Ian

Mish-mash plot - not the best in series

Revisado: 11-25-22

I have been a huge fan of the Ben Hope series, but this is not one of the best.

Mixed meandering plot with so many elements (terrorists, orphans, treasure, love interest and a secret VIP) that it becomes convoluted and relies on too many chance encounters to be feasible.

Colin Mace as always is a stella narrator,

Overall disappointed.

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It's not a One..

Revisado: 11-26-20

Reaching the excitement and passion of the first book was always going to be hard, so I was hoping for something new and original, but this is basically a rehash of "Ready Player One" - a group of independents going after 7 shards rather than 3 keys. The puzzles are much less interesting and did not resonate with me - if anything they were tortuous and were simply not logical (e.g. slashing tires of motorbike). The antagonists are also pretty 2 dimensional.

Wil Wheaton is an excellent narrator, but even he couldn't make it work. A little let down I must say..

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Simply Brilliant - making mundane to hilarious

Revisado: 09-10-20

Steve Coogan is simply one of the best comedians. This is certainly one of his better efforts - several times I found myself laughing out loud at the absurdity of situations and how the mundane is looked at from unexpected angles.

There are the usual swipes at Noel Edmunds, A simply stellar chat with Bear Grylls, And am I still trying to work out how he managed to make me choke with laughter with the simple phrase "you put the eggs on the side?"

May be hard to understand for people who do not know the Alan Partridge persona, but for fans, this is one of the best - so good that I listened to it twice - something I seldom do.

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In a word: meh

Revisado: 02-19-19

*** Contains Spoilers ***
So I really enjoyed 14 and The Fold was pretty good, but this is a “b” class zombie novel. The premise of using the moon is a cemetery is questionable, both from logical, practical as well as commercial point of view. The idea that thousands would re-animate because of the presence of meteor in the vicinity is just plain ludicrous. That, coupled with the fact that they would then merrily wonder about without freezing solid, makes it really unbelievable.

Additionally, the zombies have to be super intelligent as they can’t just bite through a space suit so they typically open hatches, undo claps, push buttons and bake up a soufflé when bored (OK, the last point was an exaggeration, but it seemed to be going in that direction).

There was no real suspense to the novel either, the zombies start pouring out really early it gets rather repetitious. As no weapon are allowed on the moon so it was basically a cat and mouse chase in low gravity – with a psychic octopus.

I finished the novel, but it was a bit of slog. The word I would have to summarize: meh.

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esto le resultó útil a 9 personas

Reasonable story but predictable and monochome

Revisado: 07-17-15

The story is OK,centered on teenage boy whose gaming skills help him in his quest (sounds familiar?), Cline's humor, cultural references and brilliant way of twisting language carried me through, but personally I thought the story predictable and to be honest a bit monotonous. It seemed to me the book was constantly teetering on the edge on unbelievably (ask yourself where was the Armada was made) with not enough time for decent character building.

I had to admit my expectations were pretty high after his previous book, and it did not live up to them. It was like looking at a few dull threads compared to the brilliant tapestry of Ready Player One.

Wil Wheaton's narration is excellent, as ever he is great speaker for this type of genre, Honestly if he had not been reading it would have a hard slog to get through.

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esto le resultó útil a 4 personas

Same pattern as 14, but gets a bit aurreal

Revisado: 06-06-15

Any additional comments?

The start of the book is interesting and is well structured and unfolds (pun intended) well. But as the plot expands, it skirts the realms of ridiculousness, with some really alien creatures flying in.

The basic blueprint is the same as his previous book, 14; mystery, a new boy finding out what it is, people banding together to open the door, an alien world. Enjoyable, and well red, but preferred 14

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esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Completely unexpected - Excellent Sci-Fi

Revisado: 07-20-13

What did you love best about The Martian?

The humor particularly impressed me in this book. Unexpected, it balances the dire situation the protagonist finds himself in - making him sympathetic rather than someone to pity. Seldom have I laughed out loud - the one-word reply when NASA warns not to use any bad language as the whole can read their texts made me really guffaw.

Excellent SciFi that could easily happen in the near future. Mixed in a good amount of real world science and problem solving made this a pleasure to listen to.

What other book might you compare The Martian to and why?

The genre of Enders game, 14, and Ready Player One - SciFi that is believable without being too out there.

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