Phoenix Rising

A Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences Novel

By: Pip Ballantine, Tee Morris

Narrated by: James Langton

Length: 13 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's Summary

Evil is most assuredly afoot - and Britain’s fate rests in the hands of an alluring renegade... and a librarian.

These are dark days indeed in Victoria’s England. Londoners are vanishing, then reappearing, washing up as corpses on the banks of the Thames, drained of blood and bone. Yet the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences - the Crown’s clandestine organization whose bailiwick is the strange and unsettling - will not allow its agents to investigate. Fearless and exceedingly lovely Eliza D. Braun, however, with her bulletproof corset and a disturbing fondness for dynamite, refuses to let the matter rest... and she’s prepared to drag her timorous new partner, Wellington Books, along with her into the perilous fray.

For a malevolent brotherhood is operating in the deepening London shadows, intent upon the enslavement of all Britons. And Books and Braun - he with his encyclopedic brain and she with her remarkable devices - must get to the twisted roots of a most nefarious plot... or see England fall to the Phoenix!

©2011 Pip Ballantine & Tee Morris (P)2011 HarperCollins Publishers

Great Steampunk - worth a listen

I was very pleasantly surprised to listen to this book - great main characters, fast paced steampunk mystery. The narration is great, and James Langton does a very good job depicting the different characters. I thoroughly enjoyed this book as a funny light mystery, and am about to explore Pip Ballantine's other novels.

A fun romp if a little predictable

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

Yes. It's a great beach or vacation book. It's fun, easy, and amusing.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Phoenix Rising?

The initial meeting between the two main characters.

Which character – as performed by James Langton – was your favorite?

Wellington Books. He's calm, academic, and yet funny.

Any additional comments?

It's a typical steampunk adventure. A fun brain break worth your time but don't expect anything insightful or surprising. Eliza (the heroine) is pulled right from any feisty romance novel. The male lead, Wellington Books, is a bit more interesting. It's brain candy.

So this is steampunk...

I'm not a qualified steampunk reader, so forgive me if I hit things with an obvious stick, but what fun! For those, like me, who are strangers to this universe: the science is wonky, steam powered and fantastical. History is not following the course that it did in our history books, so don't be alarmed by drastic departures. At times this seems like both an homage to and a parody of Victorian fantastic fiction, but with a thoroughly modern sensibility. I love that the male lead character is allowed to decide to be gentile and mannered and horrified by the behavior of the female lead character who is fierce and cunning, while at the same time fascinated by her. The role reversal seems natural and satisfying, both for the characters and for me, the reader.

I see this so often in the youngsters my son knows: gentle boys and fierce girls. Perhaps that is why this kind of literature is so popular with their generation. This world is turned on its head, but in a way perhaps it is truer than the world we live in.

Enter the ministry.

What a great book! Eliza D. Braun and her partner Wellington Books are fun to listen to and entertaining to follow, you never know what’s next. The mix of mayhem and comedy make this audio book hard to turn off, so make sure you are ready to get angry at anyone who tries to disrupt you. If you've never listened to a steam punk novel I suggest that you make this one your first. I really hope that Tee Morris and Pip Ballantine will continue to write more about these two.

Tried It, and Then Got the Whole Series

I listened to to this to see if I was at interested in it. Wow, I was impressed. It has left me with a desire to find, and wear, a bullet proof corset. This a a nicely written series and I really liked it. Love the narration by James Langton.

MUCH better than expected. Not a steampunk fan but

Any additional comments?

I'm not a fan of steam punk but this is a book that could get me interested in the genre. I'm definetly looking forward to the second book.

Simply Delightful

A great introduction to the steampunk genre and a wonderful first book in what I hope will be a very long series. The main characters are charismatic and have an excellent chemistry. Well written and narrated. Worth the credit.

Better Than Expected

Normally, I'm not a fan of steampunk but I was pleasantly surprised by Phoenix Rising. I liked the two main characters, Eliza Braun and Wellington Books, which made a somewhat meandering story easier to take. While the plot does drag in certain place it's interesting enough to keep you listening. Much of the credit for that has to go to the narrator, James Langton. He inhabits each of the characters and gives their own voice quite nicely; however, his New Zealand accent was questionable at times. While there are some major plot holes and unsettling events that may turn off some readers/listeners, overall this a was really fun story and I look forward to more adventures from Books and Braun.

Fun but nothing special

If you like steampunk then you'll probably enjoy this book. It's a fun romp through all the cliches of the genre. It's got gadgets and secret societies and British manners. If you're looking for something super new, innovative or different, then you will probably be disappointed. I would have given the book a higher rating, but the heroine just rubbed me the wrong way. I'm as much a fan of the spunky heroine as the next gal, but to me Eliza crossed the line between spunky/independent to rude jerk. Frankly, I didn't like her much. Books, the hero, was really too cliche to be really interesting.

Steampunk Meets Urban Fantasy

We've seen these characters before.

We've heard this story before.

But there's something compelling about the way they are strung together.

No surprises...but a very listenable book.

Very unexpected

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

Really enjoyable romp

What did you like best about this story?

When I began listening to this I seriously wandered if I had wasted my money but by chapter three I was well & truly hooked

Have you listened to any of James Langton’s other performances? How does this one compare?

This is my first James Langton listen but I thought his performance was excellent.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No I listened to this at work over a period of three or four days.

Any additional comments?

I bought this on a whim and I have to say I really enjoyed it, the story was strong, Eliza & Wellington were very believable characters, a well constructed tale well told, I will be listening to more of this series.

Rip Roaring Adventure

What an unusual, funny and quriky book, this book is not what I would normally choose but I found it engrossing, Eliza and Welly are 2 great characters, I loved all the inventions, it's like a victorian James Bond story, full of humour and a little bit saucy as well.
I shall definitely be purchasing the second story for more fast paced thrills and spills.

A bit slow moving

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Not really, Eliza D. Braun is not at all a likeable character, which tends to put me off a book - Not the existence of an unlikeable character (nasty, self-centred, and manipulative) but for them to be one of the main protagonists is not an encouragement to continuing with the book.

Would you be willing to try another book from Pip Ballantine and Tee Morris ? Why or why not?

Probably not, given the likely hood of such an unlikeable protagonist cropping up again is not an encouragement to continue with the series.

Great story; shame about the writing

Steampunk meets the X Files

Phoenix Rising is well narrated, has an engaging central duo and a well-paced story with dramatic set-pieces. Good news and probably enough to persuade me to download the next book in the series.

All of the above is nearly ruined by some rather clunky writing (over-use of the phrase "quite the", frequent Americanisms mis-use of some words e.g. "mnemonic" for "memento"). The characters range from the anachronistically modern (Eliza Braun) to crude caricatures (most of the baddies) and the occasional forays into (soft core) pornography more embarrassing than erotic.

Still, the book's good points slightly outweigh its bad points and, if you are a fan of steampunk, you'll probably enjoy this.

OK

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

There is far too much in this book that is utterly anachronistic - turns of phrase and general behaviour and attitudes of the central protagonists being the main problems.

Would you be willing to try another one of James Langton’s performances?

It piqued my curiosity enough to try the next in the series.

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

The central premise is interesting - it is basically a Victorian X-Files (but without the supernatural)

Any additional comments?

Not terrible, but there is some far better steam-punk about - Alan K Baker, Mark Hodder and Chris Wooding all spring to mind.

Brilliant action steampunk adventure

What made the experience of listening to Phoenix Rising the most enjoyable?

All audiobooks bring characters to life more than the written word. Apart from the seriously bad New Zealand accent of the female lead, this was well read and easy on the ear. Will someone please tell narrators that New Zealanders sound more English than the Australian accent that they are usually given?

What was one of the most memorable moments of Phoenix Rising?

The beginning. The first chapter. It starts off with a bang (literally) and sets the pace for nearly the whole book.

What about James Langton’s performance did you like?

See above about listening and the accents.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

None that could be named without spoiling. Several parts spooked me a bit.

Any additional comments?

This was a thoroughly enjoyable listen. I already have the second one and have requested more to be added to the Audible site.

first of many

Loved it, looking forward to rest of the series. Interesting twists, turns and great characters.

Predictable though not finishef

Sadly I just couldn't get past, a, the dreadful accent, b, the predictable nature of the tale, c, the annoying unintelligent nature of Eliza.
A shame, whilst it may never have reached the heights it could have been much better.

Cracking good yarn.

A well set and wonderfully progressed story. A fun and playful jaunt in to this entertaining world.

Phoenix rising

Immensely enjoyable. Brilliant story beautifully read. From the first words I was completely immersed & engrossed.