In the Valleys of the Earth

The Watchers, Book 1

By: R.R. Pearl

Narrated by: John York

Length: 7 hrs and 16 mins

Publisher's summary

The only thing more dangerous than their chemistry...is their enemies!

Mild-mannered xenoarchaeologist Dr. Alec Coimheed and his best friend Dr. Clemy Armistead are certain that they've just found the ancient location of an apocryphal battle between demons and angels.

Whisked away on a rollicking adventure, Alec finds himself under the watchful eye of Rafe, a taciturn mountain of a man with a mysterious past. Working with the enigmatic Praesidium, which claims to have protected humanity for generations, Alec clashes with his ethereally handsome bodyguard.

As the New Watchers pursue the rambunctious pair across the globe, Alec and Rafe will have to battle ancient terrors and mythical creatures come to life. Racing to the ancient tomb of a fallen angel, Alec and Rafe may lose it all - and each other - to save the world.

In the Valleys of the Earth is the first book in the MM action adventure paranormal romance series The Watchers.

©2020 Randy Ian Fabricant (P)2020 Randy Ian Fabricant

good listen

This book was pretty good. It had a lot of action in it which was good. The narrator did what I felt was a good job. The charters I had some trouble connecting with. I don't know if it was just me or not. The storyline was ok it seemed a bit predictable. Overall it was an ok listen.

Very good

Enjoyed this one from both a new to me author and a new to me narrator! It was well written and thoughtful and was very compelling. I would definitely recommend this to those of you who enjoy fiction based on Biblical thoughts.

An interesting adventure with a dash of Biblical & Mythology!

This is the first book in the Watchers series and canbe listened to as a standalone.

A true action packed adventure that touches upon biblical themes snd mythologies.
The story was interesting and compelling and the characters were well fleshed out and enjoyable.

The writing style was gripping and I found myself quickly immersed in the fabulous world building created by the author.

John York did a commendable audio delivery and his voice

Xenoarcheology adventure series by debut author

In the Valleys of the Earth is the first book in The Watchers series by debut author R.R. Pearl. This is also the first narration I've listened to by John York.

Dr. Alec Coimheed and his best friend Dr. Clemy Armistead are on a dig site looking for artifacts to prove the site was the location of an ancient battle between demons and angels. After finding multiple artifacts, the site is overrun by a group called the New Watchers intent on killing everyone and finding the artifacts themselves to release those imprisoned millennia ago. Rafe and the Praesideum are there to save Alec and Clemy from the dig site and then have them join in the continuing mission of defeating the New Watchers. Rafe and Alec grow closer as they continue their mission.

In the Valleys of the Earth has quite a bit of world building, action, and the start of a romance between Alec and Rafe. Alec is the main character and much of the book is told from his POV. Rafe's character was not as fleshed out as I would have liked though, as he is trying to keep his identity a secret. It will be interesting to see where the author takes him. I liked Clemy's character quite a bit. She was fiercely loyal to Alec while bringing humor and level-headedness to the storyline and situations they find themselves in.

There is a large cast of characters introduced in this book from all parts of the world. Narrator, John York, does a great job of giving each character their own unique voice. I did not really like Clemy's voice - She is described as a southern belle but does not have a matching accent. Though I give lots of credit to the narrator for being able to switch between all of the character voices in conversation easily.

Overall, I'm excited to see where it goes from here the author takes this series. Would recommend this story and narration.

Very entertaining!!!

So, yesterday, I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. As I began to listen to it, I was immediately immersed into an action-packed adventure. Think of a tiny bit of the Mummy, National Treasure, and The Davinci Code all thrown into the mix along with some biblical mythology, and a little bit of some hot MM action. I listened straight through.

The narration was great. A lot of characters and lots of different accents. All were very distinctive so you are never confused as to who is speaking.

RR Pearl is a new to me author. At least I don't recall reading anything by this author before. However, I have to say that John York and this author made a good combo. This was book one of the Watchers series and I am looking forward to listening to the rest of the series if each book turns out as good as this one.

Fantastic start to a new series!

Full of adventure and action! As well as a hot romance thrown in as well.

Entertaining

I began this story with a lot of expectations and some of them were fulfilled but sadly, most of them weren't.

Don't get me wrong, this is a fun book, entertaining, and with an excellent idea supporting the plot. My problems with it are, first, the insta-love. This is a series, and the romance could have been better developed. As it stands now, I simply can't see why these two want to be together when they can't trust in each other.

And then, there is the issue of the writing. I went to check, and yes, this is the first book by the author. It shows. Names are incessantly repeated, dialogues are quite formulaic and there are so many muscled things! Chests, upper-bodies, hugs, even FINGERS! C'mon, not everything needs to have muscles!

The characters lack a true personality. Alexander is... too much of everything. He is intellectually astounding, he knows from where everybody is after one word and a cough and he fights at Indiana Jones' level. That doesn't make him attractive. And Rafael... well... he's there to protect Alex and be loved by him? Yes, yes, there is foreshadowing about who he really is, but as it stands now, we know nothing about him, and neither does Alex.

But I like the general concept and I am curious about where this is going, so I'll keep reading.

The narration was good but somewhat plain.

Man is separated into Soul and Body,

and only when the two sides of his senses agree together, does utterance of its thought conceived by mind take place.~Book Of The Dead and Egyptian Proverbs~
John York is a phenomenal narrator. I'm incredibly impressed with his performance and the way he brings the characters to life. Even when he switches between different accents it's so smooth and doesn't pull you from the story. I need to binge listen more of his books he is so damn good!! 🥰
Now getting to the story, I really enjoyed this book. It was full of action and had some very sexy scences. But, the world building and history was amazing. I really loved the depth the author went through to pull information to enhance the plot. The thing I loved about Alex the most was his quirky history lessons in the worst of times. It made me giggle and added a lightness to the storyline that was very much needed when the action and suspense got a bit heavy. Rafe's constant secrets annoyed me a bit but by the end I understood why it was left like that. Just a heads up this book does end on a bit of a cliffhanger. It's nothing major just an extension that definitely let's you know there will be another book to fill in the missing pieces of this book. Overall, great story and awesome adventure. I can't wait for the rest of the series to unfold! I was provided with a copy and voluntarily chose to leave a review. This is my honest review.

Really cool start to a new series

I knew who Rafe was, I think it was pretty obvious to me. I need the next book ASAP!!! Okay so, the biggest thing I had is that I wished it was told from dual POV. I really would have liked to be inside of Rafe's head. There was times that I was a little lost on what was going on, but over all it was pretty good. There were a lot of twists and turns that did keep you interested. There was also a lot of action going on. It did leave off on a cliff hanger, everything is pretty much up in the air, I can't wait for the next book in the series.

Such a wonderfully unique take on angels & demons.

In the Valleys of the Earth (audiobook)
MMy Thoughts and Review:

I loved the story behind the romance more than the romance in this tale. A lot of that has to do with my fascination over angels (even those fallen), the ones deemed “Watchers,” and the faraway lands where all the biblical acts took place (even those not canonized).

Add the supernatural to an “Indiana Jones-esque” story and this old broad is all over it. I loved the characters, even if I did not love how fast the relationship moved between Rafe and Alec. Alas, who am I to judge, right? I mean if I were to come face to face with a gorgeous man, who happened to look like Bjorn Ironside, and who felt he had found his soul mate in me, and I didn’t get skeevy vibes off him, I might let him seduce me too. Just sayin.’ 🤣

The narrator of the story did an excellent job with all the accents. Both a new to me author and narrator and I am very much looking forward to book two by both.

The Story: 4.50 🌟🌟🌟🌟. ✨
The Narration: 4.50 🌟🌟🌟🌟. ✨
Overall: 4.50 🌟🌟🌟🌟. ✨

I received a complimentary audio copy of this book from Gay Romance Reviews to read and review.
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