• Benjamin Ashwood

  • Benjamin Ashwood Series, Book 1
  • By: AC Cobble
  • Narrated by: Eric Michael Summerer
  • Length: 12 hrs and 21 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (874 ratings)

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Benjamin Ashwood  By  cover art

Benjamin Ashwood

By: AC Cobble
Narrated by: Eric Michael Summerer
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Publisher's summary

Life is simple in Ben's small town until an attack brings the arrival of exciting strangers straight out of a story. Before Ben understands what is happening, he embarks on a dangerous journey to help his friends. A mage, demons, thieves, and assassins are just a few of the perils he will face while trying to make it to safety. But things aren't always what they seem, and safety is a fragile concept when the destructive behaviors of the powerful are exercised unchecked. In Ben's world - like our own - politics, the economy, and military might create a system to keep the elite in power at the expense of the common man. As the series unfolds and Ben's knowledge and skills grow, he will have to decide if he wants to live within the system, flee from it, or break it.

©2016 AC Cobble (P)2017 Tantor

Critic reviews

"From the beginning the action starts and it carries straight on through until the end...it will be truly enjoyed by all who read it!" ( The Genre Minx Book Reviews)

What listeners say about Benjamin Ashwood

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • 4 Stars
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Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • 3 Stars
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

This book deserves to have a higher average rating.

Unfortunately, the skewed ratings of the fantasy genre on Audible have gotten totally out of hand. It’s now to the point where the quality of a book is better measured by how many 10ths of a star above four the average is.

These days I pretty much only buy books that have at least 4.5 stars. Anything between 4.0 and 4.4 has a better chance of being written or narrated by a trained monkey than by an author who bothers to get someone to edit their books. Anything below 4.0 is almost guaranteed to permanently harm your intelligence.

In light of this, Benjamin Ashwood should have a minimum of 4.5 stars... Yes, if you’re looking for non-stop unicorns, ogres, and fornicating cat girls then this book might feel a little tame, but those are the same people who couldn’t make it through Name of the Wind because of “all the jumping back and forth between the Inn and the story.”

This is a well crafted, carefully written, engaging book. The author manages to take a somewhat typical fantasy premise and make it seem like a unique adventure. The world is so well defined that you can visualize everything that’s happening with an uncommon clarity.

If you’re looking for a manic paced, crazy spell-slinging, underpants removing, relentless race to save the world then this book might not hit the spot. However, if you like fully fleshed out characters and an adventure that sprawls out in front of you then you should spend the credit and enjoy a seriously good book.

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49 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Pleasant surprise for fans epic fantasy.

There are many books that people claim that they are similar to wheel of time, but this one is the only one that really reminded me of Eye of the World. It is a coming of age story that is very similar to Wheel of Time. It is not as complex as wheel of time, but the story did scratch the itch I get for coming of age stories. There are all powerful women that semi control the world. There are monsters and of course a hero that believes things are just stories until he is confronted with them. While this story has some holes in it I actually found it enjoyable as a light read. The characters for the most part are likable and I have already started reading the next book on kindle. The next book should be out next month here if want as well. There are some sexual situations in this book, but nothing over the top or graphic.

The narration was good. If you want a nice coming of age story read this.

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21 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

So slow

The book started off well, but this is one of those Young Adult novels, it slowed down to a snails pace halfway​ trough and instead of the protagonist learning and growing. He just became more foolish/clueless.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

This is really, really boring and sophomoric

I've listened to hundreds of books in this genre and this is definitely in the bottom 5%. It reads like it was written by a 10 year old. How did this end up being a series?!

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Somewhat linear but got me hooked

I work long hours and wanted something that wasn't overly complex and overly descriptive. Just something that was fun and addictive to listen to on my drive to and from work.

This fit the bill perfectly. Mages, Demons, Blade Masters and a coming of age story with some unique plot lines. It's the exact genre I love to read. I'm immediately ordering book II.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Just a warning

I generally don't review but feel it should be said that the comparison to the wheel of time(before Brandon Sanderson did whatever that was he did to the ending) is very loose. It could have been inspired by the wheel or even inspired by a second hand impression of the wheel but it would be more accurate to say it would share a greatly simplified and abridged outline with the work. This book is well written and a fine story in its own right. It should not be compared to other works in order to be enjoyed. The writer and theirs work will evolve and surely be appreciated by many. I wish luck and success to the author as I wish enjoyment and satisfaction to the readers.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Conflicted

I'm not sure what to say. There are parts that are good, and parts that are certainly not. Summerer has a pleasant voice, but there are a lot of characters and he doesn't cover them all well. Over time it becomes difficult to tell who is supposed to be speaking. There is an awkwardness in the writing style that I am having trouble getting past. I listened to three of these books, but I don't think I can bring myself to get another, and I hate to not finish a story. I don't think I can recommend this series.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

a very slow start

Very slow pace. I was wondering, what was the point of reading this book. Near to its end, it hooked me. The magic system isn't very developed. The explainations are thru the eyes of Ben, who doesn't know much.. So that's consistent. Need to use the characters to explain more of the world system.. Good overall read.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Love the book!

Loved it! I finished it in a matter of days! It was hard to put down!

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Poor Storytelling

I devour fantasy books and series, and have read and listened to them for decades now.
This is a poorly crafted fantasy tale. I stopped listening halfway through. After four hours of listening, the story was still going absolutely nowhere. The writing itself is exceptionally poor. I do not know this author or his actual age, but from the language used it feels like he must be about 21 years old. That's how poorly written this story is. As for the narrator, he also sounds like he is still in college. He actually does a pretty good job when he is voicing characters, but when he reverts to his narration, his pre-occupation with v-e-r-y precise diction makes his narration difficult to listen to. There are substantially better books out there (Quaintrell's Ranger Series, for example, which I listened to on Audible). This is not worth your time. My opinion, of course.

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1 person found this helpful