Hard Magic

Book I of the Grimnoir Chronicles

By: Larry Correia

Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot

Length: 16 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

Audie Award, Paranormal, 2012

Jake Sullivan is a licensed private eye with a seriously hardboiled attitude. He also possesses raw magical talent and the ability to make objects in his vicinity light as a feather or as heavy as depleted uranium, all with a magical thought. It's no wonder the G-men turn to Jake when they need someone to go after a suspected killer who has been knocking off banks in a magic-enhanced crime spree.

Problems arise when Jake discovers the bad girl behind the robberies is an old friend, and he happens to know her magic is just as powerful as his. And the Feds have plunged Jake into a secret battle between powerful cartels of magic-users - a cartel whose ruthless leaders have decided that Jake is far too dangerous to live.

©2011 Larry Correia (P)2011 Audible, Inc.

A Magical rewrite of the early 20th century

Correia adds another level (Magic) to the history we all know and then twists the outcome accordingly. "Actives" with basic powers of differing intensities group together to save and/or destroy the world. A couple great plot twists, a little bit of love interest and a pretty completely developed new world of powers. The pace of the story moves right along. I found that I liked the good guys and enjoyed disliking the bad guys. Not that everyone really was black and white...plenty of mistrust, vain ambition and misguided loyalty...

A very entertaining listen. If you liked his Monster Hunter series, you'll like this series even more for it's freshness and humor.

Looking forward to book two...

Oh, and Bronson Pinchot does a stellar job of dialects, including the regional "pace" of various characters. Very fun to listen.

PLEASE IGNORE THE CHEESY COVER ART!!

The cheesy cover art made me pass over this audio book for more than a year. This is literally one of those never just a book by its cover incidents. Literally. I deeply regret ignoring this series.

I was introduced to Larry Correia through the Monster Hunter International (MHI) series. I really enjoyed that series even though I have limited knowledge of guns. The extensive and detailed descriptions of guns didn’t really do much for me. This series is completely different, but just as action packed BUT it is much heavier on plot. There is action (some of it just as bloody as MHI), humor that made me laugh out loud, and the characters unique enough that I always wanted to know more about them.

I saw Hard Magic. I listened to the sample. Like many, the sample didn’t reveal much but I didn’t care for the slooow draaawl of the Okie parents. Now, I can’t imagine NOT hearing it. I can’t imagine Jake Sullivan sounding any other way and I LOVE it now. I can’t imagine Faye with any other voice. They are both intensely intelligent people by the way.

I was also hesitant to listen to Bronson Pinchot as the narrator. Yes, Balkie from Perfect Strangers. I was wrong about that too. He is a PHENOMENAL narrator. British, German, French, New Yorkers, etc...he was amazing. He brought these characters to life. It brought the action to life. It brought this Book to life. I am going to look up more books narrated by him.

I love the idea behind this story. Yes, the idea of people having magic is not new, but the origin and explanations of this magic was great.

I was completely engaged in this story. I ended up buying all three parts. I am actually writing this review while I’m taking part in my second listening if the series. It’s even better the second time around. There will likely be a third and fourth listening of the entire series also.

Buy this book. In worse case scenario, you can return it. However, i have the feeling that you won’t.

Really Really Good

One of the best series I have every listened to. I really loved this series, it took me a little to get into the story but once I was in I couldn't get enough of it and the characters were awesome. Very well written and thought out. I love this author. #Urban Fantasy#Magic#Guns#Action#tagsgiving#sweepstakes

Great performance and story!

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

Un-forgettable, magical, and brilliant.

What other book might you compare Hard Magic to and why?

Jim Butchers: Dresden Files. If you Like those books you will Love this one.

Which character – as performed by Bronson Pinchot – was your favorite?

Sally Fey Viera:- Bronson's Pinchot performance was masterful!

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Yes, the end so i can't tell you.

Any additional comments?

BUY THIS BOOK if you want one to remember.

Can't stop reading this series

I stumbled across book 2 of this series at my independent bookstore and since finishing Spellbound in print, have gone of to the first and third installments eagerly. I like the combination of 1930s depression era re-imagined with magical abilities at the core of all the major world events of this time.

The series is smart and action packed. The characters are compelling and in some cases unique. It is hard not to like the central hero figure, Jake Sullivan, and Bronson Pichot's reading makes you love him. Sally Faye is another original that sticks with you. Correia has a knack for taking the familiar and the well-trodden and giving them a twist that makes them fresh and new.

So far, I think Hard Magic is the best of the Series in terms of conception and ideas and theories about "The Power." That said, I can't stop reading any of them. Enjoy!

Really Fun

I got to the end and was disappointed that this is book 1 of a series yet written. It was a thoroughly enjoyable listen, with purposefully cliche' characters (much like Harry Dresden is cliche' for his genre) and an awesome premise of magic. It was truly a delight to listen to and I greatly anticipate future books.

Yes it's Grim, Yes it's Noir, Yes it's Good

It seems a little redundant to write yet another rave review for this book so I'll keep it short and try to hit the points I think other summaries/reviews have soft pedaled or omitted.

-- It's wildly imaginative but, like the best imaginative works, keeps to an internal logic that constrains and contains the action. Especially for books with a strong detective / spy story angle (this being more of the latter despite the Film Noir homage) this is vital for coherence and credibility. Correia does an excellent job of establishing magic as just another force in his fantasy world, analogous to the four forces we know, not as some sort of grab bag of plot devices.

-- It's actually very violent, and quite grim, in spots. In the audible production the book is given a gloss by Pinchot's narration that makes it easy not to stop and think about how violent some of the imagery is. It's not a criticism: I like action books, and this is a good one, but be warned if this might bother you.

-- A really good action book requires a really good villain and the way "The Chairman" is treated in this is quite good. What starts out looking like a Fu Manchu stereotype is actually a fairly interesting character and very powerful and smart.

-- Pinchot's narration is fantastic. The way he establishes and uses a large number of character voices is excellent. His work is so good that I think it actually improves the story: there were parts that seemed flawless when I listened to them but, when I thought back about them later, I could see some issues the author had with maintaining a consistent tone that I think would have bothered me in a print version.

I am really looking forward to other books in this series and will be terribly disappointed if Pinchot doesn't read them all.

Hard Magic...Hard to stop listening!

Any additional comments?

Larry Correia does it again! I loved this book!I didn't think Correia could do better than his Monster Hunter series but this is going to give it a run for his money.And Bronson Pinchot...Wow...i would have never suspected he is that good. His narration was some of the best i have ever heard. His characrterizations and tones were perferct and the accents were spot on! i will listen to anything he reads. I have to admit i ws a little off-put about Jakes deep south accent but it really grows on you & you really enjoy it.The story is well constructed, exciting and suspensfull, the characters are engaging and interesting. There are plenty of twists and turns, though i don't think anyone is really fooled by them, nor do i think anyone cares that they are obvious. And then there is the magic... Correia comes up with some wonderfull magical abilities and their shortcomingsIt is very rare that i would say this in a review but i wholeheartedly recommed this book and I can find no flaws!

Larry Correia is fast becoming one of my favorite.

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

fun story line

What did you like best about this story?

fast pased

What about Bronson Pinchot’s performance did you like?

He tried to make each voice different. I was not impressed.

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

action packed

Epic

This breaks new ground by the merging of many different ideas of fact and fiction. This has something for every fiction reader out their. I am so glad that this already has a "Book 1" in the title. I can not wait for the next installment. This writer breaks new ground with a mix of magic, super heroes and monsters. Even his involvement of real historical characters ignites the imagination. Don't hesitate. The first book is worth the leap of faith.