Fireside

The Path of Ashes, Book 2

By: Brian Parker

Narrated by: James Foster

Length: 7 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

Post-nuclear war America is a dangerous place. Mutated animals and deadly plants kill within seconds, while marauding gangs threaten to wipe out what's left of humanity.

Aeric Traxx, given the name after months of torture at the hands of the Vultures left him hideously scarred, leads the city of San Angelo through these troublesome times as diseases decimate the population and acid rains make the soil virtually unusable for the first few years after the war.

The residents of the city are barely surviving in the harsh west Texas wastelands, but in a rare stroke of luck, Traxx finds an engineer who helps to convert the engines of the city's construction equipment to steam power, allowing them to build full-sized walls for defense and power their vehicles for patrols outside of the fences. They're learning to fight back against the evils of the wastes and to grow crops so they can supplement their poor diets.

However, the Vultures aren't finished with Traxx. Their hatred of the man's past actions has festered through the years. They've infiltrated San Angelo and have a plan to destroy his beloved city. If successful, the gang's move will irrevocably shift the power in the region and could cause the extinction of humanity.

©2015 Brian Lee Parker (P)2016 Brian Parker

Characters are most appealing

This is a continuation of the story begun in the first book of this series: A Path of Ashes. I heard fewer grammatical errors in this book, although there were still a few. The compelling characters are what's most appealing about this story. And James Foster voices these characters well. His narration is excellent. .

As with the previous book, this book is brought to a satisfactory conclusion, although it's clear there's more to the story. Thankfully, it does not end in a cliffhanger.

NOTE: I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

interesting and unique post apocalypse story

I did not listen to the first book in this series. I do not think that it would matter. Brian Parker did well to introduce the characters and the world that he has created. It is about 100 years since a nuclear war decimated the Earth. There are bands of survivors scattered throughout the wasteland. All fighting for what little resources are left. Some of the familiar animal life that we know has been mutated from the radiation and decades of evolution, to make the best of it. Including Demon Brocks that are a mutated form of the badger. Roughly the size of a human with almost a boney exoskeleton, and vicious and dangerous as all get out.

Opening with a tense action sequence. Of an invading Demon Brock. That somehow infiltrated behind the security of the wall surrounding the settlement. This was intense and made my hair stand up on end. However, some are injured and killed. Making Grampa feel like it was time to pass on the story of is family. This is where the real story begins.

The publishers summary does a pretty good job of summarizing the rest of the story. So I am not going to try.

I found the wasteland that Parker created absolutely fascinating. I wanted to know more about what exists now out there. The different creatures and different settlements.

As far as the characters go. I wanted to know more about what Traxx went through, maybe this was in the first book? Although his personality didn’t really seem like someone who was tortured for ages. He seem too upbeat. The personalities of the main players of the Vultures seemed like it was more for shock value than anything else. I found I couldn’t really connect to any of them. Making it harder to care about any of them or what they are going through.

All in all Fireside was an interesting and unique post apocalypse story. Without the use of zombies or any other sub genre crutches. It tries to be different. Not a complete success but much more appealing than many that try to go this route. I look forward to more stories by Parker and I think he has, what could be, a very intriguing world to explore.

James Foster delivered another fine performance. Everything that I have come to expect from him, he did. Decent characterizations. Pacing changes for the action scenes. Adding in a pause here and there to help the story along. Doing everything he could to keep me engaged.

Audiobook was provided for review by the narrator.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog

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Just as good as the first book!

If you could sum up Fireside in three words, what would they be?

We will survive.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Fireside?

The storytelling by Aiden

What about James Foster’s performance did you like?

I like how James Foster was able to capture each character's personality.

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

There are some cry worth scenes in this book. I'm still trying to get over some of the devastating parts.

Any additional comments?

A must read!

Loved it

Out of all Brian’s wonderful series this might be my favorite
Picks up from book one as more of the story is told to the future generations
Well narrated with excellent characters highly recommended
I received a free review audiobook and voluntarily left this review

This is a very satisfying read

This is the second book in a three part series.I Enjoyed this book very much, but to truly appreciate the novel I think you would probably be better off reading the first book in the series before you read this one. I am planning to go back and read the first novel so I can pick up on things that I missed in the second. The narrator was brilliant a true joy to listen to. I am actively seeking out more of his work.
I received this book at no cost to me for a honest review

A little long in the telling!

Book two relates the story of San Angelo through the eyes of great-grandfather Aidan to his great-granddaughter Tanya. Aeric Traxx commands a large portion of the tale as he was the main mover & shaker of the San Angelo development. The story is quite detailed and fairly interesting. Hard work, dedication, and an undying spirit finally seem to be paying off for the San Angelo folks, but the Vultures make an unwanted reappearance having other ideas. The story continues as the Vultures extend their hold on the countryside; geographically and politically. Not a bad story to be sure, but it's feeling drawn out. Steady on three.point.five.

Interesting

I was a bit hesitant to pick up this book having not read/listened to the first in the series. This book stood on it's own though and was a great story while giving enough back story to know who all the major players were. I'm not sure if that part got repetitive to those who heard book 1 but I hope not.

The Narration was well done, with strong transitions between the different characters so you got a feel for the personalities. A few of the twists were able to be predicted but I think it was intended by the author if you were paying attention you'd see them coming. I hope so because that made it more fun to try to find others and I fell for a few red herrings as well.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.

Post-nuclear war does not mean the end

If you could sum up Fireside in three words, what would they be?

very satisfying read

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

James Foster delivered another fine performance. Everything that I have come to expect from him, he did. Decent characterizations. Pacing changes for the action scenes. Adding in a pause here and there to help the story along

Any additional comments?

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review.

It was okay.

Would you try another book from Brian Parker and/or James Foster?

Maybe

Any additional comments?

I didn't really feel a connection to any of the characters. I don't know if this was because I had not read the first book in the series. My mind kept drifting. There were some interesting parts. The narrator did a good job. I received this audiobook for free through Audiobook Boom for my unbiased review.

One families history of survival

Any additional comments?

Even though I haven't read the first book in this series I was able to easily understand and enjoy this book.The story of one families fight to survive in a post apocalyptic world,is shared by an injured grandfather with his grandchild.While I did enjoy this book I wished the author had spent more time world building and showing more of the actual world they resided in.I wanted to know more about the genetically mutated animals etcetera.The narrator did a good job and is pleasant to listen too.I received an audiobook from the author in exchange for an honest review.