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Michael

I'm a fan of Sci-fi, fantasy and suspense. I like books that keep me guessing till the end.

Hartland, WI, United States | Member Since 2008

2
HELPFUL VOTES
  • 15 reviews
  • 19 ratings
  • 403 titles in library
  • 16 purchased in 2013
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  • Entangled

    • UNABRIDGED (17 hrs and 39 mins)
    • By Graham Hancock
    • Narrated By Khristine Hvam, Graham Hancock
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (88)
    Performance
    (63)
    Story
    (60)

    Graham Hancock has spent decades researching and writing some of the most ambitious and successful nonfiction investigations into ancient civilizations and wisdom. Entangled uses all of Hancock's skills and knowledge to propel a fantasy adventure like nothing else preceding it. This is a time-slip novel, alternating between present-day California, Brazil, and prehistoric Spain, with two teenage female protagonists who must come together to avert an incredibly bloodthirsty takeover of the human race.

    Kyle says: "Great Story"
    "Written at a teen level with adult content"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    This book could have been done very well, it was not. It is written at a teen level, with content that is not at all teen appropriate.

    Mr. Hancock explains that he chose to use modern language for his prehistoric protagonists, I for one think it is a lazy way to write. He has cave people thinking in very complex ways, and it makes it feel less like they are cave people and more like there is a raid at the local mall. The fact that he has his teen cave-girl saying "f**king" on a regular basis just seems dumb.

    Other authors have managed to transport me back in time with writing that evokes a primitive's mind frustrated with new concepts. Here, people are just able to adapt as quickly as a modern person.

    The story sometimes just uses violence and graphic descriptions when less would really have been more. Again, I wish he would have put some of the relish he seems to have with describing the killing of children into creating a more tangible past.

    I had to listen to the book at 2x just to get through it. The writing was at the same level as The Hunger Games, but not the same quality. It's too bad, the story had promise, just no follow-through.

    I nearly asked for my money back.

    1 of 2 people found this review helpful
  • The Gate Thief: Mithermages, Book 2

    • UNABRIDGED (12 hrs)
    • By Orson Scott Card
    • Narrated By Stefan Rudnicki, Emily Rankin
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (561)
    Performance
    (516)
    Story
    (516)

    Here on Earth, Danny North is still in high school, yet he holds in his heart and mind all the stolen outselves of 13 centuries of gatemages. The Families still want to kill him if they can’t control him - and they can’t control him; he is far too powerful. On Westil, Wad is now nearly powerless - he lost everything to Danny in their struggle. Even if he can survive the revenge of his enemies, he must still somehow make peace with the Gatemage Daniel North, for when Danny took that power from Loki, he also took responsibility for the Great Gates.

    Benjamin says: "Flashes of Great, Ok, and Bad. Overall: Meh."
    "I want book 3 already!!!"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    Very entertaining series. The main character is likable and the villains switch, you have to pay attention to see who's being bad (or good) to who and why. Card has learned to create believable characters. I want the 3rd book already!!!

    0 of 1 people found this review helpful
  • The Final Empire: Mistborn Book 1

    • UNABRIDGED (24 hrs and 45 mins)
    • By Brandon Sanderson
    • Narrated By Michael Kramer
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (5042)
    Performance
    (2626)
    Story
    (2653)

    For a thousand years the ash fell and no flowers bloomed. For a thousand years the Skaa slaved in misery and lived in fear. For a thousand years the Lord Ruler, the "Sliver of Infinity," reigned with absolute power and ultimate terror, divinely invincible. Then, when hope was so long lost that not even its memory remained, a terribly scarred, heart-broken half-Skaa rediscovered it in the depths of the Lord Ruler's most hellish prison.

    Lore says: "Book 1 of a great series that is not to be missed!"
    "A really good story! Well written, told well."
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    Sanderson took the time to develop a new magic system, and did a fine job. The story is good, and told in a manner that draws you in. It has aspects of Tolken and Jordan, with the scope of the story being epic, and the delivery spot on.

    This is not a "quick" book, the story moves along at a steady pace, but it does drag a little at times. Still, the information you're given is things you'll need for a full understanding later on.

    I would highly recommend this series, and this book kicks it off well.

    0 of 0 people found this review helpful
  • City of Dark Magic: A Novel

    • UNABRIDGED (13 hrs and 33 mins)
    • By Magnus Flyte
    • Narrated By Natalie Gold
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (71)
    Performance
    (64)
    Story
    (61)

    Once a city of enormous wealth and culture, Prague was home to emperors, alchemists, astronomers, and, as it’s whispered, hell portals. When music student Sarah Weston lands a summer job at Prague Castle cataloging Beethoven’s manuscripts, she has no idea how dangerous her life is about to become. Prague is a threshold, Sarah is warned, and it is steeped in blood. Soon after Sarah arrives, strange things begin to happen. She learns that her mentor, who was working at the castle, may not have committed suicide after all. Could his cryptic notes be warnings?

    Bethany says: "A little bit of...well everything"
    "What it could have been and what it was."
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    What this story could have been is exciting and far more entertaining than it was. The sex scenes were sometimes graphics and actually took away from the story, rather than adding to it. While the premise seemed entertaining, by the end of the book I was listening to it on triple speed.

    Had some really interesting information on Beethoven, and I actually liked the historical intrigue. Where it failed was delivering on all of the sub-plots and MOST of the mystery.

    SPOILERS***SPOILERS***SPOILERS***SPOILERS***SPOILERS***SPOILERS***
    Don't read if you don't want a major plot-point ripped apart.

    So there is some sort of inter-dimensional hell portal that is brought up a number of times. And then is just used as a convenient dump. It was disappointing that there was more (poorly written) sex, for no apparent reason other than the heroine is possibly a victim of nymphomania, and very little on what would have been really interesting. It was not the worst book I have listened to, but I would not listen to it again.

    0 of 0 people found this review helpful
  • The Frozen Sky

    • UNABRIDGED (11 hrs)
    • By Jeff Carlson
    • Narrated By Amy H. Sturgis
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (41)
    Performance
    (34)
    Story
    (35)

    Something is alive inside Jupiter's ice moon Europa. Robot probes find an ancient tunnel beneath the surface, its walls carved with strange hieroglyphics. Led by elite engineer Alexis Vonderach, a team of scientists descends into the dark...where they confront a savage race older than mankind....

    Trip Williams says: "GREAT story of first contact!"
    "Such promise, but it's starting to drag"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    I'm 8 hours in to the book, when I just had to bump the narration speed to 2X. To be fair, I generally listen to books at 1.25 to 1.50 the standard narration speed, finding the slow pace to be just too much. This book has some odd characters in it, and the main character seems to be mercurially unstable, I hope that it gets better, but otherwise it's just a B-movie in book form.
    The sound quality is a bit odd, and the narrator often sounds like she's in a tin box.

    It will pass the time, but I would not recommend it unless you just have nothing else in your queue and need some sci-fi.

    0 of 0 people found this review helpful
  • The Lost Fleet: Dauntless

    • UNABRIDGED (9 hrs and 59 mins)
    • By Jack Campbell
    • Narrated By Christian Rummel, Jack Campbell
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (3003)
    Performance
    (1654)
    Story
    (1684)

    Captain John "Black Jack" Geary's legendary exploits are known to every schoolchild. Revered for his heroic "last stand" in the early days of the war, he was presumed dead. But a century later, Geary miraculously returns from survival hibernation and reluctantly takes command of the Alliance fleet as it faces annihilation by the Syndics.

    Appalled by the hero-worship around him, Geary is nevertheless a man who will do his duty. And he knows that bringing the stolen Syndic hypernet key safely home is the Alliance's one chance to win the war. But to do that, Geary will have to live up to the impossibly heroic "Black Jack" legend.

    Chance says: "Ranks up there with Star Wars!"
    "Campbell's ancestors would be proud."
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    I did not have any idea how much I would enjoy space battle based on a more realistic physics model. It's like ships on the high seas with stars instead of water. It was refreshing not to have the "magic" of advanced technology solve all of the problems in the book.

    I think it was well written and I liked the narration. The whole series is worth the time and money.

    0 of 0 people found this review helpful
  • Blasphemy

    • UNABRIDGED (13 hrs and 50 mins)
    • By Douglas Preston
    • Narrated By Scott Sowers
    Overall
    (1034)
    Performance
    (158)
    Story
    (156)

    The world's biggest supercollider is locked in an Arizona mountain. The Torus was built to unlock the secrets of the very moment of creation: the Big Bang itself. Will the Torus divulge the mysteries of the creation of the universe? Or will it, as some predict, suck the earth into a mini black hole? Or is the Torus a Satanic attempt, as a powerful televangelist decries, to challenge God Almighty on the very throne of heaven?

    Bruce says: "Entertaining"
    "I was making excuses to listen."
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    I liked the book, the narration and the story a lot. He drags you on a trip using the characters as mules. It's hard to stop listening and you just want to keep seeing what's around the next corner.

    Preston has a way of writing that is similar in all of his books. I like his style a lot, however I begin to get board with it if I listen to a number of his books in a row, sometimes you just start to sense the cadence and it becomes more predictable.

    0 of 0 people found this review helpful
  • Hunter's Run

    • UNABRIDGED (10 hrs and 33 mins)
    • By George R. R. Martin, Gardner Dozois, Daniel Abraham
    • Narrated By Marc Vietor
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (206)
    Performance
    (57)
    Story
    (55)

    Like so many others, Ramón Espejo ran from the poverty and hopelessness of the Third World to the promise of a new world, joining a host of like-minded workers and dreamers aboard one of the great starships of the mysterious, repulsive Enye. But the life he found on the far-off planet of São Paulo was no better than the one he had abandoned.

    Richard says: "Different but good"
    "It makes you want to see what happens."
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    A classic capture/escape done well. I like the style of writing, the characters are interesting and the narrator kept me engaged. It does make you think about what defines us as human.

    0 of 0 people found this review helpful
  • The Crystal Skull

    • UNABRIDGED (13 hrs and 44 mins)
    • By Manda Scott
    • Narrated By Susan Duerden
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (15)
    Performance
    (3)
    Story
    (3)

    It's a lump of rock, Stella; nothing more. No stone is worth dying for. Except it's not just a lump of rock. It's a blue crystal skull made by the Maya to save the world from ruin; a sapphire so perfect, so powerful that for centuries men have killed to own or destroy it.

    Michael says: "Great possibilities, but a great dissapointment"
    "Great possibilities, but a great dissapointment"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story
    What would have made The Crystal Skull better?

    An ending. This whole story just led to the end of a chapter and then quit.


    Would you ever listen to anything by Manda Scott again?

    Probably not. She spends far too much time explaining great things that have little to no bearing on the story.


    What aspect of Susan Duerden’s performance would you have changed?

    The narration was well done.


    You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

    It was an Indiana Jones style story. However it ends in a way that is just lazy. If you're leading up to something, then there should be a great ending. It's like she just got tired of writing and ended at the 2nd act.


    Any additional comments?

    I would suggest that you choose another book, I wish I had.

    1 of 1 people found this review helpful
  • Spellbound: Book II of the Grimnoir Chronicles

    • UNABRIDGED (16 hrs and 26 mins)
    • By Larry Correia
    • Narrated By Bronson Pinchot
    Overall
    (1368)
    Performance
    (1265)
    Story
    (1258)

    Dark fantasy goes hardboiled in Book II of the hard-hitting Grimnoir Chronicles by the New York Times best-selling creator of Monster Hunter International. The Grimnoir Society’s mission is to protect people with magic, and they’ve done so—successfully and in secret—since the mysterious arrival of the Power in the 1850s, but when a magical assassin makes an attempt on the life of President Franklin Roosevelt, the crime is pinned on the Grimnoir.

    Corey says: "Spellbound is a hit"
    "I Did Not Want it to END!"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story
    Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

    If you like guns, and action then here's your story. The magic is just a bonus.


    What did you like best about this story?

    It had good flow, and while it was predictable in most parts, it's what made it enjoyable too. I grew up reading the John Carter of Mars books. Capture/escape/capture/escape It's what made Indiana Jones so much fun to watch. And then there's the 1930's alternate history. It's well done as a whole.


    What does Bronson Pinchot bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

    I would have never imagined Jake's hayseed drawl. After the description, he would have had a Brooklyn accent. I liked Bronson's narration.


    Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

    No, it's not a book that you are moved by, just thoroughly entertained by!


    Any additional comments?

    Listen to it, then thank me.

    0 of 0 people found this review helpful

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