Rebel Mage Charlie

The Dragon Mage, Book 7

By: Scott Baron

Narrated by: Gary Bennett

Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's Summary

When the going gets tough, the tough get going. Or in Charlie's case, the going just gets tougher. It was enough to make him wonder if his luck would ever change. He should have known better.

Charlie had already managed to overcome alien mercenaries in two galaxies, miraculously saving his own neck as well that those of his dear friends. But things were getting complicated, and fast. Very, very complicated, in fact. With their forces in the dark as to the true nature of their enemy, Charlie and his band of rebel pirates and resistance fighters would have to dig deep if they hoped to find a way to overcome the deadly foe.

And failure? It would mean a life of slavery if they were lucky, though death was a far more likely outcome.

But there was another, unexpected player in this game of magic and warfare. More than one, in fact. And as their roles became clear, the entire nature of the battlefield would change. But whether or not they could adapt in time to survive remained to be seen.

©2019 Scott Baron (P)2020 Scott Baron

Charlie becomes a rebel?? Sure does.

“Rebel Mage Charlie” is the seventh book in Scott Baron’s wonderfully written “The Dragon Mage” series. What started off as a humors and light-hearted science fiction space adventure has become a well-crafted story enjoyable by almost anyone. In this audiobook, we have more magic, mechs, and mayhem. I could easily see this series becoming a TV mini-series with its unique blending of technology and magic along with a detailed story. Add to this, crisp and professional narration by Gary Bennett, for the audiobook edition, and you have a combination that simply works; and has from the first audiobook. It appears from Audible that there are only two remaining books in the series, so what is next for Charlie and his party? You will want to complete the story if you have come this far already, so picking up the remaining books is a given. If you have been on the fence whether to start this series or not, I would recommend you give the first few books a try as I think you will be surprised just how much the series grows on you.

The author’s ability to seamlessly blend in many of the characters from another series of books he produced (The Clockwork Chimera) and even pull a few in from earlier books in this series makes one feel like they are getting more than they bargained for. As the story progresses, we begin to understand the level of activity, action, and animosity as things ramp up rather quickly. The team continues to not only battle for their lives, but the lives of Earth many other worlds as well. The previously opened portal becomes a focal point and the only means of getting between systems. Yet, it is a very dangerous place to be when the fighting begins to heat up. Some of the more powerful characters begin to feel the strain on their magic and at times we start to see a lack confidence that they never will succeed at their goal. The audiobook has a fair amount of tension as the war continues to build. However, this pressure is frequently released by well-placed humor, pokes, and zings.

Here we begin to see just how powerful some of the magic user characters become along with the ever need for bigger and better technology. The AIs continue their growth at an expositional rate. I enjoyed the need for Earth-based technology and humans having to explain how such things function without the power of magic. There is plenty of action and adventure, and this is all taking place across multiple planet systems. This story has become massive and expansive, and at times can even be a bit difficult keeping track of what is happening where. It does not take long to get back on track, but that tells you just how big of a space adventure this story encompasses. Not only does the vastness of space feel bigger, but the level of deception to get one’s way is higher as well. We almost see the use of not only magic and technology to reach one’s goals but psychology as a weapon as well.

This audiobook focused more on Charlie’s friends and co-workers than on Charlie himself. Don’t get me wrong, there is plenty of Charlie in this one, so do not worry. We see many old friends coming back into the picture along with some of the magical waters which the party discovered back in the first book of the series. It was enjoyable to learn some additional background on Bob and his people in this book as well as Hunnza and her people. Those who have seen, or experienced war, know that there is often no mercy shown, and here we learn just how unforgiving some can be when the survival instinct kicks in. War also has the ability to drive dividers even between friends and co-workers. We see some of the alliances and friendships become fragile as this story progresses and the team needs to maintain unity if they are going to succeed.

Let me turn to my thoughts on the audiobook’s narration. With seven audiobooks down in this series alone, Gary Bennett continues to be consistent and professional all the way though. The life he has spoken into the characters remains the same, and I like that in a long series. I’m not sure how a narrator keeps track of the many voices, but Mr. Bennett seems to have this down. This does not mean that the audio is perfect, for those who require perfection. The audio has a few small plugs where a word or two is inserted, but this is not frequent or disruptive. Apart from this, I do not recall any other audio artifacts while listening. I have enjoyed and reviewed a few other books by this narrator also.

For parents and younger listeners, this book (as with the others in the series) does contain a fair amount of profanity. There are also a few scenes within a bar along with a few innuendos and references to prostitution. If any of these easily offend you, I would not recommend you start this series.

In summary, this book continues the journey Charlie began six books previous. He and his team of helpers have grown vastly from the days he was scared to travel in a spaceship. He also possesses much more than his engineering and technological knowledge; He has grown into a magic user that most would not think to confront. The narration is solid and clear. I like that the same narrator has produced all the audiobook up to this point. Even with things becoming more complex, there is still a balance of action and some down time. A great series I would recommend to anyone who enjoys good contemporary science fiction.

Disclaimer: This audiobook was provided at no charge by the author, narrator and/or publisher in exchange for a non-bias review.

Fun book!

And the story continues, now go get the next installment of Charlie's friends. Thank you for another fun book.

Amazing amazing amazing

This was one of those books that I couldn't stop listening to. The smiles and laughter and suspense it put me through was once again amazing and so much fun. I never want this series to end

Another Fantastic Story

4.5 out of 5 stars

Rebel Mage Charlie is the seventh... holy cow I've already read seven of these books... book in The Dragon Mage series from Scott Baron. It's also the second book that features crossover moments with Daisy and others from The Clockwork Chimera series. I've been trying to figure out if reading both series is helping me understand it better or if Baron does a good enough job explaining who these characters are. I think right now since I'm one book behind in the Clockwork Chimera series so I might be just a bit behind on why certain things are the way they are, but that's okay. It's not enough to make me upset.

If you've made it this far in the Dragon Mage series then this is another great book. You can definitely feel things ramping up to the ending and things being put into their respective places for a clean and nice full story arc. That's what I like about all of these books so far is that they have their own arcs, but also have this overarching arc that the entire series has followed. So, each book gets a clean finish but also sets up the narrative for the next book. I haven't felt like any ending was a frustrating cliffhanger (and even if I did, the books have come out in such quick succession that I could finish it a month later - kudos to Gary Bennett for flying through the recording of this entire series).

There are moments in Rebel Mage Charlie that definitely feel like we've gone through them before, but now it's from a different perspective or a different point of view. Each things that's happening to them is leading up to this epic final moment (no spoilers here).

Overall, another fantastic book from Baron and another great story. I've really enjoyed this series and I'm not going to know what to do with myself once it's over. Especially since I'll be finishing up both this series and Daisy's story within a week or two of each other. It's going to be like a part of me is just over.

Kip is still awesome

There are a ton of new characters, and most of them are great. We also, finally, get a full introduction to some of the characters from the sister series, the Clockwork Chimera. I enjoyed how the new characters were introduced and blended into the team. Kip continues to be my favorite character though, and hopefully, someday, I can get a brain dump to learn how to make all the toast. The action is this book is great, and the pacing is good. We have a great build-up to an epic battle, and of course, the unresolved storylines to keep us coming back for book 8. The narrator did a decent job voicing all the new characters, but I’ll always hear Vivienne Leheny’s voices for Daisy, Freya, and crew in my mind. Overall, it was an enjoyable listen and I’m looking forward to book 8.

This audiobook was provided by the author at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review.

Epic wrap up

Great introduction of new characters as well as worlds. Lots of great throwbacks and all towards a wild avengers assemble moment, well worth it.

Still loving it

Missed out on a code for this one, so I bought it.

The series is still great, and if there are no codes for the rest of them I'm buying those also :)

Continue the arc from book 6.

This is the seventh book in the series and the first in Which Daisy and Charlie get to meet. If you have not read the The Clockwork Chimera series yet, I would recommend reading that series before this book.

Scott Baron continues the arc he started in book 6, with more and more hints about who is really behind the near and possible future destruction of Earth. Come watch your favorite characters continue to be put into peril and learn more about the plot against Earth and humanity.

degradation.

This series started good with book 1, but has gone downhill with lazy writing. Who do you think the villain is after all this buildup? Probably the same as the other books. Sssoooooo lame to listen to 2 books where the writer thinks he is being crafty.

Enjoyable series

This is the type of SF books I used to read in the 80s, Not overly taxing but enjoyable and light.

I would say they a would be better aimed at the young adult market.

I liked the narrator and the books get better through the series.

One negative is that the scenes can jump around a little, and feel that they have been edited down from larger text, e.g. some fights start and instantly end as if a dozen paragraphs have been cut out to shorten the book.

as always a genuis

loved every second of this adventure was on the edge of my listening throne the whole time