Harbinger

Fate's Forsaken, Book 1

By: Shae Ford

Narrated by: Derek Perkins

Length: 15 hrs and 24 mins

Publisher's summary

Seventeen years ago, a long and bloody rebellion wracked the six united regions of the Kingdom. Now the new King wields the vast and unvanquished army of Midlan with his right hand, and with his left has granted a small group of thugs, the nobles he calls his Sovereign Five, unbridled rule over the other regions. As if this weren't bad enough, the King has also outlawed the practice of whispering - which is a problem for Kael.

It's not like he asked to be born a whisperer: He didn't ask for his strange healing powers any more than he asked to be the village runt. And when he rescues a wounded girl from the perils of the Unforgivable Mountains, his luck only gets worse. She couldn't have been just any girl: She had to be Kyleigh - the sword-wielding renegade knight with all of Midlan on her trail. Then one miserable, snowy evening, things go from bad to worse, and Kael is left with no choice but to follow Kyleigh down the mountains and into the tumultuous lowlands. She leads him on one mad quest after the next - eventually pulling off an act of such mischievous proportions that it threatens to change the Kingdom as they know it.

©2012 Shae Ford (P)2014 Podium Publishing

Uh.. this IS really good, can't wait for more!

What made the experience of listening to Harbinger the most enjoyable?

I think this is a very good Young Adult book. It wavered in some places but I enjoyed the journey of the characters. Kale, the main character, is whiny in a spot or two but you understand that you are following a character that is maturing. The second book appears to bring more to the story.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The pirates were my favorite characters. I found the humor great. You can choose between dragon, wolves, pirates, thieves, bards, mages and more.

What about Derek Perkins’s performance did you like?

Derek Perkins shows an impressive range of characters, has good performance pauses and portrays great emotion. I will look for more books from him as well as Shae Ford.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I laughed and enjoyed the journey.

Any additional comments?

I enjoy a good young adult book every now and then, but I found this story got better for me.

Good quality listen

The book started a little slow but picked up quickly. Good diverse characters, sprinkled humor through out.

YES YES AND YES!!!!!!

Who was your favorite character and why?

Wow, I have fallen in love with all of the character's in this book, from the cheeky bard to the blind man in book 3.

Any additional comments?

What is great about this book / series... is that their are perfect amount of character's that come to life without being overwhelming. At the same time leaving room for you to see each one of them as a large role in the story line...

Typical Hero's Journey

The story pattern of the book is like a thousand others; the only thing that saves it is its good humor. I do have to complain, though: King Craven? "Craven", seriously? Might as well have named him "King Bad Guy" or "King Evil".

The narrator makes our protagonist sound like a child, rather than a 17-year-old, and his female voices aren't very girlish. Doesn't detract from the story, though.

Forget the 'prequel'...the story starts here...

gotta say i wasn't impressed with the 'prequel'...but the first book doesn't seem to have much if anything to do with it. good thing. i like this book, and the narrator. it took a minute to stop looking for it to continue the prequel, but after i realized the two didn't have a lot in common, i started enjoying this book.

Y.A.

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

This book is not designated as Young Adult. Thus, my expectations were not aligned with the story. I was not in the mood for a YA book, and had spent about an hour listening before I realized its category, Very annoying.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The story is a good one (keeping the above caveat in mind) ~ the most interesting part is the beginning. The middle parts are somewhat tedious. Some immaturity, lack of skill or practice are likely reasons for this downturn.

What does Derek Perkins bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

This narrator brings texture and ambience, helping when the plot and/or wording aren't quite right.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No tears, though I laughed once or twice.

Great listen!

great listen already got book two. the narrator is one of my favorites.Give it a listen.

Great storytelling...sit back and relax...

Narrator smoothly and easily captures you into his story and before you know it, it is over! Starting book 2 now...enoy!

is this YA?

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

The character progression was interesting until the main guy finds out he is a god (not literally) although he's not named as one, anything magical or physical he try's he's instantly awesome at, and the villains are childishly small minded and under powered.

The tension goes out of a story when the hero suddenly can no longer be beaten, you just don't care what he has to face because you know he's going to win without trying.

The author try's to balance this by having ridiculously complicated plans: a master wizard, and assassin, and a shape changing dragon, sneak into a ball, (not a bad joke I promise) the wizard pretends to be a bumpkin that has captured a dragon no-one else could capture. He does this so he can trick the duke into giving him his attention. Once they convince the Duke that he really did capture the dragon:

BAM they shout surprise, I didn't capture her at all I'm a wizard and we are now in charge.

no reason for the deception, no reason for the assassin. Oh the wizard also dressed up as a fat merchant to get into a ball that everyone else from his team snuck into without issue.

There are so many gratuitous events I got really bored.

this is the twilight of fantasy, I am sure some people will love it

Highly Recommend

If you could sum up Harbinger in three words, what would they be?

Highly recommended book!

What was one of the most memorable moments of Harbinger?

When he finds her in the woods....

Which scene was your favorite?

Everything is good.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

I don't know, but it would be a hit because the story line is so inviting.

Any additional comments?

You won't be disappointed in this series! I couldn't wait for the next one. Couldn't quit listening to it! On a long trip would just sit in the car to hear what was next.