Sword of the Fallen

Hearts of Dragons, Book 1

De: G J Ogden

Narrado por: J.S. Arquin

- From Kindle Storyteller Award Winner G J Ogden -

A dragon’s heart has the power to forge kingdoms - or shatter them.

Sir Torin Cadwell, Knight-Captain of the Watch and the tyrant king’s illegitimate son, has spent his life torn between loyalty to his father and the pull of destiny. For generations, his bloodline has been cursed by a bitter feud with Kyhrax, the Flame of Zarag-Gul - the most feared dragon in Westskyr.

The city of Dun Morlaig survives only because of the Breath - a magical barrier fueled by the crystallized heart of Astreya, the Great Mother dragon. Once a benevolent guardian, Astreya was slain by Torin’s ancestor, leaving Kyhrax consumed by grief and burning for revenge.

When Astreya’s Lament - the sword that holds the Great Mother’s heart - is stolen, the Breath falters. Chaos erupts as Koblyn monsters and dragon-worshiping cultists lay siege to the city, and Kyhrax prepares to unleash his long-awaited vengeance.

Defying the king’s command, Torin allies with Ruxandra Elyr, a ranger of the Order of the Green Bow, to recover the stolen sword. But Kyhrax’s wrath will not stop at Dun Morlaig. If the Flame of Zarag-Gul is not stopped, his fury will consume all seven realms and usher in the age of dragons.

Sword of the Fallen is the gripping first book in the Hearts of Dragons epic fantasy trilogy by Kindle Storyteller Award Winner G J Ogden. Dive into this thrilling adventure today!

©2025 G J Ogden (P)2025 G J Ogden

enjoyed

A must read! the world building will suck you in. Worth reading and/or listening to.

Fantasy adventure

Sword of the Fallen by G. J. Ogden is a wonderful dragon fantasy adventure. J. S. Arguin did a fantastic job with the narration, he brings the story to life in a fantastic way. The story is entertaining, interesting, engaging, heartfelt, funny, enjoyable, dramatic, action packed, and more. Sword of the Fallen is the first book in Hearts of Dragons series. Sir Caldwell maybe be the illegitimate son of the tyrant king but he is torn between duty and destiny. After the sword that holds the heart of the great mother of dragons is stolen. The Dagons are enraged after the mother of dragons is killed. Sir Caldwell defiled his father, to go find it and save the kingdom from monsters and dragons. I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review. Highly recommend

A softer-edged sword-wielding knight and dragons

Dragons. Knights. Magic. A city under siege. Capable rangers. And more mystery yet to be revealed in future books. Sword of the Fallen sets out a familiar landscape with castles and keeps, royal bloodlines and common folk, and a dragon that wants to burn it all to the ground. It seems only Torin Cadwell has the sight and determination to follow the trail of evildoers beset on lowering the city's defenses against the vengeful dragon. Where some stories of this genre will go into hard R-rated territory, this tale feels more like PG-13. Where it lacks in visceral gore and primal sex, it adds extra focus on character development and moral motivations. At times it feels a bit long getting from one chapter to the next, but the fantastic narration of JS Arquin makes it easy to get lost in the weaving story and authentic dialogue. [Disclosure: I received this title for free and listened at 2.0x.]

Amazing action, complex characters, and dragons!

Sword of the Fallen is an epic listen full of amazing action, complex characters, and a world brimming with dragons, betrayal, and high stakes. J.S. Arquin's narration brings every twist and turn to life, making it an unforgettable listening experience. I highly recommend!

Meh, it was okay.

The story was okay, but troupe-ish. The dialogue was cringey and cliche for fantasy. It felt like stereotyped high speak, even for more "common" characters. The story kept getting hung up on some odd strung out descriptions of things or events, that ultimately did not deepen the story or make it more real. There were a lot of details that kept getting repeated, like we needed a recap every few chapters. Ultimately the ending just got jumped on and was over, but was unique enough to resolve how someone without there own power could stop a force of nature. I feel like the story did not do a good job of supporting or building toward how it ended, a missed opportunity, could be fixed in a rewrite.

As for the narrator, they did an okay job with the material to work with, but it all came out as being overly dramatic. The story lacked and comic relief or a consistent grounded character to create emotional ebb and flow. It really just came out as, here's the tone, and the author/narrator just hit cruise control.

Despite these criticisms, I'll probably still read the next book.