The First Binding cover art

The First Binding

Tales of Tremaine, Book 1

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 months free
Try for £0.00
£8.99/mo thereafter. Renews automatically. Terms apply. Offer ends 31 July 2025 at 23:59 GMT.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.

The First Binding

By: R.R. Virdi
Narrated by: Vikas Adam
Try for £0.00

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Offer ends 31 July 2025 23:59 GMT. Cancel monthly.

Buy Now for £16.99

Buy Now for £16.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

All legends are born of truths. And just as much lies. These are mine. Judge me for what you will. But you will hear my story first.

I buried the village of Ampur under a mountain of ice and snow. Then I killed their god. I've stolen old magics and been cursed for it. I started a war with those that walked before mankind and lost the princess I loved, and wanted to save. I've called lightning and bound fire. I am legend. And I am a monster.

My name is Ari.

And this is the story of how I let loose the first evil.

Thus begins the tale of a storyteller and a singer on the run and hoping to find obscurity in a tavern bar. But the sins of their past aren't forgotten, and neither are their enemies. Their old lives are catching up swiftly and it could cost them the entire world. No one can escape their pasts and all stories must have an ending.

©2022 R.R. Virdi (P)2022 Orion Publishing Group Limited Dragons & Mythical Creatures Epic Epic Fantasy Fantasy Fiction Magic Mythology

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Ascendant cover art
The Will of the Many cover art
Nocturne cover art
Defiance of the Fall cover art
Antimage cover art
Montego cover art
Of Blood and Fire cover art
The Collarbound cover art
The Ember Blade cover art
The Justice of Kings cover art
The Primal Hunter cover art
The Path of Ascension cover art
Edge of the Woods: An Epic Fantasy Adventure cover art
Iron Prince cover art
Demon's Reign cover art
Metanoia cover art

Critic reviews

"Crafted with patience, passion and, most importantly, tremendous love. Read R.R. Virdi." (Jim Butcher)

"This book makes me remember why I love epic fantasy." (Kevin J. Anderson)

"A very personal epic fantasy about the consequences of our actions and the nature of heroism. Rich world-building, plenty of action and devious twists abound. Very highly recommended." (Jonathan Maberry)
All stars
Most relevant  
Forget the comparisons…..read/listen for the pure art of storytelling.
You will not be disappointed.

Fantastic narration by Vikas Adam.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The similarities between NOTW and the first binding are massive. It does have its variations, but the overall story arc of his younger self is almost identical. If you liked NOTW, personally I’d give it a listen because you will enjoy, although you will be constantly comparing it. The end of the book does lead you to think the second instalment is going to be different.

Very similar to NOTW, but it has its differences.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
First up, the narration. Vikas Adam is devine. The characters both male and female, young and old were clear and discernable without being cliché. He gives each character life and form, his accents were absolute perfection. It's a smooth almost soothing listen for such a long story. First class performance.

The story. There are really very few original story arcs in the fantasy genre. They usually follow similar lines in one way or another. That's why something so unique as Patrick Rothfuss’ ‘Name of the wind’ series stands out so much. I went into this trying to give the benefit of the doubt and not compare the two, but after a while it was struggle. There really are too many "similarities" here that it's almost impossible to ignore which is such a shame because I don't think it was the intention.

It's good story, it really is. Sadly because NOTW is so popular and loved this isn't getting the credit it's due. If the format could have been changed to be less copy, more nod, then I think it would be getting better reviews, but relying on a cultural twist to differentiate it isn't enough. It feels far too much like the same story in a different dress sometimes. Which is a shame, because it could be a wonderful story on its own with it without the similarities.

I have read and listened to both now and honestly, I really liked it. I recommend you give it a go and enjoy it for what it is, a colourful engaging and sometimes heartbreaking beginning to what I hope becomes a more original story as it goes. Give it a chance.

Glorious Narration

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
slow to start, but then gets good. quite a lot of similarities to another well known series, but enjoyable nonetheless!

slow, good, silar

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Really enjoyed the story, but painfully similar to Name or The Wind which was a bit distracting,

seems a bit familiar

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I tried but couldn’t finish this. I found it very derivative from Patrick Rothfuss’ ‘Name of the wind’ series even down to the protagonist being socially unacceptable, time with theatre folk, street living, aiming for acceptance at the ashram (read arcanist university) and an enigmatic girl turning up. Even the magic described used similar mind beliefs alar/folding and binding/sympathy. Patrick did it better and created more believable characters. Narrator was good.

Good writing but needs to use his own ideas

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A overall really good book with good foreshadowing done by the real time characters.
A lot of people and me including will compare it to The Name of the Wind. It has similarities but also really is its own book. And a good book at that. This is what I hope the first book in a long series.

Beautifully Written

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
It's like Name Of The Wind if it was written by a much worse author. I don't think it's plagiarism like others just not good

Got 30 hours in and gave up

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Phenomenal fantasy debut that takes clear inspiration from Patrick Rothfuss’ The Name of the Wind but still stands on its own completely. I had a fantastic time with the characters, plot, worldbuilding and themes of storytelling and “the making of a legend”.
My only two complaints are the length that definitely could’ve benefited from another round of editing, as well as the narration of the audiobook. Although the narrator did an overall decent job I really didn’t like the voice he put on for the female characters, especially Eloine. In fact it made me dislike her character, which obviously wasn’t the intended effect.

Fantastic debut

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
All legends are born of truths. And just as much lies. These are mine. Judge me for what you will. But you will hear my story first.

I buried the village of Ampur under a mountain of ice and snow. Then I killed their god. I've stolen old magics and been cursed for it. I started a war with those that walked before mankind and lost the princess I loved, and wanted to save. I've called lightning and bound fire. I am legend. And I am a monster.

My name is Ari.

And this is the story of how I let loose the first evil.

My comments:

I could not get into this one, the thought of reading another 40 or so hours I just could not face. Got a couple of hours in however could not see where the story was going and i'm not a fan of the stories within stories format. I would not have even got as far as I did if it were not for trying it due to a book club. Don't like not being able to finish a book however this one was just not for me. I did however like Viccus Adam the reader, never had him before however he did a grate job with the different voices for the characters again. People have told me this book does get better so might try it again in the future.

could not finish this one.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews