Audiobook Archives - Page 13 of 14

When Santa Fell to Earth by Cornelia Funke: Book Review

Twinklestar, the last reindeer, panics in a thunderstorm and sends Santa's caravan plunging toward the ground. After making sure everyone is okay, Niklas Goodfellow, the last real Santa, realizes that he has come to earth in a territory controlled by the evil new head Santa, Gerold Goblynch. Niklas is on the run from Goblynch and his cronies, trying to maintain the real meaning of Christmas despite Goblynch's greedy schemes. The caravan is broken and it will take Niklas's elves a while to fix it. Not to mention that no one can find Twinklestar because he's invisible. Niklas befriends two of the neighborhood children, Ben and Charlotte. They try to help Santa and protect him from Goblynch and his henchmen. They also try to spread the Christmas spirit. I listened to this on audio, read by the author. I had a little bit of a hard time understanding her German accent. I had to pay very close attention. Also, her voicing for Matilda, Niklas's angel assistant, was way irritating--very high-pitched and bossy. Admittedly, Matilda was a bossy little soul, which would have irritated me enough without the ear-piercing pitch. There is a good message about the true meaning of Christmas here. Ben and Charlotte learn about friendship and standing up for what you believe in. There's even a little message for parents about maintaining a sense of Christmas wonder. I am definitely not the target audience for this book. Children will probably like it more than I did. It would probably be nice for them to think about children helping Santa. The little adventures, like searching for Twinklestar and making snow, will be more exciting for them. I can't really recommend the audio, but the print version will be fun for the younger crowd. Read an excerpt. Buy When Santa Fell…

Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand by Helen Simonson: Book Review

Major Ernest Pettigrew is literally reeling around his house in shock on the morning his younger brother dies. A knock comes at his door and it is the lady from the village shop--Mrs. Ali. Mrs. Ali is there to collect money for the paper boy, but she takes one look at the Major and decides that someone needs to assist him. She helps him back inside, makes him a hot cuppa, and just listens as the Major begins to work through his grief. She only leaves when she is sure that he's going to be alright. She comes to his rescue again on the morning of his brother's funeral. The Major makes it out to his car in plenty of time to drive to the funeral, even with traffic, but once he gets in the car, he just can't get going. The world starts spinning. Mrs. Ali happens by, checks on him, then convinces him to hitch a ride with her. Once the Major's thoughts stop swirling from all this loss, he starts to think about the kind woman who gave of herself to him so freely in his hour of need. They've talked books, and they've both lost their spouses. He starts to look for reasons to spend time with her, a fact that does not go unnoticed in this small English village. I absolutely adored this book! It's an easy 4.5 stars. I can't say if it was Peter Altschuler's fabulous narration, the Major's dry wit, or the unexpected relationships that made this book a gem, so it must be the whole package. The characters are just fantastic. There was so much more to the Major than I expected. I expected some sort of repressed "Right-o, carry on then" kind of bore. To paraphrase another character, the Major…

The Lost City of Z by David Grann: Book Review

In 1925, Percy Fawcett, a seasoned Amazonian explorer, his son and son's friend set out to find a fabulous city in the Amazon that Fawcett calls only "Z." The world had become fascinated with the expedition. Fawcett sent back a few reports, but then none of the men were ever heard from again. Over the years, many other explorers have set out to solve the mystery of the Fawcett party. All were unsuccessful. Many died. Many theories about what had happened to the men were put forward. All were eventually disproved. David Grann stumbles onto the mystery and starts researching Fawcett and the city of Z. I listened to this book and it just never grabbed me. I enjoy listening to Mark Deakins, so it wasn't his fault. It was just hard for me to keep up with everyone in the audio format. I couldn't keep up with who was in the Amazon looking for whom, which natives were good or bad, and whether I was in the past with Fawcett or in the present with Grann. I have a sneaking suspicion that my iPod skipped over a few sections but I didn't really notice because all the expeditions just blended into one big one for me. I did like the end. There was some resolution to the "lost city" part of the story, and it was surprising. I really don't have anything to add. I have a feeling that I would have liked this much more if I had actually read it. If you're interested, be sure to pick up a print copy. Read an excerpt. Find author David Grann on his website and the book's website. Buy The Lost City of Z at Malaprop’s | Better World Books I have an affiliate relationship with Malaprop's, my local independent…

A couple of books I “Did Not Finish”

I will usually finish any book I start, but I am slowly learning that sometimes it's better to cut my losses and move on. Here are two that I've given up on recently. The Phantom of Pemberley by Regina Jeffers Synopsis from GoodReads: Newlyweds Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet knew their first year of married life at Pemberley would present challenges, but who could have guessed they would need to solve a mysterious case and nab the murderer before he got to them. Written in the language of the era and including Austen's romantic intrigue and sardonic humor, this suspense-packed sequel to Pride and Prejudice recasts Darcy and Elizabeth as a husband and wife detective team - the Nick and Nora of England's Regency era. When inexplicable encounters and deadly accidents begin occurring at Pemberley, the locals blame the strange happenings on the Shadow Man - a spirit haunting the manor. But Darcy believes the truth is much more menacing - someone is targeting them, someone who seeks revenge on the Darcy family. The author tries a little too hard to copy Austen's "voice" and it fell very flat for me. "'Must we?' Elizabeth Darcy gave her husband an expectant look. 'I so enjoy being alone with you--away from the responsibilities of Pemberly.'" Flat yet nauseatingly sappy. Not a good combination for me. The phrases from Austen's original work that were inserted actually distracted me rather than adding to the book. It was quickly turning into a game of Spot the Original Phrasing. "Darcy took in her countenance. Hers was a face he had once described as being one of the handsomest of his acquaintance, but now he considered that compliment a slight to the woman. Her auburn hair, her fine sea-green eyes, her pale skin, her delicate features, and…

The Maze Runner by James Dashner: Book Review

Thomas suddenly awakes in a box as a group of other teenage boys looks down at him, calling him unfathomable names like "shank" and "greenie." He has no idea how he got there or where he came from. All he remembers from his past is his name. He eventually learns that this group of 50-60 boys live in the heart of a maze. They've been looking for a way out for years and haven't found it yet. They must return to the Glade every night, or else they'll be locked out and left for the Grievers. Thomas starts to have a feeling that he knows more about the maze than he first thought. Turns out he's right. Eh. Ya know, dystopian novels are just not my thing, yet I keep trying. At what point do I give up? Is it good that I keep trying or is it a waste of my time? I just don't know. My problem with this book was that absolutely no one would tell Thomas what was going on. Granted, they don't know a whole lot about what's going on either, but someone could at least say, as soon as they get him out of the box, "Look, dude. You're in the middle of a gigantic maze. None of us knows how we got here. None of us remembers anything before waking up in that box. We get supplies weekly. Don't get caught outside the Glade after dark because these horrible monsters that we call Grievers will kill you. Yes, we've been looking for a way out but we haven't found it yet. Any questions?" Instead it's just a whole lot of, "Shut up with the questions! We'll explain tomorrow." And then, when tomorrow comes, it's "Shut up with the questions! I'll get to that…

The Alchemyst by Michael Scott: Book Review

Josh and Sophie Newman have settled into a summer in San Francisco, living with their elderly aunt as their parents work an archaeological dig, and working summer jobs to save up for a car. But one day, a very sinister man pays a visit to the bookshop where Josh is working. The man appears to be some kind of wizard and he attacks the owner of the bookshop, who fights back--with more magic. What is going on here? The bad guy gets away with a book that seems to be valuable, but not before Josh manages to tear a few pages out. The bookshop owner turns out to be the infamous alchemist, Nicholas Flamel. He lived about 600 years ago. Turns out he and his wife, Perrenelle, are immortal, and their self-imposed task was to keep the stolen book safe. In the wrong hands, the book could lead to the end of humanity. Saying that the children aren't safe now that the evil wizard knows about them, Flamel takes them with him as he sets out to get the book back. This was good, it really was, there just wasn't anything that made it a stand out for me. I did like Scathach a lot and wish she'd had a bigger part. Hecate (spelling? I listened) intrigued me, and I loved her part of the world. The twins were a little boring. They were pretty generic teenagers. I saw the drama between them coming from miles away. Flamel--eh. There was supposed to be more to him than meets the eye, but he seemed to be pretty straightforward to me. I would have liked to have seen more of Perrenelle as well. Hmm. I think I would have liked a more female-centric storyline, now that I look back at this! The…

The Fixer Upper by Mary Kay Andrews: Book Review

Dempsey Killebrew is having a very bad day. She and her handsome boss, Alex, are all over the evening news, smack in the center of a political scandal. They're lobbyists accused of buying a Congressman's votes with a vacation to the Bahamas and, um, hookers. Not the situation that a rising young lawyer wants to find herself in. Injury is added to insult when Alex fires her. With no other options, Dempsey reluctantly accepts the deal her father offers--she can fix up the family mansion back in the tiny town of Guthrie, Georgia, and he'll give her part of the proceeds from the sale. Life in a small town is more interesting than Dempsey expects, especially when she realizes that the "mansion" is a dump, a belligerent old lady has decided the house is hers, FBI agents are sniffing around, and there are some very eligible men in town. I had a ball listening to this! I'll admit that this isn't really any new ground for Mary Kay Andrews, but she does this so well that I just don't care. Old houses/antiques, spunky heroines, and handsome men are a winning combination in her hands. Dempsey herself is a little whiney at first, but if I'm being honest, I would whine much more if I found myself in a similar situation. And then to go running home to Daddy! I just wanted to tell the girl to grow up. But when she gets to the house and she has to start dealing with contractors and Ella Kate, the mean old lady, and the FBI, she has to learn to stand on her own feet. And she handles it beautifully. I'm pretty sure I was cheering by the end. Speaking of Ella Kate, she is mean as a rattlesnake. I wanted to…

Everlost by Neal Shusterman: Book Review

Nick and Allie were traveling in opposite directions on a windy mountain road. After a terrible accident, they find themselves traveling down a tunnel toward a light. But they bump into each other again and don't get where they're going. Instead, they end up in Everlost, a ghostly realm that co-exists with our world and is populated with other children who didn't get where they were going. They have a hard time accepting their new status as "Afterlights," a name appropriate for the unearthly glow they have now in their afterlives. Of course, they decide to go home. On the way, they meet many other Afterlights and hear terrible stories about a monster named The McGill, a shadowy figure known as The Haunter, and a famous girl known as either Mary Hightower or Mary, Queen of Snots, depending on your view of her. Eh. I admit that I was a little taken aback by the opening scene and the car crash. It's not graphic, but I expected a YA/MG book to open after the crash, not describe a head-on collision. My big thing was that I didn't really like anyone. Nick was okay and Leaf was fun, but Allie? She quickly establishes herself as a bossy know-it-all who doesn't listen to anyone else. She gets worse from there--and she's a main character. I really need to like my main characters. I was never sure what to think about Mary either. She's so angelic that you have to suspect she's up to something. Plus, the narrator read her with a holier-than-thou tone which just set my teeth on edge. There's a twist toward the end that I saw coming from miles away, and I think a lot of other readers will too. This next bit is going to be way too…

Fluke by Christopher Moore: Book Review

Nate Quinn has spent his entire professional career following humpback whales around the ocean, trying to find out exactly why the males sing. He's currently in Hawaii, where the whales spend the winter, still researching. His world is rocked on the day that he is taking pictures of one singer and sees BITE ME clearly written across the whale's tail. Did he imagine it? Was it there? Surely he got a picture of it. He heads back in to get his film developed, only to find that someone has completely trashed his lab. So begins a lot of inexplicable events. Oh my gosh. I'm pretty sure Fluke just replaced A Dirty Job as my favorite Moore novel, and I can't help but wonder if it's because I listened to Fluke. I have never been interested in audio books. I don't take things in all that well just by listening. I've tried them a time or two, and while I found them interesting at the time, I never had any desire to turn the book back on and finish it. Then, about 6 months ago, I realized how much my new job was eating into my reading time. Out of desperation, I tried an audio book during my commute, and I haven't looked back. I'm now one of those people who sits in my driveway listening to my book, because I have to know what happens next. Still, the printed word is my first love. I wasn't too sure about this narrator, Bill Irwin, at first. His voice was a little dry. It didn't seem to fit Moore's laugh-out-loud, over-the-top, usually raunchy humor. Oh, but I was wrong. Somehow it was even funnier. I would be driving along, something outrageous would come out of this guy's mouth, and I'm looking around,…

Kitty and the Midnight Hour by Carrie Vaughn: Book Review

Kitty Norville is a late-night DJ who stumbles upon a popular idea for a talk show--"The Midnight Hour" in which she and her listeners discuss any and all thing supernatural. And the girl knows what she's talking about. She's a werewolf. Unfortunately, her new-found success brings her some unwanted attention. Her Alpha and the master of the local vampire family want her off the air. Someone hires a werewolf hunter to take her out. And Kitty has just found out that there's a rogue wolf in town making everyone else look bad. This was good. It was. My issues with it were purely my own and don't even necessarily make sense. I admit it. First, I personally didn't care too much for the narration by Marguerite Gavin. It was very consciously cadenced and very staccato, even when that style didn't feel appropriate for what she was reading. It just felt like she was trying too hard. I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to stick with this at first, but I did and it bothered me less as time went on. Now for the big thing, and the thing that makes the least sense. I didn't like the pack dynamics. My head knows that a pack of werewolves would interact in exactly this manner. There would be an alpha and his female, and they would punish and reward as they chose. Strength would be a big factor in status. There would be power struggles. My heart just doesn't like reading about any man slamming a woman around and then having sex with her as a reward. I just can't get past it. That part definitely improved as Kitty grew more confident, and that was one of the points of the book, but it really did push my…