TrailRunner

The premise was good...

Revisado: 02-19-25

The premise was good and I felt, at the beginning, that this story had some promise. However, the further into it I got, the sillier it became. All I could do upon reading the ending was roll my eyes. The narrators were good, but even they couldn't compensate for a goofy storyline. The reason I am not giving it one star is because it wasn't truly awful... just silly.

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Overwrought

Revisado: 02-07-25

Somewhat overwrought and completely implausible, even within it's own context, but I listened to the first two books in the trilogy because they were free and because I had a lot of driving to do. Audible stuck it to me on the final audiobook, though, because I had to actually pay a credit for it, and by that time I was vested in the story so I did. That did not make the last of the three books any less implausible, though, or some of the scenarios any less ridiculous. It did have a couple parts that gripped me for a while, so of course I had to follow through to the very end to see if our hero and his friends could save the day. This is not one of those long books that you find you really miss after it's finished, though. At least it wasn't for me. I felt more like a prisoner being released, and my thoughts were more along the lines of "Geez... now I can *finally* move on to something else!" For those of you who are offended by the constant use of swear words in some books, you’ll be happy to hear this trilogy had virtually none, with the most-oft used being "Gorry damn." Blood and gore it has aplenty, though, since the characters are constantly battling each other. With respect to the narrator, I believe he would be a good choice for any number of stories... just not this one. The main character was a young man who aged in the book from 16 to 23, and the narrator has a voice a good 20 years older. The narrator also voiced many of the characters with a very plummy, affected voice which I found mildly annoying. In summary, I am glad to finally put this trilogy to rest and move on to something else!

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Enchanting!

Revisado: 08-02-24

Completely different from Ender's Game yet just as masterfully written, Enchantment is a new take on the old fairy tales with a bit of modern day drama and a little comedy thrown in. Although parts of it were certainly suspenseful, it was so cleverly written that other parts made me laugh out loud... which is something I very rarely do when reading or listening to a book. Great story, great writing, and I highly recommend it!

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Could have been a lot better

Revisado: 07-19-24

I really can't believe all the five-star reviews this book received... I'm guessing that Chris Whitaker has a lot of friends and family. With the right author, it could have been a lot better because the premise was good... it's just that the execution was poor.

The writing was pretentious, ponderous, and melodramatic. It was such a tedious slog for the first half of the book that I nearly gave up on it a few times. but then I remembered that I had paid one whole credit for it so I gamely hung in there. It eventually became more tolerable and I decided to finish it and let the main mystery play out, but I actually figured it out about 3/4 of the way through so there was only confirmation at the end... no surprises.

Besides the fact that the writing was generally pretentious, ponderous, melodramatic, tedious, overwrought and overly verbose, there was also an excessive amount of needless swearing in the book, with the author especially enjoying constant use of the "F" word and the "C" word. This gives me the impression that the author actually speaks like this himself, and that he was was born in a barn. I'm no prude, but someone needs to tell him the excessive use of profanity does not equal talent.

Anyway, I'm giving this book two stars overall because of the story's premise, which could have made it a good read in the hands of the right author. I'm giving narrator Edoardo Ballerini only three stars because although he's done an excellent job in several of the Dean Koontz books I've listened to, I don't think he was the right fit for *this* book. Maybe it's just that this book didn't do him any justice. The whole thing was a waste of a credit for me.

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esto le resultó útil a 5 personas

A True Disappointment

Revisado: 07-07-24

I'd heard of the movie in name only, but I knew nothing about it or the book so I decided to give it a listen. it was really great until about two-thirds of the way through, and then everything just fell completeluly apart, to my extreme disappointment. It could have been SOOO much better. I Googled the book after I finished listening to it, and when I read about the themes it explores I was disgusted that I had wasted so much time over it. I just do not understand how it has won so many accolades. Not one redeeming quality whatsoever, and I still have a bad taste in my mouth.

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Loved the whole series!

Revisado: 06-07-24

Although I found it a little odd at first that an American - Ray Porter - was narrating this English series, I got over it quick enough because he did a great job and was very believable without trying to fake an English accent for our hero, Joe. It takes someone with a lot of talent to pull this off successfully and Ray is, indeed, a fabulous narrator who could probably keep a listener enthralled simply by reading the phone book. Nick Jones, the author, also provided Ray with a great story to read! The series is believable within its own context, and very entertaining! The first book had me hooked! it also proves that a good writer does not have to resort to swearing or sex to turn out a great story with characters you care about. I listened to all four books in record time, and I can't wait until the fifth one comes out! I highly recommend this series and give it five stars.

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Great story... but...

Revisado: 03-12-24

I love to read and I tried to read a hard copy of this book a long time ago, but I just couldn't get into it. Saw this Audible version and thought I'd give it a try. Was pleasantly surprised, and thought they did a great job putting it together! Really enjoyed it! The only reason I gave it four stars instead of five was due to the voice actors - and particularly Ender - the hero of our story. They were all good, but almost none of them (including Ender) was appropriate for their respective parts. Ender was six years old at the beginning of the book and nine years old at the end, and his friends were around the same age... they were all young children. However, it sounded as though Ender was voiced by an 18-year-old, as did many of the other children. This was somewhat disconcerting. I feel that this production should have been recorded with actual child actors or, at the very least, with females who could have voice-acted the part of young boys. If there had been appropriate voices for the children in this Audible book, I would have rated it a "5."

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Really enjoyed it!

Revisado: 03-07-24

A high-class, fast-paced production with great sound effects and great actors! I was totally immersed in it, and could actually see the movie playing in my head as I listened. Plus, this audio book was free and much better than some of the books I actually spent credits on. Give it a listen, and BE SURE to listen all the way to the end, past the closing credits!

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Absolutely wonderful book

Revisado: 02-23-24

I don't often write reviews, but I felt compelled to say something about this book and how wonderful it was. In fact, it was the best I've read or listened to in a long, long time, and I've read or listened to a lot. I never expected so much out of a book about a cross-country trip with a couple giraffes, but this book has it all... adventure, romance, suspense, animals, great characters... including an excellent narrator who did such a fabulous job that one could actually believe that it was *his* story he was telling. I highly recommend this book and give it five stars all the way around!

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An OK Murder/Mystery

Revisado: 02-13-24

This was an OK murder/mystery. Not the best I've ever read by a longshot, but not the worst, either. It satisfactorily helped me kill time on a long drive. The best thing about this book was the narrator, Todd Haberkorn, who does a much better job than most with different voices!

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