Aching God

Iconoclasts, Book 1

By: Mike Shel

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Winner of 2019 Voice Arts Award, Audiobook Narration - Fantasy

"Closer, mortal. You are here, finally, to feed the Aching God...."

The days of adventure are passed for Auric Manteo. Retired to the countryside and isolated with his scars and riches, he no longer delves into forbidden ruins seeking dark wisdom and treasure. But just as old nightmares begin plaguing his sleep, he receives an urgent summons back to that old life.

To save his only daughter, he must return to the place of his greatest trauma: the haunted Barrowlands. Along with a group of inexperienced companions and an old soldier, he must confront the dangers of the ancient and wicked Djao civilization. He has survived fell beasts, insidious traps, and deadly hazards before. But how can he contend with the malice of a bloodthirsty living god?

©2018 Mike Shel (P)2018 Podium Publishing

a great story

a great fantasy novel well written I say give it a try and find out for yourself every book is a world and this find out for yourself.

Outstanding

It’s been a long time since I’ve listened to a book that has both poetic prose and engaging characters. Highly recommended for those who like old school fantasy.

Fantasy sci-fi worthy of beingcalled literature!!!

Beautiful writing.

I love fantasy sci-fi but most of these Audible titles make me feel like I lose 4IQ points for each one I listen to. They feel like they are written by junior high school students, and not very brights ones at that. Mike's writing is the OPPOSITE. If you have ever read and appreciated (not even necessarily enjoyed) Shakespeare, you know that almost every line he wrote was worth studying on its own as his writing was so packed with immense meaning, wit, allegory, imagery and just overall language mastery. Well, Mike is NOT the Bard, but then again who is? However, he is so much closer than any recent fantasy sci-fi writers on Audible. He is on the side of literature that reminds of how beautifully eloquent many old letters were from the 18th and 19th century even from regular people compared to our current Tik-Tok and Instagram culture of verbal ignorance.

His characters are so well layered and their relationships with others are profound and appreciable, it really gets the reader vested into the story's outcome.

The story itself was very original, creative and also very ambitious, which could easily have turned into a disaster, if it was not so well written and thought out.

Simon Vance is a decent narrator but his voice sounds too old, which is tolerable for this book as the main and other key characters are themselves old, but his voice really does not fit any of the younger characters I'm afraid.

Super Fantasy Horror Story

I really enjoyed this Audible book. Hooked me right from the start and couldn’t stop listening. I’m so glad a friend recommended. It’s a really good monster horror story with lots of gore and violence in a fantasy setting with really good narration. So good in fact, I had already purchased the next in the series before completing this one and now I can’t wait to get into it next.

Not for everyone.

Was gripped by the story in the first few chapters. Simon Vance made the tale come alive as usual. It's not the epic fantasy some may expect, has more of a ravenloft/darkest dungeon approach. looking forward to the rest of the series .

Wow.

Onion. Ok bear with me. This story unfolds with the timeless, tasty, pungent, patterned, tear-wrenching consistency of that ancient vegetable. It feels ancient. it feels like a lost story, a cautionary tale of antiquity, perhaps burned at the library of Alexandria?
The dialog is like smooth music. Invasive. Seamless.
Simon, fabulous as always.

Fantastic start to a new series

I was so surprised by this book. I listen to audio books exclusively, I hardly ever have the time to read them anymore. That being said narration is extremely important to me. Certain books that would otherwise be great, have been left untouched due to the narrator (::coughnickpodehlcough::) being completely unsuited and/or bad. After listening to the sample chapter I was pleasantly surprised by Simon Vance (this was the first time I've heard him), and boy, I'm so glad I bought this book. Simon Vance was spectacular. He's a narrator that doesn't just read the book, he acts the part of every character. He has a recognizably distinct voice for each character, he reads with emotion and realism. In fact, I'd go so far as to say he's the best narrator I've listened to (for this genre) other than Steven Pacey. That being said, not only is the narrator top notch... the book is surprisingly extremely well written, engaging, well paced, action packed, emotional and... realistic. I know that's an odd term for a book in this genre, but when reading it I couldn't help think that I was reading about characters and a universe in an alternate reality. Or a history from thousands of years ago that actually existed.

I say "surprisingly" because I was a little hesitant since this is a self published book and a debut novel, however, it reads like it was written by someone that's been established in the genre for 20+ years.

It opens with Auric (forgive the spelling if/when I get some of these names wrong). An aging warrior and adventurer, and also our protagonist, that was employed by the Syraic League for 30 years. The League is a militaristic order that's tasked by the regions nobility to search and explore ancient Djao ruins for lost and forgotten relics, and other items of importance. The Djao are an ancient race that worshiped demons and practiced dark, necromantic arts. Auric is old, weary and has some serious PTSD from his time spent with The League, holding himself responsible for a catastrophic failure of an expedition he led his team of fellow League members (and friends) on. Having lost his wife, son and having a strained and distant relationship with his only surviving estranged daughter, Agnes, we find him living in a small village outside the life of court, in retirement from The League. He's learned to enjoy three years of life after retirement here until nightmares begin, nightmares of the most harrowing event of his life. It is at the onset of these nightmares that he receives a summons from the Syraic Lector to come back to Boudan, the home of the Queen, Court and the headquarters of the Syraic League. The summons is vague, but mentions his daughter is in peril.

All these details are exposed in the first chapter, what goes on from here is simply a fantastic story of sword and sorcery, love and comradery between friends and fellow adventurers, nightmarish descriptions of horrible creatures and perhaps the best description of how a lifetime of "adventuring" and exploring these types of horrible places can scar the mind. I felt so much sorrow for Auric and the things he's seen and experienced, and the author does such a great job of portraying his genuine fear, anxiety, dread and guilt. It's the first time in a fantasy book that I've read a truly terrifying and accurate depiction of PTSD and it's effects on a character. Along with this, I also had such an extreme feeling of foreboding, dread and creeping anxiety myself while reading. Like I knew there was something evil in the shadows, something unknown waiting around the corner waiting to consume everyone in the book... but I didn't know what it was. Very Lovercraftian horror-esque in this sense, and I loved every second of it!

I also loved the sub characters in this book. We have Belach, a staunch supporter that meets Auric at the beginning of the book and is tasked to help him get to Boudan to answer his summons. Belach is a friendly, warm and good hearted soldier around the same age as Auric, that is loyal to the bone. Sira, a healing Priestess of Belu that has a chance encounter with Auric, a girl with a lopsided smile that reminds Auric of someone near and dear to his heart. Del, a tattooed, menacing Sorceress with a vast knowledge of the Djao and a heart of gold. Lumari, an alchemist that is a bit OCD and perfectionist and lastly, Nais, a young and brash swordsman that's a bit reckless, vain and condescending although extremely deadly with a blade. Watching these people grow to know each other, rely on each other, protect each other and care for each other was really great. These aren't the most fleshed out characters in fantasy, in terms of their backstory, but they all feel REAL. I grew to care about them all, and was genuinely worried when they were in peril.

The author does a fantastic job at world building as well. Instead of dumping chapters of information on us with long drawn out descriptions of insignificant details, he seamlessly weaves in details throughout the story, mainly using character dialogue. The world slowly and naturally unfolds for the reader and we begin to envision it, and it seems like just when we are a little lost and wondering about something, the author does a great job at tying up the loose ends.

I'm beginning to ramble so I'll just say a few more things here. I can't write the review without giving a shout out to the chapter that introduces The Queen (long may she reign!). Just remember that when you read the book, that when you reach the chapter with her introduction, you're in for a treat! The authors description of her is truly chilling.

The book isn't perfect and does have a slow chapter or two near the beginning, but that's nothing compared to how good the book is overall. This was also one of those books that I was dreading the ending so bad, simply because I knew it would be over. I wanted more, and when it ended I just felt lost, even though the ending was solid and wrapped up the story of the first book, while still leaving plenty of possibility and intrigue for the second and third book.

For any fans of classic sword and sorcery, dark fantasy, Lovecraftian horror... this book is for you. It's not quite as polished as something on the level of Martin or Abercrombie, but man, for an authors first novel, it's truly something special. I'll be buying the second book (titled "Sineater", scheduled for an early 2019 release) on day one. Mark my words, Mike Shel is one to keep an eye on people, he's going to be big if he continues down this road.

Finally a mature main character and decent world!

It's so rare nowadays to find characters that are not just cliches and caricatures of a human being compared with an interesting world and some cosmic horror elements.

Fantasy with a kick

I did not expect the style of this fantasy novel but was pleasantly surprised and impressed with it nonetheless. Great storytelling and performance combined. Enjoyed it way more than I ever thought that I would. It was like a bountiful mix of Indiana Jones, Dungeons and Dragons and a little Chinese Period Fantasy. All my favorite types of entertainment!

Excellent

I'm very choosy when I'm looking for a new read.
It has to be worth my time. I liked the title and cover art but often the inside falls short. I read some reviews and some referenced D & D. while I have never played it I am partial to swords and sorcery. the pacing is very good I think. He keeps it on point without too much clutter. not too many POVs or too much exposition. Great characters too both important and not so much. He manages to craft defined personalities for both kinds. Oh, did I mention the gore? if you're a bit squeamish you might want to pass on this one. I don't think i've read a book with such gory detail! Hats off Mike! Hats off to Simon as well! I don't listen to many books due to poor narrating but he is very good. so if you're even slightly interested in any of the above this is a must read.