Audiobook Review: A Darkness at the Door (Dauntless Path #3)

Author: Intisar Khanani

Narrator: Shiromi Arserio

Audiobook Length: 15 hours 7 minutes

I’ve been cursed, betrayed, and sold into slavery – but the truth I carry can’t be allowed to die.

Only Rae knows the extent of the corruption at the heart of the kingdom of Menaiya, from the noble lord who betrayed her, to the Circle of Mages whose wards protect the slavers from discovery. Injured and imprisoned on a slave ship, Rae’s options are quickly running out. When a desperate escape attempt goes terribly wrong, she finds herself indebted to a terrifying Fae sorceress.

Now Rae will not rest until she has rescued her fellow prisoners and freed her land from the darkness that has taken hold. To succeed, she’ll need every ally she can find-including Bren, the thief who may have stolen her heart. But Bren is hiding his own bloody secrets, and the curses that encircle Rae have sunk their claws into her mind. With her debts coming due and time running short, all the truths in the world may not be enough to save her kingdom, or herself.

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A Darkness at the Door is the sequel to The Theft of Sunlight and is the conclusion to Rae’s story. Although this is the third novel in the series, the first, Thorn, focuses on another main character, Alyrra, who is a secondary character in the past two novels. After the cliffhanger ending of the previous story, Rae is set on rescuing herself and her fellow prisoners. The plot increases in danger as Rae continues her journey to rid the land of corruption and even runs into Bren again. There is a lot to love about this story, so I am glad that it lived up to my high expectations.

While I cannot commentate on the accuracy on the rep of Rae’s disability, I still loved how it was incorporated into the story. It felt like this was a natural part of her and not simply added to the novel for the sake of representation. It also is not a forgotten aspect of her character as it is never overlooked or magically cured just to move the story along. Her personality was well-written, and I loved her journey as she was just a great character. She may not change entirely throughout her story, but she does experience some growth while remaining true to herself.

It was great to learn more about Bren in this story. He was always a fascinating character, so it was not only enjoyable to see him interact more with Rae, but to explore his character. Their romance was very sweet, although not without its obstacles. The two of them approached justice differently and seem to have different ideas about the future. They care about each other a lot, but Rae is not willing to sacrifice her beliefs just because she wants to be with Bren. Instead, there were a lot of conversations between the two characters about these differences and I loved this and how it was included in the story.

The found family aspect in the story was well-incorporated as the relationships that develop between the characters is all well-done. Although this is a duology for Rae, I loved how Alyrra and Kestrin had their stories continue in the background and it naturally all tied together. It appears that this will be last in the series, although I hope that there is potential to expand it and revisit the world. Even if it has new characters, it would be nice to visit Bren, Rae, Alyrra, and Kestrin again. Overall, this was an excellent addition to the series, and I adore Rae as a character. I hope the author continues with this style as it was greatly enjoyable, and I cannot wait to read what she writes next!