What happens when you're four books deep into a fantasy series and you're basically reading it instead of finishing your thesis? You keep going, obviously. Dr. Patel can wait. The Destroyer cannot.
So here's the thing about Book 4 - this is where Earle really leans into the epic fantasy warfare stuff. Like, really leans in. We're talking battle after battle, Kaiyer versus the Empress's forces, and honestly? It scratched an itch I didn't know I had. This is the kind of progression fantasy adjacent content that my D&D group would absolutely devour during a long campaign session.
Kevin T. Collins Carries This Thing
Let me be real with you. Collins is doing the heavy lifting here. His narration is clean, easy to follow, and he's got that dramatic flair that epic fantasy demands. His voice for Kaiyer has this gravelly intensity that just works - it grew on me more with each book. By hour fifteen, I was completely bought in.
But here's where it gets complicated. Xe Sands handles the female POV chapters, and look - I've heard her do great work elsewhere. In this particular production, though, something's off. Her delivery sometimes gets muddy, and I found myself rewinding more than I'd like to admit. Some listeners apparently found her voice straight-up annoying, which feels harsh, but I get where they're coming from. The contrast between the two narrators is jarring. Like going from a smooth highway to a gravel road.
(Don't get me wrong - dual narration can be amazing when it works. This just... doesn't quite stick the landing.)
The Battle Fatigue Is Real (But Also Kind of the Point?)
Okay, confession time: around hour twelve, I started to feel the battle scene repetition. Earle loves his combat sequences. LOVES them. If you're not into detailed sword-and-sorcery warfare, this will test your patience.
But here's my counterargument - and yes, I will die on this hill - the magic system and world-building underneath all that fighting is actually pretty solid. It's not Sanderson-level intricate, but it's got enough internal logic that my brain stayed engaged. Once and Future Witches has that same kind of methodical magic system that rewards paying attention—though the vibes are wildly different. The Empress as a villain has this cold, calculating presence that makes the stakes feel real.
The other thing that bugged some listeners was the modern language popping up in a medieval fantasy setting. You know what I mean - characters saying stuff that feels too contemporary. Honestly? I barely noticed. Maybe I've been corrupted by too much LitRPG where characters literally have stat screens. My tolerance for genre-blending is probably broken at this point.
Twenty-One Hours That Flew By (Mostly)
Here's the weird thing about this audiobook - despite my complaints about pacing and the narrator switch-ups, the 21 hours went by faster than I expected. I listened through three coding sessions, a weekend of procrastinating on my thesis, and one very long drive to visit my mom. (She asked about graduation again. I changed the subject to audiobooks. She stopped asking.)
The production quality itself is clean. No weird background noise, no audio glitches. Just two narrators doing their thing against a backdrop of fantasy warfare and political scheming.
Who's Rolling Initiative (And Who Should Sit This One Out)
If you're already invested in The Destroyer series, you're not stopping now. That's just how epic fantasy works - you're in too deep. If you're new to Earle, start with Book 1 and see if the vibe clicks before committing to this monster.
This is for the long-haul listeners. Commuters with 45-minute drives. People who want something to disappear into while doing mindless tasks. Skip it if you need a quick, tight narrative or if dual narration typically drives you up a wall.
The mature themes are present but not overwhelming. Violence is frequent (obviously, given all the battles), and there's some language that earns the content warning. Nothing that'll shock anyone who's read grimdark fantasy.
Saving My Progress Here
Would I listen again? Probably not - I've got too many unread books and an advisor sending passive-aggressive emails about my thesis timeline. But did I enjoy the ride? Yeah. Yeah, I did. Collins made it work, Sands had her moments, and Earle delivered exactly what he promised: epic fantasy warfare with a revenge-driven protagonist.
Now if you'll excuse me, I have a thesis to ignore and a Sanderson reread calling my name.
