Jason

For most of this book, I couldn't wait to find out what happens. Unfortuantely, I still don't know. What happened? I found that the main character was over eager to please himself and the "night listener". The book never ends and only leaves the reader... [fill in the blank]. I'm ordinarily very liberal about relationships and forgiving to human emotion which is a requirement for this book, but even though I forgive the main character for his eagerness to be fatherly, I can't forgive the author for writing this story. Can I have my book credit back?

This is the first Audiobook I have ever given a five star rating. Usually, I find some reason to give 4 stars or less. This book is fantastic. Tim Curry does a superb job at narrating the story, as can be expected. The author weaves a tale that traps you and won't let go. The world and characters created by the author are complete and perfectly flawed. You can see everything exactly as it should be if a movie were to be made of it, and a movie should be made of it!

I, like most reviewers, admit that this is an unbelievable tale. To me, that is what fiction should be. Having read The DaVinci Code prior to Angels and demons left me feeling like the character of Robert Langdon was developed and rounded; however, if you haven't read The Davinci Code, you would probably feel a bit wanting about his credentials and overall character. There are many "circular narratives" as one reviewer refers to which gave me a roll of the eye or two. Langdon "miraculously" solves each puzzle too many times. I hated this story as a bad spin from The Davinci Code up until the big bang at the end. At that point, it gave me pause and I enjoyed it immensely. Dan Brown must have been presurred to release the prequel quickly or just got lazy on some of the research. Mostly a good read and worth a book credit, but not the best yet.

I won't say I didn't enjoy this story, but if you are looking for plot twists and action moments (or a real page turner) then avoid this book. The characters aer fascinating and often reminded me of my own family in rural Arkansas. They are believable in a remarkably unbelievable way. No single, dramatic plot develops. Instead you get a life story with a few thrills that are told in a linear fashion with little, if any, suspense. Overall, a good listen or read, but it isn't as captivating as other Grisham works.

Starting out I thought this audiobook was going to be one of the most painful listens I've had. I was annoyed by the narrator's attempt to disguise his accent and developed the firm belief that no author should narrate their own work. Once I made it through the first few hours of the book, I quickly got over the poor narration as I was engaged by the story. The story tests the limits of not only the charaters but the listener. I found the story and characters enchanting and the insight into Afghan culture post and during Taliban captivating. Four stars due to the narration.

I found that the book was full of great information and seemed to comply with a lot of information I've read on serial killers, which was to my dismay. The one "controversial" fact outlined in this book was the genetic factor of serial killers which I felt the author didn't touch on nearly enough and had no research backing up her argument. She excuses this fact and just leaves you with a feeling of "that's plausable". If you go into this book not expecting a conclusion, you will be satisfied.

I suppose it is because I listened to the unabridged version of each novel, and perhaps the abridged versions aren't so very alike, but Blood and Gold retold most of the story of The Vampire Armand, just from a different perspective. Overall, it was a good story, and the narrator was superb.

The first thing that comes to mind after listening to this book is what an exceptional job the narrator did in potraying each character. He is certainly one of the few that I can tolerate gender twisting as he does so with ease and never sounds forced. The story never closes on the facts, only character assumptions. That annoyed me slightly at the end but was probably just the result of a story ending when I wanted more.