Theft of Swords

Riyria Revelations, Volume 1

By: Michael J. Sullivan

Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds

Length: 22 hrs and 38 mins

Publisher's summary

Audie Award Nominee, Fantasy, 2013

Acclaimed author Michael J. Sullivan created instant best sellers with his spellbinding Riyria Revelations series. This first volume introduces Royce Melborn and Hadrian Blackwater, two enterprising thieves who end up running for their lives when they’re framed for the death of the king. Trapped in a conspiracy bigger than they can imagine, their only hope is unraveling an ancient mystery - before it’s too late.

Theft of Swords contains The Crown Conspiracy and Avempartha, books 1 and 2 of Riyria Revelations.

©2011 Michael J. Sullivan (P)2012 Recorded Books, LLC

Great book!

I really enjoy this book. About to start on the next and I can't hardly wait!!

You don't get much better than this in fantasy.

Where does Theft of Swords rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This is probably my second favorite book i've ever listened to. It has everything you ask from a fantasy world. Deep history, an exciting mythos, tension and prejudice between the races, and a sprinkle of devilish monsters. This book constantly made me smile, due to it's overwhelming logic and awareness. Characters in this book, actually use emphatic reason. There are some awkward decisions here and there, but nothing too head-scrathing; there are far too many books that possess only 'mythic' adaptations of us, with no common-logic, or understanding. These characters actually feel alive, and by the end of it, you could probably guess each member of Riyria's decision before they voice it; which is a good thing in this case. Splendid!

What other book might you compare Theft of Swords to and why?

This book is a combination of many wonderful ideas, from many wonderful authors. Lord of the Rings, The Song of Fire and Ice, and many other fantasy books come to mind while reading this, but honestly, Theft of Swords is its own book.

Which character – as performed by Tim Gerard Reynolds – was your favorite?

Most every character in this book is fantastically performed, but I would have to say Esrahaddon's early dialogue sticks-out above all the supportive cast, as the best; it even over-shadows Royce and Hadrian's dialogue in some cases.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Like many books, the ending is where all the ideas come to a head, or get escalated into a cliff-hanger. This book's ending is quite memorable, and Esrahaddon's dialogue made me grin from it's masterfulness.

Any additional comments?

Great read/listen. Highly recommend!!! I'm moving on to the next in the series.

Slow start, but it won me over in the end!

Let’s be clear, this book (really, these books I suppose since it’s a two in one) is full of cliches. This means that the beginning is frustrating and predictable at times and getting started is not as easy as it has been for many other Audible books I’ve listened to. However, it hooked me eventually and I am a HUGE fan of the cliffhanger at the end of this volume! A good end pushed it from a 3 to a 4 story-wise, but I’ll give it a 5 overall because of Tim Gerard Reynolds’s consistently phenomenal narrating (as always) and the fact that Hadrian and Royce make me laugh even if I may not be as big of a fan of some of the other characters!

Great storytelling.

Great storytelling. Looking forward to the part-elf storyline to be further flushed out. solid book

Just Awesome!

I really enjoyed this. I spent a credit on it because I LOVED the narrator, Tim Gerard Reynolds on Red Rising, which I'd picked up as a Deal of The Day. Both the author and the narrator are top notch; I'm invested in the series and moving on to the second 2-book audio (can't beat that deal)!

***Great Characterization***

Where does Theft of Swords rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

One of the top.

What did you like best about this story?

The author really did a great job with the characters. You want to continue reading to see what they will do next. Great twists and turns in the story it self. Well done.

What does Tim Gerard Reynolds bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Awesome job. He brings life to each of the characters in the story.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Feel good action, surprising twists and turns.

Excellent narration, spot-on accents!

If you could sum up Theft of Swords in three words, what would they be?

the plot thickens...

What does Tim Gerard Reynolds bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

He was extremely talented at doing many different accents and making the dialog easy to follow, even through much back-and-forth conversations between characters.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, the writing is done very well and there are many cliff-hangers which make you want to keep reading a few minutes longer.

Great Start

Theft of swords is broken into 2 separate stories in one book. Story 1 is an instant classic that makes you need to finish the entire series and the prequels. Story 2 is just a filler but Sullivan is such a great writer that he keeps you both interested and entertained! Highly recommended.

If you liked the 'Night Angel' Trilogy, try this.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

This book reminded me of the Night Angel series in several ways; shady relations between nobles and criminals, an entrepreneurial whore named Gwen, and even a ridiculously o.p. sorcerer named Ezra.

I think this book was the perfect combination of action, politics, and lore. The book jumps to different points of view fairly regularly so you understand the plot from everyone's perspective, even the bad guys.

This volume has the first two books in the series, so don't be surprised when the story seems to end early.

If you are a fan of clever criminals, betrayal, of desperate battles (both physical and political) for the throne, then this series is for you.

Got me back into Audio books

loved this book. could hardly take my earphones out. brilliant beginning to what promises to be an amazing series. the performance was great almost on par with Stephen Briggs in the Discworld novels.