The Lore of the Evermen

The Evermen Saga, Book 4

By: James Maxwell

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Length: 13 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

The fourth book in the Evermen Saga.

The Lord of the Night is coming. The future of civilization is at stake.

Miro, high lord of Altura, is in the Imperial capital to prepare the Empire for the onslaught. He knows his homeland lies directly in the enemy's path but struggles to form the alliances he needs.

As the high lords bicker, Ella seeks the help of the newly crowned emperor, Killian. But, amid the growing tensions, their responsibilities drive them apart and, as emperor, Killian can't be seen to favor Ella's homeland.

Against a backdrop of old hurts, guilty secrets, and shaky new allegiances, people of all nations and abilities must learn to trust one another again, and form a united front against a powerful enemy intent on destroying them once and for all.

©2014 James Maxwell (P)2014 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved

Thoroughly enjoyable but a little too convenient

I've now finished listening to this series and I enjoyed the entire thing. Simon Vance, as always, makes this book come alive and choosing him as a reader saved it, because the story itself sort of falls together too easily -- too many last minute saves, narrow escapes, etc. etc. The term dues ex machina definitely comes to mind.

So, I would unhesitatingly suggest this as an enjoyable tale, but at same time, warn people that they shouldn't expect anything deep or terribly moving from the text itself. This is a real shame because some of the premises, like the nature of gods, are very interesting and could have been the subject of much deeper inquiry. As it is, it is a fun and enjoyable bit of fluff, great for whiling the miles away, and certainly not a source of frustration. But do realize, it is Simon Vance's skill as a reader, that saves this book from being entirely skippable.

Everything I've come to expect from a fantasy saga

... and that's saying something for a 4 book saga. Interesting characters, court intrigue, diabolical villains, apocalyptic battles, star-crossed lovers and superb narration.

Absolutely brilliant

I was so caught up in this book that there were tears, shouts, groans, encouragement and even insults being thrown at it as I listened.

Fantastic series. Ella is the best.

So good......

Imagination

Mot is a vivid imagination That produces a series such as this. I'm disappointed that I've finished this series.

Bleh

Well it’s finally over, the Mary Sue saved the day by getting absolutely ALL the powers. Such a thrill to see the great villain Maxwell built up for 3 books suddenly forgot he has thousands of years worth of cunning on his side (wasn’t it exciting how his super weapon was in the book for precisely 1 page before walking off into the sunset never to be seen again?).
Ella was always a garbage character. Her actions never seemed backed by anything other than: BEHOLD, THE AUTHOR WISHES I DO THIS BECAUSE I CAN NOW. The love triangle was never interesting & was shattered by random characters suddenly appearing & dying to sort it out. Speaking of which, many of the non-pov character fat was trimmed this book. People whose names I kind of remember, but never knew closely in any way could always be counted upon to die to emphasize a “serious” enemy.
Killian has only been emperor for this book & yet he suddenly has such amazing leadership that he can offer wisdom to more seasoned generals? His minor powers were scaled up to match these peoples’ gods just so they would have a chance & he never utilized any of his upbringing beyond “I was once an acrobat so I can dodge this attack”.
Poor Amber was once again made a captive for sympathy before someone else had to come free her. Besides throwaway lines of missing him, she (& => Maxwell) totally forgot she had a son for most of this book. Ella 2.0 has never been a joy to read, but she got much less of a say in this book than the former.
Miro would be an inspiring character who does the hard tasks, but we are forced to be in his head to hear the CONSTANT doubts & fears of this whiny idiot. No worries though, he can always masterfully sword fight his way out of every situation or politely talk to someone who gives him important info. PICK A SIDE MAXWELL, attempting to subvert masculine character expectations by sprinkling in feminine traits is just lazy writing.
The magic system has always been shaky, but this book in particular took it off the rails. It gains new abilities every few chapters where people suddenly discover not only new uses for it (kind of acceptable) to discovering new properties about it (not believable at all). Altura’s Law is VASTLY more thought out & overpowered than all the other lands’.
Finally, I’m disappointed w/ Vance’s performance. There really aren’t that many characters & yet 5 of the men have the EXACT same voice (good thing they never spoke together although 3 of them were in the same army). All females sound ditsy & all old men decrepit.
I’m very disappointed I invested this much time into a fantasy series I have ZERO desire to ever pick up again.

Very good series.

I really did enjoy the series. I like the storyline and the plot. The characters the magic

All four books were very good and entertaining.

As for the narration, it’s a bit of a struggle, but it’s not the worst.

One of my Favorites

I fell in love with this book series a few years ago. I decided to buy them on Audible randomly. The narrator brought the story to life making me fall in love all over again.

Great book, but I wish it was not over.

This was a great book and it was also kept pretty clean. I just wish that the ending had revealed more about Ella and Killian. James Maxwell is an excellent writer. He writes great characters, story lines and battle scenes. He just lacks the romantic side of relationships and leaves out parts that I would like to know. This book needed a final chapter or another book. Please add a 5th book.

Modern Classic

This is a gem of a saga in my mind. Loved the story, the characters, the wisdom, the depth, the epic quality. This will definitely be on my list of audios for rereads. There's just so much here.

absolutely loved it....again

this is probably my fourth listen through of this series. I absolutely love the magic system and characters as well as the narrorators soothing voice.

Enjoyable

I got the first book in this series on a daily deal and promptly had to get the following three. Since starting Audible listening to crime thrillers the daily deals have given me the taste of medieval fantasy. Good action good story line and great narration. Recommend.

Good!

A grand tale of fantasy, combined with love, death and honour. A worthy read! Very good!

Not completely to my taste

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I see adventure books as a guilty pleasure of mine, and a certain amount of cheesiness is to be expected, but Jesus H. Christ!
I honestly seldom get anything at all out of love stories, so this is a matter of taste and level of tolerance, as ever.
But for me, I thought the love story in this particular work spoilt a good part of the enjoyment. It just nagged at me for some reason.

Would you recommend The Lore of the Evermen to your friends? Why or why not?

No. I would not tell anyone not to read it, but I would not recommend it either.

Which character – as performed by Simon Vance – was your favourite?

This is a STUPID question for a book review!
How will anyone be able to decide whether or not to read this book by reading my answer to this totally off topic question?

I think Simon Vance is a great narrator, and I never hesitate to buy a book I'm interested in if he happens to be the narrator.

If this book were a film would you go see it?

Also a stupid question for a book review!
How will anyone be able to decide whether or not to read this book by reading my answer to this totally off topic question?

Any additional comments?

I found the last two books in the series to be most... disturbingly cheesy. Not the whole books, but they have significant chunks of it.
The story was entertaining, so I will not count it a loss of my time. Like I said, I think the love stories were in my view annoying and pointless, and they might have spoilt a fair part of the story for me.

Great story with memorable characters

A great adventure exciting and different ,along with a wonderful narrator who has such lovely tones..

Better than the first two books

Nice conclusion to the series. I found this story a lot better than the first two books.

The best

Everything was perfect. Thanks to a good author and a great narrator. Sad it's over

A breathtaking conclusion to this excellent series

Having read and listened in equal measures I've found both the books and Simon Vance's fans riveting. This final book brings together stands from the earlier books while holding its own as an epic fantasy tale. As ever, the end of a good series can be judged by the desire to read more where none exists.

Quite a Good Saga

When I first started reading this saga, I had my doubts as to whether I would reach the end; but, here we are.

This last book is filled with double dealing and action. However, I am disappointed by one or two anomalies, which I will not go into as it would spoil the book for others.

That said, this light fantasy saga has been an enjoyable listen and actually has a good ending, a coward's way out perhaps?

brilliant finish

brilliant finish... or is it? story competed excellently, with most if not all sub plots tied up. left open for many more story's in this universe

Captivating read

Engaging finale for a story full of twists and turns. I enjoyed it immensely. Fires the imagination.