General Info
Ronnie
urged Half a King to me, and it since I've another friend who enjoys your adult
fantasy novels, it appeared like an excellent idea to give this, your first YA
fantasy novel, an attempt.
Place of action
Half a King
(novel one in the Shattered Sea trilogy) takes place in a society inspired by
that of the Vikings and begins with Yarvi, the second son of the King of
Gettland, about to take a test that'll strip him of his standing and make him a
minister.
Yarvi is
now the rightful king, but because of his disability, he is seen by many in his
ableist society as just half a man, half a king. Yarvi himself has internalized
this view of himself (to a degree I found challenging--more on this later), and
is intimidated by the thought of attempting as his father must now do to avenge
him and brother's deaths and ascending to the throne.
With Odem's
mother and his uncle he guiding him, Yarvi shortly becomes betrothed to his
cousin Isriun. He also swears an oath to avenge the deaths of brother and his
father, and then he and his uncle, together with Hurik, his mum's guard, sail
to fight Grom-gil-Gorm's folks.
The Raid
In the raid
on the kingdom of their enemy, Hurik and Odem turn on Yarvi, revealing that
they mean to kill him. Yarvi falls into the sea and is assumed drowned, but he
comes at Gromgil Gorm's feet. Yarvi recognizes in order to lure Yarvi's father
and brother for their departures that his uncle made up the peace offer from
Grom gil Gorm. To save his skin and survive to carry his oath of payback out on
its authentic target, Yarvi feigns to be a cook's son and is sold into slavery.
Yarvi is
bought by a ship's captain as an oar slave. On the boat, Yarvi presents himself
as Yorv to his two oar mates and fellow slaves Jaud and Rulf. Yarvi bides his
time, praying for the opportunity do and to escape his revenge on his uncle.
Finally, though fraught with danger, this kind of opportunity does arrive....
Half a King
has strengths that impressed me and weaknesses. I'll start with what I enjoyed.
The best
part of the publication was the middle section Yarvi escapes slavery and finds
a group of allies with whom he bonds. Whom don't know why but while I don't
find adversity at all appealing to live through, I truly love novels in which
characters have to endure in challenging conditions and discover endurance and
strength that they never knew they'd. This part of the novel had all that and I
appreciated it a great deal.
My mind
The
depictions did not always strike me as fully believable, but I do not believe
the characters were entirely meant to. The novel is written in a language that
appears suitable to legends, and the characters are mostly appropriate to
legends too. I didn't enjoy all the characters but the characters were practically
all memorable and colorful.
Whatever
one thinks whether one likes it or does not enjoy it (it took whom of getting
used to), one can't deny that it is vivid and descriptive. It feels purposeful
in its musicality, which isn't the case with every novel.
This was
something I loved since whom'm normally able to expect surprises. When whom say
the turns are big, I mean they are the kind of twists that cast the entire book
in a new light. Whom could envision reading it with a fresh understanding I
didn't have the first time, and appreciating it in a different way, if it were
not for the frustrations I encountered.
Of these
frustrations, the largest was the manner Yarvi's impairment was depicted. Since
Yarvi was born with his twisted and feeble hand, he has had his entire life to
accept this fact. But unbelievably, he hasn't. Throughout a good portion of the
book, himself wishes, over and over, for "Two great hands." It is
almost a refrain of his, and it did not take me long to get fed up.
Whom needed
Yarvi to get over his self pity that was ableist and move on, find something
interesting and active to do in the story and being victimized. Himself does
but it took a good hunk of the publication to get there, and whom gave serious
thought to stopping because of it.
