The Wretched of Muirwood

Written by Jeff Wheeler

Narrated by Kate Rudd

She was forced to serve, but destined to lead.

In the ancient and mystical land of Muirwood, orphan Lia has known only a life of servitude. Labeled a “wretched,” an outcast unwanted and unworthy of respect, Lia is forbidden to read or write, and forced to work in the Abbey kitchen. Lia appears all but resigned to her fate, until opportunity arises when an injured squire named Colvin is abandoned at the kitchen’s doorstep.

Lia conspires to hide Colvin and change her life forever, but her plan becomes a perilous one when a nefarious sheriff starts a manhunt for Colvin. In the midst of a land torn by a treacherous war between a ruthless king and a rebel army, Lia finds herself on an ominous journey that will push her to wonder if her own hidden magic is enough to set things right.

Revised edition: This edition of The Wretched of Muirwood includes editorial revisions.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio
• Release date: Jan 15, 2013
• ISBN: 9781469251202

Jeff Wheeler

Jeff Wheeler is the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of the Harbinger and Kingfountain series, as well as the Muirwood, Mirrowen, and Landmoor novels. He took an early retirement from his career at Intel in 2014 to write full-time. He is a husband, father of five, and devout member of his church. He lives in the Rocky Mountains and is the founder of Deep Magic: The E-Zine of Clean Fantasy and Science Fiction. Find out more about Deep Magic at www.deepmagic.co, and visit Jeff’s many worlds at www.jeff-wheeler.com.

Reviews for The Wretched of Muirwood

[Callia · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book was amazing! With a and amazing plot and great writing! I recommend reading it!

[sbshepherd · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Interesting concept but a slow plot build up. Audio performance was good with each character receiving their own voice. Decent character development, storyline, & plot.

[Tanya Szymberski · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Hands down one of the best fantasy books I’ve read yet!

[shaunesay · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A nice medieval feeling story with just a bit of supernatural/fantasy to it. I really enjoyed it and look forward to the next one!

[bookjunkie777 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Interesting concept but a slow plot build up. Audio performance was good with each character receiving their own voice. Decent character development, storyline, & plot.

[lurgidbee-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I started reading this book on a recommendation from a different forum. This was the same forum that recommended The Paper Magician, so perhaps not the most ideal place that I should be hunting for book recommendations for serious reading. This book is a nice, quick read - good for a "rainy day". The world building is somewhat enjoyable, in my head I was imagining regions of the UK and/or Ireland based on some of the descriptions. That said, the dialog was difficult in the sense that there were several occasions where suspension of disbelief was difficult to maintain. It's not a period specific book, so it's not as though the characters are speaking in a "different dialect" of English that isn't common any longer. It's a bit "ham-fisted". The author is also clearly pulling a lot of Christian themes and while that could have been a neutral aspect of the book, it's clearly something that the author wants to drive home to the reader. Repeatedly. (Spoilers: this becomes more apparent in the second book, which I have already started reading at the time of this review.) It reminds me a bit of The Chronicles of Narnia (C.S. Lewis) and some of the later books in the Sword of Truth series (Terry Goodkind) in this way. That said, the Christian undertones of the Narnia books at least didn't completely overtake the book in an unpleasant way, which is what I feel is happening on and off in this one. Some of the character behaviors are a bit forced as well - acting in ways that don't necessarily seem consistent but driving forward the desired plot regardless. Since the books are quick I plan on finishing books 2 & 3 to see how this goes.

[laphenix · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Well done. I liked the plot, the characters, and the magic system.

[revslick_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is a delightful leap into light fantasy with no hidden agenda to create giant complexity or monstrous tombs of adventure or trying to be too clever for its own good. It follows the story of an orphan raised within the walls of safety who comes into age both of her own magical abilities and the world at large. Short, simple, sweet. This was exactly what I needed for a brief, relaxing daydream.