Threads of Destiny: Volume 2

Destiny Cycle, Book 5

By: Yrsillar

Narrated by: Natalie Naudus

Length: 15 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's summary

The peace of the Sect has been broken.

Incursions come from the nomadic tribes of the southern mountains and from deep underground. Against these foes of the Empire—both old and new—Ling Qi and her allies will be set to test themselves.

It is said that conflict is the great whetstone of talent, but war may devour the genius and the common talent alike without differentiation. What is to be gained and what is to be lost as the fires grow?

Inspired by ancient folklore, modern martial arts, and Xianxia, the Forge of Destiny series cultivates a world both fantastic in setting yet familiar in the humanity of its inhabitants. Don't miss this third installment of one of the most popular titles on Royal Road—with over 7 million reads—elegantly performed by Earphones Award-winning voice artist Natalie Naudus.

©2023 Yrsillar (P)2023 Podium Audio

An exceptional entry in an exceptional series

This book, like the other before it, is truly wonderful.
I love Ms. Naudus’ reading and Yrsillar’s storytelling. The characters feel real and fleshed out, and the world-building is explored well.

My only dislike for the books of this series is the somewhat strange ebb and flow of the books. There’s an element of “slice of life” in the way these books tell snippets of the life of our MC over a period of time, and the ending only becomes apparent at the conclusion. As these books are written as trilogies, the awkward endings are forgivable when viewed as 1/3 and 2/3 of the story.

Excellent!!

I LOVE THIS SERIES. This is one of the few stories I have ever heard or read where the main character is female and is a complete personality. Ling Qi evolves! She grows , making different choices to become who she decides she wants to be. I love the narrator PLEASE NEVER CHANGE HER. Ling Qi can change but Natalie’s voice work can not be replaced. ❤️

She's done it again!!

The story took twists and turns in such dazzling ways, I hunger for more!!

Rebottle review to 6 hour dude.

When i read a review of this book called "6 hours i made it 6 hours" i admit to some confusion. This series has never been about the cultivation power of the MC. At best it is a secondary concern. Even with that the interpretation of the reviewer seems rather overblown. Yes the author didn't put a lot of emphasis on Ling Qi raising her Physical cultivation in the start of the book. However that was because it didn't actually matter. This series isn't and has never been the usual martial fare of a cultivation series. Ling Qi is not trying to over throw an evil empire or rail against the machine. She is trying to figure out her place in the world and all the responsibilities and consequences that come with power. So of course politics and other less martial development would be prioritized over a simple cultivation jump that only required a a bit of time and concentration. Basically if you are five books in and still expecting Ling Qi to go all God Empress than you have very poor reading comprehension.
The homophobia stuff can be immediately ignored, sense the reviewer uses an example that was not only NOT a gay couple, but actually caused Ling Qi to get made fun of for assuming so. Again reading comprehension or just paying attention does not seem to be the reviewers strong point. Also there is the fact that the majority of the characters are straight and the complaint just seems to be because there are 2 characters in stable gay relationships. How does the Empire continue dude? ... ummmm... because there are more than four people in the empire....?

Any who the books great. Really hope we get the next audiobook sooner rather than later.

Cultivation at its finest

I would suggest this book serious to anyone who likes the cradle series! Cant wait for the next book.

A fantastical listen of an engaging world

Another wonderful installation in the series, I cannot wait for the next book. if you aren't enthralled by the performance, the poetic style of the writer will keep you coming back.

I love everything about this story

The world and magic creation is terrific. The storyline just right- the heroine progresses steadily through hard work and perseverance. One can’t but help root for her and care about her. My only mistake is that I bought both the Audible and the book. The names are (of course!) Asian- but they are not pronounced how they are written (again of course!). So I get confused when I listen to the Audible book because I have been calling these characters one thing in my head and the narrator says them differently (correctly). I would request that the author explain how the names are pronounced in the book format. I would also ask that the author explains that each character has a first and last name- but they are not said in the same order as is done in English. For example, my name Christine Johnson- would be Johnson Christine in this story. Which confused me even more. Nevertheless, as I said I have purchased both the book and the Audible book each time one is available. In fact, I preorder them so o don’t have to wait. Just a little request for the author from this boring middle-aged white lady. I can’t wait to see our heroine reach 8th cultivation!

Perfection

The writer focus on all aspects of her world and has extensive character growth I LOVE IT! Highly recommend if you like a longer story with more meat on it!

I love this series

I’ve never listened to a cultivation story before this series and now I worry about trying others because I love this series so dearly I worry that none others will measure up. If you like a lot of detail in your fantasy, wholesomeness but also challenges in battles and emotions, great character growth and relationships, and a TON of battles, magic, and magical beings and spirits.

This is the type of cozy fantasy I’m into—you get a ton of cozy feels by getting to know the characters so deeply and the depth of magic in the world as well as journeying with the MC throughout her day to day life. But it’s not cozy at all in the sense that there’s still tons of fighting and battles, challenges, quests, etc. Cozy with a ton of adventure and VERY extensive battle scenes.

Finally, Natalie Naudus’s narration of this is excellent. Her narration style is really suited to this story.

great series

Not much to say about this beyond it's really good. quality and coherent all the way from book 1