The Shining Ones

The Tamuli, Book 2

By: David Eddings

Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau

Years ago, the Child-Goddess Aphrael had hidden Bhelliom, the Stone of Power, at the bottom of the sea. Yet now it is needed again to stop a malign force from spreading evil and destruction across the lands. Sparhawk, Queen's champion, sets out to retrieve the Stone. But others seek the gem for their own diabolical ends. Most fearsome of these are the Shining Ones, whose mere touch melts human flesh from bone. Now Sparhawk finds himself stalked by these creatures out of myth...whose touch is all too real.©1994 Del Rey (P)2009 Audible, Inc.

The Shining Ones

Following the events of Domes of Fire, Pandion Knight Sir Sparhawk persuades a reluctant Aphrael to help him to retreive the Bellhiom, the mysterious jewel with which he destroyed the evil god Azash. Unfortunately the trip doesn't go quite as planned. Following the successful recovery of Bhelliom, the party are captured by the enigmatic Delphae, also known as the Shining Ones, who have an unusual request for Sparhawk and an offer of assistance. To that end they send their "princess" Xanetia who, like all Delphae, can sense the thoughts of those around her. But what are the true motives of the Delphae? And what of the ages-old feud between the Delphae and Styricum?
All in all this was an excellent story. The narrator's pronuncations of some of te names is a little off-putting but he at least reads with feeling. David Eddings' characteristic humor does come through in the reading. All in all this was a very interesting listen.

A good continuation of the series.

Here is the bottom line. If you like David Eddings and the previous series you will like this audiobook. If you did not then you won't. Mr. Eddings work is a fairly polarizing point amongst readers. You usually either love him or hate him. I think this is a good read although it gets 3 stars because it bogs down in unnecessary details at points.
Some others did not like the narraration of the series but I am not one of them and found it enjoyable. There is nothing groundbreaking hrer, but it is a good solid comfort story.

A classic fantasy for me

If you could sum up The Shining Ones in three words, what would they be?

Surprising Great Characters

What other book might you compare The Shining Ones to and why?

Malloreon

Have you listened to any of Kevin Pariseau’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Nope, performance is great

Any additional comments?

One of the best series I have read when I was young. David Eddings' books introduced me to fantasy and I have been hooked ever since. Although this is the middle book, there are a lot of surprises to be had here. It also shows how the characters like Aphrael, Sephrenia, and especially Elana have grown. Overall, a must buy for me :)

David has magic

With the knowledge of what god is a threat to the tamuli empire Sparhawk and his friends have to go out and get the one item that can fight the strength of a god. at the same time the queen starts to help the emperor overthrow his own government.

David here goes back to writing with two points of interest again. sparhawks adventure recovering the blue rose and his queens point of view as she helps uncover who is a undermining the government and how to overthrow it. this is where he excels I think. unlike his other books in the belgariad series where it was one persons story in each part here they are happening at the same time keeping things more linier.

Another great

Eddings is the master story teller! The characters are inviting and you get sucked in to the drama.

Needs a different narrator.

I love David Eddings books. The narrator almost ruins this book for me. Thumbs down.

As is all his books. FANTASTIC!

Great characters, greater plots, an, to say the least,narrator brings depth to story line....I dislike having to meet stupid automatic requirements...hoe re designed this system should be fire

Great story, but the narration is lack-luster

David Eddings is among the greats. I've read 6 of his books at least a dozen times each. I LOVE Sparhawk and I adore Kurik. This story fits well with the series as a whole. Solid pacing and not too much mushy bs bogging it down.

Perhaps I am overly biased against this narrator because I liked the one that did the Diamond Throne series so much better? He constantly miss-pronounces words, mixes the voices up between characters, and makes too many of the characters sound...wrong. I think Ulath is the worst of the bunch for that. Anywho, just my two cents.

could have been much better

The book is great. The proformence was atrocious. And the musical interruptions are very erritating.

A cast of thousands in one narrator

I thought Kevin Pariseau did a great job with the first book in this series. Imagine my surprise when he stepped up his narrating game for the second book. He has the knack for interpreting the emotional intent of written conversations. So happy with this listen. Can’t wait to hear the next book in the series.