"Dull and Lifeless"
I've enjoyed Richard Preston's work in the past, and I most likely would prefer to actually read a copy of this one. I found the narrator dull, lifeless and absolutely boring to listen to. There was no inflection of his voice, no intonation, just a monotone delivery that drove me to distraction! The material that I could manage to listen to was well written, but very poorly read. I think I"ll go buy a copy of the book and save myself the tedium of listening to this narrator. If I were basing this review on the quality of writing, this book would easily earn 4 stars, but because it's an audio version I can't give it more than 2.
"Not what I was hoping for or expecting"
I would like to give this book a glowing review, however I detest cliff-hanger endings. If you can't resolve the storyline in one novel, let the reader know it will be serialized. Full Blooded can't even claim that the story was too big for a single novel. The first half was so drawn out and dull I seriously considered just not finishing the book. At the beginning of the second part, things got a little more interesting. This is when the romance started to creep in. This would not normally be a criticism, however, this was in the romance category so I have to hold this against the book. Reader (listener) beware! This is not a romance novel despite it being found under "ROMANCE". The little bit of romance found doesn't even rate as more than a blip on the romance radar!
The most interesting part of the book was discovering a werewolf finding a true mate in a cat shifter. (But we don't know what kind of cat shifter, because that's saved for a later novel) While this is a unique and refreshing change from typical were-creature books, the teaser aspect really ruined the novelty for me. Just spit out the information or its a wasted effort, because it won't hold my attention long enough to find and read (or listen) to the next installment.
Dull intonation and a lack of enthusiasm made listening a dry experience. I have hope that this narrator could be better with stronger material.
Unless you just want a fantasy with little to no romance - skip this one. Save your credit.
"Huh?"
I had high hopes for this book, but there is something that rubs me the wrong way about the story. The politically correct, vegan, prius driving vampires just lack the intrigue that drives me to read/listen to that genre of book. The discussions about Tofurky, organic cheese and benefits of not putting processed foods in your body were totally off-putting. I want male heroes to be manly men and not worried about "is that organic goat cheese on that pizza?" Okay, I get that the author believes in this lifestyle, but really? Sorry, even if 100 authors write books with the bad guys driving prius', I'm not ever going to believe that isn't totally lame.
"New Narrator Please!"
The writing and storyline is very well done. I am a fan of Sherrilyn Kenyon's work (mostly anyway) but this narrator just RUINS the audiobook! Yeah I saw others had the same opinion before I purchased the book, but frankly I am out of material and wanted something new. I just did not understand the depth of horror that was waiting for my ears! Please find a new narrator and re-publish! The narrator just had so much trouble with pronounciation and OVER dramatizing every little thing that it was distracting and difficult to follow. It was like watching a bad Mexican soap opera! All of the moaning and groaning and angsty breathy junk he infused into the story was just too much.
"One of my favorites"
This is the best narrator ever! I am guaranteed to purchase a book if half interested in the story if Holter Graham is the narrator. He makes each character live!
Fang has always been one of my favorite characters from the Dark-Hunter series so yeah, the story was great too!
"Extraordinarily well written"
I was not expecting what I got when I ordered this book. However, that being said, the author did a magnificent job with weaving the story and bringing the reader into the emotions of the characters. I laughed, I cried and I ground my teeth over the nonsense going on. (sorry, no spoilers here!) I finished a couple of days ago and I'm not exactly sure yet why the storyline disturbed me so much. I'm okay with the bi-sexual stuff, I'm fine with the gay stuff, but there was something in there that left me feeling emotionally drained. Don't misunderstand me please! This book was an amazingly well written and complex piece of work! The fact that I'm still thinking about it and still discomfited by the storyline proves that! Megan Hart is very talented and I'm not disappointed that I spent a credit on the book. The sex scenes were HOT and the characters very well developed. It was worth the credit, if for nothing else than to get you to think about how you'd handle some of the situations that popped up. I'm giving it 4 stars because of the quality of the writing skill alone. I'm not sure yet where I'd put the rating based on the story itself, but maybe someday I'll figure it out.
"Entertaining listen"
I was hesitant to purchase this book. I love the Black Dagger Brotherhood books and I was afraid that this one would leave me disappointed. The storyline seemed too different for me to maintain interest as strongly as I do for the BDB books. I was very wrong! I had a very difficult time finding stopping points and kept finding reasons to keep listening "just a little longer...". It also nicely correlates to the BDB books and gives you glimpses of characters familiar if you have read that series. Overall, I'm very glad that its in my library!
"Disappointing"
Admittedly, I was cautious about this book from the start. I have to wonder about the quality of writing when an author is very prolific and this was no exception. I was very disappointed with the storyline and writing. It is basically a survivor rip-off with mythical creatures being manipulated by the gods. I guess I can see how Ms. Showalter can be so prolific with her writing as she borrowed the concept from other genres. There aren't any new twists to the basic story you'd find on a t.v. episode. They even have the vote off the island ceremony! I preferred the side-stories to the main plot. They were more interesting by far but still somewhat bland. The narration was good, but I was just bored with the story half-way through. I will not buy another book by this author.
"Excellent read/listen!"
I have been a fan of the Preston/Child duo for many years. Some of their novels have been great while others were simply lacking. This one is my favorite of all so far! We have been teased with the hints of Diogenes for so long, and now is our chance to meet him! I much prefer this narrator (Scott Brick) to Rene Auberjonois who has done other novels they have written. While he is a fine actor, he does not do a pleasing Pendergast voice. The pace is excellent. The reader is not left hanging with suspense between chapters too often. This allows some good stopping points to allow you to continue with what you were doing until this book grabbed you. Everyone I have encouraged to listen to or read this book has done so with very few breaks. It simply pulls you in and makes you want more and more! I have both read the hard copy and listened to the full audiobook and will gladly do so again and again.
"Great Book-Awful narrator"
If I were only rating the book I would rate it around a 3.5 maybe a 4. However, with this nasal narrator I could not listen longer than the 6th chapter. I kept wondering when the narrator was going to blow his nose and take care of the problem he seemed to have with a bad head cold. I purchased the printed version and thoroughly enjoyed the story but there is no way I can or will make it through the audio version. The lack of enthusiasm and the nasal quality of the reader's voice was a major distraction.