SGS

Beautiful and bittersweet tribute

Revisado: 08-13-24

I stumbled on this just as it was released. Then I realized it was 25 years since the plane crash that killed JFK Jr., his wife Carolyn, and her sister Lauren.

The format of the book is unique: It’s presented in the form of recollections from long-time friends. I felt like I was in on a conversation between friends who are reminiscing about John.

There are some touching stories here. Readers get to see how John matured and began to find his own identity. It’s a beautiful and bittersweet tribute to a man who died before he realized his full potential as a human being, husband and father. But it seems he did achieve his goal of becoming a “good man.”

The narration is wonderful and is done by a cast that includes Rosemarie Terenzio a co-author and John’s long-time executive assistant.

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Magical and beautifully written

Revisado: 03-04-24

This is a magical book about magic books. It’s all the more remarkable because it is by a debut author. It is now one of my favorites of all time. (Tip: don’t look ahead at the chapter titles. While not exactly spoilers, they do give an inkling of what will happen next.)

The adventures of the quiet Cassie begin when she is chatting with her favorite customer at the bookstore where she works. A few minutes later, she returns to check on Mr. Weber and is shocked to find that he has passed away. Sitting on the table in front of him is a peculiar looking book. Mr. Weber has written a note addressed to Cassie that he is leaving her the book. It’s called The Book of Doors.

Cassie quickly discovers the magic of the book. But her roommate Izzy feels somewhat concerned about Cassie‘s indiscriminate use of the book. Although Cassie doesn’t share Izzy’s concerns, she soon learns that Izzy is right and there are some bad people searching for the book.

Several other point of view characters are introduced, most notably Drummond Fox, founder of the Fox library for special books. He convinces Cassie that her life is in danger and shows her his library and its contents.

The adventures of Cassie, Izzy, and Drummond Fox unfold in a riveting way throughout the novel. Somewhere around middle part, I experienced a “jaw drop” moment, asked myself, “what the heck just happened,” (I had to listen to an entire chapter again to fully appreciate the moment.)

The second half of the book is equally riveting, with a second jaw drop moment. The ending is satisfying and complete, but I’m hoping for a sequel.

Cassie is a sweet, somewhat naïve girl when the book starts. By the time it ends, she has matured substantially and understands her responsibilities.

I will also add, that the authors use of creative metaphors and similes to describe ordinary things really need the prose in this novel special.

The only minor distraction is the narrator. Cassie is American and the book is set in New York. But the narrator is British. She uses her own accent for third person narrative, but switches to an American accent when voicing Cassie. This took some getting used to. Also, the novel uses British terminology to refer to things. (I later learned that the author is Scottish. Still, I feel that an editor should have Americanized the terminology for the sake of consistency.)

Even with my final criticism, this book is definitely deserving of resounding 5 stars.

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esto le resultó útil a 5 personas

Enjoyable

Revisado: 09-04-23

I postponed buying this for a long time primarily due to some of the negative reviews about how poorly written it is. I did not find this to be the case (and I am a professional editor). Sure, the plot and writing are a bit ”rough” at times, but it did not detract from my enjoyment.

The novel is an interesting twist on the multiverse. It also asks the burning question: Can a bunch of brilliant college students save humanity and successfully build a new society?

The first part of the novel focuses on two events: first, a group of Nebraska students successfully discover how to travel to a parallel universe. The science here is fuzzy and not clearly explained. Meanwhile, Yellowstone begins to show signs of increasing volcanic activity.

Several interesting characters are involved in the college group. The POV is a bit confusing and seems to be third person, but it was occasionally hard to follow.

When a cataclysmic event does occur, the brilliant students seem ready to step in and rescue humanity. The second half revolves around their efforts.

The ending is interesting, and I’m glad I waited to read this until the author published a sequel, which I will be listening to soon.

The narration by Ray Porter is fabulous.

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Enjoyable

Revisado: 08-23-23

This was an enjoyable short rom-com, though not quite as funny as the author’s other 3 shorts that are on Audible.

Robbie and Marigold (yes that is the female protagonist name; and she doesn’t like it) are paired together for a report about whether love at first sight is real. She and Robbie have “history” which is alluded to, but not revealed until the end.

Their witty banter and a cast of secondary characters (whom they interview for their report) fill out the story. Interspersed is some romantic tension and fun interludes. The ending is great.

The narrators were good.

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You may think twice next time you call customer service

Revisado: 07-14-23

This adorable romance takes place over less than a week’s period. And it just might make you think twice next time you talk to a customer service representative on the phone.

Vera is furious when she has to wait on hold for two hours to get help with the online app she’s using to create a website for her business. But when Cal answers her call, she is immediately at ease. The two engage in amusing banter as Cal earnestly tries to help her. Several hours later, he is still helping her and eventually gives her his direct number.

The story is told mostly through Vera and Cal’s points of view. But the audio is presented more like an old time radio show complete with sound effects and narration changes - even during conversations.

Both characters are sweet and funny, and I found myself rooting for them. The ending was excellent, as was the narration. If you need a good short “palate cleaner” in between books, this is just the thing.

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Sweet and Funny

Revisado: 07-14-23

This 3rd installment in the Love Lines series is sweet and funny. (The 3 books in the series do not need to be listened to/read in order. They are only slightly related with brief mentions of characters from other books.)

Sam and Gwen meet while sharing the worst seat on a bus from Boston to New York — the one right across from the bathroom. Sam takes the trip often, while Gwen is a newbie, trying to get to an important appointment that could make or break her career.

The chemistry between them is instantaneous and funny. Then a series of mishaps interferes with their trip. Sam becomes the hero; determined to get Gwen to her appointment on time. The author does a great job developing the characters in a relatively short time.

Will their connection extend beyond their current situation? Listen or read to find out.

The ensemble cast is led by Amanda Ronconi and Zachary Webber who are excellent.

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Meandering plot

Revisado: 05-25-23

Wavering between 3 and 4 stars. As time travel books go, it felt disjointed and I kept looking for the plot. Instead, it felt more like a bunch of short stories that were only loosely connected.

The main character, Sarah, runs her family’s antique store under the mysterious circumstances surrounding her parents’ disappearances. After Sarah begins to time travel, she quickly decides that this must be what happened to her parents; they time traveled and never returned.

Sarah is a well-developed and interesting character, but I thought her moral compass was a bit lacking. And her understanding of the ramifications of time travel was weak.

The “plot“ meandered — and quite frequently — so did my mind. It just never grabbed me and made me feel much of anything.

The strongest part of the book are the descriptions of the eras that Sarah visited.

I got this free through Audible Plus and won’t be purchasing the sequels.

The narrator did a nice job

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Pay attention!

Revisado: 05-19-23

This short story by sci fi phenom Dennis E. Taylor is an intriguing journey into the dangers of time travel. You’ll want to pay very close attention so you don’t miss the important plot twist.

Ray Porter is fabulous as always.

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Has potential, but narrator too distracting

Revisado: 12-02-22

I rarely give 2 stars to books I manage to finish. But this one is close. I’m only bumping it to 3 stars because the narrator was a major issue for me and maybe the novel would be better with a different one.

Gwen is an FBI agent whose husband and daughter died a few years before the story starts. She’s still struggling with guilt over their deaths when she is recruited to be a time travel agent.

It seems to take half the novel to get to the main story. Then things get a bit interesting, but also rather convoluted. The ending is satisfying.

I will never listen to another book narrated by Skye Alley. When reading, she seems to put all the emphasis in the wrong place. She was a distracting narrator.

(In a weird example of time travel, Chapter 7 was left out and tacked on to the end. And strangely enough, I didn’t even notice it was missing.)

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I love this series and can’t get enough!

Revisado: 04-05-22

This is the third installment of the Joseph Bridgeman time travel series. You will want to listen to the first two before this one (“And then she vanished,” and “The shadows of London”).

If you plan on reading those first two, you will want to stop reading this review because it includes spoilers about the first book in the series.

In this book, Joseph is partnered with a woman named Gabrielle who seems to have a grudge against him. Gabrielle has to work with Joe to successfully complete a time travel mission and locate a lost time traveler.

The lost time traveler plot is quite clever and intriguing. The time travel parts of the story are set in 1873 Paris during an opera house fire. We are also giving a glimpse 100 years into the future through some amazing communication technology. We get to meet a few more members of the time travel consortium known as The Continuum. And we find out why time travelers are unable to make drastic changes to history. (It’s all just so clever I can’t get enough of it.)

I love the way the author ties together Joe’s story and his sister Amy’s story. (I wonder if he plans to use Amy‘s point of view in some future novel.)

I feel like Joe and Amy are a part of my family and I am excited to see their further growth as people and the time travelers.

I wish I could time travel to October and get my hands on book 4, “The quantum chain“

Ray Porter is a excellent narrator.

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