to fight and surrender to battle lust.

I can’t quite put my finger on why, but I didn’t enjoy HALF A WAR as much as the other two books. I liked it, but I didn’t love it. I think it’s that Skara and Raith weren’t as strong for me as Yarvi and Thorn. Yarvi and Thorn are in HALF A WAR, and I did like seeing Yarvi’s machinations through Skara’s eyes, but … I don’t know. I just didn’t connect with Skara and Raith and Koll (Father Yarvi’s apprentice), which is probably why I wasn’t as into this book, as I’m a character-driven reader.

I did appreciate that the author included a few more hints about the elves. Their weapons play an important role, and I had a moment when I put everything together.

My expectations were high going into HALF A WAR, and while they weren’t quite met, I still enjoyed the book. I like that this trilogy considers what revenge and vengeance can lead to and the effects of war on the average person.

In "Half a King," "Half the World," and now "Half a War," Joe Abercrombie has led us through a broken world of savage violence, grand adventure, and grounded wisdom. More importantly, he created and shared characters with depth to act as our guides and companions along the Shattered Sea, characters who change over time, who grow and hurt and laugh and love and become fully realized as we journey with them.

In this last installment, as war marches across the Shattered Sea, we watch a princess learn what it means to become a queen: "No one ever feels ready. No one ever feels grown up. Do the things a great queen would do. Then you are one, however you feel."

... we journey into elf-ruins to recover weapons of the past, despite the ancient taboos: "Any law that cannot bend in a storm is destined to be broken."

... and we learn the bitter cost of victory: "A hundred decisions made, and ever time the greater good, the lesser evil. A thousand steps taken and each one had to be taken. ... How could they lead me here?"

Joe Abercrombie writes a new kind of fantasy, one that doesn't glory in the victories of war, but counts the cost required. Fantasy that doesn't give you fairy tale endings, but opens the possibility of new beginnings. Fantasy where heroes aren't the biggest warriors who can wield a weapon, aren't the epitome of might makes right, but who bleed and suffer and become more than just bloody bastards.

Thank you, Joe Abercrombie, for a better brand of fantasy.

This is the last book in the Shattered Seas trilogy that started with "Half a King." I really liked the first book, liked but didn't love the second and thought this book was OK but not the great ending I was expecting.

Partly this is due to the way the author structured the series. Harvick has been a major character in all three books but not "the" main character. Thorn and Brand were the main characters of Half the World but had fairly minor roles in this book. Skara and Raith are the focus of this book. The changing focus meant there was no one character that I could really get invested in over the course of the trilogy. I also didn't like how Yarvi's character changed in this book. Perhaps it was always there through the whole trilogy but I didn't like him in this book.

One good thing is that the nature and identity of the "Elves" and what happened to them becomes quite clear in this book. I won't get any more specific to keep from spoiling it for someone who hasn't read the series, but if you had been suspecting based on the clues in the first two books, you'll get a lot more information in this book.

Even though the ending disappointed me, this is still a very good trilogy to introduce someone to epic fantasy. I think of it as Epic Fantasy Lite because it is more accessible.

Joe Abercrombie has a knack of ending trilogies on a big climax. The first book isn't always the best but it does set the stage for the events to be explored. The second book then almost always is the better and the third is well the most explosive. His debut trilogy followed a similar path and the Shattered Sea trilogy (his debut in the YA genre) is no different. The first book focussed on Yarvi, the second introduced fierce princess Skara and in this book, we get to see further development with Skara who is now a queen and Yarvi who's now a master strategist and cunning as anyone in this world.

The plot deals with all the threads that have been introduced, it is full of action and as with as Joe Abercrombie story, the twists are sprinkled throughout. However the story becomes slightly predictable with certain character paths and the ending does leave room for further stories to be explored.

The author also explores themes related to war and the devastation that occurs due to it. I enjoyed this aspect of the story and as Joe has written a lot about it in his previous First Law series. Overall this book brings to a resounding conclusion to the revenge saga that began with book 1. I enjoyed this trilogy and will look forward to Joe return to further stories in the Shattered Sea world.

I know I am late on getting this review in for Joe Abercrombie's "Half a War" but it isn't because I was avoiding reading it but more, of all the books that I have stacked to read, this was the book that I didn't want to read if I was also reading another book. I wanted my entire attention devoted to it because I really enjoyed Book #2 of The Shattered Sea trilogy ("Half The World"). I still have to read "Half A King" which is Book #1 but I'm saving that for when I have time to read all three right in a row.

Needless to say, I loved "Half A War". I enjoy how Abercrombie uses different characters to give us the perspective of the storyline instead of the same ones for each book. In this installment, Princess Skara and Raith who act as the entry points. In this world, battles are always being fought, but full-on war which has been threatening is finally upon the characters. There are some mundane aspects but the pacing never lets up and the humor that Abercrombie used to win me over in "Half The World" is here along with a bit of romance to go with the politics and fighting.

The ending felt satisfying but I am hoping that Abercrombie explores more in this world. I'm glad that I still have book 1 to read but I'd like to hope that there is more after this one too.

After just finishing Joe's latest book, we had to review it as the whole trilogy. Like one complete story.

Although we feel, overall, that it's not as good as his first trilogy, we still LOVED this storyline. Plainly, Joe Abercrombie hasn't written a bad book yet. ALL have been either very good or solidly excellent.

Joe exceeds where a lot of fantasy writers cannot - and that is in BALANCE. A balanced read makes great reading. Joe does not rely on just one or two things to make his books sell. He uses the whole enchilada! Solid characterizations. Either good or great action sequences. Solid world-building. His pacing is always excellent. Unlike a lot of writers today, we never feel bored or feel the need to 'speed-read' through some of Joe's work. ALL of his books have been this way. (Not a lot of writers, even the biggest Best Sellers, can deliver this each and every time.) Joes does!

Also, like Game of Thrones, you never know who is going to survive or die in Joe's books. We love that. (Unless he kills off someone we've grown to like. LOL!)

Overall, if you haven't tried Joe's latest trilogy, we highly recommend you pick it up - now!

It felt like I was waiting for Half a War forever then when I received a very slightly early copy I had to put it off until I was on vacation and then I only had time to read it in bits and pieces at night. I felt a little conflicted about it – explanations to come – so I reread it all at once when I got home and found I felt the same. Abercrombie is still brilliant and I don’t regret reading this for a moment but there was something missing.

It wasn’t long ago that I enjoyed reading dual perspectives but in Half a War, we got three and even though each was interesting on their own the story felt too busy and scattered jumping around between all of them. I would have been thrilled to see Yarvi’s POV again but I knew that wasn’t going to happen. Still. Seeing him as a major secondary character, watching his story arc play out, I was happy enough.

There were several developments that made me sad along the way and I wondered if Abercrombie needed to go there. I didn’t understand all the pieces of the ending either but it isn’t my story to tell – at any rate, it’s got plenty of exciting moments and bloodshed.

HALF A WAR has leapt out of the frying pan and into the fire. At least I found it to be a red hot ending to the Half-a franchise.

The first book I thought was only so-so. It definitely leaned harder towards the Middle-grade segment of YA than something geared for the more mature end. Book 2, HALF A WORLD, I found more engaging and more sophisticated. And book 3 has surpassed it's sisters. Abercrombie has brought old characters into this book and added intriguing new ones. Best of all he's twisted the plot to near perfection, allowing the characters to evolve and surprise us. Bad guys. Good guys. The lines between them are blurred, and sometimes roles are swapped.

A cunning ending to the SHATTERED SEA series, I sure hope we might be given the opportunity to visit again. I love the religions and the structure of the kingdoms. This is a YA trilogy that has ended up being adult worthy.

(advanced review copy)

Abercrombie is one of my favorite authors right now but I get the feeling he's being rushed to put out these books. The Blade Itself series is brilliant and clever. Half a King was brilliant and clever . But I have to say, this book let me down. Rather than wrapping me up in the tales of Father Yarvi, Brand and Thorn we've been given the story with the wrong characters at the front of the stage. The characters we love have become props. So I'm left feeling Half Satisfied at the ending.

About halfway through Joe Abercrombie's conclusion to the Shattered Sea trilogy, "Half a War," a chapter titled "Too Many Ministers" pops up. It's neither a long nor an important one, but it inadvertently describes many of the problems Abercrombie has written himself into here. Too many new main and supporting characters get introduced, previous ones who have been clearly defined and been the major focus are reduced to near cameos, and in general the narrative isn't compelling. Some readers may be satisfied given Abercrombie's typical grit, but perhaps the most appropriate comparison is the controversial conclusion to Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series, A Memory of Light. 3 stars.

Abercrombie's first book of the series, Half a King, was one of the very best young hero journeys of recent years, with flawed characters making bad decisions and paying for them in a very brutal world. The second, Half the World, took significant creative risks in bringing in an entirely new set of main characters but also ran into some problems, in part by following typical YA tropes and some questionable plot decisions.

Half a War continues the same creative risks of Half the World as it introduces yet another set of new characters, but with only 400 pages left along with layering in characters from not one but two previous books, this turns out to be less risk and more mess. Even if Abercrombie had done this perfectly, structural problems inherent in trying to introduce and grow a number of new characters while severely rationing stage time for others who have received hundreds of pages of development would make most writers and editors wary of this route.

Abercrombie compounds this with his G.R.R. Martin-eqsue love of routinely killing off significant characters. While this is usually a strong positive for his gritty and dark writing, here it backfires. There's nothing at all wrong with killing off characters that readers have invested in, especially in a conclusion to a series, and Abercrombie does try to give some of the more significant ones a decent sendoff. However, when their actions and deaths appear largely expedient to either swiftly wrap up inconvenient threads or create new, rushed ones for recently introduced characters, not just their deaths but their plot lines feel shortchanged. There's an uncomfortable similarity to the conclusion of the Wheel of Time here; while the combination of frenetic mop ups and new characters don't quite reach the same bipolar pace that they do in A Memory of Light, it does have much the same feel.

The final blow is that the main protagonist, Skara, sadly shares a lot more with Thorn than Yarvi. She's incredibly talented for a teenager, she almost never makes a mistake, she's got few flaws, she's never in any real danger, and despite all her youth she's capable of outwitting almost everyone from the beginning of the novel. She brings in allies, turns them to her cause, and in general runs over her problems rather than growing from her mistakes. With Half a War largely consisting of battles, strategy, and their aftermath, her role is played largely from the sidelines - problematic for a main character. Add in that the largest movement in the plot comes from deus ex superweapons, and between the two, it's a bit frustrating.

How does all of this add up to even a three star novel, then? Two reasons. First, the world and elf culture get revealed a bit more. Second, Abercrombie is still good at moving the plot along with showing just a nasty world these folks live in, and that counts for something. Still, it's a real shame that what was one of the most promising series in a while ends up with a whimper rather than a bang. Three stars, and it's good that it's over.

Half a War is the third book in the Shattered Sea trilogy and the book picks up right after the second book, Half the World leaves off. Since many of the main characters of Half a War were introduced and developed in the second book, reading the third book without first reading the second book of the series will most likely leave the reader lost and the characters felling shallow and underdeveloped. The first book of the series, Half a King was almost self-contained and although reading it first would help fill in the back story even more, reading the first book is not nearly as critical as the second book for enjoying Half a War.

War is coming and the story begins with the characters from the first book leading their lives in Gettland. But, Grandmother Wexen has unleashed her champions against the rebellious kingdoms, starting with the kingdom of Throvenland where Princess Skara lives. The princess becomes a critical part of Father Yarvi’s plans for vengeance for the deaths of his brother and father.

There are a few new, principal characters who are developed in Half a War, but none so much so as Princess Skara. Characters such as Koll and Rin are also developed more, but others such as Thorn and even Father Yarvi show only a little new development as they have already been the focus of the other books. The author also gives us more information about the Elves who lived in the world before they shattered god. The author gives enough to leave the reader suspecting their origin.

As with the earlier books in the series, the storyline is full of action and there are enough twists and turns that keep the reader enthralled. Some parts are predictable, however. Overall, I did find the story a fast and enjoyable read. I cant say that I am pleased with how things work out in terms of choices the characters make, but war bring out the worst in people.

I was also a bit disappointed that the women warriors who Thorn was to train at the end of the second book only briefly make an appearance and then are gone. There are plenty of strong female characters in the trilogy, but Thorn was a major character in second book and I had hoped that her students would play a bigger role.

A definite must read if you have already read the other books so that you can conclude the trilogy. While the third book is perhaps not quite as good as the first of the series, it doesn’t disappoint. If you are new to the Shattered Sea, then please read the earlier books first, especially the second book.

I am here because I wanted to see how the story would end. The use of a Viking-like society in a far distant post-apocalyptic world is interesting. Have you ever wondered what could happen if Vikings had guns? No? Well...*shrugs*. Like any of his books no one is the hero and everyone is capable of villainy. How far would you go to achieve your goals? At what point do you become the villain? How long can you delude yourself that the means justify the end? All of these questions and more plague most of these characters. After the war and the 'villains' are torn down the new world order is much like the one replaced yesterday. After everything is done and Raith is sitting alone on that pier, I very much wanted to continue with him and his new companions to the First of Cities and beyond.

Half a War is the third book in the Shattered Sea trilogy and the book picks up right after the second book, Half the World leaves off. Since many of the main characters of Half a War were introduced and developed in the second book, reading the third book without first reading the second book of the series will most likely leave the reader lost and the characters felling shallow and underdeveloped. The first book of the series, Half a King was almost self-contained and although reading it first would help fill in the back story even more, reading the first book is not nearly as critical as the second book for enjoying Half a War.

War is coming and the story begins with the characters from the first book leading their lives in Gettland. But, Grandmother Wexen has unleashed her champions against the rebellious kingdoms, starting with the kingdom of Throvenland where Princess Skara lives. The princess becomes a critical part of Father Yarvi’s plans for vengeance for the deaths of his brother and father.

There are a few new, principal characters who are developed in Half a War, but none so much so as Princess Skara. Characters such as Koll and Rin are also developed more, but others such as Thorn and even Father Yarvi show only a little new development as they have already been the focus of the other books. The author also gives us more information about the Elves who lived in the world before they shattered god. The author gives enough to leave the reader suspecting their origin.

As with the earlier books in the series, the storyline is full of action and there are enough twists and turns that keep the reader enthralled. Some parts are predictable, however. Overall, I did find the story a fast and enjoyable read. I cant say that I am pleased with how things work out in terms of choices the characters make, but war bring out the worst in people.

I was also a bit disappointed that the women warriors who Thorn was to train at the end of the second book only briefly make an appearance and then are gone. There are plenty of strong female characters in the trilogy, but Thorn was a major character in second book and I had hoped that her students would play a bigger role.

A definite must read if you have already read the other books so that you can conclude the trilogy. While the third book is perhaps not quite as good as the first of the series, it doesn’t disappoint. If you are new to the Shattered Sea, then please read the earlier books first, especially the second book.

I enjoyed Half a War much more than I ever expected to.

This is essentially a medieval fantasy which involves a fair amount of swords and swash-buckling. The story apparently concludes a trilogy. I say apparently because, unlike many trilogies, this book stands alone extremely well. I can say this with confidence since I thoroughly enjoyed it without reading either of the two prior books. I may now go back and read those, even though this genre isn't really my favorite.

The pacing is steady and the writing is good. There isn't too much technobabble/altered vocabulary to plough through, although the names are a bit challenging at the start. For instance, it took me 40 or 50 pages to realize I had Raith, Rakki, and Brand mixed up as being just two characters, mostly because I was confused about how Thorn and Rin fit in. So far, so three stars.

The two standout aspects of this book, which elevate it above a typical fantasy, are the strong character development and light-hearted yet suspenseful writing style. The characters are drawn a little sketchily at first, but are definitely allowed to grow and develop over the course of the book. At least four major characters are almost unrecognizably different by the end of the book (assuming I kept their names straight!). These transformations were handled very well and made me care enough to finish the book. I probably would have finished the book anyway, since the plotting and writing were good. The author clearly had fun writing some of these characters and that really shows through. It's not all earnest "defeat the powers of darkness or else!" The author makes time for some humor and does a nice job of revealing the inner thoughts of most of the protagonists.

So why not five stars? Well, the plot had a few twists, but nothing earth-shattering. Several character threads were left disappointingly unresolved, to the point that I'm forced to wonder if there will be a fourth book in this "trilogy."

The satisfying conclusion to the Shattered Sea trilogy - plus it leaves a little bit of wiggle room for future stories set in this world, which Abercrombie does like to do.

I loved the way Abercrombie built on each novel in the succeeding one by keeping the same characters but introducing new main characters. I also really liked the hints that this world is actually our world, set far into the future when we have destroyed our civilization and the world has basically started over.

Abercrombie's teen fiction is less gruesome than his adult stories, but still pretty exciting. My 14-year-old son loves this series.

The novel seems quite interesting. Soon after I began reading, I got the feeling that this wasn't the first one. Now I did disregard the early pages, but that's because the order of the book doesn't impact my opinion. For the most part, this wasn't a good read. However, I like a couple of things.

I like how short the chapters are. Granted, some scenes might be lacking on detail, but in this case, you can't have both. I also like the ending's abruptness. At first, I disliked abrupt endings. After I read novels where I feel the ending dragged on, I began to appreciate them. I like how several facets of war. There's planning, the fighting, and the grieving. What makes me like the last part is several months ago, I read a novel that occurred during a war. Grieving was apparently forbidden as it appeared to be a sign of weakness. (What makes this even worse is this is supposedly a children's book. I don't think you want thinking grieving is bad.)

Despite disliking most of the characters, I began to like Thorn, Rin, and Raith. Even though Thorn has an awful temper, she's quite a tough
character. Not only that, but there are times when she's gentle. I like Rin for how tough she is. I do forgive her for her outburst at Koll. Not because she was angry, but that was only one time. Also, she didn't try to use her emotions to excuse her actions. At first, I didn't like Raith too much. However, I sympathized with him. Not only has he only been trained to be brutish, he was fighting for his brother Rakki. I felt really bad for him when his brother died (even if the repetition killed the mood.) I found it really brave for him to stand up to Thorn, who could've easily split his skull open.

At first, I liked Skara since she's actually tough. She cried outright a few times, but she didn't become whiny. Now she did despair a little bit, but she didn't spend a large portion of the book despairing. I liked her until the moment she turned away Raith. Not only she not even give a good reason, but she really didn't explain why it was wrong. Since I already mentioned I don't like most of the characters, I should use this paragraph to explain why. I just found them annoying especially the women. The only thing that annoyed me about the males are the 'lessons' they mentioned.

This could've been written much better. It could get boring at times. but that's really not my biggest issue. One of my biggest issues is for a novel that's written for adults (I presume), at times I couldn't take it seriously. Some of the vocabulary's silly. I often found myself sighing and wondering ,"Is this supposed to be serious?" The other big issue I have are the 'lessons' that are practically shoved down the audiences' throats. While a few of them actually seemed smart, most of them made me think Joe Abercrombie has issues with people. (I kind of do too, but I don't write maladaptive characters.)

Book 3 is amazingly entertaining. It is well written with well developed interesting characters going through life being pulled between war and peace. Who is friend or enemy do you really know. Then there are life's lessons too be learned. Is there a conclusion or does it just all start again. I would recommend this series too anyone who really enjoys well written novels. Enjoy reading

I love Abercrombie's style: as sweeping as any epic, but lively and relentlessly forward moving. That he manages so many pithy lines is a blessing, for surely the pace is almost exhausting. Bravo on a great trilogy!

Father Yarvi has brokered an unlikely peace between the formerly warring kingdoms of Gettland and Vansterland, bringing them together to stand against the forces of the High King. Still tremendously outnumbered, Yarvi is forced to rely on an untested young queen to help lead the way to victory and a last stand at the fortress of Bail's Point.

Half a War concludes the Shattered Sea trilogy by Joe Abercrombie, an experiment by the British author to write shorter novels aimed at a more general audience. How successful that experiment has been is quite debatable - the tone and feeling of the trilogy is really not far removed from his First Law universe novels - but it's certainly resulted in the impressive delivering of three very decent novels in less than eighteen months.

As with the previous book, Half a War revolves around three main POV characters: Skara, the young and untested queen of Throvenland; Raith, the bloodthirsty Vansterland warrior made into Skara's reluctant bodyguard; and Koll, the woodcarver turned minister-in-training who finds himself increasingly serving as Yarvi's conscience as Yarvi is forced into more and more desperate acts to try to save his people. Previous POV characters become secondary characters in this novel, which is both clever (showing how others see them) and frustrating, particularly when they don't all survive.

This is a war story, with the great fortress of Bail's Point changing hands as the fortunes of the conflict ebb and flow. Abercrombie has done big war stories and battle narratives before and does a good job of depicting the conflict here, helped by a map of Bail's Point. However, the limited POV structure means that a great deal of the details of the conflict are missing. This is effective in giving us a feel of the fog of war, with confusion and misinformation lurking everywhere, but it does occasionally make the conflict feel murkier than it should.

Abercrombie's razor-sharp characterisation is on top form here, with Skara developing believably into a ruler from humble beginnings and secondary characters like Blue Jenner and King Uthil getting outstanding and memorable moments. However, it's Father Yarvi who develops most fascinatingly in this novel. Yarvi's ruthlessness was on display in the second book, but in this one it pushes him into more and more dangerous decisions that even shock his allies. The development of Koll as his moral weathervane is nicely done; without Koll, it may be that Yarvi would have become another version of Bayaz from the First Law books (i.e. Unrepentant Amoral Bastard Gandalf). As it stands he comes pretty damn close, and it's likely any future Shattered Sea books will have to deal with the fallout from his actions.

Half a War (****) closes the Shattered Sea trilogy in style, with a war story that prioritises the characters over the action and ends well by not pulling a single punch.

A fine finish to an excellent series. Villains dispatched, revenge abounds, new quests sought and a young queen makes a difficult choice. Perhaps Mr. Abercrombie will visit this world at some future date to see if Father Peace or Mother War prevails.

Oh my goodness - this is a series that I will be revisiting again. There is so much going on, but Joe Abercrombie does a great job of weaving the story together in a way that you won't forget any of it. There are a few of the typical epic fantasy cliche's in the plot that come through and make things a little predictable at times, but overall you won't want to put this one down because you'll need to know what happens next.

(Assuming it is the finish..) The misgivings I had at book one, that it was one point of view, very simple story structure, that all went away. By this third book we have the typical Abercrombie shifting viewpoint giving you different perspectives on events, always adjusting what you thought was going on. More of his great fight descriptions and sprinkled wry humor throughout. I really recommend this series and author.

This series has gotten ever more ponderous as it has proceeded, and I am oddly grateful that it is over. Abercrombie is a very good writer and this feels like it is more interesting than the middle book, Half the World, but it really sort of grinds as well. I had just stopped caring about the world and the characters, especially Yarvi, at some point in book two, and I never really got hooked into this one. It is not that not enough is going on but rather that after such a strong start with Half a King the pounding fact that this is effectively a juvenile basically becomes more noteworthy with each book.

At the same time I wonder if the problem is not with the book but with me as a reader.

Good character development, great story, lots of action, and a twist that leaves even the most experienced reader surprised. This novel is book 3, so make sure you read the previous two novels first. The book is well-written and the world/setting created is well worth it. This series has made me a dedicated Joe Abercrombie fan.

LT Early Reviewers

Solid finish to a great trilogy. It's not 'classic' Abercrombie but it's still really good. This guy is one of the better fantasy writers around right now. Great story telling and fantastic action sequences and fight scenes. He's introduced new view point characters in each book of this trilogy and it's worked out really well. Solid 4 stars and highly recommended to anyone looking for new low fantasy.

Abercrombie delivers a fast-paced, action-filled story of swords, revenge, diplomacy, intrigue and he does it in his usual style. The characters are believable, the plot realistic, and the atmosphere just right. The feeling of being a part of a world much like medieval Europe with its competing kings, rival nations, conspiring ministers, and religious differences is the best part of the story.

However, introducing new main characters in this final book - and, simultaneously, making Yarvi, Brand and Thorn supporting cast - felt wrong. It had the effect of making the impressively clever Yarvi, the steady and reliable Brand, the impetuous and skilled Thorn, into guest stars in what had been, until Half A War, their story. If you enjoyed those three characters and assumed this was their story, you were wrong. It turns out, the Half A World Trilogy wasn't their story. A shame 'cause I liked Yarvi.

This is the conclusion to a trilogy, but it could be understood if it was the first book read. This is the story of the end of a war with lots of battles plus a bit of a love story with a newly crowned queen and one of her retainers. The war wasn't as gripping nor was the love story as satisfying as I would have hoped. This was a fine summer read, but no more.

I was really looking forward to the next installment of this series. I really liked the addition of the Princess Skara. However I do feel that the development of this character and those involved with her, led to the further development of many of the main figures I have spent 2 books in the series becoming invested in. I won't give spoilers, but there were several characters from the previous book that I feel were severely neglected. That said, the story was good and moved very fast. It was complex enough that I was engaged throughout the story. I do feel that some o f the twists seemed rushed and not developed to the point that they were as shocking as I had hoped. All in all a good read.

This is a terrific ending to a terrific series. Joe Abercrombie has created a notable trilogy. I am one of those who are critical of trilogies. It seems that there are too many and there should be more stand alones. However, this is an exception. I thoroughly enjoyed all three and certainly recommend this to all who enjoy Viking style action stories.

The Shattered Sea trilogy is a treasure. I know it's YA, but this old man enjoyed it immensely. Nobody does combat like Abercrombie, but it is the character development that truly shines. Everyone changes through the series. A real joy.

Half a War finally resolves the conflict between Father Yarvi, his allies, and the High King that has been the driving the narrative since Half a King. Just as with Half the World, Abercrombie changes the viewpoint characters again. This time, it's Koll, Skara, and Raith. Yarvi continues to play a significant role as a supporting character, but Thorn and Brand from book 2 are barely present.

While this book concludes the series, and things definitely move forward, there's a feeling that not much happens in this book. There's a war, they fight, one side wins. There are a couple of battles, but they aren't very interesting, and there's not much in the way of maneuvering leading up to those battles. The culture is psuedo Viking-era Scandinavian, and just as with the 10th century Norse, strategy and tactics aren't very sophisticated, mostly a bunch of poorly disciplined men running at each other, with the larger side winning. Usually.

I think we're meant to understand that the book is about the "half a war" fought with word and in the mind, there isn't much of that either. There are a few scenes where Skara has to talk kings Uthil and Grom-Gil-Gorm into cooperating with each other, but not much more. There's some treachery involved, but it isn't revealed until the aftermath.

Arguably, the viewpoint characters all mature a bit, but not by much, and not in terribly interesting ways. Skara's an outspoken young woman at the start of the book, and all she does is gain a little confidence. Raith decides there's more to life than killing people in battles. Koll finally decides what he actually wants in life, after dithering between choices the entire book.

That the story is set in a world thousands of years after the fall of our civilization finally becomes important to the plot. Yarvi delves into "elf magic," meaning the study of long-lost technology, but in a rather unsatisfying way. It turns out that Skifr, the "sorceress" from book 2, knows implausibly too much about fine details of the past while not understanding the bigger picture at all. For example, she knows the combination to an electronic lock, even though she has no idea what the fallen civilization was like. This exploring the past isn't about recovering lost ideas like electricity or the germ theory of disease, it's about a convenient McGuffin for turning the tide of an apparently unwinnable war while not actually learning anything. The "elf magic" plot gets firmly put aside once it has served its purpose.

It's a readable book, but not one I would recommend if it weren't the third book in a trilogy. As it is, if you've read Half a King and Half the World, you're going to want to know how the story turns out. It's not nearly as good as those two books, but it's acceptable reading.

I have read all of the previous efforts of Joe Abercrombie and enjoyed them immensely, they kept me up late at night turning pages. This novel fell flat for me. It's not that I found it to be a bad book- it's that this book has been done before.

Half A War is the third book in The Shattered Sea series, and as with his past novels it is essential that the previous books were read before starting this one. We have a return of characters from the previous two novels, Father Yarvi (the only character that intrigued me, until I realized that he was the reincarnation of the Magi Bayez), Thorn Bathu, Brand, King Uthil, Queen Laithlin, Grom-gil-Gorm etc, but this book focuses more on Koll and two new characters, Raith and Skara. This was part of the problem for me- I was unable to connect with these three characters. I found the character of Raith to be overblown and was particularly annoyed at his overnight transformation toward the end of the book.

I shall announce spoiler alert although I think it quite unnecessary. There is of course a great battle that the previous book leads up to in which one army is outnumbered to the point of certain defeat until someone pulls a rabbit out of their hat to achieve a miraculous victory for the underdog. It's Groundhog Day, the same battle in every story- just with different characters. And unlike George RR Martin, if the author has invested a lot into them, they were saved from the dirt nap.

I don't think that this is a bad book and I don't think that Joe Abercrombie is a poor writer, it is a sad farewell for I realized upon completion of this book that to start the next would be the equivalent of reading my young daughter a new children's book titled,
Blondiecurls And The Three Wolverines.

Okay, I liked Half a King pretty well though it was telegraphing what kind of man Yarvi was toward the end. I absolutely loved Half the World and could read it again. But Half a war felt like Half a Story. This book was a pretty bad ending to the trilogy over all and I couldn't recommend it. But that's not why I'm here. Why I'm here is to explain the entire series' overarching story in a nutshell so spoilers ahead.

In a post apocalyptic world, hundreds or thousands of years after our present day society destroyed themselves, mankind has regressed back into the middle ages. They wrongfully believe the denizens of the previous society to have been a mystical race of elves and assign that name to anything and everything associated with the past human civilization. Elf metal, Elf glass, Elf ruins, Elf relics. Elf magic etc. They have an unexplained superstition towards all things 'modern day.' Even worse, this backwards society believes that the 'Elves' (that would be present day human society) Made war on God and somehow broke God into many many pieces. Why this is believed is never explained or touched on at all and is a real head scratcher. What is left of society has devolved into raiding barbarians, slavers and pirates. That is except for a couple of places. There is a City called the first of cities that is mentioned and even visited once but seems nothing special. Then there is the seat of the High King in Skekenhouse, which is built atop 'elf ruins.' Now the High King has the revolutionary idea to have the various barbarian tribes stop raiding and killing and enslaving each other and unite in peace. He even tries to unite them in one faith under one God. However not to be dissuaded from their paths of bloodshed the various tribes unite (albeit temporarily) to take down the High King so that they can get back to killing and raiding and raping and enslaving etc. Into this we throw our cast of characters, peace makers, warriors, common laborers and 'royalty' along with a 'witch'. This last character is the best. She is witch because she dares to explore the 'elf ruins' and tinker with 'elf relics' In one part of book 3 we see the group head to a city ruin to procure magical elf weapons (guns) and the witch tells the group that she knows all of the 'rituals' for making them ready. ( Lol'ed so hard at this) The group returns, slaughters the High King's army and takes over Skekenhouse. At the end they are no closer to understanding the past, or the 'elves' or technology or really anything and it seems that the killing and raiding and slaving etc will continue into the forseeable future. Now don't get me wrong. This series has its great moments and I loved book two and even liked most of book one. But after everything most of the entertainment I derive from this series is the sheer idiocy of the peoples populated throughout its world. I don't usually poke fun at people, real or fictional but Come On. Literally every person in this made up world might as well put on a dunce hat and a 'stupid' sign around their necks and be done with it. They're not even trying. lol.

The concluding volume of the Shattered Seas triology has everything—kings, queens, princesses, magic, duplicity, swordplay—except heroes. You would expect a fantasy novel to have a hero, but I would be hard pressed to nominate one from this cast of characters. Even those who I liked from the previous two books had their character take a nosedive in this one. Maybe it was Abercrombie's premise that nothing good comes from war and that even good people are corrupted by it. If so, he achieved his purpose, but it made for a less than enthralling read.

I loved The First Law trilogy and the standalone novels that followed that take place in the same universe. I did not enjoy the shattered sea books nearly as much. I understand that the series was written to skew towards a younger audience, but I feel like so much is missing when compared to the things I loved in the First Law Trilogy. I would encourage you to read this series if you are a fan of Joe Abercrombie's work. He is an excellent fantasy writer and it is a good trilogy. I just feel that it is a step back compared to his other works.

Another great series from the author. While it's a YA novel, it will quickly lure readers to his more mature (ahem, violent) works. Of the three in this series, Book 2 is my favorite. Not to say Book 3 is bad, just that it's the last book and I didn't want it to end.

Not quite as good as the preceding two novels but well worth buying if you have already bought the first two. Not going to give anything away but, surely you want to know how it ends?

Ray Smillie

Abercrombie does it again. I've read almost all of his books and you know some type of twist is coming but he once again manages to elude me with his brilliant plot twists. It was a great book and an easy read. Do yourself a favor and add every book he writes to your library.