Lusus Naturae

By: Tom Adams

Narrated by: Tom G.H. Adams

Length: 2 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

Lusus Naturae is Beauty and the Beast in reverse. Charles Renshaw, an aristocrat, purchases a monster called Cyprian - a member of the rare species, Lamia. At first, Cyprian fulfils the role of a collector's whimsy, then becomes an object of passion as Renshaw's obsession with her leads him on a path to ruin. Within a short time, he sees his monster's feral nature emerge and understands that she cannot be controlled as easily as he first imagined. As Renshaw tries to limit the damage he comes to realize that ownership of this exotic creature brings great responsibility.

©2016 Thomas George Hartwell Adams (P)2016 Thomas George Hartwell Adams

Absolutely Spellbinding. I want more!

Would you consider the audio edition of Lusus Naturae to be better than the print version?

I only listen to audio books and this is a good audio book. Good sound quality and well narrated, with Tom Adams bringing each and every character to life in a unique, convincing and,most importantly, consistent way.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Cyprian. She is everything I want to be when I become a blood-thirsty, lustful she-creature from a different dimension that devours her own young. She is like the Kim Kardashian of fantasy because everyone should want to be her, and also because I wish Kim Kardashian would eat her own young and bring an end to a generation of people who are famous for no reason.

Which character – as performed by Tom G.H. Adams – was your favorite?

The character of the creepy monster collector/seller was the strongest and I feel worth the most praise because it could not have been a) an easy task to come up with that accent in the first place and b) maintain it as consistently as Adams has managed. Kudos for that.

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

I found myself highly captivated by the story. I love dark fantasy and this story was perfect for me.

Any additional comments?

Like if Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett had a baby, that baby would be Tom Adams. LOVED this book so much I devoured it, *wipes lips gently with napkin* more please.

The lovechild of H. P. Lovecraft and Neil Gaiman

Charles Renshaw is a washed out aristocrat with a failing fortune, and too much time on his hands. What does he do? He purchases a monster, of course. As you can well imagine, Charles gets more than he bargained for. But not in quite the ways you would have thought.

This was my first experience of Tom Adams' work, and I was pleasantly surprised. The story was crisp, both in its pacing and in its narration. The characters were well-delineated (I loved the monster seller), and the central premise was original and more than clever. I laughed out loud regularly. The plot had me guessing incorrectly often enough to make this a very satisfying read. It's a testament to the author's skill that he squeezed so much content into a two-hour story. Excellent.

I thoroughly enjoyed this recording, and recommend it. I'll be keeping an eye out for more work by this author.