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The world of Faerie never disappeared: it merely went into hiding, continuing to exist parallel to our own. Secrecy is the key to Faerie’s survival—but no secret can be kept forever, and when the fae and mortal worlds collide, changelings are born. Half-human, half-fae, outsiders from birth, these second-class children of Faerie spend their lives fighting for the respect of their immortal relations.
For most people, the story of their lives is just that: the accumulation of time, encounters, and actions into a cohesive whole. But for an unfortunate few, that day-to-day existence is affected - perhaps infected is a better word - by memetic incursion: where fairy tale narratives become reality, often with disastrous results.
Rose Marshall died in 1952 in Buckley Township, Michigan, run off the road by a man named Bobby Cross - a man who had sold his soul to live forever, and intended to use her death to pay the price of his immortality. Trouble was, he didn't ask Rose what she thought of the idea. It's been more than sixty years since that night, and she's still sixteen, and she's still running. It's been more than sixty years since that night, and she's still sixteen, and she's still running.
Children have always disappeared under the right conditions - slipping through the shadows under a bed or at the back of a wardrobe, tumbling down rabbit holes and into old wells, and emerging somewhere...else. But magical lands have little need for used-up miracle children. Nancy tumbled once, but now she's back. The things she's experienced...they change a person. The children under Miss West's care understand all too well. And each of them is seeking a way back to their own fantasy world.
In his junior year at college, the only things on Sean's mind are doing his homework and getting out of college to get a real job. A gamer and a bit of a nerd, Sean's philosophy in life has been to keep his head down and get his work done. But when a failed kidnapping attempt leaves him with a gaping hole in his memory, his oldest friend dead, and his mother missing, Sean suddenly finds his whole world turned upside down as he's thrust into the hidden world of magic and the supernatural.
Control dinosaurs. Tame women. Rule the world. Victor Shelby and his tribe of beautiful alien women have built a fortress to keep themselves safe, but when they encounter another tribe of survivors, Victor must leverage his dinosaur-taming abilities to negotiate either peace or violence. And violence is what Dinosaurland is all about.
The world of Faerie never disappeared: it merely went into hiding, continuing to exist parallel to our own. Secrecy is the key to Faerie’s survival—but no secret can be kept forever, and when the fae and mortal worlds collide, changelings are born. Half-human, half-fae, outsiders from birth, these second-class children of Faerie spend their lives fighting for the respect of their immortal relations.
For most people, the story of their lives is just that: the accumulation of time, encounters, and actions into a cohesive whole. But for an unfortunate few, that day-to-day existence is affected - perhaps infected is a better word - by memetic incursion: where fairy tale narratives become reality, often with disastrous results.
Rose Marshall died in 1952 in Buckley Township, Michigan, run off the road by a man named Bobby Cross - a man who had sold his soul to live forever, and intended to use her death to pay the price of his immortality. Trouble was, he didn't ask Rose what she thought of the idea. It's been more than sixty years since that night, and she's still sixteen, and she's still running. It's been more than sixty years since that night, and she's still sixteen, and she's still running.
Children have always disappeared under the right conditions - slipping through the shadows under a bed or at the back of a wardrobe, tumbling down rabbit holes and into old wells, and emerging somewhere...else. But magical lands have little need for used-up miracle children. Nancy tumbled once, but now she's back. The things she's experienced...they change a person. The children under Miss West's care understand all too well. And each of them is seeking a way back to their own fantasy world.
In his junior year at college, the only things on Sean's mind are doing his homework and getting out of college to get a real job. A gamer and a bit of a nerd, Sean's philosophy in life has been to keep his head down and get his work done. But when a failed kidnapping attempt leaves him with a gaping hole in his memory, his oldest friend dead, and his mother missing, Sean suddenly finds his whole world turned upside down as he's thrust into the hidden world of magic and the supernatural.
Control dinosaurs. Tame women. Rule the world. Victor Shelby and his tribe of beautiful alien women have built a fortress to keep themselves safe, but when they encounter another tribe of survivors, Victor must leverage his dinosaur-taming abilities to negotiate either peace or violence. And violence is what Dinosaurland is all about.
When Mark Ryder's latest mission turns into a bloodbath, he'll find himself alone on the shores of an alien moon hunted by insects the size of skyscrapers. Now, if he wants to get off this rock alive, he'll have to cut a bloody swathe through the bug queen's elite army, rendezvous with the all-female Artemis squad, and blow the whole thing to Kingdom Come without getting killed.
Anna never knew werewolves existed until the night she survived a violent attack…and became one herself. After three years at the bottom of the pack, she’d learned to keep her head down and never, ever trust dominant males. But Anna is that rarest kind of werewolf: an Omega. And one of the most powerful werewolves in the country will recognize her value as a pack member—and as his mate.
A captive at the mercy of the Warlord of their multi-world kingdom, Nalini has learned to hide under a mask, a lie. As far as her master sees, she’s his obedient little puppet. Then, she meets him. The male who can obliterate the entire Galaxy. Her world ends that day. In the eyes of a young Seer, Kai discovers who he’s meant to be. His future is blood and death; but there’s a female by his side. A female he’d gladly destroy stars for. If his destiny is ruling over ruins with her, so be it.
When Nell Ingram met skinwalker Jane Yellowrock, she was almost alone in the world, exiled by both choice and fear from the cult she was raised in, defending herself with the magic she drew from her deep connection to the forest that surrounds her. Now, Jane has referred Nell to PsyLED, a Homeland Security agency policing paranormals, and agent Rick LaFleur has shown up at Nell's doorstep.
On the outside, Dina Demille is the epitome of normal. She runs a quaint Victorian Bed and Breakfast in a small Texas town, owns a Shih Tzu named Beast, and is a perfect neighbor, whose biggest problem should be what to serve her guests for breakfast.
Mercy Thompson's life is not exactly normal. Her next-door neighbor is a werewolf. Her former boss is a gremlin. And she's fixing a VW bus for a vampire. But then, Mercy isn't exactly normal herself.
Jane Yellowrock is the last of her kind-a skinwalker of Cherokee descent who can turn into any creature she desires and hunts vampires for a living. But now she's been hired by Katherine Fontaneau, one of the oldest vampires in New Orleans and the madam of Katie's Ladies, to hunt a powerful rogue vampire who's killing other vamps.
Seven years ago the Atargatis set off on a voyage to the Mariana Trench to film a mockumentary bringing to life ancient sea creatures of legend. It was lost at sea with all hands. Some have called it a hoax; others have called it a tragedy. Now a new crew has been assembled. But this time they're not out to entertain. Some seek to validate their life's work. Some seek the greatest hunt of all. Some seek the truth. But for the ambitious young scientist Victoria Stewart, this is a voyage to uncover the fate of the sister she lost.
In Ghostwalkers, a gun-for-hire, literally haunted by his bloody past, comes to the struggling town of Paradise Falls, where he becomes embroiled in a deadly conflict between the besieged community and a diabolically brilliant alchemist who is building terrible new weapons of mass destruction...and an army of the living dead!
From the very first hour Cayden had set foot inside the massive, real-life game that was the Tower of Babel, nothing had gone according to plan. A unique skill, a handful of new friends, and the wrath of an ultra-wealthy, patricidal lunatic were just some of the complications to his best laid plans.
So why was he even surprised when a special event trapped him, his companions, and dozens of other players inside the tower, squaring them off against a murderous army of stone-faced warriors?
Let's get one thing straight - Ivy Wilde is not a heroine. In fact she's probably the last witch in the world you'd call if you needed a magical helping hand, regardless of her actual abilities. If it were down to Ivy, she'd spend all day every day on her sofa, where she could watch TV, munch junk food, and talk to her feline familiar to her heart's content. However, when a bureaucratic disaster ends up with Ivy as the victim of a case of mistaken identity, she's yanked very unwillingly into Arcane Branch.
New York Times best-selling author Nalini Singh delivers a smoldering story with Secrets at Midnight, as the scent of Bastien Smith's elusive lover ignites a possessiveness in him that's as feral as it is ecstatic. And now that he's found his mate, he'll do anything to keep her.
Ghoulies. Ghosties. Long-legged beasties. Things that go bump in the night....
The Price family has spent generations studying the monsters of the world, working to protect them from humanity - and humanity from them. Enter Verity Price. Despite being trained from birth as a cryptozoologist, she'd rather dance a tango than tangle with a demon, and is spending a year in Manhattan while she pursues her career in professional ballroom dance. Sounds pretty simple, right? It would be, if it weren't for the talking mice, the telepathic mathematicians, the asbestos supermodels, and the trained monster-hunter sent by the Price family's old enemies, the Covenant of St. George.
When a Price girl meets a Covenant boy, high stakes, high heels, and a lot of collateral damage are almost guaranteed. To complicate matters further, local cryptids are disappearing, strange lizard-men are appearing in the sewers, and someone's spreading rumors about a dragon sleeping underneath the city....
While this story is interesting and enjoyable, I feel an obligation to share that "there be mice" lots and lots of mice. Since I am one of those who has a rodent phobia, discovering that the heroine shares her living space with a colony of mice was off putting to say the least. I almost stopped listening. Thankfully I came back to the story and pushed through. In all honesty, the mice were more the mickey type than the horror story, attack the human type.
I enjoy this genre of books. Being an avid reader all my life, I have transferred this same enthusiasm to listening. I have been through many series and am constantly looking for new. What I liked the best about this book is the more human qualities the supernaturals are given. It is a different approach than all the "kill the bad" that many authors take. The snark wasn't bad either.
This wasn't the best series I've experienced but is was enjoyable and I think well worth the credit. Good start. Now I'm interested in seeing where this goes.
14 of 14 people found this review helpful
Where does Discount Armageddon rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
I've enjoyed all of Seanan McGuire/Mira Grant's other books but this is rapidly shaping up to be my favourite!
Who was your favorite character and why?
Tie between Sarah Zellaby and Verity Price ( although I'd be really interested in her grenade toting grandmother as well).
What does Emily Bauer bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
For a lot of Characters the young bright and perky thing wouldn't work but for Verity it's perfect!
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Yes, I had to tear myself away from it.
Any additional comments?
The cover and the short synopsis made me a little wary of this book but it's gone way past my expectations, it's just ridiculously fun!
Basically I'm at the point where Seanan McGuire is an anxiously awaited autobuy ( on the same level as Patricia Briggs or Ilona Andrews).
26 of 27 people found this review helpful
What disappointed you about Discount Armageddon?
The author tries to weaving a variety of interesting skills into the main character... ballroom dancing, parkour, zoology, hand to hand combat... but to me as a reader I question if the author actually know much about any of these topics even in the "stage-fighting" logic of tv shows, movies, and books
For one thing the main character keeps bragging about how lethal she is because of how many hidden weapons she has on her in addition to her gun (making them sound like earring and other accessories)... then is beaten MULTIPLE times while at the same time failing to use most of her weapons - even worse runs out of bullets for her gun. She has the tactical mind of a hamster and is routinely unable to deal with any opponent that does not doesn't step forward, announced a challenge, and attack head-on in a 1-on-1 style duel.
When cornered and incredibly outnumbered by several bigger and stronger opponents and you worried about survival... why would anyone try hand to hand combat instead of using their gun until they are almost utterly defeated?
What do you think your next listen will be?
School of Good and Evil
What do you think the narrator could have done better?
Narrator did a decent enough job with the dialogue she was given.
What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?
Annoyance
18 of 19 people found this review helpful
I would say this book is for those listeners who like the truly odd. It wasn't what I expected, nor what I would have been able to guess the book would be about. It was refreshing. It was unexpected. It was hilarious (one of the things I like most about a book). And, it even had a little romance thrown in. The main character kicks butt and rocks! Yay!
6 of 6 people found this review helpful
A fun and escapist new take on urban fantasy with some great plot twists. I keep wanting to say "bouncy," perhaps because the pert blond heroine bounces over the roofs of the city as she free-runs from place to place. The free-running and a back story that includes a stint on a reality TV show are a few of the elements that make this book feel very timely--the action is happening now, in 20teens America.
As for the urban fantasy--the talking mice and the cuckoo are just the best of the delightful new fantasy creatures in the Cryptid world. Also excellent is the casting of Emily Bauer to read this book. Her voice makes Verity Price come alive, completely and perfectly.
The universe, plot fun and pacing, and narrator are why I give this book 4 stars.
Discount Armageddon includes lots of talk of ecology and evolution; no mention so far in the series of any gods or religions beyond those of snake cults and the talking mice. Saint Patrick is mentioned, though only in association with the bad guys. So, magic, and monsters, but no mysticism... except that of the sacred vow of the bad guys... I hope there's not going to be a "science=good/religion=evil" theme as this series continues... boring. (And semantic).
Less gritty than Ilona Andrews' Kate Daniels series (which, set in the future, is more dystopian), Discount Armageddon's love story also lacks (as of book one) the emotional depth of Andrews' series. Rather obvious hookups occur between physically attractive characters because...um....they're hot? And hot people just automatically have amazing chemistry and deep connections...? More depth, please. I like escapism, but my disbelief can only be suspended so far.
Great title, except that the book didn't actually involve any Armageddon. I guess "Discount Secret History/Urban Fantasy" just doesn't have the same ring... and "InCryptid"... I have to wonder if McGuire made up this entire series just so she could use that pun.
I also could have done without the sexual themes and nudity. The heroine works as a cocktail waitress in a strip club and is frequently described--in great detail--in skimpy, sexy outfits (reminded me of Sucker Punch). She makes all the moves on the Obvious Love Interest, and the kissing scenes are also described in detail. But then as the intimacy rises, McGuire fades the scene to black. I don't get it--gratuitous descriptions of scantily clad women, yet barely-there sex scenes? (Much less detailed than in the Kate Daniels series). I don't think there's a decent plot reason to have to heroine work at the club to begin with, and it doesn't empower any of the female characters--all the club adds to the book is another clever name and lots of female nudity. But, even if there are plot reasons for the strip club I missed... why all the focus on describing the wardrobe? What's the point? To teach women that we have the power to kick butt and take names, as long as we're also scantily clad and ready to have sex at any second with any available hottie?
Well, I knew from the genre that there would be sex in this book--I just wish it was as easy to fast-forward an audiobook over the parts I want to skip as it is to skim in a regular book!
I'll continue reading the series as long as it continues to offer light, escapist action. I give it 4 stars because it was a great listen with a good variety of tense and less tense scenes, and for the aforementioned plot twists and creative creatures.
22 of 25 people found this review helpful
Would you try another book from Seanan McGuire and/or Emily Bauer?
maybe??? just not impressed
Would you be willing to try another one of Emily Bauer’s performances?
yes
What character would you cut from Discount Armageddon?
she just had to many other worldlies and didn't give enough history/background to make the story coheisive
Any additional comments?
I bought the 1st book because the 2nd book was on sale....wasted a credit and $7.95 for the sale book... not impressed won't even finish listening to the 1st book and won't open the 2nd book
8 of 9 people found this review helpful
Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?
No, it was not. There was a lot about this book that worked. When Verity is talking about her work, her interest in dance, her goofy family, or cryptid stuff, that works. Even Verity as over-the-top fighter didn't throw me out of the lightweight fantasy. What didn't work was 1) the plot and 2) the romantic subplot. A shame, because there were a lot of fun background details, but the story and the romantic subplot bored me.
What about Emily Bauer’s performance did you like?
I thought she was the ideal narrator for this book and was able to exactly capture the goofy, over-the-top heroine.
Do you think Discount Armageddon needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?
No, but since it was described as "book 1", you knew darn well it was going to get one, and it already has gotten one.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
What made the experience of listening to Discount Armageddon the most enjoyable?
The writing. Seanan is a terrific story teller. Once I started listening, I used any excuse I could find to continue listening.
Who was your favorite character and why?
I really liked Verity. She's strong, a bit vulnerable, and funny. But I also liked Dominic because he started with very definite views about the cryptids but wasn't so stubborn that he could admit that what he knew about cryptids could be skewed.
Have you listened to any of Emily Bauer’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
I've never heard her read before.
Any additional comments?
This was a fun story and eagerly awaiting the release date of book 2.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
I absolutely love the October Daye series and rank her books as auto buys. This one was great also. Not as much depth as the faerie novels, but good fun. Looking forward to listening to the next one.
6 of 7 people found this review helpful
What made the experience of listening to Discount Armageddon the most enjoyable?
It was a lighter experience than McGuire's other works and I really found myself getting into the adventure of it all.
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
I might've gotten a little misty-eyed when Candy met William. Maybe. Don't judge.
Any additional comments?
I quite like Emily Bauer's voice, but can someone please teach her how to pronounce Antimony and gorgon before the next one comes out? Please?
6 of 7 people found this review helpful