C. L. Turner

I won't try to ruin or spoil anything...but beware; I can see why this series sparked so much debate!

I don't like happy endings and I was not disappointed. I laughed at the twists, the betrayals and the bleak. I'm hoping it was all set to start another book(s)/series. There's a lot of food for future work here. I haven't read the "one-off" novels yet (partially because there's a different narrator and I HATE it when they do that; Steven Pacey is perfect for this!).

If you look hard and embrace your cynicism you will see what's coming. If you are waiting for the great eagles to come along and pluck our heroes from the fire, well...the author just doesn't play that game.

Suggested album to have playing in the background? "Soul Cages" by Sting or "Black Angels" by Kronos Quartet.''

Here's the question for you..."What IS the last argument of Kings?"

This series is dense, deep, rich and can be confusing if you're not paying attention. So many names, so many places and so many things going on. I would love to see the entire series on Audible (it would be nice to have a complete, long series ready to go!)

I can't say too much that's negative, it's just all good! Characters are memorable and you invest yourself in their stories. The plot seems pretty solid, although I have no idea where it's going, yet. The writing is quite good and at times you feel the language elevate you to more emotion than you probably want while sitting in an office, listening to a book. And its scale is epic. A nice, long listen.

Download it. Download it now!

I don't speak Russian, so I can't tell you if this is a good translation. I can tell you it's a beautiful novel. Classic science fiction. The language and narration are just enough to make me smile at the memory. A devious story with some marvelous characters and an ending that makes you listen twice...or three times.

Listen to the foreword...it's important. Then enjoy the book.

I'd been waiting a long time for this one.

I would write a review of the whole series...but why. Why? After spending so much time listening only to be left with something short of nothing as an ending.

Metaphor? Sure...it's a metaphor.
Lazy? That's what I don't quite understand! These novels were work for the writer, obviously. They were entertaining. Yes, there was some amount of over-explanation, but overall, enjoyable. Then, in the end? !Whomp! It's done and over without much of the careful description, back story, care and craft that's preceded the end credits.

Enough to make me pound my head against a desk until I work a better end through sheer delirium!

Sandman Slim has become a toothpick of his former self and he's jumped several sharks along the way. I was disappointed with the last book, saw several positive reviews for this one, was bored and in a forgiving mood.

Damned if I do that again!

MacLeod Andrews saves this hot mess, as usual. There are some great one-liners, but I think Kadrey has a machine to churn those out (or people just send their best to him via Twitter). Even the best, favorite characters get sent backfield on this one.

Implausible situations (considering the context), convenient superpowers, an "unending", you never actually get the sense that Stark is ever in any real danger, so why bother, and you're just kinda sick of him after the first page. There are several points in the story that caused my eyes to roll and think "well, THAT was convenient...what handy thing happens next?"

Contrived...yep, that's the word I was looking for.

Ah well. Should have known better!

I'll REALLY try not to give spoilers...

This is great! Not deep, but it's fun, fast and twisty. We're talking a mystery that combines pop-culture icons, steampunk, nods to some of the greatest horror written and ties it all together into something entirely new. You'll like the characters, you'll probably see the twists coming (and say "YES!" out loud when they hit) and laugh your ass off at parts of the story where you probably shouldn't.

Hell, there's even some Office Space in here, for good measure.

Unless your sense of humor and sense of mystery left you at some point you will love this book. Get it. Get it now.

Do it. Do it or The Family will come to get you.

Not bad. Not great.

I wonder *why* someone wouldn't want their kids to read/listen to this book? My kiddo would have loved it when she was younger (she's in University now). Perhaps they're afraid of something a bit more "pagan"...shame. That's the only reason for objection I can think of.

Neil Gaiman is a great narrator, flawless. His writing is spot on. The book just wasn't exactly what I wanted, but I'd recommend it in a heartbeat. The book has a great spooky vibe and creatures you'll recognize, but aren't announced in bold letters -- which is nice!

It's short, sweet and to the point.

The Heroes was almost up there with the First Law series...close. Had Steven Pacey been narrating, it may well have been right on pace. The writing is bit better than "Best Served Cold" although there is some repetition to it (J.A. reuses quite a few phrases and descriptions...almost formulaic in places). I did enjoy the change of pace and the implied movement of the overall story arc. You know there are twisted things coming...and it will be fun.

Can't wait until "Red" makes it to audio.

Please have Steven Pacey do it!

It's pretty obvious that J.A.'s two books (Best Served Cold and The Heros) are bridge novels from his trilogy to ...something coming. Characters and situations are introduced, some are pulled from other novels (almost conveniently) and placed in cameo to help readers find their footing.

Out of the two "bridges" so far, this is my least favorite and I can't quite put my finger on the why of it. No good reason for it, really...I just wasn't crazy about it. It seemed to lack some of the polish J.A.'s other books have had.

Narration: I really miss Steven Pacey. Michael Page is fine, but he's just not as versatile. His Ninefingers is a screeching harpy of a voice. God forbid he ever does Glokta!

In the end, however, you'll need to make a run at this book for anything else to make sense and it isn't a bad journey! Just not as good as the others.

This is a great continuation to "The Expanse" series. One thing that really strikes me is how culturally rich this series is. You get "traditional" cultures and "new" cultures with Corey bringing them to life brilliantly!

You also get a delightful punch in the face by mysteries this book will not answer, which is a brilliant setup to whatever comes next. It just makes me kinda wish I could download the third book right now.

The science is hard and well written, which is great for those of you who like numbers behind your fiction, but it's not in your face or dumbed down. It is simply the reality of the series, the day-to-day of life in our Solar System.

Favorite characters return in new suits and situations, many of them develop in unexpected ways. New characters arrive and you'll love/hate them; you'll even recognize them and probably wish some of them were in our world now.

Then the book ends...looking back in time, 47 minutes.

This is a good story that has definitely borrowed from classics like Ringworld. Definitely worth a listen and very enjoyable. It has some good originality, so don't worry, it's not a re-hash of old material.

There is a down side. The narrator, while quite good! Gets a bit confused with names every once in a while and mixes one character with another. This is a problem...but does not cause too many problems in the end if you're paying attention.

Now the fun part, accents, characters, language and personalities. This novel builds on more to come (a lot more), so stay tuned!