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Blood of the Old Kings

by Sung-il Kim

Translator Anton Hur

Length 9 hours 44 minutes

Language English

Narrators Eunice Wong, Major Curda & Suzy Jackson

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Summary
About the author
About the translator

This program features multicast narration.

From award-winning Korean author Sung-il Kim & translated by the world-renowned Anton Hur, Blood of the Old Kings begins an epic journey unlike any other.

There is no escaping the Empire.
Even in death, you will serve.

In an Empire run on necromancy, dead sorcerers are the lifeblood. Their corpses are wrapped in chains and drained of magic to feed the unquenchable hunger for imperial conquest.

Born with magic, Arienne has become resigned to her dark fate. But when the voice of a long-dead sorcerer begins to speak inside her head, she listens. There may be another future for her, if she’s willing to fight for it.

Miles away, beneath a volcano, a seven-eyed dragon also wears the Empire’s chains. Before the imperial fist closed around their lands, it was the people’s sacred guardian.

Loran, a widowed swordswoman, is the first to kneel before the dragon in decades. She comes with a desperate plea, and will leave with a sword of dragon-fang in hand and a great purpose before her.

In the heart of the Imperial capital, Cain is known as a man who gets things done. When his best friend and mentor is found murdered, he will leave no stone unturned to find those responsible, even if it means starting a war.

Step into a world of necromancy, murder, and twisted magic. A world in need of a hero.

A Macmillan Audio production from Tor Books.

Fiction Fantasy

SUNG-IL KIM was born in Seoul in 1974. Despite his lifelong dream of writing fiction, he only got around to it in his forties. He writes science fiction, fantasy, horror, or some blend of those. In South Korea, he is known for Blood of the Old Kings, I Will Go to Earth to See You, and “The Knight of La Mancha,” the last of which earned him an Excellence Award at the Korean SF Awards in 2018. He spends most of his time in his downtown Seoul apartment with his wife and two cats.

Anton Hur was born in Stockholm, Sweden. He is the author of No One Told Me Not To and the novel Toward Eternity. His translations include Bora Chung's Cursed Bunny, which was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize and a finalist for the National Book Award.

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Audiobook details

Author:
Sung-il Kim

Narrators:
Eunice Wong, Major Curda & Suzy Jackson

ISBN:
9781250353399

Length:
9 hours 44 minutes

Language:
English

Publisher:
Macmillan Audio

Publication date:
October 8, 2024

Edition:
Unabridged

Libro.fm rank:
#13,148 Overall

Genre rank:
#2,126 in Fantasy

Reviews

"Thrilling, inventive, and fierce—a tale of chained magic and giant mechs, of malevolent empire and those who stand against it. Not to be missed."—Max Gladstone, New York Times bestselling co-author of This is How You Lose the Time War

"Refreshingly different . . . blends classic genre elements together in fresh ways.”—Paste

"Epic underdog fantasy in which choice outweighs destiny. . . Readers seeking an exciting new fantasy world to sink into will find this hits the spot."—Publishers Weekly

"A woman's burning quest for vengeance and power leads to a thrilling magic-filled adventure. Absolutely captivating."—K.S. Villoso, author of The Wolf of Oren-Yaro

"Full on fantasy delight. . . expansive and exciting—it’s a book that so clearly loves fantasy and gives readers classic elements of the genre in a totally new way. Blood of the Old Kings is just a goddamn blast to read.”—Reactor

“Kim masterfully weaves together [three characters'] stories, which each embody a different style of fantasy, creating an immersive, thorough world that’s sparking towards war. . . . Readers will crave further works from Kim after reading his English-language debut.”—Library Journal

“I loved it. Fast, fun and fabulous! Truly imaginative fantasy with a story that speeds along like a bullet train fueled by sorcery.”—Dyrk Ashton, author of the Paternus trilogy

“A magnificent tapestry. . . If you’re looking for something to scratch that sprawling epic itch, give Blood of the Old Kings a chance.”—Lightspeed