Prison of Hope

The Hellequin Chronicles, Book 4

By: Steve McHugh

Narrated by: James Langton

Length: 12 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's summary

Long ago, Olympian gods imprisoned the demon Pandora in a human - Hope - creating a creature whose only purpose was chaos and death. Remorseful, the gods locked Pandora away in Tartarus, ruled by Hades.

Now, centuries later, Pandora escapes. Nate Garrett, a 1,600-year-old sorcerer, is sent to recapture her and discovers her plan to disrupt the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games, killing thousands in a misplaced quest for vengeance.

Fast forward to modern-day Berlin, where Nate has agreed to act as guardian on a school trip to Germany to visit Hades at the entrance to Tartarus. When Titan King Cronus becomes the second ever to escape Tartarus, Nate is forced to track him down and bring him back, to avert a civil war between those who would use his escape to gain power.

Prison of Hope is the fourth book in the highly acclaimed and action-packed dark urban fantasy series the Hellequin Chronicles.

©2015 Steve McHugh (P)2015 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Action packed urban fantasy

This is another good book in the Hellequin series. This book is pretty similar to the others. lots of action and a current story told simultaneously with a historical backstory ala Highlander.

The author does a great job of providing more definition to the protagonist by the flashbacks in the story. The character definitely changes and grows throughout the series and this book is no different. I thought the main character was becoming a little too nice compared to earlier books, but he goes back to form once pushed far enough. That edge is what differentiates this character from other urban fantasy leads. I hope the author doesn't forget that.

This book can get a bit graphic with language and violent. It could be listened to by young adults but straddles the border of what would be appropriate. This one is actually more kid friendly than previous books. You could read this as a stand alone but would enjoy it more if you have read the previous books in the series.

If you like the series so far you will enjoy this one as well. I had this on pre-order as soon as I saw it and definitely do not regret the purchase.

Avid listener

Disappointing addition to a great series. A very thin plot and random connections between story arcs. Characters that could of been interesting were one dimensional and ridiculous also trite & repetitive tropes. I could barely finish this one & had no interest in how it ended. Btw this is the 1st review I've felt the need to write!

Great Series!

I enjoyed the story line and quick wit of Nate. He is a lot like Dresden. Looking forward to the next installment.

Yet another amazing book in this series from this

In this (fourth) book, we get to see a whole side of Nate that has been...avoided up until now - his long-term romantic relationships. No, that doesn't mean this book is a romance novel; it's still directly in the same theme and feel as the rest of the series - a roller-coaster ride of action / adventure following our favorite anti-hero protagonist, who has no qualms whatsoever being cruel and vicious to those who seriously need it. We also see some character growth in this book, with Nate making some choices and stopping some things from happening that he really wants to see happen, but the way they're happening would simply cause far too much collateral damage to innocents, and he just can't allow that.

Couldn't. Put. It. Down.

In fact, I'm going to go back and listen to it again now.


Disclaimer: I received a free, advance copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my unbiased review.

That being said, I also had it on pre-order for both Kindle and Audible, which I'm paying for. It's that good.

Wonderful read and listen..

One thing I don’t like is when the hero is not all that tall and everyone he fights is a head, or more, taller than him. And when he gets shorter than he was the books before it’s totally ridiculous. Nathan went from 5’9” to 5’8” while everyone else was a giant.

Anyway, this was another great story and new people to hate. Boy, that Hera and her grandson Deimos were two you loved to hate. No one was allowed to kill them but Nathan sure did a job on Deimos, who was sooo deserving.

And Pandora, you loved her one minute and the next you just weren’t sure how you felt about the crap she did.

Lots of battles and lots of action. Still love Hades and Persephone, awesome couple. Love Tommy and Olivia and Kasey. Love Sky and Selene and Eos. There are just a whole lot of people to love in these books.

One sex scene but it was fade to black in this book and the F-bomb was used 94 times.

As to the narration: James Langton did a great job on every book so far.

Good story

the farther along in this series you get the better it gets. I like the world building and the characters and the plot was interesting.

Good narration

Another Enjoyable Read

I enjoy this series, and this book is another good read. Nate is a man's man, and the author shows that and the fact that he is not perfect. I find the alternative mythos universe fun to ponder. The narrator makes the characters come alive.

pandoras box

I loved the book I just wish they made a joke of Pandoras box at least once.

Well Done.

What an excellently done novel. Narration was top notch and the story completely enthralling. Only hope that there is more to the story.

Great storytellinf

The voice actor is fantastic. I really do enjoy the stories but the time jumps can be hard to follow.

Another hit in the series

These books keep getting better. The characters are strong and have depth. You love the heroes and even loath the villains.
The storyline is engaging and I couldn't stop reading. Quickly jumping into my top five authors.
Recommend this series very strongly.

Brilliant story again!

Love this series I’ve just listened to them all back to back again !
The only thing is why he his wife’s name changed from Jane in the early novels to Mary in the later ones ? I though I was losing the plot but her name has definitely changed lol !!

Excellent

Another brilliant book in the series. Once I start to listen I just keep going to the end. The story is building but each book is full on its own. So much happens, lots of action and drama.

Great again but...

Again a great story in the series, if I had one complaint it would be the difference in Tommys accent from the previous books. Tiny thing but I can't fault anything else.

Love it!

As usual, Steve Mchugh has done it again. A brilliant story based on the life of Sorcerer Nate Mcgarrat.
James Langtons voice is so easy to listen to, he could read the phone book and it'd be exciting!
This story sees the escape of Pandora. The mix of mythological characters with Greek Gods and magic adds an interesting twist to the murder, crime and investigation genres.
I'll miss Nates stories, here's hoping Mchugh keeps this chronicle alive!!

Another brill book

Have becone a real fan of Steve Mchugh's work after reading the 4th in a series I started a week or so ago. Going to download the next in series right now!

unnecessarily complicated

while not as good as previous books, this one was still entertaining if needlessly complicated with too many threads and characters.

Abso-bloody-brilliant!

I have loved all three of these books. Steeped in mythology, fast paced and engaging! The character's are well developed and intricate. The plot is thick, but so easy to follow, which I don't think is an easy feat considering. I just can't get enough of this series! I don't know whether to thank the author for an awesome ride, or curse him, because my house is a mess and my kids have eaten crap for the past week 😁.

I really enjoyed this book

What made the experience of listening to Prison of Hope the most enjoyable?

I found it a little hard going at first, but as part of a series it's very good.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Lots of good Characters.

Have you listened to any of James Langton’s other performances? How does this one compare?

I enjoyed James' performance, he made the book interesting and enjoyable.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I did want to listen to this in one go, but couldn't due to length and sleepiness!

Better and better

These books have got better and better each one I have listened to with the narrator now really established with these I am looking forward to the next instalment!