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The Choice of Magic
- Art of the Adept, Book 1
- Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds
- Series: Art of the Adept, Book 1
- Length: 20 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Science Fiction & Fantasy, Fantasy
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Summary
The ancient magic of wizards was anything but dark. It was the enlightenment that lifted humanity from the squalor of superstition, and the worship of fell spirits and capricious gods, but those days are gone. The shining glory of the sorcerers burned away the subtlety of wisdom, replacing it with easy power, held only in the hands of the elite - a new age built upon the elemental supremacy of aristocrats and the ignorance of the masses.
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What listeners say about The Choice of Magic
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Anonymous User
- 11-05-21
Problematic in one major way
Everytime a woman is involved she is sexualised. (This continues in the second book that I'm halfway thru.) Either she is a prostitute, a sex slave, a rape victim, an object of the (often unbearebly dumb) main characters desires or desperate to have sex with him. Or all at once! One woman has been a sex slave in an army camp for months and has just seen her friend die in a horrible way, and yet all she thinks about is having sex with the main character (who accidentally killed that friend and who is also a childhood friend), even against his will. I mean ... REALLY?! SHE HAS BEEN RAPED REPEATEDLY FOR MONTHS, HER FAMILY AND FRIENDS HAVE BEEN SLAUGHTERED AND HER HOME BURNED TO THE GROUND. Wouldn't she be devastated? Instead she is just a shallow seductress. Escapism is fine, but this is just too unbelievable, as well as disrespectful.
Other than that I both enjoyed the book and found myself annoyed by it at times. The writer is sometimes unnecessarily dumping all the info he has gatherered about warfare, weapons and armor from the same videos I have watched (or so it certainly seems), even when it makes little sense (It seems unlikely the "heros" mother - also not excluded from the writers obsession with prostitution btw - taught him the feather trick to remove arrows when not in a war imao). But the magic is interesting and was my main reason for buying the books so I continue listening.
17 people found this helpful
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- Simon
- 14-06-20
Belting if Slightly Flawed!
Hard to know quite what to make of this one! My only previous experience of Manning's work was the fabulous 'Embers of Illenial" series which I thought was a modern fantasy tour de force. Dark and Conflicting, it took no prisoners, and it dared much to bring some harsh realities into the story line.
This is something quiet different, this is closer to an old-fashioned fantasy story, in fact at times it felt like a young adult novel apart from some of the very colourful language. It is though a belting story and Tim Gerard Reynolds gives it plenty of oomph! He has a lot of strong voices and is particularly vibrant as the young apprentice's "uncle".
However, the characters as children did grate on me just a little and there is one particular point where the young wizard makes a completely bizarre decision to join the army when he has things a wizard simply couldn't resist. If you get past those points though you have a genuinely belting tale that has a clever magic system, some interesting characters and after a slow beginning increasingly exciting adventure.
I'm happy to recommend it because I really enjoyed the journey in the end and I will get the next one which promises to be something different again. I just can't give it five stars because it didn't have the same in-depth out and out quality as the 'Embers' series.
10 people found this helpful
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- INVIZ
- 03-08-20
First half was great.
After the first half the main character makes a choice and goes off on his own , at which point he becomes a complete dunce and can't even remember the girl he meets even though she knows him and his mother and she has 2 elementals flying around her. He just forgot everything from a few years ago i guess. He got whipped in the face trying the save her as a boy. rage inducing.
7 people found this helpful
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- skudds
- 16-07-20
Great
One word........... EPIC!
there isn't much else I can say, I loved the entire book. all the way through.
7 people found this helpful
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- Leaf
- 09-11-20
1 of best pieces of fanatsy this year
I’ve read over 100 fantasy books whic is no exajuration. This is one of my new fav authers. Blown away by how incredible the it is. They stand alongside the likes of Brandon Sanderson, patrick rothfus, m.d Ireman, jay kristoff, Evan winters. This is honestly incredible.
You are so lucky to escape into this book. F**k any negative reviews they are full of rubbish. It’s an incredible story. And there is a second one u can loose yourself into which is just as awesome I’m so looking. Forward to the third
4 people found this helpful
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- mr j m tattersall
- 11-12-20
excellent
Totally enjoyed this book (bad language tolerable). The story left me wanting more, looking forward to the next book
3 people found this helpful
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- paul h
- 18-10-20
Fantastic..!!!
After listening to the first couple of chapters I wasn’t sure but so glad I stuck with it. Really enjoyed the story and the characters have real depth.
Narration is first class.
This is definitely worth listening too.
3 people found this helpful
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- bayleywray
- 26-09-20
Awesome Audio Book!
at first I was sceptical of audio books as I didn't really get them and didn't understand why someone would listen to a book I mean its meant for reading after all. but after listening for about 20 mins I realised how great it could be, if the reader is good at there job they should know at least how to perform and give interest. and well this has exactly what I would have been looking for if I hadn't started with it, interesting story which made 100% scene everything connected easily and the narrator was amazing you could clearly tell they either loved the book or acted perfectly.
3 people found this helpful
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- Liam
- 09-01-21
Great
Slow plot start but even then plenty of humor that genuinely made me laugh curtesy of the old wizard who is very much like Mordecai the brown from the black ocean books
2 people found this helpful
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- Robert sweeney
- 22-07-20
lover this book great fun
smart and well wright book that gets to the point and keeps moving right along if great fun and will read a gean
2 people found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 17-06-20
Here's my opinion...
I'd like to first explain that yes, I did in fact enjoy this book. Just look at the scores I gave it...but like with all reviews, you should take my opinions with a grain of salt.
That being said the book starts out with a 12 year old peasant boy who's just about to turn 13 and has likely only been given a basic education from his single mother who just so happens to operate an apothecary. Yes the MC does stupid things...he's a frustratingly ignorant boy going through puberty who's quick to anger, quicker to direct blame and easy to fool, just like 90% of all 13 year old boys are like when not in direct sight of their mother.
That's the whole point of the book, it's a coming of age story, if your not interested in that and want to skip straight to when he's a man and knows everything...read a reincarnation fantasy novel...there's tons of them now. Personally I have to be in a specific mood to tolerate an ignorant MC so there is no shame if it's just not your thing listening to another person learn and grow.
To each their own, but if your willing to forgive a small child their faults and hear them succeed then give this book a try, you can always return it if it's not your cup of tea.
203 people found this helpful
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- CDM860
- 03-06-20
Frustrating character development
Author takes us on a journey. MC's stupidity grates at your skin, but he is a kid thrown into the midst of all sorts of craziness.
I was a BIG fan of the Mageborn series, so I expected good things from this series. It's different from what I expected, and I have honestly been very frustrated with MC as I've been listening. I realize my frustration stems from the fact that I'm invested in the character and I want him to be better, to make better decisions, to be braver, etc.
I wanted to bash the MC in my review, but if I'm being honest the author has actually done a fantastic job of developing MC's character. I guess I just have to grit my teeth and deal with all the stupid growing pains in the hope that eventually he'll do better. I wanted Will to be more like Mordecai, but Will's story is his own and this series is more ambitious than the Mageborn series.
It's a good book. I'd encourage you to give it a listen/read.
46 people found this helpful
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- Christopher
- 08-06-20
4.5 Stars. Top quality fantasy.
This was an excellent start to a new series. The characters are nuanced, the story and world building have depth and breadth, and Tim Gerard Reynolds gives his usual spot-on performance.
The only caveat I’ll include concerns Manning’s very realistic portrayal of an adolescent (and teenage) boy. Around the early middle of the book I found myself wanting to wring the MC’s neck for his rash and impulsive decisions and his simultaneously idealistic and boneheaded view of the world...
I should point out that those characteristics are often the hallmark of this age group... In this Manning has eschewed the unrealistically mature behavior of the majority of young MC’s in the coming-of-age fantasy genre. For once we get a main character who actually acts his age sometimes, and doesn’t portray a ten-year-old with the confidence and gut instincts that most people won’t develop until they’re pushing 30, if ever.
The good news is that even if he’s a little annoying for a part of the book, he’s annoying in a way that is not only credible, but authentic. The even better news is that if you hang in there for just a little bit, much of this behavior is tempered by the character’s development and experiences. And in retrospect, it only adds to the richness of the story and genuine identification with the MC.
Still, I struggled with wanting to give this book a 5 star rating (I am admittedly stingy with those)... All of the necessary elements were there, and as stated above, even the part that was a bit frustrating as it was happening ended up being another reason to respect Manning’s talent and craft as a storyteller.
I guess in the end, as much as I enjoyed this book, it didn’t quite leave me with that undefinable feeling that you get when you finish a book and know that you have just experienced something truly amazing.
All that said, this is a no-brainer for fantasy fans in general, but especially for those who are into the epic, sword and sorcery sub-genre. You should probably spend the credit. It’s more than worth it.
27 people found this helpful
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- Andreas jonsson
- 02-11-20
50% Meh
I picked up this audio book in hopes of listening to something enjoyable while working,
well let's say i got 50% each way.
The book is well written, the world building is amazing and most characters as well. The grandfather character is one of the best characters I have heard, funny as hell.
The narrator does a amazing job, it is easy to tell the different characters apart.
We follow in the eyes of William the main character, a boy of about 12-13 year and let me tell you, you will ether like him or hate him. For me it was 50-50%, why? because the main characters personality does not have consistency like, at all.
He'll get whipped, beaten, played around, almost raped and killed, and the reactions are way to robotic, it's like they happened to him in a dream instead of reality, but in his mind it was not as bad and there for he won't hold any strong grudges.
He will do many other stupid things that anyone with common sense would know not to do, the author tries way to hard of having a kid that does not know anything about magic and how to act in a city etc.. that the overall common sense and intellect is just completely gone, and the reasoning we hear all the time from his teacher is; you are a "dense moron or idiot".
Honestly this kind of tactic is something i have seen in books that have meh quality, it is simply to repetitive of a writing strategy, never would I have thought that Michael G. Manning would ever use it. It screams amateur.
That being said if you like a main character that is a blend of a dense anime character and a blushing virgin male from one of those harem books, then you will definitely like this MC.
22 people found this helpful
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- t
- 03-06-20
Could have been fantastic, but...
This audiobook is listed as for readers 13-18. Keep that in mind. And then listen to the audiobook. Most of the characters spoke and stayed true to who they were, people in a fantasy novel, which means no modern lingo. And then we meet the hermit. He's grumpy as all get out - fine. Though admittedly his rudeness to Will grew old real quick. But what truly turned me off the book was the hermit's language.
Again, this book is listed for 13-18 year old readers. If I'm listening to/reading a book meant for a 13 year old, the last thing I expect is modern-day swear words, including the one beginning with an F. Now, I have no issue with the F-bomb when used in context. It was not in context here. First off, this is a fantasy world - why doesn't the hermit speak with words native to his tongue? And why use that particular word?
In this context, of reading a book with a protagonist who's 13 and from a small village, the hermit's language overrode everything and destroyed the world building. If I had a 13 year old, I wouldn't want them to read it. And I'm not against the word -but when it's used completely outside of a book's universe, it's not worth reading further.
The narrator was fantastic, giving each character a unique voice. His voice was incredible for the book.
If you don't mind the breaking of a book's universe, or the over-the-top swearing of a mean old man to his 13 year old great-grandson, then get it - the plot definitely had promise. However, if you expect a book and genre and age range to stay true to itself? Don't waste your credit.
18 people found this helpful
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- Olivia
- 22-02-21
too much swearing
I was getting really into the story then the dropped the f bomb. and it kept going from there. really disappointing.
17 people found this helpful
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- Alex
- 04-06-20
Holy cow
yes I said it this book was amazing really if your looking for a good book I recommend this book to you hope you enjoy it as I did
15 people found this helpful
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- Ed Feustel
- 06-06-20
More Please
I really enjoyed this. I hope that Audible will acquire and make available the next two volumes!
11 people found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 23-06-20
Way better than I thought it would be!
I was mildly interested in reading this based on the description but the fact Tim Gerard Reynolds was the narrator put it over the edge for me in buying it. This was well above what I was expecting and now I'm kicking myself for not waiting until the others came out on here. I have yet another series to play the waiting game for with just the first taste on my mind.
8 people found this helpful
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- Luke Steepy
- 06-07-20
Where’s the second book
Great book highly recommend. Audible doesn’t seem to have number two though, which is disappointing.
6 people found this helpful