The Iron King

The Accursed Kings, Book 1

By: Maurice Druon

Narrated by: Peter Joyce

‘This is the original game of thrones’ George R.R. Martin

From the publishers that brought you A Game of Thrones comes the series that inspired George R.R. Martin’s epic work.

France became a great nation under Philip the Fair – but it was a greatness achieved at the expense of her people, for his was a reign characterised by violence, the scandalous adulteries of his daughters-in-law, and the triumph of royal authority.

©1955 Maurice Druon (P)2013 HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Critic reviews

‘Iron kings and strangled queens, battles and betrayals, lies and lust, the curse of the Templars, the doom of a great dynasty – and all of it (well, most of it) straight from the pages of history, and believe me, the Starks and the Lannisters have nothing on the Capets and Plantagenets. Whether you are a history buff or a fantasy fan, Druon's epic will keep you turning pages. This was the original game of thrones’
GEORGE R.R. MARTIN

‘Blood-curdling tale of intrigue, murder, corruption and sexual passion’
SUNDAY TIMES

‘Barbaric, sensual, teeming with life, based in wide reading and sound scholarship…among the best historical novels’ TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT

Excellent in every phase

Would you listen to The Iron King again? Why?

I look forward to reading the next in the series. The author brings to life the historical figures with excellent detail.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Iron King?

The death scene of Phillip the Fair was both well-written and well-acted.

What about Peter Joyce’s performance did you like?

Mister Joyce utilized a wide variety of "voices" to give the characters life-like qualities

If you could take any character from The Iron King out to dinner, who would it be and why?

Jacque de Molay of course.

Brilliant

Like fictional history should be good amazing good amazing just great. It's hard to tell what is fiction and what is real and I love that about this.

Just fantastic!

What made the experience of listening to The Iron King the most enjoyable?

The feeling of reality in the plot, because it is partly based on historical event and also because the characters act the way real people would.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Iron King?

When the adulterers are confronted with the evidence by the king, it came slowly but it was pretty intense.

What does Peter Joyce bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Tone, emotion, diversity from the way he alters his voice alone I could tell which character he was voicing.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I was truly sad for the princesses and truly angry at the king for the treatment of the Templars… what he suffered at the end, he absolutely had it coming.

Any additional comments?

This is a series I have to finish… my type of adventure.

Excellent book, great narration!

Thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to any fan of historical fiction. Peter Joyce is an excellent narrator.

Enjoyed it immensely.

Has a feeling of authenticity. I will be listening to the next one of the series for sure.

Marvelous performance!

The narrator is splendid. He fleshes out the story and being words to life. The story by itself is okay, but it is WELL WRITTEN! The author uses beautiful poetic speech all throughout the story. Bravo!

Very hard to follow (lots of French)

It was so hard to follow the plot, which I blame on so many names and titles being so French and sounding so similar that I couldn’t remember who was who. If you happen to know French, this probably won’t be a problem.

Also… the characters seemed rather underdeveloped. I didn’t really feel much of anything for most of them.

Plot seemed somewhat random. I thought the whole book was going to be about the affair with the two brothers, but it just kept going after that and I’m not sure why. Probably it would make sense if you continued reading the later books, but I don’t think I will as this one wasn’t too enjoyable.

The reader is marvelous!

This book is so visual! You can see these people as if they're standing in front of you. And the reader is absolutely amazing! the best I've heard! highly recommend!

GRRM Writes Good, Recommends Good

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Iron King?

"GUARDS!" is the first thing that comes to mind. Then there's Philip and the deer, Philip and Nogaret's papers, Philip on his deathbed, and also quite a few scenes that don't involve Philip. Almost any death scene is memorable.

What about Peter Joyce’s performance did you like?

All of it. How he narrates the text, delivers the dialogue, voices the characters... as far as I'm concerned he does it all perfectly.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Oh, yes. Midway through writing this review, I opened a second window and bought The Strangled Queen.

Any additional comments?

Although I can't point to any one aspect of this book as being brilliant, everything here is solid, even above-average. It's a good novel and, combined with a first-class reading, is well-worth what I paid for it.

Great medieval historical fiction

The time period was ripe for intrigue and cunning by all those involved. I want to learn more about this time and am exited to know what happens in this series