
Senlin Ascends
The Books of Babel, Book 1
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Narrated by:
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John Banks
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By:
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Josiah Bancroft
About this listen
Discover the extraordinary debut that has got everyone talking.
Mild-mannered headmaster, Thomas Senlin prefers his adventures to be safely contained within the pages of a book. So when he loses his new bride shortly after embarking on the honeymoon of their dreams, he is ill-prepared for the trouble that follows.
To find her, Senlin must enter the Tower of Babel - a world of geniuses and tyrants, of menace and wonder, of unusual animals and mysterious machines. And if he hopes to ever see his wife again, he will have to do more than just survive...this quiet man of letters must become a man of action.
©2013 Josiah Bancroft (P)2018 Little, Brown Book GroupListeners also enjoyed...
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Booktrack Edition: The Tower of Babel is the greatest marvel in the world. Immense as a mountain, the ancient Tower holds unnumbered ringdoms, warring and peaceful, stacked one on the other like the layers of a cake. Soon after arriving for his honeymoon at the Tower, the mild-mannered headmaster of a small village school, Thomas Senlin, gets separated from his wife, Marya. Senlin is determined to find Marya, but to do so he'll have to navigate madhouses, ballrooms, and burlesque theaters. He must survive betrayal, assassins, and the illusions of the Tower.
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On a mountainside at the edge of the Kaigenese Empire live the most powerful warriors in the world, superhumans capable of raising the sea and wielding blades of ice. For hundreds of years, the fighters of the Kusanagi Peninsula have held the Empire's enemies at bay, earning their frozen spit of land the name "The Sword of Kaigen". Born into Kusanagi's legendary Matsuda family, f14-year-old Mamoru has always known his purpose: To master his family's fighting techniques and defend his homeland.
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Critic reviews
"An extraordinary debut that is well worthy of the hype. A beautifully written, highly engaging page-turning masterpiece." (Fantasy Book Review)
"Thomas Senlin is the most unlikely yet likeable hero since a certain hobbit rushed out of Bag End leaving his second breakfast half-finished and entirely unwashed-up." (Fantasy Faction)
What listeners say about Senlin Ascends
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Mona
- 11-15-20
Enjoyable read and an original setting
The plot was fine and enjoyable, if build from a rather standard set of blocks. The setting was great, the characters likeable. The performance was very good.
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- Anonymous User
- 11-29-23
overall fine
the story lacked substantial tension for my likes, though I can see the main appeal of it was the unique setting. Writing, or rather, wording, was fitting, decorative, but very careful most of the time. it was good experience listening to the book overall. I'd give 3.5
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- Daniel Podea
- 06-02-22
it finally caught me
The book starts and has that "The hitchhikers guide to the Galaxy" vibe. I almost gave it up because of that seemingly allegorical style that I'm not a big fan of. And I'm glad I didn't stop until the end. Now I can't wait to read the next book and hopefully the whole series..
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- Anonymous User
- 11-20-21
Just Amazing
Josiah Bancroft has become one of if not my absolute favorite author because of this novel. The character development, world building, prose and wit are all top notch. The performance is great too really capturing different accents!
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- Andrew
- 01-27-21
Boring...
Just found the whole story terribly boring. None of the characters are likeable, notably the main protagonist. In the end I just didn't care what happened as I had no interest whatsoever... Narration is fine, but the story just isn't interesting
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