Strings

By: David Estes

Narrated by: Kate Rudd

Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

Sometimes the strings that tie us down are the same strings that set us free.

Sixteen-year-old Pia has always lived in a mysterious facility where mechanical strings control her existence. She plays apprentice to her father, Gio, in performing nanotech designs for the Company, and she soon suspects there are diabolical human forces behind the manufactured reality of her world.

Though her childhood memories and the origins of the strings remain strangely elusive, she begins to find solace with the introduction of two unlikely friends: daring, irrational Sofia, and calm, tender Marco.

As the truths of the past and present unravel together, Pia must find a way to free herself from her strings and escape the facility before facing the wrath of the unstable head of security, Mr. Davis. But to gain her freedom, she must navigate the dangers posed by Davis and by her suspicious new friends to find the real identity of the puppeteer.

If Pia can succeed in revealing the secrets of the Company, she may very well find the independence she so desperately seeks. But in her controlled world nothing is as it seems, and the closer she gets to the truth, the graver the consequences.

©2015 David Estes (P)2016 David Estes

Not one of David's best...

Any additional comments?

Loosely based on Pinocchio, this is a dark, futuristic (I think, actually it's hard to pinpoint) take on the classic tale. My last fairytale retelling was a hit and so I really thought I would like this but it really fell flat for me.

While, ultimately, it has a profound message to impart, I was unable to connect with the characters and their darkly told and sad story. I'm not sure if it was the narration, but I believe it's at least partially to blame. I've loved some of David Estes' other works, namely the Dwellers and Country Saga's. Maybe…it's the humor that is so prevalent in them, and is decidedly missing from Strings that has made it so I couldn’t really connect with this story.

Unique and Engrossing

Excellent story! Different than anything else I've read. Lots of twists and turns. Very emotional. I'd recommend it to anyone that enjoys a well written story with characters you can care about. Narration was enjoyable and filled with emotion that was believable.

Fantastic

Any additional comments?

This book blew men away.It is incredibly unique and I was engrossed in the story till the last word.The author provided an intriguing cast of characters and an unusual premise.The impressive world building and the mystery of the strings kept me up late so I could finish the book.The narrator did an excellent job portraying the book and has a very pleasant voice.I received an audiobook from the author in exchange for an honest review.

very slow, but poetic

Any additional comments?

There's nothing wrong with the writing in this book, and there's some lofty aspirations in the story itself. It just didn't work for me. It was slow, so very slow. The days and the conversations are somewhat repetitive, and, because nearly the whole story takes place in one building, there's not even much in scenery-world building to focus on while the story drags on.

I did love Fig, and, honestly, the entire cast of characters was pretty good. The main character, Pia, had some pretty poor decision making skills, which made her my least favorite.

While the message of the story is an important one, the set-up seemed somewhat contrived and implausible. I'm OK with having to suspend my belief systems to envision another culture, society, and future -- but I suppose this just went too far... and although I could identify with Pia's imprisonment, I could not identify with her.

Despite my complaints, it was an original re-telling and very poetically written. Perhaps if I had started this audiobook with the expectation of listening to a 10.5 hour poem I would have more nice things to say... I've now read at least 6 Estes books, and this is by far my least favorite... In fact, I pretty much love all the others. We can't all love everything I guess.

The narration was beautiful. She had a great speaking voice that fit the mood of the story quite well. All of the characters were spoken uniquely, and I did not hear any production noises or things like that.

*This audiobook was provided for free from the author.*

Pinocchio Reimagined

What did you love best about Strings?

Estes' fantastic reimagining of a classic story.

What other book might you compare Strings to and why?

Pinocchio because that's the book redone here.

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

I don't believe I've listened to Kate Rudd before but I'm not certain. She did a good job with this and pronounced an astonishing number of worded correctly. There were a few places that sounded "flat" to me (almost bored or sardonic) and while men and women sounded different, I often couldn't tell one woman or man from another. (Pia sounded a lot like Sofia, Marco sounded like Gio, etc.) Overall though, I enjoyed it!

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

I'll Tell You No Lies

I wanted to like this more!

*I received a free audio download of this title from the author, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.*

I wanted so badly to like this book more. I have had varying opinions of Mr. Estes's work, but I really LOVED his dwellers series in a staying up too late, buying each one immediately after the next, could not put it down kind-of way, so I was really hoping to dive right into this one. I mean, a modern sci-fi re-telling of Pinocchio? Neat and new and unique...yum.

But this just felt not-as-good. Not that it wasn't good, it just didn't hold up to the quality of others I've read. The dialogue felt trite or maybe even cliche in places and stilted in others. I actually wondered, once I had finished it, whether or not it could have been the performance I reacted to when rating it, instead of the writing in the book itself. This is intended to be a review of the audio-version, though, so I'd say the rating is accurate.

Overall, I did enjoy the story. I liked the concept of advanced medicine leading to corruption. I enjoyed the exploration of corruption and the brutality that can come with it and how it can change good concepts into bad ones. I also enjoyed the multiple mysteries behind the "game" of which Pia has become the main pawn. When you're a pawn without even the knowledge of who all the players are or a glimpse of the strategy guiding those players, can you ever actually become a queen?

This question is satisfyingly and brutally answered by the time the reader is finished, and I walked away having enjoyed the time I spent in the story...I just wanted to like it more.

For conservative readers: This story gets a bit violent - Pia's strings hurt her very badly many times and there are players in the game that hurt her and others, intentionally, more than once. I can't remember any cursing in it, which would make me think that it isn't super prevalent if it is there, and there isn't any sexual content present either.

Amazing Pinocchio SciFi Fairy Tale Retelling

Sigh... I just finished the audio of Strings performed by Kate Rudd and wow, absolutely incredible!! This was a reread for me and listening to the book was a completely different experience and I loved every minute! That ending!! I highly recommend the audio of Strings!!

Original review:
I'm incredibly impressed with this completely unique and original sci-fi fairy tale retelling of Pinocchio! My mind was blown with Estes's take on this world of Strings and completely enthralled with Pia as a female "Pinocchio", her Papa, and Pia's "Jiminy Cricket", Fig!

Pia, who is attached to "strings" which control her movements whenever "they" want, seeks the truth of the strings and tries to gain her freedom from them. In the process, she has to protect her Papa at all costs and determine whether or not she's real.

I have no idea where Estes's ideas come from, but this concept is amazingly mind blowing. This fairy tale comes complete with a beautiful "moral of the story".

Whatever Estes has up his sleeves next, count me in. I'm there!!

retelling

This is my first David Estes book and i really enjoyed his take on the retelling of Pinocchio. The whole concept of strings being a way to save someone and that the characters of this famous story are really part of this whole company and are being controlled by 3 owners and how each of the different characters worked together to create this elaborate story that your just drawn in to and are lost in for a few hours. The author really knows how to draw you in and see things from a different angle then you always known. Very well done

Awesome book with fabulous narration

Once again, David Estes has managed to spin a tale that will grab your attention from page one, and hold it until the very end, so that stopping this audiobook before I was done felt like torture, and I couldn't stop thinking about it between reading/listening sessions.

All of the characters are believable, the main character is easy to relate to, and the plot moves at just the right pace. On top of that, the story has a wonderful moral to it.

Add to that the absolutely fabulous narration of Kate Rudd, and you're left with an amazingly fantastic listening experience, which you won't want to miss.

Five stars just don't seem enough to say how fantastic this book is; I swear I'd give it more if I could!

***Note: I was given a free advanced copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. This fact has in no way influenced my opinion of either the story or the narrator, nor the contents of this review.

Dark, Pinocchio-like plot set in a grim future

What made the experience of listening to Strings the most enjoyable?

Great reader!

What did you like best about this story?

Dark storyline, a grim, clinical setting, and some very real young adult relationships - trying to navigate through those relationships especially for this young woman that hasn't been exposed to many other people.

Which character – as performed by Kate Rudd – was your favorite?

Pia

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

Goose-pimply due to the setting and the bad characters!