The Spirit Thief

The Legend of Eli Monpress, Book 1

By: Rachel Aaron

Narrated by: Luke Daniels

Length: 8 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's summary

Eli Monpress is talented. He's charming. And he's a thief.

But not just any thief. He’s the greatest thief of the age - and he’s also a wizard. And with the help of his partners - a swordsman with the most powerful magic sword in the world but no magical ability of his own, and a demonseed who can step through shadows and punch through walls - he’s going to put his plan into effect.

The first step is to increase the size of the bounty on his head, so he’ll need to steal some big things. But he’ll start small. He’ll just steal something that no one will miss - at least for a while.

Something like a king.

©2010 Rachel Aaron (P)2010 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"After a slow start, debut author Aaron pulls the action together and turns in a romp of a lighthearted fantasy starring an absolutely darling rogue." ( Publishers Weekly)

good book

good book nice smooth flow for the characters and good narration on to the second book.

want more

loved it want the rest of the book's. it makes driving on long trip's good.

Epic Adventure, Magic, and a little Silliness

What an adventure! I'm not one for fantasy novels, but this one kept me listening long enough that I needed to see how it all turned out. My usual trouble stems from being plopped into unfamiliar realms with unknown forms of magic and beings and not being given any proper introduction, explanation, description, etc... That was the case here, but what kept me listening past the first chapter was the attitude of Eli in the introductory scene -escaping from the dungeon and his blithe observation that you shouldn't pin your hopes on a gullible door... While this whole world and the idea of the spirits and wizards took me a bit longer to come around to, I immediately knew I'd enjoy Eli's take on things. He provided a magnificent dose of lightheartedness to the epic tendencies of the fantastical and dangerous mission. And too add to that, when we were introduced to Miranda the spiritualist - I immediately admired for her good character and good sense. Her righteousness was occasionally a little overdone, but I like a girl who sticks to her principles. And I thanked the author for using her to explain (to the servant librarian girl and thus me) about her magic, her court, and their code of ethics. Gotta love me some explainin. And I was intrigued about the different uses of wizard powers, and Miranda's confusion when she couldn't figure out how in the world Eli pulled off the things he did. And then came the appreciation of both of their methods when drawn out in stark contrast with Reynaud's. Add in Eli's interesting and mysterious traveling companions, and a giant ghost hound, and I became wrapped up in wanting to know more.

So, aside from my taking to the principle characters, some of the action was none too shabby either, and it entertained me, though it was somewhat predictable. Of course things get dicey when ransom exchanges, multiple bounty hunters and banished princes are involved. Handy to have the goodwill of the countryside indeed! I'm tempted to make pleasant small-talk and flirt with the trees when I'm next out and about in the wilderness, just in case I may ever need a favor from them... =P Not to give any spoilers, the plot of course thickens and complications compound, forcing alliances in order to fight the inevitable battle against a great evil in a massive showdown that tests everyone's strength and will. It was a hell of a fight, but well fought. I'd have been disappointed if it had turned out any differently.

The narration by Daniels was fantastic. Each character had a unique voice, which were consistent and identifiable. I don't recall a single instance where any voices were accidentally swapped in dialogue. The emotions were on point, and I enjoyed the casual, even flippant tone often employed to match Eli. The swordsman Corianno had a Spanish sound to his voice, which combined with his quest for a fight with another swordsman (though for different motives), brought Inigo Montoya promptly to mind. Only I wasn't really rooting for him - though it would have been interesting to know a little more about him. And Daniels did very decent female voices, which I often find to be the downfall of all but a select few male narrators I've listened to in the past. I thought Miranda's was properly feminine, strong and noble, without any forced higher pitch or unnatural sound. Very well narrated indeed.

A light fantasy adventure. Epic and yet sometimes silly. It was good as a stand-alone, but clearly set up to be a series. Some things were definitely left unexplored or unexplained, so I'd hope that ground is covered in future books. I have yet to decide whether I will continue to read them though. Some of the fantastic runs up against the boarders of what I can handle.

Outstanding

I was caught completely off guard by how much this book swept me away. It is funny, witty, and action packed. It simply a great time

Awesome female written fantsy.

I normally don't care for women written fantasies, but after getting hooked on the preview audio clip and the book being on sale, I decided to give this chance. She has written an unique magic system does not need grand details to work, simple but elegant. She develops the characters quickly and each are memorable. There are some good actions scenes, but with a PG13 feel. Some of the dialog and some scenes do feel forced or contrived, though. No cursing, no romance. The plot could have been a little stronger, but it works well. There is a little bit of politics, mystery, and intrigue thrown in for good measure. Good for people of all ages. I feel she is on par with Brandon Sanderson's early works, but a bit less gritty. Any flaws in this book are certainly out weighted by the characters and story. Narration is okay, but not great. He does some voices great and others so-so. His pitch and tone can be somewhat erratic. I highly recommend this book to fill the gaps between whatever other books you maybe waiting for. I will be getting the rest of the series. I hope Rachel Aaron continues to grow as a fantasy writer, she seems to get it.

Fantastic Book, brilliant Narrator

Sci Fantasy has always been my preferred genre. This series where two firsts for me, the Author Rachel Aaron and the narrator Luke Daniels. Rachel has spun a tale with refreshing excellence. Her characters??? are a perfect fit to a entertaining story line. The added dimension that audible books bring to the listener is always a risk. I have found poor narration can ruin a good read. The depth that Luke provides to the characters, transports this series to a new level, enhancing a well written book to pure audible pleasure.

Whole Series is a must!

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

no, only because they're not the fantasy fiction type. Anyone else and yes. I loved the author's interpretation of how wizards use their magic.

What did you like best about this story?

The CHARACTERS!! there could be a series made of all 4 in my opinion, for sure a book about Yosief... I'd love to hear about his battles and how he and the Heart of War came to meet.

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

Everything, his way to make each character come to life is a rare trait most narrators lack. when you can listen to a book and feel like you have just entered in the world the narrator created, that's like luke daniels is the master of the legend of Eli Monpress. But I must be honest, I found this series after I listened to another series Luke Daniels narrated, The Iron Druid Chronicles which I recommend if you like this book and series.

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

yes, the fight scenes, especially when Yosief was fighting.

Any additional comments?

Great book and great series... will there be more in this series?

Wish I could give it more stars!

Unbelievably good. I'm so glad I found this series. There wasn't one thing about this story that I didn't like (and that's rare!). Luke Daniels is an amazing narrator. I bought the other two in the series as soon as I finished this one. Brilliant!

Great narration of a so-so book

What did you like best about The Spirit Thief? What did you like least?

Interesting world, has some potential. The writing is pretty weak, thin characters, and every moment one of huge drama, involving ever more over-the-top new players. More a setup for a series (tons of partly told stories) than an interesting freestanding story in itself.

Has The Spirit Thief turned you off from other books in this genre?

No, I've read plenty of good books in this genre and will again.

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

Great voices, pacing, humor. He brings more than the text provides.

Do you think The Spirit Thief needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Well, it clearly has a world that's a lot bigger than we got to here -- we solved the starting problem, but we don't know what will happen to most of the characters, given the striking changes in their states in the course of this story. And some are being chased by big forces, you don't know who to root for... Could be interesting if somebody else wrote it.

Any additional comments?

It's not the worst book I've read, but there's no way I'm going back for more.

Wizards and spirit protectors

Everything, and I do mean everything, comes to life. Not my style, story was one big battle of the wills and power.