Laura

Excellent Dystopian Future Novel

Revisado: 05-02-25

I almost didn't click on this title because of a one-star review that said it wasn't worth the listen, even at no cost. What. A. Loser. I'm sure the 1-star was down to the lesbian couple and the trans scientist characters in the book. The reviewer got his/her little pearls in a clutch over alternative lifestyles being discussed so casually. THE HORROR!!!

In all seriousness, I really enjoyed this listen. It kept me engaged, hooked, eager to hear what happened next. The interview format didn't bother me at all. Rather, I enjoyed hearing all the different POVs in their voices. Well done!

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I Love Joe Pickett Novels But...

Revisado: 02-13-25

... MAN, CJ Box is tough on NPCs. I know he's setting the scene for more good fiction but the toll on beloved benign characters is extreme. Still, worth the listen, and hard as heck to put down.

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Character Study of An Extreme Narcissistic Abuser and His Enabler

Revisado: 02-02-25

I wanted to like this book but it was just too hard to listen to this woman be a punching bag and tell herself it was all her fault. Anyone who has been in a relationship with an abuser will recognize all the moves. I don't need to relive the ugliness. Can't finish the book. Enough is enough.

And to the reviewer who said they couldn't listen to the book because of the narrator's vocal fry, I'm not sure you understand the meaning of that term. This narrator does NOT use vocal fry.

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Worst Narration Ever

Revisado: 09-17-24

I started listening to this book and it was immediately apparent that the narration was ridiculously bad. I was trying to comprehend the story but the narration prevented me from getting any sort of through line going. I finally went to the title page to see who it was that was butchering it so badly and saw it was Virtual Voice. No wonder! Save yourself the energy of starting the book and putting it away. And to the author - hire a human to narrate it! Your tale deserves to be told by a human, not a soulless machine.

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Good Book, But Narration Has One Major Flaw

Revisado: 08-06-24

I enjoy Andrews and Wilson Tier One books. They're full of he-man warrior stuff, but are tempered with detailed character back stories. Normally Ray Porter's narration is excellent. In this book, though, he makes one pronunciation error over and over and over again, and each time he says the word wrong, it rips me out of the story. Ray, Ray, Ray -- not a Wagner (pronounced "Vahg-ner") fan, eh? Valkyrie rhymes with Siri. Why didn't you just google the word pronunciation before recording it??? Do better. You're too good a narrator not to.

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Enjoyable but...

Revisado: 07-10-24

Honestly, if I got punched as often as Joe Pickett does, I would for sure be looking for a new line of business, especially getting paid as little as he is. It's a miracle anyone stays in that job, given the punishment those game wardens take (according to CJ Box, or is it just that Mr. Box's formative years bore an obsession with Rockem Sockem Robots?) In any event, Joe Pickett novels are fun to listen to, if a bit on the knee-jerk violent side. I find myself having to take time-outs when Joe gets flattened yet again. It is nice, though, when Nate Romanowski exacts some ultimate retribution against miscreants that a more law-abiding Joe can't, or won't.

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Gorgeous, Evocative, Tender, Superbly Paced

Revisado: 06-15-24

I loved this book. I loved hearing about NYC, where I lived for some years, and the San Francisco area, where I lived for more years. Now Joyce's gorgeous writing has me yearning to go explore Central America to find some hippy-fied natural area to live out the remainder of my days. Listen to this book. You will not be disappointed.

And as for her remarks in her Acknowledgments about the cultural appropriation warriors, bravo! Where would our literature be without those writers who have travelled the world and brought back tales of its fascinating denizens? There is room in the literary pantheon for all writers who bring imagination, sensitivity and non-judgmental intelligence to their work.

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Dark Is An Understatement

Revisado: 11-15-23

I want to like this book but it's just so dark that I find it's not a world I want to spend another 12 hrs in. Death and pain and torture and more death. At least Tolkien wrote Merry and Pippin to break up the doom and gloom of Mordor. We live in a pre-apocalyptic hell scape already so I need some lightness to break up deeply depressing stories like this one. Sorry but I'm hitting the Eject button.

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Great Story, No Other-Worldly Horrors (thank you!)

Revisado: 06-23-23

I truly enjoyed this book. Must admit that, having read quite a few post-apocalyptic stories, I kept waiting for the horror shoe to drop. I'm so glad it didn't!

One point of correction - Ahmed would not have been an experienced ham eater. With a name like Ahmed, he's certainly Moslem so eating ham would not be in his pre-pandemic lexicon.

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Decent Story, Cringe-Worthy Narration

Revisado: 06-14-23

I wanted to like this book but it was just really hard to listen to. I can't speak to the narrator's Welsh pronunciation but his French and even some English pronunciation is so very bad, utterly cringe-worthy. Given how French-forward much of the story is, I find it appalling that Audible chose a narrator with absolutely no clue how to pronounce French. And his characterizations are caricatures, not nuanced or believable.

The story is okay, though I'm finding myself yelling at some of the characters for their foolish mistakes.

Struggling through the last book now, I just want to get to the end and call it done but I'm not sure I'm going to make it.

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