C.P.G.

Almost Didn't Make It Through

Revisado: 05-28-16

I approached this book with absolutely no knowledge of the story, or the way it was laid out, in terms of the three books. I was very absorbed by the first book, "Against Stupidity...", the story of two universes that find a way to share a technology that apparently provides infinite free clean energy for the entire Earth and, presumably, similar benefits for the other universe. I was getting very involved with the intrigue of that first book when, all of a sudden it ended, and book 2, "...The Gods Themselves", began. Not having a clue where this book was going, the change totally threw me. It was a completely different story with seemingly no connection whatsoever with the first book. I actually thought for a while, that a completely different novel had been accidentally appended to the audiobook!

This different story seemed to go on and on and on, seemingly with no end, and absolutely no apparent connection with the first book. It started getting so monotonous and repetitive that I just about gave up. So I decided to read some of the positive reviews to see what I could possibly be missing. The reviews convinced me to persevere and, I've got to say, this is definitely one of those times when the positive reviews got it right. The second book finally connected with the first book wonderfully, and I became just as transfixed with the second part as I had been with the first.

The third book, "...Contend in Vain?", wasn't as strong as the first two, but it certainly resolved the entire book very satisfactorily.

While not one of Asimov's best - that would arguably have to be "The End of Eternity" - I am so glad I decided to get through the difficult part, because it became very rewarding and enjoyable. Narrator Scott Brick, as usual, is masterful.

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Wonderful Insights

Revisado: 05-06-16

Ronald Reagan is the one President I wished could have run for a third term. At the time, I was very saddened to see him go. I wasn't political at the time, I just really liked him. He made me feel confident in America and secure. The country experienced a respect around the world that we haven't seen or even come close to since. Killing Reagan placed me right back in those times. After the assassination attempt, the country was completely in the dark regarding how close to death Reagan had come. The book describes the events leading up to the shooting and the moments after in excruciatingly vivid detail. But more importantly, it gives interesting insights into the man, his presidency, and his personal life.

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Why Speak the Songs?

Revisado: 03-27-16

This is an excellent course if you have interest in The American Songbook and the history of Vaudeville and Broadway musicals. The lecturer, Professor Bill Messenger, is an award-winning pianist and he plays a lot of samples of many of the discussed songs. I just don't understand why he chose to speak most of the lyrics in a sing-songy style a la Rex Harrison. He sings occasionally, proving he can certainly carry a tune, and has an acceptable singing voice for the short samples he plays, in fact, I wouldn't mind listening to him sing complete songs. So why did he make this inexplicable choice? It is very distracting because as a listener, and lover of some of these songs, I want to hear them sung. The speaking of the lyrics is not only distracting, it detracts from the excellent piano playing. Fortunately there are contemporary recordings, and some excellent, fully produced, reproductions used for many of the tunes discussed. Where Professor Messenger really shines is in the telling of the history and the many anecdotes. It's all very fascinating and never boring. His delivery is very conversational and doesn't sound scripted. Unfortunately, the choice to speak the songs' lyrics was such an important issue for me, and interfered with my enjoyment of the course to such a degree, I had no choice but to give the performance a rating of only three stars. It's a shame he made a choice that keeps this course from just crossing the finish line.

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A Short But Engrossing Murder Mystery

Revisado: 02-17-16

I'm a sucker for a good mystery and Crimson Gold has most of the ingredients to make it an engrossing story. I'm not sure, but I think it's based on actual events. It takes place in Alaska before it beacame a state, during its gold rush of the late 1930s. It's in this setting that a violent and gruesome multiple murder occurs. The writing about the time and place are as interesting as the details of the crime and the mystery surrounding it. The length is just right for the story. Too many writers will dilute a good story by overwriting it. Not the case here.

The only problem with the audiobook is the narrator. He tends to read the story instead of telling it, sometimes breaking up sentences in non-grammatical places. But then, when doing voices, he shines.

Overall, I would definitely recommend Crimson Gold if you're in the mood for an excellent true crime murder mystery, but don't want to invest 10-15 hours on one.

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast.

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The Worst Kind of Crime

Revisado: 01-19-16

Secret Lessons is about a sixth-grade teacher in a Caseyville, Illinois, elementary school, who was accused of sexually abusing numerous young girls, and the ensuing investigation and prosecution.

What the book also brings to light is the shameful behavior of some in the school, the town, the county, and the justice system.

A book about a subject like this could easily turn tawdry and sensationalistic, but the authors of Secret Lessons, Don W. Weber and Charles Bosworth Jr., approached it with insight and compassion, shining a light on areas of our society that all too often remains in the dark.

This audiobook was riveting from start to finish.

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast.

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A Heart Wrenching Thriller

Revisado: 01-17-16

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast.

This book was riveting from start to finish. Porche is a woman held captive for two years by some sicko and then returns home only to face fears and doubts as to whether she is actually truly free.

The pacing of the writing was excellent and I never felt the story drag. I'm not a huge fan of female narrators just for fact that men tend to do female voices better than women do male voices. I must say, this narrator had me so lost in the story, I wasn't taken aback when she read the male parts. The character changes were so well done, there were times I could swear there were several narrators.

Be prepared to listen to the whole book in one sitting because you won't want to stop.

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Dead on Arrival

Revisado: 01-16-16

The following spoiler will illustrate how ludicrous the writing of this play is...

One of the character's lover gets bitten by a zombie. He hasn't begun to show symptoms yet, but she was quite anxious to take a gun and kill him before any symptoms took hold. Later, while talking about what she had done with another character, she reveals that she felt relieved that her lover was dead. She goes on to explain that she felt relieved because she didn't want to tell her lover that she didn't want to marry him. She didn't want to have to hurt him! So, she'd rather KILL him than have to hurt him by breaking his heart. This is one cold, selfish b*tch!

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Narrator Doomed the Book

Revisado: 01-16-16

I was provided a complimentary copy of this book from Audiobook Blast in return for a fair and honest review.

All too often, a bad narrator can make it impossible to enjoy what might very well be an excellent book. I can't say if Devil's Blade is excellent or terrible because the narrator, Miles Taylor, made it impossible for me to even finish the book. With an excruciatingly monotone delivery, and broken phrasing, it was impossible for me to even follow the story. I found myself replaying segments over and over in order to understand what just happened, because time and time again the narration completely took me out of the story, until I finally had to give up on the book.

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Get Lost in Another Time

Revisado: 01-12-16

What did you love best about The Diary of Samuel Pepys?

I loved the acting. These are, by far, the best actors I've ever heard in a full cast performance. I also love the adaptation. The actual diary consists of 1st person journal entries. The mix of the narration of these entries and the full scenes is excellent.

What did you like best about this story?

There are so many things I liked about the story. I'd have to say, I was most moved by the personal relationships. Some of the characters were quite endearing. Humor was a huge part of the play. I found myself laughing out loud several times. I also loved the history that was so much of this story. I was transported to a long ago time and place.

Which scene was your favorite?

It's impossible for me to pick out a single scene as my favorite. There were so many wonderful moments. I particularly enjoyed any scene with Samuel and his house boy/servant, Will. I'd have to say, these were probably the funniest exchanges.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

As I said, there were many scenes that made me laugh, and a moment that nearly brought me to tears. The acting was so good, on par with the best British films and television, I found myself caring deeply for these people.

Any additional comments?

For anyone who particularly enjoys full cast audio performances, The Diary of Samuel Pepys is in my top five. In fact, it might even be my all-time favorite. It's hard to find fault with this production, but there is one glaring problem which caused me to deduct one overall rating star. Each of the 51 chapters is about 13 minutes long, and each one begins with a lone female voice singing a short, 20 second song. I wouldn't have minded if each time it had been a different song, but every 13 minutes I had to hear the same exact song. If that wasn't bad enough, any time there was singing by any of the characters, they too sang the same song. It's a shame the producers didn't take the time to edit out these 51 tedious chapter intros for the Audible and CD releases of this otherwise perfect audio play.

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Insult to My Ears

Revisado: 09-03-14

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

I can't imagine anybody enjoying this book as read by Deaver Brown.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

The narration was so awful, the audio quality so bad, I couldn't get past the first chapter.

Would you be willing to try another one of Deaver Brown’s performances?

NO!

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Charles Dickens 200th Anniversary Ghost & Thriller Collection?

I would remove the book from Audible, hire a new, talented narrator, and re-record the book.

Any additional comments?

Deaver's enunciation and pronunciation are so bad, it's an insult to my ears and to my intelligence. He mispronounces and cuts off the endings of words, stumbles while reading as if he gets tongue-tied and slurs his words. On top of that, the recording quality is awful. There is constant distortion from overmodulation whenever Deaver raises his voice just the slightest. This is amateur hour and Audible shouldn't even offer it for sale, let alone charge for it!

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