Listen free for 30 days
-
Year One
- Chronicles of The One, Book 1
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan
- Series: Chronicles of The One, Book 1
- Length: 12 hrs and 20 mins
- Categories: Mystery, Thriller & Suspense, Thriller & Suspense
People who bought this also bought...
-
Nevernight
- The Nevernight Chronicle, Book 1
- By: Jay Kristoff
- Narrated by: Holter Graham
- Length: 20 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From New York Times best-selling author Jay Kristoff comes a dangerous new fantasy world and a heroine edged in darkness. Mia Corvere is only 10 years old when she is given her first lesson in death. Destined to destroy empires, the child raised in shadows made a promise on the day she lost everything: to avenge herself on those that shattered her world. But the chance to strike against such powerful enemies will be fleeting, and Mia must become a weapon without equal.
-
-
Excellent book.
- By Ms. Helen F. M. White on 17-01-18
-
Stars of Fortune
- Guardians Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
- Length: 10 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To celebrate the rise of their new queen, three goddesses of the moon created three stars, one of fire, one of ice, one of water. But then they fell from the sky, putting the fate of all worlds in danger. And now three women and three men join forces to pick up the pieces....
-
-
Excellent
- By Deedar on 18-12-16
-
Dark Witch
- The Cousins O'Dwyer Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren
- Length: 10 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With indifferent parents, Iona Sheehan grew up craving devotion and acceptance. From her maternal grandmother, she learned where to find both: a land of lush forests, dazzling lakes, and centuries-old legends. Ireland. County Mayo, to be exact. Where her ancestors’ blood and magic have flowed through generations - and where her destiny awaits. Iona arrives in Ireland with nothing but her Nan’s directions, an unfailingly optimistic attitude, and an innate talent with horses.
-
-
Fantastic modern witchy tale
- By Suzanne on 02-12-13
-
Dance Upon the Air
- Three Sisters Island, Book 1
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Sandra Burr
- Length: 9 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Nell Channing arrives on charming Three Sisters Island, she believes that she's finally found refuge from her abusive husband - and from the terrifying life she fled so desperately eight months ago. Just as Nell starts to wonder if she'll ever be able to break free of her fear, she realizes that the island suffers from a terrible curse - one that can only be broken by the descendants of the Three Sisters, the witches who settled the island back in 1692.
-
-
Superb listen for those interested in pagan themes
- By Wickerman49 on 23-12-12
-
The Awakening
- The Dragon Heart Legacy
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Barrie Kreinik
- Length: 15 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Breen Kelly had always been a rule follower. So when her father left when she was 12 years old, promising to return, she waited. Now, more than a decade later, she needs to move forward. She can wait no longer. A summer trip to Ireland seems like the perfect next step. She never dreamed it would lead her through a portal to another world.
-
-
Loved this book, but.....
- By Amazon Customer on 12-12-20
-
An Ember in the Ashes
- By: Sabaa Tahir
- Narrated by: Aysha Kala, Jack Farrar
- Length: 13 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Set in a terrifyingly brutal Rome-like world, An Ember in the Ashes is an epic fantasy debut about an orphan fighting for her family and a soldier fighting for his freedom. It's a story that's literally burning to be told. What if you were the spark that could ignite a revolution? For years Laia has lived in fear. Fear of the Empire, fear of the Martials, fear of truly living at all. Born as a Scholar, she's never had much of a choice.
-
-
Probably the next big thing in YA Fantasy
- By Christopher on 23-06-15
-
Nevernight
- The Nevernight Chronicle, Book 1
- By: Jay Kristoff
- Narrated by: Holter Graham
- Length: 20 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From New York Times best-selling author Jay Kristoff comes a dangerous new fantasy world and a heroine edged in darkness. Mia Corvere is only 10 years old when she is given her first lesson in death. Destined to destroy empires, the child raised in shadows made a promise on the day she lost everything: to avenge herself on those that shattered her world. But the chance to strike against such powerful enemies will be fleeting, and Mia must become a weapon without equal.
-
-
Excellent book.
- By Ms. Helen F. M. White on 17-01-18
-
Stars of Fortune
- Guardians Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
- Length: 10 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To celebrate the rise of their new queen, three goddesses of the moon created three stars, one of fire, one of ice, one of water. But then they fell from the sky, putting the fate of all worlds in danger. And now three women and three men join forces to pick up the pieces....
-
-
Excellent
- By Deedar on 18-12-16
-
Dark Witch
- The Cousins O'Dwyer Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren
- Length: 10 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With indifferent parents, Iona Sheehan grew up craving devotion and acceptance. From her maternal grandmother, she learned where to find both: a land of lush forests, dazzling lakes, and centuries-old legends. Ireland. County Mayo, to be exact. Where her ancestors’ blood and magic have flowed through generations - and where her destiny awaits. Iona arrives in Ireland with nothing but her Nan’s directions, an unfailingly optimistic attitude, and an innate talent with horses.
-
-
Fantastic modern witchy tale
- By Suzanne on 02-12-13
-
Dance Upon the Air
- Three Sisters Island, Book 1
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Sandra Burr
- Length: 9 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Nell Channing arrives on charming Three Sisters Island, she believes that she's finally found refuge from her abusive husband - and from the terrifying life she fled so desperately eight months ago. Just as Nell starts to wonder if she'll ever be able to break free of her fear, she realizes that the island suffers from a terrible curse - one that can only be broken by the descendants of the Three Sisters, the witches who settled the island back in 1692.
-
-
Superb listen for those interested in pagan themes
- By Wickerman49 on 23-12-12
-
The Awakening
- The Dragon Heart Legacy
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Barrie Kreinik
- Length: 15 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Breen Kelly had always been a rule follower. So when her father left when she was 12 years old, promising to return, she waited. Now, more than a decade later, she needs to move forward. She can wait no longer. A summer trip to Ireland seems like the perfect next step. She never dreamed it would lead her through a portal to another world.
-
-
Loved this book, but.....
- By Amazon Customer on 12-12-20
-
An Ember in the Ashes
- By: Sabaa Tahir
- Narrated by: Aysha Kala, Jack Farrar
- Length: 13 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Set in a terrifyingly brutal Rome-like world, An Ember in the Ashes is an epic fantasy debut about an orphan fighting for her family and a soldier fighting for his freedom. It's a story that's literally burning to be told. What if you were the spark that could ignite a revolution? For years Laia has lived in fear. Fear of the Empire, fear of the Martials, fear of truly living at all. Born as a Scholar, she's never had much of a choice.
-
-
Probably the next big thing in YA Fantasy
- By Christopher on 23-06-15
-
A Secret History of Witches
- By: Louisa Morgan
- Narrated by: Polly Lee
- Length: 17 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Brittany, 1821. After Grand-mere Ursule gives her life to save her family, their magic seems to die with her. Even so, the Orchires fight to keep the old ways alive, practising half-remembered spells and arcane rites in hopes of a revival. And when their youngest daughter comes of age, magic flows anew. The lineage continues, though new generations struggle not only to master their power, but also to keep it hidden. But when World War II looms on the horizon, magic is needed more urgently than ever - not for simple potions or visions, but to change the entire course of history.
-
-
Stop part way through
- By Rebecca Jade Downey on 16-03-20
-
Under Currents
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: January LaVoy
- Length: 14 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the outside, the house in Lakeview Terrace looks perfect, and the Bigelows seem like the perfect family: the respected surgeon father, the glamorous, devoted mother and two beautiful children. A perfect family, in a perfect house, living their perfect lives. But perfect surfaces can hide dark undercurrents, and behind closed doors lies a very different story. Teenager Zane and his younger sister, Britt, are terrorised by their violent father and dysfunctional mother.
-
-
Excellent
- By nevtrav on 19-09-19
-
Birthright
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Bernadette Quigley
- Length: 16 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On a hot July afternoon, a worker at an Antietam Creek construction site drives the blade of his backhoe into a layer of soil - and strikes a 5,000-year-old human skull. The discovery draws plenty of attention and a lot of controversy. It also changes the life of one woman in ways she never expected.
-
-
Fantastic story! Terrible Narration!
- By Dixie_Chick on 09-11-15
-
The Witness
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan
- Length: 16 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Daughter of a cold, controlling mother and an anonymous donor, studious, obedient Elizabeth Fitch finally let loose one night, drinking too much at a nightclub and allowing a strange man’s seductive Russian accent to lure her to a house on Lake Shore Drive. Twelve years later, the woman now known as Abigail Lowery lives alone on the outskirts of a small town in the Ozarks.
-
-
Pulls you in.
- By Gadget Queen on 09-05-12
-
The Obsession
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Shannon McManus
- Length: 14 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Naomi Bowes lost her innocence the night she followed her father into the woods. In freeing the girl trapped in the root cellar, Naomi revealed the horrible extent of her father’s crimes and made him infamous. No matter how close she gets to happiness, she can’t outrun the sins of Thomas David Bowes. Now a successful photographer living under the name Naomi Carson, she has found a place that calls to her, a rambling old house in need of repair, thousands of miles away from everything she’s ever known.
-
-
Sorry Nora, this one isn't good enough...
- By Veteran Listener on 30-04-16
-
Come Sundown
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Elisabeth Rodgers
- Length: 17 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Bodine ranch and resort in western Montana is a family business, an idyllic spot for vacationers. A little over thirty thousand acres and home to four generations, it’s kept running by Bodine Longbow with the help of a large staff, including new hire Callen Skinner. There was another member of the family once: Bodine’s aunt, Alice, who ran off before Bodine was born.
-
-
Great saga
- By LMC on 19-08-17
-
Hideaway
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: January LaVoy
- Length: 15 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Caitlyn Sullivan is just nine years old when a game of hide-and-seek at a family party will change her life forever. The betrayal she experienced that night will shape Caitlyn's life - and for years she runs and runs, hiding from the aftermath of the trauma. But Caitlyn comes to realise that if she wants to not just survive but thrive, she must return to the family home to face up to her past.
-
-
I know this is going to be a great story but ....
- By Lucinda Wilby on 15-09-20
-
Public Secrets
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Renee Raudman
- Length: 20 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Emma McAvoy may have grown up in the limelight, but some secrets are hidden in a darkness no light can reach. Now on the verge of a successful career, and having fallen in love with the man of her dreams, Emma is looking to the future. Yet it’s the past that is about to catch up with her. For Emma, her childhood had been almost like a rags-to-riches fairy tale - until the tragic night that changed her family forever. But what Emma thinks she knows about that terrible night and the man she’s about to marry is only half the truth.
-
-
would be 5star but for narrator
- By Kindle Customer on 05-09-14
-
Blood Brothers
- Sign of Seven Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Phil Gigante
- Length: 10 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Every seven years, on the seventh day of the seventh month, strange things happen. It began when three young boys - Caleb, Fox, and Gage - went on a camping trip to the Pagan Stone. And 21 years later, it will end in a showdown between evil and the boys who have become men - and the women who love them.
-
-
Shame about the narrator
- By Cmq on 31-12-10
-
Hidden Riches
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Sandra Burr
- Length: 14 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Dora Conroy has a passion for antiques - and any other rarities she can acquire for her quaint Philadelphia shop. A seasoned dealer, she knows all the tricks of the trade. But she is unprepared for the deadly consequences when she purchases a few curiosities at an auction - and unknowingly brings home a priceless cache that makes her the target of an international criminal.
-
-
Spot on
- By Tamara on 15-12-08
-
Morrigan's Cross
- Circle Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Nora Roberts
- Narrated by: Dick Hill
- Length: 11 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Standing on the cliffs of 12th-century Ireland following the disappearance of his twin, Hoyt Mac Cionaoith is visited by the goddess Morrigan and is charged with the ultimate of tasks: saving his and all future worlds. His enemy, the beautiful but deadly vampire queen Lilith, has had over 2,000 years of experience in cruelly killing and changing humans into one of her own - including Hoyt's brother, Cian.
-
-
Morrigan's Cross Trilogy
- By Elizabeth on 16-05-09
-
The Tethered Mage
- Swords and Fire, Book 1
- By: Melissa Caruso
- Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
- Length: 14 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the Raverran Empire, magic is scarce, and those born with power are strictly controlled - taken as children and conscripted into the Falcon Army. Zaira has lived her life on the streets to avoid this fate, hiding her mage-mark and thieving to survive. But hers is a rare and dangerous magic, one that could threaten the entire empire.
-
-
New and fresh
- By Amazon Customer on 08-02-18
Editor reviews
Editors Select, December 2017
Best-selling author Nora Roberts' new postapocalyptic dystopian fantasy novel is a departure from the romance fiction for which she's known (or the suspense of her alter ego, J. D. Robb), but it showcases the masterful storytelling that fans know and love while embracing the kind of world-building called for in this genre. Julia Whelan's nuanced narration captures Roberts' wide swath of characters and their authentic relationships. When the earth succumbs to a new plague, otherworldly powers manifest, and humans traits come in both life-affirming and monstrous ways in the first of a promising series. —Abby, Audible Editor
Summary
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER (December 2017)
A stunning novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts - Year One is an epic of hope and horror, chaos and magick, and a journey that will unite a desperate group of people to fight the battle of their lives...
It began on New Year’s Eve.
The sickness came on suddenly, and spread quickly. The fear spread even faster. Within weeks, everything people counted on began to fail them. The electrical grid sputtered; law and government collapsed - and more than half of the world’s population was decimated.
Where there had been order, there was now chaos. And as the power of science and technology receded, magick rose up in its place. Some of it is good, like the witchcraft worked by Lana Bingham, practicing in the loft apartment she shares with her lover, Max. Some of it is unimaginably evil, and it can lurk anywhere, around a corner, in fetid tunnels beneath the river - or in the ones you know and love the most.
As word spreads that neither the immune nor the gifted are safe from the authorities who patrol the ravaged streets, and with nothing left to count on but each other, Lana and Max make their way out of a wrecked New York City. At the same time, other travelers are heading west too, into a new frontier. Chuck, a tech genius trying to hack his way through a world gone offline. Arlys, a journalist who has lost her audience but uses pen and paper to record the truth. Fred, her young colleague, possessed of burgeoning abilities and an optimism that seems out of place in this bleak landscape. And Rachel and Jonah, a resourceful doctor and a paramedic who fend off despair with their determination to keep a young mother and three infants in their care alive.
In a world of survivors where every stranger encountered could be either a savage or a savior, none of them knows exactly where they are heading, or why. But a purpose awaits them that will shape their lives and the lives of all those who remain.
The end has come. The beginning comes next.
More from the same
What listeners say about Year One
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Simon
- 30-09-18
The Chick-lit, the Witch and the World's End.
You've got to give Nora Roberts credit here, she has attempted to pull together a novel fusion of chick-lit, modern urban fantasy and an apocalypse. It wasn't really to my taste personally, I found the characters a little over-wrought and some of them come by their magical powers rather too easily. There is plenty of "she realised he was the one" and so on but to be fair it never really dominates or gets too extreme. There are some good ideas here and some interesting characters which Roberts is suitably ruthless with to make for a credible post-apocalyptic novel. Julia Whelan does a pretty decent job of the narration too and it looks like Roberts is ready to go steps further with the sequel which at the time of writing is due in December. I don't think that I am going to follow this series but if a fusion of chick-lit, and witches with magical powers set in an end of the world scenario appeals to you then it might be worth a try. I think on the other hand regular readers of fantasy might find frustrations here due to the unexplained magic and romance influences.
23 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Mr
- 31-01-18
Unoriginal start and loses it way at the end.
The start is so much a rip 0ff of the Stand. A lot of characters getting together and then seem to drop them without reason (the best character being Fred)'
The ending seemed to set up a sequel but was very unsatisfying.
7 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Karl
- 15-01-18
Not up to NR’s usual standard
Very disappointing storyline & character development. Have enjoyed NR’s books in the past and especially the Circle Trilogy & was hoping this would be an apocalypse/fantasy mashup but this book had no life, no depth to the characters or storyline. Will be returning it as would never listen again.
5 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Simon Williams
- 02-02-18
A great listen
A thoroughly good listen. I'm looking for Year 2 as I listen to the last 5 minutes.
10 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 01-02-18
Easy, cheesy listening.
Easy to listen to but I found it very cheesy and cringe worthy. The story line (so far) is an unoriginal post apocalyptic landscape meander. I won't be buying the second book to find out if it gets more interesting.
9 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- jj
- 28-01-18
Great story
Really enjoyed this book, good fast moving story with likable characters. Looking forward to the next one.
6 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ms. A. Allin
- 20-01-18
loved this book
the time flew by so quickly. it's a really good story and the reader enhanced my experience. I had quite a few sleepless nights after I just submerged myself into the story. it has horror, sadness, joy and love in it. some bits are really scary and I found them so disturbing that I would take a break for a day then go back to it. I really enjoyed the characters they were very true to human nature,. there were people who wanted to help each other and people filled with bitterness and hatred and people who were just really cruel for the sake of it! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! it's a book I would read again and again. I have done that with some of Steven kings books and all of John Connelly's and some of Christopher brookmyers books. I think there might be more books to follow just by the way the story ended. I really hope there are more!
6 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Helga
- 06-06-19
Brilliant distraction
Some chapters and story timeline were rushed and a bit clumsily laid out in my opinion, with exceptionally cheesy characters and one liners. I sometimes got the feeling the author had come up with a story, made a detailed outline and then sat down and blurted it all out on the pages in front of her, possibly on a tight deadline. However, that didn't prevent me from enjoying it. This audiobook was exactly what I needed - an easy and enjoyable listen. It's addictive and I was barely able to take my headphones off, and will definitely listen to the rest of this series. If you are like me and just want to be whisked away from the pressures of day-to-day life into a world of post-apocalyptic hopefulness and romance - and can overlook the occasional awkwardness - this audiobook is for you.
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Smurph
- 01-10-19
Well written
Well written, and the narrator captured Lorna beautifully. I wasnt expecting a fantasy novel but I cannot wait to start Book 2
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- june o keeffe
- 18-09-19
Great read
Really enjoyed this book,as I expected as much.love Nora Roberts.cant wait to start next in series
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Bresee
- 05-01-20
Ahhhh finally! A book that hooked me!!!
I've been looking for a book like this. one that grabs you right from the get, all the was thro till the very end. This is a well written novel with fantastic characters!!! A few of the characters had me rolling Everytime they had a dialogue. I'm starting book two and was literally up ALL NIGHT finishing book one... There was really only one con, several parts, for me, were a little predictable. However I didn't take any stars of for the bc I felt the book made up for that in many other way but mostly bc, I'm just very very good at predicting story lines. It baffles my husband. So I realized that not everyone is going to find those part predictable like I did. Like the main villain, had him pegged right off the bat. But maybe many others won't see it coming so idk. Anywho, can't wait to get started on book two... If you like video games, let me put it this way, if Fallout and Skyrim had a book baby, this would be it. GOOD STUFF!
41 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- T. Mirandi
- 11-11-19
The story has zero depth
I’m baffled how this story has such good reviews. The author follows way too many people to add depth to any of them in order to care for the characters. And for a Post-apocalyptic world, everyone seems to have everything they need and everyone with the correct profession to utilize those supplies. What a miraculous safe haven!
28 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Kelly M
- 05-06-19
Wonderful listen & story
NUMBER OF HEARTS: 5 When the end of the world happens what will you do. Will you take it sitting down? Will you hide and hope it passes you by? Or will you fight with every fiber of your being? Year One takes us on an amazing journey of the people of the world as they face the end of the world. We meet so many characters along the road, some will be allies and some will be enemies. The question will be can they figure out who is who before it is to late. This is was a wonderful book. Nora Roberts is a great world and character building. I am very much looking forward to the next two installment in this series. This was the first book I have listened to that was narrated by Julia Whelan. Julia did a wonderful job of bringing the characters to life for me. I love when a narrator is able to narrate a book and it feels like I am in the story. Disclaimer: I purchased this audiobook and this review is my own opinion and not a paid review.
19 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Lizzystick
- 07-03-19
Umm...not for me
I like a lot of dystopian books/movies and even some fantasy fiction but I do believe a dystopian novel should have some element of "this can in possibly happen in my lifetime" to it , well, when you add in Magik's (magical people) and Fairies into it you lose me. They just didn't fit with the scenario in my opinion, I think they took away from the story instead of adding. I Tried twice to listen to this book because of the good reviews but I just couldn't finish it.
27 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Crowd of Nevadans
- 28-08-19
Don’t listen to bad reviews
This book is slightly YA , but it is an interesting mix and well done I really liked it
20 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Leslie W.
- 24-12-18
Best book I have read in a long time!
I hesitated over this book for so long. I just did not think that I would like a dystopian future novel. But I was very very wrong. It took me a day and a half to finish book 1 and I’m now on book 2. I hope she has a book 3 coming out in the next 24 hours or I’m gonna be very upset. This is great writing and great narration. Well done.
9 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Nate P.
- 28-02-18
Sub-par fantasy novel written by a great romance author
I made up a drinking game based on how many times the word “good” was used to describe “it, him, they, the day, everything, all of... that.” The author’s writing style shined while describing things like an orgasm, child birth, and the calm satisfaction and deep happiness of a holiday with family at a cabin, but was laughably ambiguous when describing the magical powers her characters possessed, and how to use them. I wish she could have established some rules about how the magic can be used, rather than just saying “I felt it growing in me, through me, of me, and I willed it to push and defend.” There seemed to be no limit at all of what it could do, and the knowledge of what Lana could do with magic just seemed to come out of nowhere. It was disenchanting, to be honest. There were strong parts, however. I felt shock and disbelief and grief when characters died, or when other characters suddenly betrayed our protagonists. Also, the first few chapters were excellent. I was hooked after the first chapter, listening to her description of the family in the farm in Scotland on New Year’s Eve. The world-building when describing the Doom’s spread and each of the character’s origins was also very good. I believe the title of this review sums it up quite well: a fantasy novel written by a romance author. The performance of this book was a very difficult endeavor for any narrator. There were at least a dozen characters to be voiced, and Julia Whelan did an excellent job. She was limited when portraying the male characters voices, however, since her feminine voice could only imitate a male voice so many different ways. There were a couple times where I couldn’t tell if it was Max or Will speaking, but I completely understand the difficulty and managed just fine.
304 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Kit C
- 20-12-17
If you like The Stand you’ll wonder why you didn’t just re-read that
As someone who loves a good story about the apocalypse and supernatural forces, I enjoyed this book simply (and only) based on those attributes. The story was absolutely derivative, in fact several plot points almost felt like fan fiction versions of The Stand (I’ve read The Stand at least six times, trust me on this point). It was totally obvious to anyone with half a brain what the major plot points would be (who would live/die, etc). I did like the addition of the overt supernatural forces and beings, but the supernatural aspects of the world felt very poorly developed and relied heavily on tropes. So far in this series there’s nothing original or even compelling about the story, but it was vaguely entertaining the way you find an innocuous Hallmark Christmas movie to be pleasantly generic background noise while wrapping Xmas gifts. With all that said, I will most likely get the second in the series because I enjoy pleasantly generic background noise on my commute and I like the topic.
199 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Kitty
- 07-12-17
Magical Apocalypse "Lite"
I would give this about 2.5 stars if possible.
I am a Nora Roberts fan but not a romance fan. She is one of the very few authors in that genre that I will read. Fantasy/Horror type genres are much more up my alley. So I was pretty excited when I saw that Nora Roberts was releasing a book that was more to my usual tastes.
I REALLY wanted to like this book more. But I found it rather underwhelming.
Now, I wasn't expecting a lot of explicit violence and gory details. But.
It is very much in the vein of iconic books like The Stand or Swan Song. There were even shades of The Walking Dead, in setting more than in the zombie apocalypse sense. The fact is that this was one of the most boring apocalypse scenarios that I've ever read.
The story is told from rather a distant POV. We get very little of the nitty gritty detail of what it would actually be like to live through end-of-the-world-via-plague like you get in The Stand or even TWD. We have the same exit from New York scenario that is standard fare, but apart from a rather awkwardly-worked-in single scene, it's nothing like the harrowing journeys that make you really feel you are by the character's side, and bond with them, and root for them. You get no sense of the daily reality of what it is actually like to LIVE in a post-apocalyptic world.
The same can be said of the "magical" element. People seem to mostly take it for granted that wow, suddenly now people are sprouting wings and hurling fireballs. It's all very ho-hum. The reaction is similar to what you might expect if suddenly discovering a talent for painting, or playing the trumpet. I tell you, if I suddenly sprouted wings and discovered that I was in fact a human-sized faerie, it'd have a hell of lot more impact on my life, my way of thinking about the word and interacting with it!
Then, there seems to be little actual point to the appearance of all this magical ability. It doesn't play much of a part in the story, other than as a dividing wedge between "normals" and "uncanny". We don't get any kind of intimate insights into how it changes people or changes the situation.
Maybe the way this book was written has to do with Nora Robert's usual fanbase and the kind of writing and subject matter they are used to. That's not a put-down, but I generally don't go to NR for gritty realism and heart-pounding adventure. It's kind of like an "Apocalypse Lite" kind of story. Which is understandable and fine if that's what they were shooting for. If the story is geared toward drawing in readers who aren't normally Nora Roberts fans, then not so much.
Seeing as this is her first book dealing with this kind of subject matter I'm still willing to try the next book. Hopefully it will be a bit deeper as far as connecting me to the characters and making me really believe I am experiencing the story along with them.
326 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Tracey
- 15-06-20
1 part scifi, 4 parts hippy housekeeping
can't finish. not for the true sci fi fans. a lot of emotional chatter about setting up homes, boring.
5 people found this helpful