Echoes of Betrayal

Paladin's Legacy, Book 3

By: Elizabeth Moon

Narrated by: Jennifer Van Dyck

The action continues fast and furious in this third installment of Elizabeth Moon’s celebrated return to the fantasy world of the paladin Paksenarrion Dorthansdotter. This award-winning author has firsthand military experience and an imagination that knows no bounds. Combine those qualities with an ability to craft flesh-and-blood characters, and the result is the kind of speculative fiction that engages both heart and mind.

All is not well in the Eight Kingdoms. In Lyonya, King Kieri is about to celebrate marriage to his beloved, the half-elf Arian. But uncanny whispers from the spirits of his ancestors continue to warn of treachery and murder. A finger of suspicion has been pointed toward his grandmother, the queen of the Ladysforest elves, and that suspicion has only intensified with time and the Lady’s inexplicable behavior. Clearly, she is hiding something. But what? And why?

Meanwhile, in Tsaia, the young king Mikeli must grapple with unrest among his own nobility over his controversial decision to grant the title and estates of a traitorous magelord to a Verrakaien, who not only possesses the forbidden magic but is a woman besides: Dorrin, once one of Kieri’s most trusted captains. When renegade Verrakaien attack two of Dorrin’s squires, suspicion and prejudice combine to place Dorrin’s life at risk - and the king's claim to the throne in peril.

But even greater danger is looming. The wild offspring of a dragon are on the loose, sowing death and destruction and upsetting the ancient balance of power between dragonkind, humans, elves, and gnomes. A collision seems inevitable. Yet when it comes, it will be utterly unexpected - and all the more devastating for it.

©2012 Elizabeth Moon (P)2012 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

I hate this reader sooooo much

She ruins it. God I wish they had used the other reader who does this series.

Yikes what a change in narrators

This is one of my favorite series. The narrator is awful. I hung in there because I liked the book. She uses these odd variations of Scottish accents combined with girlish voices while managing to make pretty much all the characters sound oddly arrogant and wooden. Not a good change from the previous narration. Gad I hope she didn’t do the next one!

Great narrator

This will be brief...Jennifer Van Dyck should have performed all of the Paks and Paladin books both for talent and continuity. The changing of narrators really impacts the story quality. I really like her and will look for her performing other books I might get.

Great story with poor narration

I've read this series many times and it is one of my all time favorites.

In this audible version the narrator really missed the mark, especially for the characters of Arian and Arvid.

Not my favorite, but a satisfying episode

What did you love best about Echoes of Betrayal?

I really enjoyed continuing the stories of the characters from the earlier editions.

What other book might you compare Echoes of Betrayal to and why?

They are like the others in the series, which I do recommend.

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

I enjoy hearing the pacing of a narrator, although some of the personal names and place names weren't pronounced the way that I remembered them; it was a little distracting.

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

I like the good triumphs over evil moments.

Any additional comments?

No.

Paladin Paksenarrion Absent again

In an attempt to be "helpful", I am going to tell you the truth. This was a decent book about what happens in each of the relm's after Kerri became king. If you are looking forward to Paksenarrion adventures you will be dissapointed. Paksenarrion was mentioned several times as "I thought Paks would show up but she did'nt." I had the same thought all the way to the end. Two books in a row about Paks without Paks! I do not understand why authors have to leave the star out of their books. I hope that knowing this ahead of time will let you enjoy the book more than I did as it would have been decent if I had know it was'nt about her.

More of the same

If you like the earlier books, you will like this one a well. It is going to sound strange, given the horrendous things that happen to some characters, but the goody-goody-ness is a bit much. Everyone is too... good or too evil. The tone is annoying at times. I know Arvid is caught in between but even he is too good.

Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy this series, but it is a not of the caliber of Brian Sanderson's Mistborn series. J.V. does a good job as narrator, too.

dark, intense

This continues the stories which follow The Deed Of Paksennarion. I can't wait to listen to the next one!

Arvid, The Duke and the Dragon

If you could sum up Echoes of Betrayal in three words, what would they be?

Captivating, enthralling and intense

What did you like best about this story?

I enjoyed reading about Arvid's redemption, his discovery that he actually wants to find a better path for himself. It was amusing to read about his confusion.

What about Jennifer VanDyck’s performance did you like?

Jennifer did a good job of portraying the emotion of the different characters.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

If it wasn't for the need to work I would have listened to the book in one sitting.

Any additional comments?

Seldom do I run across a book where I enjoy all of the different plot lines equally. In this book, I gained equal enjoyment from Kieri's part, Arvid's part and Dorin's part.

Moon does it again. Great writing again.

Would you consider the audio edition of Echoes of Betrayal to be better than the print version?

The audio edition puts emotion and color to the printed word. I read the book before I listened to it. I enjoyed the audo so much more.

What did you like best about this story?

The multiple themes for each of the major characters in the book keep a listener on their toes. Fantastic audio performance really brings out the emotional state of the character being voiced and the social interactions between characters have true emotion.

Which scene was your favorite?

There are so many. Jandalir meeting the gnomes, Kieri and Arian discovering her pregnancy and especially Dorrin learning Beclan is a mage.

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

The loss of Kieri's and Arian's son.

Any additional comments?

This book is just as good as the original three books of the Paladin Paksenarrion. I won't discuss more about the plot so there are some surprises left for a new reader to discover!