Audio Book: Queen of the Night

Queen of the Night

By:  Craig Schaefer

Publish Date:  June 26, 2016, Audiobook Release August 19, 2016

Format:  Audiobook - 11 hrs 3 mins
Narrated By:  Susannah Jones

Genre:  Fantasy

Series:  4th in The Revanche Cycle series; 1st Book ~ Winter's Reach, 2nd Book ~ Instruments of Control, 3rd Book ~ Terms of Surrender

Impression:  Worth every moment of reading or listening. Wow.

Synopsis:
It all ends here.

It ends as Livia Serafini returns to her homeland with an army at her back, an exiled refugee turned ruthless conqueror, bringing war and witchcraft to any who dare stand in her way. It ends as Renata Nicchi and her ragged band of hunters and outlaws infiltrate a city under siege, making a last, desperate bid to save her lover from the jaws of the criminal underworld and be reunited at last.

And as the Owl and her coven work to unravel the mystery of Wisdom's Grave, a doom from the past threatens to consume them all. It ends here, in the final chapter of the Revanche Cycle, under the spreading shadow of darkness. In a land where poison is king, only one can become the queen of the night.

First Sentence:
The night before landfall, Amadeo Lagorio dreamed of dying.

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My Thoughts and Summary:

*I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Once again what grips me at the beginning of this fantasy story is the descriptions. Wow. I know fantasy books are detailed, but Craig's ability to make these descriptions lifelike and unique is breathtaking. Craig does NOT linger on things, he describes them and moves on as they relate to what's in the moment and scene. The first description we open with is awe striking, the vision of the city and the crystal tear. The crystal tear is what gripped me.

Susannah. I want to applaud you. This is one amazing narration. Susannah has amazed me through out this series. Susannah may use subtle differences but they speak loudly. Each character has their own heart and drive and it comes through in Susannah's voice. One thing I find amazing in a narrator is when I don't hear them. That sounds wrong to say, but in the essence it's that their narration IS the story and the characters. Susannah does this. The story speaks loudly through her and she lets it. Amazing job.

The story is told from numerous POV's. BUT! Hold on. Don't let that discourage you. The story follows a straight line, giving you all the information that fits together even though it's from different view points. It's easy to follow and it's great to see all sides of a working plan. To see who's planning what and how it's affected by another's plan. We know the spokes of that plan wheel and see how it all pans out for all involved. And who wins and why. So awesome! Of the POV's he have, we get to spend lots of time with our favorites from the series - Amadeo, Livia, Cardinal Marchello Accorsi, Felix, Renata, Mari, Owl, and many more.

I was so excited to get back into this world and everyone's corrupted stories. I had to know who would fall the hardest, and to witness it all happen. I found I wanted to yell at the characters, telling the ones I love that it's a trap, he lied! But it wouldn't help.

For me, this book feels a lot like Renata's book. Dang that woman has grown. She's brilliant and full of ideas to sneak around. She's really learned quick and changed. Felix has really grown as well. We saw him start down his dark path in the last book, and he continues there. But there could be one light that keeps him from fully drowning in the dark, Renata.

We follow the characters through their lives. For many these are their darkest days. We lose a few along the way, but in the paths they follow it's the only ending they could have.

This book is...just... wow. Craig does an amazing job of taking us through the end of the book and then some, tying up all threads. I had to take a few days to digest all I experienced in this book. Wow.



****If my thoughts helped you, please click Yes at Amazon and/or Audible. Thank you!

Audio Book Review: Terms of Surrender

Terms of Surrender

By:  Craig Schaefer

Publish Date:  November 11, 2015, Audiobook Release March 28, 2016

Format:  Audiobook - 11 hrs 10 mins
Narrated By:  Susannah Jones

Genre:  Fantasy

Series:  3rd in The Revanche Cycle series; 1st Book ~ Winter's Reach, 2nd Book ~ The Instruments of Control

First Impression:  We get all the masterful schemes, partnerships, fights, and deaths.

Synopsis:
Felix Rossini is a man with a thousand enemies. Framed for murder, hunted by Mirenze's protectors as well as the criminal underworld, he struggles to survive and fight back against the conspiracy that has marked him for death. A conspiracy of another kind is brewing across the ocean, as the corrupt aristocracy draws Livia Serafini’s oldest friends into a plot to destroy her. If she can’t find a way to overcome the occult infection spreading through her veins, they may not have to.

And in the shadows, the Owl prepares to wage bloody war against the most dangerous foe of all -- her own coven -- as she leads her disciples in a quest to recover a deadly relic. It's a showdown that will end where it all began: in the frozen hell of Winter's Reach, under a rain of fire.

From a rebel uprising in the west, to a broken crusade in the east, the dominoes fall one by one. Where they land will determine the fate of an empire.

First Sentence:
The night was a hungry thing in Belle Terre.

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My Thoughts and Summary:
*I requested to review a copy of this audiobook for an honest review from the author or narrator.

Pope Livia looks to return home and unseat Carl as Pope, but will people accept her? Her witchy deeds to protect her Brown Cloaks and herself have been seen as a grace from the Gardener, but what if they knew the truth. Felix is hunted by all sides of the law and finds a new ally against his wife and her partner, but he has to stay alive to clear his name and leave to find his love, Renata. But first he'll take care of Aita and Lodovico so he and Renata won't be hunted.

The Empire has pulled all but 1/3 of his army from Belle Terre to fight in the desert, a Crusade the Emperor is determined to fight. The Terrai take advantage of the movement and attack to take back their own. Owl finds trouble in her coven, and is more determined to take over as the Mother witch.

All need a strong weapon to win the battles before them, that aren't looking good. A few find the weapons in them or around them. Others know of one that was hidden away years ago, one that was to powerful to use then. But now.... it may be able to be handled. But who will get to it first?

Susannah has a magnificent talent in the way she holds suspense and my interest in her voice. From the first words of this story, she has gripped my attention and pulled me in. I don't know if I can express how much I love Susannah's work in this series. I love listening to Susannah as she voices each character giving them an individual sound and feel. They all are written with vastly different personalities, and Susannah brings that alive for us.

Everything is as we left it at the end of Instruments of Control. In turmoil. I love how the story starts right where we left off. There is no rehashing of what has happened. But Craig drops reminders as the characters think or talk of where they are going or to do next, easily bringing past events to mind.

We get to see the story from a few different POV's, but it's extremely easy to follow who's who. In this world, we need all POV's we can be given as there is so many different sides that are touched with the waves of change.

These characters each have their own agenda in life, their own person they are looking to unseat or kill. By this book, they all have dark agendas they are fighting for. It's a beautiful thing! All their lives interlace with one another and actions against one affects many more, whether for good or bad is yet to be determined.

We get deeper into the witch life with Nessa. We see an ages old tradition of a Coven Knight brought back and how the coven works, or I should say is working and should be working in Nessa's eyes. We see rituals performed and the witch side of the story come to light here. I am surprised to see (and dare I think) Nessa growing fond of Mari and who she's created her to be.

Livia, I want to applaud her and say, You go girl! She's learned a lot and some of it dire, but she's a strong woman and will do well for all while she's around.

There is trouble stewing with the crusade in the desert, and crusaders trying to get there. All ties back to Lodovico Marchetti and what his plans are. These plans affect so many people, and people are starting to get a glimpse of what he's doing. But what is his end game? What is Lodovico really working toward?

Felix is reminded what he's fighting for. Love. For his love and safety of his love, Renata. He works to remain the man he is for Renata, but life pushes in other ways the longer he stays in Mirenze. Renata has found a new strength in herself. Renata fights through physical battles in the previous book and this one. But now, she sees she can fight for what she wants. And she's ready to do just that.

The biggest thing I've been waiting for, what's in the alum mines at Winter's Reach that the witches have been hiding. Yes. We learn what it is! What I learn of it does not let down. It's told in a way that it's as terrible as I had hoped.

The growth and fall of all these characters, WOW! There was so much thought put into this world, characters, internal and external battles and it shows. Excellent job!

Who is on the good side? Um... I don't know if there's a good side anymore. All have blurred the line between right and wrong. All just want what they want, whether it's peace to live with a loved one, money, power, control, or all these things.

Good grief! I am captured by Craig's writing and Susannah's vocal talent. What a dynamic duo this is! Craig seamlessly crafts a world where waves of change ripple through all the classes and divisions of the world, and we see the splashes it makes in each persons plans to better themselves. Craig does not leave us wanting, but keeps us dreading when we have to put the book down. We get all the masterful schemes, partnerships, fights, and deaths.

I don't know if it's possible to love this series any more. With each book, I fall more and more for this world and characters with the turmoil they live through.



***If you found my thoughts helpful, please click Yes at Amazon and/or Audible. Thank you!

Audio Book Review: The Instruments of Control

The Instruments of Control

By:  Craig Schaefer

Publish Date:  April 19, 2015, Audiobook Release November 9, 2015

Format:  Audiobook - 11 hrs 38 mins
Narrated By:  Susannah Jones

Genre:  Fantasy

Series:  2nd book in Revanche Cycle series; 1st Book ~ Winter's Reach

First Impression:  The tides are changing, and dangers are shifting.

Synopsis:
Livia Serafini must die.

To the Church she is a heretic, tried in absentia and sentenced to burn. To her brother Carlo, she stands as a threat to his corrupt rule and a symbol of resistance. To her new "allies" in the east, she is a pawn to be played and sacrificed as they see fit. They don't hear the whispers that follow her in the streets: whispers of hope, and the name of a long-dead saint.

When Livia rises up to fight, she will not rise alone.

Across the ocean, Felix struggles for control of his family's fate against the crime lord Basilio Grimaldi. Basilio is wealthy, ruthless, and the master of a hundred killers. All Felix has are his wits and his courage. It won't be enough. To break free, and to save the lives of everyone he loves, he'll have to face the darkness that followed him home from Winter's Reach.

And as the Owl's horrific vengeance unfolds, her coven teeters on the brink of civil war. All the dominoes are in place now, lined up from the frozen north to the swamps and ruins of a dead empire, and set to tumble at one man's command. When they do, a world will fall with them.

First Sentence:
Otto Blum often claimed he'd lost his taste for prayer.

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My Thoughts and Summary:
*I requested to review a copy of this audiobook for an honest review from the author.

Livia was able to get the remaining people to safe harbor, but is it safe for Livia? King Rhys and his adviser, Merrion, wonder what Carlo and the Church will give them for Livia's return. Simon's not to go after his only target that got away, Felix. But Basilio Grimaldi was to, and still needs to, die. With Felix marrying Basilio's daughter, Aita, he takes pleasure in thinking how accidents could happen...at the wedding. Felix's worry for his love's safety may have put her in greater danger. Basilio now has hunters looking for Renada. There is something more going on in the city as someone is trying to do what Aita and Felix are planning, kill Basilio Grimaldi. Everything Werner told Mari about the Order of the Autumn Lance is about to be exposed, now that they cross a woman who wants to hire them to find the remaining members of the Order. Is Nessa who she claims to be? But what Werner knows of the Order of the Autumn Lance could be trouble for them...

I am thrilled to say Susannah is back with the second book. I enjoyed her voice and reading in Winter's Reach, and continue to do the same here. I really enjoyed the voice and attitude Susannah added to each character as she narrated the story. The voice differences are slight but you know the difference and who is who. Susannah has the emotion of each character down pat, from the leer of a threat to the shock of learning that you'd just sealed the death warrant of your loved one. She did slight voice differences for each character, differentiating each character for us as she brings them to life.

Susannah's voice coupled with Craig's descriptions gives us, and Susannah the narrator, the clear direction of what emotion is felt by each character. Craig has the right format and amount of description to emphasis the story and draw the scenes around for us. He has me wanting to listen to it all and hear what's going to happen with the characters I've grown to love.

This may not be the high magic fantasy full of Orc's, Elves, and other fierce creatures but the people present in this world are just as dangerous and cunning. We do have witches that bring magic to the world, but the things people put into action and work to get their way... oh I love it. Death, lies, backstabbing, it's all here! I'm drawn in with Craig's masterful imagery with words. The world and the characters past are used to highlight the characters now, then, and the world we are currently in. All are touched on in few words yet drawing a huge picture.

I love how the tides change and the dangers turn from person to person. Craig is skillful in crafting the schemes that the characters create and how they turn to bring death to the doorstep and threats from others. Where we saw the characters in the beginning is not where the characters are in the end. They have evolved in the events happening around and to them. Mari, Felix, Aita, Renata, Livia, all of them and more have grown in so many ways. No one is safe in this world, anywhere.

We lose some characters in this book, which can be expected. However! It's the manner of which they die. Some are unexpected and by the hand of those we wouldn't have expected. I love it!

We get to see the witches at work here. Their way of things start to be divulged to us. Interesting as they are hiding something too! And what we experienced in Winter's Reach is starting to be explained here. Oh what the world has to offer. The witches are more important than we saw in Winter's Reach. They start to come out in this book with the events that happen and lead them to where they are, for revenge, self defense, and accidental usage.

A mind catching fantasy read. I'm looking forward to the rest of the series!

Audio Book Review: Winter's Reach

Winter's Reach

By:  Craig Schaefer

Publish Date:  November 11, 2014, Audiobook July 28, 2015

Format:  Audiobook - 11 hrs 24 mins
Narrated By:  Susannah Jones

Genre:  Fantasy

Series:  1st in Revanche Cycle series

Impression:  An epic fantasy full of conspiracies in close proximity. Everyone has an enemy, or one desiring what another has.

Synopsis:
Pope Benignus is dying, and the man who takes his throne will hold the reins of an empire. Conspiracies swirl like shadows around Livia, the pope's daughter, who refuses to be anyone's pawn: chasing the whispers of a deadly coup, she vows to expose the truth and save her church from disaster. Livia has secrets of her own, though, and one wrong move could cost her life and her soul.

Felix is the scion of a dying merchant house, a man with just one chance to save his family and the woman he loves. His last hope lies in the snowbound hell of Winter's Reach, a former prison colony turned "free city" under a brutal tyrant's reign.

Livia and Felix have never crossed paths, but they've both been snared in a far greater web than they can imagine. They -- along with a pair of veteran bounty hunters, an exiled politician, and a sadistic coven of witches -- are cogs in one man's apocalyptic plan for revenge. A plan which, if it succeeds, will leave an entire nation in flames.

First Sentence:
The family estate reminded Felix of a giant's rotting corpse, laid out under skies smeared a filthy gray.

Purchase At:
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My Thoughts and Summary:
*This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com, at my request.

Felix is determined to set his families financial debts straight so he can marry his love, and not the merchants daughter he was arranged to marry that will save his family. He has a plan. According to old records, the dangerous free city of Winter's Reach has Alum mines being unused, and he plans to strike a deal with the Mayor to make money for him and her. However, others don't want him to get to those mines. Lodovico Marchetti is of the current family that has the control of the Alum market, and plans to keep it that way at any action. The witches have their own secret and plan to keep it that way. Then we have the church that is slipping into the wrong hands as the Pope is on his death bed. In all this a pair of hunters are out to do their job and working to forget the past of deeds they wish they didn't do.

Susannah is a gentle voice to listen to. She's done a lovely job with voicing the emotional rise and falls of the characters in the book and telling the tale of this world beaming with conspiracies. She doesn't do different voices for the many characters present, but she does pose different attitudes for each one. But she has told the story with heart. By the end of the book I felt I was sitting around a fire listening to an old tale, and wanting to hear more.

Where do I start? This is an epic fantasy with the many characters that are in play here.

All of these families are dangerous. They have desires and needs that they will do anything to get or keep in their favor. The lives of different groups of people heading in the same direction, though for different reasons. The political pull in the world is evident. Those with enough money and connections can make anything go their way. Everyone has their own motivators for their goals - love, guilt, lose - all the emotions pushing people to do more. The world not only has the evils of mans desires but also dangerous creatures and weather.

The Rossini family has no one to deal with, others are held on tight strings. Felix is to marry into the Grimaldi family to make a strong alliance. Felix has another idea. Winter's Reach. It's a free city now, but once was a prison colony where mines were built in the mountains, and is rich in Alum. Felix does what he wants for his reasons, but then becomes pushed to do more. And he decides to take new avenues to get what he wants.

Lodovico Marchetti... oh he's one we love and love to hate. He is the power hold in Mirenze right now. He makes the market go as he wants, and for him, as he holds the biggest Alum mine production. Alum is a mineral used in about everything. But, Lodovico has another plan in motion with his 'friend' Carlo at the church. He wants more, and revenge...

Carlo, Livia, Amadeo, and Benignus. They are all part of the church. Benignus is Pope and he's dying. The question is who will take over his throne when he's gone. There is discord among the Cardinals over this. Carlo, his second child and only son, is who is expected to do so. But he's not what we would think of as Pope material, and others think so too. However, he could be one used as a tool by others. Livia is the daughter and more than ready to stand up as Pope, however she's a female. In this world, females are not thought of more than marrying off for mergers and alliances. But, people don't realize she's more dangerous to their plans than they give her credit for. She is one to watch out for. Amadeo. Ah. I did enjoy him very much. He's a priest and one of the ones to have the most growth in this book, for me. I enjoyed his journey and how strong he's become.

I think the ones I enjoyed the most are Mari and Werner. This duo is a wonderful set. I love the care they have for each other. The hunters are not a couple, but more a father/daughter feel to them. Mari is a hurt girl. She suffers from PTSD from the death of her family and many of her home land. Werner found her and brought her back from the brink of the edge. Werner has given Mari something to strive for, and she does just that. She has morals to her ways and does her best to live by them. However both have moments in their past that haunts them, and could be a danger to them now.

Oh! I can't forget about the witches! They are cruel. The actions they take! Oh wow. Makes me cringe. We don't get all the dealings with the witches just yet. But they are here and we know what they are looking for, or at least Owl. I'm looking forward to seeing more of them in the future books!

The writing draws the visual world in a magnificent poetry, this caught my attention at the opening of the book. This is echoed throughout the book, usually at the beginning of a chapter.

I did find myself curious about the Empire here. We didn't get much in way of past details of coming to power, nor the relationship the throne of the church has with the Empire's king. There were a few things in the world building that I would have liked to have seen or learned more of, but I'm hoping that will come in the future books.

Everyone has an enemy, or one desiring what another has. There is always someone after another or another's material possessions. The different plots in the city by different people start to cross paths and collide as each person works for their own results. It seems the strongest of will and cunning will survive.

As in epic fantasy fashion, I'm left anxious for what's to come. Craig has drawn the world and characters to bring them all to this moment. Some are in precarious places and don't know it. Others are heading into a wind storm and don't know it. Some are expecting to create the wind storm. Oh I want to hear more of this world to see what happens with them all! Will the make it?