Mary

Interesting look into a fascinating life

Revisado: 02-23-16

What did you love best about Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World?

I enjoyed learning more than I had ever known before about this mysterious and amazing person.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World?

The execution of one of the leading women of the court shocked and intrigued me. I still wonder what she did that upset the men so much.

What does Jonathan Davis and Jack Weatherford bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Jonathan Davis' voice and tempo were perfect. I don't know that he brought anything to the story I wouldn't have gotten from just reading it myself other than the correct pronunciation of the often difficult-to-pronounce names and places. Mr. Weatherford's narration was a bit less engaging. His voice lacks something of the power and smoothness of Mr. Davis'. This is to be expected as he is a writer not a reader; however, I think I may have enjoyed the Epilogue and Afterword more had they been read by Mr. Davis.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No, not really.

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An Excellent Production

Revisado: 02-10-16

This is an abridged, full-cast production of the epistolary novel which was famously made into a movie starring Glenn Close and John Malkovich in 1988. This reading was nearly perfect. The voice acting conveyed the story and emotions well. The only voice actor that I wasn't completely happy with was Madame Merteuil's. I felt that the reader sounded like she was trying too hard be sexy. But that is a minor quibble and all in all, I was very satisfied.

Madame Merteuil is an embittered widow who engages her amoral friend (and former lover) the Vicomte de Valmont to seduce the virgin fiancée of a man who has just dumped her. The Vicomte is at first uninterested as he is on his own mission to seduce the virtuous and married Madame de Tourvel. However, in the end, he agrees to Madame de Merteuil's request on condition that she repay him by spending one night with him. Their twisted, toxic competition leads to the betrayal of trusting friends, the ruin of many, the deaths of both Valmont and Madame Tourvel and the public disgrace and self-imposed exile of Madame de Merteuil.

The production quality is excellent and I enjoyed it immensely. Thanks Audible for the freebie!

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Accessible, enjoyable history

Revisado: 01-28-16

This is an accessible, interesting survey of the first family of the early Roman Principate - the Julio-Claudians. As the Republic breathes its last, Octavian, grand-nephew of the assassinated Julius Caesar, himself still a teenager, rises from the ashes of a civil war to become the first man in Rome. Through careful managing of his family's "brand", Octavian, known to history as Augustus (the great one), forges a demi-godlike family mythos which more than anything is his legacy. Two thousand years later, we are still intrigued with the Julio-Claudians and wonder "what might have been?" had his heirs been as astute as he and Fate been a bit kinder.

There was little new in this book to me fact-wise, however, I very much enjoyed how Mr. Holland sets the back-drop of the Empire. He explains Rome's history, its political climate, and how the Romans see themselves in relation to the rest of the world. This is a huge factor in why and how the House of Caesar rose to such prominence and why their mythology still has a hold on us today.

What I found even more fascinating are the digressions the author takes as he discusses the Roman world in the first century and the problems the Empire faced, especially in regards to immigration. It truly helped to parallel their world to ours.

Sadly, despite all his careful planning, Augustus was not able to force the rest of his family to adhere to his vision for it. In the end, despite being the blood of the "divine Julius", his family are only human after all. Greed, treachery, hubris, paranoia, and plain old bad luck wreak havoc on Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius and their various family members, until the line is extinguished in the last scion of the Julio-Claudians, Nero.

I also appreciated that when he goes into some of the more scurrilous and scandalous stories about the family, the author often gives reasonable explanations as to why those stories may have arisen without treating them as either absolutely true or negating them completely.


The book reads very much like a novel and as such is quite an easy read. I would definitely read more by this author and would be very much interested in a book of his focussed on the women of the dynasty.

Unfortunately, I was not thrilled with the narrator. He had some peculiar pronunciations that irked me for some reason. He was serviceable but I couldn't shake the feeling that someone else could have/would have been a better choice. No idea who that someone would be though.

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A Great Romp through the Seven Kingdoms

Revisado: 12-13-15

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would definitely recommend this to a friend. The stories are short and self-contained enough for someone who has not read the ASOIAF series proper but rich enough for those who have. The stories are of a much lighter tone than the series proper but with all the fun, pathos, and tragedy that have made the series so popular.

What did you like best about this story?

I love the relationship between Dunk and Egg. They are so devoted to each other. From the series proper we know that eventually Egg becomes king and Dunk his Lord Commander of the King's Guard. In these stories, we see how this unbreakable bond is formed.

Which character – as performed by Harry Lloyd – was your favorite?

Harry Lloyd didn't try to give each character a separate voice but I think I like his voicing of Egg best. He captured the youth, innocence and snarkiness that I imagined of Egg.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, I actually wanted to but I didn't.

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WTF did I just spend 19 hours listening to?

Revisado: 12-06-15

Would you try another book from Gregory Maguire and/or John McDonough?

The narrator, John McDonough, was quite good given what he had to work with. So I'd definitely have no problem with another book read by him. The author however is a different story. I can't imagine ever wanting to read anything by him again.

What could Gregory Maguire have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Have a plot? Some humor? Something to say? This book seemed to take the bare bones of the Oz story as a writing prompt and became a sort of stream-of-conciousness trip through the author's daydreams and nightmares. The only character I even vaguely was interested in was Dr. Dillamond and he disappears early on. What there was of a plot was only the outline of the original Oz story. This book had nothing to say and it said it with as many words as possible.

I kept waiting for something, anything of interest or thought-provoking to happen. As I closed in on the end, I realized that I had been waiting in vain.

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

I have not but I as I stated before, he was quite good despite the atrocious material.

What character would you cut from Wicked?

All of them? But if I had to choose only one, I guess it would be Liir. What did he bring to the story (such as it was) at all?

Any additional comments?

Gah! I want those hours of my life back. I have never ever so keenly felt that a book was a waste of time as I have with this one.

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Excellent production, meh story

Revisado: 08-29-15

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, I would. The production values of this audiobook are through the roof. It is seriously one of the best-done audiobooks I have ever listened to. Although I wasn't as enamored of the story as most seem to be, I would definitely recommend this book. Others might get more out of the story than I have.

Would you recommend The Golden Compass to your friends? Why or why not?

I would recommend this book to my friends. Many people seem to rate it very highly and although I don't seem to have gotten as much out of it as others, I would be very interested to talk to my friends and see what they got out of it that I missed.

What about Philip Pullman and full cast ’s performance did you like?

This wasn't just narrating - it was acting. I was very surprised that the author was the narrator but he was on par with Jim Dale and Roy Dotrice in my estimation. The full cast really shone here. Listening to this audiobook was very much like listening to an old-time radio drama. I thoroughly enjoyed this and will be looking to listen to more audiobooks with a full cast in the future.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Although there were some really well-written passages, for the most part, I was just left wondering why so many others loved this book and what is wrong with me that I didn't see it. So no, no extreme reactions one way or the other.

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Creepy and unsettling

Revisado: 08-04-15

Would you listen to We Have Always Lived in the Castle again? Why?

Yes, I would. The story is engaging yet disturbing. The folie à deux of the two sisters is terrifying.

What was one of the most memorable moments of We Have Always Lived in the Castle?

The moment that sticks with me most is the when the sisters are hiding after the house fire and Merricat confesses to Constance. There's something soul-crushing about the matter-of-fact way it is presented. One wonders when the madness began.

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

I have not but I certainly would again. She does an excellent job.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I wanted to but was unable to. I'm glad I didn't though. Gave more time to digest it.

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Accessible and Interesting

Revisado: 06-25-15

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Definitely! This is a very accessible look into a much over-looked period history. I came in with only the vaguest idea of this time in European history but I found myself quickly engaged.

What was one of the most memorable moments of A Distant Mirror?

The Battle of Nicopolis sticks out to me because of its world-shifting consequences - unknown and unseen at the time. As the author rightly points out, Fall of Constantinople is often considered the end of an era; however, the real turning point was this battle. The following half-century was just the death throes of that world.

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

I have not listened to any of Ms. May's performances but I would gladly do so again. Her voice is clear, pleasant, and well-modulated. Her pace is very comfortable.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I would have loved to do that, however, the book is entirely too long for that.

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Good Story, Less than impressed by the reader

Revisado: 10-31-13

While I was in the midst of listening to "I realize now, that my positive review of the first audiobook in this series was due more to the actual story than to the reader. Once the gloss of the story wore off, I found myself getting more and more annoyed with the reader. This second book has a lot less action (though the writing is still amazing) and spent more time inside characters' heads. This revealed Mr Dotrice's weaknesses.

I was impressed with the way Roy Dotrice tried to assign a different voice for each character in the first book. By book 2, Mr. Dotrice had run out of voices. Not only that, it seems he frequently forgot which voice he'd been using with a character - sometimes mid-sentence. I know it is a monumental task trying to do what he did. Perhaps, it was impossible. However, I recall listening to the Harry Potter on audio and thinking Jim Dale was nearly flawless in creating voices and remembering which went with whom. Perhaps, I am remembering it wrong or maybe I've grown less tolerant in my dotage. Either way, I noticed Mr. Dotrice's errors and they began to grate on me.

The characterization of Theon Greyjoy began to be painful. For whatever reason, I did not like the "voice" Mr. Dotrice used for Theon. Ironically, this was one voice he managed to stay true to fairly consistently. Near the end, I hated Theon's chapters - not for the character himself (though he does give one plenty of reasons to hate him); but because I hated Mr. Dotrice's voicing of him.

By the end of the book, I decided that I would read the rest of the series on my e-reader because I couldn't deal with Mr. Dotrice anymore.

In the end, I don't think it is entirely Mr. Dotrice's fault. He was excellent for certain characters, e.g. Ned, Robert Baratheon, Stannis. I think the producers probably needed to add a few more readers. There are just far too many characters with far too many ranges for him. Mr. Dotrice tried valiantly but failed to succeed at making all of them convincing and at being consistent.

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Spellbinding!

Revisado: 10-16-13

Would you listen to A Game of Thrones again? Why?

Yes! I am sure I missed things of significance by rushing through to find out what happens next.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Daenrys was my favorite character. I loved her transformation and growth from a scared little girl into a woman who knows and owns her own power.

What about Roy Dotrice’s performance did you like?

I liked that he attempted to give each character a distinctive voice. I don't think he succeeded, but the attempt was valiant. After a while, I could almost tell which character was supposed to be speaking in a conversation, just by his voice.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

When you play A Game of Thrones, you win ... or ... you die.

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