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Hell Bent

A Novel

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Hell Bent

Written by: Leigh Bardugo
Narrated by: Lauren Fortgang, Michael David Axtell
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About this listen

Long-listed, Barnes and Noble Best New Books of the Year, 2023

"The magic and violence of 'Hell Bent' comes to life in audiobook form."–USA Today

"This fervently delivered audiobook engrosses the listener through every twist and turn, making this sequel nearly impossible to pause."–AudioFile Magazine (Earphones Award)

Wealth. Power. Murder. Magic. The Ivy League is going straight to hell in the sequel to the smash New York Times bestseller Ninth House from #1 bestselling author Leigh Bardugo.

"Bardugo’s imaginative reach is brilliant."–Stephen King

Find a gateway to the underworld. Steal a soul out of hell. A simple plan, except people who make this particular journey rarely come back. But Galaxy “Alex” Stern is determined to break Darlington out of purgatory—even if it costs her a future at Lethe and at Yale.

Forbidden from attempting a rescue, Alex and Dawes can’t call on the Ninth House for help, so they assemble a team of dubious allies to save the gentleman of Lethe. Together, they will have to navigate a maze of arcane texts and bizarre artifacts to uncover the societies’ most closely guarded secrets, and break every rule doing it. But when faculty members begin to die off, Alex knows these aren’t just accidents. Something deadly is at work in New Haven, and if she is going to survive, she’ll have to reckon with the monsters of her past and a darkness built into the university’s very walls.

Thick with history and packed with Bardugo’s signature twists, Hell Bent brings to life an intricate world full of magic, violence, and all too real monsters.

A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books.

©2023 Leigh Bardugo (P)2023 Macmillan Audio Fantasy Horror Supernatural Thriller & Suspense Scary Fiction Paranormal Exciting Magic
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What the critics say

"Thrilling ... fascinating supporting players ... The taut plot, often grisly magic, lavish scene-setting, and wry humor combine to make this just as un-put-downable as the first installment. Readers will be wowed."–Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Bardugo doesn’t flinch from the dark sides of magic and human nature….This portrait of a survivor’s dogged determination to accomplish her goal will appeal to readers of dark academia, urban fantasy, and horror.”—Booklist (starred review)

“Vivid, intelligent, and funny at just the right moments, but best of all are the complex characters.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
All stars
Most relevant
I just found it funny where the two voice actors tryed to do each other's voices

very nice

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The story is captivating. The writing is excellent the performance wonderful. This is one book series I am truly in love with. The mix of realism and fantasy makes it feel close which can be unnerving but accelerating. I can’t wait for the third installment. Thank you Leigh Bardugo for writing these books as well as others.

Phenomenal writing

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Excellent story. I don’t know how I’ll manage until the next book is out.
I really like the narrators. They seem to really capture the characters in their voices well. The female narrator is exactly how I image Alex. The male narrator, is a spectacular match for the character well and brought out their personality so that the audio book has that extra depth compared to the written book. That doesn’t always happen and it can be awkward when the narration takes away from the book. But not here! It was a real joy to have such good narration to enhance a great story.

Great book on all levels.

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New fantasy, bew characters and layers of plot lines. I don't know where Leigh Bardugo comes up with her ideas but I'm so glad she does.

She's done it again.

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I loved the high stakes of Hell Bent. I worried that it wouldn’t be as engaging/dark/sumptuous as Ninth House, but I loved it even more. We return to Yale. We return to dark academia. And we return to Alex Stern. And we get to journey to Hell. Welcome to Hell Bent, where LB doesn’t tell us things but uses such description we can taste/touch/feel everything.

Loved the return of Alex

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Interesting story, I like the setting, the magic and mystery of it all. This author is really impressive in all the writing she does.Definitely worth a read.

Worth the read

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I enjoyed it overall, but it almost felt like a Scooby-Doo mystery with the unmasking of villain after villain!

Not what I expected.

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the performance was incredible, the story amazing. I even bought the hard copy as ai liked this book soooo much.

enjoyed every moment of it

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Was a big fan of Ninth House, but this one lost me a little bit. Started to feel a bit silly, and by the midway point I felt like I was stuck watching The Vampire Diaries on the CW.

Still, Lauren Fortgang did a good job of maintaining some gravitas in what had devolved into a goofy "Twilight Goes to Hell." Overall, worth listening if you loved Ninth House, but I'm not sure I'll bother with the next installment in the series.

Not as Good as Ninth House, But Still Alright

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I LOVED the Ninth House! I tend to rage quit Urban Fantasy as I find it overdone with wayyy too many tropes, but Bardugo's Yale is lush, complicated, and gritty. Her setting is real and concrete, as are her character's troubles (for the most part) and that roots the story in a believability that I find refreshing. I was happy that her superior, well researched world building continued on into Hell Bent.

A LOT happens in this book - maybe too much. There are definitely some tropes (no spoilers) that made me roll my eyes - the story may not feel like the most original; BUT, Bardugo's characters and their decisions off-set the black and white "good vs evil" dichotomy (there's my $10 word) prevalent in the genre. She's twisting and turning tropes with devilish glee and I can't wait to see where she takes her characters too next!

A Fun and World Expanding Sequel!

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