I received this book for free from Advance Reader Copy, NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Sanctuary by Ilona Andrews Series: Roman's Chronicles
on July 30, 2024
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Format: Audiobook
Source: Advance Reader Copy, NetGalley
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Ilona Andrews comes a novella featuring Roman, our favorite Volhv wizard in the always intriguing, colorful, volatile Kate Daniels world.
It’s not easy serving Chernobog, the God of Destruction, Darkness and Death…especially during the holidays; and especially when you’re out of eggnog and one of your pesky, freeloading mythic creatures has eaten your last cookie.
Roman would like nothing more than to be left alone, but when a wounded boy stumbles into his yard and begs for sanctuary, Roman takes him in. Now elite mercenaries are camped out on his property, combat mages are dousing the house with fire, and strange priests are unleashing arcane magic. They thought Roman was easy pickings, just a hermit in the woods, but they chose the wrong dark priest to annoy. For while Roman might be patient, he is the Black Volhv, filled with the love of his terrible god. For his adversaries, it's a fight to the death, but for him, it's just another day in the neighborhood.
This review is for the audio book.
It’s no secret I love Ilona Andrews, so I was all-in when I saw Roman was getting a story! This novella does not disappoint.
The book opens with our favorite Dark Volvh in a mood. He’s kind of mad at his god, Chernobog, he’s out of eggnog, and he thinks one of the many strays he’s taken in may have eaten his cookies. And during all of this, some commotion outside catches his attention. A teenage boy is unconscious and cradling a puppy. A couple of more strays to add to his collection.
This book went in a different direction than I expected, and I loved every moment. Not only did I enjoy being back in the Kate Daniels universe, oddly enough, I didn’t miss Kate. I thought for sure I would miss seeing her as his friend. But this book does a great job of focusing on Roman while preserving the feel of the Kate Daniels books.
I really like Roman, and getting so much of his perspective, his backstory, his life, was something I really enjoyed. I look forward to more books in the Roman Chronicles, and I hope that Ilona Andrews has the time to continue on with the series.
I don’t think they could have found a better narrator. This man’s voice is fantastic. He does well with all of the voices, he does well with the pronunciation of Russian words, and he really made this audiobook that much more enjoyable. Chris Brinkley does an an amazing job.
***Audiobook ARC courtesy of the publisher via Netgalley, but I also bought the ebook
