The Council

By: Kayla Krantz

Narrated by: Lynn Norris

Length: 10 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's Summary

The Council is the governing Coven over the Land of Five, a region entirely inhabited and split apart by witches with varying powers. Lilith Lace, a witch thought to be born powerless, happily resides in Ignis, the Coven of Fire, until she suddenly develops telekinesis, an ability only seen in some witches born in Mentis, the Coven of the Mind.

When the Council finds out about her odd development, she's taken under their wing and is finally told the truth.... Everything she's learned about the Land of Five, herself included, have been nothing but lies.

©2016 Kayla Krantz (P)2018 Kayla Krantz

I find myself looking forward to the next book...

I rather liked this book, which is surprising because it was not without some problems... I got so tired of Lilith exclaiming that since she was crippled, she wasn't good enough... couldn't do it... or that nobody would believe in her... Despite that, and that I'm generally never happy with a cliffhanger ending, I mostly liked this coming of age story.
Lilith, for the most part, never backed down from a fight and what she believed was right... So yeah, I actually find myself looking forward to the next book... And hopefully, our protagonist won't be so riddled with self pity and doubt!

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

talk about a cliffhanger!

Would you listen to The Council again? Why?

If I did, it'd be for Lynn Norris. It's all about Lynn Norris. She has style, substance, wit, real intelligence, beautifully delineated characters — and oh, that voice.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

To be honest, the story is not that compelling for me, despite the energy the fabulous narrator, Lynn Norris, infused into every character and plot point. It's a decent plot, but the writing is pedestrian and gratuitously ungrammatical, with too many words just plain misused; malapropisms are indefensible in the age of Google. Also, it's all in first-person, but with glaring faux pas for that MO throughout: the narrator says stuff like, I couldn't hear what he said, and then quotes what he said verbatim. That kinda thing just yanks me out of the moment, and is such an easy fix: just switch POV now and then!

Most interesting? I guess the whole supernatural thing, for which I had high hopes going in; it can be such a gas if it's given its full due (which it emphatically wasn't in this case). The least interesting bit is the marked absence of rich, discrete cultural detail for each of the covens; the protagonists' trip through each one is cursory at best, the "mission" the characters are on is an absurd failure in terms of the paltry amount of time spent in each coven's territory, precious little interaction with inhabitants that aren't already known to them, and the lack of thought and effort they expend in identifying subversives before hustling on to the next locale. A disappointingly lazy construction of a world with little texture or nuance, leaving only the lasting impression of Lynn Norris's always exceptional work.

Oh, and BTW, that's a truly shameless (and again, lazy!) cliffhanger at the end of this book.

What about Lynn Norris’s performance did you like?

Two major things stand out here: her beautifully detailed vocal characterizations (of which my favorite here is probably Lazarus, though he's but a cameo — and that's the point, of course. No opportunity to expand the palette is overlooked.), and her full-on commitment to the breathless terror and excitement of the battle scene at the end of this story. Norris's rendering of dialog is always natural and flowing, but the identity of speakers is never lost in complicated exchanges. And her voice, the instrument itself, is just beautiful and clear at all times. She elevates the text far beyond its intrinsic value, and delivers a flawlessly paced, intelligent, emotionally rich performance. I actually search on the Audible site for books read by her. She never fails to engage and delight.

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

Hey, Lilith:

Are you a good witch, or a bad witch?

Do you know?

Any additional comments?

Can't wait till the material offered to Lynn Norris is worthy of her extraordinary talents.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

CLIFFHANGER BUT WORTH IT! :)

A very interesting and witchy world has been created - and I was sucked right in. There's something different about this witchy tale, it's a slow burn, but it will drawn you in and won't let you go until it's ready. Enter if you dare! Bwahahahah (sinister laugh) ;-)

I liked the the world that Kayla Krantz created, and it was beautifully narrated by Lynn Norris. I'm excited to hear more, and I can't wait for new books to be released on Audible! Cliffhanger for sure, but I think it's well worth the wait :)

Thought it was a great audiobook! I'm in!

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
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1 of 1 people found this review helpful

This is not for me.

I don't know what it is about this book but it did not grab me. There was a lot of things happening quite quickly into the story but I did not feel anything for the characters. As for the main character, I found her to be odd. She seemed to be mature at times and naive at others, which surprised me and yet I felt no connection to the characters. I gave it three stars because I liked the world she lived.
This book is not for me but others might like it more then I did.

An enjoyable story

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

I was very pleased that this was not your normal book about witches. It takes a different approach to witches and magic. It was a little slow at times, but is generally pretty good. The narrator does a good job on the book, as well. All in all, a good listen if you're a fantasy/paranormal fan.

Enjoyable Fantasy With Major Cliffhanger

The story was interesting and kept my attention. The world building was good and the idea of separation between Witch abilities was very unique. The story is slow building with some twists and turns that keeps you wondering who the real bad guys are!

Narration was excellent and brought the story to life. This narrator makes each character unique and you always know who is talking.

The plot was slow and the descriptions were very detailed. The story doesn’t pick up until towards the last few chapters. The story concludes in a major cliffhanger!

I’m looking forward To the next book!

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

damn it Cliffhangers can really mess you up

I think no scratch that I know I need the second book of this story absolutely needed the story was a fantastic very well written interesting captivating everything I could want it's not a usual book it's not a book that you hear or read everyday it's a fantastic and swelling book I loved it I need the second book because the cliffhanger just wow
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review

Wow!!!

I very much enjoyed this book!!! The story is fantastic!! The audio narrator was great too. I couldn't get enough. Now I'm off to purchase the next book. I dying to know what happens next.

The characters are well developed. The story is exciting.

I received a free audible copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

Not your usual witch book

I love almost every witch book I've ever read, and this was no exception. This is not the usual witchy book, but that is a good thing! Some of the writing style may not be the best, but it is still well done and doesn't detract from the journey. I will be looking forward to book 2. The land of the 5 has hooked me for sure.

*I requested this book and am voluntarily leaving this review

Amazing story!

I can't even begin to express how much I liked this book. The story was wonderful and kept me entertained throughout the whole book. The author did a wonderful job with her characters and story line. When the book ended (on a cliffhanger) I immediately knew I had to have the next book. I'm not a fan of cliffhangers normally but I honestly didn't mind this ended in one and it was the perfect spot to end it. I will most definitely be reading the next book and more from this author. This book is good for teens and adults alike. I highly recommend for anyone who enjoys paranormal mystery with a small amount of romance.