The Legend of the Kestrel: Sylvan Chronicles Series, Book 1
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The Legend of the Kestrel: Sylvan Chronicles Series, Book 1 Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Peter Wacht (Author), Bruce Mann (Narrator), Tantor Audio (Publisher)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 4,243 ratings
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The prophecy spoke of Thomas Kestrel: outcast, lord, sorcerer, warrior, and perhaps savior of the Kingdoms - if he survives.

In The Legend of the Kestrel, the first book in The Sylvan Chronicles, Thomas escapes the Shadow Lord's assassins, losing everything. Orphaned, alone and on the run, he discovers a world of magic and sorcery. With the help of a family he never knew he had he begins to master the Talent and the ways of the blade, acquiring the skills he'll need to survive.

Thomas discovers that not only must he stand against a High King bent on conquering the Kingdoms, but also the Shadow Lord, a creature of ancient evil who threatens to unleash a time of darkness and sorrow on the land. Thomas is torn by his desire to lead his own life and his duty to a people who view him with suspicion and fear. He knows that doing the right thing will only push him farther away from the life he wants for himself - and closer to his own death.

Can he prevent the Dark Horde from descending on the Kingdoms and extinguishing the light forever? Does he have the courage and skill to stand against the Shadow Lord?

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  1. Listening Length
    8 hours and 48 minutes
  2. Author
    Peter Wacht
  3. Narrator
    Bruce Mann
  4. Audible release date
    May 12, 2020
  5. Language
    English
  6. Publisher
    Tantor Audio
  7. ASIN
    B087KJ2NXH
  8. Version
    Unabridged
  9. Program Type
    Audiobook
  10. See all details
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Product details

Listening Length 8 hours and 48 minutes
Author Peter Wacht
Narrator Bruce Mann
Whispersync for Voice Ready
Audible.com Release Date May 12, 2020
Publisher Tantor Audio
Program Type Audiobook
Version Unabridged
Language English
ASIN B087KJ2NXH
Best Sellers Rank #215,994 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals)
#3,885 in Fantasy for Teens
#7,071 in Epic Fantasy (Audible Books & Originals)
#18,573 in Teen & Young Adult Fantasy

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
4,243 global ratings
The books are great!!
5 Stars
The books are great!!
I really like the writing . Fantasy books are meant to take you to anther realm of possibility where legend live nd come to life to fight the forces of evil.The author is not wordy or rude. The stories are fast with just enough down time and character development. I think Thomas should have started his sword training a bit earlier to make it a bit more plausible. But that is the nature of fantasy. It is suppose to be a bit magical and the author still makes the characters quite human in spirit and thought. I think everyone would have enjoyed seeing more of the spirit teachers as well I hope a few more come, I am starting the fourth book, if their is to be 9 in all then the author could toss in anther for good measure or bring back a few.I like the ladies and with our powerful heroes. (I like that Thomas is able to share the stage).I think we need strong woman and I don't feel that the woman up stage the men or make them look foolish. Teased yes and so far the men tease right back except with the flirting parts I feel the men's befuddlement and being in over their heads. I am so glad that the woman and young ladies are not the type to huff, pout and be offended over nothings that happens in so many books it is awful. Nor are they fawning with cow eyes that is ridiculous too.If the author want to learn more on the art of conversation in a story he can read LM Montgomery's short stories and her other novels a Tangled Wed and My Blue Castle are great for those things He will cry and laugh is sock off. Also Louis Lamour and his books are great, for conversation (especially internal) and scene development. Not that Mr. Watcht needs help.
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Top reviews from the United States

Monique
5.0 out of 5 stars The books are great!!
Reviewed in the United States on November 25, 2020
Verified Purchase
I really like the writing . Fantasy books are meant to take you to anther realm of possibility where legend live nd come to life to fight the forces of evil.
The author is not wordy or rude. The stories are fast with just enough down time and character development. I think Thomas should have started his sword training a bit earlier to make it a bit more plausible. But that is the nature of fantasy. It is suppose to be a bit magical and the author still makes the characters quite human in spirit and thought.
I think everyone would have enjoyed seeing more of the spirit teachers as well I hope a few more come, I am starting the fourth book, if their is to be 9 in all then the author could toss in anther for good measure or bring back a few.
I like the ladies and with our powerful heroes. (I like that Thomas is able to share the stage).
I think we need strong woman and I don't feel that the woman up stage the men or make them look foolish. Teased yes and so far the men tease right back except with the flirting parts I feel the men's befuddlement and being in over their heads. I am so glad that the woman and young ladies are not the type to huff, pout and be offended over nothings that happens in so many books it is awful. Nor are they fawning with cow eyes that is ridiculous too.
If the author want to learn more on the art of conversation in a story he can read LM Montgomery's short stories and her other novels a Tangled Wed and My Blue Castle are great for those things He will cry and laugh is sock off. Also Louis Lamour and his books are great, for conversation (especially internal) and scene development. Not that Mr. Watcht needs help.
Customer image
Monique
5.0 out of 5 stars The books are great!!
Reviewed in the United States on November 25, 2020
I really like the writing . Fantasy books are meant to take you to anther realm of possibility where legend live nd come to life to fight the forces of evil.
The author is not wordy or rude. The stories are fast with just enough down time and character development. I think Thomas should have started his sword training a bit earlier to make it a bit more plausible. But that is the nature of fantasy. It is suppose to be a bit magical and the author still makes the characters quite human in spirit and thought.
I think everyone would have enjoyed seeing more of the spirit teachers as well I hope a few more come, I am starting the fourth book, if their is to be 9 in all then the author could toss in anther for good measure or bring back a few.
I like the ladies and with our powerful heroes. (I like that Thomas is able to share the stage).
I think we need strong woman and I don't feel that the woman up stage the men or make them look foolish. Teased yes and so far the men tease right back except with the flirting parts I feel the men's befuddlement and being in over their heads. I am so glad that the woman and young ladies are not the type to huff, pout and be offended over nothings that happens in so many books it is awful. Nor are they fawning with cow eyes that is ridiculous too.
If the author want to learn more on the art of conversation in a story he can read LM Montgomery's short stories and her other novels a Tangled Wed and My Blue Castle are great for those things He will cry and laugh is sock off. Also Louis Lamour and his books are great, for conversation (especially internal) and scene development. Not that Mr. Watcht needs help.
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Steven M. Brown
4.0 out of 5 stars A steady beginning a YA hero's journey fantasy.
Reviewed in the United States on February 7, 2021
Verified Purchase
This book has a third person omniscient point of view and does do a bit of head hopping that a few times was confusing. It is however clean and acceptable for preteens and above it appears. So far nothing has occurred in the series to require a real age restriction at all. This book is not a standalone has all the feel of a book meant to foundation build and set up the real story. There was lots of info dumping disguised as teaching when it came to the main character. You have certain antagonists appear only once or twice simply to know that they are there and then do not appear again in the book. You get points of views from many of the minor main antagonist while only hints to the actual main antagonist of the series. That said I get the feeling that this entire series is going to flow pretty much like one large epic fantasy book stretched out or cut up into seven offerings. Depending upon the plot lines it might be two smaller epic fantasy books.

I was a bit incredulous at some of the scenes starting off the book, and even the prologue felt a bit disconnected in a way. Without spoilers I do think no reasonable or intelligent person would allow a 10-year-old to be set off on their own without at the very least having a guide no matter the trust or abilities of the 10-year-old. It made for some interesting reading but the entire time I felt like I was reading an older character particularly with his grace under pressure.

The first chunk of the book is dedicated to to survival along with a few chapters building up the antagonist or at least setting up their story lines. During these chapters you don't really get too much of an understanding of how much time has passed. But the next time we see our young protagonist 5 years have gone by. It was sort of abrupt but the story kept me engaged enough not to be pulled out too badly.

the rest of the story I feel is more of the beginning of an epic fantasy story. We get to see our hero learning through information dumps and some good training or at least the beginnings of some training which is also skipped with unidentified time jumps. Usually instead of being halfway through the story or towards the end of a story we get this in the first 25%.

normally I give stories like this a 3-star rating unless I'm completely enraptured with it. I say this because the story obviously feels exactly how it is, at the beginning of a larger series and not a story in of itself that is complete. The author however does pull off some very good action scenes and managers to introduce characters even late in the story that are interesting. I would have preferred perhaps one book or trilogy with each book feeling more like a complete book. However I think considering how Amazon is enabling some brilliant and ambitious writers to throw themselves out there I have to say I like this.

I do worry that the seven books appear to have been published within a year or a little more. Coming into the first book there was only a handful if that of editing errors. And only one that I can actually recall clearly. The concern I have is considering the pace the books are put out the first book is often the one the author takes the most time on outside of the last book if the series is really one book stressed out to several. I'm hopeful the author at the very least keeps to his standard of this first book because I can see this being a repeatable reread that will average between 3 and 4 stars and perhaps five if the author uses this foundation for all it's worth.

This fantasy does have a bit of a unique fantasy perspective with a bit of a Scottish touch, minus the accent. If I was a bit from the region while creating a unique fantasy world that is interesting and has if not a unique and interesting soft magic system. I enjoyed the main character despite the age of him as well as the antagonist and potential antagonist introduced within the story. The obvious love interest is obvious but appears briefly with a lot of promise with the character. It does have the feeling of developing into what was basically an instant love romance but comes off as filling a bit legit considering how the first meeting occurred and personalities of the characters themselves.

That said I would recommend this book as a good read for anybody on Kindle unlimited. I know the audio is per usual is under $8 I think though that you might want to read the first book before deciding whether or not to invest that money into the audiobook. There's enough potential in the book though that I think if you have the money it wouldn't necessarily be a waste but for$10 you can get Kindle unlimited and read the entire book series to know for sure.
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Jrt
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent!
Reviewed in the United States on September 26, 2023
Verified Purchase
This was a great read. I am so glad it didn’t get stuck in repetitive nonsense. The story moved forward with a clear trajectory. It had action, adventure, magic, weapons, believable likable characters, politics, intrigue, and a formidable villain. What more could you ask for? Well, maybe a dragon. In the beginning, a hawk eschewed its instincts to go to the MC. I thought it would have some interesting role given a kestrel is a type of hawk - small but deadly nonetheless. I was surprised it was thread dropped and a wolf companion picked up.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Riveting
Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2023
Verified Purchase
The story line kept me intrigued from start to finish. I liked the love interest coming in at the end of this book. Ready to jump right into the next one!
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Short
5.0 out of 5 stars A great tale, well told
Reviewed in the United States on February 17, 2020
Verified Purchase
I like that right away the writer gets to the meat of the story. And that in just a few pages he renders the essence of a character. This is harder than you think and less common than you would think. A hero worthy of the title versus yet another conflicted anti-hero hero. A coming of age story in which the character really does come of age. In most other fantasy novels the writer holds back and only grudgingly allows the main character to learn his “craft” and then at a pace slower than slow. Until when the character does finally master his or her magic you are unimpressed. This is not yet another story in which the good guy suffers defeat after defeat in chapter after chapter by an infallible Evil only to miraculously and unrealistically triumph in the last few pages of the last chapter. Ending the story with a victory that the reader feels the hero did not earn. Not so in this book. Throughout the good guy gives as good as he gets. Plenty of well thought out action scenes versus the tedium of unending dialogue that fill pages but do not advance the story or develop characters. The writer understands that it is not the number of pages but the story being told that makes an epic. I literally could not stop reading book 1. I read it in one session. Well done, well done indeed!
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Top reviews from other countries

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Cliente Kindle
4.0 out of 5 stars Uma Introdução ao Universo
Reviewed in Brazil on November 10, 2021
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Esse primeiro livro da Saga é bom como uma introdução, te apresenta os conceitos e regras do Universo, os personagens principais e coloca as primeiras peças do Tabuleiro para o desenvolvimento da trama, contudo como livro unico a historia te da um gosto incompleto, falta sustancia para o livro, do ponto de vista de uma saga é aceitavel, mas como obra separada não.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Good read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 16, 2024
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Good author
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Archie
5.0 out of 5 stars I couldn't put it down
Reviewed in Canada on February 18, 2021
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I loved this book I couldn't put it down and I mean that literally my phone hasn't left my hand since I started the first page also I've reader a few hundred books off Kindle unlimited and this is the only book I've ever commented on or even gave a start if u like fantasy and beginnings this is a book to read
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Gaurav
3.0 out of 5 stars Lazy writing
Reviewed in India on September 14, 2021
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The plot is known, some good writing but writer is in habit of plagiarising his own work. This is 07 series book , which should actually be 01 book only . Entire pages are copy paste in other books , after first book one can finish every book in 01 hour flat , you can simply skip repeated portions. The books are very low on original content , by end of series you can finish book in 30 minutes , there is nothing going on here.
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Cathais
5.0 out of 5 stars What a breath of fresh air - great plot and fast paced
Reviewed in Australia on July 5, 2020
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I was hooked from page one. This is such an unusual story but makes you feel part of it and everything that is happening is very believable. Loved this book and have purchased the following four - cant wait to get into them.
One person found this helpful
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