Tempt the Stars

Cassandra Palmer Series, Book 6

By: Karen Chance

Narrated by: Allyson Ryan

Length: 13 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's summary

Being a goddess is a lot less fun than you might think. Especially when you're only a half goddess, you only found out about it recently, and you still don't know what you're doing half the time. And when you've just used your not-so-reliable powers to burglarize the booby-trapped office of a vampire mob boss.

Yeah, that part sucks. But that's just the tip of the iceberg for Cassandra Palmer, aka the Pythia, the freshly minted chief seer of the supernatural world. After all, Cassie still has to save a friend from a fate worse than death, deal with an increasingly possessive master vampire, and prevent a party of her own acolytes from unleashing a storm of fury upon the world. Totally just your average day at the office, right?

©2013 Karen Chance (P)2013 Tantor

change in multiple directions

The reviewers so disliked the new narrator that I went back and reviewed the first books. It is hard to accept change in so many directions this book takes as a need to go forward. Karen Chance writes good books. They are funny, surprising and with characters so well developed that one wants to read about them as well as the story. Holloway was so perfect for the first books it is hard to accept a new narrator. In the review I tried to find a reason for a change. The book indicates both a move toward a mature development of purpose and responsibility. The new narrator does sound older and less frantic. The choice of voice for Pritkin is unfortunate. She is just not good at it. She is not wrong to choose it from the text but she can not manage it well. Otherwise she really does a good job. I like the book but I really am a fan of Karen Chance. It is soooo much better than no Karen Chance at all.

New narrators should listen to previous books.

Would you listen to Tempt the Stars again? Why?

No, I was constantly irritated by quirks in the narration.

What did you like best about this story?

I was glad that we got to know Pritkin better and enjoyed the concept that Earth is one of the "lesser hells."

How could the performance have been better?

I'm sure it's a difficult task to come into a series on book number 6, but surely Allyson Ryan could have taken the time to listen to one or two of the previous books. The loss of Billy's accent and the pronunciation of Pritkin's father's name Rosier (I'm unsure of the spelling since I've not read print on any of these books) almost ruined the book for me. A few other awkward pronunciations also grated on my nerves as well as the intermittent choice of shrieking/squealing some of Cassie's responses during fight scenes.

The publishers should try their best to get Cynthia Holloway back. I think that for book 7 I'll go with the printed version if we keep Allyson Ryan as the narrator.

Good story! Good narrator!

I wasn't sure how I felt about the change in narrator initially because I have become attached to Cassie's (and others) voice and cadence, but I very quickly forgot about it as the story moved along. This narrator may even be better! As for the story, it's pretty much what you can expect - lots of action, humor, and sexy teasing. I don't want to give anything away but we learn a lot more about Cassie and Pritkin. Nothing gets tied up, but its really more about the journey than the destination!

Solid Series

This series keeps my interest, it has a ton of action, lots of supernatural mojo, a strong female heroine, and two good male leads. The narrator is excellent too. I wish there were some more romance, the characters could use a little more interaction and less retrospection, but that's just my opinion. There is sometimes too much happening at once. It's got time travel, which is always tricky to write, and I do get turned around inside the narrative sometimes. That said, it is a solid series and a fun adventure to follow. I recommend the credit on this, and every book in the series.

Really?

E-rock?! Narrator, not so much. Story? OK! Why change narrators? Lost a lot. Too bad.

Thank Goodness!!!!!

First let me state that YES there is a change in narrators......I hate that in a series, but since I dont run or own the company I just have to live with it, with that being said if you have to find someone to follow in C. Hollway path, they picked a perfect narrator, Allyson Ryan did a excellent job, she was snarky,funny and very good.

The storyline picks up right where we left off in book 5 with John being gone and Cassie in
a peril to go after him, along the way she meets up with her mother who is a Goddess and her dad whos a little off his rocker. She pairs up with Casanova again, who could carry his own story I think and off they go.

The story is interesting, funny in parts,and once again leaves you on the edge for the next book.
All in all this is a very good series..

I love this series but was a little disappointed

Would you recommend Tempt the Stars to your friends? Why or why not?

While I would defiantly recommended this series to anyone, this last book was just not as trilling as the pervious ones. The writing is wonderfully creative and has a nice balance between romance and suspense. It's not overly sexual like some sci-fi romances but still provides all the passion.

Waiting on next installment

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

Yes. I like how the author changes the direction to keep the story unique.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Tempt the Stars?

The first in the series.

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

She has her own style and I find it a good match to my perception or the characters.

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

I did listen to it in one setting I do audio books at work truck driver. I work some time 12 hour day plus. If a book can't catch my intrest in 2hours I don't continue to force my self to listen. To many other books. She has not disappointed me yet.

Any additional comments?

Worh the listen if it in your taste of liture.

Still great

I had read all the negative reviews about the new narrator and was dreading it. I am so glad they were wrong!! I have listened to horrific narrators and drastic narrator changes that took away from the story. This wasn't one of those situations, in fact I think some characters improved with the switch. It's a great series and I can't wait till the next book.

Great Book,lacking narration.

What made the experience of listening to Tempt the Stars the most enjoyable?

I really enjoyed this story. It seems that every book has explored a new aspect and/or faction of the supernatural world she has created. She's focused vampires, mages, ghosts, seers, mythological deities, and now demons. This, along with an awesome cast of secondary characters makes for an always entertaining listen. The new narrator Allyson Ryan does a better than average job,but does not make the grade in my opinion. It irks me when publishers change narrators during a series.She was more distracting than making the story interesting ,although in all fairness trying to follow up Cynthia Holloway is a very big challenge.Cynthia for me has always brought the characters to life and given them very unique personalities. No offense is meant for Ms. Allyson,but I would love the return of Ms. Holloway.

Who was your favorite character and why?

We learn a lot more about Cassie and Pritkin. Nothing gets tied up, but its really more about the journey than the destination!

Would you be willing to try another one of Allyson Ryan’s performances?

No.Sadly I feel this change in series has put a bad taste in my mouth. The characters' voices are lame. The intonation is just wrong.