Jay

This review is pretty much the same as my review of Book 1 of this series since, to my mind, they are one book.
The reader has done a marvelous job. I had struggled through the book many years ago and had eventually, after persevering for several years (!) reached the end, but this book tripped through my headphones like sweet music.
In fact that is one of the aspects of the book that I most enjoyed. The reader does a marvelous job of singing the many songs that are recounted in the book and, instead of simply seeming a way to pad out the story, they become an intrinsic part of the narration. For this aspect of the audiobook alone I would highly recommend this title!

The reader has done a marvelous job. I had struggled through the book many years ago and had eventually, after persevering for several years (!) reached the end, but this book tripped through my headphones like sweet music.
In fact that is one of the aspects of the book that I most enjoyed. The reader does a marvelous job of singing the many songs that are recounted in the book and, instead of simply seeming a way to pad out the story, they become an intrinsic part of the narration. For this aspect of the audiobook alone I would highly recommend this title!

This is a classic in all senses of the word, and the read has done a marvelous job of not only bringing the story to life by imbuing each character with his (or her, in the very rare case) own personality but also making the listener feel that they are taking a step back through time to when the book was actually written. This may be purely imagination on my part, but I felt as if I was hearing the booking - and the story - for the first time. It was fresh and fun and every thrilling moment was tense and nail-bitingly, maddeningly exciting.

Picking up where the first book in the series left off, The Great Hunt is a bit slower on the get-go than the first one was, with the pace only picking up about a third into the book.
The readers resurrect the characters from the first book seamlessly, with the same voices and characterisations used of returning characters meaning that it is easy to pick up and listen to this audio book without having to get used to all the voices all over again and find out which character each belongs to. Kate Reading in particular seems to have gotten into her stride a bit more, and her voice is less grating than it was in the first book. Her narrations of the sections of the book that deal with the Aes Sedai are now precisely how these powerful women themselves are described: calm, collected, cool, wise... She has also fleshed out the vocal characterisations she uses for each of the characters and they are more easily discernible than they were in the first book.

I have to say that I have I thoroughly expected to enjoy this audiobook, and so bought both this and it's sequel at once.
The book is well paced, with cliff hangers at the end of the majority of chapters. It starts out in a deceptively simple fashion and then slowly involves the reader/listener by introducting more characters, revealing hidden motives and agendas, fleshing out the immersive background and history to the world, and painting as nearly rich and intricate a portrait as Tolkien did.
Michael Kramer reads the mojority of this book and he is fantastic at it. Each character has his or her own believable and at once identifiable voice, and this means that you can listen to the story without ever being confused about who is speaking. Kate Reading, on the other hand, has a voice that is a bit grating at first but is soon easily got used to. The very grating nature of her voice is ideal for the characters she voices.

I have heard this book described as 'Harry Potter' for adults, but I think it is better to say 'His Dark Materials' for adults, if that makes sense.
The book is long (!) and involved, and not all of the sub-plots/side stories are relevant but they do immmerse you in this alternate history.
That is exactly what the flavour of this book is: historical fiction. It feels like it was put together from eyewitness accounts and this is what made me enjoy it even more - it feels so real!
Yes, the book is long, but I would recommend you stick with it and stifle the urge to fast forward - it is a rewarding read and one that you will probably want to hear again (one day!).
The end, however, was slightly disappointing and felt rushed, to me, and as if the author had just run out of steam.
The narrator does an EXCELLENT job with the reading, and the voices are superb - Norrell sounds pedantic and persnickety, Vinculus sounds common, dirty and supercillious, and Arabella strange is loving, supportive and the rock on which her husband relies. The gentleman with the thistle-down hair sounds downright creepy on the whole, and there is never a time when you are left wondering who is speaking because the changes in tone and inflection are so good.