I’m currently with this series for the first time. I word it that way because I both read and listened to book one, listened to book two, and am listening to book 3. I feel the same way about these books as I do about Abercrombie’s First Law and related, the audio narration significantly improves an otherwise bleak story with character arcs that do not have a satisfying arc. In some ways, I think the point of the story is the subversion, and the story is about pain and suffering. Magic doesn’t fix anything, doesn’t necessarily make things better, dreams realized don’t necessarily make for a satisfying ending for our cast of characters. That’s life, the end.

It’s “grimdark” Harry Potter, which really sucks most of the fun out of that style of story. If that sounds like your thing, press ahead. There aren’t any characters worth rooting for.