Susannah

Can't Do Men's Voices!?!??!

Revisado: 01-27-25

I'm a big Fan of Daems' Shadow Sisters novels and his early Red Angel Books (until he switched narrators mid-stream.) The storyline here was weak and somewhat slow picking up steam. I must confess that the narrator's male voices were cringey; She sounded absolutely lovely until she did men: I had a hard time listening cause I kept laughing at her. She just made her voice this fake gruff thing. You can even hear it in the sample when she does the guard guy. There are so many women narrators who do great men without doing fake low voices. I notice that different companies are releasing his audiobooks, so maybe he has no say in the selection of reader. I don't know.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Huge fan of the writing but NOT of this production

Revisado: 04-23-24

From a great Harlan Ellison Fan:
People. C'mon.
J. Michael Straczynski, the editor of the book, is a discerning film-maker, isn't he? He's also the curator of Harlan's work, from what he says (or what Grover Gardner says) in the intro? Harlan's audio work deserves better treatment. (Where's audio producers Yuri Rasovsky (RIP) or Stefan Rudnicki, who is very much still with us, for that matter?) As the editor actually says in the intro, Harlan was meticulous in curating his audio work. As an audiobook, this obviously had no captain at the helm (no producer or director credits at the end?) And although there was a big disclaimer at the top about offending anyone with outdated politically incorrect attitudes and words from the past, there is absolutely NO explanation as to what the heck we're listening to. The listener is absolutely lost as to what the heck is going on. There are live clips of Harlan reading his own material; then out of the blue we get contemporary narrators, most of whom have no grasp whatsoever on the mercurial quality of Harlan's work. Who cast this? Every one of the new readers sound like they're in a different studio and no attempt to fix the sound quality of the current narrators. Even otherwise great narrators like Gardner and Ballerini and Graham are completely at sea with this type of writing; they seem more interested in sounding pretty than biting into Harlan's writing. Of course, Rudnicki and Fass get it on the mark, but all others fall painfully short. (BTW, where was Scott Brick? He's listed but never introduced.) Some narrators introduce themselves, others don't. No years given on each work to help us navigate (they are listed in the book.) Everyone knows Neil Gaiman narrates, so why didn't someone push and get him to narrate his foreword? Why didn't Straczynski narrate his intro? Why didn't Cassandra Khaw read hers (she's all over Youtube and has a very distinctive accent which the lady reader couldn't copy.) This is the day and age of super-curated audiobooks, and this one gets such casual treatment? I can't give it a lower star rating than a four because of Harlan's writing and Rudnicki and Fass' performances, but the production is not a tribute to the amazing writer that was Harlan Ellison. It saddens me as a fan.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 14 personas

Love this narrator! Fun, light-weight drama.

Revisado: 04-23-24

I enjoyed this simple domestic thriller about a young woman and her team of start-up characters as she begins a new security company in a fictional small town. The writing has it's weakness and repetitions (lots of trembling, lip biting and arching of eyebrows) and Ms. Oram could use a good editor to tighten things up. The narrator made the book. Because of her ability to do multiple realistic characters, both men and women, and to infuse the story with commitment and true thriller-excitement, it's worth a listen. I don't think it's a book that would hold my attention in print, but in audio format it's worth a listen, if you're into an urban "cozy" frame of mind.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Another Sad Retelling

Revisado: 08-27-23

I have deep respect for the author's mother's horrible experiences. I have read many books on this subject. And though I do not dispute the horrors and the realities, this retelling loads the first person narrative with facts that are frequently beyond her purview and uses words and language way too sophisticated for a child. The characters and voices done by the narrator did not help this; she is a very young sounding narrator who does not "age" the character as she grows older. I feel maybe the casting could have been stronger, and the character more approachable as a person to bring her more to life. The narrator pronounces all the foreign words so strongly it sounds odd coming out of her American accent. Nevertheless, it is the story of horror that can never be forgotten.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

A Clever Novel and a Clever Play

Revisado: 08-27-23

I like mysteries and it came in a nice double dose this time: a novel and then the play version. The novel is dated (yes, it is over 100 years old!) as is the play. I enjoyed the crisp story-telling by Tony-winner John Rubinstein (I listen to his decades of narrating Jonathan Kellerman's series) and I felt he was the perfect choice for the New York writer who gets stranded in the snow-bound cabin. Then, it was fun to listen to a full cast reading of George M Cohan's adaptation of the play, and to see how Cohan crafted it into the huge Broadway hit play that it was at that time. A very fun listen all around, I thought. My pre-teens enjoyed the play with the sound effects and the accents, on a long road trip. Light weight mystery, but very well produced. Fun stuff.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Delightful Production!

Revisado: 03-03-23

I've always loved Christie, and this audiobook of a Tuppence and Tommy Adventure I found delightful. The story and the characters are top Christie, and the three voices are top notch. (Note: I did not encounter any of the previous mentioned technical issues mentioned in earlier reviews. Maybe they've been fixed.) The sound, the editing and especially the back and forth dialogue scenes with Tommy and Tuppence are pristine. I would recommend it to any Christie fan, or even and YA interested in mysteries. A wonderful production.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Sublime Narration and Charming Italian Tale!

Revisado: 03-03-23

This book follows the life of a Northern Italian woman's family through two generations; switching back and forth between WWII and present day New York. The story is charming (if a bit heavy on the present-day romance side for me.) I felt the WWII sections were excellent, while the present day sections got a bit muddy (with a rather odd love scene in a vat of grapes.) IN fact, I would have liked the entire book to been about Giovanna, the WWII character. I feel the narrator did a great job of nailing the tone of both eras and she moved effortlessly between the two, which really helped during the listen. The accents and characters were all brought to life by the narrator in great detail; I think this audio version serves the book better than a hard copy would because of the performance. It was also nice having one reader rather than the current fashion of chopping everything up into 2 or 3 separate narrators. If you like Italy and art and some romance all combined, it's a nice listen. Not very heady, but very enjoyable. If you are romantically inclined, get out the tissue box for the bitter-sweet ending.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Well Researched Biography and Amazing Narration

Revisado: 12-17-22

My interest in this is the theatre and dance. The author did a superhuman amount of amazing research on Graham, but somehow never manages to get a solid grasp on the person of Martha herself. And maybe that's the whole issue with Graham; she was so inwardly oriented that even with the endless references and documentation, we still don't manage to know her. Kudos to the narrator Gabrielle De Cuir for her complete commitment to the the endless lists of where and how and who; she manages to keep interest even when the writing itself bogs down. I listened because I love the history of theatre and dance; but I would not consider it an inspiring biography to a casual listener; someone without these interests.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Don't Change Narrators!!!

Revisado: 10-30-22

Well, I don't know why this happens. It's so disappointing when narrators are changed mid-series. Beattie is decent, but is nothing compared to the previous narrator (DeCuir?) The male voices pale by comparison and the story loses integrity. So, so annoying. I'll buy the book now instead, but I won't buy this narrator. CR Daems, what were you thinking?

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Light but warm-hearted Autobiography

Revisado: 08-07-22

My mom used to love to watch Miss Ruta on all the game shows. It's a fun listen to hear the author talk about her life in her own sexy voice. Lots of fun, backstage background on her. I wearied a bit with the name dropping, and how EVERYONE is a "very good friend." She could have benefited by the use of a savvy book editor. Her strong commitment to her Lithuanian background is what drew me to the piece. It was a light, pleasant listen.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña