Theodore

Heroes Gone Bad

Revisado: 07-26-15

So the entire concept of this book was pretty interesting all in all. I feel like it runs with the concept 'Power corrupts, Absolute Power corrupts absolutely'. So in a world where having super powers innately creates a complex and necessitates one to become morally decrepit, having a world full of select humans with that particular ability is pretty terrifying.

Other than the concept though, that was about it for me for this book. There were some good parts in the book but to me it was pretty predictable if you ask me. I figured out the 'twists' a long time before the big reveal which I found disappointing at best.

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Combination of Exceptional & Timely

Revisado: 07-18-15

So there are a number of things I love about the book and there are a handful of things I would have changed. Absolutely relevant and written well enough to in invest your time and energy in this though.

The book has two things that were going against it from the get go. It was going up against To Kill A Mockingbird as the sequel it was following up. It would forever start at a disadvantage because of how amazing that first book was and how many of us simply grew up knowing that novel for how great it was. It would always be hard to follow up. The other thing that it had going against it was the controversy of whether or not Harper Lee ever wanted the book published. Depending on what side of the fence you're on it may have left a bitter taste in your mouth from the get go. Keeping all that in mind though, this was done INCREDIBLY well. Get it and enjoy!

So here comes some of the spoilers.... So if you have an aversion to spoilers stop here.

The book had three central themes to me. Three themes that were explored and done so in a great way which makes it extremely relevant. The first one was classism. Classism was evident with Henry Clinton and his 'place' in Mason. It affects the way he approaches 'life' and his choices. It makes you think about how the 'haves and have nots' differ in terms of privileges. It also challenges you to wonder which side of the spectrum you fall on and wonder what you have taken for granted as a function. Racism also is a centralized theme. As of July 2015 race is one of those hot topics that has returned to the forefront. This book serves two purposes in this sense by making you know just how far we have come while also giving a glimpse in the minds of people who still sees race. Atticus Finch being 'pro-segregation' and the town of Mason being a town in the South seemingly just a spark away from exploding into a race war creates a perfect setting to explore the question of racism. Then there is one other theme that is actually quite timeless but many may miss; the heroism concept. And I think this is tackled in an atypical fashion. It's tackled in a way that ask you to question 'what happens when someone you see as your hero all of a sudden becomes human?' Almost everyone goes through that phase where they find that they're parents aren't the 'perfect' individuals you thought they were. They are not inexplicably right or not 100% faultless in their actions... How you tackle that as a person is one of the moments that shape you. Jean-Louise Flinch coming to that conclusion that her father is essentially a hypocrite (to her) and believes in pro-segregation is a revelation. Seeing how she handles it was a focal point in the book.

Where the story falls a bit short for me was the fact that it was quite frankly too short. There were a number of things that should have been explored in more detail. There were also a number of things that were added to the novel that felt like they were just that.... 'Added' to the novel. There seemed to be no actual purpose which leads me to think there were other things that needed to be explored in the novel that just wasn't. I am also slightly disappointed that it appears that Scout accepted her father despite... With all that being said though I find myself asking myself.... 'If u were her would could I challenge and subsequently disown my own father like that?' What I was looking for though which was missing was a description of their relationship thereafter which I would think would never be the same. The story doesn't feel like it was tied up and completed in a 'neat bow'. With all that being said though I still found this book a great book.

The narration in this book was perfection and made the book even better. The entire time I was going through the novel I literally thought that there was no one else I can imagine that could have done a better job with this book. Utter perfection.

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An excellent listen

Revisado: 07-12-15

I saw this book first as a suggestion on my kindle and purchased it here on Audible because of the Immersion Reading/WS4V feature. I took a chance on something that looked fascination but I didn't know if I would like. I was SURELY NOT disappointed!

The book was downright fascinating! As a science buff myself it went into a world of genetics and human evolutionary history that intrigued me immensely. It had the right amount of facts and fiction to keep you truly engaged throughout the scope of the book. The author either has some history with working with biochemistry and genetics or did some really good research here. The interconnections between characters were woven quite well and the character development was (at best) great and (at worst) adequate. The teaser at the end with a preview of the next book was also well placed! Will definitely get the next one the moment my credit next month comes in.

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Time Filler

Revisado: 06-21-15

Every now and again I choose to switch things up after going through a huge title. I recently finished one of those huge titles that took me over 2 weeks to read due to the sheer bulk of it and so this served as that 'filler' you need to bring you back down. The book served it's purpose and was a good, clean, quick, interesting journey.

I must say the book started out creepy..... It was literally bone chilling in the way that it started because you saw what was about to happen and wished among all else that it wasn't going to happen.... It happened though and started a string of events that keeps you interested the whole way. The ending was a bit predictable but the journey was good enough. The cookie crumbles though for me with character development and what I can only imagine is useless fillers to bulk up the book or some sort of teaser for future books. There are things that were thrown in the title and that unfolded that (to me) had no relevance to the major story and seemed added just for the heck of it. Also outside the main character there was not much character growth that was seen at all. Finally the antagonist here was too one dimensional in how he was portrayed.... I get that he is the 'bad guy' and all but didn't need to make him look that cold, heartless and calculating. It's a good book if you don't think too hard on it I believe.Funny enough this is one of the shortest books I have gone though in a long while but it turned out taking me a long time (for me) to finish it consideration how small it is.

I actually liked the narration. It fitted well with the character it was trying to play which is all we can really hope for.

It's not a bad title by any means, it's good enough if you're not going to think too hard on it. Also I might be a bit biased by the fact that I am not particularly into this type of books in general; I'm more of an epic fantasy kind of reader.

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Nice Epic Journey

Revisado: 06-21-15

I have been looking for a great fantasy book for a while to kinda pique my interest. Something epic along the lines of a LOTR to hold me over until A Song of Ice & Fire series continues.

This was the 'fix' I was looking for and it was done exceptionally well. The character development was done very well and the storyline leaves much to be explored while giving you enough to stand on it's own. The book was also bittersweet in places but also left open ended in those same places to allow for some semblance of 'hope'. There are a number of subplots that have not been explored which I expect to be explored in the later books. You can see the influences from other books as well but it was done in a unique way.

The narration was done extremely well but to me really didn't add much to the story, It was above average though and borderline perfect. I think especially for the male voice, a better narrator could have been used.

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It was adequate

Revisado: 05-31-15

This is no literary masterpeice. It was however quite adequate. It can scratch that 'itch' you have for a quick, light novel to pass the time. The author, to me, tried to cram too much on this book with way too many filler characters instead of really working with the characters she has and developing them properly. Things almost felt as if they were being thrown at you at times.

The narration was actually quite annoying to me and had I not been interested in where the book was going I would have given up on the Audible version. Not sure how to describe it but I the narration seemed to lack.... 'depth'.

All in all though the book was aight, it had potential to be far more but just fizzled. The author needs to learn that less is more sometimes and character development sells a book.

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What a Journey...

Revisado: 05-25-15

This book was truly a journey. I was gripped and fascinated throughout the entire piece. It had the right amount of twists and turns and was tidied up quite well in the end. I was personally quite pleased that I invested my time going through all three books in this season due to how gripping they were. All the characters seemed to have had their moment in the sun and each were developed well. I liked what the author did to Vin and Elland in this book. Their journey was well charted and the ending was quite fitting all in all. The ending twist that came even threw me a bit. All in all though I really enjoyed this book in it's entirety.

Great story! Excellent Narration! 5 Star Experience!

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A Great Second Book

Revisado: 05-03-15

I enjoyed this. It was long, it was epic and it was fun. Generally I get bored with titles that are this long unless they have a great storyline to back it up. This book DEFINITELY had the storyline to back it up. I was pleasantly surprised throughout the entire journey of this book. There was nothing truly irrelevant in this and it had a good combination of reality and fantasy to make it believable and enjoyable. There is definitely growth in all the characters in this book when comparing it to the first book in the series (this is something I always look out for in books I read). You can also see that it was well thought out... The entire plot and the entire book itself. A+ all the way.

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Can't find Fault

Revisado: 03-30-15

This is actually one of those really well written books. The narration was on point and the content impressive. I was pleasantly surprised here not particularly thinking that I would enjoy this book as much as I did. The book comes to a nice resolution here and it had the right amount of twists and intrigue throughout the book that keeps you gripped. The narration while initially was a bit.... offsetting for me really grew on me as the book progressed. I enjoyed the growth I found in the major characters and I like how this book sets up the other books in the series while still being good enough to stand on it's own. The strength of the book isn't the promise of another book in the series, although you end up being intrigued enough to want to read other books, the book is just genuinely a good read.

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It's not done?

Revisado: 02-01-15

I hate it when a book ends at on a cliffhanger. I remember listening to this title.... looking at the time left and knowing that there is no way everything is going to be wrapped up in the time that was left. I am not sure how the other book in this series is going to unfold but it's definitely going to be an interesting one.

The action in this one got turned up a couple notches with a lot of really fast pace, exciting portions. Up until the very last sentence you're treated with a barrage of action from the characters in the book. If you enjoy fast pace action, you'll enjoy this.

The narration to me was average at best and annoying at worse in places. The story is strong enough though to have you wanting to listen to the book despite.

The most annoying part of all this is having to wait on yet another book to see how this is all going to unfold....

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