Audio Friday

The Wrath of the Storm by Jennifer Nielson

Book 3 in the Mark of the Thief trilogy

Read By Macleod Andrews

Summary from Goodreads:

 

Trouble has a way of finding Nicolas Calva, and it’s not likely to leave him alone any time soon. With Caesar’s magic bulla, the Malice of Mars, and the possibility of a Jupiter Stone in play, all the powers of Rome are circling Nic. He’ll have to maneuver his way through scheming government officials and reawakened magical beasts to save the Empire. Can he manage to keep his friends and family safe, claim his own freedom once and for all, and rescue the Empire—before the magic gets the better of him?

 

Confession:

This was an awesome end to an amazing series.  It was hard to put down and I swear there was a cliff hanger at the end of almost every chapter.  This is historical fantasy at its best.  The whole series takes place in ancient Rome, and for the most part is true to the time period, except for the magic element.  I loved the part in the second book that takes place in the coliseum.  It sounded very authentic and it was fascinating to learn about how it all worked behind the scenes.

In this book, Nic continues to get himself deeper and deeper into trouble even when he isn’t trying.  His sarcasm and wit is charming but it really pisses off the important people around him, both those who want to hurt him and those who are trying to help him.  His relationship with Aurelia is fraught with teenage angst and is really quite sweet, when he gets around to telling her about it.  His friendship with Crispin is interesting, he really wants to trust Crispin but struggles with it at times.  I also liked his relationships with everyone in his family, even his grandfather who in the first book wanted to take his power and use him for his own means.   Nic eventually triumps, even when all odds are against him.  He is clever and powerful, maybe to much so for a twelve year old.  I also need to mention the two creatures that Nic friends, a griffin and a unicorn.  They are both amazing creatures with personalities and are always there when Nic needs them most.

Macleod Andrews is of course amazing.  I love his voice and he always does a great job bringing all of the characters to life, even The Mistress, a dragon.  The voice he uses for her was perfect, it really sounds like a dragon.

Here are the covers for the other two books.  I did want to mention them even though I didn’t really review them.  I didn’t listen to them on audio and also it has been awhile since I read them. The covers were all amazing and the object were part of the story.