Untamed City: Carnival of Secrets

By: Melissa Marr

Narrated by: James Marsters

Length: 8 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

Warriors Kaleb and Aya will stop at nothing to destroy their competition. But when Kaleb finds his fate entwined with that of Mallory, a 17-year-old human girl, he can’t seem to separate the vicious Carnival contest he’s entered from his sudden devotion to her. He and Aya may be prizefighters from the otherworldly Untamed City, but his strange, obsessive connection makes staying away from the witch-ruled human world, and Mallory, harder every day.

All Mallory knows of the Untamed City is what her elders have told her - that it’s full of debauchery and daimons looking to destroy her. But she knows she’s being pulled toward Kaleb with an emotion so fierce that it’s utterly foreign.

The two are forced apart by Mallory’s overprotective witch father, stranded by necessity between warring populations that can’t coexist. But when The City’s ruler raises the stakes of the Carnival’s prize, there’s nothing Mallory, Kaleb, or Aya can do to stop the two worlds colliding. Mallory’s about to discover her true identity - and stumble into a fate she’d die to avoid.

Fans of The Hunger Games will devour this tale of lush secrets, dark love, and the struggle to forge one’s own destiny from the best-selling author of Wicked Lovely, Melissa Marr.

©2012 Melissa Marr (P)2012 HarperCollins Publishers

Interesting world

I like the varying viewpoints throughout the book. The world building was extensive but not in an info dump kind of way.

Its not without flaws but it was an enjoyable listen and I'm eager (although not rabid) for the next installment as it ended on a bit of a cliffhanger.

Great

I really love this story, I love when I find a series that I can look forward to. But, James does such an amazing job performing this book, it's brought it to a much higher level of excellence. I will be listening to this entire series.

James Marsters shines! Complicated plot slow dev.

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

James PERFORMS rather than NARRATES. His voices and subtle inflections, along with his emotions are always right there on the surface drawing you into every scene - making you feel what the characters are feeling.

Any additional comments?

I found the plot a little slow developing due to so many diverse characters, but James Marsters kept it flowing so that I didn't get frustrated with it. Ends on a cliff so I hope the next installment comes soon and is more action-packed now that we know all the players.

Won't be reading the sequel (minor spoilers)

In contrast to the other reviews here I only marginally enjoyed this book due to a number of issues I had with parts of its presentation.
First and foremost I thought the book lacked in description as we never get a decent idea of what a number of the characters look like: it's only towards the tail end of the book that you realize how young the main cast is supposed to look and that comes of as somewhat as a jarring shock given how they act and what they're capable of. We also never get a solid feel for what the demon's beast form looks like and this is a shame given how bad ass it's supposed to be and how often it comes up.
I also really didn't like how Mallory very quickly accepts her true nature at the end of the book despite having lived her entire life believing she was human only to find out that everything she's been told is a lie. And yet somehow she doesn't bat an eyelash, accepts it all in stride and moves on. Yeah I just don't buy that, it isn't very convincing or credible. This added with Mallory's simpering attitude (although explained, but still) served to not make me like her very much.
Finally I didn't really find any of the characters (except for Kalleb's pack mate) to be likable as they all do pretty horrible things to survive or make twisted decisions that affect people they supposedly care about.

So dark

I've become of fan of Melissa Marr and particularly loved Graveminder. this is a much darker book with a much grimmer world. The premises are intriguing , but the fight competitions are simply nasty. And it's really hard to imagine the characters functioning in the human world, given the predilections of the carnival one. I don't see me caring enough to read through to the next book. It's a far icker universe and not enough passion or beauty to carry me through.
I also find Caleb's southern accent personally offensive.
It's a matter of where your tolerances are, but I'd give this one a mild thumbs down. there's no amount of tender young love that improves this.

OMG really on the ending?

Story had serious potential but in the last hour of the book I found myself trying to find a sequel because I knew there was no way the author was going to be able to wrap this damn thing up appropriately. To my dismay, no sequel...terrible ending...and I was left with a feeling of overwhelming disapproval.

I love hidden world within world

The only reason I gave 4 stars is the time between books. I the author has so many series going that she doesn't seem to be able to finish what she has so interestingly started. Just finish one girl!

James Marsters rules

I admit I only purchased this book to hear James Marsters, after finishing all the Dresden Files, plays and the three Grey Friar books.
This one is much better written than any Dresden, and darker than Grey Friar (U enjoyed them all, mind you).
I too was a little thrown off by the other worldly creatures' Southern accents, but quickly got over it.
I look forward to the rest of the story. Every characters from every subplots are interesting, and ultimately blend well together.

Great Performance!!!

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I was not a fan of the character Mallory but i enjoyed the story overall

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

He was amazing as the narrator! I would listen to anything that he did! The subtle changes he made in his voice for each character were outstanding!

Good Story, GREAT Narrator

I am totally surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. I didn't finish Marr's Wicked Lovely series just because they couldn't hold my attention. I didn't feel they were original and that they were pretty boring. I stuck with them as long as I did because the covers were amazing. So, I was a bit leery about picking up Carnival of Souls. But, it was narrated by James Marsters (Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer) and I had some Audible credits so I decided to give it a try. Am I glad I did!

This is a dark novel with risky topics. It's a cruel and violent world that Marr has thrown some wonderful main characters in the middle of. Mallory's totally clueless about her heritage but everyone around her knows the truth. I spent the whole audiobook yelling at my ipod - - just tell her already. Then there's Aya. I can't figure out what her agenda is but I know she's got one. She's deceptive and cunning and I can't help but cheer for her. Kaleb lives a horrible life yet he can't help dreaming of a better life.

Let's not forget James Marsters' narrating. He's amazing! I think he greatly carried the book and make it much more likable than it would have been if I was reading a physical book. I'm actually pretty sure that there were a couple of spots where I might have decided I couldn't handle this and just put the book down. But Marsters is such an excellent narrator that I was entranced and kept listening. I am going to listen to each and every book narrated by this guy.

This book ends on a horrible cliffhanger so I suggest waiting until next year to read it.