Half a War

Half a War
Joe Abercrombie

A classic coming-of-age tale set in a vivid and richly-imagined world from Sunday Times bestselling author Joe Abercrombie.‘Joe Abercrombie is doing some terrific work’ GEORGE R.R. MARTINWORDS ARE WEAPONSPrincess Skara has seen all she loved turned to ashes. She is left with only words. But the right words can be as deadly as any blade.ONLY HALF A WAR IS FOUGHT WITH SWORDSThe deep-cunning Father Yarvi has walked a long road from crippled slave to king’s minister. But now he faces the greatest army since the elves made war on God.SOMETIMES ONE MUST FIGHT EVIL WITH EVILSome – like Thorn Bathu and the sword-bearer Raith – are born to fight, perhaps to die. Others – like Brand the smith and Koll the wood-carver – would rather stand in the light. But when Mother War spreads her iron wings, she may cast the whole Shattered Sea into darkness…

Copyright (#u3967ba9e-7272-56c0-b9cb-3e6a5d19d52d)

HarperVoyager

An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd

1 London Bridge Street

London SE1 9GF

www.harpervoyagerbooks.co.uk (http://www.harpervoyagerbooks.co.uk)

First published in Great Britain by HarperVoyager 2015

Copyright © Joe Abercrombie 2015

Map and Bail’s Point illustration copyright © Nicolette Caven 2015

Cover layout design © HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2015

Cover images © Mike Bryan (flame axes illustration); Shutterstock.com (http://Shutterstock.com) (castle, sea)

Joe Abercrombie asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.

Source ISBN: 9780007550265

Ebook Edition © July 2015 ISBN: 9780007550272

Version: 2017-11-23

Dedication (#u3967ba9e-7272-56c0-b9cb-3e6a5d19d52d)

For Teddy

The man who stands at a strange threshold

Should be cautious before he cross it,

Glance this way and that:

Who knows beforehand what foes may sit

Awaiting him in the hall?

FromHávamál, the Speech of the High One

Contents

Cover (#uc072772b-73a5-5aa5-a66b-fae85c10f11c)

Title Page (#uc02c0f7b-9a70-5551-8467-5fb1b70abca6)

Copyright (#uf8bc8257-7fcf-5c91-823e-8890bdce9a6d)

Dedication (#ucfc5170f-3be7-55b4-8821-0626c8d476ab)

Plan of Bail's Point (#uaf1647d0-29f5-5d20-b401-a440d2c18d8a)

Map (#ud67ca0c9-fec8-5ad2-b13f-f6d17745be2a)

Part I: Words Are Weapons (#u826842b2-a277-5908-ace4-4e5f478dec41)

The Fall (#u076ef024-d52f-5594-b48c-3132371040b9)

No Peace (#u037b1c3b-3204-5a2e-aa51-8969a881ea2c)

Never Bloody Enough (#u1f9db307-979b-5923-b1f7-c95208976c18)

Safe (#u9ae1ec81-5719-5b23-85f3-20939e46377e)

For Both of Us (#ufec599cb-c853-521f-b218-496fb3cd1bd9)

Clever Hands (#u68908513-6375-5712-8453-35465e91ef1c)

Friends Like These (#u31e417e1-cb6c-5415-9ff1-494ab87cb57f)

Bail’s Blood (#uebc0c50d-2eb6-52a4-9e40-cc0337fcf39c)

Chances (#u328c7b17-3fec-5013-8090-969745b2f8e6)

How to Win (#uc172558f-f94b-5b11-be74-c207a67373ba)

First Man in (#u5482496e-4886-5ed3-b3a2-430831ce304c)

The Killer (#u1c6d5d08-0774-5e86-8c6d-78d78ee59183)

My Land (#litres_trial_promo)

Part II: We Are the Sword (#litres_trial_promo)