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ostrava 's review for:
Prince of Thorns
by Mark Lawrence
This book is a gamble and Jorg is at the centre of it: whether or not you like it is up to your own reaction to him. You can’t focus on any other aspect of the book without it being affected by your interpretation of the character, which is on itself is another gamble by Lawrence. See, Jorg is not likeable since he is a monster, set loss by an insatiable ambition, but he’s not an interesting company either, nor is he punished in a way, because getting away with anything is part of his character.
But Jorg still lives in a world that is, or should be indifferent to his own suffering. There is an interesting image in one of Jorg’s flashbacks: He’s trapped in thorns, unable to help those he loves. The question arises of whether Jorg’s struggle to break free, despite not being capable of offering real help would have been better than staying calm and suffering in complete stillness. The novel COULD have been about that struggle. Jorg might suffer, but the world remains indifferent. The real reason why the book doesn’t work is because of the reaction of the world, which is something that Lawrence should have kept in more consideration.
Maybe it's just one of those books. Maybe Lawrence is a genuinely good writer and his problem here was Jorg. Maybe I will give him another chance in the future with "Red Sister".
But not now. I have too many things to read and I'll rather stick to the ones I have more chances to enjoy...
But Jorg still lives in a world that is, or should be indifferent to his own suffering. There is an interesting image in one of Jorg’s flashbacks: He’s trapped in thorns, unable to help those he loves. The question arises of whether Jorg’s struggle to break free, despite not being capable of offering real help would have been better than staying calm and suffering in complete stillness. The novel COULD have been about that struggle. Jorg might suffer, but the world remains indifferent. The real reason why the book doesn’t work is because of the reaction of the world, which is something that Lawrence should have kept in more consideration.
Maybe it's just one of those books. Maybe Lawrence is a genuinely good writer and his problem here was Jorg. Maybe I will give him another chance in the future with "Red Sister".
But not now. I have too many things to read and I'll rather stick to the ones I have more chances to enjoy...