Of Blood and Steel

Not All Prisons Are Forged in Steel

By: Seymour Zeynalli

Narrated by: James Lawrence

Length: 7 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

After secluding himself from the outside world, a fearsome old man, Balak, is hired by a teenage girl, Arda, to make a perilous journey across Tartaurus. With the whole continent at war, he is tasked with guiding her safely to the distant castle of Iron Gates. They will have to learn to work together if they wish to make it alive, past the hostile wildlife, enemy territory, and giants, a dangerous journey that is further complicated by the inclusion of Arda’s infant sister.

Drawing inspiration from the history and mythology of the Caucasus region and the author’s own rich imagination, the book explores the murky line between justice and revenge, and the lengths some people are willing to cross to get what they want.

©2020 Seymour Zeynalli (P)2021 Seymour Zeynalli

Epic fantasy at its finniest

Received as an audio review copy from Story Origin, this is an honest review. Narrated wonderfully by James Lawrence, comes this wildly intense yet poignant adventure that face Balak and Arda. The deeply fierce Balak is happy drinking and spending the rest of his time fighting in the arena in the shadowy city called The Hollow; when he is hired by Adra, a young women burdened by a baby, to take them to the Iron Gates- both of their lives are changed by the journey. From mysterious woods, dangerous creatures to assassins to epic, gusty battles and intriguing secrets... Of Blood and Steel is beautifully memorable with complex, well designed characters and its witty dialogue, highly recommended.

Excellent narration, good storyline.

James did an excellent job with the narration of "Of Blood and Steel". Seymour did a good job with the novel. Overall I did enjoy the book. There was a lot of well-written action but the pace of the plot seemed rushed at times. Character development was slow but in the end came together, a bit too slow and flat in progression in my opinion though. I did really like how the beginning and end of the novel meshed together and gave us a moment of clarification.

Great Fantasy Adventure!

Seymour Zeynalli has written a fantasy adventure story about a young girl named Arda who hires an old fighter named Balak, to escort her sister and herself across a war torn country to the relative safety of the castle of Iron Gates. I enjoyed this adventure tale with its twists and turns, its descriptive fight scenes, and its unexpected moments of tenderness and flashes of humor. I recommend this story to all who enjoy this genre, although there are a few crude words utilized in the narrative. James Lawrence's narration is great and adds to the entertainment of the story. I was given a free copy of the audiobook and I have voluntarily left this review.

Good characters, decent story

So the Viking-ish man on the cover drew my attention to this audiobook, and it's a pretty good time. The plot is mostly episodic, as we get to know the two main characters as they travel from across the land. The narrator did a pretty good job breathing life into the different people as the plot meanders along.

I do want to note this story can get gory at times, so if you don't like that you may want to pass on it.

I think my only complaint is an odd one- I wish there had been more to the book. This is a world and story that I really wanted to dive deeper into! I think the theme of how empty and life-ruining revenge is might have also been able to be teased out a bit more.

I received a free copy of this audiobook for a fair review.

Of Blood and Steel

This tale was full of action, as an unlikely duo become traveling companions. In addition to journeying across a war torn continent, they are also dealing with personal challenges.

Seymour Zeynalli packed a lot into this original story. I do appreciate a story that really gets me thinking.

James Lawrence did a phenomenal job with this narration. He really brought this story to a whole new level. I will certainly be checking out his other performances.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and I have voluntarily left this review.

Of Blood and Steel Book Review

This book was a bit of a disappointment. There wasn't much of a plot and very little character development. Things I enjoyed: - The introduction to the book was great. It caught your attention and made you want to read more. - The narration of the book was great. I love the different voices the narrator took on for each character. Things I didn't enjoy: - The lack of a plot. The story began well, and had signs of a plot, but it disappeared as the book went on. - Character development. There was little to no character development in this book. The characters seem the same as the beginning. - The story line. I felt the story line was very basic with no real plot to it. Overall, this book was bearable. It was hard to enjoy with the lack of plot and character development. However, the audiobook was nice to listen to as the narrator was great. I received the audiobook from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion.