A Lake Most Deep

Shijuren, Volume 1

By: Rob Howell

Narrated by: Rob Saladino

Length: 10 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

Every year hundreds of warriors and swordsmen travel to the grand city of Basilopolis to audition for the emperor of Makhaira's personal company. Only the greatest are admitted into that elite corps. Most are found wanting and sent on their way, with nothing more than the tales of how they were almost good enough to serve him.

Edward Aethelredson knows that he is worthy to pledge his blade for the emperor's service. His entire life has readied him for this moment, and now he must only finish his journey and claim his rightful place among the best. In the midst of his journey, however, he finds himself pledging his sword - and his life - not to the emperor but to a lowly innkeeper. He swears an oath to discover who kidnapped and murdered a young and innocent girl. He finds himself unraveling a conspiracy that could threaten the very foundation of the empire.

Armed with his ancestral sword of glittering water-steel and knowledge passed on to him by the greatest magician in his homeland, Edward must also face the memories of a father slain, a king defied, and past oaths sworn. His future awaits....

©2015 Rob Howell (P)2019 Rob Howell

too many weird names!

Very difficult to follow with all the odd names. The byzantine nature of the city could be explained without that.

greatvbook

I can't wait for more of these stories. sometimes , stopping to rest un a new town might be more work than it's cut out to be.

Interesting start

I can see how others would like this book. I was a bit lost at times but I think that is because I found that I honestly did not find myself engaging with the reader throughout most of the book. His voice lulled me and I had to fight to pay attention due to the way he read.

The story itself was interesting and a good intro to a new fantasy world, though it took a bit to get to any real world building. But worth it if you can get through the first 1/3 of the book.

Storytelling

The storytelling of Rob Howell knows no bounds. this is not the fost book 9f his that I have enjoyed and it sure wont be the last. The setting and characters brought life to a new realm, while bringing in hints of the mundane world. I can't wait for the next volume.

Enjoyable excursion into a new world

While this genre is a bit outside my usual preference, I found this tale of adventure and intrigue enjoyable. The characters are well developed and interesting, the environment detailed and easily imagined, and the story-line is engaging and in-depth. One character has an inexplicably odd manner of speech that I found annoying, and the author seems somewhat obsessed with cats, but these don't detract much from the overall experience. The story flows well and has enough to detail to keep you interested, without getting mired in minutia. The reader has a pleasant voice and generally narrates well, without overdoing the different characters. I would happily recommend this to anyone whom enjoys a good fantasy story.

Thrilling Mystery/Fantasy!

Thrilling "medieval noir" in a low fantasy city, Edward's oath leads him deeper into adventure!