The Circle of Sorcerers

A Mages of Bloodmyr Novel: Book #1

By: Brian Kittrell

Narrated by: Justin D. Torres

Length: 8 hrs

Publisher's summary

When Laedron Telpist's sorcery training is interrupted by a knock on the door, what once seemed a proper profession must now be hidden. In a world where priests and mages vie for the limitless power of the elements and a new Grand Vicar has sworn death to all sorcerers, Laedron is tossed into a nightmare which would see his destruction at every turn.

From the home shores in western Sorbia, through the Cael'Brilland heartlands, and even across the seas to the great city of Azura, Laedron finds himself embracing old friends, consorting with unlikely allies, and confronting potent enemies. As he struggles to train himself in spellcraft, Laedron must face that he lives in a time when the utterance of a simple spell could be the signature on his death warrant.

©2011 Brian Kittrell (P)2011 Brian Kittrell

A enjoyable snack

A bit of a light read. Certainly not an epic fantasy. Though almost childish I did enjoy it and plan on reading the next novel. It's something to fill the gaps between your favorite authors.

Good and got better.

It started slow, but ended pretty good. it definitely gets you hooked for the next book.

Circle of Sorcerers book 1

This was a grand adventure, following the young Mage through his challenges and adventure. Fast enough to keep you wanting to know what happened next with a storyline that was overall light, avoiding the dark gloom of repetitive tragedy. I believe you will enjoy it; I'm headed to book 2.

The storyline is great!

If you could sum up The Circle of Sorcerers in three words, what would they be?

Captivatiing!!

What did you like best about this story?

The way the writer drags you into the story- makes you feel you are involved.

What does Justin D. Torres bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

His reading helps the overall objectives of the writer- to get you involved- you become one of the characters, whether the lead or just an observer- you are there.

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

No just anticipation of the flow of the story.

Any additional comments?

Be patient allow the characters to develop, not in a dragging along way, but wait for them to mature, let the circumstances of the story move them to be the heroes and villians the story itself demands.

This was a disappointment

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

If the narrator had pronounced all the word correctly and kept track of what accents/inflections he gave to different characters.

What was most disappointing about Brian Kittrell’s story?

It was weak, and the ending not final. This is obviously part of a series, but it does not stand alone. Also, you can see the influences of Harry Potter, Septimus Heap, and other YA novels too obviously. It does not feel original at all, just a rehashing of other works

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Justin D. Torres?

ANYONE else!

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from The Circle of Sorcerers?

Perhaps the editor should have listened and had the narrator re-record the sections where he misspoke and garbled words.

Any additional comments?

This was a disappointment and it was a waste of money.

Abrupt ending (yes, I know it's book 1 of 3).

Would you try another book from Brian Kittrell and/or Justin D. Torres?

Yes, I've read/listened to dozens of epic fantasy novels and I liked the premise behind this one. There's nothing I enjoy more than to lose myself in a good story. I felt compelled to give this novel a relatively low overall rating, and I'll explain that shortly.

Which character ??? as performed by Justin D. Torres ??? was your favorite?

I guess I'd have to say that the protagonist Laedron would be my favorite character. I feel it necessary to say that I didn't feel that not enough time was given to fleshing out the characters. This disappointment might be my own fault, as I was really hoping for the start of a new epic series with robust character background and world building.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Now, to explain my low overall rating. In my opinion, the author did something almost unforgivable by ending this book very poorly. I don't mean as in a cliffhanger; it just ended almost like in mid-chapter like you would see in a weekly TV series. Yes, I know it's just book 1 of a trilogy, but still, even the first book of a trilogy should have some natural stopping point.

Unlike a TV series where a script writer can get away with this because the next installment is only a week away, books in a series (which can be a year or more apart) should each have a natural conclusion to the immediate action taking part in that specific book.

It's quite possible that the publisher/editor might be at fault for this. It really seemed that the author wanted to continue the story in this book, but was overruled by his editor. I don't know this, just the feeling I got.