Savage Legion

By: Matt Wallace

Narrated by: Lameece Issaq

Length: 15 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's Summary

An epic fantasy by Hugo Award-winning author Matt Wallace about a utopian city with a dark secret...and the underdogs who will expose it, or die trying.

They call them Savages. Brutal. Efficient. Expendable. 

The empire relies on them. The Savages are the greatest weapon they ever developed. Culled from the streets of their cities, they take the ones no one will miss and throw them, by the thousands, at the empire’s enemies. If they live, they fight again. If they die, there are always more to take their place. 

Evie is not a Savage. She’s a warrior with a mission: to find the man she once loved, the man who holds the key to exposing the secret of the Savage Legion and ending the mass conscription of the empire’s poor and wretched. 

But to find him, she must become one of them, to be marked in her blood, to fight in their wars, and to find her purpose. Evie will die a Savage if she has to, but not before showing the world who she really is and what the Savage Legion can really do.

©2020 Matt Wallace (P)2020 Simon & Schuster, Inc

Fantastic!

Highly recommend! Phenomenal book with incredible characters. The narrator is perfect. Can't wait for book 2!

Savage Legion - SO GOOD

I was first introduced to Matt Wallace though an audio recording of his short story Sundae over at PodCastle many years ago.That's the story of a WARRIOR TEDDY BEAR who protects children. I then moved on to the Sin Du Jour series which is flavored in urban fantasy. I loved that series too. Knowing that Savage Legion is an epic fantasy, I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but I knew it would be gritty and well written. I didn't expect it to be so powerful, and so feminine! This book is extraordinary. The writing, the plot, the characters...fantastic. This was also my first book that I've listened to that was narrated by Lameece Issaq. It will not be the last. She did an incredible job.

Great Storytelling

Having read The Sin du Jour series, I was looking forward to this fantasy series from Matt Wallace. Wow! The characters, world & storylines are incredible. Lameece Issaq is a phenomenal narrator.

Rich setting, great cast of characters

I really enjoyed this one, from the world-building to the plot to the mix of characters, everything came together to provide a fast-paced and intriguing story. The major characters are involved in very different struggles that all pertain to the same core problem and it was interesting to see that main idea from various angles, through various points of view. My favorite aspect of this novel is that it combines a wholly imagined world and culture with the very real issue of class differences. It's an adventure and an escape, as good fiction should be, but underneath there's a bedrock of serious and important ideas. (Which, also, is how good fiction should be.) I loved it, and can't wait for the next one. The narrator does a superb job. She really invests in each character's voice, making the dialogue come to life. This was a treat to listen to.

Off to a Great Start. I look forward to more!

I had some trouble at the beginning of the book. The characters felt adrift without the typical world building of SF/F and disconnected. This was really taken care of through the narrative as the main characters took 3 dimensional shape along with the world. Definitely the start of something intriguing and epic!

Great start to a new series

Multiple fully realized female characters. Deftly handled disabled and nonbinary rep. Interesting world building. Can't wait for book 2!