• Exiles at the Well of Souls

  • By: Jack L. Chalker
  • Narrated by: Peter Macon
  • Length: 11 hrs and 29 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (750 ratings)

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Exiles at the Well of Souls  By  cover art

Exiles at the Well of Souls

By: Jack L. Chalker
Narrated by: Peter Macon
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Publisher's summary

The war of the Well World has begun.

Antor Trellig, head of a ruthless interstellar syndicate, has seized a supercomputer with godlike powers that could make him omnipotent. The Council offers master criminal Mavra Chang any reward she desires if she can stop Trellig - and horrible, lingering death if she fails. But neither Trellig nor Mavra has taken the Well World into consideration. Built by the ancient Markovians, the Well World controls the design of the cosmos. When the opponents are drawn across space to the mysterious planet, they find themselves in new, alien bodies and in the middle of a battle where strange races fight desperately - with the control of the entire universe as the prize.

©1980 Jack L. Chalker (P)2013 Blackstone Audiobooks

What listeners say about Exiles at the Well of Souls

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Pleasantly Surprised!

First of all, I was amazed in the realization that the original book was published 41 years ago! Wow, that puts into perspective how Jack L Chalker was so advanced in his way of thinking and storytelling for that matter. I will not go into detail or even mention any of the characters, as these are what the audiobook makes it very interesting. Just immersed yourself into the Well World, and forgive the sometimes simplicity of scientific explanations of why this and that transformations or whatever. I did enjoy this audiobook, I'm in the 2nd audiobook of the series and plan to listen to all of them!

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3 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Better Than the First?

I found myself missing the main characters we grew to love in the first book, only to find the new characters just as interesting. New mysteries and new puzzles of the well world are presented and solved here in a very entertaining fashion.

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2 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

child s*xual assault is never ok

Disapointed, this had some good potential for a good story. The author, however is preoccupied with everyone's genitals. Every female character is written as sexy or not sexy, never just people. Also, one character in this book is a 14 year old CHILD, and is continually framed as disgusting and thus undesirable/not sexy because she is overweight, no because she is a child. Then an adult character has sex with her, this is only seen as a problem bc she is not sexy enough, not because it is wrong to have sex with a child. could not finish this book, and will not read anything else by this author.

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

Overly complicated and slow plot.

One of those classic sci fi series that seems a bit dated due to very obvious anti technology attitudes. The series is very imaginative in terms of world building but the story is not centered enough to follow. Too many characters, too many comboluted subplots, and the complex nature of the setting means that the book has to stop often to describe extensively different species, places and the most pointedly unnecessary aspects of life (like how different species have sex, eat, sleep go to the bathroom...). it gets boring. I'm done with this series with this one.

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    3 out of 5 stars

Not a compelling sequel.

What would have made Exiles at the Well of Souls better?

It is half a story at best. It was slower moving than book 1 and did not resolve in any way. I feel like it is just setting up for the "real story," but I am not overly motivated to get the next book at this point.

Would you recommend Exiles at the Well of Souls to your friends? Why or why not?

No. I like the narration and the main character is well developed, but not worth the time at this time. If I read book 3, and it pulls this together, I may need to change my review, but at this time I am not motivated to continue the series.

Which character – as performed by Peter Macon – was your favorite?

Mavra Chang (protagonist) and Trellig (Antagonist) were both well performed. I enjoy him as a narrator. He has a deep and masculine voice, but changes with characters and does female characters convincingly with no trouble. I will look for him as a narrator in the future.

What character would you cut from Exiles at the Well of Souls?

None

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Enter the Well World and Be Changed Forever....

If you could sum up Exiles at the Well of Souls in three words, what would they be?

Everything Changes Once....

Who was your favorite character and why?

Mavra Chang is the prototype female warrior adventurer. I loved her bad ass attitude, her positive attitude about solving problems and her personal pride. Great character.

Which scene was your favorite?

I would say the ending scene in the book. i don't to spoil it but let's put it this way...Mavra does not ever feel sorry for herself....

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Mavra Chang could whip Xena and Laura Croft for breakfast!

Any additional comments?

The Well World is a classic series. You really get drawn into the entire reality Chalker has created. But his writing style is not dense, there is nothing you cannot understand or follow. I am going to listen to the entire series and I have asked Audible to make all 7 available. Keep your fingers crossed on that because once you enter the Well World its hard to get out.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Continuing one of my favorite series

(This is a review from Sandy Bratzel, on my husband’s account)
The Well World Series is one of my favorite reads of all time, so I was really looking forward to listening to the narrated version. In the first book, it was hard to get used to the narrator, as he did not change his voice much between the characters.
In this second book, he has improved immensely, and I’m very happy that I can tell who is speaking at any given time.
Since this is only part one of a multi-part story, I knew it would end with many plot points not resolved.
Don’t worry…all will be explained! (Now to find out if the rest of the series has been made into audiobooks….!)

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Left me wanting more.

I was expecting a longer final chapter, but it is to be expected (carryover to the next book.!!

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Dragged on

The created universe is interesting but there’s no relationship and no depth to the characters. The description of weird beings just went on and on.

Also not sure how the Christian story of Jesus came in. Not developed at all.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great read for science fiction fans.

I liked the narrator and the story has a good plot, but I would read Midnight at the Well of Souls first. It mentions somethings you should know about part of the characters.

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