Forebodings

Conquerors of K’Tara, Book 1

By: L.A. Di Paolo

Narrated by: Adam R Watson

Length: 19 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's summary

A missing king. An ancient monster. One son must rise up to save their planet.

Planet K’Tara, 5000 AD. High Prince Aithen thought he had years of freedom before he'd have to take the throne. But when his father fails to return from a secret mission, the prince must learn the ropes quickly before a long-forgotten creature destroys the kingdom. And that terrifying monster is just a harbinger of what's to come....

While his younger brother searches for the missing king, Aithen must move his people to safety and prepare for battle. As he uncovers the truth of things, the prince fears he may have to go to war with a god himself, and with the help of the mystical Elyana - a member of the Sisterhood of Light - he works to gather answers before the enemy strikes again. If he fails, death will meet him, those he loves, and his people....

Forebodings is the first book in the exhilarating Conquerors of K'Tara fantasy series. If you like ancient gods, nightmarish monsters, and imaginative storytelling that blurs the line between fantasy and science fiction, then you’ll love L.A. Di Paolo’s out-of-this-world novel.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2017 Libero Antonio Di Paolo (P)2018 Libero Antonio Di Paolo

My 1st Audible!

This exceptionally voiced, wonderfully imaginative story with believable character interactions, carried me along through an immersive new world. I found myself smiling, laughing & on the edge of my seat, wide eyed. My only disappointment is that it ended (for now), I look forward to continuing the adventure!

Good world and characters although lacks clarity

3.5 / 5

'Forebodings' is a mix of science fiction and fantasy. It is a sprawling epic, filled with a lot of characters, set far into the future, on an alien planet, the world is ruled in a feudal system. There is dragon like creatures, as well psychics, magic and technology. The world itself is great, and the psychics and magic are used in interesting ways. The characters and the world are rich and complex, with much going on. There is both the ‘big bad’, otherworldly threat, but also politics and intrigue going on.

There is a character ‘cheat sheet’ included, which is probably worthwhile having close at hand while you listen. There are many characters.

I think overall the book lacked clarify. The ‘big bad’ is vague for much of the story, although eventually comes into focus and does provide a nice climax. Much of the abilities is augmented by technology, although the exact nature of this is not completely clear. There is a magic system, but how it works is a little unclear. There is a hierarchy or classification (different colours), but how they relate is unclear. It is set in the future, and old Earth is mentioned one or twice (mostly in passing, to mention Christianity or Islam or old cities) but it doesn’t actually play any part of the story. Why the setting of the future mattered is unclear. Another realm, completely separate to ours, would have achieved the same thing.

For a first outing, it is not bad. It’s enjoyable and there is promise in the writing.

Narration by Adam Watson is good. He provides a variety of character voices. Not always completely distinct enough to know just from the voice who is who (also because of the vast number of characters), but there is never an issue with following events or conversation. He engages the text well, conveying the emotions of characters and the intensity of scenes.

There is a foreboding horn at the beginning of each chapter. Three notes only, so it doesn’t overwhelm the narration or become problematic. So while I’m normally not a huge fan of music like that, this is short and sharp and effective.

This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this review voluntarily.

Decent story

This was a good book, I greatly enjoy long books and this one was definitely one of them. I felt that it had a good story though at times it drug out and got kind of boring. The narrator did a pretty good job as well.

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

What a Ride

Typically I'm a Sci-Fi listener / reader and I was somewhat skeptical when this was recommended by a friend but I have to say this book has it all:

Good Characters you can associate with
Well thought out worldscape
HUH that isn't typical for this Genre moments
AMAZING Narration
And a story that when finished urges you to get the next just to see what the author has in store.

This was my Drive to work book for just over a week,, Now I need to go get the rest of it.

Interesting world

This is the first book I’ve read/listened to by this author and I would listen to another.
I enjoyed the world he has created. The use of magic was interesting. The creatures he has imagined are recognizable yet different.
The book makes an obvious lead into the next one, but is not an uncomfortable cliff hanger.

This is the first book I’ve listened to by this narrator ( Adam R Watson ) and I would listen to another. He had a good pace and diction. The character voices were distinct. He did well bringing out the action or feel of each chapter.

There are no explicit sex scenes, excessive violence or swearing.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and voluntarily left this unbiased review.
Please feel free to comment on whether you found my review helpful.

Good start

I really thought this book was well developed. although I thought that it lagged a little when Alyana was talking to the Sisters of Light--- definitely looking to book 2.

There is a lot going on in here.

So there is a kingdom with knights and mages. There are magical monsters. There is political intrigue. There might be aliens but I can't be entirely sure. There was mention of technology. There is a lot going on in this book and you must hear it because you will not believe it until you hear it and once you hear it you will be hooked and you can thank me later.

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

Entertaining but ending was a let down

The good: The book has really good character and world building and the magic is not over exaggerated. The story is entertaining and really good listening experience. I can see how this can be a great series. The narration was excellent, which made the story more appealing. There are only a few fight scenes.

The bad (and why I gave it a 3 overall star): The book just ends, there is no conclusion to the current events and just ends with a cliffhanger, as if it was just ending another chapter and not the end of a book.

Unique

This audio revolves around a prince fighting against an otherworldly foe and cultural boundaries.
Intense with alot of action and mind games. I found it to be interesting and unique. Though at times I was a little overwhelmed keeping up with all the characters.
This audio was given to me free, and I voluntarily gave this review.

Forebodings

Very good beginning to a series. I was almost 3 hrs into the book before looking at the clock. The narrator did a good job with all of the characters. I received this audio book for free through Audiobook Boom for my unbiased review.