Onyx Storm audiobook vs book: which should you choose?
Violet Sorrengail leaves Basgiath to hunt for allies beyond Navarre’s failing wards. Four narrators, one per point of view, make the third Empyrean book a clear listen.
Listen on Audible
Listen to Onyx Storm for its four narrators: Rebecca Soler is Violet, Teddy Hamilton is Xaden, and Jasmin Walker and Justis Bolding take Imogen’s and Rhiannon’s chapters in the final battle, so you always know whose eyes you are seeing through. The audiobook won the 2025 Goodreads Choice Award, and it carries 672 pages easily. Only the map is better in print.
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The audiobook at a glance
| Recording | UK and US edition, our verdict |
|---|---|
| Narrators | Rebecca Soler (Violet), Teddy Hamilton (Xaden), Jasmin Walker and Justis Bolding (Imogen and Rhiannon) |
| Length | 23 hours 52 minutes (23h 52m), unabridged |
| At 1.5x | about 15h 55m |
| At 2x | about 11h 56m |
| Audio publisher and date | Recorded Books, 21 January 2025 |
| Audiobook price | £21.02 on Audible UK; $30.64 on Audible US |
| Kindle price | £5.99 on Amazon UK |
| UK paperback, 672 pages, March 2026; UK hardback, 527 pages, 2025; US Red Tower, 544 pages | |
| Listener rating | Performance 4.67 from 4,070 ratings (UK); 4.73 from 38,213 (US) |
The same Recorded Books recording is sold on Audible UK and US, so the UK listing is the one scored. We couldn’t confirm which of Jasmin Walker and Justis Bolding reads Imogen and which reads Rhiannon.
GraphicAudio’s full-cast version comes in two parts (19h 58m in all), but it is a dramatised adaptation, not the full text, so it isn’t scored. Ratings and prices checked 5 November 2026. Prices change often. Amazon US does not show Kindle prices outside the US, so US Kindle prices are not given.
Lengths checked 5 November 2026. Speed times are calculated.
Onyx Storm
Rebecca Yarros
- Genre
- Romantasy
- Series
- The Empyrean, book 3
- First published
- January 2025
- Length
- 672 pages (UK paperback)
- On audio
- 23 hrs 52 mins, four narrators
- Prizes
- Goodreads Choice Award 2025, audiobook
On this page
Why we reached this verdict
Every book on this site is checked against the same thirteen questions. They are based on research into what most people find easier to follow in each format, not on whether the book is any good.
Checked, not a factor here (9)
One narrator for each point of view (10), the Goodreads Choice audiobook award (6) and the book’s length (3) give listening 19 points, while the printed map (3) gives reading 3. That makes it a clear listen at 82%.
Every book gets the same thirteen checks, set in advance. Verdicts are never paid for or influenced by affiliate links. Last edited 5 November 2026, and rechecked every year as editions and narrators change. Read the checks in full · Is listening the same as reading? See what the research says.
The recording in detail
- Scored
- Rebecca Soler, Teddy Hamilton, Jasmin Walker, Justis Bolding, Recorded Books, 2025, 23h 52m, unabridged
- Critic review
- Goodreads Choice Award 2025, audiobook (a readers’ vote)
- Alternatives
- GraphicAudio dramatised adaptation, two parts, full cast (not scored)
- What you miss
- The black and white map in the UK edition
What this book actually is
Onyx Storm is the third book in Rebecca Yarros’s Empyrean series, after Fourth Wing and Iron Flame. Violet Sorrengail leaves Basgiath War College to look for allies beyond Navarre’s failing wards.
Violet tells most of the story, with chapters from Xaden, Rhiannon and Imogen near the end. It sold 2.7 million copies in its first week. Threshing Day (September 2026) is a collection of 13 Empyrean stories, not book 4, which has no title or date as of November 2026.
The case for reading it
The UK edition has a black and white map and illustrated lining papers, and no PDF comes with the audiobook, so the map is only in print.
The Literary Lifestyle says Yarros “repeatedly calls Onyx Storm characters by their last name” and that the cheat sheet in the book is “nowhere near enough”. If you lose track of who is who, the page lets you flip back.
The case for listening to it
Each point of view has its own narrator. Rebecca Soler is Violet and Teddy Hamilton is Xaden, and in the final battle Jasmin Walker and Justis Bolding read Imogen’s and Rhiannon’s chapters, so the switches are clear the moment they happen.
The audiobook won the 2025 Goodreads Choice Award, and Kirkus says Soler “delivers a subtle, nuanced performance as Violet”. At 672 pages, it is also a long book that the audiobook carries well.
The audiobook in detail
Four narrators read the Recorded Books audiobook, unabridged, in 23 hours 52 minutes. It came out on 21 January 2025, and the same recording is on Audible UK and US. Listeners rate the performance 4.67 on Audible UK and 4.73 from over 38,000 ratings on Audible US.
GraphicAudio has also made a full-cast dramatised adaptation in two parts, which is not the full text.
Who should ignore this verdict
If you like to check the map as the story moves beyond Navarre, read it in print. For everyone else, the four narrators make this one to listen to.
Kindle
- 672 pages (UK paperback)
- Includes the map
- About 11 hours to read (our estimate)
Related verdicts
Fourth Wing
Book 1 of the Empyrean.
Iron FlameRebecca YarrosSame authorIron Flame
Book 2, the longest in the series.
Threshing Day
Empyrean stories, read after Onyx Storm.
A Court of Wings and Ruin
A romantasy book 3 with a war climax.
A Game of Thrones
Many viewpoints and a map.
Dungeon Crawler Carl
Carl tells the whole story in the first person, and Jeff Hays reads every line, even the second-person system messages, so one voice carries it naturally. At 464 pages in hardback it's a long read, which goes further on audio.
Start hereHow we decide
The thirteen questions behind every verdict on this site.
Questions people ask
Who narrates the Onyx Storm audiobook?
Four narrators read Onyx Storm. Rebecca Soler voices Violet, Teddy Hamilton voices Xaden, and Jasmin Walker and Justis Bolding read the chapters told by Imogen and Rhiannon during the final battle. A separate GraphicAudio dramatised version has a full cast.
How long is the Onyx Storm audiobook?
23 hours 52 minutes, unabridged: about 15 hours 55 minutes at 1.5x and 11 hours 56 minutes at 2x (calculated).
Is the Onyx Storm audiobook abridged?
No. The four-narrator Recorded Books edition is unabridged. The GraphicAudio version is a dramatised adaptation in two parts.
How many pages is Onyx Storm?
The UK paperback (March 2026) has 672 pages. The UK hardback has 527 pages and the US edition has 544.
Whose point of view is Onyx Storm told from?
Violet Sorrengail tells most of the story. Near the end there are chapters from Xaden, Rhiannon and Imogen, and each is read by a different narrator in the audiobook.
Did the Onyx Storm audiobook win an award?
Yes. Onyx Storm won the 2025 Goodreads Choice Award for audiobook, a readers’ vote, as well as the romantasy category (Kirkus, 5 December 2025).
Is there an Onyx Storm TV show?
Not as such. Amazon MGM Studios is making a Fourth Wing series for Prime Video, with Esther McGregor as Violet and Emilio Sakraya as Xaden. As of November 2026 no release date has been announced.
Is Onyx Storm the last Empyrean book?
No. Book 4 has no title or release date as of November 2026. Threshing Day (September 2026) is a collection of 13 stories, not book 4.
Should I read or listen to Onyx Storm?
Listen, at 82%, clear. Each of the four viewpoint characters has their own narrator, and the audiobook won the 2025 Goodreads Choice Award. Read it only if you want the map to hand.
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