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Mark Thomas

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Elf Killers Audiolibro Por Carol Marrs Phipps, Tom Phipps arte de portada

When Imagination and Reality Join Hands

Total
5 out of 5 stars
Ejecución
5 out of 5 stars
Historia
5 out of 5 stars

Revisado: 03-03-20

Elf Killers, by Carol Marrs Phipps and Tom Phipps, is a clever fantasy stitched together with a neat amount of realism. There’s constant menace, the conflict that drives the story, for our Elf clan as they seek refuge from the Trolls who hunt them for slaughter.

There’s sensitivity as we’re brought into the world of the Elves – choose our favorites – embrace them for their human qualities – identify with them for their failings and rally with and for them during their successes.

The creative landscape, the worldbuilding, brims with danger and a vast assortment of mythical creatures. Elves, Trolls, Sprites and Unicorns along with a few ingenious creations I imagined finding in a book of Greek myths. (I loved and hated the Strike Falcons. And appreciate any writer who can make me love and hate an antagonist or antagonistic device.)

But Elf Killers is hardly just another Mythical Creature fantasy. It’s deeper. It’s about us and our struggle to survive in a world we often question but accept, because… we must. We, like the Phipps team’s Elf clan, have been granted few if any alternatives. (No one has handed us the ‘right’ to survive this journey. Often, we must fight for that survival.)
Run, face the menace… cry. These are human, often reflexive, decisions we make every day, and I applaud these writers who have craftily woven this very real, very human condition into their fantasy story.

What I liked most:

Character development.
The authors were diligent with their creation of believable characters who reveal a broad assortment of human qualities: Courage – compassion – fear – aggression – weakness – honor – loyalty and strength.
As with all good fantasy writing, while listening to Elf Killers, I was able to release that logical, conceptual part of me that knew these were fictional creatures and began seeing them as real. I attached myself to their plight and empathised with them for their fears and losses.
This is an ability that we, as adults, lose that children do instinctively. A nod here to the authors for their ability to pull their readers into their magical realm by making it just real enough to feel organic.

Story construction:
The outline is logical, fits a neat three-act structure and builds and releases tension with precision. Early on, I began imagining this as the basis of a screenplay for a fine animated film. “The genius writers at Pixar would do wonders with this story.”

Audiobook Reader:
Sky Wildmist is a super audiobook reader. Her clear narrative and ability to change her tone for each character seems almost supernatural. When I make the move to audiobooks with my collection, I will, without reservation, be looking to Ms Wildmist for a quote.

Criticisms:
Only one, and nothing that would lessen my 5-Star rating or high recommendation.
There were many characters. This made the story confusing at times. I listened to the wonderfully read audiobook twice – mainly to gauge the story structure and character consistency for my review, but also to reacquaint myself with certain characters who’d been introduced earlier wishing to place them into context.
I believe, had I listened to this book in one sitting, or while NOT reading three other books, I would not have suffered this confusion.

Summary and Recommendation:
Elf Killers is a fast-moving, Fantasy / Adventure with heart and boundless imagination. If called upon to classify it, I would place it on the same shelf as the first two Harry Potter books and the Percy Jackson books. Essentially a Young Adult, myth-based fantasy that will also satisfy an adult who enjoys letting go and consuming middle-grade fiction.

I give The Elf Killers 5-Stars and my highest recommendation.

Review by TE Mark – Writer / Screenwriter

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Wham! Audiolibro Por Carol Marrs Phipps, Tom Phipps arte de portada

‘A unique and compelling tale’

Total
5 out of 5 stars
Ejecución
5 out of 5 stars
Historia
5 out of 5 stars

Revisado: 05-04-19

Though I read more Science Fiction than I do Fantasy and have little experience with audio books, I recently listened to WHAM – Timewalker Book One by Carol Marrs Phipps and Tom Phipps – read by Sky Wildmist.
Listening to this audio book was a true delight. The story is an interesting Fantasy built on a framework of familiar Science Fiction devices; A harsh oligarchic government – Income inequality – A surveillance state – Time travel, and the reading by Sky Wildmist was spectacular.
The pure fantasy elements; an ancient domain of elves, trolls and immortal fairies, are nicely woven into the story, and the characters are genuine, well-developed and artfully contemporised.
From a story standpoint, Wham reads well. There is a heroine with a clear goal; get her family back from the autocratic regime which took (relocated) them in the very beginning, a sadistic villain in the form of a governmental ruler (The Potentate), and several meaningful side stories that serve, never detract from, the main plot.

What I liked most:

Wham tells three important stories.
The story of a civilisation that, not through war or plague or a climatological catastrophe, but through some sort of societal decline, has fallen into a state of tyranny with constant state surveillance and control, and few, if any, human rights. The story of a young girl driven to win the freedom of her family regardless of the overwhelming obstacles and risks, and a story of the human spirit that will cause people to adapt to even the harshest of conditions.

Character development.

Augmented in this adaptation by the fine audiobook reading of Sky Wildmist, each character is well-developed with believable strengths and weaknesses, interesting and unique. It is a true indication of careful character design when you can remove the dialogue tags; (Tess said, Jasmine asked, Nia exclaimed) and still know who is speaking in a given conversation. Wham offers that uniqueness with the use of clever literary devices.
Criticisms:

I have none. Listening to this audiobook version of Wham was fun from the beginning to the very end. The characters are adequately described, the conflict is compelling and in nearly every scene, and there is a clear, recognizable through line.

Summary and Recommendation:

WHAM – Timewalker Book One by Carol Marrs Phipps and Tom Phipps, is a thought-provoking story with meaningful themes and well-crafted characters. Add to those a nice dose of sensitivity. One can’t help but empathise with Tess as she struggles to find her parents and the elusive Capitol where her sister is held captive by the self-serving Potentate.

I give Wham 5-Stars and my highest recommendation for all readers 13 and older.

Review by T. E. Mark – Writer / Screenwriter
27/April/2019

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