Crystal Soldier

Liaden Universe Books of Before, Book 1

By: Sharon Lee, Steve Miller

Narrated by: Kevin T. Collins

Length: 13 hrs and 51 mins

Publisher's summary

Centuries in the past, mankind fought a seemingly unbeatable adversary from sector to sector across the Spiral Arm until the war ground to a standstill and the Enemy withdrew. Believing that they had won, the citizens of the galaxy rebuilt. The Inner Worlds, which had escaped the worst of the war's ravages, became even more insular, while the Rim worlds adopted a free and easy way with law and order. Now, hundreds of years after their withdrawal, the Enemy is back - and this time they'll be satisfied with nothing less than the extinction of the galaxy.

©2004 Sharon Lee and Steve Miller (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Good book, great narration

I love this narrator. He doesn't try to adopt a unique voice for each character, but yet he sounds real, and I can tell who is speaking. As for the book, the first third, especially when Jela meets Tree, is very good, yet slow. Likewise, the last third, from meeting Uncle until the end, is very good -- and nicely paced. The middle section got a bit tedious at times.

This is book 1 in the Liaden series. The crystal soldier is probably M. Jela Granthor's Guard, a supersoldier and generalist, with extra strength and stamina, increased vision and memory, etc. Jela is consistently portrayed as dutiful -- to preserving all life, Tree in particular.

Jela and baby Tree unite. Baby Tree talks to Jela in images, and creates special seed pods for Jela to eat. Jela lugs that potted plant around throughout the book. Lol.

Then Jela meets peerless pilot Cantra yos'Phelium. Some good scenes, but they circle warily. Had to laugh at Cantra's ironic take on life in general and on Tree in particular. With sharp self-mockery, she wonders, "Why am I listening to a vegetable?"

Dulsey and Uncle each play a role. I didn't care for either of them, but especially Dulsey. She seemed self-centered, and acted like she was entitled.

The villains, the big bad Sheriekas, are perfect beings of unlimited power, determined to destroy everything and everyone not similarly perfect. They were far too nebulous and vague. Poorly developed.

I liked Rool Tiazan and his Gray Lady, but they didn't show up till the last section. Cool scene, when they first met Tree.

Story that builds momentum as it goes.

What did you love best about Crystal Soldier?

The 2 main characters. They are very compelling and able to pull in the reader.

Have you listened to any of Kevin T. Collins’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

This is my first book read by Kevin T. Collins... and I fell in LOVE! I will now seek out other books he's read just to hear him read! He truly did an excellent job.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Can one man save the universe from destruction?

Any additional comments?

Book started off slow for me, by skipping some time... but picked up. I ended excited to read the next book.

Poor

Very slow and hard to follow. Too many weird creatures. I didn't understand the plot nor storyline. I couldn't relate to the creatures and worship of a tree. Hated this book. I gave story one star but somehow it went to two. It should be no star at all even the reader was poor.

What? I have to be missing something

The narrator's style is not for me. He is breathless and pressured and would read "Behind the door was a vast golden horde guarded by a fierce red dragon" and "Honey, we are out of toilet paper" in the same way. I could overlook the poor command of sentence structure, overly formal or slang (Or both together) dialog, cheesy consonance ("he stood sipping.' WHAT? Just the three words.... He stood sipping? There were other examples of Clever Consonance at the expense of Clarity...) and inconsistent plot flow... I could... but the narrator sunk it. "Honey, The Toilet Paper, It seems, perhaps, we are out." <--- That is what it is like. I really like the tree. I'm going to jump ahead and see if I missed out on something, these books are popular. Perhaps these "Before" books are just intended for fans. This one reads like amateur fan fiction.

Airy Fairy

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

Actually a better story. As far as "military sc/fi" goes this is more touchy feely than I like.

What could Sharon Lee and Steve Miller have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Rewritten it.

What three words best describe Kevin T. Collins’s performance?

Not too bad.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Crystal Soldier?

It's not a book I'd care to edit as I don't think I'm the target audience.

Any additional comments?

Disappointed.

terrible reader

the reader makes such a difference to an audible book. I could not stand the breathless desperate tone of the man reading this book. it really ruined it. I could not even get past chapter one .