D. M. Mansfield

Yawn .. did anything happen while I was asleep

Revisado: 09-09-24

Overall - So slow build, come on … something needs to happen rather than royal soap opera banter, he said, she said, he thought, she thought, etc was the majority of content with some sword play and magic peppered here and there. All the names of the many characters mostly started with a vowel, which makes it less likely to remember who had what “A” name. With that said I did finish but will not get remaining books in the series. More suited to a YA audience as much of story was around parental approval, involvement, etc.

Performance - Quite good, especially with the clarity around all the names. Soothing voice yes, lacked in compartmentalizing stronger male characters.

Story - Good, but entire 24 hours of listening could have easily cut in half and perhaps it would be worth it and would hold my attention.

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Nutshell content delivered with tart humor

Revisado: 07-18-24

OVERALL - A smattering of what, when and who providing what happened prior to 1066; however, based upon who wrote documents, etc., in favor of their champion at that time. Plus more references of who these people were, how they linked with the events of these times, etc. Lots of plots, greed, murders and mayhem! PERFORMANCE - Delightfully narrated with punch line type sarcasm. Thoroughly enjoyed this! STORY - Truth is better than fiction and these times particularly vicious, cruel and maniacal; which is to be expected as it seems the well behaved were slaughtered.

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Spoiler Alert - Boring, boring, dull mix

Revisado: 11-16-23

Overall - This book seemed to have all that typically grabs me history, main female character, adventure, mystery, etc. so I bought it, but I couldn't buy into the story. Main character assumes the identity of someone who assumes an identity who is called by another name. For me a dull difficult listen that wasn't worth my time. Performance - ok, not too bad actually, I could listen to this narrator again. Story - Didn't meet the minimal bar of interest for me. Too many characters that went nowhere with too little character development. The backdrop of the island quite interesting, the story not so much.

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Could not finish - Spoiler Alert

Revisado: 07-19-23

STORY- At first captivating, enjoyable, engaging, then repetitive incessant scheming, incest, patricide, ridiculous obsessions ... I had to stop with 9 hours remaining. Sure it sounds exciting; but, really to me it was an R rated Gone With The Wind.

PERFORMANCE - Actually was more than just ok, she did quite well. Kudos to Emma for being able to finish this offensive read.

OVERALL - It failed to imprint any compassion I could associate with the main character. Nor could I comprehend the understanding of why someone would behave with such repeated depravity. I found the main character far too twisted to bond with or have empathy for.

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Captivating, desperate, surprisingly good!

Revisado: 05-05-23

STORY - I didn't really know anything about Jane Grey's sisters so I was compelled to take a chance on this book and so glad I did. Filled in some gaps and for me, surprisingly engaging. Warning, yes much of the story is about silly girls looking to give and receive love but keep in mind the story is told from a young girls perspective which endeared me to them. The dwarf sister Mary Grey was so captivating, the spoken voice so sweet and her mind so sharp. PERFORMANCE - The way the book is written made it very easy to meld the different narrators and each one was perfect. OVERALL - Amazing! This book gave me an insight and interest to these two lovely girls whose lives were dominated by grief and burden of having royal blood.

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PeeKay for President - Absoloodle!

Revisado: 05-31-22

Overall - Brings together heartache, loneliness, togetherness, and the courage to love deeply the gifts the teachers in our lives can offer if the courage to accept is ignited. Performance - the variance of accents, consistency of characters, the nuances of spoken words and the emotional intent behind them were excellent. Story - This one grabbed me, as it begins with the fear and abandonment we all (to some degree) eventually experience as a child, from this moment on I was latched to the little boy who would become PeeKay. While this was all verrrry good, it was a little cliche with the premise of coincidences, lucky breaks, but then again, that is what makes this story so good. I would recommend the young readers version for those 14 and under, while I have not read that version, this adult version has some scenes that might not be appropriate for tender hearts.

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Small story, benefited by what we don't admit

Revisado: 06-29-21

STORY - Well not much of one really, seemed to be written in hindsight, embellished by internal dialogue of a deep thinking chap who lived on the surface of lost love. However, with that said, the poignancy of words so eloquently and sardonically portrayed made it good, but not perfect. PERFORMANCE - Spot on, absolutely smashing Colin Firth! OVERALL - A perspective of what one might wonder after you realize what you didn't know you had, so the saying goes. It was better than OK, but not by much.

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Sci Fi with light humor

Revisado: 06-18-21

STORY - Great story, good characters, and a new flavor of sci fi for me. At times far fetched (but that is what is required of Sci Fi) and based upon sheer luck, compatibility and situations. Enlightening, frightening and hopeful. At first the humor was annoying on such a serious subject, but as I became accustomed to the narrator, so with the humor and began to really enjoy the story. PERFORMANCE - Spot on, great cadence, very well done throughout! OVERALL - A unique blend of ideas, situations and possibilities. A reminder that all is possible if we try, again and again and again. GREAT!

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Queenly story sparsely based upon fragile facts...

Revisado: 04-13-21

STORY - Interesting perspective for the role of a queen in this place and time. I knew little of this period and found it tempting enough to hear the book through to the finish. It was okay, but, just okay. By the ending I did want to hear more, and once I researched of what was to come (via internet search) I definitely will. PERFORMANCE: This is what really made me to want to stop listening. While most of the time when "hearing a book" it takes time to get used to a new voice, their cadence, accents, etc.; but, this one arghhh.. almost every sentence was voiced with contempt, and the last word said always "chased" the next, I mean who talks or who wants to listen to content this way, all of this actually made it quite stressful to listen to. OVERALL: Good story, I did finish and maybe some day, I'll listen to the next book and ... aha... it's a different narrator.

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Poignantly, painfully slow ... but very very good

Revisado: 07-13-20

I bonded with this book in the first chapter, not because of the character or story, it was the building of words so carefully crafted. Do not read this book, listen carefully, very carefully, feel the dark emotion we so often choose to ignore.

Narration: Yes, it is read in a slow and plodding method, however, this a good representation of the era it is set in, back then nothing happened quickly, so to me, the spoken pace was appropriate. The voice variations of each character were good, the accents (to my unfamiliar ear) were good. I did find it helpful to write down the names of the characters in the beginning, just to help to keep who is who and doing what to who clear.

Story: Based upon some true facts, you are taken back to the time it occurred, the way of things which includes method of conversation, gender roles, etiquette, etc. The characters behaved in the way it was back then. As far as historical novels go, I dislike it when the characters behave and speak as if they exist today (2020), this story does not do that. This a slow build to the desperation, survival and isolation that was as it was back then and uses all the senses (touch, smell, hearing, signs, conversations) to build the powder keg of fear and persecution.

Overall: This story is not for everyone, but for me the poetic words so succinctly represent the sensation of being there at that time and the wickedness of what humans are capable of if they choose to see what their imagination tells them to be true. I will read and or listen to this book again.

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