Fallen City

De: Adrienne Young

Narrado por: Dylan Reilly Fitzpatrick, Leela Bassuk

In the great walled city of Isara, political turmoil ignites a rebellion one hundred years in the making. But when a legionnaire falls in love with a Magistrate's daughter, their love will threaten the fate of the city and the will of the gods.

Luca Matius has one purpose—to carry on the family name, maintaining its presence in the Forum once his powerful and cruel uncle dies. But his noviceship with the city's Philosopher places him in the middle of a catastrophe that will alter the destiny of his people.

Maris Casperia was raised amidst the strategic maneuvers of the Citadel's inner workings, and she knows what her future holds—a lifetime of service to a corrupt city. But her years of serving as a novice to the last Priestess who possesses the stolen magic of the Old War has made her envision a different kind of future for the city. When she meets Luca, a fated chain of events is set into motion that will divinely entangle their lives.

As a secret comes to light and throws the city into chaos, Luca and Maris hatch a plot to create a calculated alliance that could tip the scales of power. But when an execution forces Luca to become the symbol of rebellion, he and Maris are thrown onto opposite sides of a holy war. As their fates diverge, they learn they are at the center of a story the gods are writing. And even if they can find their way back to each other, there may be nothing left.

A Macmillan Audio production from Saturday Books

Terrible Performance

The story in and of itself was not very good but that was not made better by the audiobook performance. The actors were so monotone and FLAT. For a story that I’m envisioning as taking place during classical times.. you would think some sort of accent work would be done.. No… instead they’re just reading the words from a page with no intonation or anything. Terrible experience.

Political intrigue & romance subplot

This book has such a promising setup: an isolated walled city on the brink of collapse, political unrest, rebellion, and a budding love story. It had all the ingredients for a knockout fantasy in my opinion, but unfortunately, it didn't quite hit that mark.

Luca Matius is expected to carry on his family's legacy in the Forum after his powerful uncle's death. Across the river, Maris Casperia has grown up amid the wealth and scheming of the Citadel's elite and she knows her future will likely mean serving a corrupt system. Her apprenticeship under the last Priestess makes her believe that there's hope for a different kind of future. Much of this book is Maris and Luca trying to be together...but their actions and choices ultimately pull them apart. They find themselves on opposite sides of a brewing war both physically and politically.

I wanted to love this book, especially after meeting Adrienne Young at her first stop on tour. I do plan to read her backlist because I enjoyed her writing, but there were a few aspects of this particular story that didn't work for me. The constant shifts in time and alternating POVs often disrupted the flow, making it harder to stay immersed. Overall, the worldbuilding was rich, and the portrayal of class divides and political maneuvering stood out (this is something she talked about on tour). We do leave off on an unresolved ending, which makes the reader question what's to come in book 2. I can't wait to find out what happens!

The audiobook narration was fantastic. This was narrated by Dylan Reilly Fitzpatrick and Leela Bassuk, both narrators that I have not heard yet. I enjoyed the production.