Family of Lies: Sebastian

De: Sam Argent

Narrado por: Cornell Collins

Sebastian Orwell did the only thing a smart wizard could do when he stumbled upon the wounded Crown Prince: He healed him and dumped him in a tavern where he could continue not being Sebastian's problem. Unfortunately, the prince isn't content with being alive, and he hunts Sebastian down to thank him personally. Not only is Sebastian stuck with the prince's unwanted affections, but he's also confronted by growing evidence linking the assassination attempt to someone from his father's past.

Lord Orwell is a lot of things: thief, liar, drunk, and all-around horrible father, but Sebastian knows he's no murderer. In order to prove it, Sebastian has to keep the prince alive long enough to discover the truth - a task made considerably harder because the idiot prince prefers wooing Sebastian over securing his own survival. On top of everything, Sebastian needs to save the day without revealing his magical powers and the real reason he hides his appearance.

Sebastian had no intention of playing the hero, but whoever is stirring up shit in his country will pay for destroying his quiet life.

©2015 Sam Argent (P)2016 Dreamspinner Press

Heartwarming but . . .

with uneven writing and performance.

The good news: This is a light-hearted book that doesn't take itself or the genre too seriously. Ultimately, it is a book about family love as much romantic love - and learning to accept both. I really appreciate how the author captured the paradox of families - how their loyalty and concern for one another can be genuine, however imperfect, frustrating, and hurtful certain interactions can be. Meanwhile, the romance is sweet, sweet without getting sickening. It's about seeing through emotional and physical masks to the person beneath. It's also about being vulnerable enough to believe it when someone tells you they love you.

The bad news: The quality of writing and narration were pretty mixed. Parts of this book flowed beautifully. Others didn't. The writing jumped around a lot, especially in the first third. Exacerbating the problem, the narrator often used unexpected or inaccurate inflections for the context. He didn't pause when switching between characters or when transitioning between scenes. I had to listen at a reduced speed for the first few hours just to be able to follow. I have never done that before, having listened to hundreds of audiobooks. Finally, the narrator kind of ruined the sex scenes for me. I think he was trying to make them funny. I don't mind that. It was a humerous book. But he didn't sound the least bit turned on - which I do mind!

Overall, I would say that this is a worthwhile, if frustrating listen. The book might be better in print. Make your decision accordingly.

Highly Recommended

This my favorite audio book and I have listened to it multiple times. I hope there is a book two in this series as I will definitely buy it.

Thoroughly enjoyable and full of unexpected turns!

This was a wonderful audiobook! Nothing went as expected and I found myself enjoying it all the more every time I was surprised, And every time the family did something unexpected, or reacted in a way contradictory to what the main characters perception of them would! 10 out of 10 would recommend!

Perfect mixture. Lacking nothing.

A splendid story, expertly narrated, with very lifelike characters quite memorable and a decent plot. I hope for more books in the series.

Literally my favorite

The story, the characters, the FAMILY - love it!
It was sooo entertaining, and well worth every re-read!
Please provide more Sam!

Awesome story!!

Oh man, this is really a wonderful, and more importantly, unique story. Not like any fantasy book I have ever read. If you are a fan of the Nightrunner series, you will probably enjoy this. The Orwell family is a wonderful bunch of crazy, bordering on psychotic, people. There are 10 siblings and two crazy parents; a wizard and a fey. Sebastian is the youngest and hiding a secret curse; this is why he wears an enchanted hood. The siblings bickering is half the fun of this book in my opinion. It is witty and sarcastic dialogue and to an outsider it sounds like they loathe each other. However, when a threat to their family emerges, the reader experiences exactly how much they love each other and the lengths they will take to keep each other safe. Alongside this storyline is a really sweet enemies to lover romance between Sebastian and the Crown Prince. Their bickering is also very entertaining; especially during their first time having sex; so awkward. I also really enjoyed the Royal family, especially Queen Anne, the bad assed warrior wizard of the family; that was a really nice addition to the story. The story gives us a wonderful HEA and I hope there will be more with this crazy family.

The narrator does a really good job, although I thought his voice for 19 year old Sebastian seemed older than warranted. Also some of the voices blended together. But none of this took away from my enjoyment of this story.

Everything I could ever want

I read this genre a lot and this is one of the best. good story, great characters, and awesome performance. this is not a story where one mc sees another and they're in love because their mutual hotness. let's be honest that archetype is nice for short stories but if you want a novel... I'll say it gets old fast. great for repeat listens as well.

different but I loved it!

Loved the story and the narrator. Great book if your looking for something different. Narrator captures all the different characters with a different voices.

Snark, Magic, and Adventure

I have listened to this book 20 times over and I love it. Sebastian is skilled, smart. and most importantly full of snark. The earnest Prince Turren falls in love with him. But Sebastian has a curse on him that prevents anyone from seeing his face, even Turren. That plus a plot to assassinate the prince makes for a wonderful plot full of magic, action and plenty of snark.
Sebastian's jaded family is a bit overwhelming at first because there's like 12 of them, but I really grew to love them all the more I re-read/listened. I'm actually super disappointed there will be no sequel called Kraven: Family of Lies 2.

I cried I laughed and I got very hungry

I listened to this every night over the week and it will go down as one of my favorite books period. I hope Sam puts out more of her books to be read on audible. I love Sebastians personality, the voices Cornell Collins uses for characters, the descriptions of the food/ use of his powers I also love the world building and it made me curious about how Sebs life changed after or what else were going to experience in that world. cant wait for more of whatever Sam will release next 💖.