Crescendo: Welcome home. Death awaits.

By: L. Marie Wood

Narrated by: Gary Bennett

Length: 11 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

A man, haunted by a family curse, is taken beyond the limits of his sanity to a realm where he has no control over his actions or his fear. James Adams lived a normal life in a New York suburb before the demons dwelling within him awoke from their slumber to reveal unspeakable horror and prophesize his future - his destiny. Crescendo is a novel about fate and the lengths we will travel to avoid the inevitable. Set in tranquil Rockland County, New York, this tale of suspense and horror will take listeners on an emotional roller coaster of anger, anxiety, compassion, and indelible fear.

©2004 L. Marie Wood (P)2018 L. Marie Wood

Turned out to be pretty good

There wasn't really a description with this book when I got it. However, I do remember reading something that stated it was a man's decent into insanity. As a person that is really into psychology, I felt like this was a book I could really get into. I'm not so sure I got that from this book. I think the main character felt like he was going insane but most people that are losing touch with reality don't realize it. To them, everything they see or feel is completely real and they can't discern the difference. This character knew that parts of what he was going through wasn't real at times. By the end of the book, it seemed more like a family curse instead of complete insanity. It kind of took on a Stephen King feel. The curse had more to do with the family and the house its self. The book could be a bit confusing at times but I felt like that was kind of the point since it was meant to be mostly in the point of view by someone who thought they were losing their mind. If you miss parts, it can be a bit difficult to catch up. I think the narrator did good on this book. And, all things considered, it turned out to be a pretty good book.

I was given this book for free at my request in return for my unbiased review.

Jimmy's Grandmother's Shack

This was not at all what I was expecting. And yes this is exactly what you want to hear. This is a story of James, AKA Jimmy’s, downward spiral into madness after a tragic accident. His family has a history of mental illness and he has just hit the point where either he is going crazy or something else is actually happening.
The author is obviously very selective of the words she uses and her prose are quite elaborate that they can be distracting from the overall story. She puts a lot of effort into each individual line of the story such that I often got lost in the words and descriptions she was using versus what was actually happening. Something really neat and not something I come across a lot in a horror story. I fully understood the story I was listening to but I found myself following how things were said versus what was said. I greatly enjoyed this writing and think this made me realize this difference of professional versus amateur writing. This style caused the book to be longer then needed but I felt this was meant for the journey and not the destination.
The story itself is quite neat. I really liked the basic plot line coupled with the mental illness that was maybe real or maybe prophetic dreams that become self-fulfilling. The paranormal aspects take a basic love triangle story to a whole new level. The way everything unraveled was perfect. Everyone had their own viewpoint and their own agenda. A really twisted couple of friends. I wasn’t sure who was the good guy through all of this and I find that quite satisfying. Even in the end I wasn’t quite sure who actually deserved sympathy.
Again I loved the words used to tell the story and I felt like the narrator told the story quite melodic. If anyone can read a story as if it were a poem, Gary did it well. His whispery tone told the story like it was a secret. I really liked how he approached this and even though his tone didn’t change much for the characters he provided everything I wanted to hear in an audiobook. The author’s story and narrator’s telling of it were perfectly matched.
I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

Crescendo

This was a really good book!It was full of family angst and ghosts.Gary Bennett was a fine narrator.I was given this book by the narrator,author or publisher free for an honest review.

Fantastic book

I was given this free review copy audio book at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

As someone who has dealt with mental illness on a number of fronts, I found this book quite interesting. The narration is quite good. The author really drags out the main character's decent into insanity really, maddeningly, well. The whole "am I crazy or is this stuff really happening?" vibe was great. The writing was really good, too. I mean, the language was complex and her descriptions were vivid. I think this book is definitely worth the listen.

Not what I expected

I wasn't quite sure how to rate this. It's a pretty good story but could have been condensed. This is a story of a man going insane, if it's from a family history or paranormal events or a combination of both I'm not quite sure. Perhaps the fact that he was convinced he would go insane because of a family history caused the paranormal. It is worth listening to, I know I'm going to listen again because a story this length one is bound to miss a few things.

I enjoyed listening to the narrator.

I recieved this audible free at my request and am happy to provide my review

Intense

It was an interesting intense listen but felt it was a bit long and could have been condensed. I’m still not sure if James was affected by his family history of mental illness or paranormal and enjoyed his interaction with his Aunt and Grandmother. I know I did not trust Pete and felt for Andrea, found some part boring. Recommend to anyone who enjoys creepy long thriller. I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. Thank you

surprisingly wow

I think I adore this book I didn't expect what I was listening to but oh my God I'm so happy I did the book was very well written very surprising and Incredibly interesting I loved every second of it a very enjoyable book to listen to
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Gary Bennett - Always Great

If Gary Bennett is narrating something, my interest in it goes up exponentially! He does not disappoint here. 'Crescendo' is an intense mystery/horror story about a man who has a family history of mental illness. This was a creepy read that could have been much improved by being condensed dramatically. That said, L. Marie Wood writes a compelling story in 'Crescendo' that is worth the listen, if only for Gary Bennett!

I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

Creepy and Gothic

This reminded me very much of a sort of modernized version of one of those Gothic horrors about dark things crawling deep within old, musty castles situated far out on the moors. Of course, there were no castles--only a house in New York--but the feeling was the same. It was full of imagery and madness, all rendered in dark, ornate language.

It was very creepy. If that is what you're looking for I highly recommend it.

I received the audiobook version of this for free and bought the Kindle version myself. I have voluntarily left this review.

Crescendo

I was looking forward to reading/listening to this book and it started about as weird as I had expected. Then it lost me. I was unable to get into it. I felt that it could have been about half the size and made a greater impact. The narration was a little lackluster for me as well. I tried speeding it up but it didn't help much. I loved the decent into madness and the little twists here and there, but I thought there was too much repetitive filler in between to satisfy me. Don't get me wrong, there were some really interesting parts in there. I loved the "flashbacks" and James chatting it up with his ancestors. The relationships in the book were burdensome, however.

This book was given to me for free at my request for my voluntary and unbiased review.