Monthly Archives: April 2016

Apr 28 2016

AudioBook Review – The Terran Gambit

I had been scouring around for something else to tickle my fancy and I went for another nosey over at Nick Webb and Greg Tremblay (cant help it if I like already proven writers and narrators haha… 🙂 so I took another look at this series. Below are my thoughts as per usual. Took me a while to get into this one, but started to enjoy it a lot.
You can pick up the Audio from here –
http://www.audible.co.uk/pd/Sci-Fi-Fantasy/The-Terran-Gambit-Audiobook/B00RW0TXFO
: )

“Great SF!”

I first listened to a sample of this series, (before buying the other one) and wasn’t 100% sold on the beginning I have to admit. It started off a little slow for me, and I didn’t think I liked Jake at all. (and it’s my fav character name ever)

But I do love Nick’s other series, and thought it deserved a chance. So, I dived in. After getting over the beginning and the backstory behind the Pax Humana and the world he’d created, I did start to like the story and Jake, even though he’s a bit of an idiot.

Nick weaves a pretty solid world here, but it does take some focus to understand all the different worlds, and how they’ve come to be where they are, with the resistance. Perhaps it was the depth of the world that just didn’t quite flow as well for me as the previous audiobook’s I’ve delved into, or it could just be, that this was his first, and he was finding his feet a bit more 🙂 either way, it’s still a very enjoyable story and one that I will listen to again and pass on the ‘amazon kindle’ versions to my mum, I know she’ll love them, haha.

There were a great number of characters in here, and Greg always delivers a fab performance, his voices and acting is a pleasure to listen to and suits this genre very well. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves Military SO and Sci Fi.

Some of the more distinct ones, have to be Po and Ben, considering what they all go through, they form a great team and as characters they really do grow, I can’t help but feel for them, in their situation and in their pain. It’s a really harsh world they’re in. And lots of people die, for all the wrong and right reasons. Some really hard decisions for Jake, and though they’re the better ones, it’s a tough call to do it still, he’s got some huge kahonas doing it.

So, on to the next, I’ve already gotten about an hour into it, 🙂 and I also bought the third. thanks both to Nick and Greg for the entertainment, it makes my life so much more interesting.

Apr 26 2016

AudioBook Review – Riders of the Purple Saga

Written by Zane Grey, narrated by Ann M. Richardson.

A western… oh my goodness I actually listened to nearly 12 hours of a western. Where were the space ships and aliens…. haha.

Seriously if you love westerns this is a total classic, and a joy to listen to. 🙂

 

Review is ————-

 

“Different….”

The beautiful thing with Audio Books is that you can listen to them and do a hundred other things. For me it’s driving.

I used to watch and read westerns when I was much younger, but I admit I’ve never picked this one up.

It is a classic, and beautifully written, with long descriptive prose and imagery. This is the first book of Ann M Richardson’s I have listened to, and despite the genre not being something I would avidly seek out, I was totally swept away in her narration of Jane. Ann, has a fantastic ability to perform both side, male and female and to draw you in with the characters wonderful accents. It really was a joy to listen to, and I would defo look out for more books by her.

As for the genre and story, I think what surprised me more than anything because of the era and generation of the characters in the book, I really wasn’t expecting there to be as much sex, romance and violence, haha, but they were all very pleasant surprises, and I can totally see why this was a book that marked the era from which it came from, it’s so distinctive and well thought out. jane’s got so much going on, she turns to one person and things go from bad to worse, for her personal character I could only wish that many of my friends were as strong and had as much courage as Jane. With her religious beliefs and her upbringing she really stands out. I couldn’t help myself but like her.

The author tied in so many smaller plots, and wove the whole world together so very well that even though this was a long piece for me to listen too, it was still very much an enjoyable audio.It also left me thinking about picking up another western, I guess I’m not totally against any genre now. I’ve listened to so much more than i’d ever thought I would by becoming an Audible member : )

I would highly recommend this for someone who has already read and loved the book, or for those who would like a taste of life back in this era it is just so full of life, it’s hardships and it’s loves. A fab tale to become totally engrossed with.

I was given a copy of this audio in exchange for an honest opinion by the narrator.

Apr 22 2016

AudioBook Review – The Anonymous Source

A very stressful week in work, but I’ve had this amazing book to listen to. Not one I’d normally pick up, but I can’t help but be a Jeff Hays fan now 🙂 hhahaa
This book by A.C Fuller and narrated by Jeff Hays is well worth a listen if you already love the genre!
Review is as follows —————-
“So interesting…. “

One of the best things I’ve loved about AudioBooks is that I’m really opening up the kind of genre’s I usually read etc. And I’ve been pleasantly surprised about a lot of them.

I’ve never really read anything in the crime/thriller category. So this was a first for me. What I enjoyed the most has to be the character element in here. Alex and Camilla are so deeply drawn that they could almost be my next door neighbours. There were some amazing character flaws that they both had, Alex so uptight over food and the fact he was fat, totally resonated with me, suffering with Anorexia for 16 years. But Camilla’s almost nonchalance over what she put in her mouth was brilliant. They are chalk and cheese and their being in this awful situation, and investigating it puts them each others pockets.

Jeff really does bring this story to life in the most amazing way, from their voices, to their eating and running. The food side of things, very distracting, when you’re listening to the book and driving a food van, I’m sure I ate more than usual this week, and I’m blaming this book!

I found that the whole AudioBook was alive. Both characters had deep problems, and inner turmoil which was played with great attention to detail by the writer and tone by the narrator, this really made the exciting scenes, tense and fast, and the slower scenes, where Alex and Camilla talked to each other about their lives deep and meaningful.

There were many twists and turns in here, and I won’t spoil it for anyone, especially the ending.I have to admit that one of my fav moments was when Alex admits to Cam, that he’s falling in love with her, and she tells him not to.

I’m a sucker for a really good story and with it being around 9/11 which even for me from the UK was hard to watch (I’d had major knee surgery the day before) and was at home when it hit out news. It was well crafted, brilliantly paced and full of little tips and hints for Alex and Camilla.

The only reason why I marked it down a little was because of the ending, maybe it’s just the genre, but I did expect more from it. I think this is something I need to listen to more of before I can totally judge it though.

Very glad I picked this one up still. 🙂 and will look out for more.

Apr 22 2016

Stressful Week! but it is over!

 

It’s really just been one of those weeks, where everything that can go wrong, will go wrong.

Work’s been up the wall with this new computing system, but there’s light at the end of the tunnel with it, and it’s looking like a very good system. It’s just been so so tough getting here.

The other half’s been on 4 early shifts, and that always makes me more tired and irritable and nothing seemed to be going right from Monday, I pranged my work van as well, the weather here has been nice for a change and that meant sun… which one min there it was, and I could see to reverse and the next it had gone. I was reversing up a hill and before I could brake I hit a wall. Uggh, not only broke the lights, I obliterated them 😦 Oh dear…

The biggest issue has been with the bank. I noticed on Wed that a 99p payment wouldn’t go through for amazon, and on thursday my google account had been stopped. So we called in and the Fraud team had stopped everything, I had sorted it out last night, but this morning nope, no access to any of our accounts. Sigh, so more messing about from 4.30 am in the morning when I should have been in work cleaning my van.

Driving around, I could hear some weird noise, yep, brake pads gone… so had to also sort that out today. Why….

Thank Crunchie it’s Friday, and I’m done!

Time to chill out and then I can actually do some work and catch up with things tomorrow!

Apr 20 2016

AudioBook Review – Broken Skies Book 1

Getting through my Audio list, haha but it’s tough, so so many good books to choose from. And the last couple of days I’ve had the pleasure of listening to Broken Skies by Therresa Kay and narrated by Andrea Emmes. I’m a fan already of Andrea and this was a must listen to in my book because of the premise, I just adored it.

So review as follows, and I admit, this is the first one in a series I’m totally disappointed that there’s not a second narration for me to buy. boo hooo….

🙂 you can pick up the book here – http://www.audible.co.uk/pd/Young-Adults/Broken-Skies-Audiobook/B00LSYXFZY

and my review is –

—————–

“Very cool!”

There were several things I really loved about this story, and a few I wasn’t so keen on.

I did receive a code from the narrator for one of her books in return for an honest opinion, but I can’t remember if it was this one or the last one I listened to, so I’m saying this one, and either way all reviews off me are honest wether they be gifted or not.

Jaz-Jasmine was a good character for the most part, but her panic attacks and personal weakness grated on me quite a bit. I have to admit I loved the story line and most of what she’s been through, but there were moments when I really think especially towards the end of the book that she would just get a grip and start to process things and move forwards as her own person. She was almost there when she first faced her brother, but she almost insisted with real conviction that things were the same, and they really weren’t. I had hoped she really knew and understood that before that moment.

The whole Lir storyline was very interesting and well written. (I do wish that Jax was a little more grown up with it, but she’s a young, and love struck teen who knows nothing about the aliens or their love/bonding rituals, so I can kinda forgive the writer for some of these things.

For the most part this story kept me on edge and I wanted to know what happened. I can’t believe the Author hasn’t had the narrator back to do the second book, I’m just gutted, so much so I had to buy the book, and I don’t often do that. I don’t have the time to read a real book. So I do hope that the author will have this on the cards next.

The narrator brings such an abundance of life, joy, love and heartache to Jax, that you just can’t stop listening even though sometimes, or most of the time she’s a pain in the butt and really can’t see the wood for the tress, silly girl.

So yeah, I was left with a book/narrator hangover. and I’m not used to that. You both make the best combination. And I do hope you’ll work together again.

~ Dawn