The Ruin of Kings

By: Jenn Lyons

Narrated by: Feodor Chin, Vikas Adam, Soneela Nankani

Length: 27 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

"Everything epic fantasy should be: rich, cruel, gorgeous, brilliant, enthralling and deeply, deeply satisfying. I loved it." (Lev Grossman, author of The Magicians)

Jenn Lyons begins the Chorus of Dragons series with The Ruin of Kings, an epic fantasy audiobook about a man who discovers his fate is tied to the future of an empire.

When destiny calls, there's no fighting back.

Kihrin grew up in the slums of Quur, a thief and a minstrel's son raised on tales of long-lost princes and magnificent quests. When he is claimed against his will as the missing son of a treasonous prince, Kihrin finds himself at the mercy of his new family's ruthless power plays and political ambitions.

Practically a prisoner, Kihrin discovers that being a long-lost prince is nothing like what the storybooks promised. The storybooks have lied about a lot of other things, too: dragons, demons, gods, prophecies, and how the hero always wins.

Then again, maybe he isn't the hero after all. For Kihrin is not destined to save the world.

He's destined to destroy it.

Library Journal Best Books of the Year - 2019
Kirkus Reviews Best Books of the Year - 2019

©2019 Jennifer Williamson (P)2019 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

"A trio of talented narrators tackles the first book in a new fantasy series centered on a man who is destined to destroy an empire...the trio complement each other and elevate an unconventional story filled with intense world-building and vivid characters." (AudioFile Magazine)

Interesting story but incredibly confusing

The narrator's were fantastic. I absolutely enjoyed having all 3. It really set off the footnotes and made them enjoyable.

The overall story was interesting, but it was unnecessarily confusing. I'm 100% glad I listened to this via audiobook rather than suffered through all the pages.

Great book but a little of a struggle sometimes

I really do love this book the story is fantastic and keeps me guessing the only thing I don't like is how it is necessary to get some of the information through to the main character and then how he refuses to believe it, kind of like throwing a brick at a wall and then having a tantrum that it didn't stick, I do understand the main character is young and that could be there reason for it.

excellent story and narration

narrators do an excellent job creating distinct voices and characters. intriguing story with a well fleshed out world. story starts at two different timelines that merge together at the end. there are some loose ends that sets up for the sequel

amazing

best epic fantasy book ive read in a good while. its absolutely fantastic although sixty bucks is pretty pricey. the performance is top notch you definitely get what you pay for.

Incredible writing, terrific pacing and storytelling

Brilliant story telling technique! I love how this book takes you on a wild adventure, or two, (possibly three) and layers depth with each chapter. The narrators voices ring with clarity and character, this is a performance of the written word.

Good first book, phenomenal series

I almost didn't listen to this book because of the reviews describing how confusing the book was. Don't listen to them. It does sometimes take a little critical thinking to figure things out, but definitely worth it. The whole series is phenomenal, and though the world building is this first book can be confusing, it all comes together in the rest of the series. If the changing times lines is a source of confusion then my recommendation is to also have the written book to refer back to. Plus it contains descriptions of characters that can be helpful.

Great, but...

This has serious potential and I’m looking forward to book 2, but the whole multiple storylines, timeframes and random inputs from a different character’s perspective is frustrating. There were multiple scenarios that played out where I caught myself having to go back and re-listen in order to tie things together. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone who hopes to listen while doing anything else

Mediocre performance ruining immersion

Let me preface this by saying Vikas Adams is by far my favorite narrator of all time.

For some reason however, Vikas Adams doesn’t live up to his usual excellent standards in the opening minutes of this book. His speech lacks its usual inflection and has long pauses that are not customary to his narration. I will update this if I feel the rest of the book makes up for this lackluster start.

One of the best fantasy books of the year!

Before I go into the story, I must applaud the team who narrated this book— they were amazing in every sense of the word, their voices were melodic and through them the story flowed effortlessly, each voice ( just like the characters themselves they were giving voice to) were distinct and vibrant.

Now that I’ve that out of the way, let me present you one of my favorite books: The Ruin of Kings. Here we have our snarky main character ( who manages to be heroic and self-centered at the same time), Kihrin, who guides us through the world of Qoorus and its gods, lore and monsters. It’s a very immersive book... could get it out of my head until I finish it. We also have political intrigue, magical battles and different races of people ( like the vanè and morrigah).

The way the book was written is also refreshing— we read about Kihrin’s story told by himself ( when he was 16) and by the mimic Talon (when he was 15) and both parts have annotation by Thurvisar infusing more knowledge or some fun comments ( Talon and Kihrin also argue when they’re telling the story).
Both parts of the story are fast paced with plot twists left and right which leave the reader craving for more.

I can’t wait for the next one in this 5 book series.
If you’re a fan of epic-fantasy or fantasy in general I HIGHLY recommended it ( I love it so much I bought it a hard copy as well).

must hear

exciting new author
great story & great narration, can't wait to read more of her work