Red Country: Booktrack Edition

By: Joe Abercrombie

Narrated by: Steven Pacey

Length: 19 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's Summary

Red Country: Booktrack Edition adds an immersive musical soundtrack to your audiobook listening experience!*

They burned her home.

They stole her brother and sister.

But vengeance is following. 

Shy South hoped to bury her bloody past and ride away smiling, but she'll have to sharpen up some bad old ways to get her family back, and she's not a woman to flinch from what needs doing. She sets off in pursuit with only a pair of oxen and her cowardly old stepfather Lamb for company. But it turns out Lamb's buried a bloody past of his own. And out in the lawless Far Country the past never stays buried. 

Their journey will take them across the barren plains to a frontier town gripped by gold fever, through feud, duel and massacre, high into the unmapped mountains to a reckoning with the Ghosts. Even worse, it will force them into an alliance with Nicomo Cosca, infamous soldier of fortune, and his feckless lawyer Temple, two men no one should ever have to trust....

Red Country takes place in the same world as the First Law trilogy, Best Served Cold, and The Heroes. This novel also represents the return of Logen Ninefingers, one of Abercrombie's most beloved characters. 

*Booktrack is an immersive format that pairs traditional audiobook narration to complementary music. The tempo and rhythm of the score are in perfect harmony with the action and characters throughout the audiobook. Gently playing in the background, the music never overpowers or distracts from the narration, so listeners can enjoy every minute. When you purchase this Booktrack edition, you receive the exact narration as the traditional audiobook available, with the addition of music throughout.

©2012 Joe Abercrombie (P)2020 Hachette Audio

Music is annoying and distracting

Jesus Joe, are that hard up that you had to re-release an old book with some dude strumming a guitar in the background? I wonder how many poor fools will buy this and then think all of your stuff is garbage. Seriously, that would be a shame as I believe you are the greatest dark fantasy writer of all time. So maybe stick to writing and fire whatever business manager convinced you that this would be a good idea. I sincerely hope that you have this pulled from the shelf before you reputation is tarnished. Need more money, then write another book.

Booktrack review

The story was amazing, this review does not have anything to do with that. However the booktrack tries too hard with little results. I would say only 30% of the booktrack is congruous. The other 70% is annoying and out of place. Overall I like the effort but it failed in execution. I would recommend the normal version of this book.

Consistently Great!

Abercrombie has filled that space once home to writers like Gemmel or the crew of excellent authors who shared in the creation of the Thieves' World books. He insists upon investing the effort and the time to give each character depth, complexity and history. He thoroughly examines his world and those who live there. Making the story very personal, and very real for each and every character.

Love the Booktrack Editions!

I purchased Red Country a couple months ago and Loved it. When I logged on to Audible today, I saw the Booktrack edition. I had no idea what "Booktrack Edition" meant, so I read the blurb about the added music/soundtrack. I listened to the sample and thought it was awesome! The music REALLY adds to the narration. Luckily, Audible allows returns and exchanges. So I returned my non-booktrack edition of this audiobook and snagged the Booktrack edition. Listening to it again right now! LOVE it! Please, Audible! Do this to MORE books! At least add it to all of the books in Abercrombie's First Law world!

I had to buy the NON-BOOKTRACK edition!!!

So my review is that this is the best written and “read” of the True Law Series yet. And that says A LOT!!! The Booktrack absolutely ruined it.

It worked okay, if not repetitively, when playing ambient noise like crickets during nighttime conversations, or to a lesser extent a flock of birds (singing their asses off like they tried meth for the first time) during daytime conversations. But those moments were few and far between.

For the most part, it is a failed attempt to loop ambient music that “might” work in a 44 minute lifetime channel show (for housewives who ironically also tried meth for the first time) into a 15 hour novel (and even those housewives wont like it).

I made it halfway through the book to the chapter called “Fun” which ACTUALLY surprised me with a halfway decent attempt at a loop of what I’d generously call “Scottish Ceilidh” music during a “party” in a medieval settlement - which actually fit the scene. I actually nodded in appreciation and thought it was even better than the crickets! Then they started burlesque music when the main characters got drunk and fooled around.

I’m not kidding - from ceilidh music to burlesque. And it was so awful that I couldn’t enjoy the book anymore unless I bought the NON-BOOKTRACK version.

Thank God!!!!!!! The book is awesome!!!! So glad I stopped listening to Booktrack!!!!

Joe is #1 in SF Fantasy

The guy is simply the best writer out there, so detailed but so much violence. Political intrigue, surprises only the great George RR could imagine, oh and more violence. The heroes like video game characters, with jaw-clenching, heart ripped out of your chest strength, the magicians real magicians. A 10/10 on every scale and Pacey is a master also. Dive in (......also book track distracting at first then great).

adding music was a terrible decision.

I've enjoyed the whole series until this title. the music turned the whole thing into a cartoon. very distracting

Distracting background music

didn't know that book track meant corny background music turned up too loud so you can't hear that narrator. serves no purpose. had to buy the book again without it

Love these books but…music?

These books are fantastic. I love the author and Narrator but I could not get through this with the background music.
It’s not that it was necessarily bad but it was repetitive and it told me how to feel and sometimes it was contrary to the scene I was listening to.

I’ve purchased the regular one and I will finish the book there.
Gave it a shot, not my cup of tea.

Booktrack music was senseless and obnoxious

The story was okay. My least favorite in the series so far, but worth the time. That said, it was pretty weak. They made a cartoon villain of a long time character and felt like a jarring departure from where their story was left in previous books.

Regarding booktrack - it was awful. Completely nonsensical inclusions of stock music with horrible timing and was inconsistent. Clearly no thought was put into composing what music to include when. Slide guitar here, a fiddle there, now some sentimental piano, then abruptly nothing followed by more noise. Just. Plain. Awful.