Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

  • The Shadow of What Was Lost

  • The Licanius Trilogy, Book 1
  • By: James Islington
  • Narrated by: Michael Kramer
  • Length: 25 hrs and 28 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (2,545 ratings)
Offer ends May 1st, 2024 11:59PM GMT. Terms and conditions apply.
£7.99/month after 3 months. Renews automatically.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
The Shadow of What Was Lost cover art

The Shadow of What Was Lost

By: James Islington
Narrated by: Michael Kramer
Get this deal Try for £0.00

Pay £99p/month. After 3 months pay £7.99/month. Renews automatically. See terms for eligibility.

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £29.99

Buy Now for £29.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Listeners also enjoyed...

The Will of the Many cover art
Fall of Radiance cover art
The LonTobyn Chronicle, Books 1-3 cover art
Forsworn: A Powder Mage Novella cover art
New Spring cover art
The Ember Blade cover art
Mage Slave cover art
The Shock of Night cover art
The Witch Between Worlds: 10 Book Epic Fantasy Box Set cover art
Air Awakens cover art
Six of Crows cover art
A Warrior's Path cover art
Fantasy of Frost cover art
The Forging of Dawn cover art
Pile of Bones cover art
Dragonvein, Book One cover art

Summary

It has been 20 years since the end of the war. The dictatorial Augurs - once thought of almost as gods - were overthrown and wiped out during the conflict, their much-feared powers mysteriously failing them. Those who had ruled under them, men and women with a lesser ability known as the Gift, avoided the Augurs' fate only by submitting themselves to the rebellion's Four Tenets.

A representation of these laws is now written into the flesh of any who use the Gift, forcing those so marked into absolute obedience. As a student of the Gifted, Davian suffers the consequences of a war fought - and lost - before he was born. Despised by most beyond the school walls, he and those around him are all but prisoners as they attempt to learn control of the Gift. Worse, as Davian struggles with his lessons, he knows that there is further to fall if he cannot pass his final tests. But when Davian discovers he has the ability to wield the forbidden power of the Augurs, he sets into motion a chain of events that will change everything.

To the north, an ancient enemy long thought defeated begins to stir. And to the west, a young man whose fate is intertwined with Davian’s wakes up in the forest, covered in blood and with no memory of who he is...

©2014 James Islington (P)2015 Podium Publishing

Critic reviews

"Robert Jordan fans should check this out!" (Pop Bop, Top 500 Amazon Reviewer)

What listeners say about The Shadow of What Was Lost

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,710
  • 4 Stars
    639
  • 3 Stars
    151
  • 2 Stars
    31
  • 1 Stars
    14
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,801
  • 4 Stars
    441
  • 3 Stars
    82
  • 2 Stars
    19
  • 1 Stars
    8
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,489
  • 4 Stars
    637
  • 3 Stars
    165
  • 2 Stars
    39
  • 1 Stars
    18

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A Great Masterpiece by a Great Mastermind no doubt

After a few chapters, I was worried that the book lacked both sufficient characters and a good story- but then, I began to get drawn in... This is a VERY complex well thought out tale, that captures aspects of great mystery, deception, political strategy, very subtle hints of romance... It is a story of hope, of the loyalty of young friends who are robbed of their innocence and plunged into a world where they are forced to positions of responsibility and power but surrounded by treachery and lies, forcing them to grapple with and pursue, and even change, their own identities and re-determine their true purpose and path..

You will agree that this book is like a whirlpool, you're sucked in at a bearable pace, then feel the pull strengthen and accelerate causing you to tense up and at times struggle to keep up... With every chapter, the story is twisted into greater complexity and intensity, and though you will be left with no doubt that the story has really only just begun when you reach the end of the book, you will be thoroughly satisfied at finally putting it done and having some time to assimilate the story so far before eagerly searching out details of the release of the next instalment/Book in the series.

This is definitely a 5 star read in every respect!! The narrator as usual, is credited with a fantastic performance only perfecting what is already a perfectly great story/book!!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

41 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

The tag line says it all...almost

Is there anything you would change about this book?

This feels so familiar. The tag line on the jacket says "Robert Jordan Fans should check this out" and there is a reason for that. It feels like a blend of Wheel of time ( our reluctant hero, who doesn't believe he has any powers is pursed by monsters who are trying to kill him) and Game of Thrones (There is a barrier in the north that was once garrisoned to protect the land, but no one now believes there is any danger...except its weakening and monsters are coming through.....). its almost like you can predict where things are going...almost...

Its true the similarity is exacerbated by the fact that Michael Kramer also narrates Wheel of Time so it may have been a mistake to engage him, but he is a master at this genre.

Would you be willing to try another book from James Islington? Why or why not?

OK so taking everything into account and getting past the sense that I have heard all this before...this isn't a terrible book. Its fun, keeps you intrigued and introduces some complexity into the story. I will buy the next book in the series,though i do doubt it will end at three books.

Was The Shadow of What Was Lost worth the listening time?

Yes.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

37 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars
  • JS
  • 29-03-15

A great listen and a superb ending.

A very enjoyable book although I must admit, at times I got a bit lost with the twists and turns.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

A great new series

Any additional comments?

I'm very happy to have come across this book. It feels like an old school epic fantasy series beginning. I agree with another reviewer that it seems very sanderson like,I would also say that some of the writing seems similar to the wheel of time books. Very engaging characters and a story that flows very well. Highly recommended. Michael Kramer does an excellent job as usual with the narration.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Nothing Lost in This Shadow

Michael Kramer purrs and growls his way through twenty-five hours of genuinely inventive narrative. The characters grow, the tension builds, the intrigue winds its way around my imagination and the magic quite simply unfolds before my very ears. Excellent fantasy of the epic variety from James Islington.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

not quite radiance but still a sterling book.

looking forward to seeing how this plays out. an interesting slant and fantasy will keep reading.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent

I'm excited to have discovered this trilogy. It's a complex fantasy world, with a huge cast of characters and a solid "magic" system and it all charges along at a cracking pace. (It probably helps that it's Michael Kramer's narration, and I have come to associate his voice with a favourite series - Stormlight)

The only negative comment I would make is that I am struggling to keep up with all the names - but that may be a factor of my listening while doing 100 other things and therefore not paying full attention. This is a story that probably requires more attention than most, and I did find myself having to replay the last 30 seconds, on a fairly regular basis, to check I'd not missed another clue.

Lead characters are likable with enough mystery to keep them interesting too.

This very much reminded my of the Wheel of Time (just with fewer annoying references to sheep).

If you're an epic fantasy fan - then this is highly recommended.




Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Worth it

Great stuff, reminds me of Brandon sanders. James is clearly giving the listener/reader what they want. Michael kramer er brilliant like always that and the story itself make you often wonder if your truly not just listening to Brandon. The story is also really kewl and the side story's are everywhere hopefully we'll see more of that in the next book. but yeah buy this book if you like Brandon.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Absolutely brilliant.

I bought this on a whim and was amazed! I had to check it wasn't a Brandon Sanderson book.
I'm hooked and will be looking for more from James Islington.

5 stars

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Awesome

A fabulous listen with a interesting and catchy theme. As usual the narration is superb the time just flew by

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

5 people found this helpful