Seven Forges

By: James A. Moore

Narrated by: David de Vries

Length: 10 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's Summary

The Seven Forges are a range of impassable mountains, far to the north of the settled lands of Fellein. From time to time explorers venture up beyond the Blasted Lands in search of a way over them and the promise of legendary riches, but without success. Now Captain Merros Dulver has found a path, and encountered, at last, the half-forgotten people who dwell there. And it would appear they were expecting him.

©2013 James A. Moore (P)2013 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

not very engaging

the story just doesn't pull me in. I'm a stay at home mom, and use audio books to keep my brain entertained while I do mundane hoysework. with this book, i will be going about my day, and realize much of the narrative had passed, and none of it really registered. I feel nothing for the characters, and only vague curiosity about the events swirling around them. if I hadn't already accidentally bought the second book in the series, I wouldn't have bothered to finish this one.

This one is the best book of the series.

I loved this book the the second book. But the rest are Horrid and too depressing. Heroes need some sort of victory, not constant defeats and pseudo-victories.

Great book to pass the time

Loved the story line. Characters are great. The guy reading did a great job if you are looking for a good book get this one

Seven Forges

What did you like best about this story?

I like the introductions of the characters and the understanding of who they are and their motivations. And there is mystery in the Sa'ba Taalor in wondering what is behind their viels and why they keep their faces hidden. And I like the way they are developed as more than brute warriors with the other aspects of their skills.

What about David de Vries’s performance did you like?

Mr. de Vries did an excellent job in voicing the various characters and employing the different accents. The female characters were believeable with his vocal range and he was enjoyable to listen to.

Solid beginning and 4-star effort..

Where does Seven Forges rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This book ranked fairly well in comparison to my other favored books. I WILL be getting the next book in the series as it promises to only get better from this point on. This book only suffers to "first book" syndrome as i call it... character introductions, world introduction, mythology, and story building. All in all this book, in my opinion, would have done better with an additional 50 pages or so for further character development...solid start though.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The smiths apprentice. i will not say more as to not put any spoilers here.

Have you listened to any of David de Vries’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not listened to any of his other performances yet but he did a good job varying accents, male and female voices, etc, to produce an enjoyable tale with recognizable characters based on his voice. very well done.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No extreme reaction. it was not meant to make one laugh or cry.

Any additional comments?

A solid first installment with grimpses of greatness possible for future volumes.

THE GODS HAD DIFFERENT IDEAS

LIFE IS PAIN
At times I was really into this and at times my mind was elsewhere. The book starts with a bang and got me excited for the rest. The biggest problem for me was keeping up with where the story was taking place. A character might be, what I thought was several days away in another area and the next paragraph he is with characters who were days away. The concept was excellent. Two peoples who have been separated for 1,000 years, suddenly find each other. In one culture, men and women are tough. They learn from an early age how to fend for themselves. They are all heavily muscled and trained in multiple weapons. Women are equal to men in combat and knowing how to survive under tough conditions. The other culture has gone soft and women are pretty helpless things. I am not sure if I will continue this series.

Great Foundation for the Sequel

Where does Seven Forges rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This one has interested me enough to get the sequel ( I hope there is a sequel coming).

The first three quarters of the book was by no means slow but still I was wondering where this is all going. It was all spent building a strong foundation for the characters, for the next in the series.
A little bit predictable at times, as each scene unfolded. All very political and as diplomatic as possible, considering the circumstances of 2 civilizations that thrived for a thousand years with very different rules, customs, practices and beliefs. The reward was in the last quarter of the story.

The last quarter the story took such an unexpected turn. As events started to almost simultaneously occur, all things predictable was gone and the book ended in a series of cliffhangers and with the promise of a very unpredictable, action packed and magical sequel.

I hope there is a sequel really soon.

Would you recommend Seven Forges to your friends? Why or why not?

Absolutely would recommend it but I may have to wait for news of the sequel. Nobody likes to be left hanging.

Which character – as performed by David de Vries – was your favorite?

Suvek.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Nothing in particular stands out. There were a few moments of jesting which was funny and made me chuckle.

Just so so

Seven forges is a story of two countries kept apart from each other buy a treacherous landscape for generations, whose cultures are vastly different from each other, and their attempt to establish relations. One country is quite civilized and the other is barbaric. It's also a hero's journey for one young man. Dave de Vries narration is either good (never great), or bad, and in this case it's good. I found the story to be very slow and most of the book is about violence and I don’t care for that. I think young teenage boys might like this because of all the fighting.

Audible, you disappoint me...

I wish that when Audible decides to sell a series that they wouldn't offer the first, second, fourth and sixth & make us wait for them to sell the others. Keep the entire Series or Trilogy Back until you guys have all the books! I despise reading a good story, only to have to wait 2-3 years to finally get the remainder of the books.
I understand that Authors sometimes cause these problems, but by the time I get that 3rd & 5th books, I can't remember anything or I get the many books confused. I'm an old Lady and need consistency people!

Better than I expected

I have seen this book for months and contemplated whether to get it or not. I'm glad I did... It is an excellent start to an epic series. I hope the rest of the books live up to the first and get even better.

Not Bad, but Not Great

I wanted to like this book but, unfortunately, it did not draw me in. Normally when a book is really good it envelopes you. You become part of the book, totally engrossed. This book did not do that for me. Narration was just so so; again not bad, but not great.

I think, perhaps, this series is not for me, but is for many others I am sure.