Master of the World

Written by Edward Willett

Narrated by Carly Robins

From an Aurora Award-winning author comes the second book in a gripping portal fantasy series in which one woman's powers open the way to a labyrinth of new dimensions.

Shawna Keys has fled the world she only recently discovered she Shaped, narrowly escaping death at the hands of the Adversary who seized control of it...and losing her only guide, Karl Yatsar, in the process.

Now she finds herself alone in some other Shaper's world, where, in her first two hours, she's rescued from a disintegrating island by an improbable flying machine she recognizes from Jules Verne's Robur the Conqueror, then seized from it by raiders flying tiny personal helicopters, and finally taken to a submarine that bears a strong resemblance to Captain Nemo's Nautilus. Oh, and accused of being both a spy and a witch.

Shawna expects--hopes!--Karl Yatsar will eventually follow her into this new steampunky realm, but exactly where and when he'll show up, she hasn't a clue.

In the meantime, she has to navigate a world where two factions fanatically devoted to their respective leaders are locked in perpetual combat, figure out who the Shaper of the world is, find him or her, and obtain the secret knowledge of this world's Shaping. Then she has to somehow reconnect with Karl Yatsar, and escape to the next Shaped world in the Labyrinth...through a Portal she has no idea how to open.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio
• Release date: Sep 10, 2019
• ISBN: 9781721366262

Edward Willett

Edward Willett is the award-winning author of more than fifty books of science fiction, fantasy, and non-fiction for adults, young adults, and children. Ed received the Aurora Award for best Canadian science fiction novel in English in 2009 for Marseguro; its sequel, Terra Insegura, was short-listed for the same award. In addition to writing, Ed is an actor and singer who has appeared in numerous plays, musicals, and operas, both professionally and just for fun.

Reviews for Master of the World

[danielstj · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This was another one of Verne's lesser works. Although the plot was somewhat interesting, the writing came across as a bit stale and old-fashioned and the plotting was not as strong as it could have been. Even for myself, who likes Verne, I don't think this is a very impressive novel.2 stars.

[bill5bradford · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

One of the lesser known Verne works and somewhat of a follow up to" Robur the Conqueror".Unlike "Robur", the protagonist is fairly likeable. "Robur" is almost a travelogue - The antagonist, Robur, appears quickly. In "Master", the story is more of a mystery - Robur appears at the end of the story. In this it is somewhat like Nemo's appearance in "Mysterious Island", though "Master" is certainly not up to its story-telling and depth.I enjoyed reading it as a technological mystery. It does not have the foretelling of "Robur" but I don't think that was the intent. Verne is simply recycling a character because he needs a genius antagonist. Just read and enjoy for what it is.

[sf_addict · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Another good read from Verne! This one was his final novel written in 1904 and is actually a sequel to an earlier novel called The Clipper of the Clouds (aka Robur the Conqueror). I only discovered this when part way through I found out the name of the antagonist-Robur! The great inventor Robur zooms across the Americas in first a car that can travel at least 150 miles per hour, putting the current speed of about 80 m.p.h to shame in a car race! Then an equally fast boat is seen; later still a submarine, and then an airplane! The protagonist of this story, Strock, a police investigator, soon gets the idea that these 3 vehicles are one and the same.In the previous story, Robur determined to show to the world that heavier-than-air craft was the way forward, and during an exposition in which a great air balloon was shown to the world, Robur produced his offering, a dirigible type craft propelled not by lighter-than-air gas but by engines with propellers (air screws), and with this he overtook the balloon causing its occupants to crash to the ground. This event is alluded to in this later work as a kind of re-cap. Not having read the earlier book it was a bit of a surprise but having said that I didnt feel that I should need to have read that earlier work-the work stands alone!Anyway I found the book quite entertaining and fast paced and is my third Verne novel so far.

[andyray_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was Verne's last literary effort, and it is a weak replay of Captain Nemo. Published in 1904, Verne died in 1905.