Thank You, Netgalley and Bookouture, Second Sky Books for the e-Audiobook Galley.

This book took me by surprise. When I started it, I didn*t expect the amount of betrayal and emotional rollercoaster I went through. The magic system and the character development was well done and the Narrator did a fantastic job in bringing the world to life. The last part felt a bit rushed, but otherwise the pacing felt natural and I didn*t mind myself wanting to skip ahead.

I already can*t wait for the sequel to come out, so I can know what happens next.

First I'd like to say thank you to Netgalley, Bookouture Audio and Second Sky Books for the ARC copy of this audiobook. This in noway alters my thoughts or opinions in this review.

Wow! I need book two immediately.

This audiobook is one of the bests I have heard in awhile! Ewan Goddard done such an amazing job with the narration if this book. His voice is perfect for the audiobook and he give each character their own voice.

I was hooked from the first chapter and stayed hooked through the whole book. The world and characters were so well written. I love how much growth we see not only with the characters but also the world and magic.

This will be an audiobook I will be buying as soon as it is released.

Mages? Royal plotting? Tragedy? Betrayal? DRAGONS?? I hadn’t expected to be sucked in so much so quickly but I didn’t want it to end. I wish I would’ve heard about this sooner when it was still called Lost Mage but I am so so glad I found and got the opportunity to read an ARC. I can’t wait for the second book as I need to know what happens next.

HIGHLY recommended.

Do you have one moment that changed the course of your life forever?
 
In Ben Alderson’s latest novel, Heir of Thorn and Flame, we follow Max, a servant to the prince of his land. One night, Max was attacked, and the result quickly changed the course of his life in ways he never imagined possible.
 
Synopsis:
 
“Married to a ruthless prince…


For years, Max had to serve and obey the vicious magical nobles. Now he is one of them.
When the heir to the throne attacks him, Max accidentally responds with a lethal burst of magic. Max is certain he will be executed. But his power is too rare and precious for that…
Instead, the king forces him to become the boy he killed, taking on the identity and duties of the heir. That includes an arranged marriage—to the dangerously attractive Prince Camron.
Living a lie, Max knows he can trust no one. Not Camron. And definitely not Simion, a handsome, dragon-riding spy sent to test his loyalty.


As a deadly struggle for power begins and desire sparks, Max must protect his secret and his heart at all costs.” -Goodreads
 
My rating: 4.5/5
 
Y’all… This book was SO GOOD! It had mage magic, dragons, deceit, plot twists, romance, LGBTQIA+ representation, action, arranged marriage, multiple love interests, found power, heartbreak, and did I mention… DRAGONS?!
 
The humor in the beginning drew me in only to be almost immediately hit with plot twists. Just when you think you knew what would happen next, another twist was thrown! That’s not to mention the emotional rollercoaster the entire book kept me on. I couldn’t help but feel Max’s angry, joy, frustration, relief, and betrayal right along with him. The entire time I was guessing what would happen next all while rooting for Max to finally catch a break. The character development was spot on, and the magic system was well explained. The only reason I didn’t give a solid 5-star rating is I feel the last quarter of the book was a tad bit rushed. There was so much build up to the end result, but it happened a tad bit quickly for my taste. Otherwise, Heir of Thorn and Flame is bound to be your newest obsession!
 
P.S. There is a cliffhanger so prepare yourself!

Thank You, Netgalley and Bookouture, Second Sky Books for the e-Audiobook Galley.

Gay Fantasy is the best kind of fantasy and Ben Alderson is a marvellous writer of gay fantasy.
I have wanted to read this book for ages, and it did not disappointment.
There was laughter, tears and astonishment and I found myself smiling while I was driving listening not to mention blushing a certain parts......it's more intense when it's an Audiobook.
It is definitely a slow burn, but the wait was so worth it....but there better be more spice in the next one.

Ewan Goddard, is an excellent voice actor and brought life to all the characters.

heir to thorn and flame is one of my new favourtie books. for being my first MM adult fantasy romance I really enjoyed it I found to hard to stop listen to it. if there is a second book which I hope there is I will definitely be reading it . because of how much I loved it I will be recommending it to all my friends to read it .

I'm not much of an audio book girly 'cause I can't really concentrate on sounds. But this one got me captured in the story. The narrator was really wonderful. And obviously, as the whole story. I found it quite surprising and original. Both main characters are super cool to follow and I liked their personality.

I was actually a little bit surprised at how much this book caught my attention so fast. Reading past reviews I knew it would be a good one but there was definitely some skepticism on my own part.
I really enjoyed the MMC Max so much! The journey we get to go on with him is absolutely nothing short of amazing! Along with the many side characters you’re presented with it was an extremely well rounded cast of personalities.
We were given so many chances to see the big picture but I didn’t see it until the very end. So many brilliant twist and turns. I didn’t see a single one of them coming!
Definitely excited to read the next book in the series,

Holy smokes I need book 2 immediately!!!

Heir to Thorn and Flame had me on an emotional rollercoaster! I was stressed, happy, swooning, angry and hyped all at once! There were so many twists and turns - I never saw the plot twists coming!

We follow Max who has accidentally killed the heir to the throne. When the king hears of his wrongdoing - he forces Max to assume the heir’s identity and assimilate into the royal family. His life is literally turned upside down, inside out and replaced with a family he doesn’t know and never wanted. Now it’s up to him to seek out who he can trust so he can overturn the evil rulers and restore his community.

10/10 recommend Heir to the Throne by Ben Alderson! I read via audio and absolutely loved the narration by Ewan Goddard - They completely brought the story to life!


Thank you to Bookouture Audio, Second Sky Books for the advanced copy!

Narrated by Ewan Goddard, Narrator rating - 5/5
My favorite part is that Ewan does multiple voices and his accent!

Alderson writes in such vivid detail, you can picture yourself in each part of the book. Throughout the book I found myself relating to Maximus through his frustrations and anger. There is a bunch of mixed in humor which I absolutely loved!

Maximus and his family are servants for the Gathrax family. Julian Gathrax, the prince, has decided that Maximus will be his new tortured animal. What Julian and Maximus don't know is that there will be a twist of plot. Maximus will endure self doubt, fear, longing and threats along his path to success. He will go from rags to riches all while ensuring his family is safe. He will be forced to take the hand of another which furthers his hate for King Gathrax.

This is a tale of magic, wonder, courage and bravery! This audiobook is a 5/5 for me. I couldn't stop listening to it and found myself consumed by what was going on in Max's life! #TeamMax

A fascinating story of love, magic, war and power. All the greats of fantasy were in this bpok. Dragons, unknown magic, fire, love and loss. I look forward to reading more books in this series.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book in return for a fair and honest review.

This book was recommended by a friend and it being available as an e-arc was perfect timing. I was very interested in this book because it was a re-published, gay love title and I believe I've seen the author on social media. Overall, this was just not at all something I ended up liking. I did the book via audio, so I won't be giving a poor rating publicly. Sometimes the narration of a book just doesn't work for me and I can't fully fault the book. The narration for this was on the bad side of whining. It made everything sound very childish and it was difficult to focus on.

The world building of this book was rather shallow but that wouldn't have been as noticeable had the narration been more compelling. I hate to give negative feedback, but I just could not get over the narration choices. It wasn't even the voice of the narrator, but rather the dramatization choices that were made. It did not fit how the words being said felt like they should come across. The whole book just felt conflicting. Since my issues lay with the narration style primarily, I won't rate the book poorly on socials because I have no way of properly judging the writing itself.

3.5*. This book was addictive and I need the second book ASAP, though I had my issues with it which I'll explain. All in all, the lore was well done and not overwhelming as I know some can be, and it was refreshing to read a fantasy book, especially one being likened to SJM, that has a gay main character. The romance was pretty cute, but definitely not a slow burn by my standards.

I did pick this for the synopsis, and as I was reading, I felt that some parts of the description - which I won't say here so as not to give spoilers - were superfluous in that they spoiled moments which would have been revelations to me as a reader.

An issue I had was with the writing being repetitive at times, as the same words and descriptors were used over and over again, which was probably magnified by the audiobook format I read it in. One sentence that made me cringe went something along the lines of "'I can't let this continue,' (character) continued".

My biggest issue was with the narrator, Maximus, who made my blood boil. His behaviour, his pattern of lashing out at people who were trying to help him, and being whiny and selfish in general was particularly appalling, considering he was meant to be twenty five years old. At times I was simply flummoxed at how he would notice things that just flew over his head, while you, the reader, would instantly realise the plot twist. However, I actually wasn't too bothered by this as the characters would find out a few chapters later and the twists didn't feel forced.

Also, trying to keep this as spoiler free as possible, there were several character deaths, and in each of these instances Max was in utter shocked and disbelief as clearly he hadn't expected them despite the build up being very, very obvious. Like, what did you think was going to happen? Luckily the plot absolutely made up for the terrible MC.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for providing this book for review. All opinions are my own.

(me dying because I had to write this all out again from memory after it didn't save.)

This book was good. It took me a bit to get into it but none the less it was good. Had some great world building, great character development all around just a good book. I’m a little sad for the main character that he gose the whole story trying to save his parents and is passed between one set of untrustworthy person to the next and that his best friend betrayed him. Still liked it though. Will read the next one

Really cute story and I enjoyed both the MCs so much, but I felt the pacing was a bit off. In the beginning we started very strong with good world building and action! However, there were large chunks in the middle without much going on and then near the end we are backloaded with so much. The romance was adorable!

Thank you NetGalley, Second Sky, Bookouture Audio and Ben Alderson but providing me with an eARC and Audiobook eARC on Heir to Thorn and Flame 🔥

4.5/5 rounded up.

I absolutely looked this book. I ate it up. I have struggled through some books lately but this one had me engaged and speeding through it! It is also a 'homo-normative' universe, so no coming out struggles or homophobia for our characters.

I love a good chosen one trope and Maximus is a wonderful character for this trope. The start, the evil king, the evil Queen - all the evil everywhere but for our poor suffering Max. Loved it. I just felt for him and the holding of hope pushed me through the so very very hateable Villians

I always mark a fantasy/magic system on how confused I am by it. This one was great - never confused, got the vibe of the magic system and the kingdoms easily. Until we got our mid novel twist - which I was absolutely here for - but the point was a tiny bit lost on me. Also like a magical system that is rooted in the earth element which dragon's and other mystical beasts. Brilliant.

I preferred the book over the audiobook mainly just because of the 'not contemporary' voice acting - which of course reflects the fantasy of the book but is not really my vibe.

TL;DR: Gay high fantasy with plenty of twists.

Well. That was a bit grim.

I’m not sure what I was expecting but it wasn’t the graphic gore that this includes.

The world building and pacing is pretty good and I was interested in the story and people but it was a bit tough to get through.

Heir to thorn and flame follows Max as he comes to terms with his abilities as a mage in a world full of liars and tricksters who only want to use him. I loved seeing max’s relationships evolve with Camron and Simion. (Is it wrong to say I have soft spot for Camron???)
I’m terms of the story itself, I thought it was a great intro into the Heir to thorn and flame series. I could see fans of zodiac academy and fourth wing enjoying this story a lot. Especially those who are looking for some refreshing LGBT stories. My only complaint is that I did feel that some conversations (especially all the promises) got repetitive and I yearned for Max to take back some of his agency, and I think I prefer the original title a bit more.
I look forward to reading more of Ben’s work in the near future.

I received this audiobook as an ARC.

The company for sure chose a very good narrator. I feel like he embodied the story on the characters that were portrayed. The storyline was a little bit rocky in terms of some of the dark things that are covered. But I for sure really got into it about a quarter of the way through. The character Maximus for sure is a complex character that had to go through a lot in his journey, and it for sure was enthralling one. His love interest Camron for sure had me halfway in love with him. Because the way that he was described was very solid, caring, and supportive man.
The narrator for sure kept my interest with his way of changing his voice to be able to tell the difference between each character. Even the creep Silas sounded creepy with his nasally voice.
The storyline was solid, the narrator was solid, character development was solid. Overall a pretty great start to series. 4 stars.
Thanks to NetGalley & Bookouture Audio for a ARC audio in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks NetGalley and publishers for the audio arc of Heir to thorn and flame by Ben Alderson.

I struggled to finish this as the dialogue was chaotic at times.