Cry of the Firebird

Written by Amy Kuivalainen

Narrated by Em Eldridge

"Filled with magic, adventure, and mythology pulled deep from Russian and Finish folklore, Cry of the Firebird is a dark fantasy that dives deep into the world of magic, pitting those who would abuse it against those sworn to protect it. Perfect for fans of Neil Gaiman.
A firebird is reborn on the borders of Russia, a gate to a world of monsters and magic is breaking, and only a reluctant, untrained shaman stands in the way of a flood of supernatural darkness...
Anya is still reeling from the death of her grandfather when a strange encounter with the Finnish God of the Dead changes her life forever: Her family has been guarding the gates to the Russian otherworld on their farm for centuries, and she’s the new gatekeeper. Worse, if she doesn’t awaken her magical abilities and assume her new role, the gate will break, unleashing a flood of monsters and dark gods into their world.
As Anya struggles to make sense of her changing world, she can’t deny the strange encounters. She’ll need to accept her fate and work with the legendary firebird if she hopes to survive—and protect humanity."

• Language: English
• Publisher: Everand Productions
• Release date: Nov 16, 2021
• ISBN: 9781094432250

Amy Kuivalainen

Amy Kuivalainen is the author of the Magicians of Venice (The Immortal City, The Sea of the Dead, The King’s Seal) and the Firebird Faerie Tales. A Finnish-Australian writer who is obsessed with magical wardrobes, doors, auroras, and burial mounds that might offer her a way into another realm, she enjoys mashing up mythology and lore into unique retellings about monsters and magic. Amy enjoys practicing yoga and spending time in the beautiful city of Melbourne, where she is working on her next novel.

Reviews for Cry of the Firebird

[Natale Michaud · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I listened to this book on my flights from Manila to home and I liked it enough that I didn't sleep at all on the planes. The ending leaves one hanging, for the 2nd book to come out in audio.

Narration could have been better, but it was passable.

[Charlotte Schwark · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The story was okay and held me enough to tolerate the horrible audio.

[Caryn Canlas · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Book was ok but the narrator is just reading and not really READING with the feeling of the book

[Ka'iulani Kauahi · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I found this entertaining. My favorite part is the different types of folklore used in the story.

[Mila · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Very interesting ,l love it very much. I think everyone needs to read this book.It is full of myth.Not borning

[Daniel Randall · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Enjoy this book hope the next book is on here

[Sarah Sweet · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I am 2 minutes into the first chapter and can’t continue to listen. I think the narration is AI? It sounds like a dateline reporter every sentence. The inflections are super strange. I think I’ll read this book instead of listen.

[Aimee Fedoronko · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Narrator has a voice pretty similar to the TikTok voice.

[Abigael Puritz · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I was really intrigued by the description, but the narrator is so monotone and artificial sounding, I couldn't even keep listening for more than a minute. It sounds like a bad robocall. I'm normally not negative but seriously this sounds like its being narrated by a depressed siri.

[Dorothy Rooney · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

The narration on this book is one of the worst I’ve ever heard. It can’t be an actual human narrating. Good luck trying to listen to this with the monotone robot voice

[Julie Rose · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I couldn’t keep listening due to the wooden narration. There were pauses in unlikely places in sentences like a bad bot.

[dani5709 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

It's a great book but the reader is kind of annoying. The speach is very broken and flat which makes it hard to listen too.

[R E P · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The narrator was irritating and I almost gave up. But the story blending myths was interesting enough to keep me reading.

[Stacy Estep · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

The narrator killed the story for me. I seriously thought it was AI reading. Hope narrator doesn't quit her day job for audio book reading.

[Tugce Sena Gurkan · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I couldn’t listen to it, its like text to speech generator ai is reading it.

[lilla · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Book seemed lovely, but the reader is a robot. I gave up one chapter in and opted to read the book. Who selected this reader?!?!

[Sarah Cudney · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Couldn't even make it through the second chapter with the narrator voice.

[David gillespie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Great book. Crap narrator.whsy is next one in series 0lease

[karen8askelson · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

The narrator was terrible. Mechanical and monotone. I couldn't listen to it. I liked the story , however, the narrator killed it for me.

[ablanton · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

This narration has to be AI. It is so hard to listen to. I might like the story more but there is no tone or inflection and it’s hard to stay focused on the story.

[vincent fleming · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The narrator sounded to robotic to make it worth listening to. Sadly.

[Holly Hildebrant · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I think I could have enjoyed this book but the narrator is horrific! I can't get through the first chapter :(

[Devin Rooney · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

The audiobook narrator sounds like someone faxed Reese Witherspoon through ChatGPT and recorded the results.

[Audrey Hughes · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed the storyline, all things mythology are really interesting. However the narrator ruined the role of Anya with the nasally monotone voice. Absolutely terrible!! The other voices she used were pretty good, I wish she had put more effort in to the narration to he honest. However in the Magicians of Venice series (audio is not available on Scribd unfortunately) the narrators are faaaarrr better.

[Adele Thomas · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

The story looked well written but I didn't like the computer narrator. Getting a human narrator would have made so much difference. Choosing technology isn't always good.

[KC · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I read kelly Baab’s review and couldn’t unhear that the narrator sounds like a robot.

[Dal Cecil Runo · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

It’s rare that I write a review here on Scribd, and even rarer to write a review that isn’t a 5 star read. I prefer to say nice things and avoid the rest.
Just like other reviewers have said, the narrator was not the best for the book. It does sound like an amateur news reporter. Someone else wrote that and I agree. I’m blind, so I am very tolerant of robotic voices. I did finish the book. However, I expect to tolerate a robotic voice when I’m listening to an ebook with my screen reader, not when I choose an audiobook.

As for the story, I agree with reviews that say it reads like a YA with romance and magic. It’s lighthearted enough to enjoy but not take it too seriously. The writing itself is nothing spectacular. What kept me going was the blend of Finnish and Russian mythology.

The protagonist is this semi-stereotypical Finnish country girl with a drinking problem. It felt a bit exaggerated at times so it falls in stereotype territory. I still liked most of the characters, but some overuse of exposition here and there made me question whether or not the book needed a bit more of editing.

I did like the multicultural aspect, but there was a brief moment where the use of the Romani g-slur made me pause. It wasn’t ill-intended, or a characterization, or social commentary, or anything that would have made sense to include the use of the word. It wasn’t used in dialogue (for example a racist character using the slur) it was just there in passing narration, but I heard it, and it made me pause.

Sounds like I’m being harsh, not really. There were moments when the story made me laugh, and I was curious enough to finish it, so I did enjoy it, but it felt like it could be whatever other urban fantasy story, and I have to be honest about that too. It’s nice, and would be cooler with another narrator.

[Akvile Zakarauskaite · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Unlistenable. Narration is robotic. Pity because the book seems interesting.

[Karen Chandler · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a very interesting, suspenseful book with oh so many twists and turns to keep the interest yet, keep you wanting more.

[Terri Haynes · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The story was good, but the narrator sounded like a novice news reporter.