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So worth the read and the listen!

Revisado: 03-13-21

(Originally written in November 2018 when I read the book.)

It had been four years since Bev Prescott published a book. That book was Blowback and it was pretty amazing. Needless to say, I'd been anxiously waiting for Prescott’s next offering. We’d been hearing about it for a while. Prescott teased us as we waited – updates, excerpts, cover reveals, etc. It was maddening, I say! Maddening!

But, oh, it was so worth the wait.

Bywater Books released 2° in September 2018, but those of us lucky enough to attend a Bywater Books sponsored event at the GCLS Conference in July 2018 got to hear Prescott give a reading from her book. The anticipation just built! I’m very happy to say that 2° exceeded my expectations. Prescott offers up an epic action/adventure that is ripe with wonderful characters who are three-dimensional, intelligent and creative prose, and a rich setting.

The book starts at a run. Almost quite literally. The main protagonist, Sharon, and her wife, Eve, are hurrying through the overcrowded streets of Boston – doing all they can to move quickly while remaining unnoticed and safe. By the end of the chapter, they are neither unnoticed nor safe. And so the adventure begins! From that point on, we follow Sharon on her desperate journey to find Eve, who has been kidnapped. Along the way, Sharon battles obstacles, meets interesting people, and searches for her own humanity in an inhumane world.

Sharon is the main focus of 2° – it is her story we follow, we are privy only to her insights. She struggles with her own humanity, telling herself that only Eve matters and no one else. But along the way, she meets up with people who chip away at the armor she has created for herself. And, thus, we see great change and growth in Sharon. The armor never goes away, but Sharon learns when it’s safe to remove the armor and when it’s necessary to lock it in place. She’s a fascinating character…and someone I’d like to know.

The remaining cast of characters – friend and foe, alike – are intriguing. From Inu – the 10-year-old refugee boy she takes into her charge – to Federico to Woody and even the Strelitzia – the calculating villain – Prescott gifts us with a collection of people who are diverse, interesting, and mysterious. They all contribute to Sharon’s evolution throughout the adventure. She learns to trust while still maintaining her ability to bob-and-weave.

The writing in 2° is just exceptional. Prescott has found a way to integrate multiple branches of science, politics, and action/adventure into her story. And she does so with aplomb and intelligence. What I especially appreciate is that she does so without condescension. She takes for granted that her readers are astute, able to follow the narrative she’s put forth. Yes, there are explanations of the science – we are not all botanists or climatologists. But it’s done so in a way that doesn’t use monosyllabic terminology. She doesn’t over-explain, she doesn’t under-explain. It’s quite refreshing.

In addition to science, there is also science fiction, and Prescott has created a world that is at once fantastical and believable. The transports and weapons are interesting and creative – and I didn’t even blink when I read about them. I was like, “Yeah. Okay. I can totally see that.” Just phenomenal!

2° highlights the effects of what’s happening in our world right now. Prescott has extrapolated from current politics and science to show us a potential outcome. But, while she definitely shows the impact of poor governance and policy, she also puts so much of the blame where it belongs – on us, humans. There is an overriding sense of “This is what we have done to ourselves” throughout the book. But there is also hope – if we listen to Earth, if we learn, we can survive.

This is one of those novels where the setting serves as a main character in the story. Sharon traverses a great portion of the United States during her journey to save Eve. Prescott’s talent at describing her re-imaging of the land is to be applauded. She takes us across the country and through areas that are well-known, and not just to those of us who live here. As a resident of Northern Illinois, Prescott’s depiction of Chicago in 2092 may very well give me bad dreams. She pinpointed many of the city landmarks that make Chicago what it is in 2018. To read of those landmarks being destroyed and desolate is heartbreaking. The destruction of national monuments and the natural beauty of the country made me sit back and remember to breathe. Prescott brought the world of 2092 to frightening life.

From the first page of 2° until the end, I was sitting on the edge of my seat. My heart beat a rapid tattoo whenever Sharon and the Qaunik were fighting for their lives. I cried as Sharon’s armor developed the chinks that exposed her humanity to the world, and when beloved friends fell prey to evil. Prescott tapped into my emotions while taking me on this harrowing – but splendid – ride.

Hurry. Get a copy of 2° and let yourself fall into Prescott’s fantastic writing and storytelling. It will SO be worth it!

(March 2021: Added to comment on the performance.)

Prescott hit paydirt when she found Dominique Dibbell to narrate her novel. Dibbell did an amazing job at keeping all of the many and varied characters distinct and unique. She **really** seemed to understand Sharon and deftly conveyed the thoughts and emotions Sharon was experiencing throughout the narration.

Dibbell has become a favorite narrator.

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esto le resultó útil a 2 personas

Excellent book hindered by poor performance

Revisado: 01-23-20

Aurora Rey has written a compelling romance. It's fun, flirty, and sexy. The characters are interesting and diverse, which is always a plus. I truly loved the story.

Unfortunately, I did not like Gwenn Dawson's performance in the least. She turned these great characters into caricatures - far too over the top, loud, and just plain annoying. The performance lacked subtlety. Olivia's southern accent became more and more pronounced as the story went on, becoming a stereotype. I'm still not sure why some narrators feel it necessary to make male characters sound like they have a 5-pack a day smoking habit.

I want that "Overall" rating to be higher, but the performance just keeps it at 2 stars.

So while the story is fantastic, the narration leaves a lot to be desired. I will avoid audiobooks by this narrator in the future.

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An excellent story very well told

Revisado: 04-04-19

Caveat: I read the book when it was released a few months ago. So my experience listening to it may or may not be influenced by having previously read the story.

Thorn is a beautiful story. Burke's use of language is rich and layered. Rather than being a re-telling of the Beauty and the Beast story, Thorn is a re-imagining. Yes, yes, there are undoubtedly similar elements and plot lines, but Burke takes us beyond the fairy tale. Definitely beyond the Disneyfied version of the fairy tale. It's a book/story well worth your time.

The audio version of Thorn is quite good! Burke's use of language and the textures she folds into her storytelling make for a compelling audio experience. Annette Romano had great material to work with. And she worked well with the material she was given.

I particularly enjoyed the slight brogue she used to tell the Huntress's part of the story. It lent a depth and rawness to her character that was fitting.

The narration was clear and appropriate for the different characters in the book - whether main or secondary. There were a few moments when I wanted just a bit more from the performance - a bit more emotion, a bit more variation. But those moments were nicely countered at other times when I could hear the nuance of a deep sigh or a shuddering gasp. Overall, it was a nice balance.

Now, this is just a personal thing. I had to turn up the narration speed to 1.25 for it to sound natural to my ears. FOR ME, the performance sometimes felt a bit too purposeful or deliberate. Almost over-articulating. But, again, that's ME. I'm used to fast speech - both my own and others'. But putting the narration speed at 1.25 worked to give the flow of the narration a more natural sound.

In general, this is a highly worthy audiobook! I very highly recommend it.

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esto le resultó útil a 9 personas

Excellent

Revisado: 01-22-17

Today was a day that I most certainly did not want to watch anything on TV. I didn't even want to be on a channel adjacent to one that might be showing the inauguration. So, I decided to protest in my own way.

I turned off the TV, cuddled up with a blanket and my cats, and I read a book. A book written by a woman. A book about women. A book about (*gasp*) lesbians.

Today, I wanted a love story. I wanted a happy ending. I wanted it to last.

I chose First Position by Melissa Brayden (Bold Strokes Books). I've had the book for a while and hadn't gotten around to it quite yet. I thought today was a good day to read it. A lesbian romance. Yeah, that's what I needed.

I think this just might be Brayden's best work to date. If you've read my reviews of her previous work, you know that I enjoy Brayden's novels. I think she is one of our most prominent voices in Lesbian Romance. But First Position has gone to a new level.

I love the characters in this book. Ana and Natalie are delightfully different. One uptight, one laid back. One who is a technical perfectionist, one who dances what she feels. One introverted and focused, one extroverted and kind of winging it. Real opposites. But, as the saying goes, opposites attract. What's really delightful, though, is that this is a "slow burn" attraction. They don't hit it off right away. They aren't secretly lusting after each other right away. Brayden allows the relationship time to build and grow. They find a path from grudging respect to friendship to attraction. As they travel that path, they also grow as individuals. Brayden really upped her character development game here.

As always, the secondary characters are just as richly developed and used well to advance the story. I admit that I wanted a bit more resolution for Jason. Without giving anything away, let's just say that I wanted to know more about where he landed at the end of the novel. This was not a big thing, certainly not a deal-breaker. But he was the one character about whom I thought, "Where is he now?"

Overall, First Position was tightly written and sharply edited. I noticed a real honing of the language. Favorite words and phrasings were significantly reduced when compared with Brayden's previous novels. But Brayden's unique voice as an author was not lost in any way. Instead, I think it was more clearly revealed. I think there is still room to improve with future books, but, again, this was in no way a deal-breaker. Character voices were distinct, the narrative was clean, and the dialogue was crisp. All-in-all, excellent.

I've become quite the fan of audiobooks. So, I listened to First Position as I read along. I studied and practiced the performance of literature when I was in college - undergraduate and graduate schools. So, it's something that's pretty deeply set in me and close to my heart. While there is definitely a big part of me that likes to just sit back and listen, there is another part of me that likes to "see" the narrator's performance choices. Reading and listening at the same time let's me do this.

In my review of Firework, I praised Kristin Barnes as the narrator. I said that she was one of the best narrators I've heard to that point. I hold to that review. But, I've got to say, Katrina Holmes really hit this one out of the ballpark! Holmes brought life to the narration in wonderful ways. Each character was distinct without being a caricature (my pet peeve). Sure, she missed a word or two here and there. But it did not change the meaning of Brayden's writing. Overall, it was spot-on narration. Now I think she and Barnes should just take turns narrating for Brayden.

So, whether you like to read or listen, you're not going to go wrong with First Position.

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What a treat!

Revisado: 09-24-16

Where does Tipping the Velvet rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

To date, this is the best audiobook I've listened to.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Tipping the Velvet?

There's no *one* memorable moment. It was 19 hours of memorable moments.

Which character – as performed by Juanita McMahon – was your favorite?

Nancy - the narrator. She captured the pure essence of who Nancy is, what she was feeling, and the import of what she was telling.

If you could rename Tipping the Velvet, what would you call it?

I wouldn't

Any additional comments?

19 hours of absolute bliss. Juanita McMahon absolutely nailed the narration. Sarah Waters' writing is perfection, in my opinion - on this book, at the very least. I read the book years ago and fell in love with it then. After listening to the audiobook, I've fall in love all over again.

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Brayden and Barnes are a great team

Revisado: 08-16-16

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would and I have. It's really beautifully narrated. It's wonderfully nuanced. It's very pleasing to listen to. The story is engaging.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Firework?

There were far too many to choose just one. What makes them so memorable, however, is the fantastic way that Brayden writes dialogue and the way Barnes performed that dialogue.

Have you listened to any of Kristin Barnes’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not listened to others, but it is truly my hope that she will do more performances...particularly for Brayden's novels.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

I would leave that to the author.

Any additional comments?

A very nice story. A lovely romance with just the right balance of drama, humor, conflict, and passion. Excellently done.

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Beers doesn't dissappoint

Revisado: 08-16-16

Would you listen to Starting From Scratch again? Why?

I would listen again. It was an engaging story told in an engaging way. It kept my attention from beginning to end.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I think Max was my favorite character. Though he was a secondary character, I believe it was through his interactions with the protagonists that we got to learn more about them and see the development of those characters.

Which scene was your favorite?

Oh, I can't pick one particular scene.

If you could rename Starting From Scratch, what would you call it?

I would never presume to second guess the author. Starting From Scratch is a thoroughly appropriate title.

Any additional comments?

Beers not only writes a fantastic novel, she narrates it wonderfully. The characters were distinct without becoming caricatures. Her tone was varied and appropriately nuanced. Overall, it was a very pleasant 7+ hours of listening.

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