Nevertold: The Son

Nevertold Series, Book 1

By: M. R. Moraine

Narrated by: M. R. Moraine, Cait Moraine

A rare male born to a hidden tribe begins a journey destined to branch into an intricate epic in the sprawling fantasy world of Nevold.

The beast-like Valkys, great in number and with innate magical abilities, were unable to stand against the Children of Man’s artificial perversion of the world’s energy. After the tireless wars ended, a tentative peace settled over Nevold. Now, scattered to the far reaches, many beasts try to scrape out a living, but none so unique as the Manyari, creatures that exist from a forgotten union of Man and Valkys, not fully of both and without either side accepting them as their own.

But today, one tribe of Manyari has reason to celebrate. A rarely seen male has been born. Raised in his remote village of Orahai, Kemahni is unknowingly held captive by his sisters and mothers to be used for their continued salvation. His chosen guardian, Ashava, along with her companion, Tahdwi, fight to keep him safe, despite him vying to live his own life. His birth mother, Saleal, watches him grow, hiding the secrets of his true purpose and nature, while finding it increasingly difficult to fulfill her duty.

When Kemahni's friend Kiyadeh returns home after years away, trained but rattled by the outside world, he is unprepared for her arrival or what she asks of him. Few know his true purpose, and when the truth is revealed, a choice must be made between freedom and duty.

©2022 M. R. Moraine (P)2023 M. R. Moraine

DNF and here is why

I want to start off saying these are just opinions and you should listen and make up your own mind. While I stopped around 4 hours in you may love this series and not have my same issues as I have described them.

Starting off with what I think is positive about the book is its from what I can tell soft magic system. There is a little explanation about how it works but I fond it refreshing for there to be magic and not have to quantify it. The other part I enjoyed was the setting something about how it was set up resonated with me and I enjoyed it.

Now the time to talk about the disappointing parts of the story. First off my biggest issue is the lack of completed threads of thought. They gave little bits of story but at least my the time I stopped listening none of them really linked together very well. For example if you are going to start at the beginning of the MC life explain their actions or at least show scenes that express them so when later in the story there is context.

The other issues are less grating on me but have to do with plot. half way through and I see no evidence of being interested in any of the 5 different story threads I have seen so far. Give a hint or suggestion of something greater than what is going on if you are marketing this book as an epic.

lastly the narraration. overall it was good but the intination on some of the characters got a little messed up in a few places making the woman sound more like men and vice versa. Overall nothing major but if you start a character one way wither commit to the voice or change it slowly over time. The other part is with the editing whoever did it either mad a poor decision to change the panning of the voices or it was an accident and should have been fixed before release.

Magical World with Deadly Choices

A magical world where certain males are rare and in demand. Kemahni is one of those rare males and one who has a destiny that he is just now discovering. Always protected and isolated, Kemahni is not prepared for his role in the tribe.

The author, M. R. Moraine builds a magical world that is revealed slowly throughout the story. Deliberate in building each character, the listener is surprised at the role Kemahni plays as nothing is given away. The author is clever and adept at holding the plot twists until the last minute changing the listener's feelings about different characters. Responsibility, completing one’s duty, and living one’s life are common themes throughout the book leaving the listener to wonder which holds the most importance.

The narrators, M. R. Moraine and Cait Moraine give a solid performance using unique voices for each character. As new voice actors, they did a good job of confusing voices a couple of times. However, their energy and understanding of each of the characters is evident.

Overall, this is an entertaining and easy-to-follow book with rich characters. I look forward to seeing where Kemahni and his friends end up.

There were no issues with the production or quality of this audiobook.