Paul

I enjoyed this book. It is a long book and spends a great deal of time spinning subplots and fleshing out minor characters. Compared to the other novels in the Safehold Series 'A mighty Fortress' is light-on for major events, except of course for a myriad murders, purges, escapes, executions, intrigues, weapons development, plots, counter plots and the obligatory climactic sea battle. Yes as other reviews have said, there is a huge amount of dialogue between characters. Lots of pondering morality, weighting right verses wrong in the light of whatever is going on.... But hell that is what Weber has been writing about all along. so A might Fortress is more character development than action. Well that same can be said for books in the middle of the Honor Harrington and Prince Roger series. On its' own a little long-winded. However considered within the Safehold Series as a whole, A Mighty fortress is a worthwhile progression that adds depth and a myriad possibilities to the overall narrative. This is why I enjoyed the book. This book offers many more possibilities for the rest of the series. Without which, it might just be a little too predictable.

However I too had some issue with the narration. It could be better. Especially the pronunciation of 'Valet' (with a silent 't') and several other commonly used words of non-American origin. And yes some of the accents.... The original narrator was easier to follow... Still I look forward to the next installment .

I have just finished listening to 'All Clear'.... and am still buzzing hours later... I loved every moment of it.

Blackout as other reviewers have said is 'part one' and doesn't come to any resolution. Think of when 'The Fellowship of the Ring' ends and you know you have two more books of the Lord of the Rings to go. The first book doesn't resolve anything, just sets up lots of characters and plots....which is what Connie Willis does here. The first few reviewers who's disappointment I have read here must have had no idea a second book was weeks/days away from being available. I couldn't wait for 'All Clear' to be available. 'Blackout' would be disappointing without 'All Clear', so plan on getting both, you won't be disappointed.

The narration is just fantastic, The characters are just as detailed and believable as her previous books. The writing is Connie Willis at her best. Blackout is embedded with subplots that the reader is allowed to enjoy alone, but offer no idea what the heck they are about until the last half of 'All Clear'. For this this just makes it all the more enjoyable.

Get 'Blackout' AND 'All Clear' and encourage Connie Willis to write more books....

Damn... Weber is getting better. This one takes the series to new places and promises much more to come. The writing is much more exciting and in audiobook form... this one is actually thrilling..... I loved it.

Excellent account about real people in an unreal situation: Famous for doing something they had no idea would be seen as significant. This is an brilliant addition to any military history enthusiast's library. 'Flags of Our Fathers' brilliantly encapsulates how history and myth are created. History as an agent of people and their own agendas, so far removed from 'facts and figures'.

Other reviews have criticised the narration. I can't understand why. The narrator's voice is varied and interesting, with reasonable characterisations and accents. Is is certainly appropriate for any audiobook in this genre.

The story itself is somewhat nostalgic, but given the fact that the author is the son of one of the men involved, this is to be expected when significant parts of the story are auto-biographical of their family. Still, these elements blend seamlessly into a thorough account of these men's lives and help greatly to build up a clear account of the men and their experiences.

This is amongst the best few of the Dr Who audio books to date. The story is very good and sufficiently different from the myriad others it joins in the Dr Who universe to include a few surprises. What make it a stand out is how the story is written as though the narrative is a retrieved 'audiotape' made by the Dr. This of course lends itself perfectly to the audio book format, and the opportunity it presents was not wasted in the audio book production. Thus, whilst not quite an audio-play (as are a few of the Torchwood audio books) Dead Air is more than just a narration of the book/script.

As with all recent Dr Who scripts & books, Dead Air is a little derivative of the types of plot elements that have worked in the past. This is manifest in the type and nature of the alien foe, local human characters and setting for the story. This is fine though... The formula makes it a classic style Dr Who story with a new and interesting storyline. If anything, my only disappointment was that the story was so short. Yes it was priced accordingly, but a story this good could have been built upon and improved.

Of the dozens of Dr Who stories on audible, this is one for any listener. A good one-off for a non-Dr Who fan's collection, or a key addition for someone who enjoys the genre.

This book is brilliant. If you enjoy military history, you MUST add this book to your library. Brilliant!!!

This is a fascinating book. Certainly it is a book about the Australian Army's war, but it also details the context of Australia's decision to become involved. The book covers the background in Australia including; domestic politics, conscription, the peace movement, families of service personnel, the media, etc. There is a relatively balanced discussion of the the North Vietnamese perspective and and their attitudes to Australia's involvement. The book covers, all of the significant actions, the use of weapons such as napalm, cluster bombs, tanks, and chemical defoliants. There is an excellent chapter on the impact of the service personal and the Vietnamese themselves of these and other chemicals. Overall it is a fascinating book. Some of the stories anger you, frustrate you and others make you laugh. The narration is fantastic. Peter Byrne offers listeners dead-pan statements, lively characterisations and emotive oration all when appropriate. Even thought the material is occasionally dry, the treatment given by both the text and narration make this easy to listen to from start to finish. If you want a book about battles only, you will be skipping forward often. however if you want to know about the war from the perspective of individual soldiers, civilians, prostitutes, politicians, children, etc, you will get a lot out of this book. I recommend it to anyone who lived military history, Australian history or just loves a well written, non-fiction essay about people who's experiences are as amazing as they are so very human.