Book · 2011
Prince of Thorns
by Mark Lawrence
Jorg Ancrath watches his mother and brother die, then spends four books becoming exactly the kind of monster who did it.
What does Reddit think of Prince of Thorns?
620 mentions, dominated by r/Fantasy (412) rather than r/suggestmeabook (105) or r/printSF (103), which marks this as a genre-forum book, not a general-audience one. The live disagreement in the sample is whether Jorg counts as a depravity arc or a redemption arc; one commenter (↑194) rejects it as an anti-rec for readers wanting an unrepentant villain protagonist, arguing Jorg's arc bends toward redemption instead. Another quote (↑139) is blunter about the opening chapters, the protagonist chatting with a disemboweled town leader while his own bandit gang sacks and rapes the village around them, sold in the same breath as "refreshing to see a likeable bad guy." r/Fantasy also slots the book into the grimdark lineage alongside The First Law and The Poppy War (↑141), crediting it as an early entry in a boom that predates the Game of Thrones show's popularization of the mode. More than one commenter prefers the sequel, calling King of Thorns the trilogy's high point (↑109). Mentions have thinned since 2021, down to 46 in 2024 and 49 in 2025.
Community feedback & reader fit
Themes
- · morally repugnant protagonist
- · grimdark genre lineage
- · revenge curdling into something worse
- · sequel outshining the opener
Common praise
- + Fans defend Jorg's psychopathy as earned, saying the reasons behind it 'all get expanded upon in later books' (↑109).
- + One reader calls the opening chapters 'refreshing' for handing a villain protagonist real motivation instead of cartoon evil (↑139).
- + It gets credited as part of the grimdark lineage alongside The First Law and The Poppy War, ahead of the Game of Thrones show's popularization of the mode (↑141).
Common criticism
- − A commenter waves it off as an 'anti-rec' for readers who specifically want an unredeemed villain, arguing Jorg's arc is a redemption arc wearing a grimdark costume (↑194).
- − More than one reader prefers King of Thorns to the original, suggesting the debut needs its sequel to fully land (↑109).
- − Mentions have fallen every year since 2021, down to 49 in 2025, well off the series' earlier pace.
Who it's for
This is a r/Fantasy book first: 412 of 620 mentions come from there, against a combined 208 from suggestmeabook and printSF. Want a protagonist with no interest in being liked? Read the anti-rec comment (↑194) first, since some readers think Jorg goes soft by the trilogy's end. If a village-sacking opening chapter is a dealbreaker, this announces itself in chapter one and doesn't apologize for it. Grimdark completionists working through The First Law or The Poppy War get pointed here as part of the same wave.
Mentions over time
Top subreddits
Which Reddit comments matter for Prince of Thorns?
Top-upvoted quotes across the subreddits where this book is mentioned. Click through to read the full thread.
“I feel like broken empire is an anti rec for this honestly because it’s more of a redemption arc than a depravity arc (it’s my favorite series so I’m not dissing the work, I’m just confused by the OP). I am genuinely struggling to think of books that fit this because I read a lot of antihero/villai…
“Maybe it will go that way for books. For adaptations, it’s a different story.If you consider GoT grimdark,then it was the only beginning of the “grimdark craze”. The First Law,The Broken Empire,The Poppy War and other grimdark stories have yet to be adapted.
“Faithful and fallen series by John Gwynne, ending with Valour. Sticks the landing perfectly. The 3rd and 4th book are the two best. I haven’t read the second series in that world yet. The lost metal for Mistborn Era 2. By far my favourite of era 2 books. Emperor of Thorns for Mark Lawrence’s Broke…
“The prince of thorns is exactly what you're looking for. It starts with him talking to a disemboweled town leader as his bandit gang sacks and rapes the village. And he gets even worse somehow. But it's very refreshing to see a likeable bad guy that wants nothing other than to be emperor, forget the…
“+1 for all the recs for the 9 Fitz books - Farseer, Tawny Man, Fitz and the Fool. Broken Empire trilogy is one perspective, except for one prologue if I remember correctly. Dresden Files
“It's pretty clear I've got that addict's personality, as I go "all in" when I do something. This year the goal is to read 1000 comics/books, a lot of them were fantasy. These are the ones that were the most addictive. * Last year my addiction was **The King's Avatar** (translated) web novel, I coul…
“I really liked Prince of Thorns, there are reasons Jorg is such a borderline psychopath, it all gets expanded upon in later books, with reasons behind Jorgs attitude to life. I personally think King of Thorns is the high point of the series, in terms dog characterisation and the plot. Emperor of …
“The Broken Empire Trilogy - Mark Lawrence The Dying Earth - Jack Vance Viriconium - M. John Harrison The Book of the New Sun - Gene Wolfe
Convinced? Pick up Prince of Thorns
Readers also mention
Books that share discussion threads with Prince of Thorns — counted from the comments, not curated.
The Fifth Season
N. K. Jemisin
A woman searches a dying continent for the daughter her husband stole, while the world ends again on schedule.
The Blade Itself
Joe Abercrombie
Nine-Fingers the barbarian just wants to survive one more winter, but a torturer's investigation and a prince's war have other plans.
The Eye of the World
Robert Jordan
A farm boy's village burns in one night, and the Aes Sedai who saves him says the Dark One marked him before he could walk.
The Black Company
Glen Cook
A mercenary company's own physician keeps its journal through the Vietnam War on peyote, one contract and one dead wizard-lord at a time.
Red Rising
Pierce Brown
A miner's son fakes his way into the ruling class's brutal war-games academy to bring down the system that executed his wife.
A Game of Thrones
George R. R. Martin
A direwolf litter found beside a dead stag opens a decades-spanning war for the Iron Throne with no guaranteed survivors.
Prince of Thorns — frequently asked
Is Prince of Thorns as dark as people say?+
Yes, and the opening chapters set the tone immediately: one top-voted comment (↑139) describes the protagonist talking to a disemboweled town leader while his own gang sacks and rapes the village. It's sold in that same comment as 'refreshing' precisely because the villain gets real motivation.
Does Jorg stay a villain throughout Prince of Thorns?+
Contested. One reader (↑194) argues the series is actually a redemption arc and calls it an anti-rec for people wanting an unrepentant antihero; others (↑109) defend Jorg's psychopathy as earned, with the reasoning expanded across later books.
What does Reddit think of Prince of Thorns?+
Enthusiastic but genre-specific. It draws 620 mentions, two-thirds of them from r/Fantasy, which credits it as an early entry in the grimdark lineage alongside The First Law and The Poppy War (↑141). Mentions have declined since 2021, though, down to 46-49 a year.
Is Prince of Thorns or King of Thorns the better book?+
Multiple commenters in the sample (↑109) prefer the sequel, calling King of Thorns the trilogy's high point. That suggests Prince of Thorns works better as a first chapter than a standalone read.