E. Carlson

Fantasy's equivalent to the Cozy Mystery genre...

Revisado: 04-15-18

...or to put it another way, George R. R. Martin is to Sharon Shinn as James Ellroy is to Agatha Christie.

The writing is good, flows well and is stylistically consistent. (no jarring bits of dialog or turns of phrase that feel slightly off)

Shinn paints her characters beautifully! Many authors wind up giving some of their characters a similar "flavor" especially if they've written a strong hero/heroine at some point, and that personality worked really, really well. Throughout the Twelve Houses series, not only are you not reminded of a main character when reading a secondary one, the minor characters are distinct! It's not easy to give nameless bad guy no.1 in one book a different feel from nameless bad guy nos. 1, 2, or 3, in another of the books.

Paired with Jennifer Van Dyck's narration, Mystic and Rider is a book I've re-read nearly every year since it came out. These days there are dozens of good sword & sorcery / epic fantasy authors who have books available in audiobook format. Unfortunately, authors who lucked out in the narrator department are thinner on the ground. (unless you count the vast number of well-narrated fantasy novels geared toward teens or that have a coming-of-age element)

If I set up an epic fantasy "style spectrum" using half a dozen authors with good audiobooks, the order would look something like this:

1. George R. R. Martin
(Although, in my opinion, the narrator of his stuff doesn't really add anything. Game of Thrones is just the most recognizable example highly complex fantasy I could think of)

2. Robert Jordan

3. L. E. Modesitt Jr.

4. Juliet Marillier

5. Lois McMaster Bujold

6. Sharon Shinn

The last three authors' books focus closely on the relationships of a smaller cast of characters. Out of all these authors, I think Shinn's books have the least edge and most warmth.

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Old Yeller, Shilo, Misty... Rascal felt closer

Revisado: 04-13-18

Where does Rascal rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Rascal was the first audiobook I ever listened to (back when they were all called "books on tape"). Roughly 20 years and truly hundreds of audiobooks later I've grown picky and my tastes have matured, but this recording holds a sweet, tender place in my heart. When I saw it on the Daily Deal special it I had to buy it.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Rascal. He was so full of life and personality and was always doing something interesting.Quote: "...I gave Rascal his first sugar cube. Rascal felt it, sniffed it, and then began his usual washing ceremony, swishing it back and forth through his bowl of milk. In a few moments, of course, it melted entirely away, and a more surprised little 'coon you have never seen in your life. He felt all over the bottom of the bowl to see if he had dropped it, then turned over his right hand to assure himself it was empty, then examined his left hand in the same manner. Finally he looked at me a trilled a shrill question: who had stolen his sugar cube?"

Have you listened to any of Jim Weiss’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not listened to any other performances by Jim Weiss but I will say that his reading style is gentle, easy and a bit slow. As a child, listening to this recording at bedtime worked as a panacea for nightmares it was so soothing. This narrator may not be lively enough to hold the attention of kids today. He does an adequate job with dialog. You can tell who's speaking but Weiss doesn't have a whole lot of range and Sterling's best friend wound up sounding like a gruff old man. All that being said, I still prefer Jim Weiss to other narrators of this book.

Any additional comments?

Aside from the joys of Rascal, in subtle ways this book is actually quite deep. Through Sterling's eyes you see the impact of WW1 on a community; the absence of his dead mother; the quiet strength and closeness of his relationship with father and Sterling's enjoyment of nature and animals, both the ones he sees in the wild and his own pets.

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