Seal of the Worm

Shadows of the Apt, Book 10

By: Adrian Tchaikovsky

Narrated by: Ben Allen

An ancient enemy stirs once more . . .

Seal of the Worm is the tenth and final book in the critically acclaimed epic fantasy series Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky.

The Empire has vanquished its enemies at last, but at a terrible price. With her chief rival cast into the abyss, Empress Seda must face the truth of what she’s unleashed in her hunger for power. Now the Seal has been shattered, the ancient Worm stirs towards the light for the first time in a thousand years. Already it is striking at the surface, consuming everything in its voracious path. Unchecked, it will ravage the world.

As her victory seems hollow indeed, Seda knows that only the most extreme solution can lock the Worm in the dark once more. But if she’ll go to such horrific lengths to save them all from the Worm, who’ll save the world from her?

Start the epic journey with Empire in Black and Gold, the first book in the Shadows of the Apt series.

The entire series is narrated by Ben Allen (Alien Clay). Listeners love the series in audio:

‘Fantastic narration that really got you to imagine this amazing world’

‘You get consumed into the world and its characters’

‘The characters are distinct with masterful accents’

‘The narration and sound design is jaw-dropping’

‘Ben Allen's narration was frankly phenomenal all the way through’

Critic reviews

Brimming with imagination

The Shadows of the Apt series is simply one of the best epic fantasy series out there

Super world-building, great characters and extreme inventiveness

Epic fantasy at its best. Gripping, original and multi-layered storytelling from a writer bursting with lots of fascinating ideas

Full of sparking, speculative innovation (Stephen Baxter, author of the Xeelee Sequence, on The Doors of Eden)

Breathtaking scope and vision. Adrian Tchaikovsky is one of our finest writers (Gareth L. Powell, author of Embers of War, on Children of Ruin)

A joy from start to finish. Entertaining, smart, surprising and unexpectedly human (Patrick Ness, author of The Knife of Never Letting Go, on Children of Time)

10 books!!

Great series. Took me a year while taking breaks but well with it. Hope others get through it all.

Wished it ended a little stronger

Could have ended it better . It left me wanting just a little more closure in some character . And more depth with others

Good and Apocalyptic End to the Series

The characters, old and new, are the strength that holds everything together. Their “humanity” and its struggles form the central themes even in conflicts of war. A bit long on the dark and creepy passages, those not best for reading at night.

Final book of 10 book series

At the beginning of this series, I groaned a bit over the sheer commitment of time I would have to make to get through the end book, Seal of the Worm, but it has been a pleasure and a joy all the way. Fantastic, unparalleled story and the best narration made every listening minute a pleasure.

Pretty good

Good ending albeit it felt a bit rushed. Still a very satisfying end to the series :)