Birthrights

The Last Son of the Feromage Saga, Book 1

By: David Trotter

Narrated by: Henry Kramer

Length: 20 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's summary

Tur’Mor, capital of the Republic of Ordiatea and the center of the modern world, is a vast city-state by the sea where the haze of industry and the glisten of steel draws in people from across the continent of Ethrea.

At the heart of the Tur’Mor lies two governing authorities, that of the political figureheads and the holy council of the church of Ordan. However, beneath its cobbled streets and immense markets, a cancer sucks at the city-state, threatening to overturn the tinder balance of it all. Cults, thieves, assassins, and robbers lurk while the wealthy "uppers" leech off of the less fortunate.

Burdened with guilt and remorse for his failings, a forgotten warrior finds himself trapped between the looming walls of Tur’Mor and a mysterious call to find them. His only hope is to learn to trust. But in a city where secrets and betrayal are the common language, and propaganda is being issued from those who should be helping, he is left to figure things out on his own. Meanwhile, in the south end of Tur’Mor where the poor and desperate cling on to whatever meager belongings they can scavenge, a group of misfits has banded together, headed by the charismatic Felik, calling themselves "the Crew".

Diversity makes them unique, stronger than common street toughs of the south end. But when everyone has secrets, someone is bound to get hurt. Worlds collide as progress presses ever onward. Important realities are lost to history as the march to greater enlightenment tramples out the once sacred truths of the past. Magic and mystical creatures? Fairy tales used to scare children. Arcane artifacts? Folklore to distract citizens from their responsibilities. The church has verified this, and they do whatever it takes to ensure these facts. However, some of those darker truths should have never been allowed to be forgotten.

©2021 David A. Trotter (P)2022 David A. Trotter

it is a good book to listen to

I just finished listening to the book, and it was really good. The one thing that I noticed and was that there wasn't if any make-up sessions it is definitely a book I would feel good about letting 12+ listen to

Spectacular!

A new and exciting story filled with plenty of action! Definitely a book worth purchasing!

What a page turner!

This book is amazing! I need the next one pronto! The story, the world building! Ah! So good!

A wonderful adventure

I read the book and absolutely loved it could not wait for the audiobook to come out. This book has it all, world building that you wouldn’t believe character development in adventure super powers and the author explores all different layers of social interactions with religion, poverty, affluent and many other respects. This book has it all

Outstanding

I enjoyed every aspect of this book. The Journey and the adventure I just went on was exhilarating and thrilling! I can’t wait for the next book to release. You will not be disappointed in this book. David Trotter has written A masterpiece.

Epic First Book!

Trotter tells a good story... the characters are layered and the plot is thick and exciting. This is a fun read for anyone looking for an epic fantasy with a little bit of steampunk thrown in.
The narrator, Henry Kramer does an excellent job. However, despite his prestigious pedigree, being the son of Michael Kramer and Kate Reading, his voice quality is more akin to Nick Podehl.

What a great discovery

This book was recommended to me by a friend and I am very happy that followed up on the recommendation! The mystery, layers to the story and excitement that is built throughout the book made it hard to stop listening. In fact I typically o listen to audio books while I commute, but I found myself listening while at home doing chores or on a walk when I would typically have a podcast or music going. I’m totally invested and if you enjoy magic, adventure and great fantasy, then you will enjoy this book.

A Great Listen

A fantastic listen, I loved Henry’s work on this story. He really brought the world and the characters to life for me!

Great world great characters

The author does a great job of world building and brings in some exciting characters. I am excited to see where the story goes from here.

Utterly Enticing!

“Find them, or blood shall rain!”

Does your mind yearn for stories filled with complex and captivating world building? Filled with characters that will capture your heart, make you fall in love with them despite their faults and failures because they are absolutely beautiful, multifaceted, and entirely plausible? Where the story begs you to delve deeper? Think more? Question everything you think you know? And appreciate all the intricate and well designed nuances?

If your answer was yes to any and/or all of these questions then I have the perfect book for you!!!!

Birthrights (Book 1 of The Last Son of the Faromage Saga) by David Andrew Trotter is one spellbinding! Completely captivating! Character driven! But filled with some of the best and most enticing world building and magic system I have ever read! Honestly, I cannot think of a single thing I didn’t enjoy about this story.

First of all, I listened to the narrated version of this book and let me tell you, I adored the narrator! Kramer did an exceptional job of bringing Trotter’s characters and world to life. It was so good and I very highly recommend giving this audio book a listen.

Now onto the book review:

I loved the characters who were all multifaceted, intriguing, and well developed. My favotive just had to be Darius, 1000 year old, last Son of the Faromage, who despite waking up in a completely different era was able to move forward, search and question his existence and purpose, all the while being his completely altruistic and self sacrificing self. Also...he had some super exciting and unique abilities and I cannot wait to explore his character more in the next book.

Another fantastic element to this story is the subtle steampunk/futuristic world building. It is just so well done. The genius of it is in the small but perfectly executed details. It doesn’t slap you in the face but let’s you explore it with unique, interesting, well devised descriptions. I really really enjoyed learning about and experiencing this unique world , especially through the eyes of Darius, who himself, was new to it’s existence.

And finally I thoroughly and wholeheartedly appreciated the way Trotter interwove the aspect of religion and belief into the story. How he was able to take something such as gods and deities and portray them in a way that made me question what was right, who was good, where the evil presided, all those beliefs you hold dear and yet may be different than those of other people and religions. It was just nothing short of perfection. And I can tell this is one of those series that is going to stick with me far beyond it’s conclusion.

So yep…go read Birthrights and discover the amazing story of a protector thrown headlong into unknown future, where he must learn to navigate a religion both similar and yet so unlike his own, a thief and outcast who doesn’t shy away from fighting, battle, and refuses to let anything or anyone get in her way, and a prophecy that may or may not be exactly what it seems.