Kill the Beast by Serra Swift Narrator: Moira Quirk
Published by Macmillan Audio on October 14, 2025
Genres: Fantasy
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I received this book for free from in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Witcher meets Howl’s Moving Castle in this debut original faerie tale of revenge, redemption, and friendship―for fans of T. Kingfisher, Naomi Novik, and cozy fantasy with a dash of gritty adventure.
The night Lyssa Cadogan's brother was murdered by a faerie-made monster known as the Beast, she made him a promise: she would find a way to destroy the immortal creature and avenge his death. For thirteen years, she has been hunting faeries and the abominations they created. But in all that time, the one Beast she is most desperate to find has never resurfaced.
Until she meets Alderic Casimir de Laurent, a melodramatic dandy with a coin purse bigger than his brain. Somehow, he has found the monster’s lair, and―even more surprising―retrieved one of its claws. A claw Lyssa needs in order to forge a sword that can kill the Beast.
When the witch Ragnhild decrees that Alderic and Lyssa must gather the other ingredients to forge the weapon together, or else the spell will fail, Lyssa gets more than she bargained for. Alderic is ill-equipped for the task at hand, and almost guaranteed to get himself killed.
But as the two of them search for the materials that will be the Beast's undoing, Alderic reveals hidden depths: dark secrets that he guards as carefully as Lyssa guards hers. Before long, and against Lyssa's better judgment, they begin to forge a blooming friendship―one that will either lead to the culmination of Lyssa's quest for vengeance, or spell doom for them both.
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When Lyssa was young a Beast killed her brother, she swore to him that she would get revenge. She has been working towards that goal ever since, slaying any faeries or monsters that cross her path. Flash forward a bit over a decade later and Lyssa gets contacted by Alderic to go hunt a beast, which just so happens to be the one she has been searching for. The unlikely duo must work together to gather the things necessary to make the sword that will be able to kill the Beast. Friendship blooms as they gather their items, but secrets come to light, and you wonder if revenge conquers all.
Kill the Beast is a fantastic read; I wound up devouring this story. It does give the vibes of The Witcher, just with a female lead hunting down the monsters. I loved the interactions between Lyssa and Alderic as well as seeing all the challenges they faced. The story flowed quickly and there was never a dull moment. I am blown away that this is Serra Swift’s first novel and will be adding her to my auto buy list going forward. If you are a fan of fantasy you need to try this book.
The Narrator:
I could not stop listening to this audiobook. Moira Quirk, you did such an amazing job at bringing this story to life.
