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Finnikin of the Rock

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Finnikin of the Rock

By: Melina Marchetta
Narrated by: Tom Wren
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About this listen

 An epic fantasy of feudal intrigue, ancient magic, bloodshed and exile, and two opposing lovers destined to unite....

At the age of nine, Finnikin is warned by the gods that he must sacrifice a pound of flesh in order to save the royal house of his homeland, Lumatere. And so he stands on the rock of three wonders with his childhood friend Prince Balthazar and the prince's cousin, Lucian, and together they mix their blood.

Lumatere is safe, until the "five days of the unspeakable", when the king and queen and their children are slaughtered in the palace, and an imposter king takes the throne. A curse is put on Lumatere, which traps those caught inside and forces thousands of others to roam the land as exiles, dying of fever and persecution in foreign camps.

But 10 years later, Finnikin is led to another rock to meet the young novice, Evanjalin - a girl plagued by dark dreams, who holds the key to their return to the land of light.

©2008 Melina Marchetta (P)2008 Bolinda Publishing Arts & Entertainment Fantasy Fiction Royalty
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It was difficult to follow in the beginning as there were so many foreign names to try to remember - people and places, especially because the characters were displaced for so much of the story. By the end, however, when I had a better scope of things, it turned out to be a fantastic tale with satisfying ending. Not what I'd expected from Melina Marchetta after reading Looking for Alibrandi but I'm happy nonetheless!

Initially hard to follow but fantastic story

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Molina Marcgetta is best known for her young adult contemporary coming of age dramas, many of which are rightly considered Australian classics. The first instalment of the Lumitare chronicles shows us that Ms Marchetta's ability to suck the reader into a complex world by making you feel like family to her protagonists transcends genre and target audience,

This fantasy is thrilling and full of wonderful surprises and characters who are utterly loveable despite their flaws and emotionally complex journeys. The fabulous narration supports the strong story and characters and adds extra light and shade to what is already a beautiful world. The combination of flawless writing and narration will have you invested in each and every individual you travel with on the quest to reclaim a lost Kingdom and bring home it's exiled people. While parts of this story are incredibly harrowing, they only make the reader more determined to find happiness for all the lost citizens of Lumitare.

You'll return to this story again and again and each time, you'll see something you hadn't before. Enjoy your first taste of the world we have been gifted with by a wonderful author and narrator.

Thrilling, surprising and wonderful.

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I loved this book. I have read and listened to it so many times I have lost count!!!

Amazing!

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This would be the fourth or fifth time I’ve read this book. The story continues to be just as enthralling each time I return to it. Melina Marchetta writes stories about issues that real people grapple with daily, especially courage, shame, and self-doubt. Her stories carry themes of hope, and the surpassing value of human connection through honest relationships. I really like the narrative style of the Lumatere Chronicles - the telling of a tale.

I found the narration to be mostly ok. Some of the characters, e.g. Froi and Tessadora, were spoken in a way that really jarred with me. Goodness knows how the narrator would manage the next volumes, in which these two characters feature more prominently. Fingers crossed!

One of the Best

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I adore Melina Marchetta and I love Finnikin of the Rock.

This is my third reading, but the first time I've listened to the audio version. I don't think this is the best way to discover Finnikin of the Rock, however. I think you should read the book traditionally first.

For one thing, there's a lot of names, and I think seeing them helps a lot.

Another thing is that I didn't find myself getting as lost in the story, or becoming as affected (I don't think there's a Melina Marchetta novel that hasn't made me cry at least once, EVERY time I read it). I'm not sure if it was the vocal actor or not. I do think he was pretty good, he had some great voices for some of the characters (at least one not so great voice that I can think of too!). He even sounded like Iain Glen sometimes, and I love his voice (everyone must, surely!). Unfortunately he would swallow quite a bit - it was really noticeable, especially at the beginning - and really took me out of the action. Just a bit of a turn off!

I will listen to the next two - partly because I've already bought them, partly because it's a different vocal actor and also because I loved those books too!

Love Melina Marchetta!

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I really enjoyed the 1st book in this series, so much so I couldn't wait to purchase the rest and get straight back into it.I know that some have had difficulty with the narration especially some of the pronunciation of certain names but I honestly tuned that out and got lost in the story. I actually think the more formal narration was fitting for this book as Finnikins while upbringing was more formal by the time we get to Froi a nd Quintsnas books it is fitting that the narration is different, much to the relief of my daughter who struggled to get passed the narration. I loved the whole series.

Great start

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An awesome story that I have listened and listened again. I highly recommend. It has a hint of magic and a lot of love.

Awesome story

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Throughly enjoyed the story but this recording needed some editing - what was the noise- swallowing / knocking the mic - really not sure but it did distract

Great story pity about the editing

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