Riley V

The Final Path Home

By: Mark Tufo

Narrated by: Sean Runnette

Length: 2 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's Summary

After being separated from her pack and left for dead, Riley, a fearless American bulldog, teams up with an unexpected ally on her quest to find the final path home. Together they face the harshness of the wilderness, the rage of the "deaders", and the murderous intent of the "two-leggers". Sometimes, man is far from a dog's best friend.

©2015 Mark Tufo (P)2016 Audible, Inc.

Tufo’s roller coaster of emotions was ever present

Although George greeted Riley into the next world, he sent her bags packing back to the zombie infested world she had just left.  Seems Riley still had some work to complete.

Riley and her protector, Thorn Grip, find their way to a farm with a vet and his wife.  Together the two humans help heal Riley and learn much from Thorn Grip.  Seeking to reunite with her pack, Riley returns to the place of her death and finds Ben-Ben and Patches looking for her.

In typical Mark Tufo fashion, the hilarity and action ensues – an egotistic, preening cat, a young Ben-Ben with the hots for the towering, cereal eating, but not a dog, Thorn Grip; a confused male vet and his loving wife, a chance encounter with Icely’s henchmen and more zombies!

Tufo’s roller coaster of emotions was ever present – you will laugh, you will guffaw loudly and you will cry.  I finished the audiobook on my way to work with tears flowing down my cheeks at the end – some were tears from laughter while the last ones were of sadness and loss.

My favorite character of this book, which is also the most surprising, is Thorn Grip – I love her passion for cereal and Captain Crunch at that!

Tufo has a gift of storytelling.  He has a talent for bonding his readers to his characters making them bond so that when one dies it is heart wrenching.  While the last book left me stunned and angry that Riley had to die, this one left saddened even though Riley lives and there is an opportunity for there to be more Riley books should Tufo wish to write them.

Throughout each book Tufo parts words of wisdom that makes one stop and think; he makes us question our beliefs, actions, fears and what constitutes family.  Well written, Tufo’s Riley 5 is an excellent book.

Sean Runnette did a wonderful narration of the Riley 5.  His tone and voice are the voices of the Tufo characters and world.  His reading is packed with enthusiasm, feeling and warmth.

There were no issues with production.

Audiobook was provided for review by the author.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog

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LOVED IT! TOO SHORT, NEED MORE!

I adore this series, and this was a great installment! We meet a new character, Thorngrip the bear, and she is awesome! Mark left this one open for another one, which makes me super happy..and we find out Riley is alive, and recovers to fight another day...her and her pack of Ben ben, and Patches make it back to the Talbot home in Maine...She learns Jess is gone..and she wants to get Zach...she senses something bad coming, so they settle in to see what's going to happen next! LOVED IT!!!!!

Riley V 5 Stars

Mark Tufo does it again, every one of his titles automatically goes on my pre order list.

Omg, made my day!! Loved it!

Loved it! Almost to short ! I love the new characters!!!It is as engaging if not more so then the others because of the sense of urgency, THE FEELS! Dang guy has me happy-crying every 45mins

The end again?

I enjoyed this book but not until after I was crushed by the last one. I did get over it and the addition of Thorngrip made up for my sadness. I was happy to have Riley back along with Ben ben and Patches. I was also happy to know that Zach was ok. Unfortunately with the safety of Riley we were given the death of Jess. It seems Mark Tufo can't really make up his mind. I guess it's less painful for the readers if he takes out the girl instead of the dog so he rethought that one. Overall I enjoyed this adventure. Hopefully it won't be the final one.
The narrator did a good job with the book however I think it would have been a better choice to have a female narrator since the series was being told from the point of view of Riley who is a female dog. I read the previous four books so this is the first I've listened to.

Leaves you wanting more and more.

I have listened to all the Riley books and even named my Pitbull Terrier after the series. That's how much I love Riley and the pack. I really hope Mark Tofu writer's more Riley books and soon. 5 stars all around.

I love this book

I want more. Many, many more. So far, this has been my favorite series of books.

Love, Love, Love! Scary, Suspenseful & Hilarious!

What did you love best about Riley V?

The characters different personalities were very amusing. The suspense was teeth gritting.

What did you like best about this story?

The banter between the animal characters. Another reviewer compared it to Homeward Bound likeness and I agree. Homeward Bound meets Walking Dead, awesome! I found myself laughing out loud many times.

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

I hated when characters I grew to love died....darned zombies!

Any additional comments?

I absolutely loved the series and consumed it within a 48 hour period. It would have been even shorter if I didn't have to work. I considered this series to be a premium story but still quite pricey at a credit per two and a half hours worth of story.

Man this was a great story

What about Sean Runnette’s performance did you like?

He has a great voice.

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

It was both funny and sad.

Any additional comments?

I really wish it would have been longer. I really don't want the series to end!

Just not that fab ..and not worth the money : (

Disappointed .. paid 12 bucks for a 3 hour and 21 minute book .. the first 20 minutes is going over the story you just read.. I mean who picks up a book in the middle of a series ? I dunno.. feels like a money grab to me. The story does fill in some blanks left out in Zombie Fallout.. but honestly it could have all been one book .. not one book divided into 5 at 12 bucks a pop.

Best

I really enjoyed the last in Riley series, I thought best of them all, maybe because I’m a softie for the four legged companions.💖💖

amazing

It's tufo of course it good. really well wrote and runnette brings it to life.

Fantastic

Oh my, as always this is an epic journey! A huge thank you to Mark for writing this story (it feels right) and as always Sean brings it to life!

I'm so glad this book got made, I loved the story and the performance was perfect as always.

if you have read/listened to the other books you will definitely want to listen to this!!!!!!

Tears were here again but this time of joy.

I laughed and I cried

Mark Tufo's brilliance in realising characters is never so obvious than in this series. Despite being an animal lover, I wasn't convinced by the concept of these stories until I read the first volume. This volume is no exception. Tufo has introduced a few new characters who are as vivid as any I've read. I found myself laughing from the outset and crying at the end with a whole range of emotions in between. Several times the tension was palpable.

This was another fantastic story from one of the best storytellers I've ever read. As ever, Sean Runnette brings the story to life with his excellent narration. He deftly voices the non-human characters with the same skill as he does the human ones, showing his great understanding of the inner workings of a story. A narrator can ruin or elevate a book. Runnette is a master of narration.

I recommend this book wholeheartedly.

Loved it

Really enjoyed this, this final chapter has finished this series of short stories off on a happy note and not the devastating cliffhanger the last book ended with, I also hope and look forward to hear more of Riley in the zombie fallout books. As always I have enjoyed my little wander into Mark Tufo's world which was brought to life by the narrating magician which is Sean Runnette :)