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Battlemage

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Battlemage

By: Stephen Aryan
Narrated by: Matt Addis
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About this listen

"I can command storms, summon fire and unmake stone. Animals have nothing interesting to say, and no one can see the future because it has not been written," growled Balfruss. "It's dangerous to meddle with things you don't understand. When you fight magic with magic, nothing is certain."

Balfruss is a battlemage, one of a vanishing breed, sworn to fight and die for a country that fears and despises him.

Vargus is a soldier, and while mages shoot lightning from the walls of his city, he's down in the frontlines getting blood on his blade.

Talandra is a princess and her father's spymaster, but the war may force her to take up a greater responsibility and make the greatest sacrifice of all.

Known for their unpredictable, dangerous power, society has left battlemages untrained and shunned. But when a force unlike anything ever imagined attacks their home, the few remaining magic users must go to war - to save those who fear them most and herald in a new age of peace built upon the corpses of their enemies.

©2015 Stephen Aryan (P)2015 Hachette Audio Dark Fantasy Epic Epic Fantasy Fantasy Fiction Magic Users War

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Critic reviews

Stephen Aryan puts the epic into Epic Fantasy. This is a ground-shaking debut, full of fiery promise (Den Patrick, author of THE BOY WITH THE PORCELAIN BLADE)
Aryan's battle scenes are visceral masterpieces that transport the reader deep into the melee. Read. This. Book. (Taran Matharu, author of the Summoner series)
All stars
Most relevant  
The story was good, but I think there could have been more foundations to the characters. A lot happened and I had no real connection to anyone. Unlike authors like Sanderson and Feist.

Great story but little character depth.

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A well written and engaging sorry brought to life by a fabulous narrator. The only thing that would have made it more enjoyable for me would have been a female narrator for the female characters. That's just me though, Matt Addis does a wonderful job in the 2 books I've heard him narrate (a non fiction title was the other one)

excellent

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Interesting to listen to a book that you want to hear the next stage but also want to give up. I can't put my finger on it at this time, maybe the story felt a little shallow, the fight scenes too observational, the plot too glib, it was like someone put a juicy mango in front of you but there is no aroma. Four stars because I kept going, but it could easily have been 2.

Enjoyable but ...

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a very good story, well read, couldn't stop listening. can't wait for the next installment.

A Good Listen

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Where does Battlemage rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It's OK overall, but disjointed eg big buildup to a battle and when it starts there have already been 3 attacks and the characters are exhausted, the villains are really bad but turn out weak? And what's going on with the Vargus character?

Would you recommend Battlemage to your friends? Why or why not?

I'm not sure I would, the book's premise is good, but it's almost as if the author wrote the scenes separately then placed them together. Tying the end threads is really poor and yet part OK. Aargh!

What does Matt Addis bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

Really good narration, brings a lot to the story

Any additional comments?

The rest of the series may turn out to be terrific? The first volume could have been

Ok but Disjointed

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I enjoyed it just as much as I did the first time I listened to it
brilliant author
brilliant narrator

Brilliant Book

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Firstly the narration was quite good, a little monotone at times, but didn't detract from the story.

Story was ok, but there was really only a few moments when something actually happened. Instead I had to listen to what I assume is setup for the next book. The problem with this is that only a couple of characters are interesting because they are the only ones really involved in any action.

I just felt like the author had an idea for a good ending and the whole book was just about getting there, with very little happening in between.

Had its moments, but a little bland.

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I didn't find myself drawn in like I did with other fantasy series but cant put my finger on why. The voice actor did a good job and the story was easy enough to sit through but I didn't find myself wanting to come back.

An OK fantasy that lacks any real character

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An enjoyable listen. I think my enjoyment of the story was enhanced by the narrator.
Not the cleanest story, but I'm willing to forgive a first entry for an author as the ideas were good. Though it does reduce its re-listen value.

Excellent Narrator

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I chose this book because it was narrated by Matt Addis, I find a good narrator is a must when it comes to fiction.

It was a very good choice, I was engaged from start to finish and the descriptive style of the author combined with first class narration brought the story alive.

I will be working my way through the series...

Great book, great narration

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