The Whispering Sword

War Priest, Book 2

By: Harmon Cooper

Narrated by: Travis Baldree

Length: 8 hrs and 7 mins

Publisher's summary

A destiny written, a legend reborn. Arik must become the War Priest.

The discovery that Arik's sister has somehow survived changes everything.

Before Arik can travel south, he'll need to find the legendary Whispering Sword. With an entire continent to search and a difficult puzzle to solve, this is no easy task. Not only that, finding the sword will bring him in direct conflict with powerful new enemies.

He will be challenged. He will be put to the test.

Making matters worse is his teacher's strange illness, which leaves Arik to fend for himself. A solution is possible through cultivating various aspects of chi, but these powers come with their own risks, and Arik might not be strong enough to use them together. In that case, he'll have to improvise...

Does Arik have what it takes to become the legend?

Leap into an epic journey that merges Eastern cultivation and progression fantasy, where infinite possibilities can be realized if one can master their understanding of chi. From Harmon Cooper, author of the instant bestseller Pilgrim, comes a Japanese mythology-inspired story for fans of Inuyasha, Demon Slayer, and Ghost of Tsushima. What starts as a harrowing coming-of-age story morphs into a journey of growth through multiclassing and mastering various combat techniques as Arik rises from the ashes to seize his destiny.

©2022 Harmon Cooper/Boycott Books (P)2022 Podium Audio

Such a great follow-up!

I have a problem with books that I thoroughly enjoy, I tend to binge. the only knock I'd put on this book is the length. I finished it far too fast, with great character development, fantastic pacing, wild ending, you name it, and it's there!

Awesome Series!

Great continuation to the series, can't wait to listen to the rest of it! Travis Baldree is fantastic as always and I really love the story Harmon Cooper tells, definitely in my top 5 favorite authors.

Although irascible you gotta admit Kami is smart!

The book starts up right where Mask of the Fallen left off, so yeah you skipped the first book and expected to catch up, you'll be sorry.
Arik realizes he's not ready to seek his revenge at least not if he plans to beat Nobunaga, in a head to head battle. So he takes a backstep and starts a search for the Whispering Sword, owned by the imfamous War Priest, and lost in the mythos of time. All the while Arik cultivated his skills and Chi. Which has driven him one step closer to being the actual reincarnate of the War Priest. A figure of the past. As Kami, the water god had predicted at the end of book1.
And well Travis Baldree is King, his narration is always spot-on! And what audio collection doesn't need more Travis Baldree in their library.

It's very good so far... but

So yeah... it is very good so far. Narration is ON POINT of course. Travis Baldree is the man. Period.
But there are 2 cons that I have. 1 is I think Harmon Cooper should find other ways to write when a weapon opens or when they clash. Writing in the sound effect they make as a "word" along the lines of "clank" "shnickt" or whatever... that's amateurish. Figured someone would have said that to him by now but that's okay. It isn't a deal breaker. What nearly is though for this series is the book length measured against their price. Travis probably isn't cheap... but still.... 30 bucks for less than 10 hours? Especially since I listen at a higher speed than default as do many others... it's a lot to pay for not very much content. There are credits ... but thats a credit we can't spend on something that's like 30 hours for a similar price. Something to think about. It is very good though.

Worthy addition to series

Harmon Cooper creates a wonderful book 2 of the series. The MC progresses slowly but steadily along the path of becoming a War Priest by acquiring the 2nd item to his arsenal, as the title implies, the Whispering Sword. He receives warrior training and the path of a shinobi (aka ninja) but is having difficulty reconciling his existing healer path with that of a warrior. Along the way, the author introduces several new characters who end up allying with them in their quest to defeat Nobunaga, the leader of the group who killed Arik's parents and kidnapped his sister. There are a number of reveals provided which makes for entertain intrigue. However, one thing is abundantly clear at this point in the story ... Arik sucks at being a ninja, what with his loose-lips around strangers. Note: I don't fault the author or the book since it's abundantly clear that this flaw was the author's intent.

Travis Baldree continues to excel with his narrating performance skills.

A great addition

A very exciting addition to the series, but unfortunately the book is too short. I look forward to the third book in the series

Satisfying Sequel

Great sequel! This is my favorite series from Harmon Cooper, and it's definitely worth it! Get it now! Love the MC's new weapon!

Entertaining book 2 that expands the series.

I’ve enjoyed the second book of this series enough that I am considering reading Harmon Cooper’s first series Pilgrim.  He was abel to snag Traivs Baldree to do the audible , it seems his voice is perfect for the genre and he really does bring Cooper’s story to life.  The story does have action, some humor, and a few twists that are impactful. It is appropriate for young adults and above. 

  The worldbuilding while not massive is there, as well as solid characters, and a decent plot for the individual book that carries the overall plot quiet well. With some of the revelations in this book I think there's a bit too much coincidence in terms of the certain characters running into each other multiple times and begin connected to other characters. No spoilers though.  

  I think Harmon Cooper’s take on the cultivation genre is interesting as the magic system has its own rules that each have their own quarks as we the reader and listener sees more of them.  

  I do think some of the main protagonist's actions or better said reactions feel a bit off for the sake of creating drama but for the most part he grew as a character.  The balance between his upbringing as a healer and his current life as a warrior is fun and I hope to see more of the healing in the next book as it has taken more of a back step here.

  We are reintroduced to mainly of the same side characters in book 1.  As something of a journey/travel story it was cool to seem them pop back up and be rounded out abit more. However I do think that it would have been better to see a few more new characters show up outside of enemies and two new allies.

  At that said, I am not complaining. For those who enjoy cultivation action series this is certainly a soild KU read or something good to add to your kindle library or audible collection (Particularly with Traivs Baldree voicing it.)  

A well written Adventure

The story is more Wuxia than Xanxia, but I still like it. Good character development and pace.

Plot Armoe

There is very few things in this world I detest more than a book that's plot carries the main character versus the main character progressing the plot. What I mean by this is that the protagonist is boring, poorly developed, and an overall child, his only value is that all these super rare super trained professionals just magically pop up in his life and train him, oh and a magical kami babysits him throughout every page. He has no ability to make rational decisions and the decisions he makes should lead to him being killed, but the writer uses plot armor to magically protect the main character from situations that are dumb and unrealistic.

Why this book has received such good reviews confuses me beyond belief. Yes Travis Baldree is an amazing narrator, but the book has not plot, has an infantile protagonist, poorly developed side characters, little to no world building, and to many convenient coincidences to be considered a good book.