Throne of Glass audiobook vs book: which should you choose?
An assassin competes in a contest against twenty-three rivals, and one narrator reads the whole series. Against that, the book is full of invented names that are easier to follow in print.
Short answer: for the Throne of Glass audiobook vs book choice, we say read it on Kindle (73% confidence, leaning). Elizabeth Evans reads the 2021 Bloomsbury recording in 13 hours 3 minutes, unabridged. A GraphicAudio full-cast version is listed for December 2027 and is not counted. Several viewpoints read by one narrator point to print, while a 432-page print edition points to audio.
Read it on Kindle
Several viewpoints read by one narrator point to print, while a print edition over 400 pages points to audio.
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Confidence 73%, which puts it in the leaning band. Bands run from close call at 50 to 64, through leaning at 65 to 79 and clear at 80 to 94, up to clear cut at 95 and above.
The audiobook at a glance
| Recording | UK edition, our verdict (Bloomsbury) | GraphicAudio dramatisation (pre-order) |
|---|---|---|
| Narrator | Elizabeth Evans | Full cast (no names published) |
| Length | 13 hours 3 minutes (13h 3m) | 11 hours (11h), as listed |
| At 1.5x | 8h 42m | 7h 20m |
| At 2x | 6h 32m | 5h 30m |
| Abridged or unabridged | Unabridged | Dramatised adaptation |
| Audio publisher and year | Bloomsbury Publishing, 28 January 2021 | GraphicAudio, listed for 10 December 2027 |
| Print length | 432 pages (Bloomsbury paperback, 2023) | Same book |
| Reading time | About 7h 58m (113,655 words at 238 a minute) | Same book |
The US edition has the same narrator and length; whether it is the same recording is not confirmed. An earlier Evans recording from 2013 (12h 20m) turns up on CD in US libraries.
Lengths checked 15 October 2026. Speed times are calculated from the listed length, and reading time is an estimate from the word count.
Throne of Glass
Sarah J. Maas
- Genre
- Fantasy
- Series
- Book 1 of 8
- Published
- 2012
- Length
- 432 pages (Bloomsbury paperback, 2023)
- On audio
- 13 hrs 3 mins
- Narrated by
- Elizabeth Evans
- Prizes
- Finalist, Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2013 (Teen)
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.
Listening: long book (3), 3 points. Reading: three or more points of view, one narrator (8), 8 points. 73% of the confirmed points favour reading, so the verdict is read it on Kindle at 73% confidence (leaning).
The recording in detail
- Narrated by
- Elizabeth Evans, solo, unabridged
- Series
- Evans reads all eight books and The Assassin’s Blade on Audible UK
- Listener ratings
- 4.5 from 3,298 ratings on Audible UK and 4.6 from 29,593 on Audible US, as of October 2026
- Coming
- A GraphicAudio full-cast dramatisation, listed for 10 December 2027
- What you miss
- The spelling of every invented name, and any map
What this book actually is
Throne of Glass is the first of Sarah J. Maas’s eight Throne of Glass novels, first published by Bloomsbury in New York in August 2012. The current UK Bloomsbury paperback runs to 432 pages.
Celaena Sardothien, an assassin, competes against twenty-three rivals for the post of King’s Champion, and competitors start dying. It is told in the third person and mostly stays close to her, with other viewpoints as well.
It was a finalist for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize in 2013 (Teen). A Hulu television option in 2016 did not go forward, and the rights returned to the author. The prequel novellas in The Assassin’s Blade (2014) are set earlier, but publisher and author suggest reading them after Crown of Midnight, the second novel.
The case for reading it
Several viewpoints read by one narrator, and the invented names, are the case for print. Celaena Sardothien, Chaol Westfall and Dorian Havilliard, and places such as Erilea, Adarlan, Endovier and Eyllwe, are hard to pin down from sound alone, and reference sources even spell Havilliard two ways. Seeing them in print shows you how they are spelled, which helps when the series runs to eight books.
There may be a map, too. The 2012 US hardback has one; we could not confirm it in the 2023 UK paperback. If it is there, that is a further reason to read, since no map comes with the audiobook.
The case for listening to it
The plot is easy to follow on audio. A contest of twenty-three rivals gives the book a single forward line, and the focus mostly stays on Celaena, though one reviewer lists viewpoints from Chaol, Dorian and Kaltain too.
The same narrator reads the whole series: Elizabeth Evans reads every book in the series and The Assassin’s Blade on Audible UK, so one narrator reads all eight. Listeners rate book 1 4.6 on Audible US and 4.5 on Audible UK, as of October 2026.
The audiobook in detail
Bloomsbury’s current recording, read by Elizabeth Evans, came out on 28 January 2021 and runs 13 hours 3 minutes, unabridged: 8 hours 42 minutes at 1.5x and 6 hours 32 minutes at 2x. Evans also recorded the book in 2013, at 12 hours 20 minutes, and that version turns up on CD in US libraries. The US Audible edition has the same narrator and length; whether it is the same recording is not confirmed.
A third version is on the way. GraphicAudio lists a dramatised adaptation “produced with a full cast of actors, immersive sound effects and cinematic music” for 10 December 2027, at 11 hours, with no cast published yet. When it is released we will re-score the book, since a full cast would meet the full cast or produced audio criterion.
Who should ignore this verdict
Listen if you want a plot that is simple to follow on audio. A contest of twenty-three rivals gives the book a single forward line, and the focus mostly stays on Celaena.
Listen too if you plan to read the whole series. Elizabeth Evans reads every book in it, and The Assassin’s Blade, on Audible UK, so one narrator reads all eight. Listeners rate book 1 4.6 on Audible US and 4.5 on Audible UK, as of October 2026.
Anyone who prefers a dramatisation may want to wait for GraphicAudio’s full-cast version, listed for 10 December 2027.
Read differently from most people? The app, coming soon, will let you switch off any of the thirteen checks. Get notified →
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Start hereHow we decide
The thirteen questions behind every verdict on this site.
Questions people ask
Who narrates the Throne of Glass audiobook?
Elizabeth Evans, who reads every book in the series on Audible UK.
How long is the Throne of Glass audiobook?
The Throne of Glass audiobook is 13 hours 3 minutes (13h 3m) in the UK edition, which is 8h 42m at 1.5x and about 6h 32m at 2x (calculated).
Is the Throne of Glass audiobook abridged?
No, it is unabridged. The GraphicAudio version listed for December 2027 is a dramatised adaptation.
Should I read or listen to Throne of Glass?
Read it on our checks (73% confidence, leaning). The story has several viewpoints read by one narrator, against a print edition of 432 pages, which is over 400.
Should I read The Assassin’s Blade before Throne of Glass?
It is a prequel, but publisher and author suggest reading it after Crown of Midnight, the order it was published.
Is there a full-cast Throne of Glass audiobook?
One is coming. GraphicAudio lists a full-cast dramatisation, 11 hours long, for 10 December 2027.
Do you agree with this verdict?
We said read it on Kindle. One tap, no sign-up.
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How this verdict was reached
Every book on this site is checked against the same thirteen questions, set in advance and applied identically to every title. They are based on research into what readers and listeners generally find easier to follow in each format, not on personal preference, and they are published in full so you can check the reasoning yourself. Verdicts are never paid for, sponsored or influenced by affiliate partners.
- The criteria: read the thirteen questions in full.
- What we checked for this book: the Bloomsbury and GraphicAudio listings on Audible UK and Audible US, Bloomsbury UK and US edition details, US library records for the 2013 recording and the 2012 map, Kirkus’s review, and a published word count.
- Verdict last reviewed: 23 October 2026. Editions and narrators change, so verdicts are rechecked annually.
- Prefer different criteria? The app, coming soon, will let you change which of the thirteen questions matter to you.
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