Feast of Souls

Magister Trilogy, Book 1

By: C. S. Friedman

Narrated by: Elisabeth Rodgers

Length: 18 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

C.S. Friedman, acclaimed author of The Coldfire Trilogy, returns to the epic style which has made her one of the most popular fantasy writers in the genre. In this first book of the trilogy, Friedman introduces listeners to a world of high fantasy, replete with vampire-like magical powers, erotic interludes, treachery, war, sorcery, and a draconic creature of horrific power and evil that will have listeners eagerly awaiting the next novel in the series.

©2007 C.S. Friedman (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"[I]maginative, deftly plotted fantasy." (Publishers Weekly)

"Powerful, intricate plotting and gripping characters distinguish a book in which ethical dilemmas are essential and engrossing." (Booklist)

Superb Series

This is the second time I've read the trilogy, and it grips as much the second time.

Normally I find that multiple points of view distract from the story flow. Not so here.

Friedman excels at creating worlds with unique magic systems. Few authors can create realistic God-like powers and immortality while avoiding Dues ex Machina. She nails it.

Narration isn't top tier, but it does the job. No complaints.

Epic!!

This book is so amazing. If you like Game of Thrones, this work with interest you as well. So many rich, well-developed characters all with flaws and redeeming qualities. Each story interweaves itself into another until the entire work comes together in one cataclysmic conclusion. I can't wait to read the next book in this trilogy. I definitely recommend if you enjoy science fiction/fantasy.

The Price of Power - Would You Pay It??

C.S Friedman is the author of my favorite fantasy series, The Coldfire Trilogy so I was excited to begin the Magister series. Friedman writes anti-heroes like no other. I never knew there could be so many shades of gray.

Feast of Souls introduces us to a world of magic where the cost is high, your soul or in the case of some, the souls of others. There are two different practitioners of magic, witches (both male and female) who power their art with their own soul fire, but the human soul is finite and once consumed means death. Then there are the mysterious Magisters, an elite group of males that power their sorcery with the souls of others, thus giving them almost unlimited power, but at what ultimate cost?

Friedman excels at creating a world in which the powerful rule by manipulating others, and yet you feel sorry for them. The varied cast of characters all had separate stories yet seemed to be guided to the same end. Friedman weaves a complicated net drawing each character closer and closer together for an exciting climax.

Elisabeth Rogers does an excellent job creating individual personalities for each character. I have read Feast of Souls twice before but listening to it felt like reading it for the first time again. I am looking forward to listening to the next two in the series.

If you liked Feast of Souls, I highly recommend Friedman's Coldfire trilogy, which is also available on Audible.

Suffused with excellence and novelty

Fresh, new concepts expertly handled. A deft balancing of intimate warmth for illumination of character and the cold detachment for establishing scale and socio-political scope. Friedman is a world-maker and a transformative hand upon the stuff of genre. Bravo.

Elisabeth Rodgers delivers worthy and magnificent performance. It was her charismatic narration in the sample that prompted me to give this book a try, and the promise of that sneak peek kept in full.

A slow rewarding burn

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, it's a good solid fantasy book and anyone into fantasy would probably enjoy it.

Would you recommend Feast of Souls to your friends? Why or why not?

It depends on the friend. Some like fantasy and fast paced books, others avoid genre fiction like the plague. It depends on the friend. I do have friends that would easily enjoy this book and others would think it's terrible.

Which character – as performed by Elisabeth Rodgers – was your favorite?

I really enjoyed the witch queen. She's an interesting character, with a rich history. She doesn't have the long life of the Magister's, but she is a crucial stone in the Magister's political world. Her timeline goes in a lot of interesting places.

Any additional comments?

It's a very slow burn. There's a lot of set-up with the world and characters. It's a bit boring for the first 60-70 percent, but there is good pay-off. It leaves a lot of open plot-lines that will probably be tied up in the rest of the series.

This is my first exposure to C.S. Friedman, and she creates a very detailed world with a lot of backstory. From the first female magister, to these huge countries each with their own unique cultures and customs. There were some interesting rules between the Magisters as well, they can't actively kill each other, but they're rivals which didn't make a ton of sense as they were essentially demi-gods, but could cause mischief and essentially this world's version of trolling on another. Interesting concept, but I didn't see how it went anywhere.

Narrator Elisabeth Rodgers does a pretty good job. I've listened to her from the Georgina Kincaid series by Richelle Mead where she did a solid job as well.

Overall, this is an OK book. It's a very slow burn. There's some interesting concepts from women's rights (first female magister, witch queen, etc.), the magic system life being the spell component, the world itself is rich and has a lot of interesting history. Part of me thinks this story should have been 10 hours longer, to build the world more completely, but there just wasn't enough substance to warrant 18 hours much less 28. I'm looking forward to book 2, but it's not on the top of the pile.

Some strange calls by the narrator

I'm a fan of CS Friedman's writing and I enjoyed this book when I read it, so I decided to give the audio version a chance. Friedman's prose still shines as strongly as ever but the narration.....was ok. Rodgers doesn't seem to have a terribly large range of voices to draw from, but that's fine enough in and of itself. But when Kamala appeared.......and started speaking in a sometimes British accent. Its a baffling choice and extremely distracting. Often character voices can enhance a story and draw me in but here every time Kamala "spoke" I was jarred out of the story by this extremely out-of-place accent. Its made listening to this story incredibly difficult.

Great story

The reading is a little dry but the story is truly a gem in the genre.

Fascinating premise, okay execution

The premise here (in particular the magic system) is quite novel and fantastic. The characters are compelling, though I don't feel as deeply connected to any of them as if like to. There's a TON of laws and customs and ancient knowledge dumped on the reader...important to the story, but hard to hold straight. It seems as though the author repeats key concepts too many times, as though I didn't get it the first couple. Characters take different names often as part of disguises, which can be confusing. The various threads of story take a long time to converge, but their convergence is rather glorious. Adverbs abound, distractingly. ;) The distinct voices done by the narrator do a great job of helping keep various characters distinct from one another.

Nothing compelling here.

This review is of the entire trilogy:

After an interesting beginning, I was so hoping that there would be something about the main character that would make her interesting. Unfortunately that never happened. I was so disappointed. She was quite dull and shallow.

The author was too predictable. One of the problems I had was with how she would always kill off potential mates of the main character. Some of them started of quite interesting and likable. Yet you knew they were going to die like red shirted crewmen on Star Trek.

Most male characters were cookie cutter as well. They were mostly self centered, shallow, and misogynistic. Very few were worthy and noble. If they were, they were killed off.

It is sad. There were a lot of missed opportunities with this series.

The narrator was not very good either. She is pretty flat and emotionless. She did not help the story at all.

Overall, I recommend passing on this series. There is nothing redeemable.

Original and Refreshing Couldn't stop listening

Where does Feast of Souls rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Top 20

Would you recommend Feast of Souls to your friends? Why or why not?

No, they don't like these kinds of stories. This is Earthsea meets J.R.R. Tolkien mixed with Arabian Nights.

What about Elisabeth Rodgers’s performance did you like?

Everything

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes