Black Sea Affair

By: Don Brown

Narrated by: James Adams

Length: 11 hrs and 28 mins

Publisher's summary

As the U.S. Navy searches for weapons-grade plutonium that has been smuggled by terrorists out of Russia, a submarine mishap in the Black Sea brings the United States and Russia to the brink of nuclear war. It is a race against the clock, with Russian missiles activated and programmed for American cities.

©2008 Don Brown (P)2009 Zondervan

danger, could cause hearing damage

I cannot listen to this narrator any more this is the first in hundreds of listens that I am not going to finish the listen I cannot take it any longer. he shouts in a submarine for every order. everything I have heard so far makes my skin crawl, bad accents etcetera. Deleting book now

Why use a Brit for a narrator ?

What made the experience of listening to Black Sea Affair the most enjoyable?

The story started out very slow, but it did build up. But what annoyed me in the extreme was using a British narrator for what was suppose to be an American Naval drama. James Adams barely tried to use an American accent and he used all the British pronunciations for words like schedule. It detracted from the whole book.

If you’ve listened to books by Don Brown before, how does this one compare?

I liked his other books better.

Would you be willing to try another one of James Adams’s performances?

Only if the story was set in Britain

Find a new narrator!

Why would anyone choose a reader with a British accent to read a story about a US Navy submarine?????? Couldn't concentrate on the story because of the poor narration.

Great Story poor reader....

What did you like best about Black Sea Affair? What did you like least?

Loved the story good theme, good story.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Black Sea Affair?

All was great the story has a good line and keeps you waiting for the next section

Would you be willing to try another one of James Adams???s performances?

No, NEVER, NOT EVER AGAIN. HE speaks bristish English with an American book ti just does not fit. Does not truly understand American English and it way of saying things. Most absurb redention of southern person speaking. His reading was so poor had to leave story several times to rest listen to something else then come back again.

Enjoyed the Story ... Narration, hmmm

I'm loving the JAG series, but I'm still struggling with James Adam's narration talents. It's not that he's bad, but he just doesn't fit with this particular series.

Good for the bargain price

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Slow start but slowly pulled me in.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

Good but not exceptional.

What does James Adams bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I enjoyed the performance.

Could you see Black Sea Affair being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

No

Any additional comments?

None

Exciting book, exciting series!

This book was very good. I must admit, my husband enjoyed it more than I did. I got a little bogged down in the politics and technicalities, but he loved it. I am glad I stuck with it, since we have listened to the rest of the series. The author has done an tremendous job of research and putting together an outstanding series. We highly recommend it.

Odd choices

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

probably, but I would tell them my thoughts and let them decide

What did you like best about this story?

Good plot, nice suspense building. He combined action in various venues into the story.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of James Adams?

Just about anyone. It was an odd choice having a British narrator for an American novel. Americans now don't pronounce their "r"s. Worse- it seems everyone east of Austria speaks with a guttural voice- very difficult to distinguish characters. I found the most distracting.

Any additional comments?

The plot was good, but the dialogue was often tedious. Part of that was technically correct- the protocol for giving and receiving order aboard a submarine, part was just plain slow moving, as in the white house discussions. Perhaps accurate as to how it would probably occur, but it doesn't make good listening (or probably reading).

Cat and Mouse

If you could sum up Black Sea Affair in three words, what would they be?

Life as a submariner involved in a cat and mouse chase where sometimes your the Cat and other times your the Mouse against a global threat.

Why a BBC narrator?

What didn’t you like about James Adams’s performance?

Why would anyone have a narrator with a distinctly British accent read a book about a U.S. military operation? It was so annoying to hear every American character portrayed with a British accent that it was actually hard to concentrate on the story.