Black Dog Blues

The Kai Gracen Series, Book 1

By: Rhys Ford

Narrated by: Greg Tremblay

Length: 8 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's summary

Ever since being part of the pot in a high-stakes poker game, elfin outcast Kai Gracen figures he used up his good karma when Dempsey, a human Stalker, won the hand and took him in. Following the violent merge of Earth and Underhill, the human and elfin races are left with a messy, monster-ridden world, and Stalkers are the only cavalry willing to ride to someone's rescue when something shadowy appears.

It's a hard life but one Kai likes - filled with bounty and a few friends and, most importantly, no other elfin around to remind him of his past. And killing monsters is easy. Especially since he's one himself.

But when a sidhe lord named Ryder arrives in San Diego, Kai is conscripted to do a job for Ryder's fledgling Dawn Court. It's supposed to be a simple run up the coast during dragon-mating season to retrieve a pregnant human woman seeking sanctuary. Easy, quick, and, best of all, profitable. But Kai ends up in the middle of a deadly bloodline feud he has no hope of escaping.

No one ever got rich being a Stalker. But then few of them got old, either, and it doesn't look like Kai will be the exception.

©2015 Rhys Ford (P)2015 DSP Publications

Tremblay's narration is perfect for this story!

Any additional comments?

Now this was some damn interesting world building. Wow. Throw in the always excellent narration by Greg Tremblay and I was one happy reader.

It behooves me to note this isn't a romance. It's more along the lines of Rhys's Ink and Shadows, and has hints of possible romance to happen in the series, but it's first and foremost about Kai and the world building.

Based in an alternate universe where Kai Gracen is an elfin outcast and a Stalker (which is kind of like a bounty hunter, but much, much cooler) just trying to eke out a living in a world where humans and elfin races are at odds, monsters abound, and violence is the norm.

Kai is prickly, bitter, sometimes harsh and wants nothing to do with race politics or the dark and light Sidhe courts, but when he's forced into helping Ryder, a sidhe lord, into making a run through dragon territory into the light court to pick up a pregnant human everything unravels and his life will never be the same.

I really enjoyed this, though I'll admit that has a lot to do with Greg Tremblay's narration because it is absolutely perfect for this story. Kai has a sort of gravelly slight-Irish accent that really suits the character and helps make listening a real pleasure.

For fans of fantasy and audio this should definitely make it on your list!

Engaging fantasy

Rhys Ford created an engaging fantasy future in the same So Cal city I happen to live in. Listening to Greg Tremblay was a treat, his narration is perfect for this somewhat dark future where the elven world merges with the human world after a devastating war. Ford re-imagines San Diego in a pretty believable way, and includes many familiar city landmarks like Presidio and Balboa Park. Animals from the San Diego Zoo now wander freely and some have evolved in dangerous ways to puny humans. Except for the fact that humans outstrip the elves in live births, the humans in this story are gritty and competent, and work to scrape out a living. The wimpiest of us must have died before passing on their genes. I'm enjoying the bisexual Kai Gracen character a lot. He's had an abusive, cringe-worthy life until Dempsey, a hard nosed human, takes him on as a stalker apprentice after winning Kai in a card game. We meet Kai as an adult stalker; cynic, realist, survivor, and beautiful elf. He rejects elven society, as both the Dawn and the Dusk courts hold nothing but nightmare memories for Kai. Humans lost the war, and the majority of humans revile elves, including Kai. He accepts their rejection and understands their reasoning, although he's feeling pretty sick of getting attacked when humans feel the need to beat up a lone elf. Fortunately Kai is exceptionally talented at his job, stalking predators, and at defending himself in a fight.
It's sexy to listen to his interactions with beautiful women, beautiful elf females, and a beautiful elf prince. I'm hoping there will be more physical sexual action between Kai and the characters who find him irresistible in the next books. I've already bought and downloaded Mad Lizard Mambo, and am looking forward to another 8 plus hours of escape from 2020 reality.

Not the story for me.

In theory, I should have loved this book. In reality, I didn't.

To start, I love urban fantasy books. Give me a great plot, some humor, and some supernatural beings, and I'm along for the ride. I don't care if there is a lick of romance, I just need that special something and I'm in it. In addition, this book was narrated by one of my favorites, Greg Tremblay. I also adore Rhys Ford, who has written some of my favorite books in the past few years.

But when you put it all together, it still fell a bit flat.

I had a really hard time connecting to Kai, so much so that I DNFed this book in ebook form. I picked it up again in audio, but my disconnect with him was still there. He is bitter and sometimes randomly harsh on people, and I had a very difficult time getting into his mindset. There isn't much humor in this book, so that wasn't a way for me to connect, and when you combine that with Kai's sort of surly personality, I had a hard time getting engaged. I also didn't see Ryder as a strong character, and I didn't really get why he was so enamored with Kai.

To top it off, the plot felt a bit... unfocused. There was something about the pace or the set up that felt far more boring than it ought to have based on the amount of action in the story. I wasn't excited at all, and I faced the twists and turns far more casually than I usually do, especially with an audiobook.

If I had to rate this book on content alone, I would give it 2 stars. I simply didn't jive with the plot or characters all that much, and I felt very wishy-washy, overall.

However, the narration is another story. I LOVE Greg Tremblay, and I think he really did a fantastic job with this one. I loved how Kai's voice was different than Cole's (Dirty Kiss), with a faint Irish accent and far more attitude. I loved how Greg really thought about each character and what they would sound like. His narration was so nuanced that it made me able to get through a story that I had such difficulties with in ebook form. I'd give 5 solid stars to the narration, no question.

Unfortunately, a good audio does not a good experience make. I'm certainly quitting this series at this story, but I encourage other fans to give this one a shot. I think if you like something edging more towards high fantasy, this might work better for you.

**Copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review**

I LOVE KAI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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

YES!!! This is a great story...and Kai is an awesome main character!!!

Who was your favorite character and why?

Kai! Everybody wants him, he is in high demand...and he just really wants to be left alone...lol

Which scene was your favorite?

The Birth of the twins!

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

This would make an awesome series for like the CW! I cant wait for book 2!

Any additional comments?

** I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review **

I honestly loved this and it left me hungry for book 2!!! Kai is an elf who was traded in a game of poker as a child and ends up being semi raised by a human....Kai has always been abused and used..but Dempsey takes care of Kai and teaches him the family trade of being a Stalker.....they basically keep things safe from monsters and get paid for it! Well Kai is in high demand and has to take a job for a high Shelord...well this turns out to be a job that is more than meets the eye....see the elfin race is dying out and new ways of conception are being tried...well the elves dont like this and the situation is getting dire and dangerous! I loved it!!! I will definitely continue this series and I recommend it!!!

Thank you Audiobookblast(dot)com

Good story but not really my cup of tea.

Good story line. Without back ground reference sometimes a little difficult to follow. Not really my first choice.

A Listening Pleasure!

I am not going to rehash the story as it has been told well, many times, in other reviews but I will say that I truly enjoyed this audiobook. This is a dark, gritty urban fantasy that has non-stop action and fantastic world-building. It includes many of my favorite things in a story; a tortured hero with a heart of gold, an interesting cast supporting characters, magic, the Sidhe and the Unsidhe and dragons! What this story doesn’t include is romance and that is something I look forward to in Ms. Ford’s books. There is a lot of sexual tension between Kai and Ryder but it goes nowhere. Warning to all of the strict MM fans out there, be aware that Ryder’s female cousin is in a strong competition for Kai’s attention. I don’t know which way the story will go but I thought I would throw that out there for those of you who care.

The story, as well as information about Kai’s past, unfolded slowly but managed to keep my attention and I credit the narrator, Greg Tremblay, for that fact. His voice was perfect for Kai and he really brought the snarky man to life. He also did a wonderful job of giving the other characters their own individual voices and I was never confused as to which character was speaking. That is something that I have experienced with other audiobooks and it ruins my enjoyment.

I first read this book when it was originally published in 2013 and I have been waiting, not so patiently, for a sequel. Hint, hint Ms. Ford!

*This audiobook was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

Great Story

I am a big fan of Rhys Ford, and I very much enjoyed this urban fantasy. Greg Tremblay brought the characters to life for me.

Good Start to a Series

This was an interesting read. At first I had a hard time with it. I felt a little scattered at first putting it all together. By the end I was invested in the characters. I would really love to see the next phase in the story for Kai.

In many ways this story reminds me of another Infected: Prey. Not in total but in some ways Kai is like Roan just less sexually involved with a "someone". Though it is reminiscent of the Infected series the focus is different. Kai is more starting his life journey and Roan is a long way through his.

The author does a good job of setting up the world and giving you a glimpse into it. The details that is given in describing the scenes is interesting and helps us to understand the complicated world these characters exist in.

The characters are still coming together for me. I don't totally understand some of the motives and thoughts of the people and the circumstances that they are found in. I think by the end it starts to all come together.

I believe the next book will improve upon this book.

Re-listen:
After some time away and listening to the second book some time ago I have come back to listen to the book again. Though I still believe my original review, I think I was hasty in it. I am upping the stars to 5 because I have so enjoyed the book.

Too Straight.

Would you be willing to try another book from Rhys Ford? Why or why not?

Start off with the positive , really interesting story and the writing was on point. Greg did another great job but the downside was just personal preference. I read M/M books because I would like to avoid M/F or as the case may end in these books *spoiler* M/M/F. Rhys kinda blind sided me with a whole lot of description and focus on the females sexually in the book and it was hard to get through for me but I held out for the story , wont be continuing to read this Series but would recommend for those who don't really care what bow their packages come wrapped in.

Fast Paced Urban Fantasy

Where does Black Dog Blues rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Its hard to answer this because I've listened to a bunch of audiobooks by this point in time. Its high wherever it is, and the performance even higher.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Dempsey because he has the kind of personality I love, a mentor who's gruff but still has his heart in the right place despite the fact that his choice of words often casts doubt upon that.

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

Greg Tremblay gives it great tones of voice and variety throughout the characters and provides a depth of emotion and life to the story that wouldn't be there if it were just the written version.

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

There's no such thing as an easy job.

Any additional comments?

I received this in exchange for an honest review.