The Secret King: Lethao

De: Dawn Chapman

Narrado por: Greg Tremblay

Kendro, King of the Aonise, can do nothing to prevent their sun from collapsing, consuming their home planet, Letháo, in a single fiery blast. Running out of time and options, he evacuates the entire population, setting off into the unknown galaxy in four crowded ships. Under constant danger from their ancient enemy, the Zefron, treasonous dissent seeps into his inner circle. Threatened inside and out, Kendro struggles with whom to trust, until a mysterious vision finally brings hope to the distraught king. A new home awaits the Aonise - if Kendro can only unite them long enough to survive the journey.

©2015 TSK Productions, LTD (P)2016 TSK Productions, LTD

EPIC, Emotional, Exciting.

WOWZA! NO... FREAKIN' WOWZA!
A nail-biter from the first, I quickly became emotionally invested in the characters. Intrigue, secrets (hard to do when emotions are literally written on your arm) and mystery. Prophecy. Politics. And a planet destroyed by a star going nova. Such a wonderfully complex plot.
The narrator did a fantastic job. I loved the unusual accents the characters had.

Didn't Pull Me In

I liked the idea of this audiobook and love Greg Tremblay as a narrator, so I was disappointed the story never caught on with me. I found the characters and names difficult to follow and while some parts of the story were exciting, it just didn't move quickly enough for me and I found myself losing interest.

The writing is well done, it just feels like this 12-hour audiobook could have been tightened up and edited down to 9 hours and then the pacing of this Sci-Fi story would have been perfect to me.

Great space odyssey

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

Yeah I would, especially if he likes Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica aso. I liked the intricate magic which the author created and the voice of the narrator worked good with this sci fi.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Secret King: Lethao?

The moment Kendra showed his fatherly love to his child.

What about Greg Tremblay’s performance did you like?

His voice kept me going, I listened to his narrating in one go, missed a night of sleep but was well worth it.

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

The moment where Octav lost his bond and soulmate.

Yet another Fantastic Audiobook!

I'm as hooked as ever! It got to the point that I was listening to the audio book instead of music while drawing for class.
The thing that sticks with me the most from this story is the love and compassion. If I had to choose a single scene, it would be those which revolve around the release of one life for another. Overall, I think Greg Tremblay played Kendro the best of all of the characters, though there was not one character that I he was not on point for.
Needless to say, I just might listen to this one again!

Fantastic Space Saga

What did you love best about The Secret King: Lethao?

The whole story was great

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Secret King: Lethao?

Disaster averted, the Aonise are launched into space with their enemy, the Zefron, hot on their heels. It details their voyage through space, and how their people survive this calamity and those to come

Have you listened to any of Greg Tremblay’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No, But Greg Tremblay gave a great performance, I would be willing to listen to another book narrated by him

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

Yes and would listen to it again

Any additional comments?

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Boom

Very Good. Sci-fi with a Bit of Fantasy.

This was a good book that managed to mix science fiction in with a little fantasy in a way that worked. It is hard to blend the two genres well, but I thought the author did quite a good job. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and am looking forward to listening to more from this author.

The narrator was good here as well. Looking forward to listening to him again.

I requested and received a free copy of this audiobook from the author, publisher, or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review. I was NOT required to write a positive review and this reflects my honest opinion of the work.

Lethao

What did you like best about this story?

It was good for a sci-fi type of book. like Star Trek I had a hard time at first getting into the book. but I enjoyed it. as I listened along It's a perfect story if you are into this genre.

A Fascinating and Unique Universe

The Secret King: Lethao is definitely worth listening to if you're a fan of science fiction with a bit of fantasy mixed in. It's focused around an alien race with magic-ish abilities who are fleeing to escape extermination.

Overall I enjoyed the story. There is a little bit of everything, from action to political intrigue to romance. It's epic in scope and right from the start you know you're in for an exciting journey.

I really liked the creativity involved with the 'magic' abilities that the characters all have. It operates on a physical and emotional level. It allows for some pretty interesting interactions between the characters. I only wish that there was some more information on the limits and rules of the abilities considering how big a part it can play in the characters overcoming obstacles.

The main characters were all pretty well fleshed out with one character in particular seeing some nice progression. I appreciated some of the moral quandaries that the characters had to deal with. It allowed me to invest in the characters and the story that much more.

Greg Tremblay's narration is well done with excellent pacing. Overall it's a very solid performance.

The decision to give all the characters a similar accent definitely helps to drive home their alien nature. However, I feel that particular production decision may have restricted Tremblay's range when it came to character voices.

It's clear that distinct character voices was not a priority for the narration. I understand that this is a valid creative choice that some listeners appreciate, but I'm not one of those listeners. There were several scenes where I was unable to keep track of which character was speaking. It also added to the difficulty of keeping track of characters across scenes as characters were often referred to by multiple names in different scenes (first name, last name, position, etc). Without a distinct voice to latch on to, I was lost as to who a character actually was on more than one occasion.

In the end, however, it didn't detract too greatly from my enjoyment of the book. I'm looking forward to the sequel!

Battlestar Gallactica meets Game of Thrones!

There are certain elements that will always draw me to a sci fi story. Things like an overwhelming alien threat. A complex set of politics set across an entire planet's population and a desperate escape to an uncertain future. A leader with an actual mental connection to he people he or she rules. Epic space battles and wars to the knife. These are all elements that are a part of this story. It has shades of all of these and so much more. If you took Battlestar Galactica and meshed it with Kevin J. Anderson's Seven Suns Saga, you would have a good starting point to what this story has going on.

The world building, or in this case, destroying, is really well done. With the imminent destruction of their planet Lethao, the Aonise have to evacuate the entire population on four giant ships that haven't been completed or tested. Needs must though, especially since on top of planetary destruction, the Aonise greatest enemy, the alien Zefron, are on their way to finish off what the planet's destruction didn't. After the escape, we get to see what life on these giant arcs is all about, especially in a stratified society like the Aonise, who have a very delineated power structure, based on the mental and energy power abilities of the ruling class, with the King being the most powerful, literally connected mentally to all his subjects. His level of power is mind boggling, but there are always those that want to replace those on top. The fear, desperation and rage as an entire planets population is forced to live side by side for an unknown time, with the fear of destruction by aliens is vividly portrayed, and feels so realistic.

The characters are a really interesting mix. The main character is Kendro, King of the Aonise, who has to face the worst choices any ruler ever could. He is a good ruler, but he can make the hard decisions if he has to, including splitting his own power to enable his people to escape, leaving himself weakened in a time when he can't afford to show weakness. He has to play an interesting political game, where he must appear as powerful and confident as usual, all while recovering from using so much of his power to escape. With multiple threats to his rule, including one much closer than he expected, Kendro is caught in a cloud of uncertainty in an uncertain future.

The secondary characters are also well thought out. Kendro's wife Mika is a smart, savvy partner to Kendro, dedicated to both Kendro and the Aonise, who has a strong personality, able to withstand personal trials with grace and dignity. Octav is Kendro's Second in command. He is intelligent and implacable, as dedicated to saving the Aonise as Kendro. Brie, a ships doctor, is one of my favorite characters. She is such a caring, compassionate person, but strong willed and is willing to make sacrifices I would never have expected. These and so many other characters make up a great supporting cast, who we get to know throughout the story. This is not a book with two dimensional characters, but fleshed out realistic people dealing with the worst situation imaginable.

The main villain, and that is what he is, is Dalamaar, and he is the best kind of villain. Cold, calculating and ruthless, he is the kind that is always thinks three steps ahead. He is lurking in the shadows moving his pieces on the board until he reveals himself in one of the best mic drop moments at the end of the book that I've read in recent years. It's just such a deliciously cold, calculated moment, and it was perfect for his character. I can't wait to see where his story fits into the ongoing series.

The audio book version is narrated by Greg Tremblay. He has really good narrative pacing, never becoming monotone or having weird pauses as he performs. He is also good at creating mood and emotional resonance by changing cadence and tone, and he is excellent at creating different voices for each of the characters. He does a great job bringing the story to life.

With it's mix of sci-fi elements, This is a book that should have a broad appeal to sci-fi fans. There is just so much to enjoy. I give this book my highest recommendation.

Science Fiction Starter

When we think of Science Fiction and space travel, usually we think Star Trek, Heinlein and the like. Humans trying to escape Earth because of impending doom, aliens invading Earth, etc. This story is a bit different.

A new Science Fiction fantasy series, the humans on this interplanetary voyage are not from Earth, though they are human albeit with a few enhancements
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Kendro and his people have been forced from of their home because their sun collapses taking their planet with it, thus forcing them to search for a new planet to inhabit. That being a daunting task in itself, their small fleet of ships are also being chased by another enemy, the Zefron. This first book in the series tells the story of the first leg of the journey.

Through a vision, Kendro sees the planet Earth and that becomes their destination. But to make it, they must survive multiple attacks from the Zefron, and the fact that it will take almost two years to reach it. They just don't have enough fuel to make it.

Greg Trembley does a fine job with the narration of the many different voices in this book. (there are multiple characters), and as is the case many times in Science Fiction, strange pronunciations.

If possible, also download the ebook so that you can see of the different words,especially if you are a visual thinker or learner.

Highly recommend, all the more if you are one of those that is always searching for the next best Science Fiction to escape into!

*This audiobook was gifted to me by the author for an honest review.