The Thirteenth House

The Twelve Houses, Book 2

By: Sharon Shinn

Narrated by: Jennifer Van Dyck, Sharon Shinn

Length: 17 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

Noble-born shape-shifter Kirra Danalustrous has accepted her father's invitation to style herself as her sister - the heir of Danalustrous - and attend all the social events being held by the Twelve Houses. She is accompanied by Donnal, a peasant and shape-shifter who has served her most of her life. She is delighted to learn that Senneth, Tayse, Justin and Cammon will also be making the social circuit as they escort Princess Amalie to the summer balls.

But it's soon clear that Amalie is under attack from factions that want to overthrow the throne, and Amalie's uncle Romar, regent of the kingdom, might be in even more danger. Kirra gladly helps protect them both, though it is disastrous when she begins to fall in love with Romar. For Romar is a married man - and half of Kirra's heart already belongs to Donnal.

BONUS AUDIO: Includes an exclusive introduction by author Sharon Shinn.

House hunting? Download more in The Twelve Houses series.

©2006 Sharon Shinn (P)2008 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Shinn....paints their journey with a lyrical grace and deep appreciation of camaraderie reminiscent of Diane Duane at her best." (Publishers Weekly)

Good story line for second book...except

Would you listen to The Thirteenth House again? Why?

This will be the last book I purchase from this series...for three reasons. First, this book devolved into a illicit sexual story, which I was not happy about. However, the author did end the relationship in a positive way, so a plus here. But I was more interested in the main characters, the magic and the battles.Second, the story synopses indicates one of the main characters is off to fall "in love". Again, not what the initial story line started out as. and Third, the story will now be narrated by a different individual, a male, which actually "changes" the lead characters. They no longer fit the visualization I had of the main characters. bummer!

You smooze you loose

Too many parties become very boring. Liked first book better. Less believable but emotional ending.

Little slow at first but...

It starts out a little slow at first and is a bit clunkie because it has sooooo many characters but in the end I really enjoyed it. So much so that within a month of buying the first book I had bought the rest of the series and had already finished all of them! Yeah it's a good series. I find my self missing the characters now that I've finished the books.

slow start, but a good story overall,

Any additional comments?

good enough to go on to the next one. May go back and do the first one too.

Another great read

Shinn is one of my favorite authors. She keeps getting better and better. I highly recommend this series.

Not the same old story

One of the things I like about this author is that she's not afraid to take her stories in slightly different directions.

Kirra is a flawed person. Many things in her life came to her easily, but she's left some of her easy life behind and is trying to make a difference in her world. Needless to say, her personal choices tend to be less than perfect, and I like that the author lets her make realistic mistakes and has her face the consequences.

So yes, this second installment in the Twelve Houses series follows our heroes from the previous book as they protect the king's nearest and dearest and infiltrate elite social circles. And it's about Kirra, her choices and the messes she makes for herself, and the way she deals with them. Watching Kirra make a mess isn't always the most comfortable thing, but overall I very much enjoy this entire series!

The narrator is one of my favorites, so of course I enjoyed her perfomance as usual!

Just as good as the first book...

I was blown away at how good the first book in this series was. I found the second was just as good. Understand the comment about all the parties, but that's central to their mission in this story. The characters are so enjoyable. The narrator makes them so real that again I was sorry to see this story end. If you liked the first book, I think you'll like this one too.

How GREAT is Sharon Shinn? Just read her books!

I LOVED this series -- all of the characters were so original and individual, and Jennifer Van Dyck was brilliant as the reader. I really couldn't put my ipod down and stayed up way too late at night "watching" the movie in my head. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED to anyone who loved the Sharing Knife series or the Chalion books by LMB. I know I'll listen again and again.

Wow such an awesome series

Sharon Shinn certainly has me hooked. This is another excellent book. Captivated from the start to the end. Love the characters and Narrator is excellent once again. Can't wait the read the next addition to the series.

Another winner!

I loved this book! The main character happens to be one of my favorites out of the series and as always, it is written very well. The narrator is wonderful too, a definate must read!