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    Theft of Swords: Riyria Revelations, Volume One
    Unavailable
    Theft of Swords: Riyria Revelations, Volume One
    Unavailable
    Theft of Swords: Riyria Revelations, Volume One
    Audiobook22 hours

    Theft of Swords: Riyria Revelations, Volume One

    Written by Michael J. Sullivan

    Narrated by Tim Gerard Reynolds

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    Acclaimed author Michael J. Sullivan created instant best sellers with his spellbinding Riyria Revelations series. This first volume introduces Royce Melborn and Hadrian Blackwater, two enterprising thieves who end up running for their lives when they’re framed for the death of the king. Trapped in a conspiracy bigger than they can imagine, their only hope is unraveling an ancient mystery—before it’s too late.

    Theft of Swords contains The Crown Conspiracy and Avempartha, books 1 and 2 of Riyria Revelations.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books Audio
    Release dateMar 16, 2012
    ISBN9781464029714
    Unavailable
    Theft of Swords: Riyria Revelations, Volume One
    Author

    Michael J. Sullivan

    Michael J. Sullivan is a three-time New York Times, USA Today, and Washington Post bestselling author who has been nominated for nine Goodreads Choice Awards. His first novel, The Crown Conspiracy, was released by Aspirations Media Inc. in October 2008. From 2009 through 2010, he self-published the next five of the six books of The Riyria Revelations, which were later sold and re-released by Hachette Book Group’s Orbit imprint as three two-book omnibus editions: Theft of Swords, Rise of Empire, and Heir of Novron. Michael’s Riyria Chronicles series (a prequel to Riyria Revelations) has been both traditionally and self-published. The first two books were released by Orbit, and the next two by his own imprint, Riyria Enterprises. A fifth Riyria Chronicle, titled Drumindor, will be self-published in the near future. For Penguin Random House’s Del Rey imprint, Michael has published the first three books of The Legends of the First Empire: Age of Myth, Age of Swords, and Age of War. Grim Oak Press distributes the last three books of the series: Age of Legend, Age of Death, and Age of Empyre. Michael has returned to purely self-publishing roots with the release of his most recent series, The Rise and Fall Trilogy. These books are being published in the current schedule: Nolyn (Summer 2021), Farilane (Summer 2022,  and Esrahaddon (Summer 2023). Michael is now writing Drumindor, the fifth book of The Riyria Chronicles. This will return him to the timeline of Royce and Hadrian, two rogues he hasn’t visited with since the release of The Disappearance of Winter’s Daughter in 2018.  You can email Michael at michael@michael-j-sullivan.com.

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    Reviews for Theft of Swords

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    • 4/5
      The first two books in the Riyria Revelations series is a high fantasy tale of two thieves for hire that end up on an adventure of intrigue and corruption. The first book focuses on getting to know the characters and the world. The story is only okay and the writing is not very good. The second book puts them on a new adventure that is more exciting and a markedly improvement in the writing style. The author does a good job of slowly revealing different aspects of the world and political environment that the reader can focus on the adventure for an easy read. The two main characters are fun, but the side characters shine even more. I think this series is going to be really enjoyable once it picks up and this first Omnibus sets the stage nicely.
    • 4/5
      Very interesting Q&A with the author at the end of the book which explained a lot for me. He says he's intentionally practicing "invisible writing," where you notice the characters and plot but not the mechanics of the writing itself. And that's the bit that's missing for me--because I love reading, and therefore I love reading writing--if I want a movie or tv show, I'll watch a movie or tv show.

      So he hovers in a high 3 stars, rounding to 4, because as delightful as the cast is, and as entertaining as the plots are, this is TV on the page. One of those shows that's episode but slightly advanced the overarching plot each episode ... and probably each episode is three times as long as what we're used to, but otherwise it's that kind of thing. And it's fun, and according to the author, it's intentional (though he'd say he's aiming for film, rather than television).

      It's not bad writing--it's clear, it's descriptive, you know what's going on, where they are, and what most things look like (e.g. "a vast gray volume rushed by him ... the dark gray became a swirling translucent green as it reached the edge. The moment it fell, the water burst into white foam" etc.). But I do love my writerly writers, like Catherynne Valente, or A.A. Milne, or Dickens, to cite a disparate bunch.

      And yet, I'm eagerly awaiting the next one (I don't have to wait, but I'm not a binger--I'll read a few other books before I go back to the next in a series).
    • 4/5
      This epic fantasy includes a little breaking and entering, plenty of snarky insults, political intrigue, magical beasts, and a chaotic neutral maimed mage. For me, the tale started off fun but not particularly special. It wasn’t until about a quarter of the way through the book that the tale grabbed me. Royce and Hadrian are a lot of fun. They’ve known each other for years and each is well into their adult years. This was a nice break from all those epic fantasy adventures that feature teen/young adults bumbling through their first adventures.Royce was my favorite because we have the same dark sense of humor and have to sometimes be talked into doing the right thing. Hadrian is an enthusiastic believer in honor and all things good. It’s a very good thing these two have each other to balance things out. Each has a history veiled in questions and half truths. I look forward to Book 2 revealing more on this note.The one weakness to this tale is the ladies. It’s not all bad, but for the most part they are comforters and romantic interests and need to be rescued. Arista shows promise with her wit and ability to grasp politics. Also young Thrace has a shining moment at the end of the novel. The ladies aren’t the worst I’ve seen in epic fantasy but I did want just a bit more from them.There’s a big fat mystery with the elves. Ancient conflict and truces are eluded to and I expect that will become a big deal later in this series. There are a few elvish slaves in some areas of the human realms, but no elves roam free… or if they do, they can pass for human. The maimed mage Esra provides most of what we know about the elves. He’s ancient and was imprisoned for perhaps 900 years (if I recall correctly). Esra is a big enigma. I don’t know what he wants and he might not know either. He has to keep his head down as he’s still a wanted criminal.Then there’s Myron. I adored this character because of his wide eyed wonder of the bigger world. He grew up in a monastery and had never been off the grounds. He had seen a few horse but never rode one and he’s never seen a woman. As he gets swept up into the adventure, he provides several chuckles. I too wish there were blue horses.By the end, I had fallen in love with the main characters. I really look forward to adventuring further with Royce and Hadrian. 4/5 stars.The Narration: Tim Gerard Reynolds gave a great performance for this book. He had distinct voices for all the characters and his female voices were believable. He sounded like he had a lot of fun narrating this story too. I did notice a few short repeats but there were no other technical issues with the recording. I loved his voice for Myron (always full of wonder), his skeptical voice for Royce, and his honorable voice for Hadrian. 4.75/5 stars.
    • 4/5
      I love these books mostly because of the bromance. Michael J. Sullivan portrays an amazing friendship between Royce and Hadrian. The banter is funny, the tone is light and as a reader I immediately wanted to spend more time with these people.The writing is nothing special, but if you're in the mood for something light, easy and far less complex than the usual epic fantasy, this is for you. The perfect book after a long day and a great fantasy romp.
    • 4/5
      This was such a great book! I really enjoyed all the characters and the storyline. I can't wait to pick up the next volume and see where this adventure is headed :)
    • 5/5
      Book 1 of The Riyeria Revelations, a superb fantasy series, right up there with Lord of the Rings and Wheel of Time. The Rivera ore Hadrian and Royce, and their relationship is front and center in these rollicking adventures.
    • 5/5
      I don't remember where I saw the recommendation to read this book, but I am glad I saw it! Never since the Drangonlance Chronicles had I had so much fun reading a fantasy story.The good: The writing is simply excellent. Not too much descriptions, just enough, a very nice pace, nothing drags for too long, things move ahead nicely, likable characters, great interaction btw the 2 protagonists, loved it all. And the tone of the book is simply great. While reading this book I finally found out why I had read so few fantasy books in the last decade(after reading soooooo many all my life), turns out I got tired of all the dread and gloom that plague current fantasy books! This book goes back to the old tone and I love it! I also very much like the structure of the books, where the author gets to tell us 2 standalone stories that are linked by a bigger overarching plot. The bad: Nothing bad really, but it's true that it's light sometimes. We never really feel the heroes are in real danger anywhere or are struggling to overcome a situation. They're having a good, and somewhat easy, time. But it's the first in a series, so maybe that gets corrected in subsequent books. I also wish the regular "party" would get larger than just the two of them. But that's my old D&D roots showing here :PCan't wait to read the next in the series.
    • 5/5
      Yay! A new author that can join my "favorites" list!!
    • 5/5
      This book has a little of everything in it: a little mystery/whodunit, a lot of action, a bit of magic/mysticism, and a lot of normal topics/concerns that make up a modern culture. I was hooked from the first page. Royce and Hadrian are two clever and well-rounded characters, and the added dashes of humor give them an even greater appeal. I love the fact that even though they are "thieves" in a sense, they seem to end up doing what is right regardless. Their relationship with one another is fantastic, very bromantic and caring, and a lot of what keeps the story going and keeps the reader enthralled. And while I mostly enjoy fantasy books, I loved the fact that this book was more adventurous, and worked so well that way. The setting, as well, is incredibly diverse and complex and quite detailed, and I have so much respect for the author for not separating the world into "Bad" and "Good", as a lot of fantasy-esque and adventure-laden novels do. I think embracing the gray area in behavior is what makes any book more human and more approachable and understandable. It's really brilliant and everyone should read it RIGHT NOW.
    • 4/5
      This was a pleasant surprise to me when I purchased the Kindle version. Especially when it turned out to be two books, not just one.Hadrian and Royce are thieves for hired. They are given a cockamamie story about how the king had stolen a sword from a member of court supposedly to make sure he won a duel. The member wanted to get the sword back to challenge him to a fair duel. When the two thieves enter the castle's room where the sword was hidden, they found the king assassinated with a knife in his back. They are discovered and arrested. The princess offers them escape as long as they take her brother with them to a hidden prison which has only one prisoner, a wizard. Action ensues.I really enjoyed getting to know the two thieves. I picture Hadrian as dashing, armed with not one, not two (like my Witcher), but three swords. Royce is more secretive and stealthy but a perfect pairing. I will definitely look forward to more of their adventures.
    • 5/5
      I really enjoyed this series (all 3 volumes of 6 books). The storytelling is just wonderful. It isn't necessarily 'great literature,' but it's really fun, and I totally fell in love with the characters. The books transport you to another world, where the people are familiar and very well-developed. I suppose 'escapist fantasy' is appropriate, but I feel like the series rises above that label.
    • 3/5
      These books were a surprisingly fun read and I will definately be continuing the series.
    • 4/5
      I must have had these individual books on my Kindle for a while, picked up back when they were still independently published, but didn't begin reading this series until last weekend when my family and I went on a road trip and decided to listen an audiobook in the car to while away the hours. Now that they've been republished in collections by Orbit, Audible had these books available as well.Well, I'm really glad I chose this one. Both stories (The Crown Conspiracy and Avempartha) were so riveting that the time just flew by. Before we knew it, 8 hours had already passed and we were at our destination. I wish I had started reading these books earlier. It's a bit surprising to me now that these weren't picked up by a major publisher until much later, as I have to say the quality is so much better than a lot of other fantasy out there, even some of the stuff by established and well-known authors.While these books fall pretty neatly under the category of traditional fantasy and though I wouldn't say there's anything in particular to rave about, I must say I've enjoyed everything I've read so far. The language and casual flow of the writing makes this an easy read, and on the whole the mood is light-hearted with a pair of protagonists that are witty and very likeable. The setting is again very traditional as far as the fantasy genre goes, but I'm impressed by the world's rich history and traditions.The Riyria are thieves for hire, and their talents are so legendary that even the lords and nobility use them for jobs. The Crown Conspiracy introduces the master swordsman Hadrian and the light-footed and quick-fingered thief Royce, who find themselves framed for the death of a king. In Avempartha, our heroes are hired to break into an inaccessible tower to steal a sword, the only weapon capable of slaying a magical beast that has been terrorizing the nearby countryside.They're both your straightforward adventure "quest" stories, complete with dwarves, elves and a wizened wizard that most fantasy readers will recognize, but there was enough mystery and intrigue to keep things fresh and me guessing. Also, I just can't stress enough how much I love these characters. A king, a princess, a wizard, a monk, a farm girl, a couple thieves...it would easy to dismiss all of these as hackneyed archetypes, but that would be a mistake because they will surprise you at every turn.
    • 4/5
      Fast paced, this book certainly did not feel as thick as it was. Theft of Swords contains the first two books of the Riyria Revelations, chronicling the adventures of thief Royce Melborn and mercenary Hadrian Blackwater in the world of Elan. Complete with religion and a church, conspiring nobility, lost magic, different races, and a mythological history, this world is intriguing and original enough to keep one's mind interested and to keep one reading. I can't wait to start the next volume!
    • 5/5
      I got this signed by the author; it was so captivating. I actually started with Avempartha, back when they were only available digitally. However, whatever order you read this collection of two novels, you will enjoy it!
    • 5/5
      When I received the book I was taken aback by how many pages there were. I thought it would take me weeks to read, but I was wrong. The book was so engaging I would reluctantly put it down.It's a good story containing your heroes, villains, hero-villains, damsels in distress, elves, dwarves, wizards, magic, basically anything you could want in an epic fantasy novel.At first I questioned the author's style of writing. I felt some of it did not belong in a fantasy/tolkienesque (is that a word?) novel. Then I read the author's interview and realized that it was intentional. The author wanted to focus on the story and not use language as a means of cluttering the pages and perhaps diluting the story. I believe he calls it the "light-hand" approach. I agree. This approach led to a story that flowed quickly yet allowing each character to progressively develop (and there's a lot of characters!)Yet for being a quick and easy read, the author does give the story a sense of mystery. Who you think is a good guy may not be and vice a versa. Who's telling the truth? A character that I may have disliked in The Crown Conspiracy then gave me pause for thought in Avempartha. Theft of Swords is the good book if you want a fast paced fantasy story.Of course the two *hot* guys on the cover helps too!!!
    • 4/5
      I really, really enjoyed this story of a pair of thieves who take on a job that lands them in hot water. They're set up as being the murderers of a king in a kingdom and they have to work out a way of getting away from the death penalty. Meanwhile they get caught up in a more complicated plot for the future of the area.I loved the two main characters, Royce Melborn and Hadrian Blackwater, they're so much fun to read about, they banter and behave like two people who have been working together for so long that they can almost predict what the other will do. I really want to read more about these characters. There were moments when I had to re-read to find who was where and doing what but overall things flowed well and I was very much sucked into the story, ploughing through it quite quickly.I would recommend it.
    • 5/5
      This began to be recommended on one of those cross computer recommendations and so after reading the reviews of others, and then Sullivan's blog, I decided to delve into the series.Certainly Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser came to mind as soon as I had read the description and then the beginning of the story. That there was more to the world was obvious and that it was its own world was evident as well.Here the banter between are two protagonists is enough to keep drawing us is and then the quest begins. Now parts of the quest begin to distort the world, such as the location our questors must find, and certain other issues, but getting there is fun, and then whom they meet and the plot twists that things take also works well enough.The depth of the plots that are being laid down by the villains and the simple solutions the heroes are jumping to in order to counter them help with the depth that the series takes, but in the first book it leaves you wondering, but it does draw you along.All in all, a good read and one that I might well do again.
    • 4/5
      I won a signed copy of this book thrum Library Thing. It is a rather long book that has 2 books included. I liked this book a lot and really enjoyed reading it. The characters were really great and once you start reading this book, it is really hard to put down. I have never read anything by this author and would be inclined to read more from him by reading the extras at the back if the book and knowing he made a final copy do that his Daughter could read it.
    • 5/5
      Very well-written story by Sullivan! Everything was so complex, the characters, the settings, everything! Sullivan did a great job making all the characters complex and believable. It was a nice change to read about characters who aren't defined by their characteristics. Take the prince for example. He's often a spoiled brat and a bit overly dramatic but he makes some smart choices every now and then. In a way, he's even the driving force behind the plot. I always feel that if you can't sum up a character in 1-3 sentences, then you have created a person. Another thing I liked was the well-placed twists Sullivan had written into the story. I could predict some of the things that happened but I was pleasantly surprised by some of the things I didn't see coming. I found very little problems with my reading experience. While it's not really a big issue, a lot of characters are introduced in the beginning so it was hard to keep track of everyone (for example, I still don't really know who Mason was). However, you will remember the most important characters since they stand out fairly well. Also, there were one or two moments where I wouldn't know where a character was. For example, Hadrian and Myron would be talking as they get off their horses and Royce would just pop in and start talking with them out of nowhere and everyone acts as if he's been there all along. No "Royce walks up to the group" or whatever. Another nitpicky thing I'd like to mention is that the "villains" in this book are your basic storybook villain variety. They're conniving, greedy, and always like to rant about their master plans. The charismatic and interesting "heroes" make up for it so I barely noticed but I thought I'd throw it out there to balance this review out.Pros: Action-packed and engaging plot, large cast of complex and interesting characters, well-placed plot twistsCons: stereotypical villains, some awkward transition pointsOverall, I would recommend this book to anyone who likes fantasy and adventure and isn't afraid of big books. I was very pleased to see how the book turned out. The main characters have great bantering moments and are fun to learn about but without giving too much away. My one big warning is to not read this book when you have an important exam or paper due soon. I do love it when books make me lose track of time though(my grades aren't so happy about it though!)The book is pretty hefty but I bet you won't even notice it as you follow Hadrian and Royce's adventures!Won in a GoodReads First Reads giveaway in return for an honest review
    • 5/5
      One of my favorite books! This is my second time going through the series and I love it.
    • 4/5
      It’s well known that Theft of Swords is the weakest of this series. One reason for that is all the info dumps in dialogue to characters who probably should already know the information, given their station. Having said that, the characters in this story shine and the world itself is as realistic as it can be. I really enjoy the politics and the overall moral compass, or the heart of the story, and am looking forward to listening to the next.
    • 5/5
      Great read. Kept me up most of 2 nights Read it with pleasure.
    • 4/5
      interesting characters that you get attached to, good pace, not too slow moving - looking forward to continuing story!
    • 5/5
      Absolutely loved it! Very engaging. Strong and interesting characters. Can't wait to start Volume 2!
    • 5/5
      Great book and even better voice acting. Low magic fantasy setting .
    • 5/5
      I love this series and it's one to which I've returned several times when life has been rough. I originally read these books before they were bound as a trilogy, and then I listened to Riyria Revelations as audiobooks for the first time in 2016 as my husband was in the hospital for 4 months recovering from a massive stroke. I'd listen to the adventures of Hadrian & Royce, told in the dulcet and talented tones of the fantastic narrator (Tim Gerald Reynolds), when he was sleeping or out for tests or going through physical therapy, and I'd escape into Michael J Sullivan's incredible world. I've read epic fantasy all my life, and Sullivan has created something magical that's in a space between Tolkien and 21st century grimmdark. I don't want to retell plot or waste your time--if you enjoy epic fantasy, please give Riyria Revelations and then the Riyria Chronicles a read. Or two!
    • 5/5
      This is a great fantasy series, it doesn’t take it self too serious but has a lot of good plot points and twists. The lore is a lot deeper then I thought it was going to be. Also Tim reynolds is amazing in everything he does.
    • 5/5
      So GOOD!! I love all the characters even if they're are somewhat swallow. But the narration is perfect.
    • 5/5
      Great book and a lot of mini plots happening while the main plot remains on the forefront.