A Clash of Kings

A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 2

De: George R.R. Martin

Narrado por: Roy Dotrice

Duración: 37 h y 12 m

Resumen del Editor

A comet the color of blood and flame cuts across the sky. And from the ancient citadel of Dragonstone to the forbidding shores of Winterfell, chaos reigns. Six factions struggle for control of a divided land and the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms, preparing to stake their claims through tempest, turmoil, and war.

It is a tale in which 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. Against a backdrop of incest and fratricide, alchemy and murder, victory may go to the men and women possessed of the coldest steel...and the coldest hearts. For when kings clash, the whole land trembles.

©1999 George R.R. Martin (P)2004 Books on Tape, Inc.

Reseñas de la Crítica

Locus Award, 1999

"A truly epic fantasy.... The novel is notable particularly for the lived-in quality of its world, created through abundant detail...for the comparatively modest role of magic...and for its magnificent action-filled climax.... [Martin] provides a banquet for fantasy lovers with large appetites." (Publishers Weekly)

"Fans of epic fantasy should appreciate this lavishly detailed sequel to A Game of Thrones." (Library Journal)

"Dotrice's range of vocal tones, from gravelly and commanding to silkenly dangerous, creates a mood of insistence that holds the listener captive throughout the epic story." (AudioFile)

"Grabs hold and won't let go. It's brilliant." (Robert Jordan)

The excellence continues

The second part of this series is no less intriguing than the first. Martin continues with the adventure of the characters created in the first book, and continues with his excellence in fantasy story writing. If you loved the first book, you will certainly not be disappointed by the second. First rate narration continues to be the best I have hard by far. The narration itself is good enough for you to listen to even if you have read the books yourself. First rate in all accounts.

A Marvelous adventure!

I am absolutely hooked on this series. I wait breathlessly for the fourth book in the series to be read by Roy Dotrice, who is a master of voices and accents and passionate oration. He really brought these books to life. I bow on my knees to Mr. Martin and cry, "We're not worthy, milord." The entire book is filled with colors and sounds and smells of a medieval setting, but the intrigue is worthy of the Bush Administration!

Okay, I'm Hooked.

This story, takes up well where the first left off. My few qualms with the first book have been well satisfied here and the characters continue to be excellent. I feel I've come to know these people. Some I enjoy spending time with, some I loathe; but all evoke strong emotions. Martin is a genius with his characters. Martin's fantasy is much darker than most, but more real as well. I appreciate the maturity.

I am ambivalent about the narration. While Dotrice is a pure pleasure to listen to and his voice was an excellent choice for the overall narration, I find his characterizations lacking. Most of his male characters sound either like pirates or as though they have speech impediments. His female characters are unconvincing. So, I remain undecided: I loved his narration, but wasn't taken with his voice characterizations. I don't remember this being so striking in the first book, but I've watched the series since then. Perhaps I have different expectations of the voices now that I've seen the series. Hard to say.

Fabulous book, not thrilled with the narration

I am completely taken by this series. The writing and plotting are terrific. I'm on book 4 and am dreading the end of book 5, when I will have to wait with the rest of the readership for book 6 to appear. I'm listening to some of the volumes, reading others. I don't feel Roy Dotrice was a great choice for narration. His voice is so old that all of his characters, even the children, sound gruff or elderly. He pauses for breath at odd places in the narration. The women sound lower class than the men of the same family (more of a Cockney accent for the women, standard British or Scottish for the men), and the women mostly sound somewhat dim-witted. There are times when I have to take a break from the audiobook and read the book instead, finding the narration irritating. That said, the text largely overcomes the drawbacks of the narration, and it carries you through.

Meanwhile back at the ranch ...

This was an excellent continuation of Game of Thrones. One thing that takes some getting used to however is the way that the author moves between chapters. Just as a chapter reaches a climax it ends and the author moves on to a different part of the story. It was kind of like "she stood there with the sword poised above his neck. ... Meanwhile, back in the 100 acre woods ...". Nevertheless, the book was very well written and you can just feel the changes comming into the word as magic re-emerges and conflicts proliferate. I also very much enjoyed the way that the characters reveal their complex nature. For example, "The Hound" reveals an emotional side that I did not at all expect and by the end of the book Arya seems to be turning into an somewhat of an assasin. Book three here I come.

Epic Continuation of the Story

Would you listen to A Clash of Kings again? Why?

No, it is too long.

What does Roy Dotrice bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The auditory representation of the characters and the powerful delivery of emotions.

Outstanding narration!

I thought I had heard some good narrators before. Roy Dotrice out does them all, really takes it to a new level. Well done.

Be warned this book is different from most others in that there are no happy endings - for anyone. But that what makes it so compelling I suppose.

The story keeps getting more interesting

The story (although long) keeps getting more interesting. I am reading the books and listening to the audio and then viewing the HBO series. It makes the overall experience so much better.

WOW- Left me wanting more

Left me wanting more. Great story-telling! Couldn't wait to download the next book in this series! The narrator took me a little time to get used to, but I really enjoyed this book.

Amazing

Great listen. Enjoyed the changing of voice made it easy to listen to each character and understand who was talking. Even the tonnage that the author wanted was also played into by the narrator.