Amanda W.

Absolutely perfect.

Revisado: 03-26-25

The end of this book reduced me to a sobbing, snotty wreck of a person! I knew it was going to be tragic, but Jesus… The whole book was so visceral, so brutal! It tied the other four books together perfectly!!

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This was my favorite of the trilogy!

Revisado: 04-03-24

Despite having a hard time getting into Fiona Hardingham’s narration style, I enjoyed this book immensely! It provided a decent bridge to Gatina as we are introduced to her in Shadowmage. It’s well-written and surprisingly gripping!

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An absolutely outstanding addition to the Spellmonger series!

Revisado: 01-15-24

This book marks a major turning point in the series, in Minalin’s life up to now— and is far darker than the previous novels. I found parts of it difficult to listen to, as it gives you a frank look into how people process trauma, particularly after sexual assault and personal tragedies. (I’m trying to keep this purposefully vague.)

As always, it’s not the fantastical aspects of the series that keeps me listening to Terry Mancour’s books— it’s the deep dive into the human psyche he manages to build upon in the wake of impossible events that tests each character every step of the way. The world is incredible… but the character development is what REALLY makes this series stand out!

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Decent story. TERRIBLE narrator!

Revisado: 12-10-23

While I was catching up on Spellmonger, Gatina’s series was one I was eager to listen to— but the narrator made it almost impossible to enjoy.

I’m not even talking about the mispronunciations regarding names, artifacts, or places— because that tends to happen when the usual narrator isn’t on board with a side story. No, my lack of enjoyment was due to the constant pauses this narrator took in the middle of sentences, while ignoring periods and commas entirely. The audio quality itself was lacking, and I could hear the difference in ambient noise due to the many (MANY) edits that were made. It was awful, and I’ll likely never relisten to this series again.

That being said, the story WAS interesting. I liked all the background we got about Enultrimar and Southern Alshar, and enjoyed Gatina’s role at the beginning of what turns out to be a long insurrection. Just know that my enjoyment of this book was 100% in spite of the narrator, not because of her.

If you enjoy the Spellmonger series, I highly recommend this book for the background it gives you. But maybe buy a copy of the book from Terry Mancour’s shop instead of wasting money on the Audible version!

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Absolutely phenomenal.

Revisado: 12-04-23

I’m relatively new to the world of Minalin the Spellmonger, and finished Marshal Arcane for the first time about four weeks before this book’s release. I feel like this installment encompasses everything I love about this series so much— it has elements of the world-building we saw in Magelord, a medium-length (medium for Terry Mancour, that is) battle where a lot of unexpected events occurred, a LOT of intrigue and diplomatic tension, as well some fascinating (and highly entertaining) exercises for the Four rulers-in-training Min (grudgingly) agrees to instruct!

This book struck me as more polished and put together than some of the previous volumes. There were far less spelling/pronunciation errors and fewer incorrect timeline details than have been present in past books (lookin’ at you, Necromancer!)

It just felt like peak Spellmonger to me! I have zero complaints. Whatever audio issue was plaguing the recording of Marshal Arcane is gone— and John Lee brings this book to life with his usual flair and dedication.

The series is entering a new and fascinating phase— and I can’t wait for the next one!

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I really enjoyed this book!

Revisado: 03-24-23

I was between series, so a friend recommended Spellmonger. I’m SO glad I took him up on it!

I’m not usually a fan of long-running fantasy series, but this book grabbed me— and I won’t be satisfied until I’ve listened to all of them!

I want to address some of what the other reviewers said about this book being sexist or misogynistic: I’m not going to defend it, because it’s (kind of) true. Minalin lives in a feudalistic society and, generally speaking, a woman’s role in such a society is exactly what is outlined in this book: they marry, have children, and take care of the house. They do not inherit— their husbands do. Some aspects bothered me greatly (like the age a lot of characters start having sex,) but I will give Terry Mancour credit— he never glorifies it.

To Min and all the other characters, that’s life, and precious few think of changing it. There are some female outliers to this general rule— but most of them are nobility, and they scare the dickens out of the male characters!

All-in-all, I still think this book is worth reading. The plot is interesting, the characters are really well developed, and I loved taking a peek into this flawed and messy world! The events that take place are terrifying and tragic, but experiencing everything through Min’s sarcastic (and at times, hilarious) perspective dampens the heaviness that might otherwise have discouraged me from continuing this series.

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I bought this for Monarch of the Glen, and enjoyed it! The other stories… not so much.

Revisado: 01-13-23

My review is for The Monarch of the Glen only. To anybody who bought this volume for the same reason, the time-stamp to get to it is 3h 42m left in the book!

For whatever reason, this collection has no chapter markers. After trudging through part of the first story, I decided to skip ahead to Neil Gaiman’s novella. Maybe the other two authors’ stories would be better if I’d ever read their other books… but I’m not sure. I didn’t find either of the others interesting enough to keep on with.

The narrator of Neil Gaiman’s novella was excellent! He reminds me of the narrator in the full-cast edition of American Gods. It was odd at first, because I was used to Shadow’s voice being deeper, but I enjoyed the narration nonetheless!

Buy this book if you want to hear more of Shadow’s story… and, if you enjoy the other authors, consider that a bonus!

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Absolutely wonderful!

Revisado: 11-26-22

This book is a MUST HAVE! Even if you don’t usually like the works of Stephen King, you should get this one. Seth Numrich is a fantastic narrator, and he brings this story to life with the passion it deserves!

Listening to Fairy Tale is like cuddling up with a soft blanket on a cold winter day. So many aspects of the story are familiar and drawn from the well of what we know: Grimm’s Fairy Tales, The Wizard of Oz, the works of HP Lovecraft, and many many others. But, at every turn, Stephen King puts a creative spin on what we think we know!

The one downside is that I’m going to have trouble finding something new that will come close to matching how incredible this book is! I can’t put into words how I feel about these wonderful, well developed characters and the story they experience.

The book has only been out for two months— and I’ve already listened to it three times! I can’t seem to put it down.

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If you’re at all squeamish— start the series HERE, instead of the first book!

Revisado: 07-30-22

These books are GREAT. I love the characters, especially Dox. Before I got into the series as a whole, I started Livia Lone, book one. And, due to the graphic rape and abuse scenes, I almost couldn’t finish it.

I’m glad I did, though— because the books keep getting better! But if you’re like me, and you think the child sex trafficking and rape will be too much for you, start here. Livia’s actions in the first book are covered at the beginning of The Night Trade, without the awfulness of having to get through those visceral, horrific scenes firsthand.

Despite the ever-present brutality, this series is absolutely worth a read— and this book, in particular, is well worth the credit. Barry Eisler’s style is gritty and ultra-realistic, but the main character taking revenge for everything that’s happened to her (and other children) is EXTREMELY satisfying! As a SA survivor myself, I find it cathartic. But I also understand others might not feel the same way.

Nevertheless, give it a shot if you think it sounds interesting! It’s a stand-out, compared to other police procedurals and government conspiracy books.

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A solid first book in a great series— but I wish Eve would just stop answering her mother’s calls.

Revisado: 07-24-22

The first book of the Eve Ronin series is good— but the sequels are far better. Personally, I loved this introduction to Lee Goldberg’s awesome, headstrong new character! However, I can understand why people didn’t enjoy it. It does sort of feel like every police procedural you’ve ever read.

Keep reading, though! Things definitely change for the better in the second book.

Nicol Zanzarella is one of my absolute favorite narrators. Her work is GREAT. Honestly, I chose to start this series primarily because she was chosen to bring it to life— but I found myself enjoying it a lot along the way! If you enjoy mysteries, you’ll definitely like this. Pay attention, and the identity of the killers are easy to guess. Rather than diminishing the story, I find that it’s fun when I put things together beforehand! And there are almost always little details in the end I didn’t see coming.

It’s kept my interest piqued enough that I’ll continue to get new installments as long as Goldberg writes them!

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