The Ember Blade

The Darkwater Legacy, Book 1

By: Chris Wooding

Narrated by: Simon Bubb

A land under occupation. A legendary sword. A young man's journey to find his destiny.

Aren has lived by the rules all his life. He's never questioned it; that's just the way things are. But then his father is executed for treason, and he and his best friend, Cade, are thrown into a prison mine, doomed to work until they drop. Unless they can somehow break free....

But what lies beyond the prison walls is more terrifying still. Rescued by a man who hates him yet is oath-bound to protect him, pursued by inhuman forces, Aren slowly accepts that everything he knew about his world was a lie. The rules are not there to protect him or his people but to enslave them. A revolution is brewing, and Aren is being drawn into it, whether he likes it or not.

The key to the revolution is the Ember Blade. The sword of kings, the Excalibur of his people. Only with the Ember Blade in hand can their people be inspired to rise up...but it's locked in an impenetrable vault in the most heavily guarded fortress in the land.

All they have to do now is steal it....

©2018 Chris Wooding (P)2018 Orion Publishing Group

Critic reviews

"The Ember Blade is hands down the best fantasy novel I've ever read." (Grimdark Magazine)

I cried at the end of this damn thing.

title says it all doesn't it. I read close to 36 fantasy novels each year, between audible and paper. Yes the narrator doesn't do this thing justice, as most of these comments I originally saw before I purchased this thing said. But Chris Wooding has done something amazing here. Do not let a few negative reviews based on narration rob you of the incredible book this truly is. I'm looking forward to book 2 of this series more than im looking forward to book 3 of the KingKiller Chronicles. For those of you enthusiasts of the fantasy genre, you know how big a statement that is. I don't take much time to review books, due in part because this is reducing my reading time, but I wanted to review this one. if you turn down the opportunity of reading this book because of a few negative reviews you're robbing yourself as I almost did. Yes the narration leaves something to be desired, but the book is marvelous.

About the Narrator

I'm about 80% through this book and I am enjoying it. I want to go on and make a comment about the narration. I almost didn't buy this book because of the negative comments about the narrator. I can't understand the reason for this.

The only legitimate criticism that i see is that he doesn't use a lot of different voices for different characters. This is a very minor issue as far as I am concerned. I have had narrators who annoyed me greatly and distracted from the book by using different voices. One in particular used the grandpa voice from the Real McCoys and it was truly awful. Other narrators have tried to sing the song parts. I didn't care much for that either. Some have had awkward pacing and pauses that made no sense. There have been issue with semblance and mouth noises that can be distracting, this narration has none of those.

Simon Bubb does a great job of staying out of the way of the story and not trying to do things that he isn't capable of. I mark this as a strong point for any narrator.

Anyway, don't pass this book by because of the negative comments. It's a great story with well fleshed out characters. I for one, am looking forward to the next installment.

Lame beginning.... great ending

Great study on betrayel, bad governments, as well as resistance. I couldn’t finish a book for what seems like forever...... and now I finished this one good stuff!

Fantastic!!!

I don't know what other reviewer's who said they didn't like the narrator are talking about. I almost wonder if they are getting paid to post a bad review. I actually do voiceover work and I am a huge fan of Michael Kramer and this narrator was fantastic. Subtle and nuanced at times yes, but overall very very good. The story, the performance, everything I thoroughly enjoyed!

Absolutely phenomenal

If there was ever a book that deserved more than 5 stars, this is it. The writing is just absolutely phenomenal. This is easily my new favorite fantasy book of all time. Please do yourself a favor and buy this book. I wish there were words I could say that could justify it's greatness.

Also, the narrator did a great job so I'm not sure what all that fuss is about with other reviews.

book great, reader is fine.

Book is fun. Decent character depth but nothing crazy...plenty good enough to be a nice read.

Reader is good as well. The criticism feels unfair to me. He is not as skilled yet as say readers like Kate Reading or Michael Cramer but is good enough to do a nice job.

Done well overall.

Great book

Beautifully written and narrated . I listen to 2 books/week and don’t say it lightly nor do I ever write reviews.

Outstanding

Great character development & a great story. Anyone who likes Sanderson will like this author. Great narration as well.

Fabulous

Loved everything about this book! Strong characters (female and male), great story, great narration. Looking forward to the next in the series.

Magnificent!

I loved every second of it! The voice actor did an amazing job, the characters brilliantly crafted, and the world building is carried out wonderfully! The book as a whole is astounding!