Prince of Fools (Red Queen's War, #1)

by Mark Lawrence

International bestselling author Mark Lawrence continues the bold new world of dark fantasy he created in the Broken Empire trilogy with the first book of the Red Queen's War...

For all her reign the Red Queen has fought the long war, contested in secret, against the powers that stand behind nations, for higher stakes than land or gold. Her greatest weapon is The Silent Sister—unseen by most and unspoken of by all.

The Red Queen’s grandson, Prince Jalan Kendeth—drinker, gambler, seducer of women—is one who can see The Silent Sister. Content with his role as a minor royal, Jal pretends that the hideous crone is not there. But war with the undead is coming, and the Red Queen has called on her family to defend the realm. Jal thinks that nothing that will affect him. He's wrong...

After escaping a death trap set by the Silent Sister, Jal finds his fate magically intertwined with a fierce Norse warrior. As the two undertake a journey to undo the spell, encountering grave dangers, willing women, and an upstart prince named Jorg Ancrath along the way, Jalan gradually catches a glimmer of the truth: he and the Norseman are but pieces in a game—and the Red Queen controls the board.

• ISBN10: 0425268799
• ISBN13: 9780425268797
• Publish Date: 26 May 2015 (first published 3 June 2014)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc
• Imprint: Ace Books
• Format: Paperback (US Mass Market)
• Pages: 400
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780425268797

Reviews

[moraa]

***FOR REASONS THAT HAVE RECENTLY COME TO LIGHT, I CANNOT CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THIS AUTHOR***

I’m a liar and a cheat and a coward, but I will never, ever, let a friend down. Unless of course not letting them down requires honesty, fair play, or bravery.

Can we talk for a minute because... HOLY CRAP!

*struggles to get shit together for a presentable review that involves more than gibberish and swear words*

It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of The Broken Empire series and by extension a huge fan of Mark Lawrence and his writing style (that series really did a number on me). Anyway, today I'm here to tell you why you should read this book (and by extension the The Broken Empire series or really just the entire catalogue of Mark Lawrence's works).

WHAT I LIKED:

1. Characterisation

Prince Jalan Kendath (further titles omitted)
-king of "hmmm's" and "ahh's" and all other assorted "thinking noises"
-fun, jaunty, light-hearted and a joy to follow around
-eager to enjoy the benefits of being a prince but none of the duty (this makes for some very humorous situations)
-never too serious so that when he is serious for once, the breath is knocked from your lungs and you start to believe he could be something more
-a brave man (???) - I'm still trying to find out - but definitely a coward ("how can he be both?" you ask. My friend, I have no damn clue)

Snorri ver Snagason
-a mystery - yes we got a few flashbacks but I need more than that, who are you really, Snorri?
-very introspective - for those who like a touch of brooding every now and then
-a voice of reason in times of desperation
-likeable and relatable, with a simple storyline (for now)
-a Viking - and a good one at that (???) - I need more on this front too

There were few other constant on-the-page characters because of the story (which involves Jalan and Snorri travelling across the continent in search of a cure) so these two are my main focus, not to mention the book is told in first person so we see much of the world from Jalan's perspective.

2. Plot
-this book is set within the world introduced to us in The Broken Empire and takes place concurrently with Jorg's story (if you've read the series then you know what I mean when I say seeing him again brought back bittersweet memories)
-however, that's not to say, it takes place in Jorg's story, this book is firmly about Jalan and Snorri and the Red Queen's machinations (little as we know of them for now)
-suffice to say, the plot was good, very straightforward - but convoluted ones do often tend to go haywire

3. Writing Style (sentence structure, word choice etc)
-flawless
-light and humorous
-I couldn't look away for a second

4. World-building
-there's not much to say about this except that it resembles much of our world as it was in recent history (and now to an extent)
-if you're looking for something with not too extensive world building, then this may be worth a shot
-as soon as you start reading, some things will seem instantly familiar (Roma, Afrique, Araby, Norsemen etc)

In summary, you need to get on this series stat! It took me ages to pick up The Broken Empire and I regret it everyday since. I swore I wouldn't make the same mistake with The Red Queen's War and don't intend to.

[wyvernfriend]

Oh man, Jalan is some sarky man, he gets dragged, somewhat against his will into a battle he can't ignore with a man whose morals are well above his and the two of them have to fight to keep the world from destruction.

I loved Jalan, and Snorri and thought they were huge fun as a partnership. I'm looking forward to more in this series.

[Rinn]

I received a copy of this book for free from the publisher, HarperVoyager, in exchange for an honest review. Also posted on my blog, Rinn Reads.

When Prince of Thorns was chosen as my book group’s Fantasy Book of the Month, I read it with great excitement, only to be rather, well… disappointed. I’d heard so much about the series and Lawrence’s writing, and I was sad that it just didn’t work for me. The main issue was Jorg himself – so when I heard about a new series from the author, based around a completely different character, I jumped at the chance to sample some more of his writing. And this time? I understood what all those other bloggers and readers had been talking about!

Whilst Jal is not your ‘typical’ hero, that’s kind of the whole point. He’s a spoilt brat of a prince, a womaniser, selfish and thoughtless and honestly a bit of a coward. But that’s what makes this book so fun – Jal manages to get himself into all sorts of trouble, with his mischievous personality and witty, dry sense of humour. It was so refreshing to have a hero who wasn’t the ‘chosen one’ or ‘pure’. Although he has his flaws, he is a good person deep down and visibly develops along his journey. Snorri as a companion of Jal worked really well: the two juxtaposed in terms of size and morals – Jal as a manipulative young man who is just living for the day, and Snorri as a loyal and protective father and husband despite his burly and sometimes terrifying appearance. Snorri’s back story was really heartbreaking. He was built up to be this threatening, violent Viking and then we saw his true side and the whole reason he was on a journey.

As for the setting, I always found the sudden contrast between the medieval feel of the culture and the sudden modern elements that were introduced towards the end of Prince of Thorns to be a bit… well, odd. But this time round I enjoyed it much more, particularly because there was a major concentration on mythology and legend.

I feel like Prince of Fools contains some of the funniest, most self-deprecating lines in fantasy fiction (apart from perhaps the work of Terry Pratchett!), with Jal’s frequent quips and fast wit. It had me laughing out loud, which I have to say, fantasy fiction does not often manage. Some of this was achieved from the post-apocalyptic world itself, e.g. as Jal and Snorri make their way along a train track towards a tunnel, Jal thinks to himself that a train must have been a fearsome beast to have had the strength to plough a hole through the mountain.

I’m so glad I got a review copy of this one, as it gave me another chance to try out Mark Lawrence’s writing – which I enjoyed a whole lot more this time. I’m definitely up for reading the rest of the book in the series, although I hope the ending of Prince of Fools doesn’t open up an opportunity for Jal to become more like Jorg…