The First Starwalker

A LitRPG Adventure (Forging Valerence, Book 1)

By: Cailan Wilkinson

Narrated by: Zack Federici

Why was he the only one who noticed how close the stars were getting?

The stars had always seemed distant to Travis, but lately they’d begun creeping closer and looming menacingly over him wherever he went.

The day was finally upon him. The day he’d been dreading. The day when he would leave his home and depart for Lightspear Academy, the mysterious school which taught its pupils how to harness magic.

While Travis and his friends begin their classes, rumors of dark magic and horrific events taking place across the sea in the kingdom of Luria begin seeping into Valerence. Suddenly, the time for studying is over as a failed ritual rips Travis away from the academy and into Luria. Where he faces horrors beyond belief and is bestowed with a power that will forever change his destiny.

The stars are done simply watching events unfold. They have chosen a paladin and made him the first Starwalker.

©2023 Cailan Wilkinson (P)2023 Cailan Wilkinson

A surprising journey into a vast new world!

I have to say and fully admit. I was really surprised by this story. cailan is a young author with a creative voice that is growing with every book. he is showcasing some great creative writing skills in the first starwalker and he is only going to keep getting better from here.

I really enjoyed TFS as it starts in an academy setting. I liked the play on religion, the history of the world abs why the academy was built. then we transition into an even grater world a
with more subplots abs plans going on. you can clearly see Cailan had a grand vision in mind when
he created this world. there are some great inspirational notes I took away from this book.

also, a huge shout out to Zack Federici. he did an amazing job with his performance and left me thoroughly enjoying the depth of characters. his skills were simply top tier in his performance.

Good but......

There's something very juvenile about it , I can't say what, but it gives off vibes that it should have been a child's book.
Yet it is way too violent and the topics too dark to be anything but Teen or YA.
It leaves me with mixed feelings and a sense that something is missing the entire time.
The story however is very intriguing as such I did finish the whole book to see what happens

Phenomenal!

This was one of the most complex and in depth stories I’ve ever listened to. There were so many awesome characters and I can’t wait to learn where the story takes them next!
The perspectives switch chapter to chapter but they were all so interesting and engaging that I can’t say I liked one more then the others.
If your into characters that feel real, multifaceted, and genuine then this is definitely the story for you!

It’s note the worst?

The dialogue really got me, the characters would just go back and forth with each sentence ending in “he/she said” or starting with “Jeffery said.”
It got better during combat?
So far I like the idea of the book.

Incredible Voice Acting Performance!!

I loved the character development and how these characters moved the plot along. The author - and voice actor(!) - keep you interested in the characters and in the unfolding story.

I am impressed that the author is so young, I believe he's 18 years old, amazing talent for any aged author - but he's only 18! And the voice acting, I can't say enough about the voice acting!!! I can't believe just one voice actor did ALL those characters and each had a personality of their own; he totally brought the action and the characters to life!