Dead Eye: Pennies for the Ferryman

By: Jim Bernheimer

Narrated by: Jeffrey Kafer

Length: 8 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

"My name is Mike Ross. I'm a Ferryman. I help people with ghost problems, or ghosts with people problems. Funny thing, no one ever helps me with my problems. Civil War ghosts bent on killing me, Skinwalkers who just want my body, and a vindictive spirit linked both to my bloodline and my destiny.... It turns out the dead still hold a good deal of influence over the world, and they don't want to give it up. I'm in way over my head. Fortunately, I'm too stubborn to quit."

©2009 David Wood- Gryphonwood Press (P)2012 David Wood- Gryphonwood Press

Another good book ruined by the narrator

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

Yes, I would recommend the book, but not the audiobook. The premise is outstanding, the characters are relate-able, the plot is interesting, but the narration is, (I hate to say) awful. I accidentally bought the second book in the series when it popped up in one of Audible's surprise sales. Once I realized I'd bought the second book, without listening to it, I threw caution to the wind and bought this, the first one. If I'd known how awful the narration was, I would have returned the second one and bought the Kindle version of both. When will I learn? Always, always listen to the free sample!

What did you like best about this story?

The idea behind this book is outstanding and while it's certainly not Life Changing Literature, it's an interesting way to pass the time on the road between Orlando and Miami. The humor is well done and would more than likely actually make me smile, if it wasn't delivered in such a drab way.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

For those of us who are children of 60's, I can best compare the narrator to Jack Webb of Dragnet fame. His delivery is flat, his character development is non-existent, his pronunciation is off and I can't help re-narrating the text to myself while listening to him. (For once, the voices in my head come in handy.)

Could you see Dead Eye: Pennies for the Ferryman being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

Oh puh-leeze. This is a lame question and I refuse to answer it. I won't do it. You can't make me. So there.

Any additional comments?

By all means, buy this book, take a pass on the audiobook. Sorry, Mr. Kafer, but you need to keep your day job.

Intriguing Setup

I loved the setup and idea, but I lost interest about 3/4 of the way through. I had high hopes because I loved the beginning of the book and the narrator is perfect for the attitude of the main character. It has a lot of potential, but there are moments where it just doesn't seem to be thoroughly thought out ahead of time.

Fun and Entertaining

Any additional comments?

This was just a very entertaining, enjoyable and fun story. The story pulls you in immediately and never lets go. The story is fast paced and constantly moving forward. There is always something happening and never a dull moment. This was one of those books I couldn't wait to get back too. Bottom line it is just a very enjoyable listen.

Great cast of characters. Good and bad, human and ghost.

Mike Ross is just an average guy who life has been forever changed. He is now a Ferryman and his life just keeps getting more and more complicated. As if life wasn't hard enough dealing with everyday people and problems, now he has to navigate a world filled with ghost's, skinwalkers and the spirit world. A world that plays by it's own set of rules.

Jeffery Kafer does a fantastic job with the narration. Perfect voice for narrating books. Clearly spoken with nice even pace. Great character voices. Great delivery with the humor and sarcasm. He definitely brought the story and characters to life through his narration. Very enjoyable.

I was given this free review copy audiobooks by the author, narrator or publisher at my request and voluntarily provided this review.

AWESOME Book!

absolutely love this book can't believe I waited so long to pick up a copy! rushing out to buy the next one right now!

Dead Eye: Pennies for the Ferryman

I found this to be an entertaining listen, with interesting characters and a good story.

The narration was enjoyable

Should've been better

Any additional comments?

The story is a very interesting one, and there were a lot of directions the author could have gone. But the book never really got there. I stopped listening about 3/4 of the way through, bored. That's not a good sign for a book about ghosts.

BOO! As in Ghosts but YAY as in great book!

I wasn't surprised how highly entertaining this book was. I listened to another of the Bernheimer books with the same narrator and really enjoyed that too. This one is a ghost story about the person who is assigned to Ferry the dead to the next world, some that don't want to go and the Ferryman has to put a smack down on them and force them on their way, others seem stuck and seek his services and he helps them leave the middle ground they are caught in. He's poor, his love life sucks, he's short and he's new to this roll of helping the haunted, he's adorable. A bit of a cliffhanger ending but the next book is in the shop and it's my next book to listen to.

Slick and fun

This is a fast paced, funny ghost story.

The main character is likeable after a rocky start and the supernatural world presented well thought out and intriguing.

Lover's of Harry Dresden will love Dead Eye

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

This is a great story I hope it will lead to many more.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Mike Ross is such a great smart ass!

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

First time listener of Jeffrey Kafer's and really enjoyed his performance.

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

Made me chuckle a few times.

Any additional comments?

Looking forward to Skinwalkers and many more.

Kicking Ghosts for a Good Cause

Mike Ross is ex-military, having lost an eye and received some leg injuries while serving the country. He now lives with his mom as he tries to pull his life together; re-acclimatizing to civilian life, finding a job, multiple doctor visits, and plenty of physical therapy. Oh, and that ever so annoying tendency to see & hear ghosts. They aren’t all nice ghosts either and some of them can hurt him.

Mike decides to enroll in college, mostly as a way to stave off having to find a job at some fast food joint. There, he meets a young woman who has a ghost problem. Once he solves her ghost problem, their relationship starts having problems. If it’s not one thing, then it’s another. For a while, I was worried Mike would be a lonely hero. Then entered Candace (Candy) who is older and refreshingly secure in her sexuality. Also, she is responsibly employed as a police officer. These two make a good team.

As Mike starts to question his sanity, ghost after ghost proves that it isn’t just all in his head. His ability to interact with the spirit world make him a Ferryman. But as his ability becomes more common knowledge, various entities start messing with him – ghosts, humans, Skinwalkers. Yep, it’s never a slow day in Mike’s world. Luckily, he has some good friends in his corner.

If you check out my blog often, then you know I am a Jim Bernheimer fan. Pennies for the Ferryman does not disappoint! It was a great listen from start to finish. The action is nicely mixed with moments of introspection or character building (via his relationships with others). While there are fewer ladies than the guys, they play pivotal roles. The world building was fun to watch coalesce, as Mike explores his new abilities and the world those abilities dump him into. And these abilities (for both Mike and the other supernatural characters) followed distinct rules which gave the story a nice framework for the plot to happen.

Part mystery, part ghost story, all good intense fun. So looking forward to the sequel!

Narration: Jeffrey Kafer did another excellent job. He also narrated the D-List Supervillain novels. He had a great beat-upon voice for Mike. His female voices were feminine and distinct. He had to come up with a variety of accents and sometimes spooky voices for the ghosts. His narration was a joy to listen to!