The War with the Mein

Book One of the Acacia Trilogy

By: David Anthony Durham

Narrated by: Dick Hill

Length: 29 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

Leodan Akaran, ruler of the Known World, has inherited generations of apparent peace and prosperity, won ages ago by his ancestors. A widower of high intelligence, he presides over an empire called Acacia, named after the idyllic island from which he rules. He dotes on his four children and hides from them the dark realities of traffic in drugs and human lives on which their prosperity depends.

Leodan hopes that he might change this, but powerful forces stand in his way. A deadly assassin sent from a race called the Mein, exiled long ago to an ice-locked stronghold in the frozen north, strikes at Leodan in the heart of Acacia while the Mein also unleash surprise attacks across the empire. On his deathbed, Leodan puts into play a plan to allow his children to escape, each to his separate destiny. And so his children begin a quest to avenge their father's death and restore the Acacian empire, this time on the basis of universal freedom.

Acacia is a thrilling work of literary imagination that creates an all-enveloping and mythic world that will carry readers away. It is a timeless tale of heroism and betrayal, of treachery and revenge, of primal wrongs and ultimate redemption. David Durham has reimagined the epic narrative for our time.

©2007 David Anthony Durham (P)2007 Tantor Media Inc.

Critic reviews

"Enthralling, literate and increasingly suspenseful." (Kirkus)
"Sprawling and vividly imagined....Durham has created a richly detailed alternate reality leavened with a dollop of magic." (Publishers Weekly)

A really good fantasy book

The beginning has a slow start and provides too much information that is difficult to process. At a certain point, it then begin to move at a pace that causes you to not want to put it down. I enjoy how the author describe each character and their desires which either had me hating them or loving them. I found some similarities with the children in the Stark family in the Game of Thrones. It was not too much similarities to which I was annoyed, however I can see where he got his inspiration.
I would recommend this book to anyone searching for fantasy books similar to Game of Thrones. It is not a dark fantasy book so don't try to compare in that way. It has some magic, a kingdom that everyone want or control. It has really interesting plots.

Slow start and not much else

Would you try another book from David Anthony Durham and/or Dick Hill?

I would need someone to vouch for it first.

If you’ve listened to books by David Anthony Durham before, how does this one compare?

no.

Did Dick Hill do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

yes.

Did The War with the Mein inspire you to do anything?

Stop listening.

Any additional comments?

I think I might be spoiled by the likes of George RR Martin, but as an avid reader, this book struck me as bloated, full of exposition, and uninteresting. I would recommend that you check off your fantasy needs somewhere else.

Good Story - Not Great / Amazing Narration

Quiet an epic undertaking simply because the author choose to present the stories of at least a dozen different characters. This is the primary flaw of the book - every chapter jumps the plot to someone else. If it were consistent (a few main characters, for example), you might forgive the uneven storytelling, but for every 5 or 6 chapters from a different character viewpoint, a random chapter of a completely new character (often irrelevant) is thrown in. Just as the plot gets to the actual start of major action, it jumps forward 9 years with no explanation - one chapter ends as the war starts / next chapter you're 9 years into the future.

For me, what saved the story somewhat was a narrator who read the novel like it was an academy award performance. Generally, the narrators read the book with various character voices thrown in and not much else. Dick Hill actually performs and gives vivid personality to the characters. It's obvious he's "worked" hugely on this story before voicing it. Some may not like a movie-like, situational read, but I found it helped the story in this case. If he were not the narrator for the next 2 novels, I might not have decided to buy them.

Very Enjoyable -Great Characters

Very enjoyable listen. Great Character development. The author leaves you with a cliff hanger at the end of each chapter wanting more and having to continue to find out what will happen next.

Ready for book 2

Started off slow. I had trouble keeping up with all the different characters but more towards the end I got really into it and looking forward to book 2.

you have to read this book!

I could not stop listening to this book from the beginning to the end, it's great. I would listen in my car on the way to and from work, then while I cooked my meals and even during my kitchen painting project. You won't regret buying this book. PLEASE tell me book 2 will be coming soon!!!!

This Book is Great!

It's George RR Martin and Robert Jordan combined. The narrator does seem a little over the top at first, as one reveiwer complained, but once you get used to it, you love it. He adds real drama to the words. I can't wait for the next installment and I hope the same narrator reads it. It's definitely worth a credit.

Excellent!

This story was beautifully written. I could not stop listening to it once I started. Excellent story.

Painfully slow getting started.

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

Mr Hill gives an awesome performance. I would like to hear him narrate a better story.

Do you think The War with the Mein needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

It has one

Any additional comments?

The story line was kind of goofy, but I will get the rest of the books; maybe it will get better.

overall an enjoyable experience

I read this trilogy when it was first published and loved it. I've rediscovered it in the Audible version. It's interesting to process the story as an older person, and in the current political climate. Like others, I have mixed feelings about Dick Hill's reading. I find it enjoyable overall, despite the flaws. I have to admit his rendition of the narrative parts, and the male characters, is better than the way he voices women and children. I still liked it enough to move on to the Other Lands in this series.