Prince of the Sorrows

Rowan Blood, Book 1

By: Kellen Graves

Narrated by: Christian Leatherman

Without an academic endorsement to make him valuable to the high fey, Saffron will be sent back through the veil to the human world. The place he was traded from as a changeling-baby, and a place he is terrified of. And while getting an endorsement shouldn't be impossible, it's hindered by the fact his literacy is self-taught, using books stolen off of Morrígan Academy's campus of high fey students.

When mistaken identity leads to Saffron learning the true name of brooding, self-centered, high fey Prince Cylvan, what begins as a risk of losing his life (or his tongue) becomes an opportunity to earn the future he wants. In exchange for an endorsement, he and Cylvan form a geis where Saffron agrees to find a spell to strip power from Cylvan's true name. While Prince Cylvan doesn't know Saffron can barely read, Saffron is determined to meet his end of the deal in order to remain in Alfidel—or maybe just to remain by Cylvan's side, as affections grow stronger every night they spend alone in the library together.

But as other human servants soon fall victim to a beast known only as “the wolf”, Saffron realizes he has embroiled himself in a manipulative reach for power like he never anticipated—and even Prince Cylvan cannot be trusted. Between the wolf, uncovering forbidden magic, and his growing feelings for the prince, Saffron will have to decide which is most important to him—his endorsement, the lives of his friends, or the prince’s life and wellbeing.

©2022 Kellen Graves (P)2023 Kellen Graves

Amazing

I really enjoyed this story i loved the writing and the characters i’m definitely going to read the rest of the series

Romantic, unique, ethereal

Absolutely whimsical in every best way. One of the best books I’ve ever read I had to hear it narrated as well

Holy cliffhanger!

This was such a sad book, but also sweet and exciting. I enjoyed it very much. The narrator helped me to see that world clearly and made me believe. I just hate having to wait to find out what happens next!

MM fantasy

This M/M romance had a good premise. The world-building was god, and the descriptions were vivid. I loved how the book portrayed queer and trans identities, and the central couple, Saffron and Cylvan, had me rooting for them. However, there were flaws. A lack of character development and the relationship between the protagonists felt flat to me. I hope this is all sorts in the next one. The plot was odd at times. The audiobook version, narrated by Christian Leatherman, was a better experience.

Beautifully written and brought to life.

Graves and Leatherman have my soul. I loved this work more than words can describe.

A Dark M/M Fantasy in the Vein of Cruel Prince

This is a great start to a new Dark Fantasy series! And the excellent narration only adds to the experience. A little darker and bleaker than I expected, and it ends on a cliffhanger with the MCs in rather dire straits. Not sure I can hold out for the next audiobook release…

Glad I stuck it out!

I was given an audio-code for this book and told the narrator I would give an honest review. I had not heard of this book or author yet, so I was happy to add it to my library.


The first 20% had me very confused and I had to restart the book twice to try and fully grasp and understand the world building. This is most likely just a personal issue, but it wasn’t sticking for some reason.

The story was great and I’m very happy I stuck it out and powered through the fog.

Saffron is a human servant in a Fae world where humans are looked down upon. He wants to stay in the Fae world though because the human family he was supposed to be given back to does not want him back.

Saffron meets Prince Cilven who he thought was a kind and gentile Fae. Turns out he’s not and it turns into an enemies to lovers.

The love story that is built up between these two had me gasping and clutching my pearls.

Not too happy about the cliffhanger ending because now I want to LISTEN to book two ASAP but it’s only avail in ebook and paperback right now.

Narration was great! I could easily pick between all the various characters (and there are quite a few at times). I could picture them all like a movie in my mind. Thank you Kellen and Christian for this opportunity to consume this story you brought to life.

So interested to read what happens next

This is definitely a slow burn, and there are still a lot of unanswered questions. Christian did an amazing job narrating. The world building and character building were awesome. I am so curious on how the rest of their story will play out.

An Absolutely Breathtaking Performance

This is probably the best audiobook experience I've ever had. Christian Leatherman's acting is absolutely top notch and truly brought the story to life. Each character had such personality and sounded distinct from each other, so much so that I could tell who was speaking without the dialogue tags. If the voice he uses for narration is his standard speaking voice, which I'd assume it is, then the voice he uses when the main character speaks shows that each voice is carefully chosen to match the characters. All of them feel perfect and his range in performance is breathtaking. The emotions in the story hit all the harder from his performance and I'm genuinely thinking about buying more audiobooks he's narrated just to hear his other works!

The story itself is surprisingly complex. What I expected to be a simple little romance quickly turned into a plot full of mystery and political intrigue. This is the first fae romance novel I've read, so perhaps this is just normal for the genre, but I was thoroughly impressed with the world building and evolution of the plot. Its complexity never left me confused, and I feel that the little threads of intrigue that are brought in at the beginning of the novel get woven into the plot throughout, making the gradual escalation of stakes and mysteries feel natural and exciting. I expected a cute little fluffy story and instead was brought on an adventure through a plethora of emotions and I'm impressed by the number of times I had to pause and just stare at the screen with my mouth agape or yell into my pillow haha. This story was such a fun time and I can't wait to read the next books :)

This isn’t just a book, it’s a friend.

I love Prince of the Sorrows so much, the characters have been lovingly built, the description sound like prose, and the story itself is enchanting. If you like the Fae, dark academia vibes, or have ever felt like a lonely queer kid up against the world. This story was written just for you. Kellen Graves is incredibly talented author their ability to paint images with words is unrivaled and the plot will have you up reading till 3am. Christian Leatherman narration is a thing of beauty I look forward to listening to them read in the next book. You won’t regret purchasing this audiobook only that you didn’t purchase it sooner.