The Lesser Devil

By: Christopher Ruocchio

Narrated by: Samuel Roukin

Can the youngest son of a noble house save his family from a plot generations in the making?

Crispin Marlowe grew up in his brother’s shadow, but Hadrian is gone, and his grandmother - the Duchess of Delos - is dying. 

Answering her summons, Crispin takes off on what should be a routine flight to the ducal palace from the castle at Devil’s Rest. But he is flying into a trap. There are whispers of treachery among the duchess’s many daughters, rumors of hidden knives in the planet’s court...if he can even make it there. 

With no one coming to save him and only his sister, Sabine, and a few injured guardsmen to protect him, House Marlowe’s least famous son must make his heroic stand, and contend not only the foes arrayed against his house, but with the cultists who dwell in the mountains above his family’s ancestral home....

©2020 Christopher Ruocchio (P)2020 Recorded Books

A great improvement and addition to the much slower first book to a more fast paced plot.

This Novella officially locked me into this series. This was sooooo good.

Crispin being a minor character in the first book that I despised, didn't even occur to me of being a returning character yet. Actually adoring Crispin, maybe even more then Hadrian, was especially not on my mind either. This novella however absolutely got me enjoying Crispin and his complex character as well, seeing him grow and mature was really interesting to see what time was able to do to him.

The plot was especially engaging here and started right away, although short, was incredibly well written. I really liked the great work this author did in re-introducing and building characters to quickly shift to get a compelling plot together. The great descriptive writing at times made me feel like I was watching a movie.

I really can't wait until this character is revisited, I hope, in the main series. This was such a great book to read in an afternoon and a great pallete cleanser from the overly slow full size novel that the first book was.

Amazing Characterization

Redeemed the main character of this book from an annoying little brother to someone i could understand and sympathize with.

Excellent

Such a good story and excellent view into the other side after Hadrian ran away. It was heartwarming, Chris does such a good job at character development, without rushing that I am used to, I cared about so many of these characters and felt loss as each of them died or were wounded. Beautifully done, never stop writing books!

Beautiful short story

Interesting interlude to book two. gives life to the marlowe family. I enjoyed the listen. well worth the time and credit.

Essential Reading for Sun Eater Fans

I love a novella that can pack a punch like this. Hadrian is the sole narrator of his autobiography in Empire of Silence so we have to trust how he feels about the world and people around him, and he didn’t leave me caring for Crispin. The Lesser Devil completely changed how much I should lean on Hadrian’s perspective moving forward. Crispin is left raw from the loss of his brother and having lived in his shadow. His story is scaled down from space travel and alien civilizations to personal growth, family love, and (cliché or not) humanity. A beautifully written novella that shouldn’t be skipped for fans of the Sun Eater series!