The Rose and the Thorn (The Riyria Chronicles Book 2)

I have been reading for pleasure since the early 1980s and I have not been paid or given any incentive for this review. I have confirmed purchase of each of these books on Amazon for my Kindle Paperwhite and I am writing this review for all of the Riyria novels and will post this for each. Please see the authors’ notes for reading order of this series but this review is based on reading in chronological order:The Crown Tower (The Riyria Chronicles)The Rose and the Thorn (The Riyria Chronicles)The Death of Dulgath (The Riyria Chronicles)Theft of Swords (Riyria Revelations)Rise of Empire (Riyria Revelations)Heir of Novron (Riyria Revelations)Author Michael J. Sullivan has a gift. After 20 years I have a new favorite series and Michael J. Sullivan has another dedicated reader and fan. This series, and the writing style, takes me back to the old school days of Robert E. Howard in way… Each book stands on its own. It is a very clear story/adventure that starts and concludes in a single volume so it can be read one at a time or binged all at once. The thing that differentiates it is that the series, in its entirety, is also a single epic adventure that starts in The Crown Tower and concludes in Heir of Novron. So taken individually each book is excellent and as a complete epic it more than satisfies. Like others have stated as well I was sad to read the end of it simply knowing that this particular tale was ending while at the same time that ending had enough adventure, emotion, humanity, and twists and turns that I was also happy to read the final pages. As an example the end of Glen Cook’s The Black Company ended poetically and perfectly so too does the story of Riyria.What I took away from this series was a story following the two main characters, Hadrian and Royce, and was about humanity, morality, pain and loss, redemption, family and brotherhood. The two main protagonists and nearly opposite sides of the same coin but that coin is an old tarnished, beaten, and used coin with its faces faded from the wear of life in a medieval fantasy world. There is no typical heroes journey, no larger than life heroics, no immortality of characters that often plagues the genre. These are characters who are nuanced and believable, so much so that some have complained it is not realistic that the two protagonists would be together at all. To any who thought that I say just read on… there is no mystical fate forcing them together or any overused fantasy tropes, there is just strong character design and development, written by an author with a gift for bringing his imagination to the printed page.The author starts the seeds of the story in the first book and nothing is wasted or filler. Small scenes in one book, with characters you may or may not think to ever see again, but can have an impact further down the road. This is like real life. If you help someone on the street or donating to charity, you may just be doing something that will change the world someday. You will meet an excellent cast of secondary and supporting characters who may come and go in the story but while they are there they are real characters and create real moments in time. Whether you see the impact or the characters again I will not say anything to spoil the story but as far as the characters development and the story itself Michael J. Sullivan did not waste your time with stand-in or generic stereotypical filler roles.The individual stories each touched upon different adventures… breaking into an impregnable tower, a high seas adventure, a dungeon crawl, etc, giving each book its own unique feel and never a retread. This works well with the overall storyline for the entire series as well and in the end the payoff is well worth your time and money spent.In regards to reading order, the author suggests publishing order, and I can understand why, but I hate prequels. I do not like knowing where the end is before I read something, so I read in chronological order and I am glad that I did. Seeing the beginning gave me, personally, a better feel for where the characters came from to where they were when the final volume concluded. I am sure these books can be enjoyed either order so use your personal preference when choosing. I cannot rate these books in any kind of order of enjoyment because overall I have come to look at it as one volume or one story. There were no weak books or weak stories to my taste so I will not try to critique it down to arbitrary ratings based on personal preferences… you cannot judge the arts technically… only how they impact you and your enjoyment.Give this series a try if you are looking for something a little different from the glut of current fantasy out there today.

Prequels, I’m usually not really interested in them. I mean once you know where the story goes do you really care about the origins of it? For most of the books I’ve read I’d say that it a big fat NO. But for Riyria and Michael J Sullivan the is a huge and resounding YES!!!!Not only do we get to see how Royce and Hadrian finally solidified into a team and found their front man, we also get to see the beginnings of Royce and Gwen as a possible couple and a young Hilfred in the castle before the fire.Since I read the Riyria Revelations first I know what a great team Hadrian and Royce are. But it is good to see some of the moments in the beginning. I thought that Royce was maybe a little tame for the dangerous killing assassin he was supposed to be. But after reading through this I can see where he got the reputation AND I can see how far Hadrian pushed him into being kinder later that is.***“So why are you helping her?”“Because that’s what people do. They help each other. If you saw a man lying in the road with an arrow in him, you’d stop, wouldn’t you?”“Of course,” Royce replied, “anyone would. A wounded man is easy pickings, unless you could see from your saddle that someone else has already taken his purse.”“What? No! No one would rob a wounded man and leave him to die.”Royce nodded. “Well, no. You’re right. If he has a purse and you take it, it’s best to slit his throat afterward. Too many people live through arrow wounds. You taught me that. No sense risking that he might come after you.”****There are some great scenes in this book with just how cruel and bloodthirsty Royce can be when he realizes the people he cares for are in trouble.Hadrian on the other had is pretty naïve when it comes to people and he is always looking for the best in them. I love watching how each man tries to convince the other that people are generally all good or all bad. Neither is quite right but together they probably make a semi well-adjusted person….almost. We all know that Gwen has always only had eyes for Royce and why but it was cute to see that maybe Hadrian would have liked to have met her under different conditions, but there is no way that he will betray his bro.***“Anything you want to tell me?”For one awful, selfish instant he imagined her saying something like, Hadrian, I’ve wanted to confess this to you ever since we first met, but it isn’t Royce I’m in love with… And what would he say? He knew what he’d like to say. He was just as smitten with her as Royce was, but he also knew that betraying Royce wouldn’t just be wrong or cruel—it would be fatal.***This is so true and against Hadrian’s character anyway. I’m glad that he is happy for the small comfort Royce feels when around Gwen.Other than that I was really excited to see Hilfred’s origins. They were so different than I expected them to be and a blend of sad and heroic all the same time. A young Hilfred just becoming a guard and stumbling on a secret he wasn’t supposed to find. A plot in the castle to kill the Royal family and seeing Arista, Oreck and the Pickering Boys as children was a lot of fun.Even the plots in the palace turned out different than expected and bravo to MJS for taking a story that has been told in the Riyria Revelations and make it just as intriguing as if you didn’t know already what the end result was going to be. There were still enough surprises that I was entertained and engaged the entire story.

As one reader aptly named their review, reading this series is indeed like spending time with your best friends - what could be better than finding out how Royce grew to care about Gwen when he doesn't even care enough to name his own horse? The excellent writing's still there, taking us deeper into the lives of the characters and magnifying details of their interesting settings.Firstly, you can tell that something has changed Royce and Hadrian's partnership. Although their bond is not as strong as the one they will have much later, you can see how things have improved and it's pleasantly surprisingly. After a year, Hadrian is able to understand Royce to a certain extent, observing that the man only smiles and wears his hood up if someone is going to suffer, and even learns from his partner how to move with a little more stealth and awareness of his surroundings. What I found particularly impressive was the observations of Wintertide through Hadrian's perspective and how differently he thinks from the way he did in the previous novel. While things are more toned down with regards to Gwen in the story, you can see just how wonderfully the connection between herself and Royce forms, delicately presented in a way that is not eye-rolling at all or boringly derivative - it is genuinely enhancing.In addition to Gwen and Royce, there is the unrequited love that Hilfred has for Arista and also King Amrath's restrained affection towards the queen. Tellingly, the romance here is somewhat melancholic, hesitant, and self-conscious. Neither man knows how the other person feels, despite being united by duty and marriage, and they each endure what feels like a mortal blow to their hearts when events come to pass. It was good to see where Hilfred had come from in terms of being employed in Essendon Castle and how he slowly worked his way up from an errand boy to a bodyguard to the royal family. I thought the suspense and portentous atmosphere of Richard Hilfred's actions were especially good, given that we know little about Hilfred's childhood, and though we knew what was essentially coming, the villainy wasn't too heavy-handed or annoyingly obvious - "The Crown Tower" seeks to expand on what has already happened in Revelations and it does so without a sense of repetition.I honestly hope there is more to come from Riyria Chronicles. I want to know what mistake Royce made to land him and Hadrian in prison, as well as the build-up to King Amrath's demise. And I'd love to see how Viscount Albert Winslow grows into his role as a middle man for two professional thieves!

I started out with the original 3 (6) Riyria Revelations books, I highly recommend anyone first touching the Riyria books, start in that order. I loved The Crown Tower, The Rose And The Thorn was just more icing on the cake. More characters from the original books, detailed, rich history of their early years and events which shape the events to come. Littered with hints and little rewards that made me ahh and smile.I really do hope that Michael releases all the planned books he has worked out, more importantly I hope book 3 of the Riyria Chronicles is not too far off as I'm experiencing withdrawal symptoms !The Riyria books started as my quest to find a GOT replacement till WOW, but I quickly purchased all the released books after reading a few chapters. It's given me countless hours of enjoyable reading and holds a place in my favorites.

The second book in Michael J. Sullivan's Riyria Chronicles book, but the eighth published Riyria book overall. Another amazing Riyria book. Loved it! Great for fans of the series and those who are new to the series as well.In The Rose and the Thorn, Hadrian and Royce return to Medford, where a year ago they were saved from the brink of death by brothel owner Gwen, whom Royce has since fallen for. On their way they meet landless and penniless viscount Albert Winslow, and the three strike up an agreement to benefit them all. Arriving in Medford though, Hadrian and Royce find that Gwen refuses to see the pair, much to their confusion, and they seek to discover the reasons why and rectify the problem. Meanwhile, at the castle, Reuben Hilfred is about to turn 16 and begin life as a castle guard. He soon makes some unlikely friends and finds himself caught up in an unusual situation, forced to re-consider everything his father told him...I LOVED this book. I've read all the previous Riyria books (the entire Riyria Revelations series as well as The Crown Tower), and I loved this chance to revisit the world and characters I'd come to love. Again it was a good, enjoyable adventure in itself, and even if you haven't read the entire Riyria Revelations, and just read The Crown Tower (or even just this book maybe...) it's still really enjoyable. Sullivan still throws in a few little hints that veterans of the books will enjoy, hinting at things that happen later without revealing everything to readers new to the series, which I think is best and works well.I loved seeing Hadrian and Royce's relationship continuing to develop and looking out for hints for what happens in later books.Overall, an amazing read and a great adventure. It was a great read for a veteran of the series, full of hidden references, but also a enjoyable romp for those new to the series as well. A step up from The Crown Tower in my opinion. I loved it!

Best of the 3 Riyria Chronicles I thought. Book 1 was too stagy i.e. it had to fit with the "origins" and to be about the characters getting to know each other. Book 3 did not advance anything and was just a story. Perhaps that was all it was meant to be and if so it could have been a better story. All worth a read though. I'm not sure about the order to read them in but I read them in publishing order and think that is best. Book 1 might have been less enjoyable if coming to the characters for the first time.

Thoroughly enjoyable continuing to read about the back stories of Hadrian, Royce and all the other familiar characters from the Riyria books. Well written with twists and turns, and links to the Revelations series!