Running Close to the Wind

By: Alexandra Rowland

Narrated by: Casey Jones

For fans of Our Flag Means Death, discover low fantasy on the high seas in Alexandra Rowland's Running Close to the Wind.

Avra Helvaçi, former field agent of the Arasti Ministry of Intelligence, has accidentally stolen the single most expensive secret in the world—and the only place to flee with a secret that big is the open sea.

To find a buyer with deep enough pockets, Avra must ask for help from his on again, off-again ex, the pirate captain Teveri az-Haffar. They are far from happy to see him, but together, they hatch a plan: take the information to the isolated pirate republic of the Isles of Lost Souls, fence it, profit. The only things in their way? A calculating new Arasti ambassador to the Isles of Lost Souls who’s got his eyes on Avra’s every move; Brother Julian, a beautiful, mysterious new member of the crew with secrets of his own and a frankly inconvenient vow of celibacy; the fact that they’re sailing straight into sea serpent breeding season and almost certain doom.

But if they can find a way to survive and sell the secret on the black market, they’ll all be as wealthy as kings—and, more important, they’ll be legends.

“Come for the irrepressible gremlin of a narrator, stay for the plot-relevant cake competitions! A whip-smart, hilarious, and exuberant high seas romp.”—Freya Marske, Sunday Times bestselling author of A Marvellous Light

©2024 Alexandra Rowland (P)2024 Recorded Books

hilarious, interesting, heartwarming

this is a fun little pirate adventure romp with queerness, anticapitalism, and the power of friendship and mystical luck right at the forefront. laugh out loud funny throughout, thanks to both spectacular writing and a fantastic performance.

Lovely all around

Every little bit of this book was utterly delightful. Yay for another Alexandra Rowland stunner!!

So much fun!

So hilarious and funny! Super enjoyable! I could not stop listening once I started. It’s like hanging out with your favorite funny friend and listening to their adventures! It was alsosuperbly narrated. Listen to it!

made me laugh within the first ten minutes and then I never stopped!

This is one of the best books I've listened to for when I need a good laugh. I absolutely adore Avra and all the main cast. I really want my own deck of Heralds now! I was sad with how abruptly it ended, and I hope that there is a sequel in the future!

So funny and imaginative

I loved everything about this novel but the captain. They were so mean to Avera and made him feel so worthless. He made him beg for mediocre sex and no after affection. Their whole relationship was toxic and just kept waiting for Avera to come to that realization after Julian was nice to him. And this didn’t have an ending it just stopped so I can’t judge how it concluded since it didn’t.

Hilarious

Amazing performance. Incredible writing. Had me laughing at work and embarrassing myself in front of my manager. Very cute and I always love some good non-binary rep. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS AUTHOR AND VOICE ACTOR. Their work is incredible and this was an amazing sequel, but works fine as a stand alone. Honestly I want more from these characters so badly, even just a glimpse of what it’s like for them after they finally figure out their situation. God this was such a good book! This is the second book from this author that I can and will listen to repeatedly.

lovely!

This book is fantastic! It’s a bit whimsical and ludicrous at times but the characters and plot all mesh together really well

Highly recommend!

Hilarious

This may be one of funniest books I've ever enjoyed. I very much hope that there will be sequels in the future, because the only negative thing I can say about this story is that it ended far too soon.

Hilariously entertaining

What a fun story! This book is a breath of fresh air. The plot, the characters, the raunchiness, and the sheer magnificence that is the cake competition all combine to create a hilarious and dare I say even heart-warming book.

Strange and marvelous

the humor was very odd and I liked it a lot! LOL. the romance was medium but I still liked it. it just wasn't like super passionate or anything? and no love scenes or anything just FYI! not that it really needed it but I did want to know how it went! LOL. I really like the main character. someone in the comments said that he is a little goblin and that's totally true. maybe that's why no love scenes because it would be weird with a goblin? the performance was excellent! just amazing Over All