Resistance

Ilyon Chronicles, Book 1

By: Jaye L. Knight

Narrated by: Lance Rasmussen

Length: 14 hrs and 51 mins

Publisher's Summary

"Don’t you know? Animals like you have no soul."

Could God ever love a half-blood all of society looks upon with such fear and disdain? Jace once believed so, but when a tragic loss shatters the only peace he’s ever known, his faith crumbles as the nagging doubts he’s tried to put behind him descend on his grieving heart. With them come the haunting memories of the bloodstained past he longs to forget but can never escape.

Taken from home at a young age and raised to serve the emperor, Kyrin Altair lives every day under a dangerous pretense of loyalty. After her unique observation skills and perfect memory place her into direct service to the emperor, Kyrin finds herself in further jeopardy as it becomes increasingly difficult to hide her belief in Elôm, the one true God.

Following the emperor’s declaration to enforce the worship of false gods under the penalty of death, many lives are endangered. But there are those willing to risk everything to take a stand and offer aid to the persecuted. With their lives traveling paths they never could have imagined, Jace and Kyrin must fight to overcome their own fears and conflicts with society as they become part of the resistance.

©2014 Jaye L. Knight (P)2019 Jaye L. Knight

Excellent and Character Building!

3rd time through Nov. 2019 Enjoyed immensely. The reader was clear and great for male characters--some of the female a little weak, but did not distract.

Okay, I'm upping this to 5 stars after going through it on audiobook. It is so difficult to portray genuine persecution and the emotions and tensions involved. She succeeds admirably in a way that will genuinely give courage and strength to someone who would possibly face genuine persecution.

The friendships don't happen instantly, but, rather, are the result of many tough action sequences and wrestling verbally to find how to cross cultural and racial barriers.

The dynamics she sets up is top-quality when it comes to encouragement for the Christian. A brother and sister face genuine persecution for their faith, and have to look out for one another. Family Dynamics-- Great tension and suspense!

Leading right in with the rescue of a slave who could and likely would kill His rescuer was excellent! I appreciated the way Rayad actually didn't curb his actions by fear of death. He did the right thing though death was a real possibility.

To weave a story in a fictional world that does this is no easy undertaking. I was so refreshed by the worldview in this book and I’m glad somebody is actually writing books that are so counter-culture.

Things to take away:

1. This book does a really good job of building relationships. I cared very much about Kyrin and Jace and all the other characters within the first 3rd of the book.
2. Tremendous heart of self-sacrifice. Willing to sacrifice yourself for someone else and for the principles you stand for.
3. Excellent job dealing with racism and the idea that you can’t judge a book by its cover. If Christians want to be missionaries, they’re going to have to allow the Holy Spirit to get them past prejudices and skin colors.
4. What would it be like to face real persecution? Real potential martyrdom? What would it be like to have to work for an evil Emperor? These themes are explored with gripping realism. The tortures do not go over the top but tell the story in a way that makes you ask yourself how you would react and feel the fear.
5. Friendship conquers all! The friendships that are developed in this book definitely grow on you and make you feel part of the camaraderie.
6. Will the common people ever be able to stand against a tyrannical government? This book deals with many of the issues involved. Each person has to make a choice whether to compromise or not.

I would like to give my hearty endorsement to this book for anyone over 15 years of age. It deals with issues you will not find very often in our polytheistic culture.

Besides all this, it is engaging reading with many good action sequences and tense courtly confrontations. The affection and love between brothers and sisters is encouraged and strengthened. Enjoy!

Engaging and Unpredictable

A very exciting, fast paced story with a lot of twists and turns. I was always waiting for what would gaijin next. I hope there are plans for the other four books in this six book series to be recorded. As of now, I only see the second one on audio.

Excellent!

This was great! I have read the book before, but I didn't know that I would also love the audio book. I think the narrative performance was very well done. Nice work! This was worth my time to listen to (sorry it took me so long!) and highly enjoyable. I love the characters, especially Kyrin, Kaden, Trask and Anne. I am looking forward to listening to the next one.

Great read and reading

Wonderful surprise of a book. I was riveted and found my own faith growing. Lance is a great performer. Voices, inflections of his voice, pacing.... All make it a delightful performance. Looking forward to his next read.

I love this series! Can’t wait for next one on audio.

These characters become your friends. This is such a wonderful story and I have read all that have been produced except for two novellas. I am looking forward to the next one and hope it won’t be too long until it comes. This particular narrator does an excellent job as well!

Early Christianity Meets Fantasy World - loved it!

Early Christianity in Rome meets a fantasy world (with a promise of dragons in the second book. How can I resist?). Though it started out a little slow, I was hooked before the 25% mark and devoured the rest. I loved the characters, especially Kyrin. Watching her struggle through fear for her life and the lives of her friends and yet never let go of her faith was inspiring. I'm often skeptical of Christian fiction, afraid it will become preachy or trite, but Resistance is guilty of neither.

UPDATE: I just finished reading it for a second time (via audiobook this time) and I love it even more than the first time. Updating my rating to 5 stars from 4.

A Powerful Story with an Excellent Narrator

I had already read this series when it first came out,and had loved it. However, upon a reread via audiobook, I think that I have come to love the book even more.

Resistance is a phenomenal addition to the world of Christian fantasy literature, especially for the New Adult community. Each character is dimensional and realistic, easily becoming favorites (ahem, Kaden and Jace). The plot is tight and Christian themes are beautifully woven into the entirety of the book, in addition to writing that sucks you into the story completely. Overall, it is just a fantastic book that I HIGHLY recommend.

The narrator - Lance Rasmussen - was an excellent choice. His voice (and I promise I'm telling the truth) was EXACTLY how I had imagined Jace's voice to be. He also perfectly gave voice to Rayad and Goler. However, one of my biggest pet peeves while listening to an audiobook is when male narrators make the female voices sound very high and whiny. This happened a little bit with Kyrin, but it really wasn't all that bad. Also, there were a couple times during the book when the character narrating would switch and I would be confused for a second (it was hard to tell when it switched). Other than that, Mr Rasmussen was amazing.

I definitely recommend this book, especially via audio, and I'm anxiously awaiting the rest of the series to be converted to audio!!

*I received a copy of this audiobook from the author in exchange for my honest opinion. I just happened to love it :)

Powerful Story

Wow! This story is incredibly intense, but the message and themes are powerful and needed in our day. I’m not generally a fantasy fan, but picked this up on a recommendation. I found myself up late listening and eager to get back to it at the end of the day. My own faith and courage were challenged. What would I choose in their place? This story is told with beautiful imagery, insightful analogies, and strong narration. Very well done!

Great story

The hardest part of this book is knowing not all Christians feels as strong for Jehovah as they do in this book. Great story, and hope this encourages us to stand strong as well!