Kate

My guilty pleasure got a little less guilty

Revisado: 02-23-16

I was happy with this story- until Death World I had been listening to this series as a bit of a pulpy sci-fi sort of guilty pleasure. It wasn't super imaginative- McGill was super fly and always (i) survived, (ii) got the girls, and (iii) got a promotion- but it was fun. I don't want to give anything away, but BV Larson managed to use a similar recipe while introducing a really imaginative foe and making things a little sketchier. Shadier, if you will. Fans of the series won't feel like he went off-script, but will probably sense a subtle new direction for the storylines.

I thought Death World (as in, the world itself) was pretty inspired. Additionally, the story managed to shake things up enough to pull the series out of a predictable re-hashing of the same old characters. The character development in this story was unexpected and great.

All in all, I really liked it. I felt much less guilty listening this time around, because it felt like there was more substance to this book compared to others in the series. Every time my partner heard me listening to it, he got drawn in as well...anecdotal evidence of something good.

Finally, Mark Boyett was, as always, wonderful.

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Good and bad, but I'd still recommend it

Revisado: 02-23-16

The good:

I found the story engaging. I was interested in the world and I liked the characters. Despite the sometimes complicated subject matter, the narrative didn't get too bogged down in detail- at times I had to rewind a minute or two to make sure that I got the point, but I preferred that combined with a plot that kept moving to too much detail.

I also enjoyed Wheaton. I have enjoyed everything that I've listened to him narrate. There is something about the pacing and tone of his work that makes the performance feel natural. It doesn't feel like someone reading to you, but rather immerses you in what he is saying.

The bad:

The "I said", "she asked", "I said", "she said", etc. I could tune it out for stretches, but then it would overwhelm me again and it was all I could hear. I think that the irritating effect of all of this needless precision was exaggerated because Wheaton is so good- he conveys separate speakers very naturally, so it was stilted and awkward hearing him finish each sentence with these phrases. It was already obvious who was speaking. On top of that, the words were largely unvarying...it was almost always that someone was saying or asking. At times this made the story almost unlistenable.

One other recurring distraction (though much more minor) was the production quality. I'm not sure if that is exactly the term I am looking for, but at points it was clear that Wheaton had to re-record an element after the fact and they just stitched it over the existing track in a way that was...choppy. For example, there was a detective whose name was likely mispronounced the first time through and when re-recording happened, the new track was just kind of spliced in, but it sounded glaringly different (i.e., it was slower than the surrounding track and of different quality). I'm taking a lot of space and words to describe something that was relatively minor...consider that an effect of my lack of technical savvy.

Recommendation

Ultimately, even with the struggles I had, I enjoyed the book a lot. I thought about it a lot when I wasn't listening to it. It was fast-paced, fun, and thought-provoking in its own sci-fi way. I'd recommend it, but not as a must-listen. If you are a fan of Scalzi already, it is worth it. If you don't like his stuff, this probably won't change your mind.

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So much fun

Revisado: 03-13-15

I couldn't stop listening to it. It won me over in the first chapter and a day later I emerged from a world on the high seas. The protagonist is charming and the story moves at a rapid pace. It is a pretty standard sailor-style book, but in my mind there is no reason to mess with a good thing.

Katherine Kellgren is outstanding. I am not sure it gets much better than this. She truly brings Bloody Jack (and every other character) to life. The characters have, well, character. Vibrancy. Just so good.

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Unique Neuroscience from a Unique Neuroscientist

Revisado: 03-13-15

I studied Dr. Ramachandran's work during my undergraduate degree. In the flood of scientists and peer review, his work stood out enough that even years later I was still talking about some of his theories. When I saw his name attached to this book, I purchased it without hesitation.

Dr. Ramachandran's work in neuroscience is stunning. Once you hear it, you can't believe that we ever thought anything different. He draws beautiful, wide connections across the brain and simultaneously across theories of the brain. And after doing so, he distills it all down to plain language, communicating his ideas effortlessly.

Neil Shah does an excellent job on this one. I have nothing negative to say about his performance.

I finished weeks ago and I'm still talking about pseudocyesis and its link to social norms, among other interesting facts that I learned from this book. If you have any interest in the brain, it is well worth the time.

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Great Stuff

Revisado: 10-30-14

I laughed out loud so many times while listening to this audiobook. It was a great story, with lots of twists and turns and awesome imagery. I loved having Ron McLarty read it to me. His narration hasn't been matched by anything else I've heard yet.

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Guilty Pleasure-Style Read

Revisado: 10-30-14

It was a story that kept moving, with a likeable main character. I haven't been reading for pleasure much at all in the last few years, and it was the perfect re-introduction- nothing too heavy. Also, the narration is one of the best I have heard in the short time I've been listening to audiobooks.

Pretty well my only issue it is from a story perspective. I have a pretty big beef with the female characters. I really wish there was any admirable woman in the bunch, rather than all being either (i) the first to die and ready to throw themselves at McGill's feet or (ii) mega passive aggressive and incompetent. At the beginning it didn't bother me, but by the end it was annoying. I'm not asking for much...just give us one cool girl...

That said, it was not enough to deter me from getting the second book. Like I said, the narration was stellar.

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