LeTour de Paris

By: Sharon Skinner, Bob Nelson

Narrated by: Melanie Fraser

Length: 41 mins

Publisher's Summary

Tavara Tinker leads a double life. By day, a proper Victorian lady. By night, deep in the heart of industrial London, she maintains a research laboratory and a steam-powered factory where she creates the clothes and weapons for a new generation of adventurer.

Tavara and her quirky band of intrepid heroes visit Paris on a quest to obtain a rare fabric for a client, only to discover they're not the only ones with an interest in it.

©2013 Sharon Skinner and Bob Nelson (P)2015 Sharon Skinner and Bob Nelson

This will wake your interest up!

--I was given a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I have never listened to a steampunk book before, and was pleasantly surprised by this story. While just enough to wet your appetite, this story was action packed and full of adventure. I loved the fact that the strongest character, both in personality and body was a woman. How refreshing for a historical story to have a woman as the main, substantial character. Tara never ceased to amaze me, from her getting ready to leave, to her battle over payments. The story kept you on the edge of your seat wanting more!

As always, Melanie Fraser delivers a perfect narration. Her voice is spot on for each character. Loved the French accent. Hoping there is more to this story soon...it just can't end here!

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

A Lovely Short Story With Excellent Narration

"LeTour de Paris" was a neat short about Tavara Tinker who's an interesting and intriguing character. I liked this story and hope there's more to come in the chronicles. I'd really enjoy seeing where this character goes and what she does next. I also loved the subtle sound effects in the story.

What I especially liked was the narration. Melanie Fraser is terrific. She has a super voice and a brilliant knack for capturing the characters persona. She also has a great accent with exquisite French.

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

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

A quick exciting listen, jam packed with action.

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

This was my first foray into the steampunk genre and I enjoyed it immensely. Le Tour de Paris was an ideal title to start me off as it is a short read/listen. It had all the descriptions, details and paraphernalia that I would associate with steampunk.

The story is action packed and the reader/listener is thrust into all the excitement right from the beginning. Because this is a short story, there isn't an abundance of information about the characters except for their looks and what they are wearing. The writers have, instead, concentrated on the series of action scenes which are very well written and entertaining. The narrator, Melanie Fraser, added a some extra pizazz with sound effects.

I was surprised at how much detail and activity the writers were able to jam into such a short piece but they managed it superbly. I'm hoping that the current storyline continues into the next installment as I'm keen to find out what happens next. I'd also like to see the characters develop more as the series progresses so that I can gain more insight into their relationships with each other. However, the installments would need to get a little bit longer in order to facilitate this without sacrificing the action and adventure scenes.

I loved the narration by Melanie Fraser. The narration is well paced and crystal clear. The little snippet of French she spoke was impressive and I found myself listening that extra bit carefully to see if I could remember my secondary school French. By the third listen I had it translated in my head, happy in the knowledge that the language is still rattling around in there somewhere.
Le Tour de Paris is not a story that will bore you. I have listened to Le Tour de Paris three times to date and I enjoyed it even more each time. With so much going on in the story it is easy to miss a bit of the action if you get distracted so I found myself wanting to go back and listen to it again.

If you want a short listen that is high in entertainment, I would definitely recommend Le Tour de Paris. For anyone, like me, who has yet to venture into the steampunk genre, Le Tour de Paris is a great place to start.

Any additional comments?

I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Action packed

Very clever writing. This short story is action packed from the very beginning and quickly moves through to a very satisfactory ending.
Lively characters under the guidance of their leader, Tavara Tinker go on an adventure to Paris to find some special material for their customer.
I loved the detail packed into this story, the excitement and success.
Melanie Fraser helps make this an enjoyable listen with her brilliant change of voices and accents. She really is a very talented voice actress and I loved her French.
All of his made for a most entertaining half hour or so and I am quite happy to recommend this audiobook.
I received the audiobook version from the narrator and this is my unbiased review.