Listen free for 30 days

Preview
  • Silk & Steel: Silk & Steel Series, Book 1

  • Written by: Ariana Nash
  • Narrated by: Cornell Collins
  • Length: 10 hrs and 16 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (9 ratings)

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo + applicable taxes after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Silk & Steel: Silk & Steel Series, Book 1

Written by: Ariana Nash
Narrated by: Cornell Collins
Try for $0.00

$14.95 per month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $22.26

Buy Now for $22.26

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Tax where applicable.

Publisher's Summary

A tormented dragon prince. A captured elven assassin. Duty demands they fight for their people, but love has other plans.

Eroan, one of the last elven assassins, lives for one purpose: Kill the queen.

He would have succeeded if not for her last line of defense: Prince Lysander. Now, captured and forced into the queen's harem, Eroan sees another opportunity. Why kill just the queen when he can kill them all? It would be simple, if not for the troubled and alluring dragon prince. A warrior, a killer, and something else...something Eroan finds himself inexplicably drawn to.

©2019 Ariana Nash (P)2019 Tantor
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

What listeners say about Silk & Steel: Silk & Steel Series, Book 1

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    6
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    2
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    6
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    2
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    5
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Such a good series

In a post-apocalyptic world where metal and jeweled dragons rule over all and fight among themselves for power, Eroan Ilanea is an elf assassin sent to kill the dragon Queen Elisandra. Nobody made it as far as he did, but he is caught, imprisoned, and tortured. While in captivity, he catches the eyes of Lysander, the amethyst dragon prince, who is considered broken and a failure because he is interested in men only. It soon becomes evident that Lysander is also trapped, and is as much a prisoner of the queen as Eroan is, only in a different way. While Eroan is stubborn and refuses to escape until he finishes his mission and kills the queen, Lysander longs for freedom and against his better judgment wants to save the elf even though it’s considered weakness and treason.

Silk & Steel was such an enthralling read! It flew by and kept me at the edge of my seat for most of it. The beginning does remind me of Captive Prince and I would recommend it if you like C.S. Pacat's series, although keep in mind that while it has a similar vibe at times, the story is not the same. Some ideas are similar, and the beginning is too, but as the plot progresses, it becomes its own compelling and magical story and is very enjoyable.

The atmosphere is dark and some heavy themes are incorporated into the story, but it is very well done. Still, you need to read the trigger warnings first! The world-building is also well done, we get information as the story progresses, and it is well integrated into the plot, no info-dump here. I have to say though that the fact that they're talking about France was so weird at first because it made me realize that this book is actually a dystopian/post-apocalyptic urban fantasy, it just felt like a “regular” fantasy because of the elves and the dragon-shifters, and the lack of technology in general.

This book is full of action, so many things happen and it is fast-paced, yet it does not feel rushed. We have just enough time to absorb what happened, and then we're thrown back into the action for the next fight, escape plan, or obstacle to overcome. The last few chapters were intense, with a fast pace and so much tension, that I had to refrain from skimming the book because I only wanted to know what would happen to Lysander and Eroan, and after they got separated I was desperate for a reunion. I was so anxious and so angry when they kept almost meeting each other but never quite got there!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

TRIGGER WARNINGS (I list the big ones)

This book NEEDS trigger warnings for:
incest right out the gate, torture, graphic sexual violence throughout, and at least one instance of body horror/mutilation.

This book was technically well written and had fascinating world building but I cannot stress enough how this is not a “spicy book” it includes graphically sexual content in almost every chapter and yet only ONE throughout the entire book is even remotely consensual.

Some mild spoilers below but relevant if you wanna know what you’re getting into (I wish I had known…):

I kept listening because the narrator is fantastic and I kept hoping the story would have at least some light but it was just kick after kick after kick. This book is focused entirely on rape fantasies from beginning to end and in as many different scenarios as possible…

I congratulate the author on her ability to create suspense and a certain level of interest (think ‘seeing a car crash and you can’t look away’)

And the narrator did a very good job with different characters and accents (I highly recommend listening to his readings of any K. J. Charles book)

I wish there had been any kind of warning of exactly how focused this book is on graphic sexual violence (from beginning to end with nothing to lighten the horror).

Overall I just feel sick and sad having finished this book…

Also big spoiler but the main characters only interact a handful of times and the only truly consensual sex scene throughout the whole book isn’t even between them.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!