Wizard in Exile

Wrath of the Stormking, Book 1

By: Michael G. Manning

Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds

Length: 23 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

Kelvin Wiltshire lives the life of a simple cook in a remote village on the far side of Trendham.

The townsfolk think little of the man and his son and believe him to be just another refugee from the Terabinian war. On cold winter nights, they share rumors of the bloody conflict and the mysterious death of Will Cartwright, the mighty mage who had the power to command storms.

They like the new cook. They fear the fallen king. But the two men are one and the same.

Haunted by nightmares from his past, Will has chosen a life of exile, hoping to erase the blood from his soul by forging a simple life. Service and family might ease his pain, but beneath his scars are deeper wounds: a queen and wife turned into a lich, friends poisoned with hate. While he seeks peace in isolation, his absence has left a void, and an ancient foe craves a return to power.

Patient and malevolent, the enemy knows the nature of man, and anger is an oh-so-useful tool in the game of nations. As war looms, Will’s anonymity—and the life he’s built—are threatened, forcing him to choose between the friends of his past and the friends of his present. To win, he’ll need what he left behind: the mantle of the Stormking.

©2023 Michael G. Manning (P)2023 Podium Audio

Critic reviews

"In a realm meticulously populated with trolls, elves, dragons, and mages, Reynolds is at his best giving lively voices to nosy aunts, curious cousins, and a brother-in-law with a heart of gold." —AudioFile Magazine

awesome

Awesome continuation of this story line. Was hesitant after the ending of the previous series but I was very pleased I took the leap..

One of my favorites

Book has all the ups and downs and wizard stuff I love! Characters are relatable and flow with the story

Great book

Excellent and filled with twists and turns. Every time you start to think you know what is going to happen, you don’t. However, it wasn’t overdone. In keeping with the characters and who they are!

Excellent tie in to Art of The Adept

Like many, after listening to the previous five books. I became invested in William and the supporting characters. (sign of a good author) If you had a WTF moment following book 5 from the unexpected turn of events. Keep going, it’s worth it. Manning does a fantastic job of moving the previous character arcs into the next chapter of William’s journey.

Excellent! Strongly recommend the series.

It says book one “wrath of the storm king”. Do not start with this. In reality it’s book 6 of Art of the Adept.

Manning is a solid well rounded writer. His books have a smooth pace and enough complexity.

I hope Manning never stops listening to his inner 12-year-old when writing. Regardless of how dire the characters circumstances or severity of the situation, it results in some truly funny moments.

Major comeback!

The last two books in this series were admittedly hard to get through as a reader. I stuck around out of morbid curiosity and a love for Mr. Reynolds narration, as well as to support Mr. Manning. This book brings back some life into the world, and I can not be more happy with the story or the narration. Many questions answered, many more raised, new characters with infinite possible storyline for continuation. Will definitely pre-order the next one as soon as it is offered. So write the man a check and tell him to get back to writing!

Loving this series

One of my favorite characters and book series in the sword and sorcery genre. Cannot wait for more

Good but having a a number of problem areas

Michael G. Manning continues with the next phase of the "Art of the Adept" series several years later and, along with Tim Gerard Reynolds' superior narrating performance, starts out wonderfully. However, two of the major plot twists really weren't all that illusive from the beginning; that of Cora DeWitt and the unknown antagonists. Then, Chapter 51 turned into a raunchy set of discussions adding little to the plot and more than a bit perverse. Finally, anyone who willingly sacrifices innocent children for their own purposes should never survive their fate. let alone ending-up being quasily forgiven.

I knew it!

I knew nobody could write all those books that well and just fumble the ending. So good!

Could not stop listening

Can say I dislike anything about this one, it was a don’t stop listening story can wait for the next instalment

Awesome

So great! I couldn't stop listening and just had to keep going and going. It was fun, active, and kept you engaged. The only part I don't like is that now I have to wait.

Definitely pick this up and jump right in!