Troubled Waters

Elemental Blessings, Book 1

By: Sharon Shinn

Narrated by: Jennifer Van Dyck

Length: 13 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's summary

The author of the Twelve Hours series welcomes readers to a new fantasy world, where the elements rule.

Zoe Ardelay receives astonishing and unwelcome news: she has been chosen to become the king's fifth wife. Forced to go to the royal city, she manages to slip away and hide on the shores of the mighty river.

It's there that Zoe realizes she is a coru prime, ruled by the elemental sign of water. She must return to the palace, not as an unwilling bride for the king, but a woman with power in her own right. But as Zoe unlocks more of the mysteries of her blood - and the secrets of the royal family - she must decide how to use her great power to rise above the deceptions and intrigue of the royal court.

©2010 Sharon Shinn (P)2010 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"This entertaining and suspenseful story is full of lively characters, and the intriguing new system of magic and politics provides plenty of potential for sequels." ( Publishers Weekly)

"Filled with vivid characters, beautiful scenery, sweet friendships, surprising destinies, political intrigue, mystery, a slow satisfying romance, and an interesting take on personality types, Troubled Waters by Sharon Shinn is a book that just feels good." ( Fantasy Literature)

Ends in Cliffhanger. Sequel not Out Yet.

One - this book ends in almost a cliffhanger; there's no resolution.
Two - at the end, it gets suddenly a little creepy and a little dark, and needs a trigger warning.*
Three - from the author's website, it looks like it's book one in a series. Book 2 is due out in hard cover sometime next month.

With all of that out of the way, I loved this world. I loved the protagonist, I loved that it's a fantasy world that's absolutely NOT elves and orcs. I appreciated the language and the plot twists, even though I called them fairly early.

adding some space for trigger warnings, which are also a lot spoiler:
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*You'll probably catch on through the scenes with the visiting dignitaries that one of the king's daughters is being pawed at by members of a court described as "debauched". For a brief, sickening, awful few minutes, it seems that a Princess is being traded in marriage to a child molesting viceroy. I almost stopped listening. child trafficking, complicit family members, etc. I stopped reading game of thrones, because I don't need that stuff in my fiction, right? But the heroine literally jumps in and stops the proceedings, at the risk of her position at court, and the story is redeemed. Mostly. I still don't know that I feel the need to waft child rape and molestation through my otherwise enjoyable fantasy stories - "realism" aside.

Great Book!

A great performance and really good writing. My first listen for this author, do glad I found her!

Wonderful

Sharon Shinn's worldbuilding is fascinating and get writing is beautiful. Fun characters, great colorful descriptions help you see the character's world. I love how she blended many cultures to create something wholly new.

Excellent Fantasy!

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

Yes, I would recomend this book to a friend. In fact I did by posting it to FB. Sharon Shinn is a very good writer and she easily keeps you interested in the story and it's characters.

What did you like best about this story?

I like that the story isn't some pulp fantasy following a typical storyline and it doesn't rely on conflict of good and evil. Each of the charaters either likable or not is someone most anyone would meet in their life.

What about Jennifer Van Dyck’s performance did you like?

Jennifer has a great deal of flexibility in her voice in producing all the unique character traits needed to make this story come to life. It was a joy to listen to.

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

Really? you want me to do a spoiler? I don't think so. You'll just have to listen for yourself

Any additional comments?

I look forward to listening to the next book in the series and I will add Sharon Shinn to my list of must read authors.

She Didn't Follow The Pattern

This heroine didn't follow the pattern. I really loved that. Sharon Shinn takes what might have been a simple Cinderella story and turns it on its head. Zoe Ardelay loses her father and is whisked away to become the fifth wife of the king. It will create balance.

This is a world where numbers come into play. 5's and 8's are lucky. Each element has a prime--a person who carries the full force of that element with them. There are politics and intrigue at work as well.

The worldbuilding was nicely done and very subtle. I enjoyed the Blessings and the fact that they played such an ongoing part in this world.

The character of Zoe Ardelay may well be one of my favorites ever. She was stubborn. She was impulsive. She made mistakes that made sense for her to make. She just seemed real to me. She didn't understand her power. She also didn't really do a lot of work around learning it until it was nearly too late.

This audio performance was very well done as well. The narrator gave each person a distinct voice.

I've already put books 2 and 3 on my wish list.

Great characters and setting, storyline just ok.

Would you listen to Troubled Waters again? Why?

Yes, I would. I loved the characters and the setting. I enjoyed the "world" she created and would love to see more set here. I'd listen again to revisit the people and place.

What other book might you compare Troubled Waters to and why?

Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn books. Similar type world and magic structure, and similar storytelling style. Definitely aimed at a more female-type audience than Sanderson, though.

What does Jennifer Van Dyck bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Not sure she brought anything special, but she didn't detract from the story, either.

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

No, but it was overally very enjoyable.

Any additional comments?

I would recommend this, but I would also let someone know that if they are looking for a larger storyline, they won't find it here. Perhaps it's my own fault, as I've been reading a lot of series lately, but I kept looking for something larger to push the story forward. It didn't lag, but I did wonder where it was going a time or two.

Pure delight!

This book started being interesting from the first 5minutes.
It became absolutely captivating couldn’t stop listening at about 4 hours in.
The magic in this book is good.
The romance in this book is light.
The intrigue is just right!
The narrator was good but not great.
This is one of those books that you are really sad when they end so the next day after it ended I re-listened to the last few chapters :)
Too bad there seems to be only one more book in the series in audible.
LOVED it and yes it is worth the credit

very entertaining and light

exactly what I needed, found the foundation of the story very compelling. loved the narrator.

A good read!

I liked that the book didn't drag, though the main character can be annoying for her childishness at times. Somewhat predictable, but still very satisfying.

By the Numbers

A by the numbers fantasy/romance, girl loses father, meets boy, runs away from boy, finds strange destiny, keeps getting thrown together with boy.... yada. It's perfectly satisfying if that's what your in the mood for.