Stranger of Tempest cover art

Stranger of Tempest

The God Fragments, Book 1

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Stranger of Tempest

By: Tom Lloyd
Narrated by: Jay Villiers
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Lynx is a mercenary with a sense of honour; a dying breed in the Riven Kingdom. Failed by the nation he served and weary of the skirmishes that plague the continent's principalities, he walks the land in search of purpose. He wants for little so bodyguard work keeps his belly full and his mage-gun loaded. It might never bring a man fame or wealth, but he's not forced to rely on others or kill without cause.

Little could compel Lynx to join a mercenary company, but he won't turn his back on a kidnapped girl. At least the job seems simple enough; the mercenaries less stupid and vicious than most he's met over the years.

So long as there are no surprises or hidden agendas along the way, it should work out fine.

(p) 2016 Orion Publishing Group©2016 Tom Lloyd Action & Adventure Dark Fantasy Epic Epic Fantasy Fantasy Fiction
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Critic reviews

From the very first page, this first book in Tom Lloyd's new The God Fragments hurls you head-first into the action...the world that Lloyd wraps you in is just as gripping as his storytelling
Tom Lloyd's Stranger of Tempest is a fantasy adventure in the modern style, comfortably mixing gritty realism with swords and sorcery. Imagine Steven Erikson's Malazan marines teaming up with Lara Croft for a mad dash across Joe Abercrombie's Red Country with an unplanned detour through the forgotten deeps of Moria and you'll be most of the way there.
this is a great start to what I expect will be an amazing new series, and will appeal to those who, like me, felt bereft when Chris Wooding completed his Tales of the Ketty Jay series as well as fans of Scott Lynch.
A fun and fast paced romp in which a mercenary company's latest job goes horrendously wrong and they have to evade pursuit. A great cast and some very good action set pieces.
[. . .] tightly written heroic fantasy with deftly drawn characters in an intriguing, action-filled world
[. . .] an outstanding and refreshingly original work of fantasy fiction; and even in a genre crowded with incredible talent and content, it will undoubtedly stand out and, I hope, propel Tom centre-stage where he clearly now belongs
Grips you from the beginning and doesn't let go until the end. This is Tom Lloyd at his best
All stars
Most relevant

Where does Stranger of Tempest rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Smack in the middle, it would be top with a different narrator

What did you like best about this story?

The characters. Immediately engaging and lovable :)

Would you be willing to try another one of Jay Villiers’s performances?

probably not :(

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

No, this is the first book I've listened to while also reading it on my kindle. Took several days split between looking after children, the dog and working :)

Any additional comments?

Buy the book, either the kindle or hardback version. Its Tom Lloyd back to his best.

An awesome story, not the best narrator

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I'm writing this in the first 5 minutes of the book in case I don't bother to review later or I become accustomed to the reader. The reader is poor. Little difference given to different characters in voice male or female and despite the author writing an action packed start of the story the reader fails to deliver the urgency and violence in how he reads the book.

I finished the book. you get used to the reader. the writing is mediocre in terms of character development and plot and hints at more fantastical development of its world in terms of God's and monsters. I wouldn't be buying the sequel though.

buy to listen to only if you haven't a better book to choose or if it's a "bargain " there are many better fantasy stories however.

first impression and last

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[{ "answer" : "Yes, but then, I am a blind person.", "type" : "Overall", "question" : "Would you consider the audio edition of Stranger of Tempest to be better than the print version? ", "id" : 232, "typeString" : "overall" }, { "answer" : "Any of the works of Joe Abercrombie. The combination of adventure, character and banter is not dissimilar.", "type" : "Story", "question" : "What other book might you compare Stranger of Tempest to, and why?", "id" : 192, "typeString" : "story" }, { "answer" : "Toil", "type" : "Performance", "question" : "Which character – as performed by Jay Villiers – was your favourite?", "id" : 216, "typeString" : "performance" }, { "answer" : "Yes. The conversation between Links and the prison governor who freed him.", "type" : "Genre", "question" : "Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?", "id" : 241, "typeString" : "genre" }, { "answer" : "Jay Villiers narration really deserves a mention. He handles a disparate and distinctive group of characters and narrative with deceptive ease.", "type" : "Misc", "question" : "Any additional comments?", "id" : -1, "typeString" : "misc" } ]

A great listen!

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The humour might offend people. I've missed characters that sling cutting insults. The main character a "large" man named Lynx, he has a back story that tackles his size in a great way.

Solid Adult Fantasy.

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I'm not quite sure if the story is good because I don't think I can get over the monotonous tone of the narrator. He seems bored reading the story and I often find my mind wondering away. I have given it several attempts, where I often have to skip back to see what I missed.

Not very much inflection in the narrators voice and it's hard to distinguish characters.

So I can't fairly rate the story because I'm not sure if I'm bored with the characters or bored of listening to the narrator.

I can't finish this book

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