The Darkness That Comes Before

4.0 avg 149 votes

About this book

Strikingly original in its conception, ambitious in scope, with characters engrossingly and vividly drawn, the first book in R. Scott Bakker's Prince of Nothing series creates a remarkable world from whole cloth—it's language and classes of people, its cities, religions, mysteries, taboos, and rituals—the kind of all-embracing universe that has thrilled readers of Stephen R Donaldson and George R.R. Martin.It's a world scarred by an apocalyptic past, evoking a time both two thousand years past and two thousand years into the future, as untold thousands gather for a crusade. Travelling among them, two men and two women are ensnared by a mysterious traveler, Anasurimbor Kellhus—part warrior, part philosopher, part sorcerous, charismatic presence—from lands long thought dead. The Darkness that Comes Before is a history of this great holy war, and like all histories, the survivors write its conclusion.With this stunning debut, R. Scott Bakker is poised to become one of the next great fantasy writers of his generation. The Darkness that Comes Before proves again that epic fantasy can be intelligent, majestic, and terrifying.

4.0 ★★★★☆ average of 3 sources · 149 votes
Open Library 4.0 1
1★2★3★4★5★
Apple Books 4.5 44
Hardcover 3.9 149

Reader Profile

Enjoyment80Difficulty60Influence23Popularity40Classic23

4.0/5 · 149 readers · 589 pages · ≈ 10 h 54 m · Moderate

How long does it take to read The Darkness That Comes Before?

About ≈ 10 h 54 m — 589 pages, assuming roughly 250 words per page at 225 words per minute.Typical novel≈ 5 h 56 mThe Darkness That Comes Before~10 h 54 m

How many pages is The Darkness That Comes Before?

589 pages in its most-read edition.Typical novel320The Darkness That Comes Before589

What genre is The Darkness That Comes Before?

It sits on the Science Fiction, Fiction shelves.

Is The Darkness That Comes Before in the public domain?

No — it is still under copyright.

Who wrote The Darkness That Comes Before?

R. Scott Bakker.

The Darkness That Comes Before ★ 4.0 · 3 sources Check price →