Aaron P. Lazar

A Thrilling Ride Through Pandemic-ridden LA

Revisado: 08-30-21 El oyente recibió este título gratis

Overdue, by Uvi Poznansky, is a thrilling ride through pandemic-ridden Los Angeles with a fiery heroine, the nastiest of villains, and plenty of heart-pounding action.

I have read, listened to, and loved all of Poznansky’s books. Opposed to the norm where most series follow-ons aren’t nearly as amazing as the first book, these books get better with each new release. In addition to the danger facing the main character, Ash, and her race to survive, we also experience more of the exciting virtual reality aspects from the founding book, Virtually Lace, in a particularly creepy fashion!

A new, powerful character is featured in this edition who readers will simultaneously hate and with whom they’ll empathize. A bone thin actress with a habit plays a pivotal role. Ms. Voola is involved with the Russian thugs who are after Ash. Tightly woven into the mobsters’ schemes to take advantage of a world plagued by the virus, the chameleon-like woman is nearly the undoing of our hero.

As usual, this novel is beautifully written by a very talented author. And even though this is an action thriller, Poznansky finds ways to paint gorgeous described scenes without slowing down the action.

The narrator, Heather Jane Hogan, is outstanding. Her ability to vary her voice to match the character, as well as her wonderful Russian accent, are superb! Listening to Ms. Hogan is a delightful experience.

Here’s hoping the next book in the series is underway!

- Highly recommended by Aaron Lazar, USA Today Bestselling Author.

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A lyrical collection of beautiful poetry

Revisado: 12-05-20

Home, by Uvi Poznansky and her departed father, Zeev Kachel, is a glorious and lyrical collection of poetry that you will want to savor. Ms. Poznansky published this work after discovering a collection of her dear father’s poetry upon his passing. Intermingled with her own glorious writing, it is a true gem.

Kathy Bell Denton’s narration is soothing and appropriately emotional, drawing in the listener to each succession of poetic passages.

Do yourself a favor and give this literary gift to yourself for Christmas or Hanukah.

Highly recommended by USA Today Bestselling Author, Aaron Paul Lazar.

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A delightful romantic suspense listen!

Revisado: 12-05-20 El oyente recibió este título gratis

Three Weeks Last Spring is a beautifully written romantic suspense novel set in the San Juan Islands of Washington State. I’ve loved Ms. Howard’s book since I discovered them several years ago and was thrilled to start this audiobook.

The author paints an engaging and vivid portrait of the landscape around the islands in chilly April. She also sets up her two main characters with delightful animosity – replete with plenty of sexual tension.

I loved listening to the book, not only because of the intriguing and suspenseful storyline, but because the narrator is outstanding. Virginia Ferguson can portray a woman with a British accent and a man with an American accent with equal ease. The voices are distinct and sound genuine. I’m pretty choosy when it comes to narrators, but this one is top notch!

Skye Dunbar, the female lead, is a complex and fascinating creature. Her relationship with marine biologist Jeddediah Walker makes the story quiver with excitement and anticipation. When a major misunderstanding comes between the two, it’s painful as you wait and watch for them to finally understand each other and fall into each other’s arms! That’s the sign of a great author who knows how to tease out a plot and build dynamic characters.

Thank you, Ms. Howard and Ms. Ferguson, for a superb listen!

Highly recommended by USA Today Bestselling Author, Aaron Paul Lazar.

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A beautifully narrated thriller!

Revisado: 06-28-20 El oyente recibió este título gratis

Overkill, by Uvi Poznansky, is the latest release from this USA Today Bestselling Author. I have long been a genuine fan of all her books, from the romantic stories to the biblical novels, and now to this delightful thriller! I read the first book in the series, Coma Confidential—a wonderful psychological thriller— and was thrilled when Overkill was released so that I could continue to follow young college student Ashley in her startling exploits.

Told from the point of view of Ash, formerly a comatose patient, Overkill is poetically written and finely executed, involving new storylines that could have been taken from contemporary headlines. I read the book and then listened to the audiobook, which brought each character and scene to life in a way that kept me addictively listening.

Narrator Heather Jane Hogan is an outstanding narrator, whose vocal range covers male to female, young to old, with an absolutely convincing performance. Her voice is lovely and easy to listen to, and she gives all the nuances of the enactment for which one could hope.

Ash flees her college life in California, leaving boyfriend Michael behind, hoping for a much needed respite after the events in Coma Confidential.

The little cottage she rents from an acquaintance of her father ends up not being as idyllic as expected, when she walks in the door and there’s a horrific odor and stains beneath the rugs. Who died here? And why is everyone so closed mouth about the history of the cottage?

The story heats up when Ash is caught in a school shooting. The child she protects is a young neighbor boy, whose estranged father is killed in the rampage. Ash becomes involved in the investigation and becomes close to the mother and boy, helping the family wherever she can.

Overkill is a fast-paced, suspenseful and beautifully written and narrated tale that you must enjoy for yourself!


- Highly recommended by Aaron Lazar, USA Today Bestselling Author.

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A literary masterpiece!

Revisado: 12-19-19

Uvi Poznansky is a literary tour de force in a contemporary age when the quality of writing often takes a back seat to the quick thrill, or to be more precise, the quick buck. She writes as she paints, with careful, vibrant strokes of amazing clarity and color. Whether you are a reader or writer, teacher or student, you owe it to yourself read her work. You will be transported to a world where life is examined from a poet’s point of view, where you live in vignettes so real that you can’t help but love and care for the characters.

The main character of In My Own Voice, Anita, tells her story in a genuine and true-to-life fashion, taking us from her teenage years to present day, sharing details about her traumatic past and difficult present day. The title resonates in many ways within this deeply felt work, and in truth, the voice used for Anita is absolutely believable. Her dialect is consistent within the story, her observations about her husband Lenny and his son Ben come through as authentic, and frankly, Anita’s characters leaps off the page.

This is a literary work. It will take you through the suffering and joys of an unforgettable character, and you’ll be sure to want to read the other stories in the Still Life With Memories series.

I listened to this book, and must say the narrator was outstanding. Her choice of voice for Anita—that Southern drawl with colloquialisms galore—was perfect. I found myself thinking of Anita as a real person, which is the testimony of a very good read.

Thank you, Ms. Poznansky, for another stellar story!

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A terrific thriller!!!

Revisado: 10-03-19

Overdose is the third volume in the “Ash Suspense Thrillers with a Dash of Romance” series. I’ve enjoyed all three books and must say this one was just as good if not even better than the others. I’ve always enjoyed Ms. Poznansky’s writing. It is smooth, lyrical, and original.

Ash is a young college girl to whom terrible things happen, but she always comes through with guts and courage to survive, thrive, and get even with the villains. In this edition, Ash becomes a victim of a very powerful player, whose name I’ve withheld so as not to spoil the story for you.

The characters created by Ms. Poznansky are vivid and truly enjoyable. I especially love the dialog and relationship between Ash and her mother, otherwise known as “Ma.” We didn’t see much of Browney (her beloved dog) in this episode, but I’m sure he’ll be back for more in the future. Love the dog!

After surviving a harrowing ordeal in the last book, where she barely survived a vicious attack and ensuing coma, Ash now suffers from mysterious and frequent headaches with other bizarre symptoms. I encourage you to buy the book and discover the nefarious plot behind her symptoms that has far-reaching, thrilling consequences.

I read both the eBook and listened to the new audiobook, which I found extremely well done. The narrator was a pleasure to listen to.

Well done!

Highly recommended by Aaron Paul Lazar.

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A Delightful WWII Romantic Thriller!

Revisado: 03-18-19

Three reviews follow:

Marriage Before Death

Ms. Poznansky has done it again, but this time—and I don’t say this lightly—she has written my favorite book to date in her stable of literary gems.

Marriage Before Death continues in the Still Life With Memories series, which paints stories of the lives of Lenny and Natasha Kaminsky. (Book 1: My Own Voice, Book 2: The White Piano, Book 3: The Music of Us, Book 4: Dancing with Air)

In this story, Ms. Poznansky eloquently shifts from her previous genre of literary stories full of romance, to a wartime suspense story, still, however, continuing with the love story of our beloved couple.

I have always adored Ms. Poznansky's evocative writing, but this time she whisked me into the era of WWII French Resistance Fighters in 1944. And what an adventure it was! I trembled in my virtual boots beside Lenny when he was captured by Nazi soldiers, “this close” to being executed. He stood in a line of captured soldiers and resistance fighters, waiting to be sent to one group or the other. One group would be immediately hung in the gallows that loomed nearby, the other would be used in some fashion to help the Nazi cause. The tension was riveting.

I listened to the audiobook version of this fascinating story, told by the talented Mr. Don Warrick. His male character voices are outstanding, and his accents—whether it be British, French, German, Jewish, or American, the rendering is brilliant and on target. The female voices aren’t quite as effective, in my humble opinion, but honestly, one can’t fault a deep, stentorian narrator for not being able to completely sound like a woman. ;o)

Thank you, Ms. Poznansky, for allowing us to continue to believe that America still produces great writers who judiciously craft each sentence, and who can tell a great story at the same time.

- Highly recommended by Aaron Lazar, multi award-winning author.

***

Dancing with Air

Dancing with Air by Uvi Poznansky is a lyrical tour se force set in World War II in England. Poetic, evocative, and at times langorously delicious, the new audiobook version adds even more to the sense of "being there" along side the delightful characters who, by the way, span a series of novels over the course of their lifetimes.

One of the lovely gifts embedded in this series is a collection of beautiful poems set to music to represent songs of the era. Mr. Warrick, the phenomenal narrator of this story, creates some memorable tunes with his amazing voice.

Do yourself a favor and download this romantic adventure. Then sit back, push play, and let the beauty wash over you.

Highly recommended for all book lovers!

***

The Music of Us

A Lyrical Gift to Readers

When I write a book review, I don’t like to rehash the plot—that information is easily accessible in the book description. What I prefer is to share how the book made me feel, and what I valued between its covers.

Uvi Poznansky is a literary tour de force in a contemporary age when the quality of writing often takes a back seat to the quick thrill, or to be more precise, the quick buck. She writes as she paints, with careful, vibrant strokes of amazing clarity and color. Whether you are a reader or writer, teacher or student, you owe it to yourself read her work. You will be transported to a world where life is examined from a poet’s point of view, where you live in vignettes so real that you can’t help but love and care for the characters.

I have read all of Poznansky’s work, but this book resonated more deeply with me than all the previous titles, which I truly enjoyed. I suppose it is because I am an inveterate romantic. I ached for the young, “flashback” characters to come together. I shouted at them to wake up and smell the coffee when they missed opportunities to get together, and I reveled in the sweet endings when they finally connected.

The atmosphere of the 1940s is beautifully portrayed, and on a secondary level only to the (mostly) unrequited love story, it was my next treasured experience while reading this book. I loved the sounds and sights of the era, the music, the cars, and the lifestyles so well depicted. It was a fascinating dip into the life of those dynamic times.

If you are aching for a lyrical read, for something above and beyond the usual offerings in the field of fiction, I highly recommend you pick up a copy of Uvi Poznansky’s The Music of Us.

--Aaron Paul Lazar

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A brilliant mystery-within-a-mystery!

Revisado: 12-30-17

Magpie Murders is the first book I’ve read by Anthony Horowitz. As I read the beautifully written British whodunit, I kept thinking “Oh, yes! This is a series. Previous books are frequently referred to throughout the story, and it looks like there will be eight other books to enjoy when this is over, featuring detective Atticus Pünd.”

How wrong I was!

Three quarters through this delicious mystery, the story stops. It stops DEAD.

A new voice comes onboard, that of the editor who was reportedly working on Magpie Murders, apologizing for telling me that the last two chapters of the book were lost! I’d never know who the murderer was, and I was left feeling really frustrated.

Then, the book continues in the voice of this editor. And it was only after checking online for the story description (I had downloaded the audiobook without reading the Amazon description, LOL), that I realized Susan Ryeland—the editor—is actually a character in the book and that this whole thing was a mystery within a mystery.

I have to tell you, it really shook me up! I assume that was the writer’s intention, and boy, did it work.

First of all, I was relieved that the story would go forward, even if it was with this “outer circle” of characters. I prayed and hoped I’d finally get to read those last two missing chapters. But I was seriously disappointed that all the references to the Atticus Pünd novels were fictional! I wanted to read more!

Regardless, this was indeed a truly clever story. Brilliant clues abounded, and I didn’t guess who the villain was in the inner story or the outer story.

Well done, Mr. Horowitz! I’ll be looking for more books by this very talented author.

Highly recommended by Aaron Paul Lazar, multi award-winning author.

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A delightful WWII romantic thriller!

Revisado: 11-21-17

Ms. Poznansky has done it again, but this time—and I don’t say this lightly—she has written my favorite book to date in her stable of literary gems.

Marriage Before Death continues in the Still Life With Memories series, which paints stories of the lives of Lenny and Natasha Kaminsky. (Book 1: My Own Voice, Book 2: The White Piano, Book 3: The Music of Us, Book 4: Dancing with Air)

In this story, Ms. Poznansky eloquently shifts from her previous genre of literary stories full of romance, to a wartime suspense story, still, however, continuing with the love story of our beloved couple.

I have always adored Ms. Poznansky's evocative writing, but this time she whisked me into the era of WWII French Resistance Fighters in 1944. And what an adventure it was! I trembled in my virtual boots beside Lenny when he was captured by Nazi soldiers, “this close” to being executed. He stood in a line of captured soldiers and resistance fighters, waiting to be sent to one group or the other. One group would be immediately hung in the gallows that loomed nearby, the other would be used in some fashion to help the Nazi cause. The tension was riveting.

I listened to the audiobook version of this fascinating story, told by the talented Mr. Don Warrick. His male character voices are outstanding, and his accents—whether it be British, French, German, Jewish, or American, the rendering is brilliant and on target. The female voices aren’t quite as effective, in my humble opinion, but honestly, one can’t fault a deep, stentorian narrator for not being able to completely sound like a woman. ;o)

Thank you, Ms. Poznansky, for allowing us to continue to believe that America still produces great writers who judiciously craft each sentence, and who can tell a great story at the same time.

- Highly recommended by Aaron Lazar, multi award-winning author.

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A literary gem!

Revisado: 07-08-17

I’ve always enjoyed books by Uvi Poznansky, they are inevitably written with great skill and literary charm. This story is no exception. What astounds me about this series, however, is the amount of incredible research needed to pull off such a feat.

How Ms. Poznansky created such a vivid, detailed, true-to-life account leaves me awestruck. It’s as if she peered inside the Bible, spoke with the characters and witnesses who were there, and then created a realistic and moving portrait of David’s life.

I listened to the audiobook version of this title, and was delighted with the quality and variety of the narrator’s character voices. From young man to elderly King, or from man to woman, Bob Sterry provided distinct and unique voices that made the story with many, many characters easy to follow. He also provided some unique talent during the passages where King David sings, with a rich voice definitely suited to this role.

The most impactful part of listening to this book, however, had to do with the emotions drawn from me during the process. I was literally yelling at characters during my drive to and from work, which must have made for some interesting comments by passers by. I grew to hate Amnon, understand Absalom, and was incredibly frustrated and angry at the main character for not standing up for his own daughter when she was violated. Sure, I know he had reasons, but to me—as a father—these reasons were not even close to sufficient. I felt fury and outrage and empathy and fear. There aren’t too many books that can bring forth such raw emotions in the retelling of Bible stories, are there? (To be clear, I am not very familiar with the original Bible stories which generated this book, and I’m reacting only as a reader of fiction, most certainly not as a Biblical historian.)

In addition to the riveting character studies, The Edge of Revolt is a colorful story that moves forward with tension and suspense, replete with intrigue and war, seduction and betrayal, and filled with spies of varying loyalties drifting through the King’s life.

Ms. Poznansky is a gifted writer in all genres, but this story will stay with me for a very long time. Highly recommended as a learning tool as well as a satisfying fictional listen.

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