A Ritual of Flesh

The Dead Sagas, Book 2

By: Lee C Conley

Narrated by: RJ Bayley

Length: 20 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

As evil ravages the north and the dead walk, all eyes fall to Arn.... The apprentice journeys south, home to the College, unaware of the dark events that transpired in the High Passes after his departure. His leg in ruins, and haunted by watching shadows, the College council in Arn awaits him, but he does not travel south alone.

Arnulf and his warriors must travel to Arn also, with tidings for the king of the risen dead and the terrible curse which has destroyed all that he knew. Arnulf seeks vengeance upon the College, but must choose wisely if he is to save his son.

Meanwhile in the west, Bjorn and his strange Wildman companion report back to High Lord Archeon at Oldstones with grim news of cannibal Stonemen encroaching from the Barrens, but is embroiled in news of war and invasion as Archeon requests his service once more.

In the capital, sickness awaits them all, as Nym has fled to the city and must now continue her struggle for survival on the plague ridden streets of Arn, keeping all who she cares for safe from the halls of Old Night.

The many threads of this Saga converge on the city of Arn, but amid plague, invasion and terror, a greater darkness is looming. Dark forces are seeking to unleash evil upon Arnar, honour and renown is all, and sword, axe, and shield is all that stands between the living and the grasping hands of the dead.

©2020 Lee Conley (P)2021 Lee Conley

Don't skip this series!

If you haven't read/listened to A Ritual of Bone, go back and do it now. Then get on to this book immediately. Lee C Conley does an amazing job following up an already excellent first book. Can't wait for the next one, I will most definitely waste no time getting to it, when it comes out!

A zombie outbreak in the Viking Ages. I love the way he mixes various elements in this series, making for an engaging and interesting take on the zombie idea, influenced by various classics. I worry that saying too much would give too much away (especially since this is for book 2 in the series), so best advice is to just fuckin' read these books!

Needless to say, anyone that has listened to a narration from RJ Bayley should already be well aware, that aspect of this book is also top notch! You can't go wrong with this combo.

That ends my sorta rambly review. Get this book (or get the first in the series, then get this book)

A dark Norse fantasy with fabulous narration!

The audiobook is once again narrated by RJ Bayley who I really enjoyed listening to in the previous book A Ritual of Bone and the same comments I made about its narration stand true for the sequel:

“R.J. Bayley has an excellent, dramatic voice which conveys tension brilliantly. I really appreciated all of the different voices he gave the characters. Truda, Nym and other females were just high pitched and feminine enough to be believable and my favourite was the rich throaty accent given to Bjorn the hunter/tracker. I prefer fantasy narration to be with a British accent – I tend to get more distracted when the narrator has an American accent. So R.J. Bayley was perfect for this.”

The voices of the characters inside the tavern in A Ritual of Flesh were hilarious – particularly Toothless Maud – and the narration leant a definite spooky, eerie feeling to the sequences with the Apprentice and the mysterious hooded figure who whispers eerily in the Apprentice’s head. RJ Bayley is a very talented narrator and voice actor who I will look out for on other audiobooks.

A sample of the audio for A Ritual of Flesh can be found on the Amazon page.

Impressive sequel!

The gripping sequel to A Ritual of Bone is a much longer and character-driven tale, but no less vivid or gruesome. Focused primarily on the protagonists and their challenges with the events that began in Book 1, it is far more complex than its predecessor. The author ramps up his already impressive writing style and character development while slowing the pace for the first 2/3 of the novel. The reader is given glimpses into the struggles of ordinary citizens that populate this world, as well as the political machinations through a global pandemic (sound familiar?). We learn quite a bit more about the Cursed Ones, and several questions from Book 1 are answered, while leaving some unanswered for now. Mr. Conley expertly escalates the tension and action through the latter 1/3 of the story, and we’re left both heartbroken and hopeful by the conclusion. Once again, the audiobook features the remarkable talent of RJ Bayley, and I’m eagerly waiting for Book 3!