The Curse of Chalion [Unabridged] [Audio CD]

Lois McMaster Bujold (Author), Lloyd James (Narrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2004

Lord Cazaril has been, in turn, courtier, castle-warder, and captain; now he is but a crippled ex-galley slave seeking nothing more than a menial job in the kitchens of the Dowager Provincara, the noble patroness of his youth. But Cazaril finds himself promoted to the exalted and dangerous position of tutor to Iselle, the beautiful, fiery sister of the heir to Chalion’s throne.

Amidst the decaying splendor and poisonous intrigue of Chalion’s ancient capital, Cazaril is forced to confront not only powerful enemies but also the malignant curse that clings to the royal household, trapping him, flesh and soul, in a maze of demonic paradox, damnation, and death for as long as he dares walk the five-fold pathway of the gods.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is one of the great ones." -- Science Fiction Chronicle

About the Author

LOIS MCMASTER BUJOLD burst upon the science-fiction world in 1986 with Shards of Honor, the first of the Vorkosigan Saga novels. She has won the Hugo award four times and the Nebula award twice. The mother of two, she lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Blackstone Audiobooks; Unabridged edition (June 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786186925
• ISBN-13: 978-0786186921
• Product Dimensions: 5.9 x 5.4 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,530,099 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #7 in Books > Books on CD > Authors, A-Z > ( B ) > Bujold, Lois McMaster

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent reading, August 24, 2004

By 

H. Hill "librarytroll" - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Curse of Chalion (Audio CD)

Let me start by saying that Lois McMaster Bujold is one of my favorite authors. Her Vorkosigan series is head and shoulders above most SF being written today.

Curse of Chalion is the first book of a loosely connected fantasy series. I don't want to reinvent the wheel, so read the reviews of the book.

For the audiobook, Blackstone has done the usual fine production j0b. The reader, Lloyd James, does a superb job of deferentiating between the characters, and gives each their own voice and personality. I never had to think about who was speaking.

I love listening to a book I'm familiar with. I'd like to read reviews from someone who has not read the book.

If you like intelligent, thought provoking, beautifully written prose, well developed characters, and a cracking good fantasy story, BUY THIS BOOK ;-)

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hit-and-miss, but mostly hit, July 24, 2008

By 

Elizabeth Belyeu - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Curse of Chalion (Audio CD)

The book, of course, is phenomenal, which is why I chose it to listen to on my long commute. Throughout listening to the audiobook, I had a love-hate relationship with the narrator. As far as the plain narrating he did just fine. For the characters' voices, he seemed to be either great or terrible. Cazaril's voice was just gruff enough to be very attractive, he gave Umegat the most appealing accent, and he also did very well with the the Provincara, Teidez, and Dondo (whose voice made my skin crawl). But I couldn't stand Chancellor dy Jironal's voice-- he made it very nasally and annoying, very inappropriate for the character, who, for all his many many flaws, was never the weasel he sounded like on these tapes. He made Ista sound more like Professor Trelawney than anything else, and as for Iselle and Betriz... the narrator is just not a man who was designed to talk like a 16-year-old girl.

Obviously this is all just my opinion. Other people may not be bothered at all by the things that drove me crazy. And except for the few voices I mentioned, this narrator was very competent, and I honestly appreciate the effort he put into developing a clearly separate voice for each character. But I thought it was worth noting that there were times I wanted to throttle him. :)

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantasy world breathed to life, April 27, 2005

By 

R. E. Hinshaw (Liberty, NC USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Curse of Chalion (Audio CD)

The Curse of Chalion (print version) is a favorite read but hearing it read aloud let me pick up nuances in the story I had missed. Well worth the price.