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The Way of Shadows

Night Angel, Book 1

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About this listen

The razor-sharp first novel in the New York Times bestselling Night Angel series from master of modern fantasy Brent Weeks - an astonishing and epic tale of magic, violence and revenge.

The perfect killer has no friends. Only targets.

For Durzo Blint, assassination is an art. And he is the city's most accomplished artist, his talents required from alleyway to courtly boudoir.For Azoth, survival is precarious. Something you never

take for granted. As a guild rat, he's grown up in the slums, and learned the hard way to judge people quickly - and to take risks. Risks like apprenticing himself to Durzo Blint.

But to be accepted, Azoth must turn his back on his old life and embrace a new identity and name. As Kylar Stern, he must learn to navigate the assassins' world of dangerous politics and strange magics - and cultivate a flair for death.

For more from Brent Weeks, check out:

Night Angel

The Way of Shadows

Shadow's Edge

Beyond the Shadows

The Kylar Chronicles

Night Angel Nemesis

Perfect Shadow: A Night Angel Novella

The Way of Shadows: The Graphic Novel

Lightbringer

The Black Prism

The Blinding Knife

The Broken Eye

The Blood Mirror

The Burning White

©2009 Brent Weeks (P)2023 Hachette Audio UK Action & Adventure Epic Epic Fantasy Fantasy Fiction

Critic reviews

"Brent Weeks has a style of immediacy and detail that pulls the reader relentlessly into his story. He doesn't allow you to look away." (Robin Hobb)

"Nobody does break-neck pacing and amazingly-executed plot twists like Brent Weeks." (Brian McClellan)
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Very engaging. Although there are the familiar fantasy tropes the story kept me wanting to know what was going to happen next, a lot of the time it surprised me.
Thoroughly enjoyed and will now buy the next in the series.
Narrator is excellent.

A worthy successor to Light Bringer

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this story has engaging characters and a rich world, I can't wait to see where it goes in the next book. I loved this book both times I've read it.

An excellent story

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The story is gripping and engaging from the start. Like many fantasy worlds, there are different characters and situations to get to grips with quickly.

Unfortunately, the narrator makes that difficult. He has a lovely voice, and has a beautifully musical tone that would be perfect for bedtime stories. BUT his slight slurr makes catching names, places and ‘dialect’ words really hard to catch, particularly as many of them are similar. It’s not a lisp but more of a susurration or ‘shushing’ to the way he speaks, a lack of clarity that translates as poor diction / annunciation. He also speaks in a slow, hushed near-monotone. Again, this would be amazing for bedtime stories, but not great for keeping your mind engaged. I have often found myself thinking about something else with the gentle waves of his voice as background noise.

I feel terrible writing this. The book is good, the narrator has a wonderful voice, it’s just a terrible match.

Good story, obfuscated by unclear narration

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I'll admit that I 2asnt sure about the narrator but he won me over ( apart from Gwenvere's snake like voice) in the end. I honestly can't say enough good things about this trilogy. harsh topics are dealt with, amazing characters that only David Gemmell could surpass. A fine first novel by Mr Brent Weeks

my favourite book series!

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Had to see where the story started… I’ll see you at the end of the next book, enjoy!

Started with Night Angel Nemesis, now I can’t stop…

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