Arthas: Rise of the Lich King

by Christie Golden

Hardcover, 320 pages

English language

Published April 20, 2009 by Pocket Star Books.

ISBN:: 978-1-4165-5077-8

(13 reviews)

His evil is legend. Lord of the undead Scourge, wielder of the runeblade Frostmourne, and enemy of the free peoples of Azeroth. The Lich King is an entity of incalculable power and unparalleled malice—his icy soul utterly consumed by his plans to destroy all life on the world of Warcraft.

But it was not always so. Long before his soul was fused with that of the orc shaman Ner'zhul, the Lich King was Arthas Menethil, crown prince of Lordaeron and faithful paladin of the Silver Hand.

When a plague of undeath threatened all that he loved, Arthas was driven to pursue an ill-fated quest for a runeblade powerful enough to save his homeland. Yet the object of his search would exact a heavy price from its new master, beginning a horrifying descent into damnation. Arthas's path would lead him through the arctic northern wastes toward the Frozen Throne, where he …

But it was not always so. Long before his soul was fused with that of the orc shaman Ner'zhul, the Lich King was Arthas Menethil, crown prince of Lordaeron and faithful paladin of the Silver Hand.

3 editions

XolokReads reviewed Arthas: Rise of the Lich King by Christie Golden (World of Warcraft, #6)

A Difficult Undertaking and Christie Golden Pulls It Off.

4 stars

Content warning TW: Animal harm.

Arthas is a heavy hitter in the Warcraft setting and Christie Golden's book had to be a challenge. This book came out shortly after the release of Wrath of the Lich King. This was the height of WoW's popularity and the book is focused on the history of arguably Warcraft's favorite villain. Golden starts in Arthas' childhood and we get to watch the promising(?) young man grow into the monster he would become. We get to see that Arthas wasn't a super great person to start off with. I would have tried to find a way to make his downfall feel more inevitable, but I am left feeling the way I felt about the same story in Warcraft 3. Arthas doesn't have that strong of a tragic flaw. He is bent on besting a demon and that leads him down a bad path. That part makes sense. It's strong tragic storytelling. Then the narrative weakens though. He's just kind of mind controlled. His cruelty doesn't seem motivated so much. Sometimes he seems deluded, but not enough extend his flaw. Sometimes we get glimpses of his better self trying to break through, but I wish there were more. The main thing that Golden adds to the story is Arthas' steed. As a horse loving person, that was rough to read, but it did expand on the character. I almost feel Golden should have been allowed to do this in 2 books. I wanted to hear more about Arthas' motivations but there were too many Events to account for. This is a consistent weak point in WoW novels, but Golden handles them best. Jaina provides a counterpoint to Arthas for part 1 and Sylvanas does for part 2. I feel like if this were divided into two books, we could have been those two relationships really filled out and played against each other. Of all the Warcraft books I've read in this bout so far, Arthas: Rise of the Lich King is the best, but I expect they will get even better as I proceed through the timeline.

Marius Kimmina reviewed Arthas: Rise of the Lich King by Christie Golden (World of Warcraft, #6)

Review of 'Arthas: Rise of the Lich King' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Warcraft 3 was my favorite game as a kid and nostalgia totally kicked in here - loved it. If you don't have that then it might not be worth reading this, if I am honest.

Michael P reviewed Arthas: Rise of the Lich King by Christie Golden (World of Warcraft, #6)

Review of 'Arthas: Rise of the Lich King' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

I am a Warcraft lore fan. I have enjoyed the stories told in this world since Warcraft 2. This book was written for fans like me.

It is very well detailed, and follows the journey of Arthas, his fall, and his rise in Darkness. The book ties elements of Warcraft 3 and Frozen Throne, but adding very detailed context to the actions and dialog of characters from those games.

This book also does a great job of adding in additional media tie-ins (trans-media) to the ongoing comic series, and of course World of Warcraft itself.