A Clash of Kings Audiobook – Book 2 [Free Download by Trial]

A Clash of Kings: Book 2 of A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin

The readers can download A Clash of Kings: Book 2 of A Song of Ice and Fire Audiobook for free via Audible Free Trial.

Summary

A Clash of Kings by George R. R. Martin audiobook is the second book out of seven of the A Song of Ice and Fire Audiobooks.

Chaos reigns as the peaceful summer is coming to an end and harsh winter is approaching. The two leaders that maintained an enforced peace over the years, Lord Eddard Stark and Robert Baratheon, are now dead because of royal treachery. Things start to get out control as pretenders to the Iron Throne of Seven Kingdoms are willing to do whatever it takes to achieve their purposes while ignoring the horrors that winter is about to bring.



Six different factions are fighting to control land. In King’s Landing, Joffrey rules in name only, while scheming courtiers are the ones who actually take decisions. In the North, Robb has declared himself as the king. Robert’s brothers are seeking their own dominion and a house turns once more to conquest. And finally, overseas, a continent away, the Mother of Dragons is doing everything she can to lead her brood across the desert to get the crown that rightfully belongs to her.

“A Clash of Kings transports us into a magnificent, forgotten land of revelry and revenge, wizardry and wartime. It is a tale in which maidens cavort with madmen, brother plots against brother, and the dead rise to walk in the night. Here a princess masquerades as an orphan boy; a knight of the mind prepares a poison for a treacherous sorceress; and wild men descend from the Mountains of the Moon to ravage the countryside. Audacious, inventive, brilliantly imagined, A Clash of Kings is a novel of dazzling beauty and boundless enchantment; a tale of pure excitement you will never forget”.

Review

The story of A Song of Ice and Fire continues with A Clash of Kings by George R. R. Martin audiobook where characters and plot are much more developed, and new elements are introduced.

Just like A Game of Thrones, the story of A Clash of Kings is told through the POV of 9 recurring characters plus one prologue character. On this occasion we have Maester Cressen for the prologue, Tyrion Lannister, Lady Catelyn Stark, Ser Davos Seaworth, Sansa Stark, Arya Stark, Bran Stark, Jon Snow, Theon Greyjoy, and Queen Daenerys Targaryen.

Compared to the previous audiobook, this one is more slowly paced. This provides the opportunity to develop the plot, which in fact happens, and with the plot, characters develop a lot more. We get to know them better, we see an evolution (and in certain cases we could say an “involution”), and we know how they react to different situations.

Magical and fantastical elements are introduced in this volume, and even if they are not fully explained or developed, we know that in following volumes we will see a lot more of them.

Few of the conflicts are solved, and when they are it is usually through death, so do not expect a book that is happier than the previous one because George R. R. Martin won’t hesitate to kill any of the characters, so be ready to say goodbye.

It is unavoidable to prefer some POV characters over other ones, but pay attention to what is happening even if you don’t love a character because a lot of things and backgrounds are introduced and traditional action is often revealed through other characters, instead of actually seeing what happened.

This audiobook is the perfect volume to develop and go deeper into the history right before all the action explodes in the following books.

Questions

What is the logic behind titling the second book in the “A Song of Ice and Fire” series?

A Clash of Kings is pretty self-explanatory as it had the magnitude of the War of the Five Kings with everyone crowning themselves, so the events were truly a clash of kings.

Can you read Clash Of Kings before reading A Game Of Thrones?

You should not do it even if you saw the TV series, as many things were eliminated in the adaptation. There are some suggestions online to read the books simultaneously by making a specific combination of chapters, but you still have to read the books.

Does A Clash of Kings start where A Game of Thrones left off?

No. A Clash of Kings starts with a different POV so it does not start where the previous book left off.

Can I read the A Clash of Kings without spoiling anything in season 3 of the TV series?

Yes, as season three corresponds to the first half of A Storm of Swords, the third volume of the book series.