The Hidden Magic Chronicles Boxed Set: Shades of Light, Shades of Dark, Shades of Glory, Shades of Justice

By: Justin Sloan, Michael Anderle

Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds

The truth will set you free, but what happens when the truth is a lie?

Rhona and her paladin brother, Alastar, belong to a holy people who have waged war on witches and warlocks and their clans from the highlands. But when she uses magic to save his life, their world is thrown upside down. On the run, having left all they knew behind, they have to rely on those who hate paladins. All magic is evil, the high paladin taught.... But Alastar starts to understand that he might have been misled.

If his sister uses magic, and she isn't evil...what does that mean for his beliefs?

Brother and sister soon find themselves aligned with magic users and thrown in with the clans in a war against sorcerers and paladins alike, with only one hope of uniting the land - the legendary Sword of Light.

It was lost years ago, and quest after quest by the holy paladins could not retrieve it. When you know the truth about magic...anything is possible.

This boxed set includes:

• Shades of Light
• Shades of Dark
• Shades of Glory
• Shades of Justice

Set on the foundation laid by the Kurtherian Gambit series, Shades of Light tells an entirely new story in the Age of Magic - and of the heroes and villains who battle for control of its destiny.

©2018 Justin Sloan, Michael Anderle (P)2018 LMBPN Audio

nice story good plot never board a amazing people

wow amazing keeps you listening very fast pass can't wait foR mor e about these characters

lackluster and rushed without memorable moments

The series is hurried, scripted formula without any meat on the bones. It might be best suited for tweens or young adults.
It failed to impress me but as I bought the box set, I listened to all 4 books. It went in one ear and out the other leaving nothing behind.
Tim Gerald Reynolds has a reading style that reminds me of reading for children, and so perhaps perfectly suited to the series. He is not my favourite reader, but he's not the worst either.

Underwhelming

I kept waiting for the questions that the first book raised to be answered. Some were and some were not. I'm used to minor questions never being answered. My problem with this book is that major questions were not answered either. The whole series left me frustrated.

Very enjoyable

I really enjoyed the book and the audio. The last book seemed a little rushed, but other than that I liked it.

Great narration

Story was 👌 I wasn't hugely vested into it. Felt to be geared towards younger audience .

Excellent Narrator

This was a good story but at times it didn't keep my attention. I repeated parts because I felt like I missed something. excellent nattation.

Written well but story had issues

The MCs were a brother and sister in early adulthood who were orphaned young without memory of their past. They were both raised in a quasi-religious order of Paladins that was founded on the exploits of person who wielded a sacred sword and fought in the name of Justice. Not a god but more like a saint. Magic is considered evil and these Paladins were responsible for finding and executing all that possessed and used magic. So far, so good. However ...

{SPOILERS FOLLOW}

The authors decided to make this more than an untethered fantasy to our cultural society and drew parallels using magic users with different arcane affinities, like water, air, fire, &c to represent prejudices against each other without ever providing any rationalization as why this were the case. I was left with the impression that this distinction was meant to draw parallels to today's racial prejudices. A number of review comments suggested that it also was anti-religious; although the authors disavowed that being their intention. Still, the parallels to the Paladins oath of chastity and the symbolism of their sword comes very close to Catholicism.

I would also classify this as a female empowerment novel in that almost all the females were uber-magic wielders and the men begrudgingly deferred to them. The long-widowed king even demurred to a female he had just met after her chastisement. It became so bad that they decided to include a 9 year old foul-mouthed girl openly-disobeying her single-parent father and him allowing it even when it put her in extreme danger. The authors seemed to have a desire toward over-empowering children but it was so unnatural that it put me off on the character.

Not planning on continuing the series.

Great Story and World

Story is well written and entertaining. You don't feel expected attachment for some of the main characters, but the narrator is great.

Oh my Gosh! LOVE!

My intro to this TKG series was the Storms. I HAD/HAVE to get them ALL This Boxset is just as fun, engaging, heart-pounding and emotional! At first I was disappointed that Gabra wasn’t the narrator, but ultimately it was the perfect change! I LOVE that the blend of characters occurred, giving that cohesion to this unique universe! Thank you all, Justin, Michael for writing and Tim for narrating.

What in the world?

Ok I usually just hit stars and do not write a review, but with this series I have too. What in the world possessed you to write a masterpiece? Got you! Really though this series is amazing, thoughtful, and wonderfully presented. I was taken into this realm of magic and blown away with this setting of post apocalyptic world. To sum it up, thank you for hours of enjoyable listening. I hope you read this review and know that I enjoyed it all.