Illidan

Ten thousand years in an underground prison did not break Illidan Stormrage — they refined him. The World of Warcraft novel follows the night elf sorcerer from his first infiltration of the Burning Legion through his controversial rule of Outland, told from the perspective of a being who genuinely believes the incomprehensible cruelty of his methods is the only path to saving the world from destruction. William King constructs a portrait of a villain-hero whose tragedy lies in being right about the stakes while wrong about nearly everything else.

Graeme Malcolm's narration captures the novel's fundamental tension between Illidan's terrifying competence and his isolation. His voice gives the character's monologues the weight of genuine conviction rather than mere villainy, which is essential for a story that asks readers to understand, if not exactly root for, a figure of considerable darkness. At just over 10 hours, this is a focused and effective entry in the Warcraft fiction canon.