August 2015

[Patricia]

Jeanie wrote: "Last night I finished the fourth book in the Chronicles of St. Mary's series, A Trail Through Time. I started the next one so I can get caught up in the series to read the latest one that just cam..."
Do you know about the 'in-between stories' for St Mary's as well? They are all free on Audible.

[CatBookMom]

Jeanie wrote: "... today's Daily Deal caught my attention, Nice Dragons Finish Last by Rachel Aaron, and I think I'll try that one next. ..."

Went, looked, read reviews at all 3 places, bought the audio. Thanks. I think. ;D

[Jessica]

Getting ready to start Joe4 by Salem. This is another listen-2-review I received recently.

[Robin P]

I got the daily deal today as well, never heard of it before but sounded fun.

[Kathleen]

Last week I listened to H is for Hawk, a memoir by Helen Macdonald. It was more about hawking than the grief story I expected, but that was fine. The language was excellent and the story was good. It is one of the few audio books that I would listen to again. Amazingly, as I was listening to the book and walking through my suburban neighborhood, two broad-winged hawks swooped into the cul-de-sac and made a low 360 degree circle. Wow.

The author did a great job narrating her book.

[Sandy]

Kathleen wrote: "Last week I listened to H is for Hawk, a memoir by Helen Macdonald. It was more about hawking than the grief story I expected, but that was fine. The language was excellent and the ..."

I was also really surprised and impressed by Helen MacDonald's narration. The writing was beautiful as well. However, I gave up half way thru; I keep trying touching memoirs but they just aren't for me.

[Janice]

I finished Death Masks yesterday and started The Nightingale today. I hope that the narrator grows on me as she seems to have with others. The writing seems quite simplistic at this point.

[Travis]

Call me the weird one but after a slow start I am at this point enjoying Armada more than Ready Player One. I mean going to space to battle aliens is a much more believable story than the whole virtual reality world in RPO

[Scott S.]

Travis of NNY wrote: "Call me the weird one but after a slow start I am at this point enjoying Armada more than Ready Player One. I mean going to space to battle aliens is a much more believable story than the whole vi..."

Okay, weird one. :)

A couple of audiobook friends that listened around the same time I did both greatly enjoyed it. I liked Armada...I just liked it more the first time...when it was called The Last Starfighter.

[Jessica]

I remember The Last Starfighter! I loved that movie when I was younger!

[Jessica]

Listened to Joe4 this afternoon. My review is up on Goodreads, Audible and my blog. Long story short, loved the story but hated the narration. Salem should have popped for a professional narrator, or at least his publisher should have.

[Jeanie]

Patricia wrote: "Jeanie wrote: "Last night I finished the fourth book in the Chronicles of St. Mary's series, A Trail Through Time. I started the next one so I can get caught up in the series to read the latest on..."

Yes, I've read all the short stories and loved them.

[Jan]

Jeffrey wrote: "I remember The Last Starfighter! I loved that movie when I was younger!"

Yes Jeffrey - it was great movie!!

[David]

I just finished listening to Remarkable Creatures: Epic Adventures in the Search for the Origin of Species by Sean Carroll. I highly recommend this book to everyone interested in adventure stories or evolution. Extremely well written and engaging. Here is my review.

[CatBookMom]

Jeffrey wrote: "I remember The Last Starfighter! I loved that movie when I was younger!"

Me, too. Robert Preston, cute boy, great aliens - it had lots going for it.

Thanks to J for linking this to Armada. Or maybe I'll just go watch the movie, lol.

[Travis]

I admit I have little sci fi background especially in movies as I watch very little tv or movies. Not sure I even heard of Last Starfighter but thats just the way it is

[Scott S.]

It seems to have definitely benefited you in this case. I'm not sure I could watch it now, I bet it hasn't aged well. :)

[Jessica]

I would like to watch it again for nostalgia's sake!

[Jeanie]

I'm a little way into Nice Dragons Finish Last and am enjoying it. It has a well-imagined world and magical system with plenty of high-stakes tension. But under it all there is a cute and sweet vibe that isn't cutesy or sappy. The narration reminds me a little of the original Percy Jackson. I'm hoping it all finishes as well as it started.

[Scott S.]

I'm listening to Stealing Light narrated by Charlie Norfolk. I have fallen completely in love with her beautiful voice and English accent.

Oh yeah, and the book is good too. Though at this point she could just start reading a stock ticker and I would still give the book 5 stars.

[Jessica]

Getting ready to start listening to A Child for the Devil by Conrad Jones in just a few minutes. Never heard this narrator before so I don't know what I think yet. The narrator is Jacob Bruce. Has anyone ever heard him before?

[Kristie]

I'm almost done with The Invention of Wings, and it's really good. Good story and narration. I have to admit, I'm a little fatigued by the slavery-era genre, but this story certainly is a good addition, especially since it's a fictional account of actual unsung warriors for justice. The narration is very, very well done. I'm surprised it took me this long to listen to this one.

Next up: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.

[Patricia]

Kristie wrote: "I'm almost done with The Invention of Wings, and it's really good. Good story and narration. I have to admit, I'm a little fatigued by the slavery-era genre, but this story certainl..."

Glad you enjoyed it. It was also one of my favorite books last year. I agree the narration was fantastic.

[Fran]

Everything I Never Told You is a stunner for a debut novel. One review described it as haunting. It covers everything from race, gender, love, loss, and identity to name some of the themes. All in all a solid 4 star for literary fiction. Now I've queued up The Haj by Leon Uris and narrated by the award-winning Neil Shah. So far it's going to be a great 21 hours.

[Jeanie]

I'm really really enjoying Nice Dragons Finish Last. I'm a little over three hours from finishing and just hope this first book in the series ends as well as it has been up to this point. I love how this family of dragons--so far only seen in human form--makes human dysfunctional families seem like nurturing safe zones... and yet manage to be endearing in their own Mafiaesque ways. It's certainly a new twist in dragon interactions I haven't read before.

[Samantha]

Just finished The Mussorgsky Riddle by Darin Kennedy. I stayed engaged throughout, really enjoying the imaginative landscape and the character's interactions.

Now, I've started Fortress of Solitude by Jonathan Lethem. It's full of beautiful, poetic language that washes over you like music. Unfortunately, sometimes that makes me drift and miss the story. But I'm sticking with it. I'm a little nervous though because the reviews suggest a dud of an ending.

[Sandy]

David wrote: "I just finished listening to Remarkable Creatures: Epic Adventures in the Search for the Origin of Species by Sean Carroll. I highly recommend this book to everyone interested in adv..."

I second this recommendation - wonderful book.

[Jeanie]

I finished Nice Dragons Finish Last... it finished well. I really enjoyed this weird fantasy set in a dystopian US future where magic has returned to Earth after a thousand year drought. The concept of the Detroit Free Zone set up by a great spirit, the Lady of the Lakes, Algonquin, is fascinating. And I loved the main character--a dragon who isn't dragonish and is just too nice--and his siblings encouraging him to be more ruthless, conniving, and interested in riches. I really enjoyed one of the oldest brothers and seer of the Heartstriker clan, Bob. You've just got to love any dragon named Bob. I'm so glad a sequel comes out this fall.

[Story]

David wrote: "I just finished listening to Remarkable Creatures: Epic Adventures in the Search for the Origin of Species by Sean Carroll. I highly recommend this book to everyone interested in adv..."

Sounds good. On to the TBR it goes.

[Genevieve]

So I recently finished A Darker Shade of Magic. Here is my review...

I got a free audibles copy of this book from one of my book clubs. I had not heard of the book or writer before. The plot sounded interesting, and the book delivered.

Normally I like more Sci-Fi than Fantasy. Dealing with alternate realities and magic, this book has plenty of both. You never know who exactly to trust, which is great. However, the book does leave a lot unanswered. Looks like I will be buying the second installment in this series.

I definitely recommend this book!

[Nancy]

Well, I'm over half way through The Hum and the Shiver and am ho-hum (ha ha) on it so far. There's no explanation as to who the Tufa is which is bugging me. I'm also not crazy about the two narrators (and the guy's voice every time it comes on jars me - it's really deep and has a kind of "twang" or something to it?). I also don't like narrators doing a bad southern (or in this case, I think it is supposed to be a redneck) accent.

So I'm not sure where I'm going with this book but if it doesn't pick up in the second half, I'm not sure I will read more in the series. Though looking at them, they seem to be kinda stand-alone books and not really a series?

[MissSusie]

Janice wrote: "I finished Death Masks yesterday and started The Nightingale today. I hope that the narrator grows on me as she seems to have with others. The writing seems quite sim..."

The narrator grew on me and I ended up really liking her narration by the end.

[Sara]

I finished The Lemon Orchard, the first book I've ever read by Luanne Rice, and I liked the research she did regarding "Undocumented Immigrants" in US and the dangers they go through to pass the border of Mexico.
I also finished Us with narration of David Haig, parts funny, parts tender and over all a good listen.

[Jeanie]

I finished the latest ironicly named book in the Chronicles of St. Mary's, What Could Possibly Go Wrong? Answer: Pretty much anything and everything. Zara ram does her usual great narration and is so very much the voice of Max--and all the other characters. This one maintains the standard of the previous books in the series.

I have to admit there's more to love than criticize in this series... not criticize so much for me as mix in some genres I'm not a fan of. Sometimes the descriptions border on horror, the suspense is enough to send this wimp screaming for a blanky, and the heroine who is impulsive, always getting into messes, and bumbling at odd times into problems of her own creation makes me want to shake her. If I had to do it over again, I would have spaced out the books more so that Max's traits that are endearing in small quantities don't become an overdose.

[Mejix]

Currently revisiting Sentimental Education by Flaubert. This version is wonderfully read by Michael Maloney. Some times I have a craving for 19th century snobbery.