The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches

By: Robert Stanek

Narrated by: uncredited

Length: 5 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

After the Great War that divided the peoples, the kingdoms of men plunged into a Dark Age that lasted 500 years. To heal the lands and restore the light, the great kings decreed that magic and all that is magical, be it creature, man, or device, shall be cleansed to dust. The cleansing raged for so long that no human could recall a time without it and it is in this time that the Dark Lord Sathar returned from the dark beyond. The one hope of the peoples of Ruin Mist was Queen Mother, the elf queen of old. She saw a way out of everlasting darkness, a path that required the union of the divided peoples. And so it began.

Listen to more books in The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches series.

©2002 Robert Stanek (P)2005 Reagent Press

Critic reviews

"[A] complex tale...sure to attract fans of graphic novels and classic Tolkien alike....Stanek will likely draw a cult following....This cliffhanger guarantees fans, and those fans will be ready to wield their swords against the Dark Lord in Stanek's next installment." (Voice of Youth Advocates)

Formula Fiction

A shocker. Paint by numbers fantasy characters and possibly the worst reading I've heard on audible. The cringeworthy voices of female characters makes me shudder just recalling it.
I'll be giving the next volumes a wide berth.

The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches I

I found the book excellent. The story and characters are great. I reduced the rating to 3 stars because of how the book is sold. When I bought the book it was not clear that the story continues over 3 more volumes, in fact I might not have bought the first book if it was known to me at the time. Spending over $80 dollars for a book is too much for me.

Good start

I got a new ipod for my birthday and my dad had already put several audiobooks on it. This one is my favorite of them all and I can't wait to listen to the next one.

Reviews very misleading

Out of many fantasy and fiction audio-books I have listened to this is the first time I have truly hated the way the book was read. Haughty, insincere, ridiculous--all at the same time somehow. By the end of the book I wasn't bothered quite as much, but still irritated by it. The book itself was entertaining I suppose, but saying there is a "sequel" is a misnomer, it basically just cuts out half-way through and says "this story is continued in part II." Don't buy this unless you're prepared to get the second one as well.

Average story - bad narrator

Intereting fantasy story if you like that sort of thing but would have been better with an unaccented, less trilling voice providing the narration. The faux heroic English accent is grating.

ok

I hesitate to rag on this title because its so hard to find, if Audible doesnt carry it, it will be more inconvienient to locate the remaining books. Not sure if this is another series like Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time Series, where there is a endless series of books with no ending/conclusion in sight.

The difference is, Robert Jordan delivers quantity of words; in his early stuff it had substance. Toward the end it seemed he was paid or rewarded by the word.

Robert Stanek has published 8 novels of The Elves of the Reaches, and they probably equal one Lord of the Rings or One Wheel of Time. Thus my irritation.

By the way, the reader here sounds very wooden like the narrator for Wheel of Time's series. Its a style, clearly. One that takes some getting used to.

Breathless reader distracts

Nice book, but breathless reader who reads in a monotone and at a very fast pace distracts significantly. I have a feeling this is a much better book if read better.

Terribly dramatic narration for anyone over 7

For the record, I'm rating the audiobook, not the book itself...

I'll have to read this one. I couldn't get past the overly dramatic reading. Kids will probably like it.

They Liked It? Really?

I have two friends who agreed that when this story was not mind numbingly boring, the narrator's 'voice' of female characters drove us insane. It was like he was doing women's voices for a Monty Python skit. It was funny at first and then I kept reminding myself that he wasn't trying to be funny, then it got just plain irritating. I would like to say something concretely critical about the content or it's format but all I can say is that I found myself ignoring it so often that I just gave up and regret that I wasted a precious book credit. It seems as though most people (according to the list of listener reviews) liked this one but I tell you beware.

Where are the transitions?

The speaker killed what could have been an enjoyable story. The utter lack of transition from scene to scene made sorting out the characters and following the story very difficult. I would not recommend getting this short book. I would probably enjoy it in written form, but this speaker ruins the book for me.