Audiobooks Like King of Thorns

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James Clamp narrates King of Thorns with a controlled brittleness that fits a king who has survived by becoming harder — the voice carries menace without theatrics, across a 14-hour story told in two timelines that Clamp distinguishes with subtle shifts in register rather than obvious character voices. The grimdark atmosphere settles in early and doesn't let up. Seven of these recommendations come from Mark Lawrence's own catalog, and the rest carry the same dark-fantasy weight and moral ambiguity.

10 audiobooks for fans of King of Thorns

  1. 1
    Grey Sister cover

    Grey Sister

    Book of the Ancestor • Book 2

    by Mark Lawrence

    Narrated by Heather O'Neill

    4.41 ABR Score (42.9K ratings)
    ★ 4.35 Goodreads (38.6K) ★ 4.68 Audible (4.3K)
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    Nona Grey studies mystical arts while choosing her path among the convent's orders: warrior, spy, mystic, or bride of the Ancestor.

  2. 2
    Prince of Fools cover

    Prince of Fools

    The Red Queen's War • Book 1

    by Mark Lawrence

    Narrated by Tim Gerard Reynolds

    4.02 ABR Score (39.8K ratings)
    ★ 4.05 Goodreads (35.5K) ★ 4.35 Audible (4.3K)
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    Prince Jalan prefers wine and women to warfare, but a Norse warrior's magical curse forces him on a quest across Lawrence's brutal Broken Empire alongside an undead companion.

  3. 3
    Holy Sister cover

    Holy Sister

    Book of the Ancestor • Book 3

    by Mark Lawrence

    Narrated by Heather O'Neill

    4.36 ABR Score (35.2K ratings)
    ★ 4.3 Goodreads (31.8K) ★ 4.66 Audible (3.4K)
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    Nona Grey's journey concludes as she faces final trials while the empire crumbles under ice and invasion. Heather O'Neill guides listeners through the climactic battles and revelations.

  4. 4
    Daughter of Crows cover

    Daughter of Crows

    The Academy of Kindness • Book 1

    by Mark Lawrence

    Narrated by Olivia Dowd

    3.88 ABR Score (301 ratings)
    ★ 4.24 Goodreads (278) ★ 4.83 Audible (23)
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    Lawrence launches a brutal new series about an academy that creates agents of divine retribution. Olivia Dowd's narration perfectly captures the dark atmosphere of this Fury-inspired fantasy.

  5. 5
    Red Sister cover

    Red Sister

    Book of the Ancestor • Book 1

    by Mark Lawrence

    Narrated by Heather O'Neill

    4.19 ABR Score (70.2K ratings)
    ★ 4.16 Goodreads (63.4K) ★ 4.47 Audible (6.8K)
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    Young Nona Grey enters a convent where girls train as holy assassins, wielding rare blood talents in a dying world orbiting a red sun. Heather O'Neill captures both the brutal training and mystical elements with fierce precision.

  6. 6
    Unfettered III: New Tales cover

    Unfettered III: New Tales

    The Chathrand Voyage #Thasha's cure for cabin fever • Book 3

    by Shawn Speakman, Tad Williams, Naomi Novik, Megan Lindholm, John Gwynne, David Anthony Durham, Callie Bates, Jason Denzel, Carrie Vaughn, Deborah A. Wolf, Anna Stephens, Patrick Swenson, Ramon Terrell, Peter Orullian, Terry Brooks, Lev Grossman, Seanan McGuire, Delilah S. Dawson, Mark Lawrence, Brian Herbert, Kevin J. Anderson, Brandon Sanderson, Robert Jordan, Todd Lockwood, Cat Rambo, Robert V.S. Redick, Ken Scholes, Scott Sigler, Anna Smith Spark, Marc Turner

    Narrated by Khristine Hvam, Natasha Soudek, Mark Bramhall, Michael Page, Vikas Adam, Tim Gerard Reynolds, Andrew Wincott, Luke Daniels, Brian Nishii

    3.84 ABR Score (779 ratings)
    ★ 3.98 Goodreads (571) ★ 4.37 Audible (208)
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    This charity anthology features stories from fantasy's biggest names, with multiple narrators bringing each author's unique voice to life.

  7. 7
    Unfettered II: New Tales cover

    Unfettered II: New Tales

    Gunnie Rose #0.0 - The Gunnie

    by Shawn Speakman, Naomi Novik, Brandon Sanderson, Jim Butcher, Charlaine Harris, Michael J. Sullivan, Janny Wurts, Bradley P. Beaulieu, Mark Lawrence, Seanan McGuire, Peter Orullian, Aidan Moher, Erin Lindsey, John A. Pitts, Anthony Ryan, Scott Sigler, Django Wexler, Rachel Caine, Sarah Beth Durst, David Farland, Terry Brooks

    Narrated by Sarah Coomes, Michael Kramer, Emily Woo Zeller, Nick Podehl, Erin Mallon, Tim Gerard Reynolds

    3.78 ABR Score (1.5K ratings)
    ★ 3.92 Goodreads (1.1K) ★ 4.25 Audible (340)
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    Twenty-one fantasy heavyweights contribute original stories to this charity anthology, creating a sampler that showcases the genre's current masters across multiple narrative styles.

  8. 8
    Unbound cover

    Unbound

    Annwn Cycle #The Dead's Revenant • Book 1

    by Shawn Speakman, Terry Brooks, Seanan McGuire, Mark Lawrence, Anthony Ryan, Tim Marquitz, Brian Staveley, Michael J. Sullivan, John Marco, Peter Orullian, Kat Richardson, Sam Sykes, Kristen Britain, Mazarkis Williams, Jim Butcher, Rachel Caine, Harry Connolly, Delilah S. Dawson, David Anthony Durham, Jason M. Hough, Mary Robinette Kowal, Joe Abercrombie

    Narrated by Dick Hill, Tim Gerard Reynolds, Nick Podehl, Allyson Johnson, Christian Rodska, Emily Bauer

    3.74 ABR Score (1.3K ratings)
    ★ 3.96 Goodreads (1.0K) ★ 4.13 Audible (246)
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    Twenty-three fantasy authors contribute unrestrained tales without thematic constraints in this genre celebration. The six-narrator ensemble including Tim Gerard Reynolds and Nick Podehl brings remarkable variety to each story.

  9. 9
    Carl's Doomsday Scenario cover

    Carl's Doomsday Scenario

    Dungeon Crawler Carl • Book 2

    by Matt Dinniman

    Narrated by Jeff Hays

    4.78 ABR Score (217.5K ratings)
    ★ 4.51 Goodreads (187.5K) ★ 4.89 Audible (30.0K)
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    Carl and his magic cat Princess Donut navigate the second level of an alien game show designed to kill humans for entertainment. Jeff Hays perfectly captures the absurd humor of this death-trap RPG scenario.

  10. 10
    Skin Game cover

    Skin Game

    The Dresden Files • Book 15

    by Jim Butcher

    Narrated by James Marsters

    4.77 ABR Score (124.5K ratings)
    ★ 4.56 Goodreads (93.2K) ★ 4.88 Audible (31.3K)
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    The Winter Queen forces Harry Dresden to help his worst enemies rob the supernatural equivalent of Fort Knox in this heist-story installment. James Marsters returns with another pitch-perfect performance, capturing both Harry's reluctance and his grudging professionalism.

How We Rank Audiobooks

Rankings are driven by listener ratings and review counts from Audible and Goodreads. Books with high ratings across a large number of listeners rank higher — a 4.5 with 50,000 ratings says more than a 4.8 with 200.

Unlike most book lists, we weight audiobook-specific factors: narrator performance, production quality, and how well a story translates to audio. A great book with a poor narration isn't a great audiobook.

We don't accept paid placements or prioritize new releases. These rankings reflect what listeners actually enjoy, not what's being promoted.

Rankings update periodically as new ratings come in and new titles are added to the collection.

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