The Crown of Stones: Magic-Price

By: C. L. Schneider

Narrated by: Daniel Storm

Length: 18 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's Summary

Ian Troy is one of the Shinree, a fallen people with an inherent addiction to magic. Scorned and reviled for the deadly side of their spells, the Shinree are bred as slaves. Their magic is suppressed by drugs and used only as it serves the purposes of the other races. Descended from a long line of soldiers, Ian is conscripted into the Rellan army and made to fight in their longstanding conflict against the ruthless Langorian invaders. The downfall of Rella imminent, Ian goes against orders and turns to the Crown of Stones, an ancient Shinree relic of untold power. Ignorant of its true purpose, Ian uses the crown to end the war and pays a terrible price.

A decade later, still tortured by the aftermath of that day, Ian lives as a bounty hunter in self-imposed exile. Having renounced his magical heritage, he curbs his obsession with a steady stream of wine and regret. He struggles to put it all behind him, until a fateful encounter with a pretty assassin brings Ian's past crashing into the present. Targeted by a rogue Shinree, and a ruthless old enemy, Ian is forced to use magic again. His deadly addiction is rekindled, and his life of isolation is brought to a swift end.

With the land he gave up everything to protect once more in jeopardy and his people's future at stake, Ian becomes embroiled in a violent race for control of the Crown of Stones. To save the realms and those he cares for, Ian must embrace the thing he fears most: his own power.

©2013 C. L. Schneider (P)2018 C. L. Schneider

Can't wait for the whole trilogy on Audible

I've read the whole trilogy and believe me, this first book is just the tip of the iceberg! Daniel Storm's narration is a perfect match for Schneider's dark, raw prose. I highly recommend this book to lovers of adult fantasy - full of magic-action, tension and witty banter infused with a sexual charge.

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

Can't wait for Book Two!

As soon as I started this book, I couldn't stop listening. Definitely looking forward to the next installment!

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

Fantastic!

Would you listen to The Crown of Stones: Magic-Price again? Why?

I loved the story. I found myself in a completely different world with fascinating characters, and I would love to go back and visit again.

What other book might you compare The Crown of Stones: Magic-Price to and why?

Game of Thrones or Lord of the Rings. It is equally epic and all-consuming.

What does Daniel Storm bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

A fresh voice.

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

Yes.

Any additional comments?

The story is what took me--and the characters. I loved it all.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Pathetic heroin fever dream. Garbage fire!

There were two sections of this that didn't suck. Don't waste your credits on this book.

Engrossing dark epic comes alive

What did you love best about The Crown of Stones: Magic-Price?

I’m a huge fan of C. L. Schneider. Her ability to weave an enthralling, engrossing epic tale is without compare. Narrator Daniel Storm brought her characters to life and enabled an all encompassing pace that made It impossible to press stop as you become immersed in this magical world.

What other book might you compare The Crown of Stones: Magic-Price to and why?

This was a very refreshing and new story with the addiction to magic plot. There are no other books I can compare it to at this time.

Which scene was your favorite?

Picking my favorite scene was so incredibly hard. I finally had to pick the ending scene where the entire story comes to a head. I will not give any spoilers to those who have not listened/ read it but let me just say that Draken’s wickedness knows no bounds. The way Ms. Schneider writes this scene and Mr. Storm delivers it, I still can’t decide if I’m disturbed or titilated.

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

The book constantly brought smiles to my lips as Ian’s quick wit and sarcastic banter with his companions Malaq and Jarred. The action scenes drew me in and made me hold my breath to see what happened next.

Any additional comments?

Narrator Daniel Storm has a very pleasant voice and was able to add several voice inflections to allow the listener an array of characters and dialects.

nice.

loved the story very good. can get passed the authors voice for a well story.

Couldn't get past the prologue

I don't know how this narrator got the job. He pauses inappropriately mid-sentence, and his inflections are strange and stilted. He honestly sounds like that kid that everyone would groan at when the teacher called on them to read back I'm high school. I can't comment on the story because his poor performance made me abandon it after 5 minutes.

1 of 3 people found this review helpful

Narrator

My 6th grade niece would have done a better narration than Daniel Storm. I would listen for a while the have to stop. When I thought I could listen again without getting frustrated I would try again. Took me forever to finish this book.

0 of 1 people found this review helpful

They tried

struggled to even get a couple hours in.. just bad character development, poor writing and very open story without a objective and no backstory/history is given besides vague references.

0 of 1 people found this review helpful

Can’t handle it

The author didn’t do female characters any favors, mind you, but the narrator—oh my goodness. I couldn’t STAND how he portrayed the female voices. Especially Tarin(spelling?). He made her into this overtly stereotypical valley girl-esque (minus the omigawds, however) that I couldn’t stand.

I didn’t get far into this book. I returned it about two hours in, so I rated the story 3 stars.

Might’ve been able to handle it in print, but I have plenty of others to read first. This will not be on my recommendations list.

1 of 4 people found this review helpful