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The Journey
48 mins
A bonus never-before-released short story by best-selling author Isobelle Carmody.
Before the apocolyptic Great White - and the regressive theology that ruled the decimated population in its wake - the city of Uropa is a gleaming metropolis devoted wholly to materialistic consumption.
When Emma arrives to meet her childhood idol and continue her research into the emergence of psychic abilities, she must adapt quickly to conceal her personal interest in the subject and protect herself from the city's opportunistic residents.
A bonus never-before-released short story by best-selling author Isobelle Carmody.
Before the apocolyptic Great White - and the regressive theology that ruled the decimated population in its wake - the city of Uropa is a gleaming metropolis devoted wholly to materialistic consumption.
When Emma arrives to meet her childhood idol and continue her research into the emergence of psychic abilities, she must adapt quickly to conceal her personal interest in the subject and protect herself from the city's opportunistic residents.
Audible Audio
Published April 25, 2016
2 people are currently reading
102 people want to read
About the author
Isobelle Carmody
104 books1,736 followersIsobelle Carmody began the first novel of her highly acclaimed Obernewtyn Chronicles while she was still in high school. The series has established her at the forefront of fantasy writing in Australia.
In addition to her young-adult novels, such as the Obernewtyn Chronicles and Alyzon Whitestarr, Isobelle's published works include several middle-grade fantasies. Her still-unfinished Gateway Trilogy has been favorably compared to The Wizard of Oz and the Chronicles of Narnia. The Little Fur quartet is an eco-fantasy starring a half-elf, half-troll heroine and is fully illustrated by the author herself.
Isobelle's most recent picture book, Magic Night, is a collaboration with illustrator Declan Lee. Originally published in Australia as The Wrong Thing, the book features an ordinary housecat who stumbles upon something otherworldly. Across all her writing, Isobelle shows a talent for balancing the mundane and the fantastic.
Isobelle was the guest of honor at the 2007 Australian National Science Fiction Convention. She has received numerous honors for her writing, including multiple Aurealis Awards and Children's Book Council of Australia Awards.
She currently divides her time between her home on the Great Ocean Road in Australia and her travels abroad with her partner and daughter.
Librarian's note: Penguin Australia is publishing the Obernewtyn Chronicles in six books, and The Stone Key is book five. In the United States and Canada this series is published by Random House in eight books; this Penguin Australia book is split into two parts and published as Wavesong (Book Five) and The Stone Key (Book Six).
In addition to her young-adult novels, such as the Obernewtyn Chronicles and Alyzon Whitestarr, Isobelle's published works include several middle-grade fantasies. Her still-unfinished Gateway Trilogy has been favorably compared to The Wizard of Oz and the Chronicles of Narnia. The Little Fur quartet is an eco-fantasy starring a half-elf, half-troll heroine and is fully illustrated by the author herself.
Isobelle's most recent picture book, Magic Night, is a collaboration with illustrator Declan Lee. Originally published in Australia as The Wrong Thing, the book features an ordinary housecat who stumbles upon something otherworldly. Across all her writing, Isobelle shows a talent for balancing the mundane and the fantastic.
Isobelle was the guest of honor at the 2007 Australian National Science Fiction Convention. She has received numerous honors for her writing, including multiple Aurealis Awards and Children's Book Council of Australia Awards.
She currently divides her time between her home on the Great Ocean Road in Australia and her travels abroad with her partner and daughter.
Librarian's note: Penguin Australia is publishing the Obernewtyn Chronicles in six books, and The Stone Key is book five. In the United States and Canada this series is published by Random House in eight books; this Penguin Australia book is split into two parts and published as Wavesong (Book Five) and The Stone Key (Book Six).
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
December 10, 2017
Story of Hannah Seraphim in the beforetime, before Obernewtyn. Nice
Found out in audiobook on BorrowBox app
Found out in audiobook on BorrowBox app
October 20, 2017
Snappy, interesting, insightful. All qualities I would have loved to have seen in The Red Queen.
Seriously though, a glimpse of Hannah in the Beforetime as a real person who isn't super sure of herself and her every action was incredible and felt like a throwback to the first few (much stronger) books in the series.
Probably not quite as exciting to readers who aren't familiar with Obernewtyn.
Seriously though, a glimpse of Hannah in the Beforetime as a real person who isn't super sure of herself and her every action was incredible and felt like a throwback to the first few (much stronger) books in the series.
Probably not quite as exciting to readers who aren't familiar with Obernewtyn.
July 23, 2017
Intriguing short story that gives you just enough of a taste of this world to make you want to know more. I will definitely be picking up this series one day.
This was a free book from audible. I always love when author's read their own stories.
This was a free book from audible. I always love when author's read their own stories.
February 23, 2017
A lovely short story set in the Beforetime.. It was especially nice to listen to it read by Isobelle Carmody herself.
June 14, 2018
I really enjoyed this short prequel / novella. I haven't heard of the series that it's a part of, but I'm really intrigued and want to look it up.
September 27, 2023
In the icy realm of HowlStrom, where the auroras painted the skies with mystical colors and the air was as crisp as the frost that kissed the towering pines, Kiba Snowpaw, an alpha male Ice Wolf with the soul of a warrior and the heart of a gamer, sat in his frost-encased lair. His gaze, as piercing as the northern lights, was fixed on the hypnotic dance of the icy flames in his hearth. In this enigmatic dance of lights and shadows, Kiba found solace, a quiet moment to reflect and escape the eternal winter’s grip.
In his mighty paws, an artifact not of his world but of another - a device that held the echoes of a tale, a journey not tread by paw but by the imagination. It was “The Journey” by Isobelle Carmody, an audiobook that whisked listeners away to the city of Uropa, a place gripped not by ice but by materialistic consumption, a stark contrast to the frozen wilderness of HowlStrom.
As the icy winds howled outside his lair, reminiscent of his own powerful roars, Kiba delved into the story of Emma, a character as enigmatic as the frosty wilderness he called home. In Uropa, a city unforgiving and cold in its own right, Emma’s quest to unveil the mysteries of psychic abilities was a beacon of warmth and intrigue.
The structure of this short but potent tale was like the intricate patterns of frost on the windowpanes of Kiba’s ice fortress. Carmody wove a narrative as delicate and complex as the snowflakes that adorned the endless winters of HowlStrom.
"Ah, the dance of words, as unpredictable yet patterned as the blizzards of the North," Kiba mused, his breath forming icy tendrils in the air. The characters were carved from the ice of complexity and warmth of humanity, much like the statues of ice wolves that stood guard at the gates of his icy fortress.
Emma, with the fire of curiosity burning in her soul, was a mirror to Kiba’s own unyielding spirit. In her, the Ice Wolf saw the reflection of his own relentless quest for mastery, not of ice magic, but of the virtual realms where he reigned supreme.
Yet, every gem of creation, even the icy paradise of HowlStrom, bore its own imperfections. The tale, as mesmerizing as the auroras of the North, was short, a fleeting moment of warmth in the eternal cold. Kiba, with the wisdom of the alpha, yearned for the depths untread, the mysteries unspoken.
“This tale, as haunting as the moon’s dance on the icy plains, ends too soon. Like the fleeting winters’ day, it leaves the soul yearning for the morrow,” Kiba's voice echoed in the silence of his ice fortress.
The world of Uropa, with its stark materialism, was a frozen tundra of the soul, a stark contrast yet eerie reflection of the icy wilderness of HowlStrom. In the echoing silence of the frosty nights, Kiba found a companion in Emma, a soul traversing the icy wastes of human indifference.
As an ice wolf with the soul of a gamer, Kiba knew the dance of virtual realms, where pixels and potions spun tales of might and magic. "In every quest, every level, there are echoes of the soul’s journey, a dance of light and darkness," he mused, his voice a melody woven into the icy winds of the North.
“The Journey” was a dance of shadows and lights, a narrative echoing the eternal dance of the auroras in the frosty nights of HowlStrom. Emma’s quest was a song of the soul, a melody that would echo in the icy corridors of Kiba’s fortress, a reminder of the warmth of human spirit amidst the eternal cold.
Yet, as the icy flames danced in the hearth, Kiba, the Ice Wolf of HowlStrom, the alpha male with the heart of a gamer, knew the dance was incomplete. “A tale spun of ice and fire, of human spirit and icy indifference, yet unfinished. A dance waiting for the morrow’s light,” he whispered into the icy silence.
The echo of his words, a symphony of power and wisdom, danced with the icy winds of HowlStrom. In the eternal winter’s grip, the tale of “The Journey” was a flame, a beacon of human spirit amidst the icy indifference of a world, both hauntingly familiar and eerily alien.
As the auroras painted the skies with mystical colors, Kiba, the mighty Ice Wolf, sat in silent reflection. The echoes of the tale, a journey of the soul, resonated in the icy silence, a dance of light and darkness, of warmth and cold, a symphony of the eternal dance of existence.
In his mighty paws, an artifact not of his world but of another - a device that held the echoes of a tale, a journey not tread by paw but by the imagination. It was “The Journey” by Isobelle Carmody, an audiobook that whisked listeners away to the city of Uropa, a place gripped not by ice but by materialistic consumption, a stark contrast to the frozen wilderness of HowlStrom.
As the icy winds howled outside his lair, reminiscent of his own powerful roars, Kiba delved into the story of Emma, a character as enigmatic as the frosty wilderness he called home. In Uropa, a city unforgiving and cold in its own right, Emma’s quest to unveil the mysteries of psychic abilities was a beacon of warmth and intrigue.
The structure of this short but potent tale was like the intricate patterns of frost on the windowpanes of Kiba’s ice fortress. Carmody wove a narrative as delicate and complex as the snowflakes that adorned the endless winters of HowlStrom.
"Ah, the dance of words, as unpredictable yet patterned as the blizzards of the North," Kiba mused, his breath forming icy tendrils in the air. The characters were carved from the ice of complexity and warmth of humanity, much like the statues of ice wolves that stood guard at the gates of his icy fortress.
Emma, with the fire of curiosity burning in her soul, was a mirror to Kiba’s own unyielding spirit. In her, the Ice Wolf saw the reflection of his own relentless quest for mastery, not of ice magic, but of the virtual realms where he reigned supreme.
Yet, every gem of creation, even the icy paradise of HowlStrom, bore its own imperfections. The tale, as mesmerizing as the auroras of the North, was short, a fleeting moment of warmth in the eternal cold. Kiba, with the wisdom of the alpha, yearned for the depths untread, the mysteries unspoken.
“This tale, as haunting as the moon’s dance on the icy plains, ends too soon. Like the fleeting winters’ day, it leaves the soul yearning for the morrow,” Kiba's voice echoed in the silence of his ice fortress.
The world of Uropa, with its stark materialism, was a frozen tundra of the soul, a stark contrast yet eerie reflection of the icy wilderness of HowlStrom. In the echoing silence of the frosty nights, Kiba found a companion in Emma, a soul traversing the icy wastes of human indifference.
As an ice wolf with the soul of a gamer, Kiba knew the dance of virtual realms, where pixels and potions spun tales of might and magic. "In every quest, every level, there are echoes of the soul’s journey, a dance of light and darkness," he mused, his voice a melody woven into the icy winds of the North.
“The Journey” was a dance of shadows and lights, a narrative echoing the eternal dance of the auroras in the frosty nights of HowlStrom. Emma’s quest was a song of the soul, a melody that would echo in the icy corridors of Kiba’s fortress, a reminder of the warmth of human spirit amidst the eternal cold.
Yet, as the icy flames danced in the hearth, Kiba, the Ice Wolf of HowlStrom, the alpha male with the heart of a gamer, knew the dance was incomplete. “A tale spun of ice and fire, of human spirit and icy indifference, yet unfinished. A dance waiting for the morrow’s light,” he whispered into the icy silence.
The echo of his words, a symphony of power and wisdom, danced with the icy winds of HowlStrom. In the eternal winter’s grip, the tale of “The Journey” was a flame, a beacon of human spirit amidst the icy indifference of a world, both hauntingly familiar and eerily alien.
As the auroras painted the skies with mystical colors, Kiba, the mighty Ice Wolf, sat in silent reflection. The echoes of the tale, a journey of the soul, resonated in the icy silence, a dance of light and darkness, of warmth and cold, a symphony of the eternal dance of existence.
January 26, 2018
I've not read any of the books this story ties into. I got it free on Audible and thought I'd check it out.
It honestly seems pointless. The protagonist, Hannah, spends the first third of the story debating whether to join her now-deposed scientific idol (who is a sex-crazed personality) in research into paranormal abilities (which Hannah herself possesses, unknown to everyone else). Then, having turned down the opportunity (in her mind, if not in her words), she wanders the city musing about life and nearly gets killed/recruited by a "New Nazi" (which is distinguished from a Neo-Nazi by a few generations and a lack of historical knowledge) before falling in with a group of characters who feel like they will be getting more screen time . . . somewhere else.
The author narrates this short story, and while she does a fine job for most of the story, her accent for the New Nazi is inconsistent and her narration often has unexpected . . . pauses that . . . kill the rhythm of her . . . sentences. I'm not exactly in love with the setting and the story, but I won't rule out trying one of the novels to see if there's more substance later on.
It honestly seems pointless. The protagonist, Hannah, spends the first third of the story debating whether to join her now-deposed scientific idol (who is a sex-crazed personality) in research into paranormal abilities (which Hannah herself possesses, unknown to everyone else). Then, having turned down the opportunity (in her mind, if not in her words), she wanders the city musing about life and nearly gets killed/recruited by a "New Nazi" (which is distinguished from a Neo-Nazi by a few generations and a lack of historical knowledge) before falling in with a group of characters who feel like they will be getting more screen time . . . somewhere else.
The author narrates this short story, and while she does a fine job for most of the story, her accent for the New Nazi is inconsistent and her narration often has unexpected . . . pauses that . . . kill the rhythm of her . . . sentences. I'm not exactly in love with the setting and the story, but I won't rule out trying one of the novels to see if there's more substance later on.
February 13, 2020
This short story provides a background for the Obernewtyn chronicles which I have just begun rereading. I’m not too sure yet if it will tie in more to the actual story or it is simply for background and to give us an idea of when and why Obernewtyn was built and reinforce the idea that the misfits were around before the Great White.
What I really enjoyed about this short story was how rapidly and expertly Isobelle Carmody built up her main character and painted the futuristic world in which she is living.
I listened on audio and found Isobelle Carmody to be a fantastic reader of her own work - an impressive feat! While writing this I have actually already finished the first two books in the series - Obernewtyn and the Farseekers. I read the first 3 at the beginning of high school and loved them but I wasn’t sure if they’d stand up to my adult self’s tastes and preferences (and criticisms). But they have 100% and I’m so excited to continue 😄
What I really enjoyed about this short story was how rapidly and expertly Isobelle Carmody built up her main character and painted the futuristic world in which she is living.
I listened on audio and found Isobelle Carmody to be a fantastic reader of her own work - an impressive feat! While writing this I have actually already finished the first two books in the series - Obernewtyn and the Farseekers. I read the first 3 at the beginning of high school and loved them but I wasn’t sure if they’d stand up to my adult self’s tastes and preferences (and criticisms). But they have 100% and I’m so excited to continue 😄
October 27, 2017
It has been some long time since I've been in on the Obernewtyn Chronicles. But when I saw that a relatively new prequel had been released, staring Hannah and Jake, I thought, How can I resist?
The answer was, I couldn't.
This is an incredibly short story that documents Hannah's isolation in thinking that she is the only person who has extra sensory powers, her disillusionment by those she thought might understand her in the Reichler Clinic, and her first meeting with Jake, who brings forward the idea of Obernewtyn to her.
Hannah particularly comes across as incredibly young in this prequel of the Beforetime, and it's just really nice to see her origins especially. Jake, for his part, only really comes in at the very end.
The answer was, I couldn't.
This is an incredibly short story that documents Hannah's isolation in thinking that she is the only person who has extra sensory powers, her disillusionment by those she thought might understand her in the Reichler Clinic, and her first meeting with Jake, who brings forward the idea of Obernewtyn to her.
Hannah particularly comes across as incredibly young in this prequel of the Beforetime, and it's just really nice to see her origins especially. Jake, for his part, only really comes in at the very end.
May 28, 2018
A prequel short story of how Hannah Seraphim finally came to be at Obernewtyn in the Beforetime.
It's interesting to get a look into the Beforetime, especially since I just finished reading all the books in one long go. It's also cool to see some of the people who were only vaguely referred to in the books actually on the page.
I'm fairly sure anyone who hasn't read at least half of the series will struggle to get the story, and the ending really only has impact for people who've read the books .
An interesting short story for fans, but might be lost on those unfamiliar with the series.
It's interesting to get a look into the Beforetime, especially since I just finished reading all the books in one long go. It's also cool to see some of the people who were only vaguely referred to in the books actually on the page.
I'm fairly sure anyone who hasn't read at least half of the series will struggle to get the story, and the ending really only has impact for people who've read the books .
An interesting short story for fans, but might be lost on those unfamiliar with the series.
December 20, 2023
This was a fascinating look into the origins of Hannah and Jacob, but I wish it had been longer and we had more time to explore this world and see how everything in the future fitted in, and how the assumptions in the future (after the Great White) differed from what had actually happened.
October 13, 2017
This was a great short story about Hannah Seraphim and when she first get's entangled with the Reichler Clinic. It was nice to see Hannah in the Beforetime!
October 14, 2017
It was okay. It didn't really add much to the Obernewtyn story. But I will always read anything that adds to this world.
March 13, 2018
very well written and the author has such a pretty voice that fit this book perfectly.
May 25, 2018
Obernewtyn fans will love this as I did. A chance to revisit the world without taking away from the original series. Not a full story on its own but suitable for reading before or after the series.
July 25, 2018
I read these books when I was at school - maybe this one is to different, but really didn't work for me now :(
January 19, 2020
Too short to get a sense of where the series might go, but interesting enough that I will check out the first book.
July 3, 2020
I need more, more, more. I will never get enough of the Obernewtyn series.
August 4, 2020
A great short story for lovers of the Obernewtyn series (I'm a big fan of that series myself). Very well written
February 4, 2023
A fun glimpse into what went on before the Obernewtyn Chronicles started. If only it was longer!
November 17, 2024
Wowwww where was this intrigue in the latter books of the series. I’m pissed off again :(
It was still nice to see how Hannah and Jacob met.
It was still nice to see how Hannah and Jacob met.
November 17, 2016
Listened to the audiobook one night in a desperate attempt to get to asleep, since I was intrigued by the Obernewtyn series but none of the books proper were available.
It didn't do its job; I remained wide awake for the whole thing! A little sketchy in places, maybe that's because I'm not already familiar with the story, it felt like...there were bits missing maybe - but nonetheless a very intriguing world, so much so that I will be checking out the rest of the series straight away.
Even to me, a reader (listener?) unfamiliar with the larger story to which this was a 'prequel', the moment when the main character (Hannah, not Emma like the blurb suggests!) finally whispers the name 'Obernewtyn' felt like something significant with bigger implications. I could imagine the reaction of established fans to that moment; the focal point around which the series hangs. As an ending, very nicely done.
It didn't do its job; I remained wide awake for the whole thing! A little sketchy in places, maybe that's because I'm not already familiar with the story, it felt like...there were bits missing maybe - but nonetheless a very intriguing world, so much so that I will be checking out the rest of the series straight away.
Even to me, a reader (listener?) unfamiliar with the larger story to which this was a 'prequel', the moment when the main character (Hannah, not Emma like the blurb suggests!) finally whispers the name 'Obernewtyn' felt like something significant with bigger implications. I could imagine the reaction of established fans to that moment; the focal point around which the series hangs. As an ending, very nicely done.
November 12, 2016
I did enjoy the story, but more so because I'm familiar with the Obernewtyn Chronicles than on its own merit. I didn't feel this story stood up well on its own. As a standalone story the characters and plot were too sweeping, not sufficiently developed. It read more like either a prologue or epilogue for any one of the last few novels in the Obernewtyn series. Two and a half stars from me.
July 24, 2020
Intriguing but I was hoping for more magic not just a whisper .
August 15, 2016
I came straight to the library to borrow the rest of the books.
April 19, 2017
this is an interesting book that made for a quick listen on Audible. again it was another short that I don't feel really made a story on its own it needed a little more detail and room for the story to expand.
November 13, 2018
I have to admit that Hannah’s story frustrated me when I read the Obernewtyn Chronicles, as it chopped into the general text. But this story was amazing! I want to go back and continue my re-read just to glean her story.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews