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.

Amazing

I loved it the people in the book will mak u fall in love with Larry mind.

OH WHAT A THRILL RIDE!!!

Where shall I begin? OK I'll start at the beginning no wait let's go to the middle no that want work either go to the end. It does not make a flipping difference every word of this book... NO TREASURE is WONDERFUL!!! Never before have I felt the raw passion from an author and narrator like HARD MAGIC! Since listening to all three Chronicles I've searched for it's equal and am found still wanting!!!

Fun Series

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

It was a great work that Mr. Correia created.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Hard Magic?

I loved how he mixed that real historical events with magic. I would read about a character and search it and find all sorts of stuff about the real life person.

Which scene was your favorite?

Sorry no spoilers

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

Again no spoilers.

Any additional comments?

Read the whole series.

Awesome story.

This was a wonderful story with credible characters and an awesome alternative universe. Can't recommend the book... And the narrator, Bronson P, enough!!

Alternate History like you've never seen it before

While there are numerous alternate history tales in print these, only this one packs so much distilled crazy awesomeness in one package. It has zombies, sky pirates, hard boiled detectives, ninjas, an adorable teleporting Okalahoma girl with a shotgun and much more.

Larry Corriea has a knack for building intriguing worlds and I feel that this might be his best (or tied with the Son of the Black Sword's world of Lok). Instead of the usual alternate history set between the 1930s and 1940s, the author's premise has nothing to do with ridiculous ideas such as "what if Hitler was a dog" but instead introduces magic and into his slick noir world.

His vast repetoire of characters is well fleshed out and all are interesting to read about. Both his heroes and villains has motivations, strengths and flaws that suck the reader in, keeping the reader/listener sucked in to this tale. Of course, the author's brand of humor is ever present(I dare you not to laugh when one character meets a rather peculiar squirrel). This book is a must buy, whether you are a fan of alt history, noir tales, or just plain fun action packed stories.

Art Deco Magic

I had already enjoyed Larry Correia's Monster Hunter series, so when he came out with this new series, I had to at least give it try. The premise is that people with magical abilities, called Actives, began to appear in the mid-1800s. By the time of our story (1929 or so), the Great War (aka WWI) had been fought, and won, but this time, with magic on both sides. The German Kaiser had the ability to turn his dead into zombie soldiers, and it took a miracle weapon from Nikola Tesla for the Germans and the Imperium (Nipponese) to be defeated.

Our protagonist, Jake Sullivan, was a much decorated soldier in the war, then spent some time in prison, before being "paroled" to J. Edgar Hoover's Bureau of Investigation to help catch other Actives. Things go wrong, and he winds up getting caught up in a battle between two groups of Actives. He begins to understand the nature of magic, and along with a band of especially talented Actives, fights the Imperium, it's Iron Guard, and most of all, it's Chairman. Lots of guns (scant surprise, given the author), and lots of good fighting. Rock-em, sock-em action from beginning to end.

The narrator, Bronson Pinchot, does an excellent job of giving each character a distinct "voice" and mannerism, making it easy to tell at any time who is speaking. My only complaint is a minor one. Mr. Pinchot apparently doesn't know some of the more esoteric vocabulary terms, and thus doesn't know the correct pronunciation for them. But it's only a few words, and the rest of his reading is excellent, so we'll forgive him those few errors.

Over all, an excellent new series by an author I've already come to truly enjoy, and a great performance. If Urban Fantasy is your thing, this book is worth your time!

Steam Punk meets Sci-Fi/Alternative History

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

I don't have the time to read nearly as much as I listen and this is a book that I probably would have passed up on the shelf but am very glad I didn't pass it up via Audible.

What did you like best about this story?

The author and narrator do a tremendous job of setting up an alternative history/culture/society within the U.S. in the 1930's. However, they don't stray so far that it's a turn-off. They make it truly believable and have obviously taken great pains to think out how a race of magical humans would have effected various aspects of American society throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries.

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

The narrator does a phenomenal job of capturing the essence of both male and female characters. When reading a book each person develops characters differently in their head and I think Pinchot did a great job of developing these similarly to how I would have. He does a phenomenal job and led me to get the follow-up.

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

The ending was very strong.

Any additional comments?

Loved it and am almost done with the second installment. I'd recommend this if you are a fan of any/all of these:
-History
-Early America in the 20th century
-Alternative History
-Action/Drama
-Superheroes
-Mystery/Conspiracy
-Science Fiction and Fantasy

Fun and Awesome

This is a classic "can't judge a book by its cover" case for me. I looked at the cover of this book, read the blurb about a magic private eye, and I doubted. I doubted a lot. Happily, I was desperate for something to listen to/read, and I had credits to burn, so I figured what the heck - and I was treated to 16 hours of one of the most entertaining stories I have ever heard.

Bronson Pinchot is a virtuoso of audiobook narration. He is a genius. He was born to read books to people. I will listen to him read cookbooks. It's worth buying this book just to hear audiobook narration done amazingly, crazily right.

The story: the description makes it sound like this will be like "The Maltese Falcon" with magic in it, but it really didn't have much in common with a detective novel or the noir genre. It's more of a speculative fantasy thing - if I were describing this to a friend, I'd tell them to think "The Untouchables," except with magic powers, and instead of Al Capone they're trying to stop a shadowy cabal based on WWII's Axis powers from destroying the world. If you mashed "Star Wars," "Raiders of the Lost Ark," and "The Wizard of Oz," you'd get something not totally unlike this book.

So: fun, fast-paced and totally over-the-top story plus mind-bogglingly good narration. Fantastic combination! I'm glad I stumbled upon this deservedly well-reviewed book!

not good for driving

hard to listen to in a car. narrator chose extremely soft voices for several characters. would have stopped listening but I loved the story. I won't buy anymore books with the same narrator. Adam Baldwin was awsome!

Best narration ever.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. I'm falling in love with steam punk. I think my friends would appreciate it too.

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

His voice inflections heighten the suspense, flesh out the characters and bring the story to life in a way that I probably would not have appreciated if I just read the book.