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The Grace of Kings
The Dandelion Dynasty (Related to this series)
- Author
- Ken Liu
- Narrator
- Kevin Shen
- Publisher
- Bloomsbury Publishing
- Publish Date
- 19 December 2024
- Run Time
- 23 hours 8 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
- Rating
- 4.5 (2 reviews)
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What to expect
Nominated for Best Performance: Narrator at The Speakies (The British Audio Awards).
A TIME MAGAZINE BEST FANTASY BOOK OF ALL TIME
Emperor Mapidéré was the first to unite the island kingdoms of Dara under a single banner. But now the emperor is on his deathbed, his people are exhausted by his vast, conscriptive engineering projects and his counsellors conspire only for their own gain.
Even the gods themselves are restless.
A wily, charismatic bandit and the vengeance-sworn son of a deposed duke cross paths as they each lead their own rebellion against the emperor's brutal regime. Together, they will journey to the heart of the empire; witnessing the clash of armies, fleets of silk-draped airships, magical books and shapeshifting gods. Their unlikely friendship will drastically change the balance of power in Dara... but at what price?
The Grace of Kings is the first novel by Hugo-, Nebula- and World Fantasy Award-winner Ken Liu and the first in a monumental epic fantasy series.
Critics Review
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Epic fantasy fans will enjoy this large-scale story of political strategy and skullduggery
Publishers Weekly
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An instant classic. This is a debut novel to be reckoned with. Poetry on every page
Hugh Howey
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By turns opulent, gritty, and inventive... gives epic fantasy a much-needed breath of fresh air'
Saladin Ahmed
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Beyond ambitious in scope, The Grace of Kings may be daunting at first, but soon you are swept into a world of political intrigue, hopeless sieges and compelling characters. Liu seamlessly blends philosophy and politics with tense battles and compelling action... Sad, funny, poignant and addictive, this book will leave a lasting impression on the genre'
SFX
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Ken Liu creates some vivid and detailed characters that will be loved by fantasy fans... a fresh and original fantasy story... A triumph in storytelling'
Starburst Magazine (rating: 9/10)
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A fascinating start to the silk punk Dandelion Dynasty series providing multi-layered fantasy with an additional take on transposed Ancient Chinese history
The Bookbag
User Reviews
Book 4.5
Narration 1.5
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4.0 1.0
This is a good book, but unfortunately the narration is terrible. If I could return it for a refund, I would. The narrator's characterisation is grating, and his "accent" for Jia, the female lead, is baffling. I can't tell if it's supposed to be Scottish, Irish, Geordie, Northern English, or something else, but as an English person, it's unbearable and I gave up shortly after to read a print copy instead. Don't waste your money!
kastrel 2026-09-14
Details
- Author
- Ken Liu
- Narrator
- Kevin Shen
- Duration
- 23 hours 8 minutes
- Release Date
- 19 December 2024
- ISBN
- 9781035916245
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Bloomsbury Publishing
- Genre
- Epic fantasy / high fantasy, Historical fantasy, Adventure / action fiction, Fantasy
- Rating
- 4.5(2 reviews)
- Narration
- 1.5(2 reviews)
Synopsis
Bloomsbury presents The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu, read by Kevin Shen.Nominated for Best Performance: Narrator at The Speakies (The British Audio Awards).A TIME MAGAZINE BEST FANTASY BOOK OF ALL TIME Emperor Mapidéré was the first to unite the island kingdoms of Dara under a single banner. But now the emperor is on his deathbed, his people are exhausted by his vast, conscriptive engineering projects and his counsellors conspire only for their own gain. Even the gods themselves are restless. A wily, charismatic bandit and the vengeance-sworn son of a deposed duke cross paths as they each lead their own rebellion against the emperor's brutal regime. Together, they will journey to the heart of the empire; witnessing the clash of armies, fleets of silk-draped airships, magical books and shapeshifting gods. Their unlikely friendship will drastically change the balance of power in Dara... but at what price? The Grace of Kings is the first novel by Hugo-, Nebula- and World Fantasy Award-winner Ken Liu and the first in a monumental epic fantasy series.
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