City of Stairs
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy for $25.79
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Alma Cuervo
About this listen
An atmospheric and intrigue-filled novel of dead gods, buried histories, and a mysterious, protean city- - from one of America's most acclaimed young fantasy writers. The city of Bulikov once wielded the powers of the gods to conquer the world, enslaving and brutalizing millions - until its divine protectors were killed. Now Bulikov has become just another colonial outpost of the world's new geopolitical power, but the surreal landscape of the city itself - first shaped, now shattered, by the thousands of miracles its guardians once worked upon it - stands as a constant, haunting reminder of its former supremacy. Into this broken city steps Shara Thivani. Officially, the unassuming young woman is just another junior diplomat sent by Bulikov's oppressors. Unofficially, she is one of her country's most accomplished spies, dispatched to catch a murderer. But as Shara pursues the killer, she starts to suspect that the beings who ruled this terrible place may not be as dead as they seem - and that Bulikov's cruel reign may not yet be over.
©2014 Robert Jackson Bennett (P)2014 Recorded BooksListeners also enjoyed...
-
Ninefox Gambit
- By: Yoon Ha Lee
- Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller
- Length: 10 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To win an impossible war, Captain Kel Cheris must awaken an ancient weapon and a despised traitor general.
Captain Kel Cheris of the Hexarchate is disgraced for using unconventional methods in a battle against heretics. Kel Command gives her the opportunity to redeem herself by retaking the Fortress of Scattered Needles, a star fortress that has recently been captured by heretics. Cheris' career isn't the only thing at stake. If the fortress falls, the Hexarchate itself might be next.
-
-
Just too confusing with enough context
- By Jose Alvarez on 04-02-17
By: Yoon Ha Lee
-
Red Sister
- First Book of the Ancestor
- By: Mark Lawrence
- Narrated by: Heather O'Neill
- Length: 19 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the international best-selling author of the Broken Empire Trilogy comes the first in a brilliant new breakout fantasy series. A searing novel set in a brand-new world, this series follows a young girl who enters a convent where girls are selected to train in religion, combat, or magic. Nona is selected to learn combat and finds herself at the center of an epic battle for empire on the outer reaches of a dying universe.
-
-
Great Story supported by great narration
- By jdykes33 on 04-15-17
By: Mark Lawrence
-
The Troupe
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Luis Moreno
- Length: 18 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Best-selling author Robert Jackson Bennett has won widespread critical acclaim for his unique brand of darkly inventive fiction. In The Troupe, 16-year-old George Carole joins vaudeville in search of Heironomo Silenus, the man he believes to be his father. But what he discovers casts a dark pall over his world: Silenus' troupe hides a dangerous secret - one that invites death to all in its vicinity.
-
-
Not worth the effort!
- By Howard on 08-12-13
-
American Elsewhere
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Graham Winton
- Length: 22 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Some places are too good to be true. Under a pink moon, there is a perfect little town not found on any map. In that town, there are quiet streets lined with pretty houses, houses that conceal the strangest things. After a couple years of hard traveling, ex-cop Mona Bright inherits her long-dead mother's home in Wink, New Mexico. And the closer Mona gets to her mother's past, the more she understands that the people of Wink are very, very different....
-
-
You are entering the twighlight zone
- By Lisa on 07-29-13
-
The Will of the Many
- Hierarchy, Book 1
- By: James Islington
- Narrated by: Euan Morton
- Length: 28 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Catenan Republic—the Hierarchy—may rule the world now, but they do not know everything. I tell them my name is Vis Telimus. I tell them I was orphaned after a tragic accident three years ago, and that good fortune alone has led to my acceptance into their most prestigious school. I tell them that once I graduate, I will gladly join the rest of civilized society in allowing my strength, my drive, and my focus—what they call Will—to be leeched away and added to the power of those above me, as millions already do. As all must eventually do.
-
-
I don’t know what the other reviews are on about
- By Chase on 06-24-23
By: James Islington
-
Jade Shards
- Stories
- By: Fonda Lee
- Narrated by: Andrew Kishino
- Length: 3 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Fonda Lee returns to the acclaimed Green Bone Saga with four prequel short stories that delve into the personal histories of the Kaul and Ayt families.
-
-
Listen to these prequels only after the series
- By 🔥 Phx17 🔥 on 07-13-24
By: Fonda Lee
-
Ninefox Gambit
- By: Yoon Ha Lee
- Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller
- Length: 10 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To win an impossible war, Captain Kel Cheris must awaken an ancient weapon and a despised traitor general.
Captain Kel Cheris of the Hexarchate is disgraced for using unconventional methods in a battle against heretics. Kel Command gives her the opportunity to redeem herself by retaking the Fortress of Scattered Needles, a star fortress that has recently been captured by heretics. Cheris' career isn't the only thing at stake. If the fortress falls, the Hexarchate itself might be next.
-
-
Just too confusing with enough context
- By Jose Alvarez on 04-02-17
By: Yoon Ha Lee
-
Red Sister
- First Book of the Ancestor
- By: Mark Lawrence
- Narrated by: Heather O'Neill
- Length: 19 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the international best-selling author of the Broken Empire Trilogy comes the first in a brilliant new breakout fantasy series. A searing novel set in a brand-new world, this series follows a young girl who enters a convent where girls are selected to train in religion, combat, or magic. Nona is selected to learn combat and finds herself at the center of an epic battle for empire on the outer reaches of a dying universe.
-
-
Great Story supported by great narration
- By jdykes33 on 04-15-17
By: Mark Lawrence
-
The Troupe
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Luis Moreno
- Length: 18 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Best-selling author Robert Jackson Bennett has won widespread critical acclaim for his unique brand of darkly inventive fiction. In The Troupe, 16-year-old George Carole joins vaudeville in search of Heironomo Silenus, the man he believes to be his father. But what he discovers casts a dark pall over his world: Silenus' troupe hides a dangerous secret - one that invites death to all in its vicinity.
-
-
Not worth the effort!
- By Howard on 08-12-13
-
American Elsewhere
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Graham Winton
- Length: 22 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Some places are too good to be true. Under a pink moon, there is a perfect little town not found on any map. In that town, there are quiet streets lined with pretty houses, houses that conceal the strangest things. After a couple years of hard traveling, ex-cop Mona Bright inherits her long-dead mother's home in Wink, New Mexico. And the closer Mona gets to her mother's past, the more she understands that the people of Wink are very, very different....
-
-
You are entering the twighlight zone
- By Lisa on 07-29-13
-
The Will of the Many
- Hierarchy, Book 1
- By: James Islington
- Narrated by: Euan Morton
- Length: 28 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Catenan Republic—the Hierarchy—may rule the world now, but they do not know everything. I tell them my name is Vis Telimus. I tell them I was orphaned after a tragic accident three years ago, and that good fortune alone has led to my acceptance into their most prestigious school. I tell them that once I graduate, I will gladly join the rest of civilized society in allowing my strength, my drive, and my focus—what they call Will—to be leeched away and added to the power of those above me, as millions already do. As all must eventually do.
-
-
I don’t know what the other reviews are on about
- By Chase on 06-24-23
By: James Islington
-
Jade Shards
- Stories
- By: Fonda Lee
- Narrated by: Andrew Kishino
- Length: 3 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Fonda Lee returns to the acclaimed Green Bone Saga with four prequel short stories that delve into the personal histories of the Kaul and Ayt families.
-
-
Listen to these prequels only after the series
- By 🔥 Phx17 🔥 on 07-13-24
By: Fonda Lee
-
Red Rising (Part 1 of 2) (Dramatized Adaptation)
- Red Rising, Book 1
- By: Pierce Brown
- Narrated by: full cast, Stewart Crank, John Kielty, and others
- Length: 7 hrs and 31 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations. Yet he toils willingly, trusting that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children. But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity reached the surface generations ago. Vast cities and lush wilds spread across the planet. Darrow—and Reds like him—are nothing more than slaves to a decadent ruling class.
-
-
Fantastic
- By Tyler on 07-06-23
By: Pierce Brown
-
The City of Brass
- A Novel
- By: S. A. Chakraborty
- Narrated by: Soneela Nankani
- Length: 20 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Nahri has never believed in magic. Certainly, she has power; on the streets of 18th-century Cairo, she’s a con woman of unsurpassed talent. But she knows better than anyone that the trades she uses to get by - palm readings, zars, and a mysterious gift for healing - are all tricks, both the means to the delightful end of swindling Ottoman nobles and a reliable way to survive. But when Nahri accidentally summons Dara, an equally sly, darkly mysterious djinn warrior, to her side during one of her cons, she’s forced to reconsider her beliefs.
-
-
it's a love/hate thing
- By Zahai on 02-28-18
-
Tigana
- By: Guy Gavriel Kay
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 24 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Eight of the nine Palm provinces of the Peninsula have been overcome by warrior sorcerers Brandin and Alberico. But the sorcerers don't know that a small band of survivors is plotting their removal. With tensions mounting, the sorcerers become increasingly at odds as each decides where his own path - and that of the land - should truly lie.
-
-
A little self-indulgent
- By Diana M. on 05-31-20
By: Guy Gavriel Kay
-
City of Last Chances
- By: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 19 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There has always been a darkness to Ilmar, but never more so than now. The city chafes under the heavy hand of the Palleseen occupation, the choke-hold of its criminal underworld, the boot of its factory owners, the weight of its wretched poor and the burden of its ancient curse. What will be the spark that lights the conflagration? Despite the city's refugees, wanderers, murderers, madmen, fanatics and thieves, the catalyst, as always, will be the Anchorwood–that dark grove of trees, that primeval remnant, that portal, when the moon is full, to strange and distant shores.
-
-
Occupied Paris during WW2 In Fantasy World?
- By caleb on 06-19-23
-
The Forgetting Moon
- By: Brian Lee Durfee
- Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds
- Length: 30 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Welcome to the Five Isles, where war has come in the name of the invading army of Sor Sevier, a merciless host driven by the prophetic fervor of the Angel Prince, Aeros, toward the last unconquered kingdom of Gul Kana. Yet Gault, one of the elite Knights Archaic of Sor Sevier, is growing disillusioned by the crusade he is at the vanguard of just as it embarks on his Lord Aeros' greatest triumph. While the eldest son of the fallen king of Gul Kana now reigns in ever increasing paranoid isolationism, his two sisters seek their own paths.
-
-
alright-ish
- By Matthew on 05-10-19
By: Brian Lee Durfee
-
The Witness for the Dead
- By: Katherine Addison
- Narrated by: Liam Gerrard
- Length: 8 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When the young half-goblin emperor Maia sought to learn who had set the bombs that killed his father and half-brothers, he turned to an obscure resident of his Court, a Prelate of Ulis and a Witness for the Dead. Thara Celehar found the truth, though it did him no good to discover it. Now he lives in the City of Amalo, far from the Court though not exactly in exile. He has not escaped from politics, but his position gives him the ability to serve the common people of the city, which is his preference.
-
-
Engaging
- By K. E. on 01-05-25
-
Six of Crows
- By: Leigh Bardugo
- Narrated by: Jay Snyder, Brandon Rubin, Fred Berman, and others
- Length: 15 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price - and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can't pull it off alone.
-
-
7 Narrators, But That's Not a Good Thing
- By KM on 03-18-16
By: Leigh Bardugo
-
Gunmetal Gods
- Gunmetal Gods, Book 1
- By: Zamil Akhtar
- Narrated by: Peter Noble
- Length: 17 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Fifty thousand gun-toting paladins march behind him, all baptized in angel blood, thirsty to burn unbelievers. Only the janissaries can stand against them. Their living legend, Kevah, once beheaded a magus amid a hail of ice daggers. But ever since his wife disappeared, he spends his days in a haze of hashish and poetry. To save the kingdom, Kevah must conquer his grief and become the legend he once was. But Micah writes his own legend in blood, and his righteous conquest will stop at nothing. When the gods choose sides, a legend will be etched upon the stars.
-
-
Great Narrator, Great Book
- By KYLE LOCKHAVEN on 10-28-21
By: Zamil Akhtar
-
The Shadow of What Was Lost
- The Licanius Trilogy, Book 1
- By: James Islington
- Narrated by: Michael Kramer
- Length: 25 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It has been 20 years since the end of the war. The dictatorial Augurs, once thought of almost as gods, were overthrown and wiped out during the conflict, their much-feared powers mysteriously failing them. Those who had ruled under them, men and women with a lesser ability known as the Gift, avoided the Augurs' fate only by submitting themselves to the rebellion's Four Tenets.
-
-
Atrocious. Almost abusive.
- By Captain Spanky Of Nazareth on 06-10-20
By: James Islington
-
Hyperion
- By: Dan Simmons
- Narrated by: Marc Vietor, Allyson Johnson, Kevin Pariseau, and others
- Length: 20 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On the world called Hyperion, beyond the law of the Hegemony of Man, there waits the creature called the Shrike. There are those who worship it. There are those who fear it. And there are those who have vowed to destroy it. In the Valley of the Time Tombs, where huge, brooding structures move backward through time, the Shrike waits for them all.
-
-
The Shrike Awaits. Enter The Time Tombs...
- By Michael on 10-13-12
By: Dan Simmons
-
The Summer Tree
- Fionavar Tapestry, Book 1
- By: Guy Gavriel Kay
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 13 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Two-time Aurora Award-winning author Guy Gavriel Kay has been nominated for the World Fantasy Award three times. In the first book of his Fionavar Tapestry series, five college students meet a wizard who takes them to the heart of the first of all worlds - a place called Fionavar. The students soon discover that they have been pre-ordained as part of the pattern called the Fionavar Tapestry - and if they don't fulfill their destinies, the world will suffer devastating consequences.
-
-
My favorite trilogy.
- By NZDreamin on 02-10-21
By: Guy Gavriel Kay
-
Son of the Black Sword
- Saga of the Forgotten Warrior, Book 1
- By: Larry Correia
- Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds
- Length: 16 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
After the War of the Gods, the demons were cast out and fell to the world. Mankind was nearly eradicated by the seemingly unstoppable beasts until the gods sent the great hero, Ramrowan, to save them. He united the tribes, gave them magic, and drove the demons into the sea. Ever since, the land has belonged to man, and the oceans have remained an uncrossable hell, leaving the continent of Lok isolated.
-
-
Woo'd & Won
- By Toriangirl on 11-06-15
By: Larry Correia
Featured Article: Best Book Trilogies to Listen to Right Now
Here's why good things come in threes! Everyone knows the famous expression "Three's a crowd!"—but that sentiment doesn't ring true when it comes to books. But what are the best trilogies of all time? With thousands of amazing trilogies out there, it's hard to narrow it down. We’ve compiled some book trilogies that represent the best of the best—and don’t worry about spoilers; we’ve only described the first book of the series in each entry.
Related to this topic
-
The Mirror Empire
- Worldbreaker Saga, Book 1
- By: Kameron Hurley
- Narrated by: Liza Ross
- Length: 17 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On the eve of a recurring catastrophic event known to extinguish nations and reshape continents, a troubled orphan evades death and slavery to uncover her own bloody past - while a world goes to war with itself. In the frozen kingdom of Saiduan, invaders from another realm are decimating whole cities, leaving behind nothing but ash and ruin.
-
-
Captivating & thrilling
- By Sean Higgins on 09-19-15
By: Kameron Hurley
-
Six of Crows
- By: Leigh Bardugo
- Narrated by: Jay Snyder, Brandon Rubin, Fred Berman, and others
- Length: 15 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price - and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can't pull it off alone.
-
-
7 Narrators, But That's Not a Good Thing
- By KM on 03-18-16
By: Leigh Bardugo
-
Angelmaker
- By: Nick Harkaway
- Narrated by: Daniel Weyman
- Length: 18 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Joe Spork repairs clocks, a far cry from his late father, a flashy London gangster. But when Joe fixes one particularly unusual device, his life is suddenly upended. Joe's client, Edie Banister, is more than just a kindly old lady - she's a former superspy. And the device? It's a 1950s doomsday machine. And having triggered it, Joe now faces the wrath of both the government and a diabolical South Asian dictator, Edie's old arch-nemesis.
-
-
A cure for the modern cynic
- By Maine Colonial 🌲 on 08-28-12
By: Nick Harkaway
-
The Book of Magic
- By: Gardner Dozois - editor, Scott Lynch, Elizabeth Bear, and others
- Narrated by: Karissa Vacker, Sile Bermingham, Maxwell Caulfield, and others
- Length: 24 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hot on the heels of Gardner Dozois's acclaimed anthology The Book of Swords comes this companion volume devoted to magic. How could it be otherwise? For every Frodo, there is a Gandalf... and a Saruman. For every Dorothy, a Glinda... and a Wicked Witch of the West. What would Harry Potter be without Albus Dumbledore... and Severus Snape? Figures of wisdom and power, possessing arcane, often forbidden knowledge, wizards and sorcerers are shaped - or misshaped - by the potent magic they seek to wield.
-
-
some stinkers mostly good
- By M.T. on 12-11-18
By: Gardner Dozois - editor, and others
-
Ink and Bone
- The Great Library
- By: Rachel Caine
- Narrated by: Julian Elfer
- Length: 10 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ruthless and supremely powerful, the Great Library is now a presence in every major city, governing the flow of knowledge to the masses. Alchemy allows the library to deliver the content of the greatest works of history instantly - but the personal ownership of books is expressly forbidden. Jess Brightwell believes in the value of the library, but the majority of his knowledge comes from illegal books obtained by his family, who are involved in the thriving black market.
-
-
don't give up too soon.
- By Janel on 09-11-15
By: Rachel Caine
-
Impyrium
- By: Henry H. Neff
- Narrated by: Kim Mai Guest
- Length: 19 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For over 3,000 years, the Faeregine dynasty has ruled Impyrium. But the family's magic has been fading, and with it their power over the empire. Whether it's treachery from a rival house, the demon Lirlanders, or rebel forces, many believe the Faeregines are ripe to fall. Hazel, the youngest member of the royal family, is happy to leave ruling to her sisters so that she can study her magic. But the empress has other plans for her granddaughter, dark and dangerous plans to exploit Hazel's talents and rekindle the Faeregine mystique.
-
-
Amazing! Can't wait for the next book in the series.
- By Reddings on 03-11-17
By: Henry H. Neff
-
The Mirror Empire
- Worldbreaker Saga, Book 1
- By: Kameron Hurley
- Narrated by: Liza Ross
- Length: 17 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On the eve of a recurring catastrophic event known to extinguish nations and reshape continents, a troubled orphan evades death and slavery to uncover her own bloody past - while a world goes to war with itself. In the frozen kingdom of Saiduan, invaders from another realm are decimating whole cities, leaving behind nothing but ash and ruin.
-
-
Captivating & thrilling
- By Sean Higgins on 09-19-15
By: Kameron Hurley
-
Six of Crows
- By: Leigh Bardugo
- Narrated by: Jay Snyder, Brandon Rubin, Fred Berman, and others
- Length: 15 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price - and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can't pull it off alone.
-
-
7 Narrators, But That's Not a Good Thing
- By KM on 03-18-16
By: Leigh Bardugo
-
Angelmaker
- By: Nick Harkaway
- Narrated by: Daniel Weyman
- Length: 18 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Joe Spork repairs clocks, a far cry from his late father, a flashy London gangster. But when Joe fixes one particularly unusual device, his life is suddenly upended. Joe's client, Edie Banister, is more than just a kindly old lady - she's a former superspy. And the device? It's a 1950s doomsday machine. And having triggered it, Joe now faces the wrath of both the government and a diabolical South Asian dictator, Edie's old arch-nemesis.
-
-
A cure for the modern cynic
- By Maine Colonial 🌲 on 08-28-12
By: Nick Harkaway
-
The Book of Magic
- By: Gardner Dozois - editor, Scott Lynch, Elizabeth Bear, and others
- Narrated by: Karissa Vacker, Sile Bermingham, Maxwell Caulfield, and others
- Length: 24 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hot on the heels of Gardner Dozois's acclaimed anthology The Book of Swords comes this companion volume devoted to magic. How could it be otherwise? For every Frodo, there is a Gandalf... and a Saruman. For every Dorothy, a Glinda... and a Wicked Witch of the West. What would Harry Potter be without Albus Dumbledore... and Severus Snape? Figures of wisdom and power, possessing arcane, often forbidden knowledge, wizards and sorcerers are shaped - or misshaped - by the potent magic they seek to wield.
-
-
some stinkers mostly good
- By M.T. on 12-11-18
By: Gardner Dozois - editor, and others
-
Ink and Bone
- The Great Library
- By: Rachel Caine
- Narrated by: Julian Elfer
- Length: 10 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ruthless and supremely powerful, the Great Library is now a presence in every major city, governing the flow of knowledge to the masses. Alchemy allows the library to deliver the content of the greatest works of history instantly - but the personal ownership of books is expressly forbidden. Jess Brightwell believes in the value of the library, but the majority of his knowledge comes from illegal books obtained by his family, who are involved in the thriving black market.
-
-
don't give up too soon.
- By Janel on 09-11-15
By: Rachel Caine
-
Impyrium
- By: Henry H. Neff
- Narrated by: Kim Mai Guest
- Length: 19 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For over 3,000 years, the Faeregine dynasty has ruled Impyrium. But the family's magic has been fading, and with it their power over the empire. Whether it's treachery from a rival house, the demon Lirlanders, or rebel forces, many believe the Faeregines are ripe to fall. Hazel, the youngest member of the royal family, is happy to leave ruling to her sisters so that she can study her magic. But the empress has other plans for her granddaughter, dark and dangerous plans to exploit Hazel's talents and rekindle the Faeregine mystique.
-
-
Amazing! Can't wait for the next book in the series.
- By Reddings on 03-11-17
By: Henry H. Neff
-
The Monstrumologist
- By: Rick Yancey
- Narrated by: Steven Boyer
- Length: 11 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Dr. Warthrop is a scientist who tracks and studies real-life monsters. Assisted by his 12-year-old apprentice, Will Henry, Dr. Warthrop discovers a pod of Anthropophagi and launches a hunt to destroy the foul beasts.
-
-
Reader Be Warned
- By Eddie on 01-25-15
By: Rick Yancey
-
Bloodleaf
- By: Crystal Smith
- Narrated by: Nicola Barber
- Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Princess Aurelia is a prisoner to her crown and the heir that nobody wants. Surrounded by spirits and banned from using her blood-magic, Aurelia flees her country after a devastating assassination attempt. To escape her fate, Aurelia disguises herself as a commoner in a new land and discovers a happiness her crown has never allowed. As she forges new bonds and perfects her magic, she begins to fall for a man who is forbidden to rule beside her.
-
-
Not Understanding All the Praise
- By GPChlorine on 08-23-19
By: Crystal Smith
-
The Spirit Thief
- The Legend of Eli Monpress, Book 1
- By: Rachel Aaron
- Narrated by: Luke Daniels
- Length: 8 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
He's not just any thief. He’s the greatest thief of the age - and he’s also a wizard. And with the help of his partners - a swordsman with the most powerful magic sword in the world but no magical ability of his own, and a demonseed who can step through shadows and punch through walls - he’s going to put his plan into effect. The first step is to increase the size of the bounty on his head, so he’ll need to steal some big things. But he’ll start with somethingsmall. Something like a king....
-
-
Entertaining light fantasy
- By Kindle Customer on 02-16-12
By: Rachel Aaron
-
A Study in Silks
- By: Emma Jane Holloway
- Narrated by: Angele Masters
- Length: 21 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In a Victorian era ruled by a council of ruthless steam barons, mechanical power is the real monarch and sorcery the demon enemy of the Empire. Nevertheless, the most coveted weapon is magic that can run machines - something Evelina has secretly mastered. But rather than making her fortune, her special talents could mean death or an eternity as a guest of Her Majesty's secret laboratories. What's a polite young lady to do but mind her manners and pray she's never found out?
-
-
Too much of a bad thing
- By Bomberwizz on 11-30-14
-
The Mad Scientist's Guide to World Domination
- Original Short Fiction for the Modern Evil Genius
- By: John Joseph Adams - editor
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki, Mary Robinette Kowal, Justine Eyre
- Length: 15 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mad scientists have never had it so tough. In super-hero comics, graphic novels, films, TV series, video games, and even works of what may be fiction, they are besieged by those who stand against them, devoid of sympathy for their irrational, megalomaniacal impulses to rule, destroy, or otherwise dominate the world as we know it. It’s just not fair. So those of us who are so twisted and sick that we love mad scientists have created this guide.
-
-
HAND DANCING
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 05-30-15
-
Stations of the Tide
- By: Michael Swanwick
- Narrated by: Oliver Wyman
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Jubilee Tides will drown the continents of the planet Miranda beneath the weight of her own oceans. But as the once-in-two-centuries cataclysm approaches, an even greater catastrophe threatens this dark and dangerous planet of tale-spinners, conjurers, and shapechangers. From author Michael Swanwick—one of the most brilliantly assured and darkly inventive writers of contemporary fiction—comes a masterwork of radically altered realities and world-shattering seductions.
-
-
Hard to categorize, hard to put down
- By Robert L. on 03-25-12
By: Michael Swanwick
-
The Oversight
- By: Charlie Fletcher
- Narrated by: Simon Prebble
- Length: 14 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Once there were hundreds of members of the Oversight, the brave souls who guard the borders between the mundane and the magic. Now there are only five. When a vagabond brings a screaming girl to the Oversight's London headquarters, she could answer their hopes for new recruit, or she could be the instrument of their downfall.
-
-
Fantastic start to a fantasy series
- By jessica on 06-01-14
By: Charlie Fletcher
-
A Shadow on the Glass
- By: Ian Irvine
- Narrated by: Grant Cartwright
- Length: 21 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Once there were three worlds, each with their own human species. Then, fleeing out of the void came a fourth species, the Charon. Desperate, on the edge of extinction, they changed the balance between the worlds forever. Karan, a sensitive with a troubled heritage, is forced to steal an ancient relic in repayment of a debt. It turns out to be the Mirror of Aachan, a twisted, deceitful thing that remembers everything it has ever seen.
-
-
Not quite good enough.
- By Scott S. on 03-13-12
By: Ian Irvine
-
Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes
- By: Jonathan Auxier
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes is the utterly beguiling tale of a ten-year-old blind orphan who has been forced into a life of crime. One fateful afternoon, Peter steals a mysterious box that contains three magical pairs of eyes. When he tries the first pair, he is instantly transported to a hidden island where he is presented with a special quest: to travel beyond the known world and rescue a lost kingdom from its treacherous ruler....
-
-
Enjoyable listen but not for the youngest kids
- By Marie on 12-10-15
By: Jonathan Auxier
-
The Thousand Names
- By: Django Wexler
- Narrated by: Richard Poe
- Length: 22 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With this stunning series opener, Django Wexler leaps to the upper echelon of today’s best fantasy authors. The Thousand Names opens his Shadow Campaigns series with a tale of bloody rebellion that will reshape an empire -- and a world. Captain Marcus d’Ivoire and Winter Ihernglass see their fortunes rise under the command of military genius Janus bet Vhalnich. But Janus’ obsession with the supernatural portends a dire fate for the realm.
-
-
90% battles and 10% character development
- By Kathleen on 11-15-14
By: Django Wexler
-
Three Parts Dead
- By: Max Gladstone
- Narrated by: Claudia Alick
- Length: 13 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A god has died, and it’s up to Tara, a first-year associate in the international necromantic firm of Kelethras, Albrecht, and Ao, to bring him back to life before his city falls apart. Her client is Kos, recently deceased fire god of the city of Alt Coulumb. Without him, the metropolis’ steam generators will shut down, its trains will cease running, and its four million citizens will riot. Tara’s job: resurrect Kos before chaos sets in.
-
-
Great story, but the narrator was off
- By John on 07-27-14
By: Max Gladstone
-
The Sellsword
- Dragonlance: Tracy Hickman Presents: The Anvil of Time, Book 1
- By: Cam Banks
- Narrated by: James Langton
- Length: 8 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Strike the Anvil of Time! Vanderjack is a mercenary with a troubled past and a sword haunted by ghosts. Hired to rescue a nobleman's daughter from behind enemy lines, the sellsword finds himself a pivotal player in the liberation of Nordmaar from the Red Dragon army. The Chronicler is charged to use the ancient Anvil of Time to travel back along the river of time and find the lost stories that fell between the pages of the history books of Krynn in this new series created and guided by the creative mind of Tracy Hickman.
-
-
Interesting story, alittle different at the end
- By Dennis on 04-16-13
By: Cam Banks
People who viewed this also viewed...
-
American Elsewhere
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Graham Winton
- Length: 22 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Some places are too good to be true. Under a pink moon, there is a perfect little town not found on any map. In that town, there are quiet streets lined with pretty houses, houses that conceal the strangest things. After a couple years of hard traveling, ex-cop Mona Bright inherits her long-dead mother's home in Wink, New Mexico. And the closer Mona gets to her mother's past, the more she understands that the people of Wink are very, very different....
-
-
You are entering the twighlight zone
- By Lisa on 07-29-13
-
The Company Man
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Richard Poe
- Length: 16 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A trolley car pulls into the station. Four minutes before, the inhabitants were seen boarding at the previous station. All are dead. And all of them are union. The year is 1919. The McNaughton Corporation is the pinnacle of American industry. They built airships that cross the seas. Guns that won the Great War. And above all, the city of Evesden. But something is rotten at the heart of Evesden. Caught between the union and the company, between the police and the victims, Hayes must find the truth behind the city before it kills him.
-
-
Steampunk Noir - Puts the Punk Back in Steampunk
- By Dave on 12-05-12
-
A Drop of Corruption
- An Ana and Din Mystery (Shadow of the Leviathan, Book 2)
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Andrew Fallaize
- Length: 13 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the canton of Yarrowdale, at the very edge of the Empire’s reach, a Treasury officer has disappeared into thin air—vanishing from a room within a heavily guarded tower, its door and windows locked from the inside. To solve the case, the Empire calls on its most brilliant and mercurial detective, the great Ana Dolabra. At her side, as always, is her bemused assistant Dinios Kol. Ana soon discovers that they are investigating not a disappearance but a murder—and one of surpassing cunning, carried out by an opponent who can pass through warded doors like a ghost.
-
Vigilance
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Mark Boyett
- Length: 3 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The United States. 2030. John McDean executive produces "Vigilance", a reality game show designed to make sure American citizens stay alert to foreign and domestic threats. Shooters are introduced into a "game environment", and the survivors get a cash prize. The TV audience is not the only one that's watching though, and McDean soon finds out what it's like to be on the other side of the camera.
-
-
Brilliant
- By Brian on 03-30-19
-
The Troupe
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Luis Moreno
- Length: 18 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Best-selling author Robert Jackson Bennett has won widespread critical acclaim for his unique brand of darkly inventive fiction. In The Troupe, 16-year-old George Carole joins vaudeville in search of Heironomo Silenus, the man he believes to be his father. But what he discovers casts a dark pall over his world: Silenus' troupe hides a dangerous secret - one that invites death to all in its vicinity.
-
-
Not worth the effort!
- By Howard on 08-12-13
-
In the Shadows of Men
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: A. T. Chandler
- Length: 2 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the desolate flats of West Texas, two brothers purchase an old motel with the intent of renovating it and making a fortune off the population surge brought about by the fracking boom. Though each man is lured there by the promise of wealth, they are also fleeing something: a history of trauma, of failure, of family abuse, and shame. But the motel proves to have a history of its own. Once the business of a distant relative of theirs, Corbin Pugh, the brothers begin to discover signs that it might have been more than just a motel.
-
American Elsewhere
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Graham Winton
- Length: 22 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Some places are too good to be true. Under a pink moon, there is a perfect little town not found on any map. In that town, there are quiet streets lined with pretty houses, houses that conceal the strangest things. After a couple years of hard traveling, ex-cop Mona Bright inherits her long-dead mother's home in Wink, New Mexico. And the closer Mona gets to her mother's past, the more she understands that the people of Wink are very, very different....
-
-
You are entering the twighlight zone
- By Lisa on 07-29-13
-
The Company Man
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Richard Poe
- Length: 16 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A trolley car pulls into the station. Four minutes before, the inhabitants were seen boarding at the previous station. All are dead. And all of them are union. The year is 1919. The McNaughton Corporation is the pinnacle of American industry. They built airships that cross the seas. Guns that won the Great War. And above all, the city of Evesden. But something is rotten at the heart of Evesden. Caught between the union and the company, between the police and the victims, Hayes must find the truth behind the city before it kills him.
-
-
Steampunk Noir - Puts the Punk Back in Steampunk
- By Dave on 12-05-12
-
A Drop of Corruption
- An Ana and Din Mystery (Shadow of the Leviathan, Book 2)
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Andrew Fallaize
- Length: 13 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the canton of Yarrowdale, at the very edge of the Empire’s reach, a Treasury officer has disappeared into thin air—vanishing from a room within a heavily guarded tower, its door and windows locked from the inside. To solve the case, the Empire calls on its most brilliant and mercurial detective, the great Ana Dolabra. At her side, as always, is her bemused assistant Dinios Kol. Ana soon discovers that they are investigating not a disappearance but a murder—and one of surpassing cunning, carried out by an opponent who can pass through warded doors like a ghost.
-
Vigilance
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Mark Boyett
- Length: 3 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The United States. 2030. John McDean executive produces "Vigilance", a reality game show designed to make sure American citizens stay alert to foreign and domestic threats. Shooters are introduced into a "game environment", and the survivors get a cash prize. The TV audience is not the only one that's watching though, and McDean soon finds out what it's like to be on the other side of the camera.
-
-
Brilliant
- By Brian on 03-30-19
-
The Troupe
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Luis Moreno
- Length: 18 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Best-selling author Robert Jackson Bennett has won widespread critical acclaim for his unique brand of darkly inventive fiction. In The Troupe, 16-year-old George Carole joins vaudeville in search of Heironomo Silenus, the man he believes to be his father. But what he discovers casts a dark pall over his world: Silenus' troupe hides a dangerous secret - one that invites death to all in its vicinity.
-
-
Not worth the effort!
- By Howard on 08-12-13
-
In the Shadows of Men
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: A. T. Chandler
- Length: 2 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the desolate flats of West Texas, two brothers purchase an old motel with the intent of renovating it and making a fortune off the population surge brought about by the fracking boom. Though each man is lured there by the promise of wealth, they are also fleeing something: a history of trauma, of failure, of family abuse, and shame. But the motel proves to have a history of its own. Once the business of a distant relative of theirs, Corbin Pugh, the brothers begin to discover signs that it might have been more than just a motel.
-
The Thousand Names
- By: Django Wexler
- Narrated by: Richard Poe
- Length: 22 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With this stunning series opener, Django Wexler leaps to the upper echelon of today’s best fantasy authors. The Thousand Names opens his Shadow Campaigns series with a tale of bloody rebellion that will reshape an empire -- and a world. Captain Marcus d’Ivoire and Winter Ihernglass see their fortunes rise under the command of military genius Janus bet Vhalnich. But Janus’ obsession with the supernatural portends a dire fate for the realm.
-
-
90% battles and 10% character development
- By Kathleen on 11-15-14
By: Django Wexler
-
Hall of Smoke
- By: H. M. Long
- Narrated by: Samara Naeymi
- Length: 14 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hessa is an Eangi: a warrior priestess of the Goddess of War, with the power to turn an enemy's bones to dust with a scream. Banished for disobeying her goddess's command to murder a traveller, she prays for forgiveness alone on a mountainside. While she is gone, raiders raze her village and obliterate the Eangi priesthood. Grieving and alone, Hessa - the last Eangi - must find the traveller and atone for her weakness and secure her place with her loved ones in the High Halls.
-
-
Excessive gore
- By Kate Lindauer on 01-27-23
By: H. M. Long
-
American elsewhere
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Lila Tamazit
- Length: 24 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Wink, au Nouveau-Mexique, est une petite ville idéale. À un détail près : elle ne figure sur aucune carte. Après deux ans d’errance, Mona Bright, ex-flic, vient d’y hériter de la maison de sa mère, qui s’est suicidée trente ans plus tôt. Très vite, Mona s’attache au calme des rues, aux jolis petits pavillons, aux habitants qui semblent encore vivre dans l utopique douceur des années cinquante.
-
The Justice of Kings
- By: Richard Swan
- Narrated by: Lucy Paterson
- Length: 13 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Empire of the Wolf simmers with unrest. Rebels, heretics, and powerful patricians all challenge the power of the Imperial throne. Only the Order of Justices stands in the way of chaos. Sir Konrad Vonvalt is the most feared Justice of all, upholding the law by way of his sharp mind, arcane powers, and skill as a swordsman. At his side stands Helena Sedanka, his talented protégé, orphaned by the wars that forged the Empire.
-
-
Give it a try. Doubtful you'll regret it.
- By Taylor Ascher on 03-13-22
By: Richard Swan
-
Monsters Born and Made
- By: Tanvi Berwah
- Narrated by: Deepa Samuel
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sixteen-year-old Koral and her older brother Emrik risk their lives each day to capture the monstrous maristags that live in the black seas around their island. They have to, or else their family will starve. In an oceanic world swarming with vicious beasts, the Landers—the ruling elite, have indentured Koral's family to provide the maristags for the Glory Race, a deadly chariot tournament reserved for the upper class. The winning contender receives gold and glory. The others—if they're lucky—survive.
-
-
I Need MORE
- By Amazon Customer on 01-16-25
By: Tanvi Berwah
-
A Shadow in Summer
- Long Price Quartet, Book 1
- By: Daniel Abraham
- Narrated by: Neil Shah
- Length: 14 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The powerful city-state of Saraykeht is a bastion of peace and culture, a major center of commerce and trade. Its economy depends on the power of the captive spirit Seedless, an and at bound to the poet-sorcerer Heshai for life. Enter the Galts, an empire committed to laying waste to all lands with their ferocious army. Saraykeht has always been too strong for the Galts to attack, but now they see an opportunity.
-
-
REALLY Hard to Rate!
- By Trip Williams on 04-27-15
By: Daniel Abraham
-
Growing Up Dead in Texas
- By: Stephen Graham Jones
- Narrated by: Joey Collins
- Length: 7 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It was a fire that could be seen for miles, a fire that split the community, a fire that turned families on each other, a fire that it's still hard to get a straight answer about. A quarter of a century ago, someone held a match to Greenwood, Texas's cotton. Stephen Graham Jones was 12 that year. What he remembers best, what's stuck with him all this time, is that nobody ever came forward to claim that destruction. And nobody was ever caught. Greenwood just leaned forward, pretending that the fire had never happened.
-
-
How actual stories unfold
- By Georgia on 02-12-21
-
The Book That Wouldn't Burn
- By: Mark Lawrence
- Narrated by: Jessica Whittaker
- Length: 22 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The boy has lived his whole life trapped within a book-choked chamber older than empires and larger than cities. The girl has been plucked from the outskirts of civilization to be trained as a librarian, studying the mysteries of the great library at the heart of her kingdom. They were never supposed to meet. But in the library, they did. Their stories spiral around each other, across worlds and time. This is a tale of truth and lies and hearts, and the blurring of one into another.
-
-
Keeps the reader guessing
- By Gr on 08-17-23
By: Mark Lawrence
-
Master Assassins
- Fire Sacraments Series, Book 1
- By: Robert V.S. Redick
- Narrated by: Eric Michael Summerer
- Length: 17 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Kandri Hinjuman was never meant to be a soldier. His brother Mektu was never meant for this world. Rivals since childhood, they are drafted into a horrific war led by a madwoman-Prophet, and survive each day only by hiding their disbelief. Kandri is good at blending in, but Mektu is hopeless: impulsive, erratic - and certain that a demon is stalking him. Is this madness or a second sense? Either way, Kandri knows that Mektu's antics will land them both in early graves. But all bets are off when the brothers' simmering feud explodes into violence, and holy blood is spilled.
-
-
A Labor of Love
- By ;) on 04-30-18
-
Three Parts Dead
- By: Max Gladstone
- Narrated by: Claudia Alick
- Length: 13 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A god has died, and it’s up to Tara, a first-year associate in the international necromantic firm of Kelethras, Albrecht, and Ao, to bring him back to life before his city falls apart. Her client is Kos, recently deceased fire god of the city of Alt Coulumb. Without him, the metropolis’ steam generators will shut down, its trains will cease running, and its four million citizens will riot. Tara’s job: resurrect Kos before chaos sets in.
-
-
Great story, but the narrator was off
- By John on 07-27-14
By: Max Gladstone
-
Agents of Dreamland
- Tinfoil Dossier, Book 1
- By: Caitlin R. Kiernan
- Narrated by: Danny Campbell, Chelsea Stephens
- Length: 2 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A government special agent known only as the Signalman gets off a train on a stunningly hot morning in Winslow, Arizona. Later that day he meets a woman in a diner to exchange information about an event that happened a week earlier for which neither has an explanation but which haunts the Signalman. In a ranch house near the shore of the Salton Sea, a cult leader gathers up the weak and susceptible - the Children of the Next Level - and offers them something to believe in and a chance for transcendence. The future is coming, and they will help to usher it in.
-
-
I Really Enjoyed It
- By KC Miller on 10-22-20
-
A Darkness Forged in Fire
- Book One of the Iron Elves
- By: Chris Evans
- Narrated by: Michael Kramer
- Length: 15 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Konowa Swift Dragon, former commander of the Empire's elite Iron Elves, is looked upon as anything but ordinary. He has murdered a Viceroy, been court-martialed, seen his beloved regiment disbanded, and been banished in disgrace to the one place he despises the most---the forest.
-
-
Pleasantly surprised...
- By Chrystal on 11-06-08
By: Chris Evans
What listeners say about City of Stairs
Highly rated for:
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Scott S.
- 10-17-14
Something Different
Wanting a break from my usual listening fare, I decided to give City of Stairs a listen. The book is described as a fantasy, but it is definitely not your typical story of Kings and Knights set in a world of Elves and Ogres. City of Stairs is set in a world with magic and wonders, but also some modern conveniences.
This book would seem to have all you need for a fantastic journey, starting with a very good performance by Alma Cuervo as the narrator, who's voice seemed perfect for the main character Sharra. The premise of the story is good as well. In a city built by gods, Sharra is a secret agent who has come to investigate the murder of a top government employee by the long suppressed people of the city. The gods have been killed by a long since dead relative of Sharra herself, and their country has been occupied ever since.
I liked the premise of this story right from the beginning, however quickly found out that there are some issues with this book as well. To start, the first half of the book starts to bog down as there is nothing really happening other than long sequences of info dumps. Characters seem to sit around and tell the story of how the city came into being rather than the story naturally laying out what had happened as the story progresses. In one example, Sharra is confronted by a city leader over her questioning of a citizen of the city. She reluctantly lets the citizen leave, and then is so angry that she invites everyone around her to the kitchen where she cooks a meal for them and proceeds to tell the entire history of every god, including what their beliefs are, their relationship with the other gods, and how they died. All interesting stuff, but the scenario made no sense, and the telling drug out miserably.
Other issues were the setting itself. I was intrigued by the setting initially as fantasy type books usually don't include such things as cars, trains, and guns. The odd thing though is that even though Sharra arrives and departs on a train, then rides in a car to the embassy, and speaks about the use of guns hundreds of years before, none of these things are featured much in the story. Cars are available, but everyone walks everywhere. Guns are available, yet everyone uses swords, knives, and cross bolts. Trains and cars have been invented, but modern conveniences like lights, plumbing, or phones have not. It's a little confusing.
Overall, despite the slow start, once the story gets going and the action picks up, I did find myself enjoying this book. The characters were mostly likable, and that carries a story with some holes in it.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
43 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 04-21-15
Good story, wrong narrator.
Any additional comments?
OK, so here's the deal. I rarely feel the need to write any reviews for audiobooks, but I must warn you that the narrator's performance is just... not good. There are many awkward pauses and pacing issues with her speech. On top of that, her vocal characterizations just felt wrong, including Shara's. (There are many reviews that disagree, which is why I must dissent.)
The book is good. That, at least, got through. However, I barely finished it. I couldn't help but feel that I wasn't experiencing it as I should while listening. One day I'll have to break down and just buy the physical novel.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
5 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jared
- 01-28-19
Almost hurt by a lackluster performance
I loved the story but was very disappointed in Alma’s performance. It often felt like she hadn’t reviewed the work beforehand. This got better as the book went on but was never great.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Juan Gomez
- 05-24-18
Great on all counts
The story uses a murder mystery as a platform for a fantastic world of Gods and miracles. Pacing is excellent. The narration is as well, although there are a few breaths that are noticeable.
I mostly came here to say that it was hilarious when the narrator broke out the Flushing, Queens accent for a seemingly arbitrary 5 minutes near the end. I don't think it was intentional, and the character never speaks that way before or after the moment, but you'll definitely hear it, and think of this review.
Overall, worth the buy 100%, and I will now move on to the sequel!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Classical Guy
- 09-27-18
Do yourself a favor and listen to this
This book was phenomenal and I couldn't stop listening. It is perfect on so many levels. I don't spoil anything though. I went in blind and that's the best way to experience this
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 05-14-24
Wow
Fantastic narration and just really impressive world building and everything! 10/10 recommend- have patience but stick around
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amelia
- 12-16-16
Bad editing
The story was interesting enough, even if the names/story lines can get confusing. The narration is decent but whoever did the editing/sound mixing really let the narrator down. Awkward pauses, words on top of each other, and not doing retakes if the narrator stumbled on a word.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Van M.
- 10-03-21
solid book
the story itself is fantastic. the narrators switch a few times along with random changes in voice volume levels.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- M. D. Packard
- 06-16-15
Exposition
A little too much exposition for my taste. Interesting story, and world, but it seemed like too much history being told in various ways.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 08-04-21
Words can not say enough
This has become one my favorite fantasy books. The writing and narration we're both excellent. I was not bored for a moment. A perfect mixture of the fantastical, love, comedic relief and mystery(plenty of it)
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!