Liz Bird

Interesting premise, but amateur execution.

Revisado: 11-15-23

I’m glad this one was a freebie. The characters were pretty two-dimensional - it’s quickly clear who the villain of the story is. The main character and the children are saccharine, and the men are just kind of putzes. There’s really no tension because the characters are too flat. The narration was pretty good - didn’t have a lot to work with in terms of the text. I wouldn’t have been able to finish it if it wasn’t a short listen, but it was fine as background to cooking and doing dishes.

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Good heavens, I was bored.

Revisado: 05-03-23

Six hours in, and I give up. I've returned this book. The premise is great, but the story is so plodding and the characters so poorly fleshed out that -- even after all these hours -- I still have only a superficial understanding of them. My mind kept wandering, I kept backing up to try to figure out who's talking (most of the characters don't really have distinguishing voices or mannerisms). I feel sorry for the narrator - she's very good, but she couldn't save this for me. I can see why this would appeal to someone who is interested in the concept, but I'm just genuinely bored.

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Loved the story. Hated the narration.

Revisado: 04-22-23

I love Jodi Taylor's "Chronicles of St. Mary's" books, so I thought this might be another series I would enjoy. I was really disappointed, though, that the protagonist's humor and charisma are completely lost because the narrator (or director?) chose to voice her with an over-the-top posh, "sexy" accent. I would love to listen to the rest of the series, but I could barely get through this book, hating the narration so much. (It's a tribute to the story that it kept me engaged enough to get to the end.) One other smaller issue I had: it made me angry that the author has Neith, as team leader, hold a team meeting in her bathroom while she's taking a bath after a mission. I know the scene was supposed to demonstrate that the team's culture is more sexually progressive than current society's, but the scene felt contrived and completely inappropriate, undermining Neith's leadership skills and intelligence. Booo.

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esto le resultó útil a 3 personas

One of my favorites

Revisado: 02-15-23

I love this whole series - have listened to it multiple times. This short backstory is so rich in detail and heart, it’s my favorite story of the whole series.

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One of my favorites

Revisado: 02-15-23

I love this whole series - have listened to it multiple times. This short backstory is so rich in detail and heart, it’s my favorite story of the whole series.

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So mentally chewy and delicious!

Revisado: 01-28-22

I absolutely loved this book. It made my brain swim. The stories are so smart - absolutely fresh and captivating and philosophically challenging. I had great conversations with my friends and family about the themes in this book. (I didn’t realize before I started listening that the movies “Limitless” and “Arrival” were based on two of the short stories. That was a fun surprise.) I was sad when it ended because I wanted about 20 more stories to munch on. :)

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I couldn’t get past Chapter 5.

Revisado: 01-28-22

I believe this book is meant to be raw and uncomfortable to read. It discusses a lot of intimate women’s topics in great detail, and I’m sure it will get to an actual plot at some point. But, man, the first five chapters have just left me feeling grossed out and frustrated. I don’t have the patience to listen to any more obsessive discussions about boob jobs and periods.l and teenage anger-sulking. Definitely too depressing and gross for me.

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Couldn’t get past Chapter 2.

Revisado: 10-09-21

Maybe this is supposed to be about a woman finding her voice, but her snarky inner monologue paired with her refusal to stand up for herself is infuriating. And her interest in a bland, disheveled, poorly dressed colleague/acquaintance would appear to be leading up to a poorly-veiled love interest. I only leave bad reviews when I find a book insulting to women and my intelligence as a reader. Don’t waste your time or money if you’re looking for well-written characters.

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It's like someone describing a game they played.

Revisado: 06-04-21

Oh, my gosh. I found this book so boring. It's not badly written or narrated - it was just not interesting to me at all. I couldn't get past the 5th chapter. I kept expecting that it would become a real story, but it was just a description of the main character (player) going through a castle (game) completing tasks, collecting tokens and allies. it reminded me of my 12-year old nephew passionately trying to describe Magic The Gathering to my mom who's never played a role-playing game in her life. I don't think I will ever be bored enough to listen to this book/series.

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I wanted to love it... but, sadly, I didn't.

Revisado: 05-27-21

It's not a terrible book. Overall, the story is good, so I gave it three stars. I just had SUCH a difficult time with the protagonist in this. She's supposed to be well-educated, 38-year-old woman, yet she often acts like a selfish, petulant teen to her loving, supportive family. Her penchant for French anything is weirdly juvenile and irritating. And her romantic interest – her DOCTOR – is super creepy. He behaves in a way that is so far beyond professionally inappropriate that she should have gotten a restraining order against him or sued him for malpractice. Finally, I was surprised by how often characters are described by their superficial appearance. Women are often described in regard to their (stereotypical, highly subjective) attractiveness. The main character's biological mother, the linchpin of the whole mystery, could have been an incredibly rich character, but her motivations are never explored. Because I admire Mary Louise Kelley as a journalist, I'm going to give another one of her novels a try. I'm hoping she works out these kinks and focuses more on storytelling and fleshing out secondary characters.

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