Heir to Thorn and Flame Audiobook By Ben Alderson cover art

Heir to Thorn and Flame

Court of Broken Bonds, Book 1

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Heir to Thorn and Flame

By: Ben Alderson
Narrated by: Ewan Goddard
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Married to a ruthless prince, for years Max had to serve and obey the vicious magical nobles. Now, he is one of them.

When the heir to the throne attacks him, Max accidentally responds with a lethal burst of magic. Max is certain he will be executed. But his power is too rare and precious for that....

Instead, the king forces him to become the boy he killed, taking on the identity and duties of the heir. That includes an arranged marriage—to the dangerously attractive Prince Camron.

Living a lie, Max knows he can trust no one. Not Camron. And definitely not Simion, a handsome, dragon-riding spy sent to test his loyalty.

As a deadly struggle for power begins and desire sparks, Max must protect his secret and his heart at all costs.

Heir to Thorn and Flame is a passionate fantasy romance that will have you listening late into the night. Featuring slow-burn, dark secrets, arranged marriage, and found family, it is perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, Elise Kova, and C.S. Pacat.

Previously published as The Lost Mage, this expanded version begins a series that builds in heart-pounding tension and steam.

©2023 Ben Alderson (P)2024 Second Sky, an imprint of Storyfire Ltd. Fantasy Heartfelt
Engaging Plot Twists • Rich Worldbuilding • Excellent Voice Acting • Beautifully Bruised Characters • Promising Storyline
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I loved this book, the slowness of it kept me interested throughout the whole thing. I am excited for the next book to release so I can see where the story goes!

Loved it

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The story really keeps you fascinated on what will happen next. The reader did an amazing job at voicing these characters! 10/10! ❤️❤️

A whole whirlwind of emotions!

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He literally named his only black character and made him a secondary love interest after a monkey...

Its odd and boring

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I like everyone but the main character. I enjoyed the story line, the supporting characters, the battles, and plot twists. I just wish the main character wasn't whiney and kind of a dumb-dumb.

Enjoyed it well enough

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It’s a really good plot and a really good story. I love the way that the audiobook kind of flows and you do not get bored. It’s a solid lesson and I’m gonna be listening to the second and third one in the series.

It’s good. My first read by him.

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If GoT were gay and you only got the unpleasant parts. Not a book for escaping reality.

painful and slow

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Interesting story with long build up to fizzle out at the end. If season 8 of GOT was a book, this would be it.

Slow and Anticlimactic

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I thoroughly enjoyed the story. The solution to every dire situation leads to even MORE DIRE situations. Distinct narration of characters. I feel like a nickname for this book would be: Learning to Overcome Betrayal and Maybe Maybe Learn To Love a Little.

Excellent story with good characters and narration.

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I’m not going to lie—it took me a bit longer than usual to get into the story. The characters, including the protagonists, were largely unlikeable.

But Max grew on me. Then Beatrice. Then Cameron. Then, even the antagonists. Ben Alderson manages to develop an entire cast of characters that are *always* interesting.

Speaking of characters, the narrator does an excellent job through and through. I didn’t have to speed him up (a lot of audiobooks are just a tad too slow for my attention span) at all. He hit all the feels, earnestness, sarcasm, hope, and rage just right

I love the mythical world Ben’s made for this trilogy. It’s not exactly groundbreaking fantasy, but it is *very* much its own. The lore, the politics, the gods, all of it.

I really appreciate that Max is written like someone his age. While he’s in or at least near his late teens (I think?), he’s still somewhere between being a kid and an adult. Ben balances on that edge throughout the whole book. He’s kind, bratty, sweet, a bit petulant at times, gracious at others.

I feel like MM fantasy can seem so generic, particularly the characters. Oh, a super hot dragon shifter hunk who scowls all the time gets stuck on assignment with a rosy cheeked, cheery ingenue twink? He’s JUST SO gruff and dominant (what a man!) and the ingenue is so soft and submissive (what a bottom!). I’m not judging that at all. I still like those books. A lot.

But THIS book has all the things I want in any fiction. It would be a great book without the MM romance, and I don’t think many authors of MM romance can say that.

The MM romance itself was… a bit stilted in the first book. It’s supposed to be. It really finds itself in the second book.

Other than the slow beginning, I don’t really have anything negative to say. I’d recommend it to any gay, with the caveat that there are some really sad parts. If you prefer happy-go-lucky, Annie-singing-“the sun will come out tomorrow” fantasy, this probably isn’t for you.

However, it’s not as dark or bleak as GRR Martin’s or Joe Abercrombie’s work, for reference

A surprisingly compelling story

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First half was a slow decline, about half way through it picks up. however, the narrator provides terrible voices for most characters that leaves me wanting to punch them. Lastly, the book is overly sexual assault-y, child molest-y, and Stockholm syndrome-y.

All of that said, I am looking forward to book 2, simply from how engaging the last 2 hours of the book was.

Would I recommend? you decide 🤷‍♂️

Slow, Boring, Sexual Assaulty, Stockholm syndromey

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