THE DEMON SWORD ASPERIDES

There's both humor and poignancy in this middle-grade fantasy. Mark Sanderlin animates the cast of characters, including young Nack Furnival, who desperately wants to be a knight; a goth girl necromancer and the bad guy she helps resurrect; a seer; and knights Willa and Barb. Nack thinks the sword he happens upon in a cave is an angel blade like the ones other knights carry, but it's actually an ancient demon sword named Asperides, which trades power for human souls. Narrated in a British-esque accent, Asperides sounds both imperious and long suffering, and even though he's technically a demon sword, he's hard not to like. The ensuing adventure in which Nack seeks to prove himself and Asperides tries to stop the big bad is good listening fun. J.M.D. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine [Published: JANUARY 2024]