The Pariah cover art

The Pariah

The Covenant of Steel, Book 1

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
1 credit a month to buy any audiobook in our entire collection.
Access to thousands of additional audiobooks and Originals from the Plus Catalogue.
Member-only deals & discounts.
Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Pariah

By: Anthony Ryan
Narrated by: Steven Brand
Try Premium Plus free

Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $33.99

Buy Now for $33.99

About this listen

When the task is a killing, be quick and make sure of it.

Torment is an indulgence.

Save it for only the most deserving.

Born into the troubled kingdom of Albermaine, Alwyn Scribe is raised as an outlaw. Quick of wit and deft with a blade, Alwyn is content with the freedom of the woods and the comradeship of his fellow thieves. But an act of betrayal sets him on a new path - one of blood and vengeance, which eventually leads him to a soldier's life in the king's army.

Fighting under the command of Lady Evadine Courlain, a noblewoman beset by visions of a demonic apocalypse, Alwyn must survive war and the deadly intrigues of the nobility if he hopes to claim his vengeance. But as dark forces, both human and arcane, gather to oppose Evadine's rise, Alwyn faces a choice: can he be a warrior, or will he always be an outlaw?

The Pariah begins a dark and bloody new fantasy epic from New York Times best-selling author Anthony Ryan, whose books have sold more than a million copies worldwide.

©2021 Anthony Ryan (P)2021 Hachette Audio UK Dark Fantasy Epic Epic Fantasy Fantasy Fiction

Critic Reviews

"A master storyteller." (Mark Lawrence)

"A gritty, heart-pounding tale of betrayal and bloody vengeance. I loved every single word." (John Gwynne)

"The Pariah is Anthony Ryan at his best. A fast-paced, brutal fantasy novel with larger-than-life characters and a plot full of intrigue and suspense." (Grimdark Magazine)
All stars
Most relevant  
loved it will definitely buy the next in series can't wait for it thank for a good read

good book will listen to the next

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
one of the best books I had please reading to date. characters are rich and well developed. story keeps you on the edge of the sit throughout entire adventure. a must read!

simply amazing

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
a great story, engaging characters and a great performance by the narrator. would recommend it as a great listen.

great

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
excellent! well worth the read :-) is an excellent storyteller. can't wait for the second book of the series. :-)

a gripping tail!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
narrator was good, but I struggled to keep interested. needed to move quicker.. did like most of the characters.

Adequate but barely

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
What i hate most about a book is when the author spends 20 minutes describing the weather. This book does none of this, cutting straight to it and get's the story going and what a great story its been. Hope the rest of the books in this story stay to this standard.

Great story and even better pacing

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I really liked the story and kept trying to persevere for this reason but realised I could listen to entire chapters without actually registering any of the words! The narrator doesn't use different accents or even change his voice slightly for any of the different characters and his pace and tone were mostly unchanging. I feel like this performance really detracted from what seemed like an excellent story and I couldn't finish the book.

Excellent story but lacklustre narration!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Anthony Ryan is a master of his craft. Like the Raven’s Shadow books, the hero of The Covenant of Steel is flawed but posses a particular strength and unique qualities that makes you hope for his success. Ryan’s narrative is flawless - characters are exquisitely crafted, the scenery dark and detailed and the action perfectly described - from the hidden knife thrust to the trading of sword strokes. Again Steven Brand is the perfect performer. I love his accent, timbre and pace. He doesn’t need to adopt a voice for each character like some narrators, the narrative is so mesmerising and Brand’s narration so enthralling it’s not required. If you love fantasy, you will love The Pariah.

Gripping

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
It took some time to warm up to this book in both narration and prose, but once I did it was awesome. Different from many other generic fantasy worlds, this one feels so much more alive with unique characters fitting well into a well crafted world. This easily fits into one of my top 10.

Captivating storytelling

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Ryan's previous books are excellent. And this bests them, comfortably. Highly recommended. The performance is topnotch too.

Anthony Ryan's best work to date

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.