THE FARAWAY INN

The Faraway Inn by Sarah Beth Durst
Narrated by Soneela Nankani
Genre: fantasy
Format: ebook & audiobook

About The Faraway Inn:

When sixteen-year-old Calisa arrives at her great-aunt’s bed and breakfast for the summer, she’s shocked to find it run down rather than cosy. Grumpy and eccentric, Auntie Zee is determined to keep anyone from messing with her beloved inn . . . even though she clearly needs the help.

To convince her great-aunt to keep her around, Calisa sets to work fixing up the inn, enlisting extra help from the groundkeeper’s (handsome) son. But the longer she stays, the surer she is that there’s something strange about the B&B — and its residents. Something almost . . . otherworldly.

The inn is hiding a magical secret — but secrets are like doors. Once Calisa opens this one, she won’t be able to go back . . .

Source: Info in the "About The Faraway Inn" was taken from amazon on 29/03/2025.

Buy Link(s):

 

My Thoughts:

I am an old fan of this author so this book got bought.

I love magic houses! Like Gertrude Hunt in the Innkeeper Chronicles by Ilona Andrews. House in Bitten By Magic by Brogan Thomas. Now The Faraway Inn! So the theme of magic houses is another reason this book got bought!

What wasn't very endearing to me was the way Calisa keeps bulldozing her way into other people's business like it is her god-given right to be nosey! Yeah! That one didn't go down very well with me.

This is my first Soneela Nankani audiobook listen and I would buy audiobooks by her again.

Quantitative Evaluation:

Story telling quality = 4
Character development = 3.5
Story itself = 3.5
Writing Style = 4
Ending = 4
World building = 4.5
Cover art = 4
Pace = (11 hours and 2 minutes listening time)
Plot = 3.5
Narration = 5

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 cherries

 

Meet The Author

About Sarah Beth Durst:

Sarah Beth Durst is the New York Times bestselling author of over twenty-five books for adults, teens, and kids, including cozy fantasy THE SPELLSHOP. She's been awarded an American Library Association Alex Award, as well as a Mythopoeic Fantasy Award. Several of her books have been optioned for film/television, including DRINK SLAY LOVE, which was made into a TV movie and was a question on Jeopardy! She lives in Stony Brook, New York, with her husband, her children, and her ill-mannered cat.

www.sarahbethdurst.com | twitter | facebook author page | facebook | instagram | tiktok | bluesky | threads | tumblr | blog | amazon | wiki | goodreads

The Narrator

About Soneela Nankani:

Soneela is an award-winning narrator with over 300 titles in many different genres including Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Sci-Fi and Nonfiction. She has garnered 16 Earphone awards; nominations for Audie and SOVAS awards; and was recently awarded AudioFile Magazine’s Golden Voice Lifetime Achievement Honor. Her audiobooks have been featured in Best Audiobooks lists by AudioFile Magazine and The Washington Post among others. In her spare time, she loves to read (yes, really), learn languages, try new recipes and travel. She lives in the DC area with her husband and two mischievous daughters.

www.soneela.com | instagram | goodreads

FTC Disclosure:
The ebook and audiobook were purchased with private funds.
No money received for this review.

WOLVES OF THE WASTES

Wolves Of The Wastes by D.E. Sherman
Book 2 in the Keiran: The Eternal Mage series
Narrated by Rylee Kuberra and John Joseph Rogers
Genre: fantasy
Format: ebook & audiobook

About Wolves Of The Wastes:

Banished from his village, an archmage enters the mana-dry wastes.

Keiran, a millennia old archmage, has managed to successfully control the reincarnation cycle and retain all of his memories and skills. That’s about the only thing that has gone right. Mana seems to have all but disappeared, and a cabal of mages have been using the people of his village as a mana farm.

How long was Keiran gone? Where did the mana go? Does it have anything to do with the missing moon from the sky or the bizarre loss of the written language from his first life? Why are the best mages on the level of bumbling apprentices?

Filled with questions and determined to find answers, Keiran journeys to the city of Derro. The Wolf Pack rules over the desert city, and if Keiran wants access to the knowledge they hold, he’ll have to fight for it, one bloody step at a time. For all his skill, he’s trapped in the body of a child in a world where mana is as scarce as gold.

Source: Info in the "About Wolves Of The Wastes" was taken from amazon on 25/03/2025.

Buy Link(s):

 

My Thoughts:

Middle chunk of a bigger book. Therefore, not recommended to be read on it's own. Although there is a "primer" at the start to tell the reader a very congested gist of the first book, the reader would still miss out on a lot of the events from the first book which are directly related to events in this book. So, why not read the first book first. Besides, it is fun to red, so why not?

As per usual, the book ended in a cliffhanger. Admittedly this series is just one book sold in parts.

Again, Rylee Kuberra and John Joseph Rogers did a wonderful job of bringing this book to life!

Quantitative Evaluation:

Story telling quality = 4.5
Character development = 4
Story itself = 4
Writing Style = 4
Ending = 2
World building = 5
Cover art = 4
Pace = (18 hrs and 22 mins listening time)
Plot = 3
Narration = 5

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 cherries

Books In The Keiran: The Eternal Mage Series:

 

Meet The Author

About D.E. Sherman:

D.E. Sherman grew up reading fantasy and tried his hand at writing his first novel on an old MS-DOS text editor program when he was seven years old. That story didn't pan out; maximum character limits were a thing back then. Undeterred, he kept writing on other platforms, reading full-time, devouring JRPGs, and playing D&D, and he is now the author of the Keiran, God Machine, and Ascendant series. He also writes under the pen name 'EmergencyComplaints.'

Timeless Wind Publishing | twitter | amazon | goodreads

The Narrators

About Rylee Kuberra:

Why hello there! What a joy that you have found this little slice of my life!

I am Rylee Kuberra and I am what I like to call a storyteller at heart and an artist by trade.

I’m an actress, audiobook narrator, and creative collaborator who’s passionate about giving voice to stories that deserve to be heard, seen, and experienced. Whether I’m on stage, in front of the camera, or behind the mic, my goal is to bring truth and honesty to every story I am breathing life into.

I’ve narrated over 150 audiobooks available on Audible, working with publishers such as Simon & Schuster, Podium, Tantor, Royal Guard Publishing and more! My voice has become home to everything from YA heroines and historical dramas to gritty thrillers and rich fantasy worlds. My goal? To make the listener forget they’re listening — and instead, feel like they’re living the story. Because, who doesn’t want to get lost in a different world for a bit?

Thank you so much for taking the time to visit my little corner of the internet. It truly means the world to me. Whether you're here out of curiosity, collaboration, or just stumbled upon this page - I'm so glad you’re here.

If something sparked your interest or you'd like to create something together, I’d love to hear from you. Let’s make something meaningful.

www.ryleekuberra.com | twitter | facebook | instagram | tiktok | goodreads

About John Joseph Rogers:

From San Diego, CA, John struggled with reading until he picked up reading aloud for his family at the urging of a very dedicated teacher. Since then he has enjoyed being able to immerse himself and listeners in a variety of worlds and characters. With a background in narration and stage acting, he lends depth to characters through a grand variety of voices, accents, dialects, and mannerisms.

johnrogersvoice.com | instagram | linkedin | goodreads

FTC Disclosure:
The ebook and audiobook were purchased with private funds.
No money received for this review.

UNINTENDED CULTIVATOR: VOLUME 3

Unintended Cultivator: Volume 3 by Eric Dontigney
Book 3 in the Unintended Cultivator series
Narrated by Adam Verner
Genre: fantasy
Format: ebook & audiobook

About Unintended Cultivator: Volume 3:

Sen emerged triumphant, but victory is a doubled-edged sword…

Sen defeated an elder of the Soaring Skies Sect and saved the mortals in the Silver Crane. What should have been a moment to bask in success came crashing down around him when he inadvertently exposed a demonic cultivator cabal. Realizing that a moving target is harder to strike, Sen flees into the wilds with Lifen and Lo Meifeng in tow.

There, he’ll learn that not all enemies want to take your life and not every threat can be met with the edge of a blade. Sen must delve deeper inside himself and push his cultivation harder than ever before or risk losing something more precious than his life… He’ll lose his soul.

Source: Info in the "About Unintended Cultivator: Volume 3" was taken from amazon on 15/02/2025.

Buy Link(s):

 

Falling Leaf

My Thoughts:

In this installment of Sen's saga, Falling Leaf took an interesting turn in the story. Looking forward to reading more about her in subsequent books.

The world building becomes even more beautiful with every installment in this series!

Middle chunk of a bigger book. This book has no beginning and no end. The beginning started with book 1. The ending will presumably be with the series' final book. At the moment the journey of Sen continues.

Once again, Adam Verner did another wonderful job, of bringing this book to life!

Then of course, the next book is already bought...

Quantitative Evaluation:

Story telling quality = 4.5
Character development = 5
Story itself = 4
Writing Style = 4
Ending = 4
World building = 5
Cover art = 4.5
Pace = (13 hrs and 47 mins listening time)
Plot = 3
Narration = 5

Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5 cherries

Books In The Unintended Cultivator Series:

 

Meet The Author

About Eric Dontigney:

Raised in Western New York, Eric Dontigney has lived in New Mexico, Florida, Wisconsin, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee. He currently resides near Dayton, OH. He is a fan of photo-realism and impressionist paintings, coffee, and well-made food.

Not wishing to tarnish the good names of writers who have come before him, he refuses to name influences. He will admit to reading Neil Gaiman, Harlan Ellison, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ayn Rand, Stephen J. Cannell, Jim Butcher, Kate Chopin, Edgar Allen Poe, Shakespeare, Camus, James Baldwin, Tim O'Brien, Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, and Stephen King.

ericdontigney.com | x | facebook | instagram | amazon | goodreads

The Narrator

About Adam Verner:

Adam Verner is a full-time narrator and voice talent with over one hundred titles recorded. He is the recipient of AudioFile Earphones Awards for Pavilion of Women by Pearl S. Buck and The Big It by A. B. Guthrie, Jr. Adam earned his MFA in acting from the Chicago College of the Fine Arts at Roosevelt University.

www.adamverner.com | x | facebook | instagram | threads | goodreads

FTC Disclosure:
The ebook and audiobook were purchased with private funds.
No money received for this review.