Andrea M. Stone

Great performance, weak story

Revisado: 03-27-24

**Possible spoiler alert**

Well, I got this one on impulse, knowing there was a movie version on Amazon Prime. The performance was very good and fun. The story itself was okay - kind of a riff on Color Out of Space and From Beyond. It has a very Lovecraftian feel, which I dig. However many of the choices made by the lead character - the chief police officer in a small town - made no sense at all. This total lack of internal logic, obvious inspiration, and failure to elaborate on some interesting concepts (the obvious involvement/influence of the crypt keeper wasps from the next door laboratory) lead me to give this an "okay" rating. It was entertaining enough to listen all the way through but I left it feeling let down.

PS - it's still better than the movie

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Boring and dumb

Revisado: 10-05-23

Let me start by saying I love horror. I enjoyed both Amityville movies. I was hoping for a fun, possibly campy, ghost/possession story. It was neither.

The narration was extremely dry and stilted. The story was poorly written and not even a tiny bit credulous. It made no sense at all and had no apparent internal logic of any kind. Don't waste your time.

PS - this is not a true story. The Warren's are hacks (though as mentioned, I enjoy some of their fiction) and the house is not haunted. A horrible murder did happen there. That's it.

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I guess you get what you pay for

Revisado: 03-20-23

The book is completely uninteresting. It failed to keep my attention at all, the characters were not believable, and the names were preposterous. Add the ridiculously inserted surfer lingo, and I'm sorry but I am a crazy dog lady and the magical Golden Retriever... I know it's a Koontzism, but give me a break. I felt myself getting angrier every time I listened. One hour left in the story, and I couldn't be bothered. If it hadn't been free, I'd have been irritated. Find something else. It's not worth the time.

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Good book, really interesting

Revisado: 01-09-23

The story was well written and very interesting. All of the released information, as well as the way everything was pieced into a narrative was great. Keyes is pretty terrifying, and it was a good listen.

The narration... My husband and I had a disagreement. I said she was a human, he was certain it was an artificial voice. I went as far as to double check! Though she's easy to listen to and understand, and I appreciate the dispassionate read as a true crime story, Ms.Landon was a bit robotic. I would have preferred a little more natural sounding.

Overall, I recommend it. If you work alone, you'll never do so the same way again!

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Entertaining

Revisado: 09-30-22

Over all, I was entertained. At times the dialog and/prose was predictable but still fun.

I can't decide if Wil Wheaton adds or detracts to the experience. His reading of all the characters, voice, rhythm, etc, was exactly the same save one (not the protagonist) and I'm not sure if that added to the feeling of predictability. Sometimes it felt overly sardonic. Other times it felt perfect.

Worth a listen but didn't necessarily sell me on listening to anything else by either author or narrator.

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Brilliant

Revisado: 09-27-21

an absolutely wonderful story, just as expected. Engaging, well-rounded characters, wonderful narration. the whole series is spot on.

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A very fun listen

Revisado: 04-17-20

This was a very enjoyable book to listen to. The character voices were great, although the narration was occasionally a bit stilted. absolutely worth a go.

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Twilight for adults

Revisado: 10-23-19

If you're looking for a romance novel, this still isn't great. I was not looking for a romance so I was pretty disappointed. Witches, vampires, books... I thought this would be right up my alley but it turns out to be a love story, which is decidedly -not- up my alley. Now, I don't mind some romance/relationship as a side dish in my books but not as the main course. Even still, I may have enjoyed this were it not for the fact that the 2 main protagonists are very much not to my liking. At. All.

I find Diana, the main character, to be completely unlikable. She is passive to the extent that she rarely does anything - things happen to her. Events unfold around her and others act upon her. She demonstrates zero agency. Other characters constantly talking about how brave she is doesn't make it so. Maybe it's my age - perhaps the older I get the less tolerant I am of weak, passive women but yeugh... The messages of being obedient to and taking care of your man are repeated over and literally. Pass. And her love interest? An arrogant, controlling misogynist whose behavior is excused because he's a vampire "it's his instinct", redolent of "that's how men are" and "boys will be boys". Uh, no. Jerks act like that.

The basic story spurring the characters to come into contact is interesting and I am sad that I'll never get to find out how it all ends. Apparently the mystery is finally resolved in book 3, after a crescendo of romance in book 2. I barely made it to the end of #1 so this will be my first and last venture into this world.

So if you are fantasizing about being a passive lump upon whom the world acts with a controlling and handsome lover, living in a castle and talking about vampire-witch babies have at. Personally I'd have rather learned about the murder mystery and Ashmole 782 - it had all the makings of something I'd have enjoyed. Alas.

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engaging mystery, but hated the characters

Revisado: 06-27-19

I stuck with the story to the end because I was genuinely curious about who done it. However not only did I not care about any of the characters, but I actually felt all of them were pretty irritating. I read plenty of young adult books, Harry Potter for one. I find them enjoyable. But unless you are in fact a 13 year old girl, I don't think you'll enjoy this. I found Emily extremely overwrought, self-important, and generally annoying.

I gave the performance three stars because I thought the voice actor did a good job of being an annoying 13 year old girl. of course with a different reading, who knows.

I was rather disappointed when the mystery was solved, but I won't spoil it. so my final thought is that perhaps I'm simply not the target audience. Teenagers might like this and identify with this much more than I did. It's been a long time since I've been in my teens.

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Not bad for free

Revisado: 05-09-19

Quinto does a nice job narrating. I found the initial premise very interesting but it's never explored. I realize it's just a short story and as such there's little time to develop characters but frankly, I was not drawn in. I didn't care about the protagonist or what happened to him. The story was fine and good for a listen in rush hour traffic but I'd have been irritated had I paid for it.

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