Chosen

The Flameweaver Saga, Book 1

By: Casey White

Narrated by: Alex Goodman

Length: 6 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

Jas expected to hear a tale of glory and heroism. He hadn’t planned on living it.

Drenwell is in trouble. The idyllic nation teeters on the brink of disaster as one trouble after another lines up before it. Crops fail. Animals flee. Earthquakes rattle the land. In the midst of it all is the mountain, rising tall over the plains and forests. Legends passed down over the years place it as the center of the kingdom’s woes, host to an ancient, looming threat.

Tucked away in the countryside, Jas isn’t worried. Drenwell has a savior waiting, a man chosen by their god to defeat this evil. He knows it better than anyone, since this Chosen is his childhood friend, Darren. Jas knows that Darren will be the one to end the threat and keep them safe.

But their Chosen is clever, armed with his god-given gifts and talents, and he’s no fool. He can see the truth of the mission laid in front of him, its dangers and risks. The expectations placed on him are strong, but the will to live is stronger still.

When faced with his "heroic" fate, he chooses an option no one expected - least of all Jas. With no way left to him but forward, Jas finds himself trapped into playing hero in Darren’s place.

©2018 Casey White (P)2020 Casey White

A Wonderful Start to a Series

I listen to this book on Audible and the Narrator did a very good job. The main characters (one a average young man) (The other a Young man Blessed with powers) The average young man is a good soul, hard working, responsible person. While the Blessed man is rather cocky, acts like he is better then most around him.
To me the storyline is original in the way it is being presented in this Story. I recommend this book.

Fantastic Fantasy

Great fantasy. What if your future is not your own. Jess's best friend is the chosen one. He has super magical powers. When the priests come to take him away to defend against the evil in the mountain. On the eve of the departure, he comes to Jess's and uses his magic to bind Jess and change appearances. Jess becomes the chosen and leaves to fulfill prophesy. Great and terrible adventures await all the while, despite Jess not having the magic powers. Follow along for a great ride! Unexpected twists and turns and magical beings. There is some swearing, so that's why I didn't give it 5 stars. Happy Listening!

An intriguing concept on an enslaved hero

This story takes you on a fun, yet twisted ride, with its own take on a hero's journey. Jas finds himself forced to take the place of a hero, the Chosen. The time has come for the chosen to go to the local volcano, to fight whatever evil lay inside. When the false prophet arrives, his expectations get turned upside down, and once again his entire world changes.

In this book, the fights are fast, and the travel time even faster. That's not a complaint, because I feel that the book was paced well, it's just an observation. The grusomeness of battle is displayed, but not to the extent a dark fantasy novel would take it. This story does leave me with questions, and hopefully the sequel will have my answers. The story flows well, the characters are fun, although not incredibly developed outside the main cast.

The narration was good, everything was spoken well and clear. He was a little faster in the first few chapters, but I feel his pace mellowed out as the book went on.

This is a great book and I'd recommend it for anyone looking for a quick fun adventure with a dark twist.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Taking Reluctant Hero to a Whole New Level

The premise for this story was fun and novel for me. I mean there are reluctant heroes, and then there's a poor sap who forcefully dragged to his apparent demise. This book is a quick and enjoyable listen. There's friendship, betrayal, action, danger, and hints of romantic tension. All I would really ask out of this story is for it to be a bit longer. A little more getting to know characters to become invested in their fates and a learning a bit more about the world to add weight to what happens within. Perhaps the brevity is intentional, to mirror the experience of the MC and be unveiled in future books. Hopefully that is the case, because I see this as a story I would happily be invested.

Narration by Alex Goodman is very well done. It is easy to follow the source of dialogue and he isn't intrusive at all. The pacing is good and he was able to sprinkle in a little emotion.

All told, I think this series is promising. A creative tale and skilled narration. We just need ... more.

I received this audiobook for free in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

swap

"the chosen" changes places with a friend because he didn't want to face what "destiny" had in store.

Fantastic story

So, I want to avoid spoiling anything so I'll mostly comment on not-spoilery stuff. All of the characters in this story are strong and great (well, there's one I'm sure you'll have OPINIONS on, but still). The magic system is super interesting in how it works and I think it really fits the setting. Casey White pulls you in with the characters, and then knocks you out with the unexpected plot developments. I'd recommend this series to anyone who enjoys low fantasy.

Good narration.

I liked this story more and more as I listen to it. A lot of twists and turns. It leaves you hanging at the end and needing to read the second volume. The author has a great imagination.

There and Back Again

I thought that Casey wrote an interesting take of might and magic and I enjoyed how the story let us get to know the hero personally as he fought against what was thrust upon him. I enjoyed how he tries to reason his way out of things before using power.

Alex does a phenomenal job with the reading and is very good and making very different as well as distinct and believable voices for the characters.

"Honest Review"

4 out of 5 stars overall. Narrator did a good job. 3 out of 5 stars for the story being I didn't really absorb into the story and was unsure of the plot a third of the way through. But towards the end, the last couple hours of listening, things started to pick up more and I felt a little more involved in the story. I am aware this is only book one. Overall I was pleased with this audiobook, especially after making it to the end, and do look forward to listening to more of this story in the future.
This audiobook was provided in exchange for my unbiased voluntary review.

In summery most of it's writen in summery

An I treating premis and has some tones of satire on the genre but dosnt have any deep insights beyond that. the magic is very soft, as are all the challenges and combat. most of the book is writen in summery as well which takes away most of the tension