A Touch of Light
The Ashes of Avarin, Book 1
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Narrated by:
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Kevin Kemp
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By:
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Thiago Abdalla
About this listen
How far would you go to resurrect someone you love? Would you change who you are to show you belong?
The world of Avarin is tearing itself apart. The Domain worships life, its rulers lead eternal lives, and death is a shame that must not be mourned. For the clans to the south, however, death is all that keeps the Earth alive.
But old enemies are rising.
A madness spreads throughout the Domain, and Lynn, a rogue griffin rider in hiding, might be the only one who knows how to fight it, while Adrian, a Domain prince seeking to bring his dead loved ones to worthiness, leads the Domain armies against the madmen.
The clans suffer a madness of their own. As the land itself begins to wither away, Nasha, a cursed hunter and lifelong outcast, desperately fights for belonging in the Ronar, while her clan seeks to heal the land.
Old beliefs will be challenged as the people of Avarin fight to save it…before death comes for them all.
A sweeping epic fantasy saga where religion and politics are one, magic brings terror into the hearts of men, and a looming blight threatens to tear everything down
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- By: Brian Staveley
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 19 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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The emperor of Annur is dead, slain by enemies unknown. His daughter and two sons, scattered across the world, do what they must to stay alive and unmask the assassins. But each of them also has a life-path on which their father set them, destinies entangled with both ancient enemies and inscrutable gods.
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4 Primary Crimes Committed By The Author
- By Captain Spanky Of Nazareth on 05-09-16
By: Brian Staveley
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Wytchfire
- The Dragonkin Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Michael Meyerhofer
- Narrated by: Craig Beck
- Length: 11 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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In a land haunted by the legacy of dead dragons, Rowen Locke has been many things: orphan, gravedigger, mercenary. All he ever wanted was to become a Knight of Crane and wield a kingsteel sword against the kind of grown horrors his childhood knows all too well. But that dream crumbled - replaced by a new nightmare. War is overrunning the realms, an unprecedented duel of desire and revenge, steel and sorcery. And for one disgraced man who would be a knight, in a world where no one is blameless, the time has come to decide which side he's on.
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Can't judge a book by it's cover.
- By Fantasy Reader on 08-29-15
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Dawn of War
- Blood War Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Tim Marquitz
- Narrated by: John Pruden
- Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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For hundreds of years, the bestial Grol have clawed at the walls of Lathah without success. Now armed with O'hra, mystical weapons of great power, they have returned, to conquer. Witness to the Grol advance, Arrin can abide his exile no longer. He returns to Lathah, in defiance of death, with hopes to save his beloved princess and the child born of their illicit affair. He finds her unwilling to abandon her people.
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A sprawling Epic fantasy in the best sense!
- By The Bookwyrm Speaks on 09-03-15
By: Tim Marquitz
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At the Sign of the Crow and Moon
- A Sorcery Ascendant Prequel Novella
- By: Mitchell Hogan
- Narrated by: Oliver Wyman
- Length: 3 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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In the bustling capital city of the Mahruse Empire, Felicienne Shyrise spends her days as a talented investigator, taking on stolen goods and missing person cases and the occasional murder the city guard are too incompetent - or too lazy - to resolve. During the nights she hones her skills playing Dominion, a board game almost as complicated as life itself. She dreams of making a name for herself and becoming the richest woman in the Empire.
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Worth It
- By Gaia on 09-23-19
By: Mitchell Hogan
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God's Last Breath
- By: Sam Sykes
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 25 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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The great demon Khoth-Kapira has broken free of his prison and taken his first step upon the mortal world. And he owes it all to Lenk. Believing that the demon will heal a broken world that the gods have abandoned, Lenk serves as reluctant champion to Khoth-Kapira's cause. But as the desperate and fearful flock to Khoth-Kapira's banner, begging for salvation, Lenk begins to doubt his patron's great designs.
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Fantastic Finish
- By Casey on 07-18-18
By: Sam Sykes
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Altered Destiny
- By: Shawna Thomas
- Narrated by: Uma Incrocci
- Length: 10 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Selia has run her family's tavern since she was 15 and can hunt and fight as the equal of any male. When she rescues a badly wounded man and nurses him back to health, she has no idea she's about to change not only her life, but also the destinies of two peoples….
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Wow! It was perfect!
- By Racheal on 10-13-11
By: Shawna Thomas
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Dragon Age: The Stolen Throne
- By: David Gaider
- Narrated by: Stephen Hoye
- Length: 13 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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After his mother, the beloved Rebel Queen, is betrayed and murdered by her own faithless lords, young Maric becomes the leader of a rebel army attempting to free his nation from the control of a foreign tyrant. His countrymen live in fear; his commanders consider him untested; and his only allies are Loghain, a brash young outlaw who saved his life, and Rowan, the beautiful warrior maiden promised to him since birth.
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Fantastic Read
- By Brandon on 01-30-11
By: David Gaider
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Tower of the Forgotten
- The Tainted Cabal Prequel Novella
- By: Mitchell Hogan
- Narrated by: Oliver Wyman
- Length: 2 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Niklaus, master swordsman, has not aged a day since being chosen by his mercurial goddess. A slave to her will, he moves from one cryptic mission to the next in the hope of ascending to become her equal. But even a man who has lived for centuries can sometimes find himself out of his depth. When Niklaus is sent to kill a sorcerer of the Tainted Cabal, overconfidence leads to a fatal mistake, and neither experience nor skill with a blade can prevail against the forces unleashed against him.
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What's Next?
- By James on 06-04-17
By: Mitchell Hogan
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Ice Forged
- Ascendant Kingdoms Saga, Book 1
- By: Gail Z. Martin
- Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds
- Length: 19 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Condemned as a murderer for killing the man who dishonored his sister, Blaine "Mick" McFadden has spent the last six years in Velant, a penal colony in the frigid northern wastelands. Harsh military discipline and the oppressive magic keep a fragile peace as colonists struggle against a hostile environment. But the supply ships from Dondareth have stopped coming, boding ill for the kingdom that banished the colonists. Now, as the world's magic runs wild, McFadden and the people of Velant must fight to survive and decide their fate....
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Vampires, Mages and Gods are discussed.
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 04-07-16
By: Gail Z. Martin
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The Companions
- Forgotten Realms: The Sundering, Book 1
- By: R.A. Salvatore
- Narrated by: Victor Bevine
- Length: 14 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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This latest installment in New York Times best-selling author R.A. Salvatore's beloved fantasy saga, The Companions moves Salvatore's signature hero Drizzt into a new era of the Forgotten Realms. As Drizzt's fate hangs in the balance, he reflects on the lives of the trusted allies who stood by his side throughout his early life - the friends now known as the Companions of the Hall. Meanwhile, the first stirrings of the Sundering begin.
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BWAHAHA! R.A. Salvatore does it again!
- By Roger on 08-14-13
By: R.A. Salvatore
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Web of Eyes
- By: Rhett C. Bruno, Jaime Castle
- Narrated by: Luke Daniels
- Length: 11 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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When a piece of the crown prince's soul is stolen by a traitorous warlock, disgraced knight Torsten Unger makes it his sworn duty to get it back and save the last hope for the kingdom. But he can't do it alone. Self-proclaimed "World's Greatest Thief" Whitney Fierstown sits in the castle dungeon, destined for the gallows until Torsten offers this choice: rot and die in a dank cell or join him on a dangerous expedition to put his skills to good use and earn his freedom.
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A Fantasy Version of 48 Hours
- By John Kang on 12-24-18
By: Rhett C. Bruno, and others
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Warcraft: Durotan
- The Official Movie Prequel
- By: Christie Golden
- Narrated by: Toby Longworth
- Length: 7 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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In the world of Draenor, the strong and fiercely independent Frostwolf Clan are faced with increasingly harsh winters and thinning herds. When Gul'dan, a mysterious outsider, arrives in Frostfire Ridge offering word of new hunting lands, Durotan, the clan's chieftain, must make an impossible decision: abandon the territory, pride and traditions of his people or lead them into the unknown.
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Great for fans and loremasters alike
- By Brandon Long on 05-04-16
By: Christie Golden
What listeners say about A Touch of Light
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- mrgoodyear
- 01-14-23
Nice debut
Impressive debut novel. His writing is very good and the audiobook performance is EXCELLENT. The characters and world development fell a little flat for me, needed more page time imo, but I am hooked enough to read the next one:
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- Derek B.
- 04-15-23
Madness, magic, and just a touch of light...
A TOUCH OF LIGHT isn't something I gelled with perfectly, but I really appreciated the prose, pacing, high action, worldbuilding, and contemplative nature of this epic fantasy novel.
CHARACTERS
The story follows three main point-of-view characters: Adrian, Nasha, and Lynn. Adrian is a second-born (and second-loved) Prince of a kingdom, Nasha is a fierce clanswoman trying to find a way to rid herself of a curse, and Lynn is a former holy warrior who has stepped away from her order. Although none of them ever meet, they are tied together in that death is the main theme of each of their stories, though that theme manifests in very different ways for each of them. While I found them all to be intriguing, I didn't really connect with any of them in the way that I would have liked. With the exception of maybe Lynn, whose motivations and beliefs were never quite clear to me, I found these characters to be rather self-centered and nihilistic. While there are certainly people in the world who are like this, I generally prefer fantasy characters to be just a little bit larger than life. I also think that them having such a singular drive, didn't allow me to really feel invested in their personal objectives (why care about them, when they don't seem empathetic to anyone else?). That said, things did get shaken up towards the end of book in some interesting ways and I came to realize that they are in fact capable of caring for someone other than themselves or a romantic partner. I also have to say that I really liked a lot of the side characters, especially those that come in during the second half of the narrative. I felt much more concerned for the safety of these minor players and the fact that Abdallah can be merciless with what happens to them definitely heightened that tension for me.
PLOT/TONE
Like I mentioned, the three POVs don't ever intersect in especially concrete ways. Due to that fact, I sort of felt like I was reading three different books at the same time that just happened to be set in the same world, during the same timeline. While this is kind of an interesting way to go about it, I wouldn't say that I found that type of storytelling to be particularly to my tastes. Without much direct crossover, it just kind of felt like I was getting bounced from one story to another and almost would have preferred to have just experienced one of them through to completion, then perhaps start the next. What's interesting is that even though I felt like each character journey's pacing was interrupted by the others, the chapters themselves actually felt quite fast paced. A lot happens in the span of a chapter, with some even feeling a bit like a short story unto itself. There are also lots of brutal action scenes scattered throughout in such a way that things always stayed exciting, but never got too exhausting. There are a few twists along the way, some that I wasn't really expecting and some that I did, but these turns were quite fun regardless. There is also a general air of mystery surrounding everything. We're kind of just thrown into the world and have to learn things alongside the main protagonists which I loved. What I did find to be a little jarring though is that it felt like we are thrown into the middle of these characters' lives and seemingly expected to immediately connect with them. They have histories and relationships that we have to catch up on. While I liked that there really aren't any info dumps in this book at all, there was a feeling of "missing something" in the way that I had to infer a lot of the characterization and interpersonal dynamics of the cast based purely on context clues and my own assumptions. This evens out as the story goes along though.
Without spoilers, I feel like I need to mention that the ending didn't really satisfy me. There isn't an obnoxious cliffhanger (though something pretty shocking does happen right at the end), but there's no real wrap up or resolution either. The three stories kind of just end. There is definitely a sense of lead-in as far as what will come next for everyone, but I couldn't shake the impression that the book kind of just stops rather than truly ending. Normally, this would be a huge turnoff for me to consider continuing with the sequels, but in this case, I am intrigued enough where I think I will continue, maybe just not right away.
SETTING/WORLD
The world building in this book is definitely top notch. Avarin is a sprawling setting that is beautiful and brutal in equal measure. I loved how different each kingdom was from one another in terms of their political structure and belief systems. The militant church of the Seraph watches over the nations within the "Domain" and I found the religion overall to be rather interesting. People basically worship life to the point where dying essentially means that the goddess has deemed the deceased person unworthy. The dead aren't literally forgotten, but they are also not spoken of, making it so that those who pass on are almost erased from the world. The ways this clashed with the culture of The Four Clans as well as a Middle Eastern inspired kingdom were quite interesting. In addition to death, another major element of this world is madness. There is some kind of a sickness that turns people into a violent, almost zombie-like state (minus the brain-eating) and therein lies a lot of the story's physical conflict. The scenes with the mad people got rather disturbing, but I felt like the author did show some restraint when delving into the more grotesque moments which I appreciated. The connection between madness and what little magic exists in this world was a concept that I found particularly intriguing. I felt as though there is so much about both that remained unanswered and I hope this is a major hook for the book's sequel.
THE PROSE
I don't usually mention this aspect at all when reviewing books. I also wouldn't really consider myself to be a "prose snob." I just call it out here, because I think it was exceptionally good without being too flowery or "purple." Physical descriptions of the landscape were beautifully done and I found the descriptions of people's facial expression to be some of the best I have ever come across in fiction. Overall, this was just exceptionally smooth and a pleasure to read/listen to. As someone who writes myself, Abdalla's writing is something I very much admire and aspire to.
THE AUDIOBOOK
The narrator does a fantastic job. Every character sounded distinct and the prose was recited effortlessly. I will say though, that I am not sure if audio is really the best way to consume the story. I feel like I would have been able to soak in the prose even better if I read it with my eyeballs and I think having access to a map (assuming the Kindle/Print edition has one) would have been helpful at certain points. That said, if audio is your only option (or just the most convenient one), then this is absolutely worth a listen.
CONCLUSION
A TOUCH OF LIGHT wasn't a perfect match for my reading tastes, but I was kept interested by nuanced world politics, a steady flow of action, and a sense of continual mystery. Even though I didn't necessarily feel fully invested in the characters or their individual journeys, I left wanting to find out what happens to them next.
(+) Exceptionally smooth prose that isn't terribly flowery
(+) Numerous action scenes and story twists helped the pacing feel fast
(+) A great sense of mystery
(+) Interesting magic that seems to go hand in hand with madness
(+) Some compelling side characters
(+) The way that Death is used as an overarching theme and explored in different ways was fascinating
(+) Some really interesting worldbuilding and politics
(+) A fantastic narrator who does a wide range of character vocals
(-) I didn't find character motivations to be especially compelling and their nihilism was hard for me to connect with
(-) I would have preferred that the three character stories were more connected
(-) Action scenes weren't always easy to follow on audio
(-) The ending didn't really feel satisfying to me (although I do have an interest in reading the next book)
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- Andrews Wizardly Reads
- 07-21-22
A wonderful audio experience
Kevin Kemp brings the ashes of Avarin to life. Already a fantastic book! A touch of light has been elevated even further by the vocal talents of the amazing Kevin Kemp.
A touch of light is a story packed full of different cultures and religions. Store, battle, tragedy and politics are woven together to create a truly compelling tale that will delight epic fantasy lovers.
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- Pamela
- 02-12-23
Plenty of Plot. Stunning Prose.
If you are a plot driven reader, this is definitely a book for you. There is hardly a moment of stillness as the drumbeats of war grow to crashing thunder. The setting is also quite interesting though I am hoping that in the second book we are allowed to have a bit of time to investigate it. I do really like the viewpoint characters. They are distinctive and compelling. My criticism is that as a character driven reader I desperately wanted time to get more into the hearts of these people while they weren’t either killing someone else or avoiding being killed themselves. This is a relentlessly paced book and I would have relished a bit more breathing time even at the cost of one of the many fight scenes. I always feel like the best books have peaks and valleys. A Touch of Light has plenty of well crafted peaks, it’s just a bit short on valleys. Oh! I should say that Abdalla’s prose are first rate. I would compare his prose to the very best of fantasy authors without any reservation.
The narrator, Kevin Kemp, was flawless in his delivery. This was not an easy book for him because he had to maintain such a high level of energy throughout. Regardless, he pulls it off with aplomb. Very impressive.
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- Cailey
- 01-20-23
FANTASTIC
s, lots of exciting action, magical creatures, truly creepy villains, and investigations into each character’s individuality. A world that is divided between worshipping life and worshipping death may need to come together to survive a possible new plague of madness. LOVED IT SO MUCH.
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