Web of Vows and Vengeance

I went into *Web of Vows and Vengeance* expecting one thing—another twisty romance with a fantasy gloss—and came out the other side obsessed. The worldbuilding here is so visceral it’s almost suffocating; Ashbrook doesn’t just describe a tournament of the damned, she makes you *feel* the weight of the magic, the grind of the competitors, and the sheer desperation of the protagonist as she’s forced to play a game where every move could be her last. Amanda Leigh Cobb’s narration is the secret sauce—she nails the protagonist’s evolution from broken to ruthless, her voice hardening just enough with each chapter to make the transformation chilling. Palmini, meanwhile, chews through lines as the primary antagonist, and his performance is so deliciously smarmy it’s almost a shame he’s not the main narrator. That said, the production isn’t flawless; there are a few moments where the sound mixing feels a bit muddy, particularly in large crowd scenes where the dialogue gets swallowed by the ambient magic hum. And while I appreciate the lack of easy answers, the ending left me craving just a *little* more closure—it’s ambiguous in a way that works for the story’s tone, but it also feels like a missed opportunity to stick the landing. Still, these are minor quibbles. This audiobook is a firehose of emotions, a fantasy-romance that’s equal parts *Hunger Games* and *A Court of Thorns and Roses*, but with a bite that lingers.