Arena of Souls: A Brock Stone Adventure

By: David Wood

Narrated by: James Conlan

Length: 4 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's Summary

1931 - Brock Stone returns from places unknown to claim an inheritance and unravel a mystery his grandfather left behind. Stone and his companions set off on an action-packed adventure where enemies lurk in the shadows and the past comes to life. Mysteries, thrills, monsters, and more in David Wood's classic-style adventure, Arena of Souls. Fans of Indiana Jones and Doc Savage will love Brock Stone!

©2014 David Wood (P)2015 Gryphonwood Press

Indiana Jones meets Dirk Pitt

Solid action/adventure with suspense and plot twists. Evidence of research rivalling Cussler. Clear, believable characters. A perfect initial volume of what promises to be an engaging series. Audio performer has pleasing voice quality and narrative and vocals flow well. Enjoyed tremendously and will certainly proceed as adventures continue.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Arena of Souls Bk 1

Any additional comments?

This book was an adventure written like it was from another era.Brock has a puzzle to solve,left by a deceased relative.He and his sidekicks tackle dinosaurs,cave men,etc.Will they survive and solve the puzzle?Read it to find out!
James Conlan was an excellent narrator for this project.
I was gifted a copy through Audioblast for an honest review.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

1930's action adventure

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

Yes, it was an action packed story that is good for ages 10+. There was mystery, adventure and no bad language.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

I wish it would have been longer. I would like to learn a little more about Brock and Trinity's relationship.

Which scene was your favorite?

I enjoyed Brock and Trinity's motorcycle chase with the bad guys. Nice details about the ride thru 1930's Washington DC.

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

While I didn't have any extreme reactions to the book, I did have moments of concern for all of the main characters. I wanted to see what would going to happen next.

Any additional comments?

Arena of Souls is the first in the Brock Stone adventure series. Brock Stone is an action adventure hero in the vein of Indiana Jones. Set in the 1930's, this story is a great beginning to the series.

After his grandfather dies, Brock is left with a mystery to solve. With his friends Alex, Trinity and Moses, Brock goes on the hunt for an island. Confronted with danger at each turn, we are along on this wild ride!

Mr. Conlan's narration of this book is great. He was able to give each character their own unique voice. His pacing was good and he kept me drawn into the story. I will have to look for more of his work.

I can't wait to see what happens next in this series!

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

A good adventure

This is a great adventure along the lines of what I would expect. The end turn an unexpected supernatural turn but it was still enjoyable.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Great story and performance

Action packed but suitable for ages 12 and up. Great narrator, he brought it to life

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Rough Draft Outline

Ok this was horrid... the narration felt like it was done by a kid from a 60s sitcom. The story was more like a movie pitch with just enough information to get you through to the next scene. No character development. No suspense. No wit or drama; definitely not what I'm used to by David Wood--very amateur feel to this.

Just like a 40s Adventure Novel

Would you consider the audio edition of Arena of Souls: A Brock Stone Adventure to be better than the print version?

I haven't read the Print version, so I have no idea.

Would you recommend Arena of Souls: A Brock Stone Adventure to your friends? Why or why not?

I would recommend it to people who liked old school adventure novels along the lines of H. Rider Haggard and Alan Quatermain.

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

I liked the voice a lot. It had that gritty detective voice that reminded me of when I listened to Dashiell Hammett's Thin Man and Maltese Falcon.

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

Not really.

Any additional comments?

I felt like the book was a little short. I know that's the style of these type of books but a couple more paragraphs here or there explaining how the characters got to a from b would be nice. There were a lot of times the characters would just be somewhere with no explanation as to how this happened. Granted this might be more of an issue with the audio version because you can't spate scenes as easily.

Mis-Categorized? Should Be Young Adult?? *Review

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

When I read the description for this book it sounded like an exciting thriller-comparable to Indiana Jones. A man inherits from his grandfather and the 'storyline' – according to the summary - of adventure and all that goes with it.

I'm not sure, but maybe this is a young adult book. It certainly had that feel to me as I was listening. It sounded like the old book series "choose your own adventure" in which you would read along and then at the end of the chapter you had a choice between which way to go and the ultimate ending. You could read it again and decide other paths, with different alternatives, choose the direction and have an alternate ending.

It wasn't really what I expected based on the summary.

James Conlan is great and does a wonderful job in telling the story. I was not distracted as a male narrator speaking the female character. That is something that happens too often - but this performance was very good.

Notes: Nothing to warn about here

Creditworthy/$: This would be a no for me on both accounts. It is relatively short – four hours. If you are interested in this style book, or for a Young Adult, I would recommend buying it out right as it is less expensive than using a credit.

*I was given this book in exchange for my thoughts, feelings and review.*

Thank you for reading my review, if you found it helpful please select yes immediately below this text. Thank you.

1 of 2 people found this review helpful