Raven's Strike

By: Patricia Briggs

Narrated by: Jennifer James Bradshaw

The Traveler Seraph must use all her cunning and ability as a Raven mage to track down an unimaginable force of destruction known as the Shadowed.

©2004 Patricia Briggs (P)2011 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“An excellent book...The characters have a real interior life, with thoughts and second thoughts and feelings and the interaction between them is very good.” (SF Revu)

“Patricia Briggs is a talented storyteller who enchants her audience with a spellbinding tale. Raven’s Shadow is going on this reviewer’s keeper shelf.” (Midwest Book Review)

“Raven’s Shadow is an exciting and touching tale. It’s self-contained enough to give the reader a satisfying sense of completion by the end, while leaving room for a sequel that will be highly anticipated.” (RT Book Reviews)

could not stop listening

excellent story telling. and character development. Highly recommend it to all needing a good read:

A wonderful experience!

Fantastic! The story was great and the narration superb. If you enjoyed the first book, then you will enjoy this one as well. The voices are distinct and the plot engaging, I definitely recommend this book.

loved both books

Patricia Briggs has a talent of making me feel like I am part of her stories. love all of her books I have listened to and read.

Great series

This is a great book and an awesome series. Love the characters. I wish there were more in this series.

fun story, it's like brain candy.

What did you love best about Raven's Strike?

The authors ability to create an image unique but easy to identify with.

What does Jennifer James Bradshaw bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Wonderful tone of voice, gentle and easy to listen to. Great inflections in tone of voice that were consistent.

Spirited Duo

Both books keep you fixed in the story. Characters are balanced and promote the color of the stories.

worth it

Initially I didn't care for the narration style. I forced myself to go ahead and listen and I got a accustomed to her style. In the end, she was probably the best choice for narrator. This was a great book.

Book 2 of 2. Wishing for another!

Fabulous narration. Top notch! As for the story, this is book two of two, a short fantasy series with wizards, ghosts, vampirism, trolls, mistwraithes, wolf-shifters, elemental gods, specially gifted "Travelers" and a little romance. I really bonded with the characters, first introduced in the prequel, Raven's Shadow. They became real to me across these two books. I want to see more of Seraph, Tier, Jes, Hennea, Lehr, Rinnie, Emperor Phoran the 26/27th, and his two loyal guards. I even loved the big black dog and the old war horse.

Suspenseful, heartwarming, engrossing, and fairly novel. Some grim scenes. Some black magic. Some bardic storytelling, song, and campfire camaraderie, to balance the darker bits. A villain not immediately obvious to me. Great scenes of fierce marital love even after 20 years. Authentic and well-sketched kids (ages about 10, 18, 20) play key roles in both books. Loved watching this family fight shadows together! Loved seeing the kids come into their own. Young Rennie learns to control winds and weather. Lehr learns to hunt, track, and open locks. And Jes learns to integrate his two opposite personas: empath and warrior. Kudos to Briggs for these two books.

My only gripe is that sometimes the author goes on too long, trying to explain how her magic works, what the "orders" are, who the gods are, and how to bind -- and free -- a person's spirit-entwined order (gift).

A lovely ending to this duology, but I wish it wouldn't end yet. How about another, dear author? Maybe Lehr could get a story. Or Rinnie.

Excellent

I know the author is making bank on the mercy Thompson books but I really wish she would return to some of her earlier books I do love them

Bk 2of2 good addition and ending

Good conclusion in part 2 of 2.
This storyline reminds me of Bujold’s Sharing Knife series where a catastrophic event was created by mages misusing magic and now their descendants have a lifelong duty to hunt for and eliminate the evil that can pop up anywhere.
Bradshaw does a decent job of narration.