Katy of Bookopolis

Fantastic Book

Revisado: 04-16-25

The title of this book at first glance made me want to skip over it. "Blood and Thunder" sounds like the name of a cheap paperback novel written for its shock value. Fortunately, I began reading the book and realized that it was very well written and contained well researched history of the early/mid 1800's. Much of the narrative was about Kit Carson and his many adventures as a fur trapper, mountain man, scout and guide, and his interactions with the Indians of New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and the plains, and into his later years as a soldier in the U.S. Army. I eventually learned that the term "blood and thunder" was used to describe the novels that were written about Kit Carson, while he was still alive, and that contained as much fiction as truth. The narrator/reader was excellent. This is a wonderful book, very enjoyable!

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Lots of War Jargon

Revisado: 02-27-25

Having read all of the Grey Man series, I was totally not prepared for this book. 80% of the book is a blow-by-blow account of battles, on land, at sea, and in the air, on two different continents, simultaneously. Not a lot of character development in the book, but a lot of battle strategy. If the reader understands a lot of alphabet soup: APC's, AT4's, BTR's, LAV's, F35's, GBU39, ZSU's, AK's, 2A65, and more ad nauseum, this book will be a hit. For me, not so much.

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Disappointing

Revisado: 03-04-24

I have read all of the Gray Man books, and loved them all; however this one doesn't meet the standard. Too much time is spent describing the fighting/battle/struggle, etc. And oddly enough, very little time is spent with the Gray Man himself. This book was all about a lot of other villains and a very hard to believe plot. The end leaves the reader/listener hanging with no resolution of the Court/Zoya situation, which I think means "...now you will have to buy another book to find out what happens..." The performance was superb, as always with Jay Snyder, but I honestly would not recommend this book. I am suprised at all the reviews that state this is Greaney's best Gray Man book ever. It surely is not. Maybe the Gray Man has jumped the shark?

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Excellent, engaging, enlightening, enjoyable

Revisado: 10-03-23

Written and read in an understandable and pleasing manner. No dry history here, but a tale of real events lived by real people.

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Writing is amazingly creative and incredibly good

Revisado: 08-13-22

This is my fifth Gray Man book. All of them are superbly written. Jay Snyder is a talented reader and brings the stories to life with his mastery of accents and his interpretation of the different characters. The book never gets boring or slow. So impressive how Greaney develops the plot and the characters with such creativity. There is nothing predictable in this book. I am totally hooked on the Gray Man and look forward to reading all the rest of the books in this series.

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Quirky Characters, Subtle Humor

Revisado: 08-16-21

"Virgil Wander" is a fun book to read. The characters are many, and memorable. The setting is a tiny town in Northern Minnesota where nothing much ever happens, until things start happening. Virgil is recovering from a car accident that landed him and his car in Lake Superior. The concussion he received causes him to "lose" words, and the way he describes this problem to the reader is very humorous. The narration is excellent with just the right touch of "Minnesota-Speak". Throughout the book, Virgil struggles with the after effects of his accident but manages to go on without too much inconvenience. Unlike crime novels, or mysteries, this book doesn't seem to have a destination, which might bother some listeners. But the easy-going, good natured Virgil just lives his life, encounters challenges, interacts with people, and shares his thoughts with the reader. The characters in this book are believable and could be people that anyone might know or stop to chat with.

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First Hand Accounts from Each Character

Revisado: 05-31-21

This is the first Audible book I have listened to that has several narrators. I was a bit hesitant at first, but as the book progressed I found that hearing from each character as though he/she were speaking directly to me, was very effective. The narrators do not speak to each other - as in a dialog - but they speak directly to the reader/listener. The book is written well and each character has their own story to tell. There were plenty of surprises near the end of the book, that made everything else make sense. This is an excellent book - surprising plot lines, excellent narration (including Irish accents), and full exposure of human nature.

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Best Narration Ever

Revisado: 05-31-21

Since I began listening to Audible books - some 80 books ago - I have never been as impressed with a narrator as I am with MacLeod Andrews. He made each character come alive with their own voice. In some cases, I was convinced that there was more than one narrator, his interpretation was so good. The book itself was good, although there were times when I felt frustrated that the plot wasn't moving fast enough. As a Minnesotan, I too noticed the mispronunciation of Wayzata, and Yooper, but that didn't detract from the story. I do think that with a couple of the characters, Andrews hit the "Minnesota-speak" spot on. Unlike some mysteries I have read, I felt that the happenings in this book were believable, and could take place in Minnesota. This is my first exposure to Matt Goldman, Nils Shapiro, and MacLeod Andrews. I will be going back for more.

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Excellent Book - Distracting Reader

Revisado: 02-19-21

Very interesting book. Hard to listen to the reader since all words that end in t sound like -ta. Overemphasis of the ending T on words gets to be annoying, and eventually listening for the ta ending, overcomes interest in the book.

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Excellet Narration - Unusual Story

Revisado: 11-16-19

It took a couple of chapters for me to get into this book. I thought at first that there was too much meandering going through details that seemed irrelevant to the story. But I was patient and kept going. Eventually everything tied together and I understood why the author laid things out the way he did. The story takes place in northern Italy, where the people speak German. The narrator did a marvelous job with a German accent, and the unique voices for the many characters in the book. The motive for the crime which is the topic of the book, seemed to have been made clear several times, but then changed. Every time it seemed that all the facts had come out, and the culprit had been exposed, things turned upside down, and the facts were not at all what they had seemed to be. I thought that this book was unusual - it is unlike anything I have ever read before. Somewhat strange, but intriguing, written in first person, a lot of time was spent on developing the characters and exposing their individual histories. I needed a lot of patience to get through this book. It is not the kind of book that goes straight through to the solving of the crime. Many side trips are taken - interesting ones though. The author writes almost as though this was a diary, filled with his emotions, reactions, motivations, and demons.

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