Blood Song

Book 1 of Raven's Shadow

By: Anthony Ryan

Narrated by: Steven Brand

We have fought battles that left more than a hundred corpses on the ground and not a word of it has ever been set down. The Order fights, but often it fights in shadow, without glory or reward. We have no banners.

Vaelin Al Sorna is the Sixth Order's newest recruit. Under their brutal training regime, he learns how to forge a blade, survive the wilds, and kill a man quickly and quietly - all in the name of protecting the Realm and the Faith. Now his skills will be put to the test.

War is coming. Vaelin must draw upon the very essence of his strength and cunning if he is to survive the coming conflict. Yet as the world teeters on the edge of chaos, Vaelin will learn that the truth can cut deeper than any sword.

©2013 Anthony Ryan (P)2013 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"A new master storyteller has hit the scene" (Michael J. Sullivan)

"Blood Song is a tremendous debut... fast-paced, action-packed and character-driven" ( Fantasy Book Critic)

"A top contender for most impressive debut of the year... Blood Song is a powerful epic that, while ending with a sense of closure, hints at more to come" ( SFF World)

"An utterly engrossing high-fantasy epic from a major new talent that explores themes of war, faith, and loyalty amidst incredible action scenes and artfully developed characters" ( Buzzfeed)

"A mix of The Name of the Wind and The Left Hand of God... I cannot recommend this book enough." ( bestfantasybooks.com)

"Blood Song delighted me again and again" ( Fantasy Faction)

"This is epic fantasy at its best with action, rivalries, espionage, the promise of future revelations and ever-present twists" ( Bookbag)

"An instant sensation . . . an excellent start to this series" ( Read Dream Relax)

"Smartly-written coming-of-age story... Compelling" ( SFX)

"I still love - and want - that feeling of completely absorbing escapism that good fantasy can supply - and Blood Song brings it in force" ( Pornokitsch)

"Ryan hits all the high notes of epic fantasy-a gritty setting, ancient magics, ruthless intrigue, divided loyalties, and bloody action" ( Publishers Weekly)

"Well wrought characters, a fascinating world, and crackling prose... Not to be missed" ( Kingofthenerds.com)

"Blood Song is unique... The next Epic Fantasy book everybody should read" ( Blotted Pages)

"An immensely satisfying and immersive experience" ( Dark Matter)

"One of the next master storytellers" ( Fantasty Book Review)

It came to me like a song.

Loved the narration. Sounded like an old warrior telling a tale around a campfire. It brought me into the story which I already loved. This is the third time I'm listening to it.

Good book, did not enjoy the narration

I found the story to be very good, but having just listened through the The Name of the Wind and The Wise Mans Fear, where the narrator gives a stellar performance, the narration in Blood Song was not to my taste. I don't know how many times I had no clue who were talking, past or present etc. If you are able to sit down and concentrate you will most likely be able to eliminate these problems, but for me... I listen while I do other stuff and I lost the thread way too often. I have not had this problem before and I have listened to my share of books. The voice is just fine, although the diction is a bit "slurred", the problem is there is no distinction between the persons speaking, I also had a difficult time noticing when there was a change of scene, some names got mixed up and at times I felt it was read at maximum speed to get theough it.
A good narration can lift a book, this is not the case for this one sadly.
I strongly recommend the book to fans of the genre however, but I believe I will be going for the good old paperback for book 2.

Story is ok - Narration is bad.

I cant really say what I dislike about the story without spoiling it, so I wont go into detail about that. I can say that it is a storytelling tecnique that I really dislike. Narration didn't help the book and at times it felt a bit longwinded.

I saw someone comparing it to "Name of the Wind" - it is not even close to that good. Name of the Wind would be 10 stars compared to the 4 stars I gave this book.

Steven Brand is a bad narrator. Every voice is the same. He reads it like I would read my grocery list. I feel bad for doing this to his livelihood, but he really shouldn't be narrating. I actively avoid books he narrate, but had to endure it this time, because the book was heavily recommended to me.

Slow burner.

Any additional comments?

The first half of the book is pretty forgettable, but it is worth sticking araound as it soon gathers pace into an epic narrative full of interesting & unique characters. The second book is even better.

Let down by the narrator.

Any additional comments?

At first I really struggled to get into this book due to the narration.

I found Steven Brands voice to be heavily accented, and with an inability to use different voices for different characters. The story was delivered in monotone and I began to suspect that he may have had a cold when he read this book due to a raspiness in his voice.

I did persist however and after eventually getting used to the narration enough to be able to engage with the story-line I found the book itself to be a half decent read. Not epic by any means but very readable.

Worst narration ever

This book was so disappointing for just one reason - the narrator. He was terrible. Imagine a narrator who reads the book in a flat monotone with no inflection, thus is Blood Song. A truly wonderful book absolutely butchered by the narrator. Do yourself a favour and buy the physical book.