Brimstone Angels: Lesser Evils

A Forgotten Realms Novel

By: Erin M. Evans

Narrated by: Dina Pearlman

Length: 15 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's summary

Rejected at birth and raised in a village of tiefling misfits, Farideh expects a life without friends, love, or control over her destiny. Then she makes a pact with a devil named Lorcan, and everything changes.

Lorcan promises all she ever dreamed of and asks for nothing in return. Her twin sister, Havilar, urges Farideh to resist the devil’s sway. But Farideh’s not so sure. Lorcan may be dangerous but the power he offers is exhilarating.

In the ruins of Neverwinter, Farideh’s doubts get tangled up in a devilish snare six layers deep. A succubus playing human pawns against an otherworldly foe sees the twins as obstacles in her path. And Lorcan’s monstrous sisters have their eyes on the city - and on Farideh. There’s no time to question her pact with Lorcan - it will take every ounce of Farideh’s newfound powers to get out of Neverwinter alive.

©2012 Wizards of the Coast LLC (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Feels like several sessions of D&D

This book hits on multiple d&d tropes throughout the entire story and is broken up into two parts: city and spy intrige and then later basically a hostile dungeon. They also frequently flash back over from other charcters to the hells. Some may find it confusing but I find it reliatively easy to figure out what is happening because of the distinctive names. Multiple characters may be doing random different stuff, and its sometimes unclear what the goal is but if you think of it as a d&d session and the characters are just doing downtime activities like shopping, it makes perfect sense.

You really get a feel for the world in this book. I basically know nothing about the zentarum or harpers but this book shows you a more nuanced not strictly good or evil take on them both. The book really goes deep on dnd lore but you dont have to have known it to enjoy this book. Does it really matter if you don't know selune is godess of the moon? Not really. But the book says it anyway.

Unlike R.A. Salvatore's Drizzt series, the characters in this series has more magical characters. They all have a complicated relationship with magic. Drizzt characters see magic as something useful but not something they can do without items. In this Ferideh covets magic as a force to help her friends, and it gets her into trouble. Dahl, Tam and Bryn all use divine magic and have complicated feelings about it. The characters in this feel more like dnd classes than in other forgotten realms books I've read. Like even down to warlocks, sorcerers and wizards all being different.

Overall I enjoyed this. I also had no problems with the narration as the voices for other characters were good. Ferideh and Havilar's voices were great.

Narrator needs work

The book has a solid story but the narrator seem to yell unnecessarily at times and had a few pronunciation slip ups

Exposition: The Book

Loved the deep dive into the world and characters, but a little slow for me.

There is a great dungeon crawl in here!!!

A lot of this book focuses on the relationship between Farideh and the devil she is bound to (Lorcan). I found myself wanting to scream at the audio book, "Quit being so stupid, Farideh! He is a manipulative, controlling, BASTARD!!!" But that is the point, isn't it? As frustrating as it is to read about a teenager in basically an abusive relationship (mostly mental abuse) it is well done and is believable.

Meanwhile her sister Havilar continues to be a fun contrast.

A good deal of this book deals with a party in a dungeon crawl complete with traps, ancient secrets, and party members with contrasting goals. I thought this part was very well done and I really enjoyed the unraveling of the mystery of the place.

All in all a great listen. The narrator does a good job of given each character a 'voice' as well.

Tricky to follow

This is a great addition to the story after the first entry but I have a problem following what’s going on. Not the fault of the writer or the narrator. I would recommend getting the written copy of this book but it’s a great listen if you’re willing to pay rapt attention and maybe rewind for a relisten during confusing intervals. It’s just the nature of this story in audio format. Definitely grabbing another of the series to read!

Second Verse, good as The First

Sequels can be tricky, but fortunately the Brimstone Angel story is compelling enough that it can run on a near endless fire! There were a scant few tired cliches, and certain aspects of the library were easy to guess to a point that I feel the characters should have guessed sooner, but these were minor quibbles. It's a delicious adventure, Daaaarling!

Another Hit!

I really enjoyed the book and how it manages to keep many different plot threads and back storys in check. Got a little slow near the middle but it was key information to Know to keep the story fluid. Definitely worth a listen/read

A fun tale of a bunch of Adventurers.

The plot is not terribly complex or well wrought, but the characters are fun and the relationships are compelling so that I remained interested till the end.

Great series so far.

I love the story so far and cant wait to continue. I am really enjoying the interactions of all the dofferent character personalities. My only issue has been the narration, could use some work.

Fantastic story, narrator could use some coaching

Love the author, love the world, the characters, the story. Improves upon its predecessor in both depth and scope. Narrator seems to have only a handful of inflections at her disposal, and so figuring out who is talking can quite often be frustrating.