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The Darkness That Comes Before
- The Prince of Nothing, Book One
- Narrated by: David DeVries
- Length: 20 hrs and 44 mins
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Publisher's summary
Strikingly original in its conception, ambitious in scope, with characters engrossingly and vividly drawn, the first book in R. Scott Bakker's Prince of Nothing series creates a remarkable world from whole cloth - its language and classes of people, its cities, religions, mysteries, taboos, and rituals - the kind of all-embracing universe Tolkien and Herbert created unforgettably in the epic fantasies The Lord of the Rings and Dune.
It's a world scarred by an apocalyptic past, evoking a time both 2,000 years past and 2,000 years into the future, as untold thousands gather for a crusade. Among them, two men and two women are ensnared by a mysterious traveler, Anasûrimbor Kellhus - part warrior, part philosopher, part sorcerous, charismatic presence - from lands long thought dead. The Darkness That Comes Before is a history of this great holy war, and like all histories, the survivors write its conclusion.
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Every year, each village is required to send a young woman to the Empire's capital - her fate to be burned alive for the entertainment of the masses. For the last five years, one small village's tithe has been the same woman. Gilene's sacrifice protects all the other young women of her village, and her secret to staying alive lies with the magic only she possesses. But this year is different. Azarion, the Empire's most famous gladiator, has somehow seen through her illusion - and is set on blackmailing Gilene into using her abilities to help him escape his life of slavery.
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Nothing special. Highly predictable
- By J. C. Schmidt on 10-10-18
By: Grace Draven
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Macbeth: A Novel
- By: A. J. Hartley, David Hewson
- Narrated by: Alan Cumming
- Length: 9 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Macbeth: A Novel brings the intricacy and grit of the historical thriller to Shakespeare’s tale of political intrigue, treachery, and murder. In this full-length novel written exclusively for audio, authors A. J. Hartley and David Hewson rethink literature’s most infamous married couple, grounding them in a medieval Scotland whose military and political upheavals are as stark and dramatic as the landscape in which they are played.
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Narrator choice inspired
- By Beverly on 07-10-11
By: A. J. Hartley, and others
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The Mortal Tally
- By: Sam Sykes
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 24 hrs and 27 mins
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Cier'Djaal, once the crowning glory of the civilized world, has gone from a city to a battlefield and a battlefield to a graveyard. Foreign armies clash relentlessly on streets laden with the bodies of innocents caught in the crossfire. Cultists and thieves wage shadow wars, tribal armies foment outside the city's walls, and haughty aristocrats watch the world burn from on high. As his companions struggle to keep the city from destroying itself, Lenk travels to the Forbidden East in search of the demon who caused it all. But even as he pursues Khoth-Kapira, dark whispers plague his thoughts.
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Great Middle Entry
- By Casey on 04-15-18
By: Sam Sykes
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The Path of Anger
- The Book and the Sword, Book 1
- By: Antoine Rouaud
- Narrated by: Michael Kramer
- Length: 17 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Year 10 of the new republic, in the remote port city of Masalia: Dun-Cadal, once the greatest general of the empire, has been drinking his life away for years. Betrayed by his friends and grief stricken at the loss of his apprentice, he's done with politics, with adventure, and with people. But people aren't finished with him - not yet.
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Great Epic Fantasy!
- By Bob-o on 08-31-15
By: Antoine Rouaud
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Ransom
- By: David Malouf
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 4 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
This is the story of the relationship between two grieving men at war: fierce Achilles, who has lost his beloved Patroclus in the siege of Troy; and woeful Priam, whose son Hector killed Patroclus and was in turn savaged by Achilles. A moving tale of suffering, sorrow, and redemption, Ransom is incandescent in its delicate and powerful lyricism and its unstated imperative that we imagine our lives in the glow of fellow feeling.
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Ponderous narration, tortured prose
- By Gail N. on 01-26-20
By: David Malouf
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The Serpent Sword
- The Bernicia Chronicles, Book 1
- By: Matthew Harffy
- Narrated by: Barnaby Edwards
- Length: 12 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Beobrand is compelled by his brother's almost-certain murder to embark on a quest for revenge in the war-ravaged kingdoms of Northumbria. The land is rife with danger, as warlords vie for supremacy and dominion. In the battles for control of the region, new oaths are made and broken, and loyalties are tested to the limits. With no patronage and no experience, Beobrand must form his own allegiances and learn to fight with sword and shield. Relentless in pursuit of his enemies, he faces challenges which transform him from a boy to a man.
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Amazing story, needs a warning in the description.
- By Lisa Schilling on 04-12-17
By: Matthew Harffy
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Kushiel's Dart
- By: Jacqueline Carey
- Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
- Length: 31 hrs and 5 mins
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
The land of Terre d'Ange is a place of unsurpassing beauty and grace. It is said that angels found the land and saw it was good...and the ensuing race that rose from the seed of angels and men live by one simple rule: Love as thou wilt.
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The Kushiel series in order
- By Glen Gaines on 10-27-09
By: Jacqueline Carey
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Buddha
- A Story of Enlightenment
- By: Deepak Chopra
- Narrated by: Deepak Chopra
- Length: 9 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Best-selling author Deepak Chopra brings the Buddha back to life in this gripping account of the young prince who abandoned his inheritance to discover his true calling. This iconic journey changed the world forever, and the truths revealed continue to influence every corner of the globe today.
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Excellent +++++
- By Daniel on 04-17-09
By: Deepak Chopra
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Hero of Rome
- By: Douglas Jackson
- Narrated by: Cornelius Garrett
- Length: 11 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
The Roman grip on Britain is weakening. Emperor Nero has turned his face away from this far-flung outpost. The Druids are on the rise, spreading seeds of rebellion among the British tribes. Roman cruelty and exploitation has angered their British subjects. The warrior queen Boudicca will lead the tribes to war. Standing against the rising tide of Boudicca's rebellion is Roman Tribune, Gaius Valerius Verrens, Commander of the veteran legions at Colonia.
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Good story, well told and well read
- By Mike Varley on 10-01-14
By: Douglas Jackson
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Flame in the Mist
- By: Renée Ahdieh
- Narrated by: Nancy Wu
- Length: 10 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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From the number-one New York Times best-selling author of The Wrath and the Dawn comes a sweeping, action-packed YA adventure set against the backdrop of feudal Japan, where Mulan meets Tamora Pierce.
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It has potential!
- By tatiana on 06-18-17
By: Renée Ahdieh
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Starless
- By: Jacqueline Carey
- Narrated by: Caitlin Davies
- Length: 21 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Destined from birth to serve as protector of the princess Zariya, Khai is trained in the arts of killing and stealth by a warrior sect in the deep desert; yet there is one profound truth that has been withheld from him. In the court of the Sun-Blessed, Khai must learn to navigate deadly intrigue and his own conflicted identity…but in the far reaches of the western seas, the dark god Miasmus is rising, intent on nothing less than wholesale destruction.
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The most beautiful thing I've enjoyed this year!
- By DabOfDarkness on 08-06-18
By: Jacqueline Carey
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Markswoman
- Asiana, Book 1
- By: Rati Mehrotra
- Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller
- Length: 11 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Kyra is the youngest Markswoman in the Order of Kali, a highly trained sisterhood of elite warriors armed with telepathic blades. Guided by a strict code of conduct, Kyra and the other Orders are sworn to protect the people of Asiana. But to be a Markswoman, an acolyte must repudiate her former life completely. Kyra has pledged to do so, yet she secretly harbors a fierce desire to avenge her dead family. When Kyra's beloved mentor dies in mysterious circumstances, and Tamsyn, the dangerous Mistress of Mental Arts, assumes control, Kyra is forced on the run.
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Everything I look for in a fantasy series!
- By Shawscribbles on 02-11-18
By: Rati Mehrotra
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The Bloody Cup
- By: M. K. Hume
- Narrated by: Steven Crossley
- Length: 18 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Celtic Britain is on the brink of collapse, and the kingdom's bloodiest days are upon it. For many years, the people of Briton have enjoyed peace and prosperity under the reign of King Arthur. He has ruled with dignity, honor, and humility. Arthur is now weakening with age, however, and the seeds of discontent are being sown. Seeking to cleanse the land of Christian belief, dissenters need a symbol with which to legitimize their pagan claim and gather malcontents together into a cohesive weapon.
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Worth your time.
- By Helen on 07-01-22
By: M. K. Hume
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Welcome to the Five Isles, where war has come in the name of the invading army of Sor Sevier, a merciless host driven by the prophetic fervor of the Angel Prince, Aeros, toward the last unconquered kingdom of Gul Kana. Yet Gault, one of the elite Knights Archaic of Sor Sevier, is growing disillusioned by the crusade he is at the vanguard of just as it embarks on his Lord Aeros' greatest triumph. While the eldest son of the fallen king of Gul Kana now reigns in ever increasing paranoid isolationism, his two sisters seek their own paths.
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alright-ish
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Jia's people learned the hard way that there are no second chances. The Egril, their ancient enemy, struck with magic so devastating that Jia's armies were wiped out. Now terror reigns in the streets, and friend turns on friend just to live another day. Somehow Tinnstra - a deserter, a failure, nothing but a coward - survived. She wants no more than to hide from the chaos. But dragged into a desperate plot to retake Jia, surrounded by people willing to do anything to win the fight, this time Tinnstra will need to do more than hide.
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Criminally Underrated Gem in a world of Dark Fantasy
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What listeners say about The Darkness That Comes Before
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Jesse Soileau
- 01-06-24
Too many characters with multiple names
I wanted to like it. There are just too many strange names and terms for an audiobook. Perhaps printed where I could stop and look up characters or concepts would have helped. I kept getting lost and couldn't gain more than a broad understanding of what was going on. The details were obscured by the foreignness of the setting.
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- Kowth
- 11-27-21
An all time favorite
The series definitely has its issues, first and foremost how uncomfortable the cultural situation is in the three seas and beyond. Pre-to-just-slightly-post-Medieval in most of the worst ways.
On the other hand, I’m very fond of the way magic is handled, the way faith and the history of the world is rich and detailed, and of the light philosophy heavily salting the meat of the text, which is just layers and layers of political and religious conflict and subterfuge, broken up by the mysteries of the Dunyain, the reality of the gods and demons, and the unholy consult.
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Performance
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- Laura Bethard
- 06-02-16
Strong worldbuilding, unlikeable characters
Would you try another book from R. Scott Bakker and/or David DeVries?
no
Any additional comments?
In the abstract, I appreciated what the author was doing here - he's clearly put a ton of thought into his world and his philosophy. The narrator I thought did a reasonable job with a (in my opinion unnecessarily large) cast of characters. That said, it felt a bit like having to suffer through a D&D campaign run by a medieval-studies major whose favorite movie was Idiocracy. The story came off as a smug dismissal of the value of anything but logic and probability. Perhaps unsurprisingly, given that premise, pretty much every character is unlikeable or incompetent within the world or both. By the end, I was kind of rooting for everyone to die. Unfortunately, if they do all die, you won't find out for another three books and I've put in my time, so I won't be finding out.
Further, the characterization of women in general and in the specific is appalling. If you're into the rape-ier bits of Song of Ice and Fire, then I guess you'll like this book but for me it was a punishment to get through. I made it to the end but once there, found myself wondering why I'd bothered.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Chris Reitenour
- 08-22-22
Very heavy world-building
This book may be better suited to reading as a physical copy or eBook, as I found myself having a hard time following all the names of people and countries, even if they don’t end up being relevant. It is meant to lead to a rich world, but ends up just leading to reader asking themself “Who is that again? What country is it that cares about this?”
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1 person found this helpful
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- Kindle Customer
- 04-30-20
Beasts of burden and philosophy
4.5/5
I have heard much about R. Scott Bakker; many stating he's an undisputed genius that will make rethink your entire life to overblown darkness and disparity for shock value wrapped in overly purple prose. For me, while not a 'fun' read, it certainly has depth and is something that makes one want to become enveloped in the world and apply philosophical debates with yourself on life's meaning or nature vs. nurture.
The plot is intricate, allowing for various kingfoms/empires to be enraptured and manipulated into engaging into a holy war. Allmin the background there's Eldritch horror that awaits to bring about the apocalypse. The second, in fact :p
This works for me since it echoes real life atrocities (that are still performed in these 'civilised' times), mesmerizing conversation and dialog about philosophy, deep world building, drags of supernatural horror, warfare, and some of the best political maneuvering as my beloved A Song of Ice and Fire. The characters are all fascinating...but not necessarily likeable save for a couple. They are well-wrought characters, have no doubt but some you are not going to be rooting for. This is really the only qualms I have with the book and it's a 'me' thing. Furthermore there is loads of sexual violence and women are defining treated as meat within the book which will make you squirm. However, I feel this was all done with specific purpose (see men are at their base, depraved-- the author's thoughts, not mine) and it accomplishes what it sets out.
If you're looking for a comment on how humanity is inherently base or evil...look no further. It's a very well-done portrait of the human experience as a car wreck. I'll be continuing because this was thought provoking and gave me much to ponder on, both for and against. I think that's the point
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4 people found this helpful
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- Eric
- 10-10-19
Good Dark Fantasy
I really liked the depth with which Bakker built this very dark and very interesting world but I wasn't a huge fan of all the political intrigue and the way that women were reduced to demeaning roles. the only two main female characters are used for sex, one willing and one unwilling. That's it. The audio performance was really good. Overall, I'd give it 3.5 stars (rounding up to four).
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2 people found this helpful
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- Kindle Customer
- 07-05-23
My number one favorite series of all time.
I almost wish I had never read through this seven book series. Not because I didn’t enjoy it, but because every book I’ve read after has been a little paler than it would have been prior. In my personal opinion, Bakker is the gold standard of the grimdark genre. Inspired my many other books but fully and wholly it’s own world and story, nothing comes close to this for me. Going through it a third time and I’m still finding little bits and pieces that only make sense after having finished the whole, but don’t detract from the story at all without being on the second or third listen-through. The performance is also masterful, and I personally wish they kept this narrator for the last four books, but the other guy is good, too.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Geoff
- 04-23-15
Great Book, Poor Reader
What didn’t you like about David DeVries’s performance?
Yes, this book is challenging, but Devries' reading complicates, rather than clarifies. Very little distinction between different characters' voices makes it easy to lose track of who is saying what. Choices on inflection make it sound like he himself has no idea what's going on. Paragraphs are picked up with no breaks, missing the fact that a new idea is starting.
I would often listen to a section two or three times before going to the text and finding it much easier to understand.
Any additional comments?
I'm really enjoying this story, but I'll have to somehow find the time to read the sequels without audio.
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9 people found this helpful
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- Ian Nichol
- 09-13-12
I never write reviews but I loved this
What made the experience of listening to The Darkness That Comes Before the most enjoyable?
This is a fully realized world. Great conflicts. Original characters.
What was one of the most memorable moments of The Darkness That Comes Before?
Dark dark magicians.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
I drive long distances and tend to listen in long blocks. I could easily listen for 6+ hrs
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5 people found this helpful
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- Sailfish
- 03-29-18
Too Fractured to Hold My Interest
While the author's prose was fine in terms of diction, the novel itself held little interest after the first few chapters. There was too much jumping around, often leaving some of the supporting characters demise undetermined. Also, there was many vague postulations about little known histories of past civilizations. Then there were lame philosophical metaphors professing of great portent that I found a bit unnerving.
Finally, the narrator's way of making seemingly every paragraph come across as something revealing and high importance was enough for me to decide to stop after less than an hour of listening.
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