• Elseerian

  • The Chronicles of Lumineia, Book 1
  • By: Ben Hale
  • Narrated by: Derek Perkins
  • Length: 12 hrs and 10 mins
  • 3.9 out of 5 stars (714 ratings)

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Elseerian  By  cover art

Elseerian

By: Ben Hale
Narrated by: Derek Perkins
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Publisher's summary

The assassination of heroes was once a warning... for an invasion that nearly destroyed the world. Nations were slaughtered, cities were erased from existence, and defending armies were crushed into oblivion. In weeks, all life stood on the verge of extinction. But the end did not come. Instead the black horde vanished, leaving terrified survivors... and rumors. As the centuries passed the holocaust faded into legend, and finally myth. Across the southern sea a gifted young man is completing his training. To him the war is forgotten. To the world a warning goes unheeded. And the killings have already begun.

©2012 Ben Hale (P)2013 Podium Publishing

Critic reviews

"Well written... highly detailed." ( Publishers Weekly)
"Ingenious and immersive." ( Best in Fantasy)

What listeners say about Elseerian

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    278
  • 4 Stars
    216
  • 3 Stars
    131
  • 2 Stars
    57
  • 1 Stars
    32
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
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    297
  • 4 Stars
    227
  • 3 Stars
    98
  • 2 Stars
    16
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    20
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    259
  • 4 Stars
    190
  • 3 Stars
    117
  • 2 Stars
    54
  • 1 Stars
    38

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Loved this book!

Any additional comments?

I enjoy Epic Fantasy Books.... Wheel of Time Series, Wizards First Rule, George R.R. Martin, The Warded Man, The Name of the Wind...

If you liked these books (above), then you'll also like this...

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31 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Immature author who makes elementary mistakes

There are lots of books whose main merit is that they pass the time. They are not great literature, but they entertain nevertheless. There are very few authors who can make characters come alive, can plot a storyline that entrances the reader, who can describe events or a scene so that they leave the page and enter the imagination. I know this, I accept it.

But the writing in this book is truly awful, even by my unexacting standards. The noise to signal ratio is overwhelming. The characters are flat and interchangeable. The dialog is riddled with "shrugs" and "chuckles" and every other kind of meaningless body language that detracts from meaningful dialog. The utterly empty phrase "without hesitation" is repeated ad nauseam. The hero has every physical accomplishment but lacks everything else: libedo, intelligence, self awareness, humor, ...

The reader does a very creditable job but the book is unsalvageable.

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15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A gem out of nowhere!

Would you listen to Elseerian again? Why?

Yes. I hope the next two book are as good.

What does Derek Perkins bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Fantastic narrator. Very very impressed. I especially enjoyed his pacing - some narrators are slightly too slow or too fast. He gives the main characters thought processes a decisive and methodical approach which reflected the main character well.

Any additional comments?

Excellent action but WITHOUT loads of gore and shock and awe. Sometimes I felt the main character was a little too crazy awesome, but every time I started to think this, a vulnerability to his character would appear. Cannot wait for the next two books - already pre-ordered both!

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15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Not what I was hoping for

What did you like best about Elseerian? What did you like least?

I enjoy a story that includes plot twist, character flaws, and a bit of angst, but I still want it to be fiction so that I can escape. This story was too straight forward. The characters were all too perfect and fixed in their stereotype. If there was a challenge, that challenge would be solved before the next one came up, I enjoy a challenge within a challenge and got none of that in this story.

The fight scenes were very well done and the author painted a good picture of this world and the story had promise, but it just fell flat for me.

Has Elseerian turned you off from other books in this genre?

No, for the most part this is my favorite genre.

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11 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

The worst kind of fantasy

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

Possibly YA

How did the narrator detract from the book?

His voices for the elves were very similar and for lack of a better term, "wimpy"

Any additional comments?

This title was full of the worst cliches in fantasy. SPOILERS AHEAD

The main protagonist is incredibly powerful (but doesn't know it) but even though he is a master of weapons (he learns how to be a master with throwing knives in one session) he hates to kill. He hates it so much that when his ship of 40 is attacked by 700 (yes 700) pirates he does his best to not hurt them... and in the next book they need to gather EVERY LIVING PERSON from all the races into the elven city in SIX weeks, because then they can last seven days against the oncoming army of a Billion evil minions to give our guy a week to kill a god. The dialogue is very immature and funny, (but it is not intended to be so)

I do not recommend this title.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Very Happy with this one !!

Characters, Storyline, Twists, Action, Blood, Fighting, Magic, Swords, Demons, Death, and a Sound Narrator to put it all together. Need I say More ??

... I will. Great, Great, Great.

The Fights were of Joe Abercrombie quality, which is hard to match. Not as dark but close enough. Ben Hale makes it so very easy to imagine what is taking place, just enough description to see it in your mind, but not to much to lose interest in what is being described.

Im very excited to continue this series, just try it out you'll be happy.

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

One dimensional LOTR knock off

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I would develop all of the characters a good deal more. There is only one distinct desire that anyone has in the book. Other than that, it's just a display of powers.

What do you think your next listen will be?

No idea

What about Derek Perkins’s performance did you like?

He had a wonderful voice, and fantastic cadence. It's how I got through the book, I would imagine.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

No.

Any additional comments?

The book was deeply shallow. It utilized the low hanging fruit of fantasy tropes without bringing them life. I could not tell you what any character wanted, beyond the lead. I could not tell you what any character looks like, or what their personalities are like. By the end, when they're announcing imminent doom for the land they live in, I rolled my eyes.

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great Start!

Any additional comments?

I love this type of epic fantasy series. Reminded me a lot of the Wheel of Time series but condensed.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great Story & Great Narrator

This is my 1st time listening/reading Ben Hale's work and I LOVED it!!! Very thorough and very captivating. I loved this 1st book getting to know the characters and not leaving me hanging too much at the end. It left me knowing there is more to come and that the characters have even more developing to do.
I am an AVID fan of Kevin Hearne's "Iron Druid" series...I did not think I would really want to read/listen to another "fantasy" type book of this sort, but after meeting Ben in Florida at Indie Book Fest and then deciding to give his books a try - I am definitely a FAN...
GREAT story - interesting Characters and GREAT Villain...Perfect balance of human, magic & power...
I plan to download the 2nd book right away!!!
I look forward to finding out HOW it goes down...
NOT a waste of time to check this one out...Worth every minute!!!

Thank you Ben.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Really Good Start to a New Series 4.5 Stars

I saw this one had good ratings, so I decided to give it a try. I have been looking for books to fill the time until the next Michael J Sullivan book comes out, and with this one, I was not disappointed. While not superb, it is really really good and worth a credit if you enjoy fantasy. I cannot wait for the next books in the series to come out and will definitely be getting those as well.

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8 people found this helpful