Furies of Calderon

Codex Alera, Book 1

By: Jim Butcher

Narrated by: Kate Reading

Length: 19 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's summary

In the realm of Alera, where people bond with the furies - elementals of earth, air, fire, water, and metal - 15-year-old Tavi struggles with his lack of furycrafting. But when his homeland erupts in chaos - when rebels war with loyalists and furies clash with furies - Tavi's simple courage will turn the tides of war.

©2005 Jim Butcher (P)2008 Penguin Audiobooks

Critic reviews

“Epic fantasy in the best way, inspired by Tolkien.” (New York Times best-selling author Simon R. Green

“A stay-up-all-night-’til-you-finish-it-book, Furies of Calderon is a marvelous read.” (Number-one New York Times best-selling author Patricia Briggs)

“Absorbing...Butcher does a thorough job of world building, to say nothing of developing his action scenes with an abundance of convincing detail.” (Publishers Weekly)

Great story hampered by the narrator.

I had to start over about 5 times because I zoned out and wasn't paying attention to the story. I'm glad that I stuck to it, because it is a really good story. The narrator, Kate Reading, has about 3 different narrative voices - if you are not paying attention, then it's almost impossible to differentiate many of the characters. It's not that the narrator is bad - she just lacks in range. The book has many characters, and a wider range in voices would have helped.

There's enough in the book that I feel like I got a conclusion, but also enough for me to want more - many small cliffhangers, that are not annoying. Some books leave behind a single giant cliffhanger - I hate that.

I just wish the narrator was better.

I should have read this years ago!

I am a huge fan of the Dresden Files. I avoided this series for years because I didn't think i would like it. I can now admit how wrong I was. Jim Butcher is a master of great characters, interesting plot lines and is capable of making me laugh out loud at unexpected times

Great Series! Butcher Rocks!

I love great character development and Butcher does a great job with it in this series. A lot of series dwindle as they go and just run out of steam. This story builds and just gets better book after book.. I was disappointed with when it was over. The pace of the series is really good, exciting action sequences. For those how love a great story you will not be disappointed.
Hope you enjoy this as much as I have - Good reading to you all.
JH

An Interesting Beginning

Great story and an excellent narrator. There were a couple of weird audio glitches that could have just been my download but seemed like production goofs. They didn’t take away from the enjoyment of the story though. The horns are a little much. Worth a listen and I’m definitely going to listen to more of this series.

decent story strangled through the narrator

Would you consider the audio edition of Furies of Calderon to be better than the print version?

I can't imagine how. It sucks.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I am having trouble focusing on the story at all, the narrator is so distracting.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Kate Reading sounds like a bad renn faire actor at the end of the summer season with a hoarse voice. I just wanted her to relax, already! Have a lozenge, try talking in your natural range, and own your actual accent. Ugh. I don't have an issue with Brits, but I can't stand haughty used in place of actual skill. You know, like James Marsters has real skill. I wanted to like this story. I really like the other stories by Butcher. This narrator is like listening to nails on a chalkboard.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No.

Any additional comments?

Ditch Kate Reading, and hire an actual voice actor.

Horns?!?!

The horns are killing me... but great story. Butcher never lets me down. This is even better than Mr. Dresden.

Interesting Fantasy with a Twist

This book was a really fun read. The main question that the characters are having to deal with is how to accomplish seemingly impossible tasks with little in the way of resources. Jim Butcher thinks of really creative ways for them to either succeed (or fail) at any given task. The entire book is fast paced and full of more action than I even knew what to do with. Another cool thing is the magic system and the different races that inhabit Alera (each with their own special talent of course!). You only see one race in this first book, but I personally love a series, and Jim is great about opening up the whole world to the reader. I originally picked up this audiobook because I saw a review that said it is similar to the Wheel of Time series. I can definitely see the similarities although nothing can compare to the Wheel of Time in my mind, but it is cool that Kate Reading also reads these books. She always does a fantastic job with the narration/voices/everything else. I'd suggest giving this book a try because if you like it then there's always 5 more that you can enjoy.

Ridiculous horns!

The story and narration are magnificent but those horns at random intervals are maddening.

Please no more horn blowing😫

Loved the book, looking forward to reading Book 2

the blaring horns are annoying though

Excellent but for strange production quirk

The story is gripping for those who enjoy epic fantasy. I couldn't stop listening to it. Jim Butcher is awesome. A warning though, this book is not shy when it comes to the darker side of evil. Not a book I would lend to those whom are not adults.

Kate Reading was wonderful. Since joining audible she has been one of my favorite narrators.

Problem is, the production includes a trumpet/flute fanfare occasionally. I'm not sure if this is a chapter break or what, but the fanfare is highly intrusive. Discworld novels sometimes have a mild bell ring in this style, but the fanfare makes me think something has happened suddenly. It hasn't. That leaves me confused and takes me out of an otherwise excellent performance.

Recommended.