Teeth of the Gods

By: Sarah K. L. Wilson

Narrated by: Veronica Giguere

Length: 10 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's Summary

Chained to an enemy general. Determined to be free.

After years in seclusion and training, 18-year-old Tylira Nyota is summoned by the High Tazmin to be chained to a fallen enemy general. She is a terrible choice to receive this honor - her magic is useless and she finds it impossible to fit in the world she was born to.

Determined to keep her freedom, Tylira instead joins the legendary race for the fabled Teeth of the Gods. With an angry step-mother chasing her and the handsome general chained to her wrist, Tylira must learn to control her magic - which is turning out to be deadly - before it destroys everything she’s fought to gain.

Teeth of the Gods is Wheel of Time meets Sarah J. Maas in a mind-bending epic fantasy adventure of freedom, magic, love, and a princess’s quest to live life on her own terms.

©2016 Sarah K. L. Wilson (P)2017 Sarah K. L. Wilson

Great Fantasy Adventure

I really enjoyed this story of adventure and romance. The plot twists held my interest and I was caught up in the story. Tylira made a lot of rash decisions without considering the consequences of her actions but really matured toward the end. The romance was clean and appropriate for most listeners. This is the first book in the series and it ends with no huge cliffhanger but hints at where the story is going. Looks like a fun series! The narration was excellent and she was able to capture the emotions of the characters.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. This review is my honest opinion.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Great book! Super narration!

Really enjoyed this opening book of the Unweaving series. Cannot wait to read the rest of the series. The narrator really brings the characters to life and makes for a great listening experience!

Awesome

Another great in an amazing series. I read the book as well and enjoyed the narrator telling the story. Love any of this author ‘s writing.

An Excellent Audio Book

I read or listen to about 30 or 40 books a year and I am not normally one for YA books but I really enjoyed this one. The story was very well developed and moved at good steady pace which kept me excited about the next development or the next twist. The characters have good depth and you can find something about each of them that may mirror your own thoughts, feelings, or beliefs. If you are looking for a great listen, don’t miss this book. Although this book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review, I am anxiously awaiting the next books in the series.

Teeth of the Gods

Overall this was a good story. There are elements of magic, fantasy, danger, suspense, and science fiction. There were points in the story that got a little mired down in the details and moved a little slowly, but I stuck with it, and I'm glad I did. The author has set things up for what could be a very entertaining series.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and I have voluntarily left this review.

Amazing

WOW! My first read/listen from author Sarah K.L. Wilson was amazing and the narration even better! I can't wait for book 2.

Exciting, clean romantic fantasy

Wilson describes her books as “Epic YA Science Fiction, Fantasy and Urban Fantasy: unique storylines, kick*** [butt] princesses, world-building to die for and fast-paced plots.” After listening to Teeth of the Gods, I’d definitely agree with her description.

Unfortunately, I also agree with other reviewers who were surprised that the book starts out as a terrific fantasy book then changes to a less terrific science fiction story at the end. I think the problem is not so much the genre switch as the vague descriptions. The author does a great job painting the fantasy world in the reader’s mind. The science fiction world, on the other hand, was not as fully described. However, the rest of the series I assume takes place in the science fiction genre, so I imagine the author will flesh it out better in the next book.

Teeth of the Gods’ heroine is a young princess with the physical characteristics of someone of North African or Indian descent. The story begins in the middle of her attempting to escape The Silken Gardens, where she has been raised with the other daughters of her father’s concubines.

She and her unfriendly sisters aren’t ordinary princesses. They each share a link to The Common, which reminds me of The Force (from Star Wars). Unfortunately for our heroine, her link appears defective. She is also the daughter of the ruler’s least-liked wife, so she’s unpopular.

Because her father rightly believes the princess is immature and foolish, he has selected her to undergo additional instruction in preparation for the life he has chosen for her. This instruction involves the royal custom of tethering a princess to a defeated enemy by a magical rope in order for the princess to gain the enemy’s wisdom during their forced proximity.

Her cold-hearted stepmother is supposed to escort the princess to the binding ceremony. The stepmother believes beating the princess is the best way for her to find her connection to the Common. (Similar to Bruce Banner’s anger allowing him to turn into The Hulk.) This part of the story is rather violent.

Meanwhile, the princess is getting advice from one of her ancestors in the Common (like Disney’s Mulan), but because teenagers always know best, she usually chooses to ignore that advice to everyone’s detriment.

There’s also magic, a quest for an ancient artifact, and a mysterious love interest. One of my favorite romantic quotes from the book is, “It uprooted a longing so deep inside it must have been tangled up in my spine.”

I listened to Teeth of the Gods twice before I wrote this review. Except for the last 30 minutes, I’d give the book 5 stars for an exciting plot, well-developed fantasy world, and clean romance. I actually liked the majority of the book even more on the second listen. However, even listening carefully to the last 30 minutes, I continued to have a difficult time following that part of the story.

Considering the story takes place over a short period of time, the heroine does not grow dramatically as a person, but she does become more self-aware. She realizes she has been selfish and inconsiderate. At first I was a little surprised that her love interest could be interested in someone as selfish as her, but on the second listen, her growth as a person and his grudging respect and admiration of her were more apparent. He sees her rashness as bravery and helps her to think about how her decisions affect others.

Although Teeth of the Gods has a cliffhanger ending, the plot did end in a satisfactory way with some resolution.

The book as a whole was action packed and exciting. I rooted for Tylira to gain control of her hidden abilities and be worthy of the very likable hero’s affections. I plan to listen to the next book in the series.

A note on the narration. Veronica Giguere did a great job differentiating between characters and making the story come alive. I would have preferred a foreign accent considering the characters live in a place very different from America, but that didn’t take away from the story.

I received a complimentary copy of this audio book in exchange for an honest review.

Determined young woman learns her heritage & more

*I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Veronica is one of my favorite voice actors. She slips into the characters and their rules with ease. We can hear the emotion of each individual as she puts voice to their thoughts, words, and actions. She uses different tones, accents, and personality to differentiate each character for us. I feel this is a blessing when listening to audiobooks. Veronica has brought the characters to life for us.

I'm taken with the world. There was a lot of thought and creation in this world and culture of the people. From their dress to their land. From their beliefs to their magic system. The relation to other lands after a ruler defeats them. It's all so well drawn out. The best part is we see all of this through details of what Tylira is living through. It's all conveyed through events, which makes the story rich and full.

Tylira is an interesting character. She hasn't connected with The Common as others have. She doesn't know why. When she starts to connect it's because of the cruel nature of discipline inflicted on her by her fathers high consort to find it. Tylira wants more in life than sitting in the Silken Gardens. Tylira finds her way to a new city with a summons from her father, High Tazmina, in order to be bonded with another that can teach her new things. She finds more than she expected, along with a strong determination to join the Hunt for the Teeth of the Gods.

Tylira is a bit young, more naive. She's lived at the Silken Gardens with her half sisters and trained her whole life thus far, she's eighteen. She's not kissed a boy yet and has many things she wants to do, like seeing the world. Tylira sees her chance to experience many things and takes it. Though, she's stubborn in taking advice. She's struggling with her "magic" and she refuses to listen to a few things that could help her. This is something I think comes from the way she is raised, alone in the Silken Gardens, and treatment from others since her mother is said to be The Tazmin's least favorite wife. She is determined to be independent and free, though at times I would like to shack her to get her to listen. lol. I can see her being a character that readers could get frustrated with because of her decisions.

I like Amadera. I have mixed feelings of her as the book goes. I didn't like her at first. She's the High Tazmina's High Consort and acts all mighty. Even what she does to Tylira to get her to connect to the Common. Grrr. But, there is something more to Amadera, or so I think I see flashes of. Maybe Amadera thinks she's really helping Tylira and making her a stronger person for what may come in the future for Tylira.

The magic in this book is something I liked. They use heart stones to show when they have made a connection to The Common, and it shows clear with their color and power. I found I was attracted to the meditation spirit area that Tylira goes to speak to her ancestors. I looked forward to the moments when visiting these deceased ancestors. There is one ancestor that is a bit strange but interesting - An'alepp. She's an old woman who's a bit crazy. I kept trying to place the influence in the culture and world to something in our world. I just keep getting drawn into what's created here and love it.

There is a growing romance here. I like this kind of romance, when two people are thrown together and very individually strong. They work at a friendship first, then the rest follows. But they have to get through "other" things in their lives before they can trust and like each other.

Coming to the end of the book, it took a turn I hadn't expected. As much as I enjoyed the story, world, and character interaction, I found I was really sparked by this surprise. I thought back, thinking on what we learned through the book and where we ended up. There were hints given as we came here, not as much in the beginning but more so the closer we got. Very cool!

I thoroughly enjoyed this story for all the aspects and the turn at the end. I am ready to ride along with Tylira on her next adventure. I'm curious to see what comes and if she can learn what she must.

Excellent listen!

Loved everything about this book! Great world building and characters, loved the story! Excellent narrator as well! I received a free review copy of this audiobook at my request and I have voluntarily left this review.

A great audio book

I thought I loved reading this book before but the audio version made it even better. Veronica did a great job at bringing these characters to life and I can't wait to listen to book 2

Unusual Story but worth a try

An unusual story as the main character a spoilt , unwordly girl who leaves a sheletered palace to be spend her life with a chosen fallen general turns her fate on her head as she discovers her gift of magic. With so much twists and Tylira being so wilful and headstrong that she causes trouble everywhere you go there is a lot happening. To start i wasnt aure about this story as this is perhaps a little too teen for me but it didnl grow on me, mostly because of the narrators obvious great talent. Giguere is someone new to me along with the author but i perservered (not too sure if i would have been so keen in ebook format)and about half way through the pace and budding romance , adventure kicks in and fantasy goes a little outside the genre (no spoilers) and the authors talents show a lot more with her depth of writing and suspense. Suffice to say from dubious to a fan i became and even went so far to buy the ebook trilogy as i wanted more.Although not perhaps for everyone i would reccomend stick with it till the end as you might be surprised.
I was gifted this audio and choose to leave an honest review and as such is my own opinion