Shelly M. Felton

Reveals my vengeful nature to me

Revisado: 04-02-25

Extraordinarily well written and performed but at the end I was disappointed by the absence of comeuppance. It holds a mirror and reveals to me my bloodthirsty nature.

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The Absolute Best.

Revisado: 03-28-25

I’ve read a great many Pride & Prejudice variations, on audio and print. So many that I’ve had to create a database of plot points, details, and a grading scale of quality. This book… this creative, genuine, heartfelt book is at the tippy-top of my grading scale. The writing is skillful and exquisite. Although mainly epistolary, the author managed to show and not tell. The voices of each character are nuanced and dimensional. The story is uplifting and tender. It is one of my favorites and I hope you will give it a try.

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Low angst, long listen

Revisado: 03-04-25

It’s lengthy, filagreed with adjective-laden circumlocutions. If you need a long, fairly boring novel to soothe your anxiety and distract you for many hours, this is the book for you. Harry Frost is exemplary as always.

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Phenomenal Narration

Revisado: 09-06-24

It’s an absolutely charming novel. Imaginative, original, and beautifully written. The narration takes it to a further level of excellence. Each character is skillfully brought to life twice over: once by the author and again vividly by the narrator. I rarely write reviews but for this one I had to rave. It’s phenomenal and you will have no regrets for reading it.

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Nope.

Revisado: 10-05-21

25 minutes in, an innocent cat is murdered. The book and performances are probably really good but I’m not going to find out. There are some lines I will not cross.

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Superb acting, but beware of audio idiosyncracies!

Revisado: 07-06-16

This audio collection is comprised of the six major Austen novels, abridged and performed by a full cast of exceptional professional performers, including some very famous ones. You should note that the cover art does not list "Emma" among the works performed, but it's in there. These were produced by the BBC, which might make you jump to the conclusion that the audio quality is as superior as the acting, but that would be a mistake. The audio magicians do create the illusions that the characters actually are strolling through gardens, or riding horses, or disporting themselves in ballrooms. But the audio levels are inconsistent. At one moment General Tilney is berating poor Eleanor at full volume, then before you can say "Northanger," Eleanor is apologizing to Catherine sotto voce and you can barely hear her. This sort of thing happens at various times in each of the novels. There is a lot of whispering! I listened to them seated in a fairly quiet room, and frequently had to rewind to hear soft sounds. I imagined it would be very difficult to catch all the dialog if I were listening in a car on a road trip, or walking with earbuds on a windy day. I think background noise would obliterate subtleties of production. Just thought you should know in advance.

Another thing..... the editing is not consistent in transforming these performances from radio to audiobook format. Mansfield Park is presented without attribution to (famous) actors or the writer who adapted it. A few other novels have some passing mention of the cast, while at the very end of the line, "Persuasion" has the cast listed at the beginning AND the end of each episode. This was not a big deal, just seemed sort of slapdash. I guess I would have expected more meticulous attention to detail from the BBC.

Even with the idiosyncrasies of production, these performances were totally worth it, and even though I've read all Miss Austen's novels in print and in audio, I'll cherish these versions too.

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Fanny Price, ugh!

Revisado: 08-27-12

Juliet Stevenson's narration is superb in all the audiobooks I've listened to, but even her skill cannot lift Mansfield Park to the heights of Pride and Prejudice. Fanny Price is a drip! Edmund is a doofus! The story is a treadmill of reiteration! But if you feel compelled to read Mansfield Park anyway, this edition is the best I've heard. For those not familiar with Jane Austen's works I recommend Northanger Abbey. It's goofy on purpose.

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not to my taste

Revisado: 06-16-09

I've read all the previous Mary Russell novels, but I just couldn't induce myself to finish this one; ennui was overpowering. To my mind, the quality of both the writing and the plotting has deteriorated with each new book. Please... not another crazy religion. No more endless boring discourse on Hebraic minutiae. Annoyingly, Mycroft Holmes is all over the place in this one, not as a genuine character but basically as a shortcut for the author to provide things for Sherlock and Mary. By making things oh so easy for them, drama is garrotted. The narrator does a creditable job on the English characters, but tortures French accents to death. Maybe the ending made the beginning worthwhile, but I didn't stick around to find out.

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Ruined by inept narration

Revisado: 01-13-09

Lest any reader be deceived by the title of this book, the "evil genius" refers to a general evil spirit or bad influence among the characters, rather than one malevolent person. This is a fairly well-written Victorian melodrama. Interest in the storyline is impeded by narration which is so ridiculously inept, so comically bad, as to induce amazed laughter. Personally, if it were my job to choose a narrator for a novel set in Victorian England and Scotland, I would not choose an American reader with a speech impediment. The Scottish characters sound like an amalgamation of a Swedish Chef, Charlie Chan and the Lucky Charms Leprecaun. The female characters are voiced in breathy falsetto. Every word ending in "ing" is mispronounced. "Singing while walking in the evening" sounds like "Singeen while walkeen in the eveneen." Amazingly, the story was interesting enough for me to accept and overlook these annoyances.
Far better novels available from Audible with similar themes and plotlines comprise The Forsyte Saga, by (Nobel Prize winner) John Galsworthy. The narration of these novels is far better as well.

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Imaginative & Entertaining

Revisado: 11-18-08

Neil Gaiman narrates his novel beautifully. I loved the atmosphere he created: a slightly creepy but strangely comfortable vibe. I would like to go live in Bod's graveyard! I would love Silas to be my Guardian! The story and characters are memorable and vivid. I know I'll read this book again and again.

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