The Darkness That Comes Before

The Prince of Nothing, Book One

By: R. Scott Bakker

Narrated by: David DeVries

Length: 20 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

Strikingly original in its conception, ambitious in scope, with characters engrossingly and vividly drawn, the first book in R. Scott Bakker's Prince of Nothing series creates a remarkable world from whole cloth - its language and classes of people, its cities, religions, mysteries, taboos, and rituals - the kind of all-embracing universe Tolkien and Herbert created unforgettably in the epic fantasies The Lord of the Rings and Dune.

It's a world scarred by an apocalyptic past, evoking a time both 2,000 years past and 2,000 years into the future, as untold thousands gather for a crusade. Among them, two men and two women are ensnared by a mysterious traveler, Anasûrimbor Kellhus - part warrior, part philosopher, part sorcerous, charismatic presence - from lands long thought dead. The Darkness That Comes Before is a history of this great holy war, and like all histories, the survivors write its conclusion.

©2003 R. Scott Bakker (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Too many characters with multiple names

I wanted to like it. There are just too many strange names and terms for an audiobook. Perhaps printed where I could stop and look up characters or concepts would have helped. I kept getting lost and couldn't gain more than a broad understanding of what was going on. The details were obscured by the foreignness of the setting.

An all time favorite

The series definitely has its issues, first and foremost how uncomfortable the cultural situation is in the three seas and beyond. Pre-to-just-slightly-post-Medieval in most of the worst ways.

On the other hand, I’m very fond of the way magic is handled, the way faith and the history of the world is rich and detailed, and of the light philosophy heavily salting the meat of the text, which is just layers and layers of political and religious conflict and subterfuge, broken up by the mysteries of the Dunyain, the reality of the gods and demons, and the unholy consult.

Beasts of burden and philosophy

4.5/5

I have heard much about R. Scott Bakker; many stating he's an undisputed genius that will make rethink your entire life to overblown darkness and disparity for shock value wrapped in overly purple prose. For me, while not a 'fun' read, it certainly has depth and is something that makes one want to become enveloped in the world and apply philosophical debates with yourself on life's meaning or nature vs. nurture.

The plot is intricate, allowing for various kingfoms/empires to be enraptured and manipulated into engaging into a holy war. Allmin the background there's Eldritch horror that awaits to bring about the apocalypse. The second, in fact :p

This works for me since it echoes real life atrocities (that are still performed in these 'civilised' times), mesmerizing conversation and dialog about philosophy, deep world building, drags of supernatural horror, warfare, and some of the best political maneuvering as my beloved A Song of Ice and Fire. The characters are all fascinating...but not necessarily likeable save for a couple. They are well-wrought characters, have no doubt but some you are not going to be rooting for. This is really the only qualms I have with the book and it's a 'me' thing. Furthermore there is loads of sexual violence and women are defining treated as meat within the book which will make you squirm. However, I feel this was all done with specific purpose (see men are at their base, depraved-- the author's thoughts, not mine) and it accomplishes what it sets out.

If you're looking for a comment on how humanity is inherently base or evil...look no further. It's a very well-done portrait of the human experience as a car wreck. I'll be continuing because this was thought provoking and gave me much to ponder on, both for and against. I think that's the point

Good Dark Fantasy

I really liked the depth with which Bakker built this very dark and very interesting world but I wasn't a huge fan of all the political intrigue and the way that women were reduced to demeaning roles. the only two main female characters are used for sex, one willing and one unwilling. That's it. The audio performance was really good. Overall, I'd give it 3.5 stars (rounding up to four).

My number one favorite series of all time.

I almost wish I had never read through this seven book series. Not because I didn’t enjoy it, but because every book I’ve read after has been a little paler than it would have been prior. In my personal opinion, Bakker is the gold standard of the grimdark genre. Inspired my many other books but fully and wholly it’s own world and story, nothing comes close to this for me. Going through it a third time and I’m still finding little bits and pieces that only make sense after having finished the whole, but don’t detract from the story at all without being on the second or third listen-through. The performance is also masterful, and I personally wish they kept this narrator for the last four books, but the other guy is good, too.

A hidden gen

Unbelievable book. A classic that more should read and enjoy. Great narration too, all good.

Read if you like books that make you think

Any additional comments?

It starts off slow and confusing but give it a while and it's a great read.

compelling story heavy on references

Bakkers at time disturbing story is full of historical and philosophical touchstones. enjoy finding them

If you need a new fantasy series you found it!

Incredible world building, and fantastic characters this book had me cursing every time my Bluetooth headphones would die. my only nitpick is it's got the classic Fantasy problem of over complicating names of characters and places. Once you get past that it's second to none.

One of my all time favorite fantasy series

I picked this book up randomly one day at Barnes and Noble years ago because the title was intriguing and the cover was cool looking. I am so extremely happy I did! This book is unlike any other I've ever read. Bakker's writing style is insanely unique and incredibly impressive. He has a certain way of describing mundane things that makes every sentence sound like a work of art, it's awe inspiring (as a fantasy writer myself, he's one of my major inspirations). His vocabulary is awesome, his characters are extremely realistic and so is the world. The subgenre is grimdark so it's super gritty, doesn't shy away from anything, and is a realistic portrayal of the world in medieval times - like maybe around the 9th to 11th centuries in the real world. The names are likely hard for most people but they are also really realistic if you know anything about ancient historical names from around the world, and beautiful if you pronounce them right. Bakker is a student of history and philosophy (like me) and his insights are astounding, literally had me gaping occasionally. The way he perceives things and then writes about them is so unique I was awestruck multiple times reading this honestly. I don't want to oversell the book, it fits me personally well so I love it, but I do think if you have the patience and are really into fantasy you will love this book. However, it is definitely dense and a somewhat difficult read: the vocab is intense sometimes (in an impressive way, it'll teach you amazing new words), and the way he writes can at times be hard to understand but when you read the sentence again and understand it, it is totally worth it. But you do need a certain amount of patience or else an extreme love of realistic fantasy. I'm not very patient but I love fantasy, words, and writing and worldbuilding, and the world Bakker has created is intensely deep, sunken with history, unique cultures and races, languages, amazingly cool magic, and so much more. The sorcery is unbelievably awesome (i think) and is super unique in its description (and in how it works when you eventually find out). Bakker does such a good job of portraying the realistic thoughts and random whims of a real person in all his characters, the uncaring twist and turn of worldly events, and the complex interactions between people, I was obsessed with this book once I got into it, which takes a little bit of time, but definitely worth it. And there are two more books, then another trilogy after in the same world. Bakker is obviously super smart and I often found myself wondering how he wrote such insanely cunning characters and complex plotlines, especially for his debut novel. Gives me hope! Love this book!!!!