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Audiobook Review – The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate – Jacqueline Kelly

06 Jan

calpurnia tateThe Evolution of Calpurnia Tate
Author: Jacqueline Kelly

Narrator: Natalie Ross
Run Time: 9hrs and 1 minute
Publisher: Brilliance Audio

Description:
Calpurnia Virginia Tate is eleven years old in 1899 when she wonders why the yellow grasshoppers in her Texas backyard are so much bigger than the green ones.With a little help from her notoriously cantankerous grandfather, an avid naturalist, she figures out that the green grasshoppers are easier to see against the yellow grass, so they are eaten before they can get any larger. As Callie explores the natural world around her, she develops a close relationship with her grandfather, navigates the dangers of living with six brothers, and comes up against just what it means to be a girl at the turn of the century.

Review:
I have to admit that I probably would have passed over this book, if it hadn’t show up on a random book list that I was browsing one day, and then that it was readily available via audiobook from the library – so I didn’t have to wait on it. I don’t know why it is, maybe because the name in the title just made me want to chuckle and not take it seriously. Either way, if I had, I would have missed out on a brilliant YA book – it was totally worth the listen and I can see why it was nominated for the Newbury Award, even if it didn’t win.

I was immediately sucked into Calpurnia Victoria Tate’s (or Cally V’s) story – she is kind of how I imagined I would be if I had grown up at the turn of the 20th century – not wanting to be what was expected of me (a housekeeper, enjoying sewing etc), but rather wanting to play outside, into science etc. I thought that the author did a job of portraying the world how it was then – the idea that as 1900 rolled around the world might end (does this sound familiar?), the introduction of coca-cola and even the invention of the automobile. Cally’s grandfather definitely made the book all the more enjoyable – in all seriousness, he was a comic relief when needed but could also be serious as well. I loved how he was so absorbed in his own world that he often forgot what was going on around him.

There wasn’t anything really earth-shattering about how the story concluded – in fact, it was a relatively logical progression through-out and you could see how it was unfolding. I did like how the use of evolution in the title could be applied in two different ways – the study of evolution as with the grasshoppers and use of Charles Darwin’s Origin of Spieces but also the evolution of Calpurnia as a woman and a person – how she changed over the course of the 7 months that the book covered.

I love Natalie Ross as a narrator of audiobooks, she is rapidly becoming a go-to person for me. But it was funny when I first started listening to the audiobook because I had just listened to another book narrated by her recently (less than 2 months ago) and I kept hearing the voice of Dani (from Iced) in my head, because they were both young female characters between the ages of 12 and 14. I hadn’t really noticed this previously and it didn’t really bother me, just intrigued me that I could hear similarities in voice patterns even though one was an urban fantasy and the other a historical fiction. I can’t say much more about the narration – I loved how Ms Ross was able to provide so many different inflections to bring the characters to life – especially with the minutia of sounds that are part of life, but don’t necessarily show up in dialogue – like hiccups (there is a relatively memorable scene featuring these), burps etc. I’m sure I would have enjoyed it as much if I read it, but listening added a whole new dimension. It would be a great audiobook to listen to with kids on a car trip because it would suck them in (hopefully).

Anyone who loves historical fiction and YA should read or listen to this book. I give it 4.5 stars.

 
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Posted by on January 6, 2013 in Audiobook Review

 

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Audiobook Review – Maisie Dobbs – Jacqueline Winspear

27 Dec

maisie dobbsMaisie Dobbs
Author: Jacqueline Winspear
Series: #1 in the Maisie Dobbs series

Narrator: Rita Barrington
Run Time: 10 hrs
Producer: AudioGO

Description:
Maisie Dobbs isn’t just any young housemaid. Through her own natural intelligence–and the patronage of her benevolent employers–she works her way into college at Cambridge. When World War I breaks out, Maisie goes to the front as a nurse. It is there that she learns that coincidences are meaningful and the truth elusive. After the War, Maisie sets up on her own as a private investigator. But her very first assignment, seemingly an ordinary infidelity case, soon reveals a much deeper, darker web of secrets, which will force Maisie to revisit the horrors of the Great War and the love she left behind.

Review:
I had heard about this series through several of my online reading buddies who loved it – so when it was selected as a group read, I figured that it must have been a sign (since I didn’t really have any interest in either of the other books selected). I was looking forward to a lite mystery after reading a lot of dark, completely jacked up Nordic Noir mysteries and this was a great palate cleanser.

I loved the character of Maisie – she just seemed so unique in the current fiction world as it stands right now. And the time period is one of interest to me since there aren’t a lot of books written in the time period between WW1 and WW2 (that I have found). The mystery wasn’t so much of a mystery as a plot leading to a realization – or at least, that is how i saw it – while I didn’t know all the details that were revealed at the end, I had a 95% idea of what the result was going to be. But I honestly didn’t mind – for me, the best part of the book was seeing how Maisie Dobbs became Maisie Dobbs. The biggest surprise for me in the story was what happened to the love of her life during the war (but don’t worry, I try to keep my reviews spoiler free – so as not to ruin the book). It wasn’t what I was expecting and totally made me tear up.

However, one of my complaints was that while I liked that flashbacks were used – they were a bit chunky – I think the first flashback actually lasted a significant portion of the book – so when it jumped back to the present day I was a bit surprised/confused. I think it either would have been better to have broken the flash-backs up into some smaller portions – almost like an appetizer, rather than a whole entree – or write the first part of the book as her history up until when the mystery began. I think the former probably would have worked the best.

Unfortunately, my experience with the audiobook didn’t live up to the book itself and if I had had time, I might have stopped listening and read instead. I know that I nearly considered doing that with the rest of the series – because someone told me that the other books are narrated by someone else. I just did not enjoy the narrators voice. While I found that her female voices were passable – her male ones were like torture – I think I would have preferred a recitation rather than hearing her try to do male voices. It just didn’t work for me – which is unfortunately, because I think if done properly, this could have been a great audiobook (and the second one – review to follow in the future), was much improved. This is the first time that I have listened to anything by this narrator and it likely will be the last. I don’t think that I can fairly judge her on any other narrations after my feelings towards this one.

Overall, I’d give the book a solid 4 stars, but the narration only 1.5 – however, I do think that the book overall balanced out the mess of the narration – so 3.5 overall.

 
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Posted by on December 27, 2012 in Audiobook Review

 

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Audiobook Review – The Ruby Ring – Diane Haegar

23 Dec

the ruby ringThe Ruby Ring
Author: Diane Haegar

Narrator: Elizabeth Wiley
Run Time: 13 hours and 23 minutes
Publisher: Audible, Inc.

Review copy provided by Audible.com via Audiobook Jukebox

Description:
Rome, 1520. The Eternal City is in mourning. Raphael Sanzio, beloved painter and national hero, has died suddenly at the height of his fame. His body lies in state at the splendid marble Pantheon. At the nearby convent of Sant’Apollonia, a young woman comes to the Mother Superior, seeking refuge. She is Margherita Luti, a baker’s daughter from a humble neighborhood on the Tiber, now an outcast from Roman society, persecuted by powerful enemies within the Vatican. Margherita was Raphael’s beloved and appeared as the Madonna in many of his paintings. Theirs was a love for the ages. But now that Raphael is gone, the convent is her only hope of finding an honest and peaceful life.

The Mother Superior agrees to admit Margherita to their order. But first, she must give up the ruby ring she wears on her left hand, the ring she had worn in Raphael’s scandalous nude “engagement portrait.” The ring has a storied past, and it must be returned to the Church or Margherita will be cast out into the streets. Behind the quiet walls of the convent, Margherita makes her decision . . . and remembers her life with Raphael—and the love and torment—embodied in that one precious jewel.

Review:
So prior to listening to the Ruby Ring, i knew very little about Raphael – as a man and as an artist – in fact, most of my knowledge steams from what I looked up when the original Teenage Mutant ninja turtles were on when I was a kid – because the 4 of them were all famous painters. But other than that, I was never really interested in artists or reading about them. But there was something about the description of The Ruby Ring that caught my eye. Possibly the idea that he had that forbidden but ultimately love – or that he went against what society believes to have this woman in his life.

I loved the story that developed between Margherita and Raphael – there were something pure about it. Especially the fact that she didn’t just fall into his arms – she had some mettle in her, and wasn’t going to be tricked into just sleeping with him and being ruined. A lot of the themes in this, reminded me of the similar story told in Course of Honour (Lindsey Davis) which followed the love story of Emperor Vespasian and the former slave, Caenis. I laughed with the characters in parts, and there definately wasn’t a dry eye in my car as I was driving around totally at random, trying to listen to the last 10 minutes of the book because I had to know what happened. My only disappointment was that we knew what happened to Raphael, but Margherita’s story just ends without a resolution – how long did she live? did she live out her days in the convent?

I have to admit that while listening to this, I have to wonder how the Catholic Church has remained the fixture that it has over the years. Pope Leo X (Pope from 1513 to 1521) seemed pretty much a corrupt individual, second only to Cardinal Bibbizena who was integral to the suffering between Raphael and Margherita. The book also made me think about how many celebrities etc are treated not as people, but as the stuff that they produce and that as a society we often forget that. Until something happens (they do something, something is done to them) and then that perspective completely changes, for a brief period of time. Then everything is back to normal.

Whether this story is the true story of Raphael’s love for a woman, or a fictional account we will never know – there is a lot of debate over who Margherita Luti was, and what brought about Raphael’s death. The romantic in me, wants to believe this story – that he went to his grave with the passion of love for her driving him on. And I can only hope, also as a romantic, that they were together again in death when she died.

I’m conflicted on the narration – while I think that the narrator did a good job of Margherita and Raphael’s voices, many of the other ones (Pope Leo for example) left a lot to be desired. It seemed as though she was really straining to accentuate some of them, and making them sound not suited in general. I think this book would have been a good one where a female narrator would have worked predominantly, but using a male for some key parts (similar to other duel narrations like Natalie Ross and Phil Gigante in Karen Marie Moning’s Fever series).

The quality of the audiobook was good for the most part. There were a few places where it got very quiet, so I had to turn up the volume, and then it would jump back to normal – but it wasn’t enough to be distracting. More of a minor irritation. I know that I will be looking for more books produced by Audible in the future – but whether I listen to anymore by the narrator is uncertain. 3.5 stars for the book, but only 2.5 for the narration – giving it 3 stars overall.

 
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Posted by on December 23, 2012 in Audiobook Review

 

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Audiobook Review – Hostage – Elie Wiesel

20 Dec

hostageHostage
Author: Elie Wiesel
Translator: Catherine Temerson

Narrator: Mark Bramhall
Run Time: 6 hrs 51 minutes
Publisher: Random House Audio

Description:
It’s 1975, and Shaltiel Feigenberg—professional storyteller, writer and beloved husband—has been taken hostage: abducted from his home in Brooklyn, blindfolded and tied to a chair in a dark basement. His captors, an Arab and an Italian, don’t explain why the innocent Shaltiel has been chosen, just that his life will be bartered for the freedom of three Palestinian prisoners. As his days of waiting commence, Shaltiel resorts to what he does best, telling stories—to himself and to the men who hold his fate in their hands.

Review:
It has been years since I’d read/listened to anything by Elie Wiesel – I remember reading Night in school – but didn’t realize that it was the first book in a trilogy. I also knew that he had written other stuff, but for some reason never actually read any of it – I’m not sure why. So when a reading challenge task arose to read a book about a renaissance author (in this instance, defined as one who is know for their writing as well as something else), I decided to finally read something else by him. Hostage is his newest book and I found that I really enjoyed it.

It had the same writing style that I vaguely remember from Night, that just sucks you in. Since I was listening, I couldn’t see for sure, but the appearance was that there were no chapters to disrupt the flow of the story. Although, this lack of chapters occasionally made it hard for me to figure out where I could safely stop when I finished my commute (I even sat in the car for a few minutes waiting one day), but at the same time, it was also easy to pick the narration back up at the end of the day/the next morning.

When I read the description and saw stories – I was expecting made up stories with morals, kind of what you would expect from a storyteller – but I was pleasantly surprised to find that the “stories” were actually reflections on his life. I also thought that Elie did a good job of walking the line between preaching about the establishment of Israel as a recognized country and the plight of the Palestinians – he was even able to work real-life events into the book (the killing of the Israeli athletes at the Olympics etc).

Mark Bramhall is another new to me narrator (I seem to have been doing a good job on exploring the wonderful world of them this year) and i think that he was perfect for the voice. It was how I would imagine a guy being held hostage, in fear for his life would talk – not too powerful, but at the same time, not too timid. Since the only other 2 people to really talk in the book were the hostage takers (aka, the Italian and the Palestinian), he didn’t have to exhibit a wide range of voices. But I would definitely be interested in checking out some more of his narrations in the future.

This was a hard book for me to rate, because it was so thought-provoking about the role of nations and nation-building; but at the same time, the struggles of the individuals who aren’t always considered or remembered. But I’d give it 4 stars overall.

 
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Posted by on December 20, 2012 in Audiobook Review

 

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Audiobook Review – The Silent Girl – Tess Gerritsen

18 Dec

the silent girlThe Silent Girl
Author: Tess Gerritsen
Series: #9 in the Rizzoli and Isles series

Narrator: Tanya Eby
Publisher: Brilliance Audio

Description:
Every crime scene tells a story. Some keep you awake at night. Others haunt your dreams. The grisly display homicide cop Jane Rizzoli finds in Boston’s Chinatown will do both.

In the murky shadows of an alley lies a female’s severed hand. On the tenement rooftop above is the corpse belonging to that hand, a red-haired woman dressed all in black, her head nearly severed. Two strands of silver hair—not human—cling to her body. They are Rizzoli’s only clues, but they’re enough for her and medical examiner Maura Isles to make the startling discovery: that this violent death had a chilling prequel.

Nineteen years earlier, a horrifying murder-suicide in a Chinatown restaurant left five people dead. But one woman connected to that massacre is still alive: a mysterious martial arts master who knows a secret she dares not tell, a secret that lives and breathes in the shadows of Chinatown. A secret that may not even be human. Now she’s the target of someone, or something, deeply and relentlessly evil.

Review:
I was conflicted going into my listen of this. It is one of the few audiobooks that I have started and then got distracted before continuing (mostly because I had a bad case of BSN disease – bright shiny new). So when I went back to the Silent Girl, I wasn’t sure what my overall opinion of it was going to be. Added to that, I had read a blog post by the author (or something on her website) where she talked about complaints from readers about this being similar to The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (which I loved)…but it took me a long while to figure out the similarities – so to me it wasn’t that obvious.

This is one of the books in the series that I really struggled about how I felt – I did like the mystery and the solving of the crime – but it hasn’t had the same relationship between Jane and Maura that was so prevalent in previous books – which was part of the reason why I enjoyed the series. And it wasn’t similar to Ice Cold, the previous book in the series, where Jane and Maura were literally cross-country from each other – this time it was a matter of personalities, beliefs, job roles…I admire Maura for standing by her beliefs – she is definately no shades of grey kind of person – it is either right or wrong – this is one of the first times that I have been disappointed in Jane as a character – I guess after 8 books, I expected more of her (lol – I can’t believe I am talking like she is a real character).

The mystery was fulfilling – I had my normal jumping back and forth trying to figure out who did it and who “The Silent Girl” really was – it wasn’t who I thought that it was originally. I did figure it out maybe about 2/3’s of the way through. I’ll be interested to see if any of these characters make an appearance in later books – I was sufficiently intrigued by the character development.

I have to admit that Tanya Eby’s narration is growing on me – I wasn’t so sure if I truely enjoyed her narration – but I did like this one. I hadn’t noticed any of the issues that I had with her narration of Ice Cold (what seemed to be a slight lisp and an irksome narration for Jane’s voice). In fact, by the end of it, I was really getting into the narration and enjoying it. It was also nice to see that she is narrating the next book in the series (after the series has played musical narrators for a good portion of it)…

Overall, a good addition to the series – not my favorite one, but an improvement over Ice Cold which I just didn’t enjoy…3.5 stars overall

 
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Posted by on December 18, 2012 in Audiobook Review

 

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Audiobook Review – Grave Mercy – R.L. LaFevers (@RLLaFevers)

06 Dec

grave mercyGrave Mercy
Author: R.L. LaFevers
Series: #1 in the My Fair Assassin series

Narrator: Erin Moon
Run time: 14 hrs and 14 mins
Publisher: Recorded Books

Description:
Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.

Ismae’s most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?

Review:
Anyone who knows me as a review, knows that I rarely give 5 star review for books, so that fact that I am seriously considering giving one to Grave Mercy should sum up what I thought of it. I originally bought the audiobook back in July after I heard it discussed on a message board and now for the life of me, I can’t remember why I didn’t listen to it then. Now having finished it, I want to kick myself for not listening sooner, but at the same time, so glad I didn’t, because now I only have 4 month wait for book 2, rather than a 9 month wait (and I can tell you that it is going to be torture…). Really hoping that the audiobook is going to be available for pre-order so I can start it on the day of release. But back to Grave Mercy…

The first thing that sucked me in (aside from the recommendation) was the cover – I love the current popularity of girls in these fancy dresses on the cover, and this one totally suited the time period that the book was set in. Plus, she was carrying a cross-bow – I mean, how bad-ass is that 😉 Then there was a time period. Having a mom that is a french/history teacher has made me a sucker for books set in unique time periods (thanks Mom!) And the history of France, and Brittany is one that has intrigued me in the past. I can’t think of any other books off the top of my head that are set during that time period (maybe a Julie Garwood romance, but not sure). Wow, have I managed to get distracted again…I totally have a case of BSN disease (bright, shiny, new…ohhh pretty!)

So anyways, cover, time period in history, oh yeah, assassin nuns…ummm, ’nuff said. I loved that Ismae wasn’t a typical wilting heroine that seems to predominant in many books (the kind of heroine that I often want to beat over the head). Although, she did have a few moments of dumb-assery (and yes, that is a real word according to Dee, and probably urban dictionary), for the most part, she was fairly level headed – while at the same time, maintaining the naitivety of a teenager, because ultimately that is what she was (I think maybe 17-19 in the book, if I can do my math).

Yes, there is romance, but it isn’t the sickly sweet, insta-love, but rather a slow developing, burning/smoldering flame. It felt real to me (and having read romances for like 15+ years now, I have a lot to compare it to). I liked the ending because everything wasn’t tied up in a pretty bow, because a) history isn’t all pretty like that (and if you google this time period and the individuals mentioned you will know why) and b) she is writing 2 more books that I am hoping/guessing will take place in roughly the same time period.

Someone commented on an Amazon message board about currently reading YA that they weren’t necessarily a fan of all the political intrigue. but for me, I really liked it – it reminded so much of what I remember reading in my history books in high school and college – there was just so much back-stabbing, jealous, planning going on. I did manage to figure out relatively early on who the traitor was (but don’t worry, I’m not going to tell you). But I did like seeing how it was all revealed as part of the plot.

Erin Moon is a new narrator to me, like so many of the audiobooks I have tried this year. She had this sweet teenage-esque voice that I think suited Ismae to a tee – but at the same time, was able to make the multiple male characters (Duval, Beast, DeLornay) sound masculine. There were a few of the lesser male characters (Francois, and the Captain of the Guards) that I felt weren’t voices as well. Mostly because they didn’t have as much of a speaking role and many of the others. I’m really hoping that she ends up narratoring the next book in the series – I don’t know (off the top of my head), any other narrators who I think could do it as well (maybe Natalie Ross or Xe Sands).

So yeah – overall, read it, listen to it, devour it…just get a copy of this book in some shape or form and read it. You won’t regret it (and if you do, well then, I plead innocent of all charges – it wasn’t my fault).

 
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Posted by on December 6, 2012 in Audiobook Review

 

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Audiobook Review – The Hobbit – J.R.R. Tolkein

30 Nov

The Hobbit
Author: J.R.R. Tolkein

Narrator: Rob Inglis
Run Time: 11 hours and 8 minutes
Publisher: Recorded Books

Book Description:
In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.

Review:
So I am probably one of the few people who had never read or listened to the Hobbit prior to this audiobook. Growing up I was never really into fantasy books – that is something that I have only started getting into in the last year or so. Of course, during college, I did go and see all three of the Lord of the Rings movies when they came out – so when I heard that the Hobbit was going to be released in December, I thought that this was a perfect time to read/listen to it (since I have a personal rule to always read the book prior to seeing the movie). As a side-note, in college, it was funny, that my one room-mate and I had christened our room, the Hobbit hole…mostly because we were the two shortest people in our company (ROTC and all that jazz), and it gave us some laughs…

Upon finishing it, all I can say is, why the heck did no one force me to read/listen to this sooner. I laughed so much while I was driving and listening – I’m actually amazed I didn’t have an accident or anything like that. I think that a lot of my enjoyment was tied up in the narration of the audiobook (but I will touch on that in a few moments). I do think that there was a lot of meandering, and times where chunks of words could have been cut out – but I also think that if that had happened, some of the magic might have been lost.

And on to the narration – I cannot imagine anyone better than Rob Inglis to narrate this book. As soon as I started, I was sucked into his narration. His singing of the various ditties through-out was perfect (I wasn’t sure how they were going to turn out). And his Golem voice – I seriously felt like I was in the movie theater seeing Golem as he was in the Lord of the Rings movies (although, looking at the cast list, I can see that it wasn’t him). My mind is still boggled at how he managed to make all of the dwarves sound different through-out – especially with how similar many of the names were – I know that I would have been likely befuddled.

This is an audiobook that can be enjoyed by all – lovers of Tolkein and newbies; young and old. Listen to it!

 
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Posted by on November 30, 2012 in Audiobook Review

 

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Audiobook Review – The Lifeboat – Charlotte Rogan (@charlotte_rogan @RebeccaGibel)

27 Nov

The Lifeboat
Author: Charlotte Rogan

Narrator: Rebecca Gibel
Run Time: 7hrs and 47 minutes
Publisher: Hachette Audio

Book Description:
Grace Winter, 22, is both a newlywed and a widow. She is also on trial for her life.

In the summer of 1914, the elegant ocean liner carrying her and her husband Henry across the Atlantic suffers a mysterious explosion. Setting aside his own safety, Henry secures Grace a place in a lifeboat, which the survivors quickly realize is over capacity. For any to live, some must die.

As the castaways battle the elements, and each other, Grace recollects the unorthodox way she and Henry met, and the new life of privilege she thought she’d found. Will she pay any price to keep it?

Review:
So I have to say upfront, that I originally started reading this book in print and kept getting distracted. I know that it wasn’t a very long book, but for some reason at that time, it just wasn’t clicking. But after seeing the good review that my friend Naomi gave it, I decided to give it another try and put my name on the reservation list for the audiobook (and FWIW, having to wait for it to come in when you are 45th on the list sucks! I think it took about 4 months for it to come in…).

Being a psychologist in training (if I ever finish this damn PhD), I loved the way that the author managed to intersperse different ideas into the novel. Yes, it was a story of survival – but there were so many other elements – the idea of hope and giving up – can you survive when you think there is nothing more out there? How various people emerge different roles in situations of high stress. The notion of group think in a scenario like this? Stockholm syndrome and how it can affect people’s behavior, both during and after events. And so many more – but don’t worry, I won’t be too much of a dork – but it did hit my enjoyment button in all the right places. I enjoyed how she used flashbacks to tell most of the story – it is often a hard writing style to pull off, but it was well-done. My only gripe I had was the ending was fairly obvious – I was able to figure out what was going to happen about half-way through – but that didn’t ruin my enjoyment of the book.

Rebecca Gibel is a brand-new audiobook narrator to me, and I can tell you for sure that it won’t be the last time I listen to something done by her. There was something melodic about her voice, that I was just sucked in. It was a relatively short audiobook and because I enjoyed the narration so much – I sat in my car at work one morning and listened to like another 15 minutes of the book (much to my co-workers disgust because she was waiting for me to get coffee – don’t worry, she gave up and went by herself 😉 ) I did like how she was able to draw on a variety of accents that encompassed the different countries of origin of the passengers. As the majority of the book was told from Grace’s perspective, I wasn’t really able to tell how well she did male voices, so that is going to be something that I am looking out for in the future listens. But overall, totally worth it. I would give both the narration and the book itself 3.5 stars, but rounding up to 4.

 
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Posted by on November 27, 2012 in Audiobook Review

 

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Audiobook Review – The Warlord Wants Forever – Kresley Cold

25 Nov

The Warlord Wants Forever
Author: Kresley Cole
Series: #1 in the Immortals After Dark series

Narrators: Hagan Verret and Simone Fomhar
Run Time: 3hrs and 58 minutes
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Description:
Nikolai Wroth, once a ruthless human warlord in the 1700s and now a general in the rebel vampire army, needs to find his Bride, the one woman who can render him truly alive. As a turned human, he doesn’t enjoy a heartbeat or breaths and is consequently weaker than fully blooded vampires. He wants his Bride for the power she will bring him and can hardly believe it when his heart beats for Myst the Coveted, a mad, fey, mythological creature.

Myst is known throughout the world as the most beautiful Valkyrie, part chillingly fierce warrior, part beguiling seductress who can “make you want her even as she’s killing you.” She has devoted her life to protecting an ancient, powerful jewel and to fighting the vampires, and she now sees a way to torment one—for with Wroth’s heartbeat comes consuming sexual desire that can only be slaked by her.

She eludes him for five years, but he has finally chased her to ground and stolen the jewel which commands her, giving him absolute power over her. While he possesses it, he can make her do anything, and he plans to in order for her to experience first hand the agonizing, unending lust she’d purposely subjected him to for half a decade. Yet when Wroth realizes he wants more from her and frees her, will she come back to him?

Review:
So in all honesty, I needed to start another series like a hole in the head…I mean, seriously – 20+ series in progress right now, and I decide to start one that has 12 books currently and more to come…yeah…anyways, I want to say that maybe I read this book a while ago when it was part of an anthology. I know that I have the anthology on the shelf somewhere…but I was blanking on the story itself…enter the audiobooks that are slowly being released. Being as the audiobook was just under 4 hours long – it was perfect to finish out a weeks listening because I started another chunky read.

Anyways…meandering back on to the book…I liked the world that the author developed – there wasn’t a whole bunch of fact dropping, but rather just little tidbits of information bit by bit. And I still had some questions left at the end of the book, which I’m hoping are answered in later ones in the series. When it comes to mythology, I am always glad to see new beings making appearances – there are only so many times that the major gods/goddesses’ can be written about – so the use of the Harpies was unique – off the top of my head, I can’t think of any other books featuring them as primary characters (if you have any ideas, please let me know)…

As for the narration, ummm, yeah, I will be on the look-out for both Hagan Verret and Simone Fomhar in the future. I haven’t listened to anything narrated by them before, but I was impressed. I had read a few reviews where the listening didn’t really enjoy Hagan’s narration – but I enjoyed it. Although, I do have to say, after listening to the next book in the series – Robert Petkoff is as good, if not better. I really liked the range of voices that both of the narrators were able to put into the characters and found them all easily distinguishable. I’m looking forward to reading/listening to the other books in the series.

 
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Posted by on November 25, 2012 in Audiobook Review

 

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Audiobook Review – Circle of Quilters – Jennifer Chiaverini (@jchiaverini)

19 Nov

Circle of Quilters
Author: Jennifer Chiaverini
Series: #9 in the Elm Creek Quilts series

Narrator: Christina Moore
Run Time: 10hrs and 12 minutes
Publisher: Recorded Books

Book Description:
Elm Creek Quilts, the thriving artists’ retreat at Elm Creek Manor, is a place that stakes its sterling reputation on the palpable creative energy and collective goodwill of its teachers and students. But when two of its founding members decide to leave the fold, the Elm Creek Quilters face untold changes not only in their personal lives but also in their business. As the news spreads, a single question emerges: Who can possibly take their place?

An Elm Creek Quilter must not only possess mastery of quilting technique but teaching experience, a sense of humor, and that intangible quality that allows an individual to blend harmoniously into a group. With high hopes, Elm Creek Quilts posts an open call for applicants.

Review
I’ll be the first to admit that learning to quilt is on my bucket list. I can already cross-stitch, crochet (to an extent – meaning that I am really good at making scarves) and other stuff like that, and while I have tried quilting in the past, I haven’t had the time to dedicate to it (as much as I would have loved). But i remember when I first came across the Elm Creek Quilts series – one of my good friends from college took up quilting (and is still doing it to this day) and for Christmas that first year (or maybe it was her birthday), I bought her the first two books in the series. And while I was at it, I bought myself the first book – and there is has languished in the TBR pile since. Then at the library one day, I saw the audiobook for one of the later books in the series (maybe book 5 or 6) and I grabbed it, thinking what the heck…I was soon hooked.

This entry into the series was slightly different from the rest, as it was told in a series of short-stories/flashbacks. The general theme was that the four people who featured predominantly through-out were being considered as staff as the quilting school. Through these flashbacks you see how they started quilting, what was their inspiration, and methods to their creativity in their own designs. However, the other characters that I have come to enjoy in the other books (Sylvia and the other quilters) also made an appearance.

For me, I think the narration by Christina Moore makes a good book all the better. I enjoy all the voices that she uses for the characters and having listened to 3 or 4 books now, she has been able to keep them consistent over the different installments. My only comment would be, that aside from this one, there are very few males who appear in the series, so i don’t necessarily have a good judge of her range with masculine voices – but what I did hear in this one, I am impressed and hope to hear more. I’m looking forward to finishing this series up next year (hopefully) and looking for more in the future. Overall 3.5 stars.

 
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Posted by on November 19, 2012 in Audiobook Review

 

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