The Wrack

By: John Bierce

Narrated by: Adjoa Andoh

Length: 7 hrs and 37 mins

Publisher's summary

Plague has come to the continent of Teringia.

As the Wrack makes its slow, relentless march southwards, it will humble kings and healers, seers and merchants, priests and warriors. Behind, it leaves only screams and suffering, and before it, spreads only fear.

Lothain, the birthplace of the Wrack, desperately tries to hold itself together as the plague burns across it and its neighbors circle like vultures. The Moonsworn healers would fight the Wrack, but must navigate distrust and violence from the peoples of Teringia. Proud Galicanta readies itself for war, as the Sunsworn Empire watches and waits for the Wrack to bring its rival low.

The Wrack advances, utterly unconcerned with the plans of men.

©2020 John Bierce (P)2020 Podium Audio

Quality over quantity

I was reluctant to get this one as it's not very long, but I could listen to Adjoa Andoh read a phone book. Was a surprisingly pleasant listen. I'm glad the author avoided in-detail action. That can get a bit tedious, but if that's what you're looking for you could afford to miss this one. This book is almost an anthology, with most chapters completely disconnected accounts of the same event. It's a credit to the author that he was able to develop the characters so well with so few pages devoted to each. Excellent world building: richly imagined with nations and characters behaving in ways that conform well to the world as written. Looking forward to whatever Bierce writes next.

Brutal, relentless, plague as the main character

No worries, this book is standalone and can be read independently from the other series. Now that this part is out of the way on to my review.

It is a riveting experimental book by the author, unlike any of his other works so far,.. but definitely a worthy addition to the expanded multiverse. For those who read the Mage Errant series, there is a pleasing mention of a Labyrinth in the beginning tying this tragic world in with the rest... but be warned, this is not an epic adventure story. It is one of creeping relentless terror.

It was an interesting read, though after a point the relentless march of death gets... repetitive in a way. You become numbed to the terror as it creeps across the lands. Let's just say there are no series of mysteries revealed in unfolding realizations. The main character is the plague itself, You see some characters return from chapter to chapter sometimes but there is no central character like you would find in his other books and indeed the plague itself seems to be the antagonist. It is as a whole, a sad story. Though there are moments and places for hope buried under a mountain of loss and lament.

That said, this is very well written and worth your time though it may not be what you expect from Bierce. Just understand that it is relentlessly grimdark. The timing of when this was written is coincidental and there is an author's note at the end that explains this.

The world building is also a pleasant surprise and even as you watch cultures taking severe damage and even dying from the plague I think this is part of what keeps you riveted to the story as it unfolds. The descriptions of the land, the beliefs and cultures, the cities and their other landmarks. The world is created with depth and definitely have the feel of long histories... and lament their loss as you hear the stories about the lists of bitter struggles to chronicle the names of the lost.

The narration isn't too bad. Not nearly as bad as some reviewers complained about. I've had better, and far worse. A solid 3.5 out of 5 if I could give it. She is NOT monotone, and she is a smooth reader. It's the accents I think where there may be some grating irritation for some listeners. She does a fine job though in keeping a good pace (I listened at 1.2x) and you do feel when she changes characters and viewpoints.

Make sure you are in a good place mentally though before you start listening to this. Have a pet in your lap. Hug your kids. Take breaks and watch something filled with color and honey on tv. (I didn't, I was riveted from start to finish.)

storyline ok

the narrator did the most horrible accents they were hard to understand and terrible to listen too.the story was good but the last chapters were rushed and the ending anti climatic. if it didn't say on the book the Author was the same as the Mage Errant I'd never believe it

B**** better work!

Adjoa owns this story more than the write does. I loved loved loved how this is just so well written Having my jaw drop every five minutes. Yay.

great story!

I wasn't too crazy about the accents the narrator chose, but other than that it was great!

A story of a different sort

I have not yet finished this book, but I wanted to sit down and write a review for it now that I am about halfway through.

This in not an adventure novel, there has been no action, no antagonist, only mystery and exposition. Nearly every chapter is from a different perspective, and many are not directly connected. I would say this novel is somewhat like a mystery documentary and much more dry than the mage errant series.

These things may push away many readers, but I must say this is still a very interesting book. Despite it's dryness and heavy exposition there is a weight to the book that keeps my attention held firm. I very much look forward to seeing how it progresses.

The mark against it for me is nitpicks againts the narrator. She is clear, and professional, with no cardinal sins such as mouth noises, but her accent work is jarring at times, like she is trying too hard. Her normal speaking voice is quite pleasant though.

An great addition to John's overall project

After listening to the first 5 books of of John Bierce's Mage Arrant series I learned of this title and decided to check it out. This addition to his multiverse project is astounding because it has a different feel and style than the Mage Arrant series. I think this gives a good overall depth and shows that John has versatility as a writer. It has made me more excited for the upcoming additions.

Adjoa Andoh is a talented narrator. This is the first book I've heard her narrate and I am looking forward to hearing her more. I feel that listeners are often more critical of women narrators, I've read it may be that a quality of the general higher tones to woman's voices compared to men's makes certain sounds stand out or something, I'm not sure exactly, nor am I certain why it is that I have not found many woman narrator's performances worth mentioning. Perhaps it is because I have such a deep voice myself or maybe I'm deficient in someway. In spite of whatever the reason, I find Adjoa's voice pleasant to listen to and her work impressive. I'm always impressed by narrators that manage to have diverse voices for multiple characters and how well they keep them organized. I'm sure a lot of work goes into this and someone is probably checking for good consistency, but it is still notable.

Well written

The Wrack was really well written, slightly triggering from the Covid-19 perspective, yet still a great read.

The subtle ways of reactions people have, the mourning, the subtle way that you are able to empathize with a religious belief of (marking the names of the dead). Despite not having such a belief, the fact it garners emotional response shows this was well written.

This book is definitely worth a read.

Great performance, largely forgettable story

Adjoa Andoh always knocks it out of the park with her reads. Unfortunately, her talent feels wasted here with The Wrack. What there is for story lacks for any real character development, and overall, it just falls short of being anything memorable. It's not a bad story. However, it's also not a good story.

Just ok

I’m a huge fan of Bierce’s Mage Errant series, so while I wait for the 7th book to come out I thought I’d give this a listen. It’s well-written in terms of literary prose, however, I found the nonlinear story to be disjointed and hard to follow in audio format. A lack of character development or investment in core characters was, to me, its fatal flaw. There were some interesting characters but we didn’t stay with them long enough to develop any kind of emotional attachment. I also found the ending to be completely anticlimactic. The narration would have been good if it hadn’t been all over the place with accents that made no sense to me and though she does a good job with said accents and has a good storytelling voice, she chewed the scenery a bit too much for my liking. I would not recommend unless you’re someone who just completely nerds out over plagues and pandemics.