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Queen Amid Ashes  By  cover art

Queen Amid Ashes

By: Christopher Ruocchio
Narrated by: Samuel Roukin
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Publisher's summary

THOUGH THE BATTLE TO SAVE A PLANET IS OVER, THE WAR NEVER ENDS.

Hadrian Marlowe is newly a knight of the galaxy-spanning Sollan Empire: a hero who they say slew the alien Prince Aranata Otiolo in single combat; a man they say no man or xenobite can kill.

Acting on the Emperor’s orders, Hadrian has come to the desert planet Thagura and driven off the Cielcin invaders, rescuing in the process the Lady Gadar Malyan, Baroness of that entire world.

But not all the fighting is ended. Pockets of inhuman resistance remain on the desert world, and Hadrian the Halfmortal must soon do battle with not only the man-eating alien barbarians, but with something just as terrible: man’s own inhumanity to man.

©2022 Christopher Ruocchio (P)2022 Recorded Books

What listeners say about Queen Amid Ashes

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fantastic

really enjoyed this small entry to the series. it really shows how deadly the enemy is. while also showing how deadly humans can be.

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    5 out of 5 stars

Impactful interlude

This is a solid hundred-page Sun Eater story that's a worthy addition to the saga, but it really really really should be read in its chronological order after Howling Dark and not when I did it after Kingdoms of Death (due to waiting for the paperback and audiobook to come out). Hadrian and co go through a lot in Demon in White and KoD, so going backwards in time to this earlier Hadrian felt like backtracking for me as the reader when I really am just craving the next future installment to see how things progress.

As with all the Sun Eater books, it is written exquisitely with a never-ending stream of interesting first-person reflections (on humanity, on the unknowable Other, on the beastly Other, on morality, on the cosmos, and plenty more). Samuel Roukin's narration is superb!

Being a side story it necessarily lacks the suspense and tension of the main novels, but I don't think Ruocchio could write a poor story if he tried.

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Great Storytelling, Themes, and Prose

Christopher Ruocchio hits another home run with this wonderful addition to his Sun Eater Universe. This is my favorite thing he has written outside of the main novels. It has an exciting plot. It expands the world. It gives hints of future events. And it develops the characters by making them wrestle with the concept of justice and ends justifying the means and how that fits into the larger scope of Hadrian's story from the main series. Also you get more insight into the Cielcin that is horrifying. Don't sleep on Sun Eater and don't sleep on the accompanying novellas.

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Amazing!

If you love science fiction than you need to read Christopher Ruocchio. The characters are so rich and he is able to tell an epic tale but with such a personal intimate experience. I cannot recommend this author enough.

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  • SJ
  • 04-03-24

Great novella

This was a great novella. What a fun little side story. Definitely going to be reading these as I go along!

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Amazing story, as always! 11/10

Action. Adventure. Mystery. Horror. Top notch science fiction and an excellent addition to the fantastic sorry of Hadrian Marlowe. I cannot recommend this series enough!

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Another Banger

Wonderful world building in this short story between books 2 and 3. definitely glad I didn't skip it.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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Not my favorite.

This is the first Sun Eater book that I really didn't like. I just couldn't get into it. Excellent narration as usual but the story seemed to drag on. I've listened to each book at least 3 times each. Maybe this one will grow on me.

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  • Gr
  • 12-08-23

Pretty Good

Not a bad short story following the Sun Eater saga. Audible overpriced for the page count of this novella.

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  • JE
  • 04-30-24

Fun tail that you can skip

An engaging story where nothing happens. Some flavor but no substance. It’s safe to skip if you don’t want to burn a credit on a novella

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