Revenant Winds

By: Mitchell Hogan

Narrated by: Oliver Wyman

Length: 17 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's summary

From the Aurealis Award-winning author of A Crucible of Souls.

In a world devastated by a series of cataclysms over millennia, where the followers of different gods vie for ascendancy, mankind carves out a precarious existence among the remnants of a desolated past. Cities and civilizations are built atop mysterious and oftentimes menacing ruins, and the unforgiving wilderness beyond is filled with inhuman creatures and races from before the dawn of history. Sorcery is seen by some as a gift of the gods and by others as their curse. And the demon-ravaged past has all but been forgotten.

As a secret cabal schemes to awaken an evil thought defeated millennia ago, the lives of three unlikely heroes are fated to converge:

Aldric, a veteran priest and sorcerer, who seeks acceptance from the church that shuns him. On the brink of their approval, he receives a mission that brings him face to face with a long-buried evil.

Niklaus, master swordsman and slave to his goddess, who plots to split the veil between life and death and ascend to become her equal.

Kurio, the runaway daughter of a noble family, now turned to thievery, who stumbles across a disturbing secret that binds her future to infernal designs.

Drawn toward a horrifying endgame by an unknown force, Aldric, Niklaus, and Kurio find themselves in a battle not only for their lives but for the beliefs that have come to define them.

A wrong decision, an overreaching ambition, or the failure of an already tormented faith is all it will take to plunge mankind into an eternal dark.

©2017 Mitchell Hogan (P)2017 Audible, Inc.

Amazing!!

I listen to a lot of books...a lot. It’s been a long time since I’ve gotten into a story this much. Definitely worth a listen if you love fantasy.

Another great book by Hogan

I loved the past series I have had the please of listening to by Mitchell Hogan and also love Oliver Wyman. This book did not disappoint. It seems the book was setup for at least a number of more books. I really enjoyed the twist in characters along with how each one had their own paths. It was well written and great story. Looking forward to the next one!

just ok

l had a hard time not wandering during this. some parts were riveting and others were so drab and drawn out. I think the performance was ok but a little melondrone.

Oliver Wyman has a mesmerizing voice.

The story is slow. But I am anxious to see where the characters go N the next book. I loved the Sorcery Ascendant Series so I am hopeful for the Revenant Winds. On a high note Oliver Wyman's voice is perfect. It helps with the characters.

Feels like a lumberjack doing surgery with an axe.

I've enjoyed Hogan's previous works years ago, but this book just felt childish. Emotions had no subtlety, they were basically shouted in everyone's face. The love story was a middle schooler's rendition of how romance works. The actions of the protagonist and his party just leave you with a headache due to your just having bashed your head into a wall due to the stupidity exhibited. It feels like a much worse writer wrote this story and put Hogan's name on it. I would not recommend this unless you are new to reading fantasy.

Splinters merging

Took me a bit to sort out the characters and their diverging threads then I got into the story. I originally sought the piece for the voice actor, one of my favorites. Looking forward to the next one.

I struggled to connect all the stories together

Revenant Winds by Mitchell Hogan is the first book in a series called the Tainted Cabal. The world is a devastated place, with followers of different gods attempting to obtain the most power. Side by side with divinely granted power sits sorcery that is often seen as a curse. Mankind is eking out a living in a world that has been damaged by cataclysms that occurred millennia ago, but a secret cabal works to bring back an evil that everyone thought had been defeated. The lives of three people Aldric, a priest and sorcerer, Niklaus, a master swordsman, and Kurio a previous noblewoman and now thief, slowly converge in a battle for their lives and their beliefs to fight the evil that may be wrought on the world once again.

This was an okay story. While each of the individual characters’ internal struggles were well developed, I struggled to connect all the stories together in a more than superficial way. I think stronger world building and more background could have helped with that. It took a long time for me to understand how the sorcery and the divine powers exist together in the novel and also who exactly the tainted cabal was made up of. Having both divine power and sorcery simultaneously is a new concept to me, though. Perhaps later books will help with connecting the characters with the world better with more information introduced. The novel had both action and a lot of introspection on the part of the three characters, which I liked. I was under the impression that this would be a story about a band of three characters off on a quest to defeat evil, but this was not the case. This is a story about three individuals that accidentally cross paths in an effort to prevent evil from reentering the world. There are hints that this is predestined, but that remains to be seen. This concept was not something I’ve seen often, which was refreshing. The fight scene at the end was climatic and exciting, leaving open the story for future development.

The narration by Oliver Wyman was okay. While his pacing was well done, the characterization could have been better. Sometimes when the chapters switched, I lost track of who was speaking. The production quality was good. I would recommend this story to anyone who likes epic fantasies with a focus on fighting inner and outer demons.

Audiobook was purchased for review by ABR.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog.

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In the end everything came together.

It took a while for the book to get its feet under it. At times I had ask what is the point of this chapter. The narrator was good so that made up for much.

Great story.

Great read. Excellent narration. Surprise plot twist and well developed characters. Can't wait to read book 2.

Perfect Recipe

Just the right amount of everything I want from a fantasy novel... intelligent, intriguing, and well paced. Not much new as far as fantasy goes but I like the way Hogan puts all the pieces together, without fear of cliches. Great story, can't wait for the next book!
The narrator needs a little patience getting used to, but after awhile he grows on you.
Definitely recommend to any lover of dark fantasy.