JennM

Wildly uneven

Revisado: 09-18-22

I wonder at the rave reviews for this book. Did the reviewers read the whole thing? It certainly started out well, with fabulous worldbuilding and a wealth of lovely description. The heroine is clever and ambitious, but she lives in a world where women cannot become healers. Because of her inate talents, she would make an excellent physician, but it is a futile dream. Then one day, she accidently conjures a djinn, a powerful, supernatural being, who rescues her from certain death and carries her off on a flying carpet towards his land, where, he assures her, she will be honored and be able to realize her dream of becoming a healer. But all she wants to do is escape him to regain her "freedom" (why? she has nothing to go back to - if the author had taken the time to give her something real to go back to I might have understood, as it was, the heroine just comes off as a fool). The story soon degenerated into a very puerile 'she hates him, but she has tingles in her lower stomach when she looks at him' triteness. The djinn, of course, is incredibly handsome, and she, of course, finds out she has djinn blood, which makes her a halfbreed. During their trip to his lands they quarrel, she tries to escape numerous times - despite not knowing where she was or where she wanted to go. I kept reading, hoping for something more - there is a parallel story taking place in the djinn's land that started out well and also soon fell apart. I finished the book, but it took an effort and I won't, I'm afraid, be buying the next in the series. I applaud the author's world building, but I despair of the "she hates him on first sight; woman falls in love with her abuser" romance theme that denigrates so many women in fiction.

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A fascinating paranormal tale

Revisado: 12-07-18

I loved the previous books in this series, so I didn't hesitate to grab this one. It didn't disappoint. Quinn is an archeologist and a psychic. If she touches an object that belonged to someone long dead, she can "see" their life as if she's the one living it. She has no idea where the gift came from because she was adopted. She managed to track down her birth mother but can't find her birth father because the woman claims she was raped by three men, and doesn't know which is the father. Ms Shapiro does an amazing job on several levels in this story. Quinn finally finds her real father, but he turns out to be from the deep south. New Orleans, to be exact. Quinn wants to learn more about the family, and her new-found father gives her an object, in this case, a fan supposedly belonging to her great-grandmother. But the object he gives her belongs to a women who is not on any historical document. It's as if she had been erased from history - and of course Quinn wants to find out why. This story deals with racism, because it looks at life during the 1800's on a plantation with slaves. It also deals with family secrets, and how they can destroy the people they were supposed to protect. Highly recommended!

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Fantastic narration for a space opera

Revisado: 11-09-18

Space opera meets military fiction in this non-stop action tale. The narrator of the tale is a naval officer who was banished to a spaceship boneyard on the outskirts of the solar system. He's jaded and spends his days with his team drinking and scrounging for useful junk. Then, out of the blue finds himself recruited to lead a galactic struggle against an unknown enemy (an enemy that's not attacking humans - yet - but other, peaceful aliens). Oh, and there is his wife who left him, and who now has reappeared and is also recruited, so that besides the idea of saving the galaxy, there's saving a floundering marriage - but it works, I actually loved the parallels! There was lots of humor, some twists and surprises, androids, clones, aliens, and a great dialogue. It is a good start to what could be an interesting series. What really brought this story to life for me was the narrator. Kudos, Dave Cruse, for making this story really shine!

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Tragic romance

Revisado: 09-07-18

The Forgotten follows two separate stories - Quinn, a modern day woman with the "gift" of seeing into the past, and Petra, a woman from the fourteenth century, whose grave Quinn is called on to investigate. As an anthropologist and historian, Quinn is fascinated by the past. But she also has a gift - when she holds an object that belonged to someone, she can "see" their life, even in the distant past. The woman buried in the grave was murdered and put in an unconsecrated plot. Why? Using her gift, Quinn relives the woman's last year of life - a year full of betrayal, pain, and joy - and ultimately, murder. The author brings the fourteenth century alive - the people, their lives - and the story of Petra, the murdered woman, is fascinating. Her husband, a lout and a brute, has just died, and Petra is alone with her three children and elderly mother and must find some source of income. Petra is educated, and comes from a good family, despite falling on hard times, so she is hired by a wealthy widow to be a companion and to read to her. Petra has a secret, however. And it will ulitmately be the cause of her unhappy fate. Meanwhile, Quinn, is newly engaged to Gabe and trying to find her biological father, the man who raped her mother and then left her. Gabe doesn't believe Quinn's mother's story, but he tried to help Quinn as much as he can. Then, something happens that rocks both Quinn and Gabe's worlds.Without spoiling the story, I'll just say that Quinn and Gabe must come to grips with their new situation, and it isn't easy. I enjoyed the story, and the narrator was wonderful. Listening to it was like riding an emotional rollarcoaster. Readers who liked Anya Seton's "Green Darkness" and lovers of Barbara Erskine will definitely enjoy this book!

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Amazing dystopian science fiction

Revisado: 08-24-18

Brilliantly narrated - this is a complex story told from many viewpoints - the action never lets up. In the near future, brains are hardwired into computers - usually you sign your brain away on your deathbed when you die of old age, but there is more demand than supply and a black market has sprung up that uses the brains of children. The place the children are held and their brains culled are called crèches. Griffin, a junior Investigations agent for the North American Trade Union, is put on the case: Find and close the illegal crèches. No one really expects him to succeed. Meanwhile, the harnessed mind of an autistic girl is being used by the mafia - but she dreams of being free, and using the incredible power of the net, she seeks Archaeidae, the worlds most dangerous killer, the mind of a fourteen year old boy trapped in an assassin's chassis. But Archaeidae has no inkling of humanity, and he only obeys his god. When the two join forces, the whole world is suddenly in danger. The narrator was perfect for this dystopian, cyberpunk sci-fi book - I highly reccommend it.

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Another winner

Revisado: 08-07-18

How can I resist another book by Jodi Taylor? The narrator is terrific, and the story never slows down. You laugh, you cry...it's a hit. I didn't think I'd like audible books so much, but so far, I'm enjoying them. You can't go wong with Jodi Taylor - I can't wait to get more!

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Great tale

Revisado: 08-07-18

Another smashing performance by Juliette Burton. This story was even better than the first - sexy, witty, lots of action and emotion. Bravo Audible - I'm hooked.

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Loved it

Revisado: 08-07-18

Juliette Burton does an amazing job narrating this story. She makes you believe in each character, and her talent makes the story shine. Everything about this book pleased me. Off to get the next one!

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Time travel tale in the west

Revisado: 07-02-18

I thought the story was a great idea.The characters were interesting, and I think that time travel to the old west is a good premise for a tale. The narrator was excellent.

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