A Clash of Kings: The Illustrated Edition
Five kings claim the Iron Throne of Westeros after the deaths of Ned Stark and Robert Baratheon, fracturing the realm into open war while supernatural threats gather beyond the Wall.
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LuvemBooks Verdict
Best for
Dedicated fans of A Song of Ice and Fire who already own or have read A Game of Thrones and want a premium, display-worthy hardcover of A Clash of Kings enriched with Lauren K. Cannon's newly commissioned illustrations and Bernard Cornwell's foreword.
Worth it if
You are an existing series devotee seeking a collector's centrepiece that pairs the complete, Locus Award-winning text of A Clash of Kings with over twenty all-new illustrations in a major-publisher hardcover format — and you are prepared to verify the physical production quality through hands-on collector impressions before buying.
Skip if
If you are new to Westeros and plan to start here, or if the illustrated edition's higher price point is only justified for you by exceptional print and binding quality that this editorial review cannot independently confirm.
What readers & critics say
Wikipedia's reception record shows the underlying novel earned strong critical praise on original publication, with Bradley H. Sinor of the Tulsa World crediting Martin for keeping "readers balanced on a sword's edge" and judging that A Clash of Kings "grips the reader whether or not they read the earlier book." Kirkus Reviews, while flagging the book's demanding 896-page length and its lack of any recap for new readers, acknowledged that fans of the inaugural volume "will certainly plunge right in," implicitly endorsing the series' grip on its audience.
“Martin keeps readers balanced on a sword's edge — the novel grips, tells a satisfying story, and leaves you wanting the next book.”
— Bradley H. Sinor, Tulsa World (via Wikipedia)“The inaugural volume was both admirable and eye-popping, so fans will certainly plunge right in — all 896 pages of it.”
— Kirkus ReviewsLook inside the book
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- Is it worth reading?
- For existing fans of A Song of Ice and Fire, this illustrated edition offers a compelling reason to revisit A Clash of Kings in premium format: over twenty original illustrations by Lauren K. Cannon, a foreword by Bernard Cornwell that reinforces the novel's reputation for historical texture and moral complexity, and a substantial hardcover presentation from Random House Worlds. The underlying novel's credentials are formidable — it won the Locus Award for Best Novel and received a Nebula nomination, with critics praising Martin's world-building for lending 'the feeling of medieval history rather than fiction.' The honest caveat is that readers whose decision hinges on visual production quality should seek out hands-on collector impressions, as the review cannot assess paper stock, illustration reproduction, or binding from the published record alone.
- Similar books
- Readers drawn to this illustrated edition will find natural companions in the rest of Martin's own series: A Game of Thrones: The Illustrated Edition by George R. R. Martin is the essential first volume and the logical starting point before A Clash of Kings. For epic fantasy with comparable scope and moral weight, Brandon Sanderson's Stormlight Archive series (The Way of Kings through Wind and Truth) offers a similarly immersive multi-POV world-building experience. J.R.R. Tolkien's The Fellowship of the Ring is the foundational text of the genre and a perennial reference point for any reader exploring high fantasy. Patrick Rothfuss's The Name of the Wind provides another acclaimed single-narrator epic fantasy for readers who want absorbing prose and intricate world-building in one volume.
- Who should read this?
- This illustrated edition is squarely aimed at existing fans of A Song of Ice and Fire who want a premium, display-worthy version of A Clash of Kings — not at first-time readers approaching Westeros without prior knowledge of A Game of Thrones. It is an especially strong fit for collectors who value original commissioned art alongside canonical text: Lauren K. Cannon's over twenty new illustrations and Bernard Cornwell's foreword make it a distinct object from any standard edition. Readers who prize physical book production as part of the reading experience are the natural audience, though those whose purchase depends on visual quality specifics should consult hands-on collector reviews before buying.
- About George R. R. Martin
- George Raymond Richard Martin, also known by the initials GRRM, is an American author, screenwriter, and television producer.
- How does it compare to the Game of Thrones illustrated edition?
- Both A Game of Thrones: The Illustrated Edition and A Clash of Kings: The Illustrated Edition are part of the same ongoing illustrated series from Random House Worlds, sharing the same collector's format philosophy and the same publisher's commitment to commissioning original artwork for each volume. A Clash of Kings deepens and expands the conflict introduced in A Game of Thrones — the War of Five Kings is the direct consequence of that first novel's events — making it the natural continuation for any reader who found the illustrated first volume compelling. The two editions are best understood as companion pieces in a growing series collection rather than standalone alternatives.
- Tell me about the adaptation
- A Clash of Kings corresponds primarily to the second season of HBO's Game of Thrones, the television adaptation that ran from 2011 to 2019 and brought Martin's world of shifting alliances, the War of Five Kings, and characters like Tyrion Lannister, Daenerys Targaryen, and Jon Snow to a global audience. The show drew heavily from Martin's multi-POV narrative structure and the novel's central conflict, though — as is standard with long-form adaptations — certain plot threads, characters, and nuances of the source text were condensed or altered for the screen. Readers returning to the illustrated edition after watching the series will find Martin's original text the richer and more morally intricate version of events.
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Age & Reading Level
Recommended age
Ages 16+
Reading level
Adult
Content to know about
Best for: Adults / mature 16+ — the novel's backdrop of war, assassination, sexual content, and Melisandre's fanaticism-driven violence places it firmly in adult territory.
Skip if you want a self-contained story with a clear resolution rather than a dense, multi-threaded epic that assumes familiarity with the previous volume.
Editorial Review
Published by Random House Worlds in November 2019, this hardcover illustrated edition of A Clash of Kings — the second novel in George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire — pairs the full text of the Locus Award-winning epic fantasy with over twenty new illustrations by artist Lauren K. Cannon, alongside a foreword by Bernard Cornwell, making it the definitive collector's presentation of the War of Five Kings.
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