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Audiobook Review – Undone – Karin Slaughter

25 Sep

Undone
Author: Karin Slaughter
Series: #3 in the Will Trent series; #1 in the Georgia series

Narrator: Natalie Ross
Run Time: 16 hrs and 7 min
Publisher: Brilliance Audio

Book Description:
When a tortured young woman enters the trauma center of an Atlanta hospital, Dr. Sara Linton is thrust into a desperate police investigation with Special Agent Will Trent and his partner, Faith Mitchell. Though guarding their own wounds and their own secrets, Sara, Will, and Faith find that they are all that stand between a madman and his next victim.

Review:
One of the things I love about Karin Slaughter’s books is that she isn’t afraid to go dark – and for me the darker the better. Such is the case in Undone. Having kind of jumped around her various series’ in the last year or so (Book 1 and 6 in her Grant County series and book 4 in the Will Trent series), you would think that I would have learnt to actually read books in order. I did feel kind of lost a few times when the history of various characters were mentioned but since all the books in the series are interlinked, I knew to expect that.

Undone opens on a dark and deserted road (which I guess could be kind of a cliche) but totally wasn’t and the reader (or listener) in my case, is quickly sucked into the case by Will’s actions. It was great seeing Sara Linton show up as a character again showing how the Grant series books ended (but I won’t tell you what happened there), as well as seeing Will and Sara interact for the first time. Now that I have read Undone, I want to go back and re-listen to Broken which is the first book by this author that I read and that i have to admit, I enjoyed but was also completely lost character wise during. There were so many twists and turns through-out the book that I didn’t figure out who the killer was until right before they were revealed.

I have come to realize that I like Natalie Ross’ narration of audiobooks over the last year. I loved her narration of the last 3 books in Karen Marie Moning’s Fever series and listening to her narration of Undone just sealed my enjoyment of her narration skills. I loved how all her different voices were do distinct and she had a nice southern twang that I experienced while living in Georgia without it being too overwhelming. I started listening to Undone on the drive home from a concert one night and found myself wanting to take the longer route home so that I could listen to more of it before I had to stop.

Overall, I’d give the book 4 stars and the narration 4 stars and highly recommend it to people who enjoy police procedurals, mysteries, and thrillers. But if you dont’ like the dark and disturbing, this book isn’t for you.

 
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Posted by on September 25, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – Burning Alive – Shannon K. Butcher

20 Sep

Burning Alive
Author: Shannon K. Butcher
Series: #1 in the Sentinel Wars series

Book Description:
Three races descended from ancient guardians of mankind, each possessing unique abilities in their battle to protect humanity against their eternal foes-the Synestryn. Now, one warrior must fight his own desire if he is to discover the power that lies within his one true love…

Helen Day is haunted by visions of herself surrounded by flames, as a dark-haired man watches her burn. So when she sees the man of her nightmares staring at her from across a diner, she attempts to flee-but instead ends up in the man’s arms. There, she awakens a force more powerful and enticing than she could ever imagine. For the man is actually Theronai warrior Drake, whose own pain is driven away by Helen’s presence.

Together, they may become more than lovers-they may become a weapon of light that could tip the balance of the war and save Drake’s people…

Review:
I wanted to like this book so much, but it was a disappointment. It had been recommended several times to me on the Paranormal Romance boards over on Amazon and for the most part, there are a good of people there that I trust when it comes to recommendations – but for some reason this there just seemed to be something missing.

I had been reading Burning Alive for maybe 3 or 4 chapters and from what had occurred in the story, it seemed like I was missing some kid of back story…so I can off to goodreads to check and see if there was maybe a prequel that I was missing, but nope. So I had to content myself with scratching my head and hoping that more about the world was explained later one. While as it progressed more of the world came out, but by the time I finished it, I was still so confused about the world, I was glad to see the book done. I normally have a rule about reading at least 2 books in a series before deciding if I want to continue it or not, but I’m not sure if I want to spend the money on buying the second book. If my library has a copy I may go that route, otherwise, I don’t see myself reading another one. Overall 1.5 stars…

 
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Posted by on September 20, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Audiobook Review – Animal Magnetism – Jill Shalvis

18 Sep

Animal Magnetism
Author: Jill Shalvis
Series: #1 in the Animal Magnetism series

Narrator: Karen White
Run Time: 10 hours and 32 minutes

Book Description:
Co-owner of the town’s only kennel, Lilah Young has lived in Sunshine, Idaho, all her life. Pilot-for-hire Brady Miller is just passing through. But he soon has Lilah abandoning her instincts and giving in to a primal desire.

It’s Brady’s nature to resist being tied down, but there’s something about Lilah and her menagerie that keeps him coming back for more.

Review:
Jill Shalvis is a name that commonly comes up in romance forums for people looking for contemporary romances to read, but for the life of me, prior to listening to Animal Magnetism, I couldn’t read if I had read anything by her. I don’t think I had, or I have just forgotten (which is entirely possibly, since I am always making jokes about my mind being as leaky as a sieve). So I was looking forward to picking up Animal Magnetism and listening to it and overall, I have to say that it was an enjoyable listen.

The first thing that drew my attention to the book, even before I bought the audio was the cover. I am a sucker for dogs and the eyes on the one on the cover just made my heart go awww (very similar to what my German Shepherd does to me most days – and which is he actually doing right now, since I am typing and not playing Frisbee for the 10 millionth hour today…). And the fact that there was a hot guy holding the puppy, even better -lol – what can I say. There was something about Brody, after I started reading AM that just drew me in. I think it is the guy who is a nomad, trying to find out who he is and ending up back where he began that just draws me in. Although, I will say that Lilah did kind of bug me. I understand the whole wanting to be independent, heck, I am very much like that. But at the same time, there is a difference between being independent and being stupid, and I feel that she definitely bordered on the latter, not the former.

Looking back at my audio listening, I also couldn’t believe that I had never listened to anything done by Karen White prior to this – so it was a two-fer of newbies for me. I’d chatted with her several times in one of my goodreads groups, and after listening to her narration, I know that it won’t be the last time that I listen to anything done by her. I liked her range of voices for the different characters and she was even able to pull off 3 distinctive male voices, which is something that I often find female narrators have a hard time doing (and the same can often be said for males voicing females). As I was listening to her narration, I could see all the characters in my head.

The production of the audio was excellent and I had no complaints about the quality of the download from audible. Overall, I’d give both the book and the narration 3.5 stars, but rounding up to 4 for the consistency between the two.

 
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Posted by on September 18, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – Laugh with the Moon – Shana Burg

16 Sep

Laugh With The Moon
Author: Shana Burg

Book Description:
Thirteen-year-old Clare Silver is stuck. Stuck in denial about her mother’s recent death. Stuck in the African jungle for sixty-four days without phone reception. Stuck with her father, a doctor who seems able to heal everyone but Clare.

Clare feels like a fish out of water at Mzanga Full Primary School, where she must learn a new language. Soon, though, she becomes immersed in her new surroundings and impressed with her fellow students, who are crowded into a tiny space, working on the floor among roosters and centipedes.

When Clare’s new friends take her on an outing to see the country, the trip goes horribly wrong, and Clare must face another heartbreak head-on. Only an orphan named Memory, who knows about love and loss, can teach Clare how to laugh with the moon.

Review:
This is another book that I likely would never have picked up if I wasn’t doing my read around the world challenge. Set in Malawi (which prior to this I only knew through mentions of it on Grey’s Anatomy) it is the story of a teenager who goes (against her will) with her father who has volunteered to be a doctor there. He had previous spent time there when he was younger and wanted to go back. In the beginning Clare drove me nuts and I couldn’t help but feel that she was acting like a spoiled brat. It wasn’t until about mid-way through the book that you found out a lot about what had happened to her in the previous year and felt kind of sorry for her. In the end, my perception of both her and her father changed – I ended up liking her a bit more, but felt that her dad was a bit self-obsessed and couldn’t see that his daughter was suffering.

You could tell just from the reading and the vivid portrayal of life in the country that she had spent time there which was confirmed by reading her bio after the fact. This would be a really good book to teach in a classroom because of the life-lessons that are illustrated in the book. The rise of YA fiction set in Africa and other countries makes for a wide variety of books that could be used in the classroom. I would recommend this to anyone who wants to read about Africa, or who wants to get their kids involved in reading about kids in other countries. 3.5 stars overall.

 
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Posted by on September 16, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Audiobook Review – Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself – Alan Alda

16 Sep

Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself
Author/Narrator: Alan Alda
Run Time: 6 hours, 1 min

Book Description:
On the heels of his acclaimed memoir, Never Have Your Dog Stuffed, beloved actor and bestselling author Alan Alda has written Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself, an insightful and funny look at some of the impossible questions he’s asked himself over the years: What do I value? What, exactly, is the good life? (And what does that even mean?)
Picking up where his bestselling memoir left off–having been saved by emergency surgery after nearly dying on a mountaintop in Chile–Alda finds himself not only glad to be alive but searching for a way to squeeze the most juice out of his new life. Looking for a sense of meaning that would make this extra time count, he listens in on things he’s heard himself saying in private and in public at critical points in his life–from the turbulence of the sixties, to his first Broadway show, to the birth of his children, to the ache of September 11, and beyond. Reflecting on the transitions in his life and in all our lives, he notices that “doorways are where the truth is told,” and wonders if there’s one thing–art, activism, family, money, fame–that could lead to a “life of meaning.”

Review:
I’ve always liked Alan Alda – I grew up watching MASH re-runs on TV, and to this day, it is a comfort show for me. 99.9% of the time, I have already seen the episode, but there is the odd-occasion where one that I don’t remember ever watching pops up. So when I was browsing the shelves at the library one day and came across this audiobook, I jumped on the chance to list. As with the Ellen DeGeneres one, it is narrated by the author, and after listening to it, I don’t know if I could have named anyone better suited to do it.

Each chapter in the book is based around one of the various speeches that he has been invited to give over the years – at college graduations; for various professional societies and the events in his life that have influenced what he talks about and how he came to give the speech. So in and of, itself there is a lot of personal memories. But it also has his known sardonic humor that many of us probably remember from his role as Hawkeye (I mean, who can forget him making gin in his tent…).

The production of the audiobook was good, although, the CD’s when I listened to them, you could tell that they were a bit older and there were a few jumps here and there – but it didn’t distracted me too much. I’m def. going to be checking out Alda’s other memoirs in the future. 3.5 stars.

 
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Posted by on September 16, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – Hearts in Darkness – Laura Kaye

15 Sep

Hearts in Darkness
Author: Laura Kaye

Book Description:
Makenna James thinks her day can’t get any worse, until she finds herself stuck in a pitch-black elevator with a complete stranger. Distracted by a phone call and juggling too much stuff, the pin-striped accountant caught only a glimpse of a dragon tattoo on his hand before the lights went out.

Caden Grayson is amused when a redhead literally falls at his feet. His amusement turns to panic when the power fails. Despite his piercings, tats, and vicious scar, he’s terrified of the dark and confined spaces. Now, he’s trapped in his own worst nightmare.

To fight fear, they must both reach out and open up. With no preconceived notions based on looks to hold them back, they discover just how much they have in common. In the warming darkness, attraction grows and sparks fly, but will they feel the same when the lights come back on?

Review:
I’ll be the first to admit that I struggle with enjoying novellas. Most of the time, I am left unfulfilled with the conclusion at the end, because it seems as though the author just ran out of word count and had to end the story at a given point. Even more so, I’m not a fan of books where it encompasses only a couple of scenes, because I feel even more jilted. So when I saw that Hearts in Darkness was only 110 pages in print, I was skeptical. About the only thing that convinced me to pick it up was that many of my friends had given it 4 and 5 stars on Goodreads.com and since I rely on them to help me choose the books, I want to read – I took a chance on it.

I have to admit that overall, I was pleasantly surprised. True it was short and it only took me about 40 minutes to read (if that), but I felt like the author did a good job in the limited time she had for character development and while maybe a tad unbelieveable…umm, yeah, hooking up with a guy who you got stuck in an elevator is every girl’s wish right? I liked how the story progressed. I would love to see her take the characters and re-visit them, or maybe feature some of the minor ones that appears in this book and give them their own.

FWIW, I also loved the cover – how it was attractive without being too showy – there was just something that drew me to it. I’m curious to know who the cover artist was, so i can see what else they have designed in the future. Either way, I am intrigued enough by her writing, that I am going to be checking out some other books by her in the future and hopefully, they are as enjoyable as this one. 3.75 stars.

 
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Posted by on September 15, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Audiobook Review – The Stonecutter – Camilla Läckberg

10 Sep

The Stonecutter
Author: Camilla Läckberg
Series: #3 in the Patrik Hedström series

Narrator: David Thorn
Run Time: 16 hours and 58 minutes

Review Copy Provided by Audiobook Jukebox and Highbridge Audio

Book Description: The remote resort of Fjallbacka has seen its share of tragedy, though perhaps none worse than that of the little girl found in a fisherman’s net. But the post-mortem reveals that this is no case of accidental drowning!

Local detective Patrik Hedstrom has just become a father. It is his grim task to discover who could be behind the methodical murder of a child both he and his partner, Erica, knew well. He knows the real question – and answer – lies with why. What he does not know is how this case will reach into the dark heart of Fjallbacka and the town’s past, and tear aside its idyllic facade, perhaps forever.

Review:
I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical at first when I started The Stonecutter as to if I would enjoy it or not. I had previously tried several times to listen to the first book in the series and kept getting distracted – so I didn’t know if it was an issue with the author, the audio, or the fact that I was trying to listen to it at work. And normally, I am a stickler for listening to series books in order, especially ones like The Stonecutter where many of the same characters re-appear and the relationships develop through-out the books. But after talking to one of my friends who had read all three books in the series, she told me that I should be ok to listen to The Stonecutter without too much trouble and then went on to say that it was her favorite in the series to date. I’m glad that I listened to her advice and now I am debating going back and trying to listen to the previous two, because I am curious enough about the some of the things that were mentioned in this third book to know the context in which they originally occurred.

There were lots of twists and turns presented during the book, and at one stage, I thought I had the who done it, narrowed down to one of three people, but to my surprise when I did finally figure it out, it wasn’t any of the people I was expecting. Läckberg did a great job of laying a foundation of multiple people playing a role in the crime where it could have easily have been any one of several people. I also liked the fact, as with other Nordic authors, the case isn’t presented as a wham bam solve it in one day, but rather it is extended, many different people get questioned and mistakes are made. I also found that the transition between the past and the present flowed relatively smoothly once I got used to it and I could easily see that the chronological progression of the sections from the past meant that it was going to be significant in the ultimately solving of the crime.

Unlike many of the books that fall within the Nordic Noir genre, Camilla Läckberg tends to place a bit more of a focus on the character interactions and relationships, as well as the solving of the crime. At times this was a bit distracting and it felt to me like everyone had some kind of psychological issue (and that I could have been reading symptoms in the DSV-IV). But ultimately many of these issues ended up playing kind of a role in the development of the crime and the eventual solving of it. I wasn’t necessarily a fan of some of the secondary characters and felt that there was some extraneous plots going on (Erica’s sister for one), but with how the book concluded, I think those are going to play a role in later books in the series.

This is the first time that I had listened to a narration by David Thorn (aside from my failed attempt with The Ice Princess which didn’t have anything to do with him as I reflect back). But it won’t be the last. For the most part, I thought he did a good job with the various voices, in particular the male characters. His female voices tended to be weaker than the male ones but that didn’t really surprise me at all. He managed to maintain the continuity of the narration through-out and it was an easy listen.

The production by Highbridge Audio was really good and I didn’t have any complaints about the quality. Just one of my tiny pet peeves is that I like it when CD’s end at the end of a chapter because I routinely try to finish listening to the current chapter on my commute to work in the mornings (or afternoons) and have been known to sit in my car to finish up one – but that is really hard to do if the chapter doesn’t end with the CD – but that is probably just a personal pet peeve of mine and may not bug others.

Overall, I’d give the story a 3.5 and the narration a 4.5 – so an overall score of 4 stars for the book. I’m looking forward to re-trying the earlier books in the series and seeing where she goes in the future.

 
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Posted by on September 10, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – Scored – Lily Harlem

06 Sep

Scored
Author: Lily Harlem

Book Description:
Okay, so I eat, sleep and breathe football and reporting the beautiful game is my dream career. But that doesn’t mean I don’t have time for a major crush on the England captain, Lewis Tate. The bloke is sex on legs, hot with a capital H. Add in his awe-inspiring talent, his brooding good looks and what’s not to lust after?

So my excitement is sky-high as I set off with the official press team to cover England’s battle for the European Cup. But when a series of unfortunate, or as it turns out fortunate events, attracts Tate’s attention my way, who am I to say no?

Add in a misogynistic manager, an over-zealous colleague, two blue silk ties and some incredible ball-handling skills and it becomes clear the road to victory, for me, will be an intensely erotic journey. Determined to savor every moment, I hang onto my sanity as best I can while living the fantasy and wondering if it can ever become reality. Because once Lewis Tate has taken me to heaven and back, its clear no one else will ever compare.

Review:
This is the first time that I’ve read anything by Lily Harlem, but not the first time I’ve heard of her. One of my good virtual friends on goodreads, loves her stuff and so her name has come up in recommendations several times. So when I was looking for a book featuring soccer and her book showed up on the Amazon listopia, I figured it was time to give her a try.

I almost immediately fell in love with Nicky – she reminded me a lot of myself when it came to sports, because there were some that I used to follow passionately. Although, I can’t say that I do so much anymore…unfortunately. She also works in pretty much a male dominated career field, not so much the journalism, but the sports writing, the same as me (mine being the military) and she managed to get herself into insane scrapes…yea, well, we won’t go there for me…lol! I loved the passion that Ms Harlem was able to put into her writing and you could also tell that she had done her research into various soccer tournaments because there was an air of knowledge portrayed that seemed genuine.

And Lewis…oh Lewis…ummm, yeah, I love a man who can handle balls…(snerk!). Not going to say much more on that topic, otherwise we might hit an x-rating (well, not quite, but the possibility exists). Either way, I can’t wait to read more by this author in the future and hope others check her out. 4 stars.

Unfortunately, for you non-kindle readers, it is only available electronically right now – but hopefully will be in print in the future
Scored (Kindle)

 
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Posted by on September 6, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – Nice Girls Don’t Have Fangs – Molly Harper

06 Sep

Nice Girls Don’t Have Fangs
Author: Molly Harper
Series: #1 in the Jane Jameson series

Narrator: Amanda Ronconi
Run Time: 9 hours and 24 minutes.

Book Description:
Maybe it was the Shenanigans gift certificate that put her over the edge. When children’s librarian and self-professed nice girl Jane Jameson is fired by her beastly boss and handed twenty-five dollars in potato skins instead of a severance check, she goes on a bender that’s sure to become Half Moon Hollow legend. On her way home, she’s mistaken for a deer, shot, and left for dead. And thanks to the mysterious stranger she met while chugging neon-colored cocktails, she wakes up with a decidedly unladylike thirst for blood.

Jane is now the latest recipient of a gift basket from the Newly Undead Welcoming Committee, and her life-after-lifestyle is taking some getting used to. Her recently deceased favorite aunt is now her ghostly roommate. She has to fake breathing and endure daytime hours to avoid coming out of the coffin to her family. She’s forced to forgo her favorite down-home Southern cooking for bags of O negative. Her relationship with her sexy, mercurial vampire sire keeps running hot and cold. And if all that wasn’t enough, it looks like someone in Half Moon Hollow is trying to frame her for a series of vampire murders. What’s a nice undead girl to do?

Review
I’m going to preface this review by saying I came to Molly Harper’s writing later than many other people who have read her stuff. And, I read/listened to her Naked Werewolf series prior to listening to Jane Jamison which were her earlier works. So I think I went into Nice Girls with higher expectations because I had previous enjoyed her works. Don’t get me wrong, I liked it, I just didn’t love it like I was expecting to.

From the get-go you could tell that this was one of her earlier works and if you read later books, you can see how her writing style has improved (it is still the same quirky that I enjoy, but the Naked Werewolf books were a bit tighter writing, which made them flow better). However, I did enjoy Jane’s antics (because there really is no other way to describe them). Although, I did solve the mystery element fairly early on (or rather, I had a pretty solid idea of who is was, so the reveal didn’t add that much to the story for me). But I will be looking forward to checking in on Jane again in the future (and luckily for me, I have 5 other books in the series to read!)

Amanda Ronconi, the narrator, is probably one of my top 5 that I have discovered in the last year, along with Xe Sands. I know immediately picking up anything narrated by her, that she is going to hit on the quirky/humorous nature of the writing without too much difficulty. While her male voices, are occasionally, only so-so (but they grow on you), I love her female ones and feel that she had a good range to work with. I’ll be watching for more stuff narrated by her in the future.

Nice Girls Don’t Have Fangs (Paperback)
Nice Girls Don’t Have Fangs (Kindle)

 
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Posted by on September 6, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – A Gift For My Sister – Ann Pearlman

04 Sep

A Gift for My Sister
Author: Ann Pearlman

Book Description:
Tara and Sky share a mother, but aside from that they seem to differ in almost every way. When a series of tragedies strikes, they must somehow come together in the face of heartbreak, dashed hopes, and demons of the past. The journey they embark on forces each woman to take a walk in the other’s shoes and examine what sisterhood really means to them. It’s a long road to understanding, and everyone who knows them hopes these two sisters can find a way back to each other.

Review:
The first thing that drew me to this book was the cover, there was just something whimsical about it, but then reading the cover copy, I knew going in that it was likely going to be a gut-wrencher and was it in a way. Not a complete blubbering mess like some books i have read recently (Yes, Kristin Hannah, I’m looking at you..) but still an emotional read. I loved how the author not only choose to use an alternating view point between Sky and Tara, but that the each chapter was titled the same as it alternated, so you saw each scenario through both of their eyes. The use of the two different font styles in the books, further emphasized the different POV’s.

That being said, Sky bugged the ever living shit out of me…I know that everyone grieves differently, but damn, she was just a bitch. Although, I also don’t think Tara was completely innocent in the whole scenario either. It was nice seeing their relationship start to mend over the course of the book – while I realize that it won’t ever be tied up in a pretty bow, you could see the inroads that were made. Bonus in the book, there were recipes at the end! I photo-copied a couple of them and can’t wait to try them out! Overall, I’d give it 3.75/5 and might possible seek more out by the author in the future.

A Gift for My Sister (Hardcover)
A Gift for My Sister (Kindle)

 
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Posted by on September 4, 2012 in Book Review

 

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