Hollow World

De: Nick Pobursky

Narrado por: Nick Barbera

Die Hard in Disney World!

Detective Charlie Walker's worst nightmare comes true when his family is brutally kidnapped while on vacation at Walt Disney World. In order to rescue his wife and daughters, he must enter a dark, dangerous world of vicious trials and sadistic mind games concocted by a brilliant, but psychotic nemesis.

All Charlie Walker wanted was to get away from the stress of life as Detroit's most renowned detective, so a family trip to his favorite place, Walt Disney World, couldn't come soon enough. But an unknown nemesis has other plans for Charlie's vacation at The Most Magical Place on Earth...

When the detective's wife and children are kidnapped in a sophisticated and brazen attack, a brilliant psychopath sets into motion a cunning game of cat and mouse, and Charlie has no choice but to play along, or risk losing the people dearest to him. Using Walt Disney World as his chessboard, Charlie's tormentor gleefully stages a nail-biting series of dark and sadistic challenges designed not only to test Walker's intelligence, but also his sanity. And just when it seems like all hope is lost, help comes from the last person on Earth he'd expect.

Hollow World is part Sherlock Holmes, part Die Hard, and part Taken - high-stakes, heart-pounding action set smack-dab in the middle of The House of the Mouse. As with the best Hollywood blockbusters, Pobursky keeps you glued to your seat, waiting to see how this deadly war of minds will play out.

©2013 Nick Pobursky (P)2014 Nick Pobursky

Struggling to get through...

As a huge Disney World fan, I was looking forward to listening to this book. However, from the outset, the dominating factor in this book is not the story, but the aweful performance of the narrator. His voice so overwhelms my thoughts that I find myself having to rewind mutliple times to actually listen to plot after overcoming the aweful character portrayals. And the constant taking of a deep breath before each passage exists throughout.

So far, the actual story is decent, and I expect it to get better as it dives into the deeper areas of WDW, but I am seriously considering dumping the audio and buying the Kindle version. That way I can actual enjoy the story and not be sidetracked by the pitiful performance.

Great Concept, Worst Narration Ever.

The concept for the story is great. Definitely Taken in WDW.

However I'd recommend getting the ebook, as the performance by the narrator is distractingly awful. His vocal fry is grating on the ears, choices in accents borders on offensive, and incorrect pronunciation of simple words are embarrassing. I guess they could only afford one take?

I'd read another story from this author in the same vein, but if I see this narrator's name on any other audiobook, I'll pass.

Narration just okay, but better than I could do!

The story was a B-. Entertaining enough, but the bad language was unnecessary. The narration was also a B-. I think Nick Barbera did a fine job, but at times he seemed distractingly congested. Speaking of distractions...I could clearly hear the kitchen background noises if someone apparently doing the dishes about halfway through the story. And no, it wasn't part of the story. Other than that, his narration was solid and conveyed the story well. He did a pretty good job with the various character voices. Please take this as constructive criticism!

Good Story, Abysmal Narrator

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I would change a couple of things about the book. Would have the contest and the retrieval of clues last longer before the CIA becomes involved.

What did you like best about this story?

I liked the setting and the character of Charlie.

What didn’t you like about Nick Barbera’s performance?

I have listened to over 100 audiobooks. The performance by Mr. Barbera was without a doubt the worst I have ever heard. I found his awful performance overshadowing the story at times. Voices would change, and his portrayal of the antagonist, was nothing short of painful.

Do you think Hollow World needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Not much there for a follow up.

Any additional comments?

The book was entertaining, and I would recommend it if not for the Narrator. Do not buy this audiobook. The narrator is that bad.

Awful narrator

What could be a very entertaining story, specially for a Disney fan, becomes a little torture, wanting to follow the plot with the most horrible narration I've ever experienced. Bad rhythm, even worst 'voices'. The hero sounds like a thug with a sore throat! What a waste!