The Sworn Audiobook

As plague and famine scourge the Winter Kingdoms, a vast invasion force is mustering from beyond the northern seas. And at its heart, a dark spirit mage wields the blood magic of ancient, vanquished gods.

Summoner-King Martris Drayke must attempt to meet this great threat, gathering an army from a country ravaged by civil war. Neighboring lands reel toward anarchy while plague decimates their leaders. Drayke must seek new allies from among the living—and the dead—as an untested generation of rulers face their first battle.

Then someone disturbs the legendary Dread as they rest in a millennia-long slumber beneath sacred barrows. Their warrior guardians, the Sworn, know the Dread could be pivotal as a force for great good or evil. But if it's the latter, could even the Summoner-King's sorcery prevail?

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"Having read all of Martin's previous book, I welcomed a return to the world she created and it's characters. In an interview at the end of the book, the author says that this book would be a great spot to enter the series, but I disagree with her. While it's true that all of the enemies in this book are new, I think it would be a disservice to not read the previous books. The biggest reason for this is that, other than the very few new characters, none of the main characters evolve or change in this book, they are essentially static. There is no actual conflict in this book, other than a slight conspiracy at the very end, which I assume the author intended as the climax of the book. This book is basically the set-up for the next book which will contain an epic war. The author didn't even introduce any of the actual villains, who they are and why they're attacking. The only people you see in this book are the "Black Robes" who are trying to raise an ancient evil from the barrows that the Sworn guard. These villains aren't too impressive; they're never given a face or a background; apparently they're just some ancient cult that popped up out of nowhere yet are very resourceful and powerful. So while I enjoyed reading this book, her words have a great flow that makes you want to keep turning the page, I was ultimately left disappointed. This is one of the main problems found in today's epic fantasy stories: they're sometimes so focused on the epicness of their overarching stories, that they forget to create a singular story in one book with a beginning middle and end. For any potential readers of this book, if you've already read her previous books you should definitely read this one or the next most likely amazing book won't make any sense. However, if you're new to Gail Z. Martin you would be much better served to start with the first book, which is amazing. My Rating: 8.25/10"

— Brandon (4 out of 5 stars)