Julie

Whispered voices in the narration are difficult

Revisado: 06-14-24

I love this series, even though it's a bit of a guilty pleasure for me. I do not remember volume control being an issue in the previous books; I've listened to all them. In this book, several of the characters, especially Max and Andrew, are read at such a low volume that what they say is inaudible. (Did you see what I did there?) I don't know if it's the narrator's choice or an issue with engineering, but please ensure that all the text is actually audible.

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Wonderful short story!

Revisado: 01-09-23

I loved this beautifully crafted short story read by John Lithgow. Amor Towles is such a good writer!

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Gritty Coming of Age

Revisado: 10-19-20

I loved this book, even though it's a bit grittier than my usual choices. It's mainly about two exceptional brothers coming of age under difficult circumstances in a high-crime area of Brisbane, Australia. It features brilliant language, complex storylines, fascinating characters, exciting situations. I listened to the Audible version and really enjoyed the use of dialect ("merry" turned out to be "Maori"). There is violence involving really nasty bad guys, the drug trade, etc. in case you like to avoid that kind of thing.

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esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Light entertainment

Revisado: 07-07-20

I enjoyed this as light entertainment featuring a fair bit of the paranormal, dastardly villains, and an assortment of other interesting characters. However, I don't like it when an author ends a mystery by having one character explain it to the main investigator. I also think a bit more denouement was in order; I found the ending a bit too quick and easy. The reader was excellent.

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Interesting and enjoyable

Revisado: 06-20-20

Very enjoyable novel in my favorite guilty-pleasure genre. Clever narrative structure weaving the various incarnations of the main characters. Interesting glimpses into the changing historical settings. Well read by the ensemble of readers (Audible edition).

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Narration needs work

Revisado: 06-15-20

The story itself is ok, and the writing is pretty good. This is a creative take on a child endangerment story. There were a couple ways the story could have been resolved, and I was glad for the path the author took. Unfortunately for me, the narration included several of my pet peeves: audible, breathy inhales; annoying child's voice; adding an extra syllable at the ends of words for emphasis (e.g., No-wuh, amazing-guh).

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Another good one!

Revisado: 06-06-20

I've listened to all the books in the series so far, and hope there will be many more. The writing/narration is good, the premise is outlandish but entertaining, and I like the characters. Two new alchemists join the mix, and we meet Max's family. I'm looking forward to hearing how Zoe and Max resolve some issues in their relationship.

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Fascinating

Revisado: 06-06-20

Elizebeth Smith Friedman and her husband were pioneers and inventors in the field of crypt-analysis starting before World War I. The story extends into the 1960s, when Elizebeth had to continue battling gender discrimination. Besides prohibition gangsters and smugglers, German spies in two World Wars (particularly Nazis in South America), Elizebeth had to contend with almost paralyzing gender discrimination at the hands of American officials (especially J. Edgar Hoover). I'll pretty much listen to anything read by Cassandra Campbell.

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Interesting

Revisado: 06-06-20

Interesting book, along the lines of The Woman Who Smashed Codes. Amazing story about an brave and brilliant woman who organized and ran the largest French resistance network during WWII. It's a bit dry; many details and names blurred by (I listened to the Audible edition), but the essence of this woman's pivotal role in feeding critical information to the Allied forces in Britain comes through. The obstacles, disregard, and disdain she faces because of her gender are a constant undercurrent.

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Well managed complexity

Revisado: 06-06-20

Multiple plots and themes about communication, the affects of war on civilian victims (Poland, WWII), the courage of those who resist no matter the consequences, and love, family, loyalty, and other rich complexities that affect the characters. Multiple narratives provide the reader with information that is either unknown or not possible to fully communicate, (a "time-travel" device that I enjoy) and provided some interesting tension between me, as reader, and the modern characters.

The audible version is well read!

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