Skitique

Let me start by saying I like this author & his Song of Fire & Ice series so I expected a lot of descriptive content with a strong story line. Unfortunately this book is extremely descriptive, often for no particular reason other than to have the characters ramble on without adding to the overall story content. This is not a typical vampire story full of action & fighting. It is a story of intrigue & suspense, or rather it is supposed to be. It takes a third of the book to get to the point that vampires are here & trying to survive. Very slow to develop. I'd recommend Martin's Song of Fire & Ice series but not this book. Listen to Children of the Night by Dan Simmons if you want an alternative vampire novel that keeps your interest.

I have reviewed book 1 in this series & a few of the books along the way so I'll try not to be too repetitive.

The series as a whole is the best I have ever read. It is a fantasy based novel that follows the path of the Dragon reborn & his companions as they fight evil & the influences of the Dark One. Each book in the series is extremely detailed & descriptive & book 14, A Memory of Light, is no exception. This book unfolds the Last Battle & determines whether the Light or the Dark prevails. As with books 11 & 12 written by Brandon Sanderson this installment starts slowly with lots of general detail that reintroduces the characters. I found this interesting but very slow to develop. It takes a third of the book to get the multiple plots moving. The battle scenes are very good & in-depth & yes they are long - after all this is the Last Battle. Good fights with lots of intrigue which I find interesting.

Many loose ties are resolved for some characters but not all questions are answered. It would be virtually impossible to cover everything in this last book. The last book is good & wraps up most of the main issues. I am saddened that this is the end of the story for the characters I have come to know over 23 years (book 1 was published in 1990). That said I will wait a while & listen to all the books back to back. Who knows - I may find something I don't remember from the first 5 or 6 times I've read or listened to ths series.

This is the 2nd in the Hyperion saga & it finishes the story of 7 pilgrims that went to Hyperion to face the Shrike, the alien creature that controls the Time Tombs. The author is extremely descriptive, which I like however be warned that this may not be for everyone. The story line is complex & detailed with many unseen developments. Book 1 won The Hugo award & was outstanding. This finale is very good but has more description of detail than even book 1 and sometimes it seemed if the author digressed without a point. I definitely recommend this especially if you are a Dan Simmons fan.

This is a short story which is the introduction of Charles & Anna - both wolves from different packs. Charles was born a wolf & is the son of the Grand Poobah of all wolves (my term not the author's). Anna is an Omega from a Chicago pack that has been changing humans without their consent. This story starts with Charles coming to Chicago to investigate.

I read book 1 in the series & the beginning of the story was choppy & took a little while to understand what was going on. I think this must have been the beginning of book 1 that was edited out. Read this first & then book 1 & the story will flow better. Enjoyable & this sets up the rest of the series well.

Sci-fi isn't one of my first choices normally. In fact it has been years since I've chosen sci-fi over a mystery or fantasy book but this author has gotten such good ratings I had to see what the fuss was about. I was not disappointed.

The book centers around life on various planets in the web. The Hegemony, which is the ruling body over this coalition of planets ( for you Star Trek fans this would be akin to the Federation of planets), has been taking over worlds for centuries with little thought to the impact on the locals. Hyperion is a world on the fringes of the Hegemony borders & the old time tombs & the legend of the Shrike, which controls the tombs, are what all factions either want to control or destroy. The story follows 7 people chosen by the Hegemony to go to Hyperion on a pilgrimage to see the Shrike in a effort to avert war. The book tells each of their stories & their relation to the Shrike & ultimately each other.

The book narration is done by several people - all which are good. The writing is very descriptive & intense. Although it was a long listen it didn't seem that way as the story sucked me in & kept me wanting more. I will warn you this is the 1st in a 4 set series, however based on how interesting it was I will immediately listen to book 2. I see why this author won the Hugo award. Simply outstanding.

I listened to several short stories by this author -all fantasy genre & pretty good. This book reminds me of an old Philip Marlowe gumshoe dectective novel. The main character can move between human reality & The Nightside, an alternate reality. In this installment we are introduced to John Taylor, a PI, with some supernatural talents. He sets out to save the day & the girl. Decent story &I will listen to the 2nd book at some point. This author usually gets a lot of good reviews so I will try one more before I draw a line in the sand & go no farther. Wishy-washy reviews usually irritate me but I cant't bring myself to get off the fence just yet - mea culpa.

I read my first Dan Simmons, Carrion Comfort, book several months ago based on the exuberant accolades of another listener whose reviews I follow. I will say the reviewer did not lead me astray as that story was gripping & one of the few horror books I consider really terrifying.

That lead me to listen to Children of the Night. I admit I like a good vampire book - not the fluffy ones where the vamps are really good ( you know deep down inside) with a Harlequen romance vibe. I want a mix of mystery & the unknown with vampires that are ruthless & heartless & that's what this book brings to the table. Simmons takes a different approach to explain the existence of these creatures. This is not Simmons best work but a solid book worth a listen.

Another good book in this series. This book picks up where the last ended with Rachel being chased by a demon that eats souls. Rachel teams up with the Elven leader to chase the demon across realities. Good action coupled with a good story with twists. If you want a fun, entertaining story then this is it. I found myself wanting to know what Rachel was going to do next & not expecting what came. Each book in this series gets better. If you enjoy Patricia Briggs or Charlaine Harris then you will probably enjoy this author.

The 2nd installment in the Millennium series continues the story of Lisbeth Salander & fills in the background of the heroine of book 1. Her story unfolds with intrigue & mystery & pulls her friend Blumquist into the plot. The 2nd book is every bit as good as the first. Definitely a good listen.

If you've read the series then you know there are some excellent stories with many twists & complicated plots ( White Knight, Blood Rites, Proven Guilty are some of my favorites). Cold Days definitely fits this definition & is one of the best in the series. Harry is now the Winter Knight & he is doing a balancing act between protecting his friends & serving Mab, the Winter Queen. Can't give away anything but I will say as usual there are several plots going on at once! Lots of unexpected turns! This book sets the stage for new dimensons with Harry that we have not heard before. Lets hope Jim Butcher does not conclude the series at 25 or so books as mentioned on his site.

The narrator is one of the best so it made the audio very easy to llisten to. I am glad Marsters is back on this series! He is the voice of Harry Dresden.