Title: Imager
Author: L.E. Modesitt, Jr.
Genre: Fantasy
Released: 2009
Located: Chirp, Amazon, Apple’s Books
Formats Available: Audiobook, dead tree and ebook
Rating: PG for suggestive content, mild violence, explosions and mischief.

As I’ve mentioned before, I love books, but hate subscriptions. Audible was a no go for me, I just couldn’t justify the cost for the return (not meaning to demean anyone that loves it. If you find it a good value, good for you!). Chirp just works better for me, especially since I limit myself to the “deal” sections. A month or so back, I picked up a book by Modesitt. I’ve enjoyed a book or two of his in the past, but was unfamiliar with the Imager series. I purchased it (at the time) for less the $5 and gave it a listen.

So, on to the review.

Synopsis:

Production/Narrator: The production of this audiobook is topnotch. The narration is fair.

The narration is done by William Dufris. I’ve never listened to anything read by him before. He has a surprising range and capability of doing multiple voices. The only problem I had is that I enjoyed the voices of the supporting character much more than I did his actual voice, which of course is the main character’s and the one used to narrate the story. Since voice is a personal preference, I can’t and won’t mark it down. The quality of the production from Tantor Audio is top notch and the story lasts a respectable time, coming in just four minutes under 18 hours.

Grade: A

Story: I really enjoyed Imager. More than I’ve enjoyed a mass market fantasy novel in a good long time. I don’t know what it was, the characters, the storyline itself, or the way Mr. Modesitt used the supporting characters. I’m guessing it was a bit of all of the preceding. I very much enjoyed the take on magic he uses, which he calls imaging, and the geopolitical ramifications of the nation he has created on his characters.

Grade: A

Verdict:  I really did enjoy Imager and feel comfortable giving it my highest two raven rating!

 

Title: Agents of the Crown, Books 1-5
Author: Lindsay Buroker
Genre: Fantasy
Released: 2018-2019
Located: Audible, Amazon, Apple’s Books
Formats Available: Audiobook and ebook
Rating: PG for suggestive content, mild violence, explosions and mischief.

So, for my first review after years away from the game, I settled on the series Agents of the Crown by Lindsay Buroker. If you’re a longterm reader of View from Valhalla, you might recall I had initially discovered Ms. Buroker due to her Emerpor’s Edge series (which I do recommend). The original version of those books were released as a podcast serial and were read  by someone I was familiar with on Twitter. Boy do times change. I am no longer on Twitter (sorry, it’s morphed into something I don’t enjoy), and I am not part of the same reader/author community I was before. To say I am rusty, well, that doesn’t even remotely describe how I’m feeling. However, I am still an avid reader, and when I can afford it, still love a good story being read to me while I drive.

So, on to the review.

Synopsis: In a far away kingdom, an immensely powerful soul is trapped in a jewel called a dragon tear. Whoever holds it has access to great magical power, but, as in all times and places, power is seductive and dangerous.

And, as with all trapped souls, this one wants to escape.

~

Orphaned at a young age, Zenia Cham has fought and scraped her way into a position of honor as an inquisitor for one of the city’s temples. But an even greater destiny awaits. Impressed by her deeds, the king offers her a prestigious position as one of his elite Agents of the Crown.

The missions will be dangerous, and she’s not sure she wants the partner she’s being assigned—a cocky noble lord from a wealthy estate—but she has the opportunity to distinguish herself as she serves not only the city but the entire Kingdom.

How could she say no?

There’s just one problem. The king gives her a mysterious dragon tear that’s nothing like the other magical gems she’s seen. She may need its power to stay alive in this perilous new job, but dare she rely upon it?

Production/Narrator: The production of this audiobook is topnotch.

The narration is done by Ms. Vivienne Leheny. I’ve never heard Ms. Leheny read a book before, but she does an admirable job. She does a good job of making good use of inflection rather than voice modulation in making the characters unique. What I mean by that is that Ms. Leheny does change the pitch of her voice to a degree, but leans more heavily (in my opinion) on making each character’s word pacing and diction a bit different rather than relying on pitch. I much prefer this because it is always jarring to me to hear men trying to sound like women, or women trying to sound like men. I enjoyed Ms. Leheny’s voice work quite a bit and wouldn’t hesitate in buying another book narrated by her.

The rest of the production shines as well. I don’t recall a single artifact being heard during the roughly 45 hours of audio the five books entail. (I didn’t add each one, but rather took an average of 9 hours per book. If someone wants to do that which I was too lazy to do, I’ll gladly update the review.)

Grade: A

Story: So, if you’re a fan of Ms. Buroker, you know she’s somewhat prolific. I’ve probably read 15-20 books by her in the last year (okay, listened to some too). Yes, her Emporer’s Edge is what starting me down this path, but I’ve enjoyed several of her series (not to be mentioned yet, they might be reviewed later ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ). When I discovered Agents of the Crown on a severe discount several weeks ago, I went ahead and bought all five. (If you’re an Apple user, it looks like the audio version is still cheapest at Apple’s Books.) Since then, I’ve been looking for excuses to be headed down the road, as that’s when I listen to audiobooks.

Setting: The setting of the book is a fantasy world of Ms. Buroker’s creation. One issue you have when listening to a book is you’re never sure of the spellings, and in my case, even remembering the names of places is more difficult without the word recognition. However, it really doesn’t matter to me because this is my favorite kind of world. One with dwarves, elves, orcs, unicorns, trolls, ogres and (yes) dragons. Magic is not easily assessable but not necessarily rare. Firearms are used alongside swords, maces, and hammers. I very much enjoyed Ms. Buroker’s world and would love to visit. At least the human settlements.

Characters: Ms. Buroker might be faulted due to the fact that many of her characters through multiple books share many of the same characteristics. There is often an insecurity that is characteristic of at least one of the main players. Here, it is somewhat apparent in both. There is almost always a love story waiting to jump out of the pages, and Agents of the Crown is no different in that regard. However, I maintain this is only a fault if you don’t like Ms. Buroker’s characters. And this is a situation that has not been an issue for me yet. Zenia and Jevlain, Cutter and Lornish, and the ever present Ree (spellings are mine, sorry) were exceedingly fun and I enjoyed the many hours spent with them.

Plot: In the five stories told in making this series, there truly are five unique stories. Yes, they are connected in a very convincing and important way, but it isn’t one long continuous story. Each of the stories was very good and enjoyed them all. Did I have a favorite? Hmmm… I don’t know. The last, Dragon’s Tear, I enjoyed quite a bit, but it might be standing out the most because I finished it this morning.

I can say this: If you try book one, and it isn’t for you, I don’t feel you have any need to progress. However, if you enjoy it, boy howdy, you’ve got some good hours of reading/listening ahead of you.

Grade: A-

Verdict:  I really did enjoy Agents of the Crown and, along with finding my old review files, these stories were tantamount in making me decide to begin reviewing again. If you like a good fantasy/romance that is well told with sarcastic and fun characters, I have no trouble recommending Agents of the Crown.

Thanks.. and don’t forget to choose joy!

Disclosure: I did not receive these books in return for a review. I purchased them from Apple’s books at a time when they were nicely discounted.

As a reminder, I will review books (in ePub or audio) provided for review, but they will be noted as such.