Daisycat68

It's basically torture and cluelessness

Revisado: 12-19-24

This book is not good.

I've been reading Torus Intercessions from the beginning. This book sticks out like a sore thumb that just gets hammered repeatedly. It doesn't resemble any of the other books in the series, almost seems like a different series or spin-off, which would be OK if the NEXT book in the series didn't go back to the original format.

We've been teased with Owen's past over the previous books, and we knew it was not going to be pretty, but this was too dark and graphic for me.

** WARNING: This book contains graphic depictions of violence and torture in clear detail. It also contains less detail but still on-page descriptions of Very Bad Things done to children. There is no TW for this in the audio, just so you know. **

Then there was the fact that Jarrod spends like 90% of the book complaining about how old he is and how Owen is too young for him. We get it already. And let's be real: Owen's behavior is predatory and kinda rapey. It's like Jarrod is a victim of Stockholm Syndrome and just gives in. Then BOOM! Happy families. And the sex scenes were cringe.

There are WAY too many characters in here, and some of their names (like Darius and Dante) are different people but they blend in so much, I'm not sure Calmes remembered they were different. The narration definitely made them sound the same. That's just one example.

Speaking of narration, I do not understand why there are different narrators for EVERY book when the characters are the same. Each different narrator gives a different personality to the characters, and then we get the following book and it seems like they aren't the same people we just read about in the last book. This wasn't the worst narration but most characters sound the same, and since there are a million of them (some with similar names), it's just a jumble of who is doing what. I mean, Calmes is with a publishing house; she's gotta have a budget for this.

I held off listening to this one for a long time because I suspected it would be a tough listen, and now I regret the credit and time I spent on it. I honestly think you could skip this book and not be lost going to the next one. I regret the time I spent listening to this hoping it would improve if I just gave it 20 more minutes. NOT RECOMMENDED.

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One of the worst books I've ever read.

Revisado: 11-24-24

I had to return this. It was absolutely awful.

Backing up, I read book 1 and really liked it. It was cute, original and had a unique take on good vs evil, paranormal creatures and some good insight into the plight of being disabled and homeless. About a year later, the audio was released and I scooped it up, enjoying that as well.

My first experience with reading book 2 did not go well. The author starts by chastising the reader because of something, which immediately set a tone of negativity. That was followed by basically nothing but an adolescent boy's fetish fever dream. It's nonstop, ridiculous sex. It's not even good, and Romily and Fox throw down at every opportunity, no matter how inappropriate. It was a total turn-off. I could not force myself to read past the halfway point. I'm not sure there was even any plot in there.

Now, I see the release of the audio and, despite misgivings, decided to try it. Big mistake. BIG. On top of the amateur porn, there are more confusing sections that aren't bad if you are reading it, but hard to sort out on the audio. I'm referring to all the texting being "read" from names for characters that change depending on whose phone is being used and how that person has named these people in their phone. If you think this is confusing, try listening to it.

I couldn't get past 50% yet again, but others have said it gets dark, someone gets tortured, none of the plot points go anywhere, lots of unanswered questions, and on and on.

This book is an unmitigated disaster, and now that prices have gone up, I recommend you save the cash or credit and don't waste them here.

Not at all recommended.

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Dinklage is amazing!

Revisado: 11-19-24

What a great production! It was short, sweet and kept me guessing. I love a full-cast production, complete with music and sound effects. Finally, I was blown away by Dinklage's performance. I'll definitely listen to this again.
Highly recommended!

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I hope there's a book 2!

Revisado: 11-14-24

I thoroughly enjoyed "Love Immortal" by Kit Vincent. I've never heard of the author before, so this was a pleasant discovery.

Jonathan has had some tough luck. In fact, readers / listeners should pay attention to the TWs in the beginning. That said, Jonathan is a survivor and plows full-steam ahead on his self-guided if unusual career path.

Dacian is brooding, elegant and Jonathan's professor of Gothic romance. He has secrets that span centuries. Enter: a budding romance set among Gothic horror and homophobia.

I'd like to interject a shout out to the narrator who gave Dacian the most cultured, erotic and sometimes terrifying voice imaginable. Wow! He voiced the other characters well, but his Dacian was spot-on!

This is a modern sort-of retelling of Stoker's "Dracula," but not quite. While I enjoy this version of what might have happened, the story dragged in places but the main purpose was finished with little fanfare. I think better editing may have helped. It was entertaining, especially listening to Dacian's voice, and I'm hoping for a book 2. Recommended!

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It's The Leland Show!

Revisado: 11-03-24

Well, I've been following along this entire journey and while I think this book and the last were pretty weak plot-wise, I'll keep listening/reading her works.


The Good:
I love these characters (mostly) and am happy to see them get their HEAs. Michael Ferraiuolo is a master at his craft and worth listening to as opposed to just reading these. He IS the characters.

The Bad:
OMG enough with the fence already! It's like the joke that will not die. The last few books have been plot-light and just a way for Leland to dance around and be the center of everything. It's like 25% story and 75% trying too hard to be funny. The earlier books had more depth, including the characters. No one has any other life but to orbit around Leland. I liked learning more about Tavish, but Ellis was so bland and two-dimensional, I couldn't connect with him. The "mystery" of what the crimes were and who actually committed them and why were kind of convoluted and felt like an afterthought.

I hope to see a story featuring Micah. I hope there's some real meat to the story. I will probably buy the next one because I'm so invested, but honestly, Winters' work has gotten worse the more popular she's become. She's just cranking these books out but they are not nearly the quality her earlier works were. It's a shame.

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Porn and torture

Revisado: 10-04-23

I really wanted to like this book. The premise is intriguing and Gary Furlong is a superb voice actor; calling him a narrator doesn't do him justice. Unfortunately, the plot drags since it's basically an afterthought to the ridiculous amount of sex scenes. They aren't even good sex scenes, more like aggression without clothes. There is also on page torture and references to past repeated SA of a child. Finally, this ends on a major cliffhanger. I think 2 stars is generous but will give book 2 a try. I'm hoping the plot picks a direction instead of ping-ponging all around. There are several of these in the series and a spin-off, but unless we lose some of the gratuitous coupling, I'm out.

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Same as all her other characters

Revisado: 08-31-23

This book was BORING. I struggled mightily to finish it, mostly because I got the second one on sale and now Audible will not refund titles if you pay cash, only if you buy with a credit.

I have long been a fan of Alice Winters and have revisited many of her early works again and again. I feel like now, she is just cranking out the SAME story and SAME characters with the barest changes. This could even be a ghost writer and I would not be at all surprised. The plot to this was paper-thin. Declan dispises Lake for the majority of the book, they have seggs once, then it's insta-love. The minor characters are not fleshed out. The ending was predictable and happened in like 2 or 3 pages; underwhelming to say the least. I'm pretty done with this author. The VRC books are kind of interesting (although still formulaic). Hitman's Guide were pretty funny. Honestly, her best books are behind her: the IN Darkness series was great and stopped right where it could have spun off, but sadly I think she dropped it. Dear Cassius was heart-pounding and The Last Text was utterly amazing. Michael Ferraiuolo is the ONLY thing that saves this at all. His characters all have variety and nuance. I DO NOT RECOMMEND this book.

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SEVEN MINUTES of ads?

Revisado: 08-25-23

I love this show. I am not opposed to ad revenue for creators. This episode contains OVER SEVEN MINUTES of advertising before the podcast even starts! Seriously?

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Abysmal performance

Revisado: 05-18-23

I read this book (and the next few) years ago and was excited to listen to it. How wrong I was. The narration is so tonelessly monotone as to almost be a caricature. There isn't almost any difference in voices, either, with the exception of Simon. It completely ruins what is an interesting take on vampirism. Zero stars for performance. Due to this and the fact that only this and the next installment are recorded (out of 8 so far) means I'm going back to reading them. Audiobook is not recommended, story is.

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Maybe it gets better?

Revisado: 03-06-23

I have loved previous books by Therin and was looking forward to this one for a while. I DNF'd at about 70%. My hope is that with future books, it will be worth the slog to get to something good. As it stands, I feel like I am forcing myself to continue.

I love Joel (Froomkin) Leslie! I guess you either love his narration or you hate it, but I am always in awe of his character range and expressions. No disappointment there.

My main complaints are maybe due to the fact that this book isn't like her previous ones and I don't feel like the blurb prepared me for just how depressing this world is. The hate and bigotry against empaths is pervasive and every interaction Reece has with the world, large or small, just drowns in negativity. The plot drags and the characters are annoying: Reece constantly whines and complains about literally everything and Grayson (aka The Dead Man) just wanders about like he's master of the universe and repeatedly tells everyone (Reese included) that he is dangerous and not to be trusted. Ever. But then he'll be scrutinizing Reece for keeping secrets (did he not just say, don't trust him?!) and low-key threatening him. How is this EVER going to turn into a romance? It's less slow-burn and more like Stockholm Syndrome.

Another thing that gets confusing, and maybe isn't as noticeable on the page as audio, is how often the POV changes in the middle of chapters. We're cruising along with Reese, then next paragraph the story is first-person someone else, from other major characters to some random minor person. It gets REALLY confusing to know that we've jumped to another scene across town with completely different people from one sentence to the next.

I have no idea how this ends. I do like the author's other books so I'm going to put this on the shelf until book two gets released and give it a go when I can see more momentum. Recommended with caveats.

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