HaK: Part IV (Chapters 30-40)

[[deleted user]]

Yea, Im not invested much either. Enough to pick up the next book, but just barely, to be honest.

I saw the Nothing twist coming ever since he pledged himself when Yarvi revealed who he was, I just didnt know who in particular he meant. That sucked a lot of fun out of the finale for me.

[Bill]

Same here didn't really get invested. I feel like unlike his other works nothing really surprised me in this one.

As soon as he handed the Minister the tea I thought oh he is going to poison her with that root from the beginning.

[[deleted user]]

Yea, overall its not one of Abercrombie's better books. I think he couldn't help but over simplify it because he wrote it for the YA crowd but not adults. But as most folks have pointed out to me, its an excellent introduction to Joe's writing.

[Sky]

I knew there was more to Nothing but didn't see the twist of who he actually was. I did not see the twist with the Minister, though in retrospect once we learned the High King was behind it, she had to have had a hand in it.

Honestly I was expecting to see Yarvi end up as King by the end of the book, and was a little let down with how events unfolded. I did enjoy the book quite thoroughly, and am curious where it will go from here. As Alex pointed out in an earlier thread, the next book is provisionally titled "Half the World" so it will be interesting to see if Yarvi continues to be the main character, and if so how his career and possible rise to power unfold.

[Dara]

I agree with Rab - this was good but felt oversimplified for the YA market. Saw the twists coming from Nothing to Mother Gundring. But overall an enjoyable, quick read. I'll probably continue with the series.

[Conor]

A strong ending to a good book. The first half did a good job of building tension and the action scenes were nicely done. I was a bit disappointed at the lack of a real climax, the Odem duel was good but the result felt like a foregone conclusion. The Gorm storyline also had a pretty weak ending. Yarvi (and king Nothing I guess) just invited Gorm into their country, let him murder, rape and pillage as much as he wanted and then let him go? I was really expecting Yarvi to double cross him and he even passed up a golden opportunity to do so. The confrontation in the last scene was brilliant though, shocking and emotionally charged.

Although it was lightened somewhat for the YA audience I thought Abercrombie did a great job of keeping the tone in line with his other works. The mother Gundring betrayal, the death of Jaud (tears*) and the ending of Yarvi's love triangle all contributed to the sense of a bleak world with flawed characters and troubled relationships.

The Nothing reveal was pretty obvious and the resolution to the kingship problem was uninspired as well. A friend of mine on here posted a quote from the last scene that indirectly allowed me to figure out (using my incredible sleuthing skills obvs) the mother Gundrig reveal. Even so that last scene was intense, probably the best of the book.

[Dara]

I think the story with Gorm is going to have ramifications in the next book (or book after). The conclusion felt like more of an ellipsis than a period, if that makes sense. He's biding his time.

[Conor]

Good point, I definitely agree we'll be seeing more of him in the next book. I was still disappointed with Yarvi and Nothing though. Gorm invaded their country, killed and enslaved their people and now they're just letting him go. Maybe they were afraid of his army attacking the city if he was killed (we were never told what the military situation was) but surely if the invading army was strong enough to take the city they would have done it. Also the hostile army on their doorstep would be a lot less dangerous without it's ambitious commander. Anyway that definitely won't be the last we see of Gorm...

[Rob, Mayor of Ghost Town]

I probably wouldn't seen Nothing as the older brother if someone hadn't suggested it in a previous thread. Mostly because I forgot the reference to him from the beginning.

It didn't surprise me to see Yarvi end up Minister or that he killed thr last one for her involvement.

It wasn't bad, but wasn't great either.

[Meera]

I was also disappointed by the ending. I liked Nothing better when he was just Nothing. His character seemed to have changed quite a bit once he claimed the throne. I didn't like how the gang was broken apart and he didn't seem loyal to them anymore. And other than the fact that Yarvi got Gorm to attack his city, I liked the rest of the book.