Dying Bites

Bloodhound Files, Book 1

By: D. D. Barant

Narrated by: Johanna Parker

Length: 9 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's summary

Her job description is the "tracking and apprehension of mentally-fractured killers". What this really means in FBI profiler Jace Valchek's brave new world - one in which only one percent of the population is human - is that a woman's work is never done. And real is getting stranger every day.

Jace has been ripped from her reality by David Cassius, the vampire head of the NSA. He knows that she's the best there is in the business, and David needs her help in solving a series of gruesome murders of vampires and werewolves. David's world - one that also includes lycanthropes and golems - is one with little knowledge of mental illness. An insane serial killer is a threat the NSA has no experience with. But Jace does.

Stranded in a reality where Bela Lugosi is a bigger box office draw than Bruce Willis and every full moon is Mardi Gras, Jace must now hunt down a fellow human before he brings the entire planet to the brink of madness. Or she may never see her own world again....

©2009 Johanna Parker (P)2012 Tantor

Critic reviews

"Barant's well-developed world offers intriguing enhancements to mythology and history. Jace is remarkable, strong-willed and smart, and she sets an unstoppable pace. Look for the Bloodhound Files to go far." ( Publishers Weekly)

An original twist

Would you listen to Dying Bites again? Why?

Yes. Johanna Parker does a great job and the story is original and fun.

What did you like best about this story?

It has a fresh take on the paranormal world and great characters,

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

I have read the books and Johanna Parker really captures the feel and the tone.she has a gift with fun and snarky banter.

Any additional comments?

The series only gets better!

Great Start To New Series

I just happened by the second book in this series and found it interesting. I went back and found this one and downloaded it just for fun. I was very happy with the story and the narration. If you are a Sookie Stackhouse Fan you will either love the narration or find it a little weird. Parker is a great narrator.

Get this book, now

This book is definitely worth the credit or the price.

I'm really enjoying this book (I'm about 2/3 through), even though I'm not a big fan of vampire or lycanthrope stories. It's like a film noir or old-style mystery with a supernatural twist. I've been listening to too many books that can't hold my attention, but this one not only keeps my attention, I look forward to listening to it every night.

The narrator is perfect for the part. My only complaint, however minor, is that she talks too fast. That, alone, wouldn't be a problem, but the book is written in such a way that one moment the protagonist is thinking, and the next moment talking. The way the narrator speeds through these moments makes it difficult to tell where the thinking stops and the speaking begins. But Joanna Parker does such a good job capturing the personality it's easily overlooked.

5 stars across the board.

great story, really creative, I loved it! kudos!

I want to be in this story and kick it with all the amazing characters! toatally want the whole series with movie possibilities comming up!

Loved it!

I am now hooked on another series (I need another series like a need a hole in the head)...I really enjoyed this one both the audio and the book. I like the parallel world, and how the histories are the same people (mostly) but different situations....I like the characters and Jace is pretty kick ass...this had everything I like, snark, humor, mystery, adventure...and Cassius....while he appears to be a "good guy" I'm still holding judgement on him...still need more background before I decide...and some of my favorite lines:

*********************************************************************************

Because, as we all know, nothing solves insomnia like a nice warm glass of regret, depression, and self-loathing.

“You can bring three things with you,” the man says. He has no accent, but somehow that just reinforces the idea that he’s a foreigner. In fact, I’m sure this is the first time he’s ever been to my country. “The three things you feel are most instrumental to you doing your job. Choose carefully.” I’m pretty straightforward. I grab my handgun, my laptop, and the carton of ammunition I keep under my bed.

Ah. If whisky is the water of life, coffee is the whisky of Nirvana. “Brain . . . activating,” I mutter. “Will to live . . . returning.”

“I look over at him. He stares straight ahead.
"So," I say. "Golem, huh?"
"I prefer the term 'Mineral-American.”

“Stubborn, too?” “Yes, ma’am,” he says with a smile. “Though I prefer the term ‘option recognition deficient.’

Plausible deniability ain’t just a river in Egypt.”

I liked it!

Would you consider the audio edition of Dying Bites to be better than the print version?

I have never read the print version (time constraints).

What did you like best about this story?

It's not-your-average suspense. The supernatural elements make the story better.

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

She has a natural talent and command with her voice! It only got better as the story advanced.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes!

Any additional comments?

Nice mythical twist on the classic detective story.

Liked it but didn't love it

I liked this book but I didn't love it. I have had a copy of this book for years and finally decided to dust it off and give it a try. There were some things about the book that I really enjoyed and other things that made me question why things happened the way that they did. This was a pretty fast listen for me and I did enjoy the overall story.

I liked the overall premise of the story. Jace is an FBI profiler that is pulled into an alternate reality to help solve a crime. The alternate reality is filled with vampires, shifters, and other interesting beings with humans as a small minority. The paranormal beings in this reality are not prone to mental illness but there is a killer on the loose targeting the paranormal population that happens to be human so Jace has been enlisted to help.

The population of these realities are so different but I was amazed by how much everything looked like our world. Language was mostly the same. Cars developed in the same manner. There were some difference but I really would have thought that there would be a whole lot more since these really were different worlds. According to the story, the worlds became different when guns were invented in our world and not used in theirs. It just seemed strange to me.

I did think that the story was exciting. The murders were quite interesting and I was really interesting in learning who was responsible. There were several surprises along the way that I did not see coming. I liked the characters in the book well enough. Jace was tough and smart but I kept thinking that she adjusted to everything a whole lot faster than could be expected. I really liked Charlie, her golem assistant, and thought that many of the other secondary characters were equally well done.

One of the reasons that I decided to pick up this audiobook was Johanna Parker's narration. I am someone that listens to audiobooks at regular speed and don't like to speed things up. I immediately felt this book was going really fast so I check to see if I had changed a setting on my device since the narrator seemed to be talking really fast. I decreased the speed of the narration and was able to enjoy the story much more from that point forward. I did like the range of voices that she used in this book although I did have a bit of trouble keeping everyone straight for a time.

I would encourage anyone interested in the series to give it a try. I thought that it had a lot of unique points and found it to be rather entertaining. I am not sure if I will continue on with the series at this point but I am glad I gave this one a shot.

Violent images and good touches of humanity

First off, there are some really violent and cruel tortures in this book. The books itself is well written, there are some really good scenes in it and it is one of those books that is better left letting it tell the tale rather than trying to guess what is coming next. Characterization is great; everyone acts within the range given them by the author and they are all more than cookie cutter figure. There are twists and turns in the book, but no particularly ugly surprises. The narrator, Johanna Parker, is, of course, great, although I have a tough time with some of her male voices, particularly since there are a LOT of them in this book and I had a tough time trying to figure out just from the 'voice' which one it was. While YMMV, I found this a good book, both the print version (I read it when it first came out) and the audio version recently listened to.

Awesome humor, unique storyline, enjoyable read

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

Yes, I actually have already done so. The book itself has a great story line, with a unique perspective. While yes you do need to stretch your own perspectives of disbelief, as long as you can accept that perhaps there are other dimensions, who is to say that they can't be just close enough to ours to throw things off a bit. For those who like dry humor there is plenty to go around. I found myself laughing quite a bit, but suspect that some readers will miss the references if they do not listen closely, or if they have problems with a snarky, mouthy FBI agent whose defense mechanism is to be sarcastic. I love Jayce in part because she's very much like me in many ways. Ask yourself how you would react if you were drug from this reality into a totally different one without your ascent? I know I'd be pissed, even if I did get my own Charlie the golem watching my back.

Jayce however sometimes is quick to strike back at what she perceives as an insult or potential threat a little too much and could possibly alienate some readers. She can come off a bitch at times.

Slight spoiler alert: Knowing a little about world history can be helpful to readers of these books. While some of the events described in the books are explained, the scope of the events may not be completely be appreciated in my mind if you don’t have some point of reference. For example, the concentration camps, yes Germany had them as did Japan, Italy, and even us except we called them internment camps. Thousands of people died on both sided of the war in the concentration camps. So the references in the book about the war and it’s devastating effect on the human population of both dimensions is better appreciated if people know more about what atrocities were committed, in helping understand why the serial killer in the book justifies in his mind why to take commit his own atrocities.

One main issue I still have is: I like Jayce am still unsure of why they drug her into the alternate world and hope that will be better explained in future stories. I’ve already bought the next two and plan on listening to those next.

What other book might you compare Dying Bites to and why?

The main character to me has a very similar personality as does Illona Andrew's character, Kate Daniels in that take me or leave me I don't really care matter of fact way.

What aspect of Johanna Parker’s performance would you have changed?

Better control of the southern twang. I know it is very difficult when talking in a different voice than your own not to occasionally slip into your own voice default. However, from an audiobook perspective I am not overly impressed with her portrayal of Jayce. It isn’t that I don’t dislike her voice it is just that for me I first heard her read the Sookie Stackhouse books and love her voice, and have listened to some of the ones she did for other writers and have enjoyed those as well. However to me her voice IS Sookie. She has a very distinctive voice that works well with that character as a Louisiana small town girl. In this series the narrator uses that same vocal style; I suspect her regular voice, to articulate the main character. While the character is a smart ass just like Sookie she is supposed to be from St. Louis, not small town bayou. She attempts most of the book to remove the southern twang but it slips a few too many times for me. Because of this I have difficulties envisioning the Jayce the author attempts to setup and instead have visions of Sookie Stackhouse in the scene. Despite this for those who have never heard the Sookie books I know you will hear a strong, well articulate narrator who does a great job with the various voices to the point it is very identifiable which character is talking.

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

Brilliantly funny, must see, sleeper hit for all those people who enjoy rooting for the strong, smart-ass heroine.

Any additional comments?

Like I said for those who like reading books with strong female leads, who enjoy dry humor, smart-ass comments, and occasional romantic subplots (no detailed sex scenes) this book is worth the time and money.

Outstanding story

The store is well written and entertaining but the narration was a little fast. The narrator spoke to quickly for me