Lodestone, Book One: The Sea of Storms

By: Mark Whiteway

Narrated by: Nathan William Heller

Length: 15 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's summary

On the planet Kelanni, life is cheap. With the aid of the fearsome "Keltar" enforcers in their flying cloaks, a ruthless invader is forcing the native people to mine the colloquially named "lodestone" - a substance from another universe with infinitely destructive power. The only ones who can stop him are a tiny girl with a fiery disposition, a former Keltar, a failed revolutionary, a musician and the mysterious creature, Boxx, who seems to speak only in riddles.

©2010 Mark Whiteway (P)2013 Mark Whiteway

good story with some weak points

PROS:
interesting perspective of an alien world
fun mix of sci-fi and fantasy
makes you guess and come back for more


CONS :
poor world building with few details
simplistic relationships between characters
a recurrent abruptness between events

narrator is monotone and slow...I had to play it at 2x speed

Enjoyable!

If you could sum up Lodestone, Book One: The Sea of Storms in three words, what would they be?

Witty, adventurous, enjoyable.

What did you like best about this story?

I loved Boxx - The character was something else and I really enjoyed him.

Have you listened to any of Nathan William Heller’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not, but he does grow on you. I would listen to his other performances.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

When it comes to books, I'm like a football fan yelling at the TV. This book did make me want to yell at a few of the characters or tell them they're being crazy. haha

Any additional comments?

This is my full review:

I love audiobooks! I listen to them while I clean, workout, and while in the car. They make things go by so much faster. I haven't listened to a science fiction/fantasy book yet and jumped on the chance to review The Sea Of Storms. I had previously never heard of this series, but I'm glad I listened to it.

I had a few thoughts on the narration as I'm getting picky when it comes to my narrators. At first, I wasn't a fan of Nathan William Heller but he really grew on me by a couple of chapters. It just took me a bit to get used to his style, and I would listen to other series narrated by him now. The book itself is only 280 pages, but the audiobook was 15hrs/33mins - which, in my opinion, is pretty long for the number of pages in the book. Though, I didn't mind it; the story felt like it flowed very well and I couldn't imagine Nathan talking any faster. Very smooth and interesting.

Now to get on to the story, I enjoyed it more than I thought I would in the beginning. The first few chapters had some elements from one of my favorite fantasy series. I wasn't sure how it was going, or if it would be too similar for my liking. They went their separate paths a bit into the story. The plot was just fantastic, and I'm really interested in what happens in the next book. Even though I had listened for over 15 hours, I was sad that I didn't have more when I hit the end. Mark Whiteway is certainly a storyteller. His characters were just perfect as well, humanlike but alien. I enjoyed them all, but I think Boxx might be my favorite.

As I listened to the audiobook, I can't comment on editing errors, but I highly doubt there are any. The Sea of Storms seems like a well-rounded book and I'm sure it's edited well with how much work has gone into it. It's currently free on amazon, and I think you should grab it if you're interested. Who knows? You might find it's a series you love! I know I enjoyed it. I did receive this book for my honest review, but my thoughts are my own.

Interesting story if a little predictable

Would you consider the audio edition of Lodestone, Book One: The Sea of Storms to be better than the print version?

Audio was way better than print. I like to listen while i work and the voices (especially the Chandara) were great!

Would you recommend Lodestone, Book One: The Sea of Storms to your friends? Why or why not?

Yes. Its a fun easy listen.

Which character – as performed by Nathan William Heller – was your favorite?

Box was excellent. Cool spin on the chandara voices

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

i dont think i could ever do that