A stunning start to a Rising start of a series

Would you consider the audio edition of Theft of Swords to be better than the print version?

as ive never read it ill assume yes

What did you like best about this story?

the seamless interaction of the two main characters royan and hadrian to thieves who are two different sides of the same coin.

What about Tim Gerard Reynolds’s performance did you like?

he is a great narrator i highly appreciate his work

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

laughter. some of the quip are stunningly good.

Any additional comments?

two men one a mast swordsmen one a master assassin are the dual team of extreme odd jobbers who steal anything or any one for the right price. this book follows their first adventure ( well their first written adventure). please listen and enjoy people you will enjoy.

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1 person found this helpful

took a while to get going and then !! i did!!!!!!!

I enjoy fantasy and this audio book made it difficut for me to turn it off..
I used to read and now I listen and this was a good listen. A really good listen.

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1 person found this helpful

Traditional Fantasy with snappy dialogue

This book had been on my list for ages and as I'm half way through a grimdark series I thought I'd get some lighter fantasy to read.
Must say that it was a great decision. The two books that comprise this volume are the beginning of a six book (three volume) series with the lead characters of Hadrian and Royce. Initially they seemed fairly stereotypical fantasy chracters, one larger warrior type, the other dark assassin type. As thieves they have a very Fafhrd and Grey Mouser air to them, and as we read through their banter and 'bromance' really starts to grow. Michael Sullivan writes them well in these two books, and as we go along and their background is detailed and revealed, I became more invested in them. We don't get the intense characterisation that some fantasy works provide, but that's not a problem to me as its a lighter book, and we get more 'show not tell' here anyway.
The plot of book one reminded me of classic old style fantasy, with an almost Hollywood 40s historical swashbuckler feel to it. We have princes and princesses, corrupt clergy, imprisoned wizards, and good hearted harlots. Book one (The Crown Conspiracy) does the job well enough with world building, a bit of lore (dumped a little heavy handed at times) and a likeable fairly linear plot.
However book two is where it really comes to life, with a great plot, great characters, and a few twists and turns. The world feels more tangible and well developed as we progress through this book (Avempartha) and Sullivan throws plot hooks for the remainder series thick and fast. The pacing is just right and the conclusion satisfying. I enjoyed the supporting characters too, especially Esrahadden and the dwarf Magnus.
Altogether an easy fun traditional fantasy with snappy dialogue. Look forward to the rest in the series.

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Brilliant!

Having picked up The Jester on Audible, simply because it was free, I had to get the full story. I was instantly hooked and loved the two main characters and had to find out more. The Theft of Swords contains the first two books of the six part series and they lived up to my expectations of a great story, and more! Highly recommended if you enjoy fantasy/action and read brilliantly. Now I can't wait to get the rest!

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2 people found this helpful

A well balanced book

Loved this story. So well read and the characters so believable. I have already read this set in book form but hearing them, i learn even more about the characters. Michael sullivan an excellent writer snd Tim an excellent reader

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GOOD BOOK

I have over 300 audible titles and I have to say that the narration and performance of this book is one of the best I've heard. It's a compelling universe with a great story and awesome characters. I can't wait for a sequel.

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Excellent

An excellent start to this series. Full of interesting characters. Looking forward to the next book in the series. Worth a credit.

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Excellent book and a joy for gamers.

Firstly, let me clarify that I rarely - if ever - give 5* reviews. I like to have somewhere to go if next week I hear a better book so four stars should be treated as an "excellent".

Michael J Sullivan's work is a joy to listen to, especially since Tim Gerard Reynolds does such a good job on it. There are a couple of errors but nothing that slightly better editing wouldn't have fixed and he has instantly shot into my list of favourite readers, alongside people such as Steven Pacey and Toby Longworth. The stories in this volume hit all the right fantasy tropes without overusing any or feeling too cliched and the characterisations are interesting and well rounded. I like the heroes and loathe the villains just as I'm obviously supposed to. The stories motor along reasonably well and there are just enough twists to stop them getting predictable and dull. Overall an enjoyable, workmanlike performance from both writer and narrator.

My review title said this was a joy to gamers and I stand by that. If there are any role-players reading this review then I urge you to buy this audiobook, you'll not find another book which feels more like a game session. The heroes act like PCs, the better PCs at least, and this is a grand inspiration to have playing while you write up plot for something like Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder or even Rolemaster.

As a final note, congratulations to the narrator for not having the dwarf speak with a cod Scottish accent, I never understood that. Tolkein's dwarves were obviously Welsh in inspiration and yet there is an inexplicable trend to make dwarfs Scottish. I am very glad that doesn't occur here.

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10 people found this helpful

Solid Fantasy

I liked this book so much I downloaded the next ones in the series to follow on with. I thought the two main characters were interesting and had room for development in further books. This is not as good as Joe Abercrombie in my opinion but that could have been the narrator. I liked Tim Gerard Reynolds narration of Red Rising, but felt that he was wrong for this book. I got used to him but I think his voice lacked the characterisation needed to carry this off well.
This is a good solid fantasy series to get stuck into but it's no Patrick Rothfuss or Joe Abercrombie. This is not going to stop me from listening to all of his stuff though!

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2 people found this helpful

Well narrated

Nothing it was a good story with an interesting plot and believable characters looking forward to the next one

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