Four and a Half Shades of Fantasy

A Young Adult Anthology

By: W.J. May

Narrated by: Andrea Emmes

Length: 15 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's Summary

Four (and a half) thrilling fantasy/romance novels in one!

From best-selling author W.J. May - each shade is a different genre of the fantasy, paranormal and romance - all from different series!

Rae of Hope - the Chronicles of Kerrigan

Fifteen-year-old Rae Kerrigan never really knew her family's history. Her mother and father died when she was young and it is only when she accepts a scholarship to the prestigious Guilder Boarding School in England that a mysterious family secret is revealed.

Seventh Mark Part 1 - The Hidden Secrets Saga

Like most teenagers, Rouge is trying to figure out who she is and what she wants to be. With little knowledge about her past, she has questions but has never tried to find the answers. Everything changes when she befriends a strangely intoxicating family. Siblings Grace and Michael, appear to have secrets which seem connected to Rouge. Her hunch is confirmed when a horrible incident occurs at an outdoor party. Rouge may be the only one who can find the answer.

Shadow of Doubt - Part 1

Erebus is a bit of a lost soul. He's a guy so he should be out to have fun, but unlike the rest of his kind, he is solemn and withdrawn. That is, until he meets Aurora, a law student at Cornell University. His entire world is shaken. Feelings he's never had and urges he's never understood take over. These strange longings drive him to question everything about himself.

Radium Halos - The Senseless Chronicles

Caught in a sudden thunderstorm, Zoe, a high school senior from Elliot Lake, and five of her friends take shelter in an abandoned uranium mine. Over the next few days, Zoe's hearing sharpens drastically, beyond what any normal human being can detect. She tells her friends, only to learn that four others have an increased sense as well. Only Kieran, the new boy from Scotland, wasn't affected.

©2014 Wanita May (P)2015 Wanita May

Incomplete stories

The stories are not full stories. You are only getting part of each book. If you want the entire story you have to buy them separately. The narrator did a good job.


*********This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com. ****

L.

YA Anthology

What did you love best about Four and a Half Shades of Fantasy?

A fairly well written anthology (YA fantasy) book. All 4 were fairly easy to follow from start/finish. Lots of exciting scenarios, with several twists/turns & a great set of unique characters to keep track of. I liked all of them.

Really?

I was under the impression that the 4 and a half shades were linked in some way, but no. The first "shade" lasted over 5 hours and I enjoyed it so I was very frustrated when all of a sudden it was a totally new plot with all new characters and situations. The only thread was the author and the fact that all contained sci-fi. As I eluded to, all "shades" we're cliffhangers and ended so abruptly it was hard to keep up. Just when I identified with a character- bam, presto change-o. I will not be buying more books, audio or otherwise, from this author.
I received a copy of this audiobook for an honest review.

Four and an Half of YA Series...Great Introduction

Four and a Half Shades of Fantasy is a very good set of books of introducing the readers to four existing series and the fifth being a new upcoming series. This box set includes Rae of Hope (The Chronicales of Kerrigan), Seventh Mark Part 1 (The Hidden Secrets Saga), Shadow of Doubt Part 1, Radium Halos (The Senseless Chronicles), and Courage Runs Red (Blood Red Series).

Rae of Hope reminds me of the Harry Potter series. Rae Kerrigan has no idea of her family history until she attend Guilder Boarding School in England. Upon her sixteen birthday, she will receive a tatoo which may determine whether she is her father's daughter or her mother's. Her father has left a dark legacy and has followers even after his death, are trying to reinvent the world in their own design. It is the beginning of whether Rae's power will lead to darkness or will it be the light against the darkness of her father's legacy.

Seventh Mark is about Rogue. Rogue has never knew her parents. Upon meeting the siblings, Grace and Michael, Rogue feels that there is a connection between her past and Grace and Michael. The only thing is does Rogue wants to be part of Grace and Michael's world.

Shadow of Doubt is a story of Erebus and Aurora. Erebus is a mythical being while Aurora is a mortal that Erebus shouldn't have feelings for. No goods will come from a relationship between an immortal being and a mortal. To protect Aurora, Erebus kept his past from Aurora until she wanted more from their relationship.

Radium Halos is about five teenager friends inheriting powers from an uranium mine during a thunderstorm. Each of the five discovered that one of their five senses are sharpen and their agility are more agile than before. All five friends are going to test their limitations.

Courage Runs Red is a new series, Blood Red. The excerpt doesn't give much away except that the young detective has an uncanny ability to stop crime. The excerpt makes me wonder if the detective is a vampire.

This set of books teases the readers to want to know more about the characters and what will happen next. It is a good introduction to five different series. Out of this series, Rae of Hope is my favorite.

Andrea Emmes is a wonderful narrator. I love her voice in the narration of all five books. However when listening to her voice, I would strongly recommend to listen to one series at a time or leave a time integral. After awhile, the characters from the different series will sounds too much alike.

I was given this audiobook by the author/narrator/publisher via Audiobook Blast in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated or influence in any way for writing this review.

Only Partial Books

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

If the books in the anthology were complete and not just half books. Only the first book is a full book. I had to obtain the second half to the other three books if I wanted to hear the complete book.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

There was no ending for books 2 through 4. So my reaction was one of total frustration.

What three words best describe Andrea Emmes’s performance?

A satisfactory performance

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Actually I did like the books it was the fact the books were incomplete teasers that I didn't like.

Any additional comments?

Here is a warning: only the first story is a complete book. the other three stories are just a the beginning first part of a book. You can buy/obtain the second half separately which I did for the second and third book as the beginning first half had me hooked. I especially liked Shadow of Doubt. It was a stand alone fantasy romance with a happy ever after ending.

The second book was sort of a vampire vs werewolf variation that reminded me of the twilight books.

The first book was a little bit like the Happy Potter books but for an older audience. This book was a complete book of the first book in the series.

The last book which I didn't obtain the second half of, was about a group of teenagers who developed super powers after being trapped in an old uranium mine.

The books were well written though not entirely original as each of them bore similarities to other books which I have read. My favorite was the the third book Shadow of Doubt.

Just be forewarned before that only the first book is a complete book.

“I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot come”

Excellent YA Fantasy collection!!

What did you love best about Four and a Half Shades of Fantasy?

Yet again, W.J. May gets YA fantasy right. The stories were deep, had enough angst and turmoil, and the collection was well put together so we could explore several several different series.

Andrea Emmes also did a fantastic job here with the narration. At one point I found myself wondering who the other narrators were because of the range of voices. Very well done!

This was easy to listen to, easy to follow, and a generally good time.

Any additional comments?

"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com."

Super interesting!

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

Yes, I loved how there was so many twists and turns in the plot. There was also a lot fo suspense, it kept me on the edge of my seat while listening to it.

What about Andrea Emmes’s performance did you like?

Eimme's performance was perfectly paced and easy to understand. She added a real depth to the characters that I would not have gotten if I had read the physical copy of the book instead.

Any additional comments?

I was given a copy of this audiobook for review from the author.

good book

"I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot com"

good book. i really liked it

Nice collection

This is a nice collection to explore several new series at once. The narrators did an excellent job with each except they gave the book tile before each and every chapter. It threw off the flow of the stories for me. Other than that small thing, they were all entertaining though some ended abruptly with cliff hangers.

"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com."

Love!

I enjoyed every single story that W.J. May wrote in this anthology. Totally worth listening to or buying. The narrator is very very good at doing accents and keeping you drawn in.

OMG the accents are awful

Not sure that I can listen to much more of this. The Narrator is absolutely awful.