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Daina

64 year old woman. Artist/filmmaker. Creative Like strong female characters. Don't like violence.

Member Since 2010

HELPFUL VOTES

10 reviews
14 ratings
235 titles in library
15 purchased in 2013

FOLLOWING

FOLLOWERS

January First: A Child's Descent into Madness and Her Father's Struggle to Save Her

UNABRIDGED
- by Michael Schofield
- Narrated by Patrick Lawlor
January First: A Child's Descent into Madness and Her Father's Struggle to Save Her

UNABRIDGED (8 hrs and 31 mins)

By Michael Schofield

Narrated By Patrick Lawlor

Whispersync for Voice-ready

Overall
(28)
Performance
(26)
Story
(27)

January First is a brilliant and harrowingly honest memoir. The story of Michael Schofield's daughter January's descent into scizophrenia, and her family's struggle to save her, will fascinate and move listeners. January First is the extraordinary story of a father's fight to save his child from an extremely severe case of mental illness in the face of overwhelming adversity.
Daina says: "Jani is Interesting!"
"Jani is Interesting!"

Overall
Performance
Story

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Surely. It's fascinating.

What did you like best about this story?

The humanity of it.

What about Patrick Lawlor’s performance did you like?

All of it.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Nope. I don't have extreme reactions at all, I'm an Aspergian.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful
Chasing Fire

UNABRIDGED
- by Nora Roberts
- Narrated by Rebecca Lowman
Chasing Fire

UNABRIDGED (15 hrs and 9 mins)

By Nora Roberts

Narrated By Rebecca Lowman

Whispersync for Voice-ready

Overall
(1308)
Performance
(841)
Story
(846)

Little else in life is as dangerous as fire jumping. Flying past towering pillars of smoke, parachuting down to the edge of an all-consuming blaze, shoveling and sawing for hours upon hours, days at a time, all to hold the line and push back against the raw power of Mother Nature. But there’s also little else as thrilling - at least to Rowan Tripp. The Missoula smoke jumpers are one of the most exclusive firefighting squads in the nation, and the job is in Rowan’s blood: her father is a legend in the field. She’s been fighting fires since her eighteenth birthday.
M. Davis says: "Another winner by Roberts!"
"Firefighting is Boring (for me, anyway)"

Overall
Performance
Story

What would have made Chasing Fire better?

Less firefighting ... there doesn't seem to be much else.

Has Chasing Fire turned you off from other books in this genre?

I usually like Nora Roberts books.

What about Rebecca Lowman’s performance did you like?

She's good.

Any additional comments?

I'm not sure why I got bored with this one.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful
One Shot: A Jack Reacher Novel, Book 9

UNABRIDGED
- by Lee Child
- Narrated by Dick Hill
One Shot: A Jack Reacher Novel, Book 9

UNABRIDGED (12 hrs and 47 mins)

By Lee Child

Narrated By Dick Hill

Whispersync for Voice-ready

Overall
(1781)
Performance
(1126)
Story
(1129)

Six shots. Five dead. One heartland city thrown into a state of terror. But within hours the cops have it solved: a slam-dunk case. Except for one thing. The accused man says: "You got the wrong guy". Then he says: "Get Reacher for me". And sure enough, from the world he lives in - no phone, no address, no commitments - ex-military investigator Jack Reacher is coming. In Lee Child's astonishing thriller, Reacher's arrival will change everything - about a case that isn't what it seems, about lives tangled in baffling ways, about a killer who missed one shot - and by doing so gives Jack Reacher one shot at the truth.
Carol says: "Reacher said..."
"Boring, Boring, Boring"

Overall
Performance
Story

What disappointed you about One Shot?

It started with endless preparations for shooting someone. How the shooter dressed, held his gun.... boring, boring, boring.

Like a Japanese tea ceremony ... ultra boring.

Like Proust writing pages and pages about the feeling of the sheets of his bed.

Would you ever listen to anything by Lee Child again?

No.

How could the performance have been better?

If the narrator had shut up completely.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from One Shot?

Anything having to do with guns.

Any additional comments?

Yuck.

1 of 2 people found this review helpful
Shadow Woman: A Novel

UNABRIDGED
- by Linda Howard
- Narrated by Carrington MacDuffie
Shadow Woman: A Novel

UNABRIDGED (9 hrs and 43 mins)

By Linda Howard

Narrated By Carrington MacDuffie

Whispersync for Voice-ready

Overall
(279)
Performance
(231)
Story
(232)

Lizette Henry wakes up one morning and makes a terrifying discovery: She doesn't recognize the face she sees in the mirror. She remembers what she looks like, but her reflection is someone else's. To add to the shock, two years seem to have disappeared from her life. Someone has gone to great and inexplicable lengths to keep those missing years hidden forever. But the past always finds a way to return.
Sharene says: "Great"
"I got bored halfway through and haven't finished."

Overall
Performance
Story

What would have made Shadow Woman better?

The original idea is good, but it got bogged down and redundant and I lost interest.

Has Shadow Woman turned you off from other books in this genre?

No.

What three words best describe Carrington MacDuffie’s performance?

Performance was good.

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

The beginning was good and interesting, but it didn't develop.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful
Mr. Churchill's Secretary: A Maggie Hope Novel, Book 1

UNABRIDGED
- by Susan Elia MacNeal
- Narrated by Wanda McCaddon
Mr. Churchill's Secretary: A Maggie Hope Novel, Book 1

UNABRIDGED (9 hrs and 48 mins)

By Susan Elia MacNeal

Narrated By Wanda McCaddon

Whispersync for Voice-ready

Overall
(416)
Performance
(358)
Story
(354)

London, 1940: Winston Churchill has just been sworn in, war rages across the Channel, and the threat of a Blitz looms larger by the day. But none of this deters Maggie Hope. She graduated at the top of her college class and possesses all the skills of the finest minds in British intelligence, but her gender qualifies her only to be the newest typist at No. 10 Downing Street. Her indefatigable spirit and gifts for codebreaking, though, rival those of even the highest men in government, and Maggie finds that working for the prime minister affords her a level of clearance she could never have imagined....
Susie says: "Good Cozy Spy thriller"
"This book is boring."

Overall
Performance
Story

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

The author doesn't really have a feeling for the characters.

Would you ever listen to anything by Susan Elia MacNeal again?

No.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

Performance was OK. Material was not.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful
A Discovery of Witches

UNABRIDGED
- by Deborah Harkness
- Narrated by Jennifer Ikeda
A Discovery of Witches

UNABRIDGED (24 hrs and 2 mins)

By Deborah Harkness

Narrated By Jennifer Ikeda

Whispersync for Voice-ready

Overall
(7477)
Performance
(5121)
Story
(5137)

Deep in the stacks of Oxford's Bodleian Library, young scholar Diana Bishop unwittingly calls up a bewitched alchemical manuscript in the course of her research. Descended from an old and distinguished line of witches, Diana wants nothing to do with sorcery; so after a furtive glance and a few notes, she banishes the book to the stacks. But her discovery sets a fantastical underworld stirring, and a horde of daemons, witches, and vampires soon descends upon the library.
Barbara says: "A feast for the mind and imagination"
"Boring@"

Overall
Performance
Story

What disappointed you about A Discovery of Witches?

It was really about academia and the vampires, etc. were boring.

Would you ever listen to anything by Deborah Harkness again?

No.

Did Jennifer Ikeda do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

She probably did, but I just got too bored.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful
Into the Darkest Corner

UNABRIDGED
- by Elizabeth Haynes
- Narrated by David Thorpe , Karen Cass
Into the Darkest Corner

UNABRIDGED (14 hrs and 1 min)

By Elizabeth Haynes

Narrated By David Thorpe, Karen Cass

Whispersync for Voice-ready

Overall
(712)
Performance
(586)
Story
(587)

Catherine has been enjoying the single life for long enough to know a good catch when she sees one. Gorgeous, charismatic, spontaneous – Lee seems almost too perfect to be true. And her friends clearly agree, as each in turn falls under his spell. But there is a darker side to Lee. His erratic, controlling and sometimes frightening behaviour means that Catherine is increasingly isolated. Driven into the darkest corner of her world, and trusting no one, she plans a meticulous escape.
Janice says: "Check, and check again . . ."
"Being paranoid doesn't protect you."

Overall
Performance
Story

What made the experience of listening to Into the Darkest Corner the most enjoyable?

I like the way the main character took charge of her life, although I'm not too sure about the later romantic ending, which didn't seem realistic.She would be more likely to go to India and start am organization to rescue abused women.

Have you listened to any of David Thorpe and Karen Cass ’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Haven't listened to any.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

If a film were made, I would wish that the main character were a realistic, not overly beautiful woman. I'm tired of movies where the actor for the female detective has obviously been chosen for her beauty.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful
The Invisible Order: Rise of the Darklings

UNABRIDGED
- by Paul Crilley
- Narrated by Katherine Kellgren
The Invisible Order: Rise of the Darklings

UNABRIDGED (7 hrs and 15 mins)

By Paul Crilley

Narrated By Katherine Kellgren

Overall
(94)
Performance
(66)
Story
(67)

The Invisible Order is the first book in an amazing new series by Paul Crilley, skillfully narrated by Katherine Kellgren. Emily Snow is twelve years old, supporting herself and her younger brother on the streets of Victorian England by selling watercress. One early winter morning on her way to buy supplies, she encounters a piskie—a small but very sarcastic fey creature that has been cornered by a group of the Black Sidhe, piskies from an opposing clan.
Sheri C says: "Fun and Imaginative"
"Piskies, Piskies, Piskies"

Overall
Performance
Story

Is there anything you would change about this book?

Those Piskies get boring.

Would you be willing to try another book from Paul Crilley? Why or why not?

No. The Piskies are just too much like regular people. I wish they would do more bizarre fun stuff.

What about Katherine Kellgren’s performance did you like?

She makes everything come alive.

Do you think The Invisible Order needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

No follow-up book.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful
A Sunless Sea: William Monk, Book 18

UNABRIDGED
- by Anne Perry
- Narrated by Ralph Lister
A Sunless Sea: William Monk, Book 18

UNABRIDGED (15 hrs and 23 mins)

By Anne Perry

Narrated By Ralph Lister

Whispersync for Voice-ready

Overall
(103)
Performance
(83)
Story
(84)

As commander of the River Police, Monk is accustomed to violent death, but the mutilated female body found on Limehouse Pier one chilly December morning moves him with horror and pity. The victim’s name is Zenia Gadney. Her waterfront neighbors can tell him little - only that the same unknown gentleman had visited her once a month for many years. She must be a prostitute, but - described as quiet and kempt - she doesn’t appear to be a fallen woman. What sinister secrets made poor Zenia worth killing?
Karen says: "Riveting"
"I love all Monk books."

Overall
Performance
Story

What made the experience of listening to A Sunless Sea the most enjoyable?

The narrator is excellent, the plot is a lot of fun. I wish there were more of Hester and Scuff and less court arguing, but that's just me.

What other book might you compare A Sunless Sea to and why?

Some of the earlier Monk books have more about Monk, Hester, and Scuff working on different parts of the mystery. This time it was mostly Monk, which is fine, but a bit one-sided.

What about Ralph Lister’s performance did you like?

Everything.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful
Blood and Circuses: A Phryne Fisher Mystery

UNABRIDGED
- by Kerry Greenwood
- Narrated by Stephanie Daniel
Blood and Circuses: A Phryne Fisher Mystery

UNABRIDGED (7 hrs and 22 mins)

By Kerry Greenwood

Narrated By Stephanie Daniel

Whispersync for Voice-ready

Overall
(89)
Performance
(80)
Story
(78)

The Honourable Miss Phryne Fisher is feeling dull. But is shebored enough to leave her identity, her home and family behind and join Farrell’s Circus and Wild Beast Show? There have beenstrange things happening at the circus. And when Phryne is asked by her friends – Samson the Strong Man, Alan the carousel operator and Doreen the Snake Woman – to help them, curiosity gets the better of her.
Pam says: "Phryne goes to the circus"
"I Like It!"

Overall
Performance
Story

Would you consider the audio edition of Blood and Circuses to be better than the print version?

I haven't read the print version but I'm sure this is better because of the narrator.

Have you listened to any of Stephanie Daniel’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

All of her performances in the Phryne Fisher books have been wonderful. I haven't listened to other recordings she has done.

Any additional comments?

The Phryne stories I like best are ones that involve her family; my favorite is Dead Man's Chest. However, this one is very interesting. Ms. Greenwood has researched thoroughly and also has had some personal experience.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful