WiremanReads

The performance makes it

Revisado: 01-21-25

The narrator’s performance is incredible. I love Haley Cass’s books so I liked this one, but I didn’t connect as strongly with this book as others. Still worth a listen, for sure.

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Must read for WLW

Revisado: 01-18-25

This book. THIS BOOK. The yearning, longing, hopeless gay pining. And the NARRATION. If you’re WLW, just use the credit and listen already.

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Sapphic romance, complex characters

Revisado: 01-16-25

This dream team does it again. I will insta-buy any collaboration between Haley Cass and Lori Prince . Amazing story with depth and complex characters. And absolutely incredible performance by Lori Prince

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Great sapphic romance, brilliant narration

Revisado: 01-14-25

This is one of the best sapphic romances I have ever read, and the narration elevates it even more. Haley Cass? Instant buy. Lori Prince? She’s the kind of narrator that you start to look for other works that she reads because she’s just THAT good. Thank you to these two women for a beautiful collaboration.

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Honestly? It was fun and not too complicated

Revisado: 12-17-24

Excellent performance! It was fun and not too complicated. I’m going to read the next ones for sure!

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Post-apoc sci-fi with great minority rep

Revisado: 06-27-23

THE RAMPART TRILOGY (The Book of Koli, The Trials of Koli, and TheFall of Koli) by M. R. CAREY


This is a review of THE RAMPART TRILOGY (The Book of Koli, The Trials of Koli, and the Fall of Koli) by M. R. CAREY

This is a non-ARC review. I purchased the audiobooks with my personal funds. Would purchase them again for myself or a friend. No hesitation.

THE NARRATION

Final rating: SS tier / FIVE stars / 100% recommend

Narrated by Theo Solomon in book one, with full cast Saffron Coomber and Hanako Footman joining in books two and three, respectively.

An Ideal narrator not only conveys a book unobtrusively but also elevates the book as a whole. All narrators did a fantastic job but my commendations are extended most to Theo Solomon who truly brought alive Koli’s tenderness and kindness and made the dialect of the prose effortless to experience. I anticipate that I will enjoy these books several times more because of the collective performance.

THE BOOKS

Final Rating: SS tier / FIVE stars / will read it again / 100% recommend

Genre: post-post apocalyptic fantasy/Sci-fi; rebuilding of civilizations. but it doesn’t involve very much of the *science* part of sci-fi. The emphasis is on cultural adaptations people have made in a deconstructed, de-industrialized, exceptionally harsh world. It is genre-bending in ways and difficult to explain, but it is neither hard science fiction nor high fantasy.

Audience: mature, though the protagonist is a young adult / teenager.

Recommended for those who love: completed trilogies, man vs. nature, man vs. machine, flawed and dynamic characters, found family, minority representation (Black protagonist, male to female transgender support character, Asian support character), a fall from grace story arc, robots, AI companions, killer trees.

Content warnings: death, sex, graphic violence, initially flawed and/or harmful representation of minority persons but I feel these were wholly and completely redeemed with character progression. This was intentional by M. R. Carey and serves as meaningful reflections of harmful views in our society at present. I loved how M. R. Carey was truthful about the bias people have against two minorities specially and how each of these characters looked that bias right in the face and told it to f*** off. The two minorities in question are Asian persons, trans persons.

Immediate impressions: HOOOOLYYYYYY. I loved M. R. Carey’s take on Zombies in “The girl with all the gifts” but “The Rampart Trilogy” is a treasure and is not something fantasy lovers should miss.

Overview: The Rampart Trilogy’s protagonist, Koli, resides in the village of Mythen Rood in post-post apocalyptic UK. The large civilizations of our modern world have long collapsed in a global war, and all that is left of our advancements are our war-mechs and man-eating flora bio-engineered to withstand nuclear warfare. These two threats oppose one another, and create a hostile and near unsurvivable wilderness for remaining men. Mythen Rood survives with the assistance of some of our “tech” — which only “wake” for those chosen ramparts. And Koli wants to be a rampart.

Reflection: these books are BRILLIANT. The complexity of the world building is delivered in sure strokes to paint an environment this is immersive without being overwhelming. The characters have personal stakes and conflicts. There are themes of found family and redemption. There are themes of “sometimes bad people are bad people.” The action is punchy and Carey builds suspense with precision. I WANT TO READ THEM ALL AGAIN FOR THE FIRST TIME. These left me with a book hangover like no other and I am still recovering.

Prose: masterfully crafted with a unique dialect and sentence structure illustrating the dynamic persistence of language and how it changes over time. Especially In the absence of a structured educational system. All the while I did not feel like it was an obstacle to the story and only elevated the books. I enjoyed the audiobook version of the trilogy and highly recommend these, as the narrators did a wonderful job breathing life into the characters with this dialect. Koli’s character especially.

Depth/Impact: Make these into a movie already. This trilogy is meant for film. PLEASE.

Constructive feedback: the pacing of book 3 — “The Fall of Koli” — felt somewhat off-beat at times, a bit meandering and loose when compared to the first two books. But I honestly struggle to say that at all as a criticism and ONLY say it because no books are flawless and everyone should be suspect of gleaming reviews.

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Post-apoc sci-fi with great minority rep

Revisado: 06-27-23

THE RAMPART TRILOGY (The Book of Koli, The Trials of Koli, and TheFall of Koli) by M. R. CAREY


This is a review of THE RAMPART TRILOGY (The Book of Koli, The Trials of Koli, and the Fall of Koli) by M. R. CAREY

This is a non-ARC review. I purchased the audiobooks with my personal funds. Would purchase them again for myself or a friend. No hesitation.

THE NARRATION

Final rating: SS tier / FIVE stars / 100% recommend

Narrated by Theo Solomon in book one, with full cast Saffron Coomber and Hanako Footman joining in books two and three, respectively.

An Ideal narrator not only conveys a book unobtrusively but also elevates the book as a whole. All narrators did a fantastic job but my commendations are extended most to Theo Solomon who truly brought alive Koli’s tenderness and kindness and made the dialect of the prose effortless to experience. I anticipate that I will enjoy these books several times more because of the collective performance.

THE BOOKS

Final Rating: SS tier / FIVE stars / will read it again / 100% recommend

Genre: post-post apocalyptic fantasy/Sci-fi; rebuilding of civilizations. but it doesn’t involve very much of the *science* part of sci-fi. The emphasis is on cultural adaptations people have made in a deconstructed, de-industrialized, exceptionally harsh world. It is genre-bending in ways and difficult to explain, but it is neither hard science fiction nor high fantasy.

Audience: mature, though the protagonist is a young adult / teenager.

Recommended for those who love: completed trilogies, man vs. nature, man vs. machine, flawed and dynamic characters, found family, minority representation (Black protagonist, male to female transgender support character, Asian support character), a fall from grace story arc, robots, AI companions, killer trees.

Content warnings: death, sex, graphic violence, initially flawed and/or harmful representation of minority persons but I feel these were wholly and completely redeemed with character progression. This was intentional by M. R. Carey and serves as meaningful reflections of harmful views in our society at present. I loved how M. R. Carey was truthful about the bias people have against two minorities specially and how each of these characters looked that bias right in the face and told it to f*** off. The two minorities in question are Asian persons, trans persons.

Immediate impressions: HOOOOLYYYYYY. I loved M. R. Carey’s take on Zombies in “The girl with all the gifts” but “The Rampart Trilogy” is a treasure and is not something fantasy lovers should miss.

Overview: The Rampart Trilogy’s protagonist, Koli, resides in the village of Mythen Rood in post-post apocalyptic UK. The large civilizations of our modern world have long collapsed in a global war, and all that is left of our advancements are our war-mechs and man-eating flora bio-engineered to withstand nuclear warfare. These two threats oppose one another, and create a hostile and near unsurvivable wilderness for remaining men. Mythen Rood survives with the assistance of some of our “tech” — which only “wake” for those chosen ramparts. And Koli wants to be a rampart.

Reflection: these books are BRILLIANT. The complexity of the world building is delivered in sure strokes to paint an environment this is immersive without being overwhelming. The characters have personal stakes and conflicts. There are themes of found family and redemption. There are themes of “sometimes bad people are bad people.” The action is punchy and Carey builds suspense with precision. I WANT TO READ THEM ALL AGAIN FOR THE FIRST TIME. These left me with a book hangover like no other and I am still recovering.

Prose: masterfully crafted with a unique dialect and sentence structure illustrating the dynamic persistence of language and how it changes over time. Especially In the absence of a structured educational system. All the while I did not feel like it was an obstacle to the story and only elevated the books. I enjoyed the audiobook version of the trilogy and highly recommend these, as the narrators did a wonderful job breathing life into the characters with this dialect. Koli’s character especially.

Depth/Impact: Make these into a movie already. This trilogy is meant for film. PLEASE.

Constructive feedback: the pacing of book 3 — “The Fall of Koli” — felt somewhat off-beat at times, a bit meandering and loose when compared to the first two books. But I honestly struggle to say that at all as a criticism and ONLY say it because no books are flawless and everyone should be suspect of gleaming reviews.

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Post-apoc scifi with excellent minority rep

Revisado: 06-27-23

THE RAMPART TRILOGY (The Book of Koli, The Trials of Koli, and TheFall of Koli) by M. R. CAREY


This is a review of THE RAMPART TRILOGY (The Book of Koli, The Trials of Koli, and the Fall of Koli) by M. R. CAREY

This is a non-ARC review. I purchased the audiobooks with my personal funds. Would purchase them again for myself or a friend. No hesitation.

THE NARRATION

Final rating: SS tier / FIVE stars / 100% recommend

Narrated by Theo Solomon in book one, with full cast Saffron Coomber and Hanako Footman joining in books two and three, respectively.

An Ideal narrator not only conveys a book unobtrusively but also elevates the book as a whole. All narrators did a fantastic job but my commendations are extended most to Theo Solomon who truly brought alive Koli’s tenderness and kindness and made the dialect of the prose effortless to experience. I anticipate that I will enjoy these books several times more because of the collective performance.

THE BOOKS

Final Rating: SS tier / FIVE stars / will read it again / 100% recommend

Genre: post-post apocalyptic fantasy/Sci-fi; rebuilding of civilizations. but it doesn’t involve very much of the *science* part of sci-fi. The emphasis is on cultural adaptations people have made in a deconstructed, de-industrialized, exceptionally harsh world. It is genre-bending in ways and difficult to explain, but it is neither hard science fiction nor high fantasy.

Audience: mature, though the protagonist is a young adult / teenager.

Recommended for those who love: completed trilogies, man vs. nature, man vs. machine, flawed and dynamic characters, found family, minority representation (Black protagonist, male to female transgender support character, Asian support character), a fall from grace story arc, robots, AI companions, killer trees.

Content warnings: death, sex, graphic violence, initially flawed and/or harmful representation of minority persons but I feel these were wholly and completely redeemed with character progression. This was intentional by M. R. Carey and serves as meaningful reflections of harmful views in our society at present. I loved how M. R. Carey was truthful about the bias people have against two minorities specially and how each of these characters looked that bias right in the face and told it to f*** off. The two minorities in question are Asian persons, trans persons.

Immediate impressions: HOOOOLYYYYYY. I loved M. R. Carey’s take on Zombies in “The girl with all the gifts” but “The Rampart Trilogy” is a treasure and is not something fantasy lovers should miss.

Overview: The Rampart Trilogy’s protagonist, Koli, resides in the village of Mythen Rood in post-post apocalyptic UK. The large civilizations of our modern world have long collapsed in a global war, and all that is left of our advancements are our war-mechs and man-eating flora bio-engineered to withstand nuclear warfare. These two threats oppose one another, and create a hostile and near unsurvivable wilderness for remaining men. Mythen Rood survives with the assistance of some of our “tech” — which only “wake” for those chosen ramparts. And Koli wants to be a rampart.

Reflection: these books are BRILLIANT. The complexity of the world building is delivered in sure strokes to paint an environment this is immersive without being overwhelming. The characters have personal stakes and conflicts. There are themes of found family and redemption. There are themes of “sometimes bad people are bad people.” The action is punchy and Carey builds suspense with precision. I WANT TO READ THEM ALL AGAIN FOR THE FIRST TIME. These left me with a book hangover like no other and I am still recovering.

Prose: masterfully crafted with a unique dialect and sentence structure illustrating the dynamic persistence of language and how it changes over time. Especially In the absence of a structured educational system. All the while I did not feel like it was an obstacle to the story and only elevated the books. I enjoyed the audiobook version of the trilogy and highly recommend these, as the narrators did a wonderful job breathing life into the characters with this dialect. Koli’s character especially.

Depth/Impact: Make these into a movie already. This trilogy is meant for film. PLEASE.

Constructive feedback: the pacing of book 3 — “The Fall of Koli” — felt somewhat off-beat at times, a bit meandering and loose when compared to the first two books. But I honestly struggle to say that at all as a criticism and ONLY say it because no books are flawless and everyone should be suspect of gleaming reviews.

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A Must-Read for Everyone. Everyone.

Revisado: 07-05-18

Written in beautiful mixed-media prose, "Any Man" is a mosaic of narratives which together relay the horrors endured by the victims of a female serial rapist. The story is relayed by a collection of TV interviews, radio broadcasts, letters, confessions, Twitter threads, and online chat transcripts. Tamblyn's prose bleeds into poetry as these men purge their anguish. She is masterful in her use of repetition when landing punches and constructs beautiful parallels of language that gave me chills.

Full-cast is incredible and adds yet another layer to an already profound novel.

This book made my heart ache.

This book will start conversations.

This book is about the cycle of abuse and how we deal with the deepest trauma.

This book is a must-read for everyone. Everyone.

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An Exceptional Middle!

Revisado: 06-22-18

I love middles.

The cream in an oreo cookie. Siestas. Fall and Spring.

As a reader, I love nothing more than to settle into a familiar world and follow a beloved cast of characters on a new adventure. The second volume in Epik's adventure is an excellent middle. Davis spared no time reuniting me with Epik and his crew and immediately threw new conflict into the mix. Davis' writing is adept and it shows that he honed his craft between the first and second books. The humor in this one is less in-your-face and more situational--perfectly balanced with just the right amount of zest to coax a smile or chuckle.

Huchton's narration is also deserving of praise. We all know how important it is for a narrator to be able to distinguish one character from another--and she nails it. Her range of accents and voices is diverse and distinct and serves each character well. Her talent adds yet another layer of detail to "Knowing is Halfling the Battle."

Epik's second adventure continues to nod to the works of Pratchett and Adams, while also making larger strides towards autonomy. I adored how much attention Davis gave to Gerdy in this installment. He allowed Gerdy to express her insecurities honestly while also allowing her to discover her strengths. I'm eager to see the direction Davis takes the series in the future!

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