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Empire in Black and Gold
- Author
- Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrator
- Ben Allen
- Publisher
- Pan Macmillan
- Publish Date
- 10 December 2020
- Run Time
- 23 hours 5 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
- Genre
- Epic fantasy / high fantasy, Contemporary fantasy / Low fantasy, Adventure / action fiction, Science fiction: steampunk, Insects (entomology)
- Rating
- 3.0 (1 review)
What to expect
The days of peace are over.
Empire in Black and Gold is the first instalment in the critically-acclaimed epic fantasy series Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky. It is a world populated by kinden – species of human that have taken on the characteristics of animals, from spiders and ants to scorpions . . .
‘Brimming with imagination’ – SciFiNow
In the Lowlands, the city states have lived in peace for decades – hailed as bastions of civilization. Yet that peace is about to end. A distant empire has been conquering neighbours with highly trained soldiers and sophisticated combat techniques. And the city states are its desirable new prize.
As the empire's armies march ever closer, only the ageing Stenwold Maker – spymaster, artificer and statesman – foresees the threat. And so it falls upon his shoulders to open the eyes of the cities’ leaders. He sees that war will sweep through their lands, destroying everything in its path.
But to warn his people, he must stay alive.
Empire in Black and Gold is followed by the second book in the Shadows of the Apt series, Dragonfly Falling.
The entire series is narrated by Ben Allen (Alien Clay). Listeners love the series in audio:
‘Fantastic narration that really got you to imagine this amazing world’
‘You get consumed into the world and its characters’
‘The characters are distinct with masterful accents’
‘The narration and sound design is jaw-dropping’
‘Ben Allen's narration was frankly phenomenal all the way through’
Critics Review
-
Brimming with imagination
SciFiNow
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The Shadows of the Apt series is simply one of the best epic fantasy series out there
LEC Book Reviews
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Super worldbuilding, great characters and extreme inventiveness
Fantasy Book Critic
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Epic fantasy at its best. Gripping, original and multi-layered storytelling from a writer bursting with lots of fascinating ideas
Walker of Worlds
See more reviews See fewer reviews
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Full of sparking, speculative innovation
Stephen Baxter, author of the Xeelee Sequence, on The Doors of Eden
-
Breathtaking scope and vision. Adrian Tchaikovsky is one of our finest writers
Gareth Powell, author of Embers of War, on Children of Ruin
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A joy from start to finish. Entertaining, smart, surprising and unexpectedly human
Patrick Ness, author of The Knife of Never Letting Go, on Children of Time
User Reviews
Book 3.0
Narration 5.0
-
3.0 5.0
I listened to this as an audiobook, using the xigxag app: no subscription required, but the more you read the lower your prices get. Seems like a decent scheme. The only problem is that the app doesn't support CarPlay, which is a bit of a bummer as long journeys are exactly when I want long audiobooks like this one. Sure, you can connect via BlueTooth, but I also want to use Maps for my satnav rather than that built into the car.
So I'm not sure about xigxag, which is a shame.
This was a good production with a great narrator, who carefully built up the large cast of characters using distinctive voices and accents for each one. By the time you get towards the end, he's performing these voices like a cast of thousands..
As to the book itself, it's okay. It's a fantasy series in which humans have affinities with different insects and arachnids. So there are beetle people, ant people, mantis people, and so on (and everyone hates the wasps, natch) and some of them have Art (magic) and some of them have Engineering. It's different to read a fantasy novel in which people fight with swords and bows, yes, but also primitive machine guns and grenades. There are engines, airships… it's a steampunk world with a bit of mysticism and magic.
All quite enjoyable, but then there's all the fighting. As other reviewers have noted, there is a LOT of fighting, and I did find myself drifting off and losing track of all the fight scenes.
So I find myself hesitating about whether to continue. On the one hand, it's a complete series, so no danger of being left high and dry. On the other hand: ten volumes. This was already 628 print pages (nearly 24 hours). I can’t imagine getting through ten of thesemcmrbt 2023-06-22
Details
- Author
- Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrator
- Ben Allen
- Duration
- 23 hours 5 minutes
- Release Date
- 10 December 2020
- ISBN
- 9781529050271
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Pan Macmillan
- Genre
- Epic fantasy / high fantasy, Contemporary fantasy / Low fantasy, Adventure / action fiction, Science fiction: steampunk, Insects (entomology)
- Rating
- 3.0(1 review)
- Narration
- 5.0(1 review)
Synopsis
The days of peace are over.Empire in Black and Gold is the first instalment in the critically-acclaimed epic fantasy series Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky. It is a world populated by kinden – species of human that have taken on the characteristics of animals, from spiders and ants to scorpions . . .‘Brimming with imagination’ – SciFiNowIn the Lowlands, the city states have lived in peace for decades – hailed as bastions of civilization. Yet that peace is about to end. A distant empire has been conquering neighbours with highly trained soldiers and sophisticated combat techniques. And the city states are its desirable new prize.As the empire's armies march ever closer, only the ageing Stenwold Maker – spymaster, artificer and statesman – foresees the threat. And so it falls upon his shoulders to open the eyes of the cities’ leaders. He sees that war will sweep through their lands, destroying everything in its path.But to warn his people, he must stay alive.Empire in Black and Gold is followed by the second book in the Shadows of the Apt series, Dragonfly Falling.The entire series is narrated by Ben Allen (Alien Clay). Listeners love the series in audio:‘Fantastic narration that really got you to imagine this amazing world’‘You get consumed into the world and its characters’‘The characters are distinct with masterful accents’‘The narration and sound design is jaw-dropping’‘Ben Allen's narration was frankly phenomenal all the way through’
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