Cross

By: D.A. Roach

Narrated by: Jeff Olyarnyk

Length: 4 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's Summary

Ray Cross wasn't a hero; he could die too easily. But some things are worth risking death....

Ray Cross was born with a genetic disorder, resulting in a fragile body; his organs and blood vessels will rupture with any hard impact, so standing up to his best friend's controlling boyfriend could kill him. Ray's life in Midland, MI, gets decimated when his parents reveal they are not his real parents, and his real father, a king from a secret land hidden in the far north of Canada, is dying and wishes to meet his son.

With his doctor and newly-met twin, Ray travels to the forgotten village of Yardis, where magic, myth, and corruption are abundant. But the longer Ray stays in the village learning the truth of his past and reconnecting with his father, King Vintras, the more he discovers an evil force threatening the king and his village. But there's more than the king and a village tied to Yardis and Ray. He finds friendship and more from a band of brothers who are part witch, dragon, and healer. With new alliances and new abilities, Ray wars with himself on playing it safe or risking it all to save the ones he loves.

Can Ray rise above his fragile disorder to become the hero for once in his life?

©2018 D.A. Roach (P)2018 D.A. Roach

Great Book!

This was a good book and I would recommend this book to anyone. The narrator does a good job!

good story

Very slow start, it took a few chapters to build up. Interesting twist as the hero finds out who he is and where he comes from. A good story for children.
The narrator has a good voice, lots of potential, but the read is dry. I think if he would add more emotion and made it a story telling instead of just reading, it would make it a 5-star listen.

Cross this off your wish/TBR list

I liked the narrator more than the story, but it seemed to take him a few chapters until he blended with the book. (It still took me several start overs to get through this 4 hr + audio.) Production wasn’t very good though; his voice kept fading.

I found Cross to be a very underdeveloped character who overreacts too much. I didn’t seem to care what happened to him nor his world. With the high ratings and reviews, I persisted to try the addiction others had, but just couldn’t.

The cover is definitely the attraction and only redeeming quality.
Unfortunately, I had to return the audiobook. I wanted to trade it for another book by the author, but this was her only one.

Interesting Premise- could use editing

This story has an Interesting premise, it’s centers on a teenager with a condition that makes his body very fragile. He then goes on a journey to find his real parents and learn more about who he actually is. Along the way he discovers he is part of a magical society, and has abilities he never dreamed of. I liked the idea of the story, but the actual writing is a little weak. Some parts of the story that I felt deserved more explanation or just glossed over, and others seemed to drag on. The narrator did an OK job, but the sound quality wasn’t fantastic and you could tell where they stopped and started the narration. Overall it was an OK listen, but it’s not one I am dying to re-listen to.

Solid Story

I really like the story that Roach has crafted here. It is exciting and the characters are fun to read about. The only thing off about it was that in some moments it would repeat things we already knew. As if the author forgot they had put it in the story before.

The audio narration was good. Jeff did a great job with voices. The issue comes with the sound production. It was hard to hear at times and it echoed in scenes, had static in others. I think it could have been better cleared up.

Great idea

The premise of time travel has always been interesting to me. This in addition to the fantasy of shape shifting made for a good adventure story. It did move a little too fast in some places but at least it kept going. I would recommend this audiobook.

A good start to a series

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

Thought this was a decent story with OK narration. The narration, itself, was fine. It was the audio quality that made me ding my rating for it. Lots of background noise. The story is a coming of age story that seems geared toward a younger audience. It was still good, if short, for an older guy like me. I'd definitely be open to another book in the series.

Cross

Wow, this was such an amazing story. Not just for YA but also adults. Imagine being in high school and finding out your parents aren’t your biological ones, they are your guardians and you are a son of the king in a land in the Canadian area hidden from mere mortals. No one goes out or in. It’s protected by a barrier. This is Ray’s story. Ray suffers from something called vEDS, later on I will tell more about this terrible disease. He has to watch what he does because the normal activity of someone his age could mean death for him. Chaos is ensuing in Yardis so it’s time Ray was told of his heritage and taken to meet his father the king. Ray is in for the ride of his life. He also has a twin who was raised by another guardian. The kingdom is such an adventure and you will love to hate Ray’s half brother the prince. I don’t want to give away any spoilers and I know I’m not doing it justice but it is one amazing read. I learned a lot about vEDS and it was nice to see Ray overcome all obstacles. Turns out, he isn’t a mere mortal. Working in the medical field, I found it so fascinating how the author explained about Rays condition and then his healing ability. It made the super powers seem even more real.

just ok

the narration seemed to echo or something, not high quality, but was still good. you got used to it after a while. the writing wasn't fabulous, things were repeated, I had wondered if it just didn't get cut right in editing, but no. the author just felt need to repeat things in different ways. the premise was good, it would be awesome to have a frail body and then discover that you were a bad ass dragon. over all, I wouldn't listen again.

1 of 2 people found this review helpful

lovely teenager story

the story was very entertaining and very fun I liked it quite much lovely indeed
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Coming of age story in fantasy setting

I hadn't read anything by this author previously, but the premise of a young man facing up to a potentially fatal illness while having to face a typical fantasy adventure seemed like it would be an interesting one and that mostly proved to be the case.

The hero of the story is a young man named Ray Cross who suffers from Vascular Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome or vEDS for short, a disease that means he has to be far more careful than your typical fantasy hero.

The narrator for this book did a good job, the main character and the supporting cast were suitably distinctive and the overall tone and pacing were pleasant enough too.

As this was a relatively short book, it is probably best to not go into too many details, but it was an enjoyable journey taking a young man from the modern world into a more fantasy-style setting with magic, dragons and more.

[Note - I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.]