(3.5 Stars)

Normally I really like it when the author reads the audiobook... With that being said, I think the narration was just "okay". I think he did the male voices really good, and gave some of the more major characters their own unique accents, cadence, and tone. For the female voices, I think he was lacking a little. He does have a deep voice so it was probably difficult to perform female voices. He didn't do a bad job, it just wasn't as good as I hoped it would be. If there was something that could be improved, it would be to make sure vocal volume a little more even, some parts were spoken very softly.

As far as the book, I thought the concept was great, the character development was excellent, and the visualization of the world was well done. This was a fantasy adventure, or quest. The story was good, and I found myself thinking of several sub-plots I'd like to see expanded on. However, for me, I thought the ending was anti-climactic. Well, the "idea" of the ending was really good, but actual ending just felt a little flat. I can't say much more without giving away key story elements.

This author is really good, and has several books that I rate very highly. I would read more if this were a series, and I will definitely read more by this author.

Written and narrated superbly by the talented Adrian Tchaikovsky, this quest tale takes place on a world populated by humans and sentient spiders (see Children of Time), many generations after first contact. The humans are kept in line by a religion that describes anyone not human as “of the dark.” Yet, to fulfill their prophecy and slay the dark lord, they need a spider as their navigator (a la Lewis and Clark). The story is engaging as are the interactions between characters. There is character growth and all that good vs evil (light vs dark) stuff you’d expect from beings on a quest.
It’s not necessary to have read Children of Time to enjoy this, but I liked knowing the backstory of how the spiders communicate and their social hierarchy.
Another 5 star read, publication date: Oct 28, 2024.
My thanks to the author, publisher, producer, and #NetGalley for early access to the audiobook for review purposes.