Audiobooks discussion
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November 2014
I listened to about half of Six Years and had to abandon it. The story line was very strange to me and basically I felt the main character had turned into a stalker. I was very disappointed. I like Harlen Coben, but this was not one of his best.I think I will start either The Paying Guests or All the Light We Cannot See
Listening to three at the moment: Fall of Giants, which is very entertaining, if not the most historically accurate; The Secret History, which is really drawing me in, but very bizarre and disturbing; and The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History, which I'm finding quite fascinating, if a little hard to keep track of who is who.
I've started Not Fade Away: A Memoir of Senses Lost and Found, story of a young woman with Usher's Syndrome (including retinitis pigmentosa), slowly going blind and deaf. Tavia Gilbert is an excellent fit as narrator for this one.
That sounds good, John, although I can't imagine going through something that frightening. Are you liking it?
It's not the downer it seems. Author has mentioned she's now a psychotherapist, so obviously didn't let the prospect deter her from moving on. At this point the book seems inspiring in terms of dealing with what life throws you.
Norma wrote: "I listened to about half of Six Years and had to abandon it. The story line was very strange to me and basically I felt the main character had turned into a stalker. I was very dis..."I had a really hard time with that one too, Norma. I finished it but felt it was a waste of time. I didn't like the narration either.
Man, a really good audiobook (or several in a row) can totally throw you as you try to find your next listen. Nothing seems to measure up! giving 13 Bullets: A Vampire Tale a try as I'm a Bernadette Dunne fan...but not sure I'll have the stomach for it. We shall see.
Alana wrote: "Listening to three at the moment: Fall of Giants, which is very entertaining, if not the most historically accurate; The Secret History, which is really drawing me in, b..."I like your taste.
Just finished a re-listen of The Mark of Athena, bummed I can't listen to #4 and #5 of the series (changed the narrator/bad). I am trying to listen to The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde but it is slow starting yet I want to give it a chance. I will be starting A Serpent's Tooth by Craig Johnson, love this series- Longmire
Listening to Virtue Falls - not quite sure what I think yet - hoping for more mystery than I'm getting
I may be tired of my 3 hour daily commute, but it allows me to absolutely murder some audiobooks. This month I managed to knock out:The first two books in the Paradox trilogy, Fortune's Pawn & Honor's Knight - They were both fun listens, I look forward to the third.
The Screwtape Letters - Typical C.S. Lewis greatness.
The Dig - Really enjoyed it.
Space Captain Smith - Funny, dry British humor. Took a little while for me to warm up to it, but once I did I had a great time.
Start: Punch Fear in the Face - Acuff does no wrong.
Mitosis - Entertaining short story from Brandon Sanderson's Reckoner's series.
The Lottery in Babylon - Genius short story.
Mud, Sweat and Tears - Captivating Bear Grylls autobiography.
Death of a Starship - Good story, but too rushed. Should have been longer.
Quitter - More Acuff greatness.
The Intern's Handbook Meh. Not a good or bad book. Was trying a little hard to be a Fight Club clone.
Moon Flights - Loved almost every short story in this collection.
Company - It's Max Barry... The book isn't so much ha ha funny as it is "I've worked in a cube too, I can relate" humor.
Start with Why - Loved it, watch the TED talk by the same title if you haven't already.
Fluency - Loved it. Thrilled to hear the author is writing a sequel.
The Fred Factor - Loved it.
Origins of a D-List Supervillain - Not as funny as the first, but I love the story.
Jesus Among Other Gods - Will definitely be reading more books by this author.
Now I'm working on:
The Player of Games
No More Mondays
I'm listening to Ford Audiobook Club's current selection, Everything I Never Told You and having such mixed emotions about it. At the center is an utterly broken family, whose troubles just seem to grow and grow. The narration is a bit slow for me and overly dramatic (in that everyone sounds so, so sad all the time) but the story, depressing as it is, is gripping.
I finally, finally listened to A Tale of Two Cities narrated by Simon Vance, although all the narrators seem to be top shelf. For the first time in a really long time I had to resort to the Sparknotes for summaries and who was who. It was worth it and didn't take anything away from the story, but I'm admitting to using a cheat sheet. Ha! And now I'm listening to From Here to Eternity narrated by Elijah Alexander. For those of you WWII fans who have needed a break so did I - but this one has been on the list for too long. It is pre-WWII so I'm not in the thick of it so to speak. So far, it's a winner as it should be.
Sarah wrote: "Alana wrote: "Listening to three at the moment: Fall of Giants, which is very entertaining, if not the most historically accurate; The Secret History, which is really dr..."Me too!
I'm about 2/3 of the way through the audible version of The Chaperone. I like it!I'm reading The Shell Seekers. I like it too!
I'm halfway through Heft. I was fine with the first part with the main narrator. But the second story seems so much like many others, I put it up to 2x speed, and wish I could still make it faster.
Kelly wrote: "I'm about 2/3 of the way through the audible version of The Chaperone. I like it!I'm reading The Shell Seekers. I like it too!"
I enjoyed The Chaperone pretty well. I found it unrealistic, but I really enjoyed the characters and story.
Alana wrote: "Kelly wrote: "I'm about 2/3 of the way through the audible version of The Chaperone. I like it!I'm reading The Shell Seekers. I like it too!"
I enjoyed The Chaperone pretty well. I found it unre..."
I hated the narrator's supposed midwest accent, but I liked the book overall.
Robin wrote: "I'm halfway through Heft. I was fine with the first part with the main narrator. But the second story seems so much like many others, I put it up to 2x speed, and wish I could still..."I was not a big fan of Heft, either. I thought it was good, not great.
I finally finished Kushiel's Dart. It was over 30 hours long and I had to stop mid read for a week long read-a-thon, so that didn't help. I'm not going to continue with the remaining books in the series.I started Tiger's Curse which will be a much lighter fantasy read. I think.
I finally finished A Storm of Swords last week which was also very long; I love the series but starting to see the opportunity cost of reading a series of such long books. So, taking a break from the A Song of Fire and Ice series for a bit.I also finished Lock In (narrated by Wil Wheaton) which I loved. Now reading We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves for a Community Reads event through the local library; not a premise that would've appealed to me normally but I can see why so many people like it.
I was out of town for a week and among relatives so didn't get to read anything until I got back. I finally finished Demon Summer, latest in the Max Tudor series by G. M. Malliet. Even though it was long for a mystery, I generally enjoyed it. I thought the reveal at the end was fairly convoluted and took a little too long, but was okay. Mostly I enjoyed the setting in a monastery.Now I'm listening to the free novella by Rhys Bowen, Masked Ball at Broxley Manor, a prequel to the Royal Spyness series.
Catherine wrote: "Finished Eleanor & Park ; outstanding! Starting A Fatal Grace next..."
Yay! Loved E & P - oh the feels it gave me!
I just started In the Woods .I had read that this one is a little slow, but I had picked up the second two books of the Dublin Murder Squad series in recent sales and wanted to read the first one before listening to those.
I am listening to The Legendary Adventures of the Pirate Queens by James Grant Goldin narrated by Shiromi Arserio. I got this book from the author and I'm really enjoying it it's a good story and good narration from a new to me narrator.
Donna wrote: "I finally finished A Storm of Swords last week which was also very long; I love the series but starting to see the opportunity cost of reading a series of such long books. So, taking ..."I just read We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves in hard copy. Loved it. What an odd but fascinating family story.
Just finished Diana Gabdalon's Written in My Heart's Blood, set near the end of our War for Independence. I had forgotten that she doesn't wrap up a story, just chops it off at mid gallop. I probably wouldn't have bothered except for Davina Porter's marvelous narration.
Don't laugh but I'm listening to The Hot Zone: The Terrifying True Story of the Origins of the Ebola Virus. It's very interesting but at times I feel like I'm not following as well as I would be if I were actually reading it.
The Light Between Oceans was really good but so depressing. The narrator, Noah Taylor, was kind of dull and monotone.Next up, a book I got from a Humble Bundle awhile back: A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers. I loved What is the What, so we'll see how this memoir goes.
Getting into Prince Lestat, and also following along with the eBook. I must admit, it's a better novel to read than to listen to. For some reason, I miss things when listening that I catch when reading.I don't think it's the narrator (Vance), but the prose.
HBJ
Gave up on Heft when it seemed like I could tell the direction it was going and I didn't want to suffer through it to get to some kind of redemptive ending. I started The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry and that is keeping my attention much better.
That's a shame, I really enjoyed Heft.I'm just finishing up The Rise & Fall of Great Powers. Enjoying the story overall, however one of my pet peeves is when an author has character with dementia (or drunk or drug affected) and then there are lengthy 'nonsense' conversations with that character.
To me that's just a waste of book space, there's a character like that in this book, Humphrey, and I get it, he's old and talks nonsense...so why devote pages of this sort of conversation over and over?
The Goldfinch did the same thing, endless pages of drunk/drugged teenage boys talking rubbish.
The narrator, Penelope Rawlins, is fine when she's speaking normally, but she does some voices that I find really annoying and boarder on screeching. I had to fast forward a couple of bits because the voice was irritating me so much.
I finished Everything I Never Told You and am still trying to separate my feelings about the characters from my feelings about the writing and the book as a whole. It's a tough one. And, I'm very excited to have finally started The Sparrow, which I've been hearing about, but for some reason avoiding, for years now. Lots of details and a fast-talking narrator are requiring 100% concentration from me, which hopefully I can maintain while driving!
Sue wrote: "I finished Everything I Never Told You and am still trying to separate my feelings about the characters from my feelings about the writing and the book as a whole. It's a tough one...."Agree about Everything I Never Told You still trying to write a coherent review.
It never fails...at the beginning of each month, I wonder why I'm not getting any notifications. Duh, new thread.I'm listening to Me Before You, and I'm really enjoying it. Once I'm done, I'll start back on The Bone Clocks -- It's not bad, but it isn't holding my attention. Maybe the ending will tie everything up.
Last night, I started One Pair of Hands, which I'd read in print years before, finding the story very funny. The audio narration is a great fit, bringing out the humor.
Finished The Legendary Adventures of the Pirate Queens by James Grant Goldin narrated by, Shiromi Arserio What a fun book I didn’t want to stop listening, it was rip-roaring fun on the high seas! If you enjoy the Jackie Faber/Bloody Jack books give this one a try I think you will enjoy it.Now listening to The Underground Girls of Kabul by Jenny Nordberg narrated by, Kirsten Potter
EDT:Switching gears The Underground Girls of Kabul is boring the hell out of me if you want a good book on the bacha posh give The Pearl that Broke Its Shell by Nadia Hashimi narrated by Gin Hammond a try it's a much better story that the Underground girls...I may even be returning this one...
Uff...A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius is certainly not an easy read. But I like it. I think. It's a "stream of consciousness" writing style, so definitely not for everyone, and definitely better in audio, IMHO. Dion Graham is doing a fantastic job narrating. This book is at times hilarious, exhausting, and, well, heartbreaking. Staggering genius? Well, let's just say it's pretty darn good.
Kristie wrote: "Uff...A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius is certainly not an easy read. But I like it. I think. It's a "stream of consciousness" writing style, so definitely not for everyone, an..."I agree, I really liked the audio. I gave the print book to someone who couldn't get through the first section which is rather grim, to the more amusing and relatable sections. I love how he portrays the crazy channels our minds go in.
Robin wrote: "Kristie wrote: "Uff...A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius is certainly not an easy read. But I like it. I think. It's a "stream of consciousness" writing style, so definitely not ..."Part of me thinks the stream of consciousness style is a little pretentious, but I'm also thoroughly entertained, so I guess it's working on some level at least.
Robin wrote: "Kristie wrote: "Uff...A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius is certainly not an easy read. But I like it. I think. It's a "stream of consciousness" writing style, so definitely not ..."I ended up loving the audio, but at times it was maddening - definitely unlike anything I'd ever listened to. Definitely worth sticking with IMO.
I just finished book #6 in Nelson DeMille's John COrey series - The Panther.
Ended up going back to finish up Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny narrated by, Ralph Cosham I've read this series out of order so I've read the book before and after this one so finally getting the answers to things that confused me in the next book.
Janice wrote: "I finally finished Kushiel's Dart. It was over 30 hours long and I had to stop mid read for a week long read-a-thon, so that didn't help. I'm not going to continue with the remainin..."I did the same with the the book Kushiel's Dart so I was afraid the audiobook wouldn't be any different.
i loved Kushiel's Dart, but also realize that it isn't for everyone - the world building to me was amazing - thatbeing said, I've never gone beyond the first book - i'm afraid none of the later oens will live up to the first - but maybe i'll try
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Audiobooks
Books mentioned in this topic
A Tale of Two Cities (other topics)What Is the What (other topics)
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius (other topics)
The Drawing of the Three (other topics)
Never Let Me Go (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Dave Eggers (other topics)Daniel Silva (other topics)
Scott Brick (other topics)
Gregg Andrew Hurwitz (other topics)
Howard Gordon (other topics)
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