Audiobook Review – Summers at Castle Auburn by Sharon Shinn, Narrated by Gabrielle Baker (4/5 stars)
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Historical Fantasy
Length: 14 hours and 30 minutes
Publisher: Tantor Audio
Release Date: March 27, 2018
ASIN : B07BH5GBD9
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone
Source: Audiobook from Audible.com
Rating: 4/5 stars
“ As a child, Coriel Halsing spent many glorious summers at Castle Auburn with her half-sister – and fell in love with a handsome prince who could never be hers. But now that she is a young woman, she begins to see the dark side of this magical place…..”
Series Info/Source: This is a stand alone book. I got this on audiobook from audible.com.
Audiobook Quality (4/5): This was a good quality audiobook. The narration was pleasant to listen to and did a decent job with character voices. No complaints.
Story (4/5): This was a bit slow moving and much more of a traditional YA fantasy. This book slowly unravels as more and more secrets behind Castle Auburn’s politics are revealed. It was well put together but definitely more of a deliberately paced book. The target audience is teen girls and this definitely has a “princess book” kind of vibe to it. However it deals with more serious themes too, such as slavery and finding ones own path through life. A lot of the story also focuses on Coriel’s obsession with the Prince and then the unveiling of the Prince’s true character.
Characters (4/5): I didn’t enjoy Coriel (our main character) all that much; she just comes across as very naive and oblivious. This lack of observation of the things around her makes her seem a bit selfish as well. Then as the story continues some of the things she does doesn’t match up with her character. I thought her half-sister, Elisandra, and the Prince’s friend, Kent, as well as some of the other side characters were much more intriguing. These side characters were well done and very complex and I enjoyed trying to figure out their motives.
Setting (4/5): This was a classic fantasy type of setting. It’s made slightly more complex because Castle Auburn is located on the border of the kingdom of Aliora. The Aliora are fey-like creatures that the humans have been capturing and enslaving. This whole unlying theme of slavery adds an interesting tone to the book. Outside of a brief glimpse of Aliora, we spend most of our time either in Castle Auburn or in the village that Coriel spends her spring/fall/winter time in.
Writing Style (4/5): This is beautifully written with amazing descriptions and well done dialogue. It has a very classic YA fantasy style to it. It moves slower and very deliberately builds the plot around the Alioran race, Coriel’s coming of age, and the Prince’s evil deeds. The story takes place over the span of many years. This will probably appeal more to a MG or YA audience because it has that “princess” type of plot to it and Corie comes across as very young for her age at times. As I said it is beautifully written and the plot is intricately woven, making it a very solid fantasy. It just feels kind of dated, like a fantasy written in the 80’s or 90’s to me.
My Summary (4/5): Overall I am glad I listened to this and ended up enjoying it. I almost stopped reading it because the beginning is very slow and the main protagonist is very naive. However, as the story continues I grew very intrigued by the secrets of this castle and got very attached to some of the side characters. The writing style is absolutely beautiful and the intricate plot also comes together in a very well done way. I would recommend to middle grade and YA readers who are interested in a princess-type story that involves a lot of intrigue and mystery in a fantasy castle setting.
