• The Infernal City

  • Elder Scrolls Series #1
  • By: Greg Keyes
  • Narrated by: Michael Page
  • Length: 8 hrs and 27 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (1,135 ratings)

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The Infernal City  By  cover art

The Infernal City

By: Greg Keyes
Narrated by: Michael Page
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Publisher's summary

Four decades after the Oblivion Crisis, Tamriel is threatened anew by an ancient and all-consuming evil. It is Umbriel, a floating city that casts a terrifying shadow-for wherever it falls, people die and rise again. And it is in Umbriel's shadow that a great adventure begins and a group of unlikely heroes meet. A legendary prince with a secret. A spy on the trail of a vast conspiracy. A mage obsessed with his desire for revenge. And Annaïg, a young girl in whose hands the fate of Tamriel may rest.

©2009 ZeniMax Media Inc. The Elder Scrolls is a registered trademark of ZeniMax Media, Inc. (P)2012 Tantor

Critic reviews

"This action-based fantasy will find a following among YA and adult gamers." ( Library Journal)

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What listeners say about The Infernal City

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Umbriel is coming

I can tell you as one who has played the Elder Scrolls games regularly, this book left my Tamrielic palate satisfied. It was great to hear references to Oblivion, Skyrim, Argonians, Dark Elfs, Imperials, Kajit, etc etc.

We become farmilar with the main character Annaïg who gets stuck on Umbriel to work in the kitchens. Other plots take shape in accordance to the appearance of a flying city on a straight path of death and destruction towards the Imperial City. The story leaves us wanting more and thankfully, Keyes graces us with a sequel.

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19 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

A good read for Elder Scrolls and ESO Fans

Would you try another book from Greg Keyes and/or Michael Page?

Yes

Would you be willing to try another book from Greg Keyes? Why or why not?

Yes, its was a good story.

Which character – as performed by Michael Page – was your favorite?

Hmmmm, not sure but I would say in general he did a good job. Took a little getting used to since I hadn't hear him before but as usual once you get used to him, he sounds fine.

Could you see The Infernal City being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

Not really, it would probably be cheesy.

Any additional comments?

This book felt rushed. The story changed very fast at times. I think if the author was given the time, it could have been really good. Or thats my guess. Otherwise they are just bad at transitions? So it is stuck at just good or decent.

It was not what I expected. I expected a generic story with elder scrolls lore. The story was actually fairly unique for a fantasy book. It almost sort of reminded me of gregor the overlander at times. So i liked it for being fairly original.

I am playing skyrim for the second time and can't wait for elder scrolls online game so I decided to listen to the books. I do plan to listen to the next book.

If you like elder scrolls stuff, this is a good read. If not, its an ok read.

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14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

The elder scrolls book you didn't know about.

Would you be willing to try another book from Greg Keyes? Why or why not?

Yes .... The book was nothing special but neither was it bad. It's an Elder Scrolls book, which there are a surprising lack of in the day and age of expanded video game universes.

Any additional comments?

This is an easy read. There is nothing special here and the authors only slightly catch the feel of the Elder Scrolls world, however if you are a fan of the games it will give you more of what you like.... Elder Scrolls.

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

An Exciting Read

I was a little skeptical when I first saw this book. In my experience, novels based on games are little more than poorly hashed head-canons filled with unnecessary adverbs. This one, however, was a pleasant surprise. Keyes managed to fully develop several different characters and give them challenging yet plausible situations. The author's powers of description are perfectly balanced, giving the reader just enough detail without dominating the imagination. The narrator's gritty Dunmer voice took a little getting used to, but after a while it was just another character voice.
I highly suggest it for Elder Scrolls Fans. Though Keyes explains important parts of the lore, I found the experience deepened by my own understanding of the world.
In short, The Infernal City was an exciting and emotionally engaging read. I can't wait to read Lord of Souls!

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

The Elder scrolls

Any additional comments?

It is a little slow at first but as you get into the book it is very good. It makes it easier to understand if you have played the games.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Oddly written and ends abruptly.

Giving that it's The Elder Scrolls, I understand how that could be hard to write for, but there's very little character development before you're obviously intended to feel something for some of the characters. without the narrator I don't think I'd have finished this book.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

better stories found elsewhere

as a fan of the elder scrolls games. I thought I would love this. but the story just seems to confusing and too boring to get any enjoyment. with an ending that seems rushed.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

A quieter Elder Scrolls experience than imagined.

Anyone who knows of The Elder Scrolls usually is certain of one thing; they will never be able to get enough Elder Scrolls content. It a widely known award winning videogame series focused on immersive fantasy roleplaying in a highly detailed world. This audiobook "The Infernal City" is based within the setting of that videogame series.

As a result most listeners might assume that a series that is all about exploring an epic fantasy world filled with action packed adventure and danger would have an audiobook that reflects that, but only one of the three main characters gets into any actual combat. This book also ends in a bit of a non conclusive whimper that more or less triggers the question of whether or not the story is even planning to continue in a different book.

The narration was excellent, however, and the flavor that makes up the richness of the setting is there. It's only the storyline itself that seems to wonder around.

Three main characters make up the bulk of the story,  a minor Breton (elf) noblewoman who dabbles in adventure and alchemy, her laid back childhood Argonian (lizardman) friend, and a disillusioned prince trying to rescue them from a otherworldly floating city that feeds on souls and contains a strange and ruthless society. As personalities these characters are entertaining, but the events surrounding them tend to wonder. The first two characters spend the book learning to adapt and survive amoung the people that live in the floating city, while the prince avoids assassinations while following a mysterious character around that knows how to get to the city.

This book is an odd example of great thoughts, discriptions and ideas that, dispite being interesting, can't seem to fold together into any great and memorable whole. This audiobook is recommended to listeners who grew up and enjoy the elder scrolls universe, but listeners new to the setting might feel a bit bogged down attempting to learn it for the first time.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
  • K.
  • 05-05-15

No clue what's going on!

I've been listening for about an hour and I have absolutely no idea what's going on! I have not played the game, so I don't know the characters or the plot. There are tons of characters, all without clear descriptions, with "fantasy names" that are impossible to remember and no apparent connections between each of the tiny groups. It may be possible to follow it in written form, but it fails as an audiobook to keep my interest. The narrator gives each character as much distinction as he can, but since there are so many of them, it's still impossible for me to keep track. Fortunately, I purchased it in one of those "buy three for two" deals, so I'll consider it the freebie and turn my attention to other audiobooks that will, hopefully, be more listenable..

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Very dull story

It was nice to here about the world outside of the games, but the story was very slow and unappealing

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2 people found this helpful