Book Review: "Half A King" by Joe Abercrombie

“I swore an oath to avenge the death of my father. I may be half a man, but I swore a whole oath.”
 
Prince Yarvi has vowed to regain a throne he never wanted. But first he must survive cruelty, chains, and the bitter waters of the Shattered Sea. And he must do it all with only one good hand.
 
The deceived will become the deceiver.
 
Born a weakling in the eyes of his father, Yarvi is alone in a world where a strong arm and a cold heart rule. He cannot grip a shield or swing an axe, so he must sharpen his mind to a deadly edge.
 
The betrayed will become the betrayer.
 
Gathering a strange fellowship of the outcast and the lost, he finds they can do more to help him become the man he needs to be than any court of nobles could.
 
Will the usurped become the usurper?
 
But even with loyal friends at his side, Yarvi finds his path may end as it began—in twists, and traps, and tragedy. - from Amazon.com

I received an ARC of this novel through Netgalley.com by the publisher, Random House Publishing Group - Del Rey Spectra, in exchange for a review.

I have been a fan of Joe Abercrombie since his THE FIRST LAW series. That being said, I dove right into this story as soon as I got my hands on it, and I was not disappointed. This is a shorter than usual tale that Abercrombie shares with us, of the revenge sworn to be taken by a prince who has a malformed hand. Thrust into the King's throne suddenly due to the murder of his father, and older brother, Yarvi is introduced to regicide, though barely escapes with his life. Once he escapes, he is caught by slavers, and his tale begins. 

This is the basic story of revenge for the death of one's father (and family, plus being the rulers of the land), added in with the tale of growing up handicapped in a world where being less than hale is as good as being dead. Yarvi's tale shares how his training for the Ministry (similar to a priesthood, giving up all claims/family, yet serving as an advisor for a king) helped him escape his death, make friends, and complete his revenge oath.

This story was shorter than previous novels by Abercrombie, and thus was a pretty fast read. Being shorter in length, the characters were still pretty well developed and the story contained enough plot twists to keep me wondering how, and when, it would all come full circle. Another good story by Joe.