
Aching God
Iconoclasts, Book 1
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Narrated by:
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Simon Vance
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By:
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Mike Shel
About this listen
Winner of 2019 Voice Arts Award, Audiobook Narration - Fantasy
"Closer, mortal. You are here, finally, to feed the Aching God...."
The days of adventure are passed for Auric Manteo. Retired to the countryside and isolated with his scars and riches, he no longer delves into forbidden ruins seeking dark wisdom and treasure. But just as old nightmares begin plaguing his sleep, he receives an urgent summons back to that old life.
To save his only daughter, he must return to the place of his greatest trauma: the haunted Barrowlands. Along with a group of inexperienced companions and an old soldier, he must confront the dangers of the ancient and wicked Djao civilization. He has survived fell beasts, insidious traps, and deadly hazards before. But how can he contend with the malice of a bloodthirsty living god?
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Story
Kinch Na Shannack owes the Takers Guild a small fortune for his education as a thief, which includes (but is not limited to) lock-picking, knife-fighting, wall-scaling, fall-breaking, lie-weaving, trap-making, plus a few small magics. His debt has driven him to lie in wait by the old forest road, planning to rob the next traveler that crosses his path. But today, Kinch Na Shannack has picked the wrong mark.
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Outstanding
- By Anne Vaughan on 05-28-21
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The Hollow Places
- By: T. Kingfisher
- Narrated by: Hillary Huber
- Length: 9 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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"Pray they are hungry." Kara finds these words in the mysterious bunker that she’s discovered behind a hole in the wall of her uncle's house. Freshly divorced and living back at home, Kara now becomes obsessed with these cryptic words and starts exploring the peculiar bunker - only to discover that it holds portals to countless alternate realities. But these places are haunted by creatures that seem to hear thoughts...and the more you fear them, the stronger they become.
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This could have been a great suspense novel.
- By Graham KUNISCH on 10-28-20
By: T. Kingfisher
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The Iron Crown
- Dragon Spirits, Book 1
- By: L.L. MacRae
- Narrated by: RJ Bayley
- Length: 18 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Fenn’s first and only memory is finding himself in the middle of a forest, face to face with a dragon spirit mocking him, all knowledge gone apart from his own name. Lost and confused, his only hope for answers is Calidra—a woman living on the edge of the world with her partner. Forced to return home when her father dies, Calidra has put off facing her estranged mother for seven years, and she begrudgingly helps Fenn, forging papers for him so he can avoid the Queen’s Inquisitors. But her mother is the least of her worries when they discover an ancient enemy is rising again.
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An Amazing Epic Fantasy Adventure!
- By T. Devens on 06-28-25
By: L.L. MacRae
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The Waking Fire
- The Draconis Memoria
- By: Anthony Ryan
- Narrated by: Steven Brand
- Length: 22 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Throughout the vast lands controlled by the Ironship Trading Syndicate, nothing is more prized than the blood of drakes. Harvested from captive or hunted Reds, Greens, Blues, and Blacks, it can be distilled into elixirs that bestow fearsome powers on the rare men and women known as the Blood-blessed. But not many know the truth: that the lines of drakes are weakening. If they fail, war with the neighboring Corvantine Empire will follow swiftly.
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Monotone
- By Kindle Customer on 07-07-16
By: Anthony Ryan
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Sons of Darkness
- The Raag of Rta, Book 1
- By: Gourav Mohanty
- Narrated by: Homer Todiwala
- Length: 24 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Bled dry by violent confrontations with the Magadhan Empire, the Mathuran Republic simmers on the brink of oblivion. Senator Krishna and his third wife Satyabhama have put their plans in motion, both within and beyond the Republic’s blood-soaked borders, to protect it from total annihilation. But they are soon to discover that neither gold nor alliances last forever – and that they are not the only players on the board.
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Nice book. flawed narration
- By Reader of a lost Art on 11-03-23
By: Gourav Mohanty
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The Ember Blade
- The Darkwater Legacy, Book 1
- By: Chris Wooding
- Narrated by: Simon Bubb
- Length: 30 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Aren has lived by the rules all his life. He's never questioned it; that's just the way things are. But then his father is executed for treason, and he and his best friend, Cade, are thrown into a prison mine, doomed to work until they drop. Unless they can somehow break free.... But what lies beyond the prison walls is more terrifying still. Rescued by a man who hates him yet is oath-bound to protect him, pursued by inhuman forces, Aren slowly accepts that everything he knew about his world was a lie.
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I cried at the end of this damn thing.
- By Amazon Customer on 05-09-19
By: Chris Wooding
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House of Blades
- The Traveler's Gate Trilogy, Volume 1
- By: Will Wight
- Narrated by: Travis Baldree
- Length: 11 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Simon can only watch, helpless, as his family is killed and his friends captured by enemy Travelers—men and women who can summon mystical powers from otherworldly Territories. To top it off, another young man from Simon's village discovers that he's a savior prophesied to destroy evil and save the realm. Prophecy has nothing to say about Simon. He has no special powers, no magical weapons, and no guarantee that he'll survive. But he sets off anyway, alone, to gain the power he needs to oppose the Travelers and topple their ruthless Overlord.
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Even better now!
- By Larry Buckmaster on 06-01-22
By: Will Wight
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Mushroom Blues
- The Hofmann Report, Book 1
- By: Adrian M. Gibson
- Narrated by: Imogen Church
- Length: 15 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Two years after a devastating defeat in the decade-long Spore War, the island nation of Hōppon and its capital city of Neo Kinoko are occupied by invading Coprinian forces. Its fungal citizens are in dire straits, wracked by food shortages, poverty and an influx of war refugees. Even worse, the corrupt occupiers exploit their power, hounding the native population. As a winter storm looms over the metropolis, NKPD homicide detective Henrietta Hofmann begrudgingly partners up with mushroom-headed patrol officer Koji Nameko to investigate the mysterious murders of fungal and half-breed children.
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Well done, nuanced characters
- By Amazon Customer on 04-20-25
By: Adrian M. Gibson
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The Sword Defiant
- By: Gareth Hanrahan
- Narrated by: George Weightman
- Length: 19 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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Many years ago, Sir Aelfric and his nine companions saved the world, seizing the Dark Lord's cursed weapons, along with his dread city of Necrad. That was the easy part. Now, when Aelfric—keeper of the cursed sword Spellbreaker—learns of a new and terrifying threat, he seeks the nine heroes once again. But they are wandering adventurers no longer. Yesterday's eager heroes are today's weary leaders—and some have turned to the darkness, becoming monsters themselves. If there's one thing Aelfric knows, it's slaying monsters. Even if they used to be his friends.
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Below average
- By Jacob dale clifford on 07-21-23
By: Gareth Hanrahan
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Blackwing
- Raven's Mark, Book 1
- By: Ed McDonald
- Narrated by: Colin Mace
- Length: 11 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Bounty hunter Ryhalt Galharrow has breathed Misery dust for 20 bitter years. When he's ordered to locate a masked noblewoman at a frontier outpost, he finds himself caught in the middle of an attack by the Deep Kings, one that signifies they may no longer fear the Engine. Only a formidable show of power from the very woman he is seeking, Lady Ezabeth Tanza, repels the assault.
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A very strong start to a promising series
- By Twain on 10-22-17
By: Ed McDonald
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The Ninth Rain
- The Winnowing Flame Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Jen Williams
- Narrated by: Jot Davies
- Length: 20 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Jen Williams, acclaimed author of The Copper Cat trilogy, featuring The Copper Promise, The Iron Ghost and The Silver Tide, returns with the first in a blistering new trilogy. The great city of Ebora once glittered with gold. Now its streets are stalked by wolves. Tormalin the Oathless has no taste for sitting around waiting to die while the realm of his storied ancestors falls to pieces - talk about a guilt trip. Better to be amongst the living, where there are taverns full of women and wine.
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Couldn’t put it down!
- By Renae on 09-09-22
By: Jen Williams
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Pariah
- Bequin: Warhammer 40,000, Book 1
- By: Dan Abnett
- Narrated by: Helen Keeley
- Length: 10 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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In the city of Queen Mab, nothing is quite as it seems. Pariah, spy and Inquisitorial agent Alizebeth Bequin is all of these things and yet none of them. An enigma, even to herself, she is caught between Inquisitors Gregor Eisenhorn and Gideon Ravenor, former allies now enemies who are playing a shadow game against a mysterious and deadly foe. Coveted by the archenemy, pursued by the Inquisition, Bequin becomes embroiled in a dark plot of which she knows not her role or purpose.
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Whistle like kettles, wheeeee!
- By Hans on 03-04-21
By: Dan Abnett
a great story
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Outstanding
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I love fantasy sci-fi but most of these Audible titles make me feel like I lose 4IQ points for each one I listen to. They feel like they are written by junior high school students, and not very brights ones at that. Mike's writing is the OPPOSITE. If you have ever read and appreciated (not even necessarily enjoyed) Shakespeare, you know that almost every line he wrote was worth studying on its own as his writing was so packed with immense meaning, wit, allegory, imagery and just overall language mastery. Well, Mike is NOT the Bard, but then again who is? However, he is so much closer than any recent fantasy sci-fi writers on Audible. He is on the side of literature that reminds of how beautifully eloquent many old letters were from the 18th and 19th century even from regular people compared to our current Tik-Tok and Instagram culture of verbal ignorance.
His characters are so well layered and their relationships with others are profound and appreciable, it really gets the reader vested into the story's outcome.
The story itself was very original, creative and also very ambitious, which could easily have turned into a disaster, if it was not so well written and thought out.
Simon Vance is a decent narrator but his voice sounds too old, which is tolerable for this book as the main and other key characters are themselves old, but his voice really does not fit any of the younger characters I'm afraid.
Fantasy sci-fi worthy of beingcalled literature!!!
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Super Fantasy Horror Story
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Not for everyone.
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The dialog is like smooth music. Invasive. Seamless.
Simon, fabulous as always.
Wow.
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I say "surprisingly" because I was a little hesitant since this is a self published book and a debut novel, however, it reads like it was written by someone that's been established in the genre for 20+ years.
It opens with Auric (forgive the spelling if/when I get some of these names wrong). An aging warrior and adventurer, and also our protagonist, that was employed by the Syraic League for 30 years. The League is a militaristic order that's tasked by the regions nobility to search and explore ancient Djao ruins for lost and forgotten relics, and other items of importance. The Djao are an ancient race that worshiped demons and practiced dark, necromantic arts. Auric is old, weary and has some serious PTSD from his time spent with The League, holding himself responsible for a catastrophic failure of an expedition he led his team of fellow League members (and friends) on. Having lost his wife, son and having a strained and distant relationship with his only surviving estranged daughter, Agnes, we find him living in a small village outside the life of court, in retirement from The League. He's learned to enjoy three years of life after retirement here until nightmares begin, nightmares of the most harrowing event of his life. It is at the onset of these nightmares that he receives a summons from the Syraic Lector to come back to Boudan, the home of the Queen, Court and the headquarters of the Syraic League. The summons is vague, but mentions his daughter is in peril.
All these details are exposed in the first chapter, what goes on from here is simply a fantastic story of sword and sorcery, love and comradery between friends and fellow adventurers, nightmarish descriptions of horrible creatures and perhaps the best description of how a lifetime of "adventuring" and exploring these types of horrible places can scar the mind. I felt so much sorrow for Auric and the things he's seen and experienced, and the author does such a great job of portraying his genuine fear, anxiety, dread and guilt. It's the first time in a fantasy book that I've read a truly terrifying and accurate depiction of PTSD and it's effects on a character. Along with this, I also had such an extreme feeling of foreboding, dread and creeping anxiety myself while reading. Like I knew there was something evil in the shadows, something unknown waiting around the corner waiting to consume everyone in the book... but I didn't know what it was. Very Lovercraftian horror-esque in this sense, and I loved every second of it!
I also loved the sub characters in this book. We have Belach, a staunch supporter that meets Auric at the beginning of the book and is tasked to help him get to Boudan to answer his summons. Belach is a friendly, warm and good hearted soldier around the same age as Auric, that is loyal to the bone. Sira, a healing Priestess of Belu that has a chance encounter with Auric, a girl with a lopsided smile that reminds Auric of someone near and dear to his heart. Del, a tattooed, menacing Sorceress with a vast knowledge of the Djao and a heart of gold. Lumari, an alchemist that is a bit OCD and perfectionist and lastly, Nais, a young and brash swordsman that's a bit reckless, vain and condescending although extremely deadly with a blade. Watching these people grow to know each other, rely on each other, protect each other and care for each other was really great. These aren't the most fleshed out characters in fantasy, in terms of their backstory, but they all feel REAL. I grew to care about them all, and was genuinely worried when they were in peril.
The author does a fantastic job at world building as well. Instead of dumping chapters of information on us with long drawn out descriptions of insignificant details, he seamlessly weaves in details throughout the story, mainly using character dialogue. The world slowly and naturally unfolds for the reader and we begin to envision it, and it seems like just when we are a little lost and wondering about something, the author does a great job at tying up the loose ends.
I'm beginning to ramble so I'll just say a few more things here. I can't write the review without giving a shout out to the chapter that introduces The Queen (long may she reign!). Just remember that when you read the book, that when you reach the chapter with her introduction, you're in for a treat! The authors description of her is truly chilling.
The book isn't perfect and does have a slow chapter or two near the beginning, but that's nothing compared to how good the book is overall. This was also one of those books that I was dreading the ending so bad, simply because I knew it would be over. I wanted more, and when it ended I just felt lost, even though the ending was solid and wrapped up the story of the first book, while still leaving plenty of possibility and intrigue for the second and third book.
For any fans of classic sword and sorcery, dark fantasy, Lovecraftian horror... this book is for you. It's not quite as polished as something on the level of Martin or Abercrombie, but man, for an authors first novel, it's truly something special. I'll be buying the second book (titled "Sineater", scheduled for an early 2019 release) on day one. Mark my words, Mike Shel is one to keep an eye on people, he's going to be big if he continues down this road.
Fantastic start to a new series
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Finally a mature main character and decent world!
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Fantasy with a kick
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It has to be worth my time. I liked the title and cover art but often the inside falls short. I read some reviews and some referenced D & D. while I have never played it I am partial to swords and sorcery. the pacing is very good I think. He keeps it on point without too much clutter. not too many POVs or too much exposition. Great characters too both important and not so much. He manages to craft defined personalities for both kinds. Oh, did I mention the gore? if you're a bit squeamish you might want to pass on this one. I don't think i've read a book with such gory detail! Hats off Mike! Hats off to Simon as well! I don't listen to many books due to poor narrating but he is very good. so if you're even slightly interested in any of the above this is a must read.
Excellent
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