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By far, this is one of the best books in the genre

Revisado: 02-24-25

Sarah Hawke has already been one of the better authors in the haremlit category. Considering the genre, that's not a very high bar to reach. But with this book, I'm convinced that she's landed among the small, small handful who can legitimately succeed as a mainstream author.

The world-building is rich. The stakes are high. The characters have personality. The action is full of tension. The conversations are natural. The pacing is relentless. The women are hot. The (unfortunately few) sex scenes are spicy.

If you've read/listened to any of her other books before and have liked them but weren't necessarily been blown away, give this one a spin. Her other series (Lost Fleet, Dragon Sovereign, etc) have been solidly good. But with this one, it feels like her skills as an author took a gigantic leap forward. Can't wait to listen to the rest of this series.

In terms of the narrators, both Richard Brock and Raya Kane are superb, and they did a great job bringing the characters of life.

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One of the best ... marred by frustrating flaws

Revisado: 11-05-24

First off, Anya Merchant is one of the consistently best authors in a genre filled with shoddy writing. Her stories have amazing sexual tension, natural sounding conversations, characters with actual personalities, fast moving action, etc.

Unfortunately, she also has a tendency to have her MCs make completely bone-headed decisions at various points in the story, just for the sake of creating drama and added complications. And in this book, what the MC did to his family in the last few chapters wasn't just bone-headed, but 100% unnecessary and inexplicable. There was no strategic value in it, and his explanation — that they weren't willing to do what needed to be done — made no sense.

Oh, and it also absolutely crossed the line. In a genre where morally dubious relationships are acceptable, consent—sexual or otherwise—is still very much a thing. Maybe other listeners won't have as much of an issue with this, but it left a bad taste in my mouth.

One more thing about the story: Why the hell would a swordsman be suddenly so reluctant to kill assassins who are after him? And why would his sword get all pissy at him for killing??? Again, another development that makes very little sense, and seems to be purely for plot purposes.

As for Eva Caine's performance, she's decent, I guess. But compared to Lana Lee, she's unfortunately a step down. Lana Lee had very distinct voices for all the characters, and she *acted* out the roles. Eva has barely any distinction between the various voices, and she's more a voice *reader*, rather than a voice actor.

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This book deserves a real voice actor

Revisado: 07-12-24

There are a lot of hilariously contrived moments in this book, and more than its share of erotica cliches. But those things aside, this story is also incredibly spicy. Wish Anya had hired a real voice actor for this one, even if that means it won't be included in Audible Plus.

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one of Anya's best

Revisado: 02-14-24

Some of the scenarios are ridiculously unbelievable, but otherwise the writing is top notch. Deserves a real voice actress, not this weird virtual voice.

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death of the universe would have been better...

Revisado: 11-25-23

... than having to continue listening to this annoying loser whine and stumble his way through the five trials.

Maybe if the MC was funny, or resourceful, or kind, or intelligent, or self-deprecating, or a quick learner, then this story would have been less painful. But instead, Mike Truk has given us an MC with *zero* redeeming qualities. With the entire universe at stake, instead of manning up and growing into his shoes, he spends his time stammering and whining and being a grade A loser.

I was quite surprised as Mike Truk's other series (Shadow Rogue, Lost Reavers) were top notch for the genre and I couldn't get enough.

And I couldn't decide if the narrator Leo Barnabas did an amazing job (because he perfectly captured the grating whininess of the MC), or if he did a subpar job (because voicing his lines differently could have made the MC feel less cringy).

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Sarah Hawke is at the top of her game

Revisado: 09-14-23

There are few authors in this genre with such detailed world-building, such richness in characters, such deftness in natural conversation, and such an ability to tell a compelling story. And yes, there are spicy scenes aplenty too. I eagerly look forward to the next book in this series.

As for the narrators, I'm not a huge fan of Ben Hart. The main speaking voice he uses for the books he narrates is honestly kinda annoying sound, but I'm probably in the minority. Ellory Lane does a great job.

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Wow! I can't wait for season 3!!!!

Revisado: 07-31-23

Top notch production, superb voice acting, absolutely gripping story. Definitely 5 stars. If Travis Beacham comes up with any more audio series, I'm adding it to my library!

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A lot of good science-based info ...

Revisado: 04-08-23

... on the effects of mindfulness meditation on chronic pain. The delivery could have been a little better though, as it sounds like the narrator was just reading off a pre-written lecture. The last chapter is a guided meditation, which is helpful for first-timers but doesn't cover any new ground for those who are more experienced.

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Entertaining, and moves at a good clip

Revisado: 04-07-23

The writing isn't the most detailed and the plot points aren't very deep or original. But if you're looking for something that'll keep you relatively entertained without thinking too much about it, this is a good one, especially since it's free with Audible Plus.

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Fun listen, solid acting, great production values

Revisado: 04-03-23

Audible should stop requiring a long-form review in order to leave ratings. It only reduces the overall quality of reviews.

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