Crimson Bound

By: Rosamund Hodge

Narrated by: Elizabeth Knowelden

Length: 11 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

An exhilarating tale of darkness, love, and redemption inspired by the classic fairy tale Little Red Riding Hood, from the author of Cruel Beauty.

When Rachelle was 15, she was good - apprenticed to her aunt and in training to protect her village from dark magic. But she was also reckless - straying from the forest path in search of a way to free her world from the threat of eternal darkness. After an illicit meeting goes dreadfully wrong, Rachelle is forced to make a terrible choice that binds her to the very evil she had hoped to defeat.

Three years later Rachelle has given her life to serving the realm, fighting deadly creatures in a vain effort to atone. When the king orders her to guard his son, Armand - the man she hates most - Rachelle forces Armand to help her hunt for the legendary sword that might save their world. Together they navigate the opulent world of the courtly elite, where beauty and power reign, and no one can be trusted. And as the two become unexpected allies, they discover far-reaching conspiracies, hidden magic... and a love that may be their undoing. Within a palace built on unbelievable wealth and dangerous secrets, can Rachelle discover the truth and stop the fall of endless night?

©2015 Rosamund Hodge (P)2015 HarperCollins Publishers

Repetitive, yet still engaging

Rosamund Hodge is a pretty good story teller, her worlds are interesting, dark, and stimulating, but her characters all seem a bit too similar, whether in thought, deed, or dialogue. The worst part of her stories is the constant reminders she gives her readers of what is at stake, what the heroine is fighting for, what she must do, why she must do it and how. Several times during the story I felt like shouting, "Alright, yes, we get it! You've already made it abundantly clear she hates herself and feels guilty and that she must find a way to kill the devourer, you can give us something else now."

Aside from the annoying repetition, her stories ARE gripping and you really do want to see how it all turns out. I would read/listen to another of Rosamund Hodges stories in a heartbeat, but I do hope that in the next one she can find a way to clue the reader in without smacking them in the face with it every few paragraphs.

So so

Story of good vs evil with a nasty devil and all along with many evil blood bound equals who do not share the heroines continued love of humanity. Will she save all? What do u think?

Everything I wanted from a dark fairytale

Overall, this had everything I was looking for. Bits and pieces of LRRH, altered fantasy-French world building, a sprinkle of political pressure, bloody fight scenes, magic swords, moral hangups, love triangles, and twists! I especially love a book when I can't predict whats coming.

The only thing I didn't like was Rachelle, She beats a moral dead horse almost every time she opens her mouth and her self hatred only made me hate her even more. I didn't hate her enough to ruin the story. The plot is good, I just wish the main character had been more likable. I suppose its made up for with Erec and Armand being very likable in her place.

The best part is Knowelden's voice. She has such a silky voice and portrays the characters well. I don't think I would've picked this book out if it hadn't been her narrating.

Entertaining

Good story, well written, good pace. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The world created was beautifully intricate and creative. The love relationship between the main character and the prince could have built more. It seemed too sudden. Overall would recommend.

Great retelling of a Classic

I loved the broken and imperfect heroes. A story that hints at something familiar, but is also totally new. I think it's a really incentive story with great characters, pacing, and development. I enjoyed it all the way through. Couldn't stop listening!

Blood Bound and Blah

Would you consider the audio edition of Crimson Bound to be better than the print version?

I love the sound of the narration, I just wish it had been a different narrator than the first book.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

Its a unique take on Little Red Riding Hood, in that towards the beginning you can see the parallels to the story but by the end you just wind up confused. I loved Rosamund Hodge's first book and couldn't wait to listen to this one, its a good story but far to similar to her first book. The fact that she used the same narrator and its read the exact same way doesn't help. There were several times I found myself having to rewind to listen to what happened. Its dull in too many places.

Which scene was your favorite?

I did love the parts where she describes the story of the two swords and original siblings. I wouldn't mind if that became its own book, it was a much more compelling story.

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

The forest is everywhere...

Any additional comments?

This is a wonderful story, but give it more than a few months between her first novel and this one if you want to truly enjoy it. Rosamund Hodge gives old stories a delightful new twist, I do want to see what she does next.

Amazing voice

The narrator has such a soothing and almost vintage voice it was easy to listen to the book. Although I didn't expect the whole French world building with a bit of Wiccan aspect it was durable. I wasn't overly impressed but the fact that it was so different from the first book written by the author I give it and them credit for such imaginative plots.

Yawn

I'm not sure if it was parts of the story or the narrator, but several times I had to go back and replay parts of the story because, frankly, my mind wondered off and I would realize that I had stopped listening. Such a shame because the ending was strong. Maybe I will try to listen again later and see, but was disappointed!

Interesting and boring

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

It entertained me but I needed it to get to the point BAD

What about Elizabeth Knowelden’s performance did you like?

I could listen to her read the phonebook

Did Crimson Bound inspire you to do anything?

Press fast-forward?

Any additional comments?

This was a good idea, good story but this author needs to just get to the point. Man she can drag a story out like no other. Coupled with the worlds slowest reader and best annunciator I was itching to just get it done.

Bad combination of writing style and narration

Well, This was definitely better than Cruel Beauty, the concept is interesting enough for me to follow through the journey into the Dark forest and Rachelle's quest to find the sword to kill the Devourer, but I had a problem with the writing style just like Cruel Beauty, I don't know what is it about this kind of writing style that gets me so thrown off the story and often I find myself forgetting where I'm at in the story .. also the romance is so sudden and not satisfactory at all
so we have this girl Rachelle who is by fate turned into a vampire-like creature called ( Blood-Bound ) and she hates herself for it, three years later she is assigned to guard this prince Armand who she hates so much but she is forced to protect him from any danger or she might put herself in danger, then enters the love triangle which I don't find make sense with her friend.. ? Erec, he loves her so much that he wants to posses her, so we will follow along with Rachelle as she and Armand journey through the Dark forest to find a sword and kill a demon being who is threatening to end the world as we know it

The Narration was another story, I was sleepy most of the time and the narration was so stiff that sometimes I don't know who is talking since they all sound the same