House of Blades

The Traveler's Gate Trilogy, Volume 1

By: Will Wight

Narrated by: Travis Baldree

Simon can only watch, helpless, as his family is killed and his friends captured by enemy Travelers—men and women who can summon mystical powers from otherworldly Territories. To top it off, another young man from Simon's village discovers that he's a savior prophesied to destroy evil and save the realm.

Prophecy has nothing to say about Simon. He has no special powers, no magical weapons, and no guarantee that he'll survive. But he sets off anyway, alone, to gain the power he needs to oppose the Travelers and topple their ruthless Overlord. It may not be his destiny, but Simon's determined to rescue his fellow villagers from certain death.

Because who cares about prophecy, really?

©2013 Hidden Gnome Publishing (P)2022 Audible, Inc.

No idea where this was going.

This story and its associated concepts feel disconnected and disjointed. Was the author going for something different and got sidetracked? A lot of buildup in some areas and not enough in others, characters come and go and we form no attachments to them or know why they exist, things happen and are not explained or are slated to be explained in the next book, locations and factions exist in unclear relation to each other (spacial and political).

There's also the "adversity training" trope I dislike where the protagonist gains great combat skills by spending a month or two in a hostile environment. This isn't how you get a trained swordsman, it's how you psychologically destroy a child and create trust issues.

Outside of that it kind of reads like a typical YA novel. The narrator is top tier as usual. If this is your first Will Wight book, give Cradle a chance, it's better in all ways.

Better than I remember

Travis Baldree is a fantastic narrator and truly brings the characters to life. the story was much easier to follow this time around.

Basically the same as cradle but I like that

Only complaint is that they get strong too fast with what feels like little to no training doesn’t feel realistic but good.book none the less

pleasantly different

Loved the narrator, and the unique magic system. I also loved that the story is told from more than one perspective.

Will Wight + Travis Baldree = Magic^2

So happy for this re-recording by Travis Baldree, my favorite narrator, of a book by one of my favorite authors! Tried listening after going through Cradle multiple times previously, but while Will Wight is a Monarch of spinning tales, his narration was.. a bit less compelling (Sorry Will, still love you). So happy to finally listen through… it certainly did not disappoint!! Keep the fantastic work, both of you!

Fantastic book

I'm a big fan of Will Wight but had been putting this series off for some reason. Then it got re-narrated by Travis Baldree and I finally listened to it. My only regret is waiting so long to listen to it

A wonderful start

The first book I ever read by Will Wight and I've loved it ever since. The wonderful cast of characters is brought to life with Travis Baldree's amazing narration skills, just like in Mr. Wight's other series, Cradle and Elder Empire

A creative story, intricately told!

Will does such a wonderful job creating new worlds and new adventures. The amount of detail he uses always amazes me, drawing me in as if I am standing in the middle of the story. I find that I re-listen to all of Will's books, both because I love the stories and characters, but also because I know I will catch something new. Travis also does a great job bringing the story to life. I can't wait to start book 2!

loved it looking forward to the rest

love it so far little hard to follow sometimes because your yanked from the main character development to a side character development

Cool book

Interesting concept and characters. I love the training parts and the character progression that happens in the territories. Fun and well developed characters. The narration is excellent.