The Will of the Many

Hierarchy, Book 1

By: James Islington

Narrated by: Euan Morton

At the elite Catenan Academy, a young fugitive uncovers layered mysteries and world-changing secrets in this new fantasy series by internationally best-selling author of the Licanius Trilogy James Islington.

Audi. Vide. Tace.

The Catenan Republic—the Hierarchy—may rule the world now, but they do not know everything.

I tell them my name is Vis Telimus. I tell them I was orphaned after a tragic accident three years ago, and that good fortune alone has led to my acceptance into their most prestigious school. I tell them that once I graduate, I will gladly join the rest of civilized society in allowing my strength, my drive, and my focus—what they call Will—to be leeched away and added to the power of those above me, as millions already do. As all must eventually do.

I tell them that I belong, and they believe me.

But the truth is that I have been sent to the Academy to find answers. To solve a murder. To search for an ancient weapon. To uncover secrets that may tear the Republic apart.

And that I will never, ever cede my Will to the empire that executed my family.

To survive, though, I will still have to rise through the Academy’s ranks. I will have to smile, and make friends, and pretend to be one of them and win. Because if I cannot, then those who want to control me, who know my real name, will no longer have any use for me.

And if the Hierarchy finds out who I truly am, they will kill me.

©2023 James Islington (P)2023 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Islington’s worldbuilding is exceptionally detailed and thoughtful, making suspending disbelief effortless. Perfectly balancing character development and plot momentum, this will have fantasy fans clamoring for more.” (Publishers Weekly, starred review)

"Fans of Pierce Brown's Red Rising will enjoy this book, but it’s darker, deeper, and takes unexpected paths worth traveling. Trust that the author will get you there in the end." (Kirkus, starred review)

“Ancient Roman politics, dark academia, and epic fantasy coalesce in this brilliant and gut-churning masterpiece from Islington.... This is powerful storytelling at its finest, and the mind-blowing ending opens the series to so much more potential.” (Library Journal, starred review)

Wow. An entirely different writer (in a good way).

Firstly, for those of you that dig the ‘Roman based world’, check out Codex Alera by Jim Butcher. I have a feeling this book is just the beginning.

I read the licanthus trilogy, Islington’s first series (and only other published work I know of). That series was great but the first book in particular was weak. Ended up being a fantastic trilogy, but a little on the YA side.

Throughout this listen I kept saying to myself ‘I can’t believe this is the same author’. And I thought the other series was good. The story is engrossing, the plot is unpredictable, rewarding, and has somewhat of a Patrick Rothfuss kind of vibe - a book that you want to read because you are so invested in the characters that you don’t even notice the absence of the action scenes common to most good (and bad) fantasy. That is not to say the book is without fight scenes, because it surely is not.

The character development is fascinating and draws you in. The world building is more vague, but that’s because the characters are very much in the dark, almost as much as the reader.

I am thoroughly impressed with every aspect of this book, would heartily recommend it to fans of fantasy for certain, but also for everyone else. I have over 200 books in my collection, and this one will probably be reread every time the next book comes out.

All around great book. Several twists you never saw coming and a tantalizing cliff hanger at the end. Despite that, like Rothfuss, this book leaves you feeling complete, yet looking towards what comes next.

Very Fun

I thoroughly enjoyed this. The pace is fast and non stop. There are a good amount of unexpected twists and lots of questions unanswered.

Great start to another series

I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It’s not as in depth with world building like Licanius, but in my opinion that’s a good thing. Islington merely uses a Roman-ish backdrop and rough caste system as a scaffold and starting point to something much grander. The magic system feels a little lacking at first, but towards the end we really begin to start seeing that there is so much more to the story and that maybe things run much deeper than they appear. All in all it’s a great first book that sets up what is likely to be an epic series.

Meets the hype

Saw a lot of book tubers say they either loved or at least liked it. Definitely recommend. Couldn’t stop listening over my vacation.

Fantastic!

Really enjoyed it, the writing, the performance, all of it. Can't wait till the next one!