Some Planets Aren't So Close to Earth

By: David J. Rouzzo

Narrated by: Victor Warren

Length: 5 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's Summary

From the author of the Hathin series and The Well Strategized and Thoroughly Thought Out Self Destruction of Harry Flynnt comes Some Planets Aren't So Close to Earth, a tale inspired by the music of independent artist Broken Canvas.

Follow the life of Zane Pierce, a man with a strong admiration for the stars who suddenly finds his dreams haunted by a beautiful woman named Amaris.

As he continues to see Amaris, Zane soon finds himself consumed by his dreams and the world they surround him with. Dreams soon turn to reality, and Zane discovers he is a part of a much bigger picture than he could have ever imagined.

Journey into the realm of David J. Rouzzo's Some Planets Aren't So Close to Earth and experience the adventure filled with romance, conspiracy, and suspense that will leave you dreaming about more.

©2017 David J. Rouzzo (P)2020 David J. Rouzzo

Both Different and Similar in Such A Good Way

4.5 out of 5 stars

I went into this one with a completely open mind. The cover didn’t even really affect my thinking about the book. So, once I started it I was getting some serious vibes from a few different stories I’ve read or watched over the years but it was still a bit different.

The benefit of being similar to a book or movie is that I have a baseline and it’s not all new ideas and thoughts, but sometimes you can get bogged down in “oh this is just a repeat of that”. Some Planets Aren’t So Close to Earth thankfully just used some similar ideas but had a lot more original ones to take it to another level. The story was interesting and kept me guessing around every corner.

As the story neared the end, I was shocked a few times by the different things that were realized or revealed to Zane. The back and forth between him and Amaris throughout was top notch as well – really ramping up the emotional value of the story.

Overall, Some Planets Aren’t So Close To Earth felt original and different while also feeling familiar and comfortable. Rouzzo was able to write things that surprised me but also things that felt right. The story really flowed and once it started down the final slope I couldn’t put it down.

The narration by Victor Warren, while a bit on the slower side was excellent. Warren is able to give emotion without overacting and is able to turn an enjoyable story into something even more so.

Good

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

This book starts off sounding like a sweet love story. Man dreams about beautiful woman. Man starts obsessing about the dream woman....Ok I am with you. Man suddenly realizes that aliens are real....wait whut?.....Man realizes that everyone in his life are deceiving him about the aliens.....wtf?.....Man discovers more about the aliens. Alright then.

The story was weird and took many random turns. There was no real conflict in the book. The main character (Zane) searches for his dream girl and gets random reveals. Everything just happened in a way that left me feeling rather unsatisfied with the story. There were "obstacles" which were way too easy to overcome and the antagonists were very easy to back down at a word from the main character.

The Narrator was top notch. I always seem to listen to books at around 1.4x but I had to speed up to 1.7x to get a better pace but overall, everything flowed smoothly. Everything about this narrator other than the speed was amazing and I will be finding more books narrated by him in the future.

"It's a dream, Sweetie."

A strange and quick read, just over five hours, that feels more like a fable than an adventure romance story, and one which was apparently inspired by the song 'Space', by Broken Canvass.
A lonely young man one night dreams of a woman, a dream so real he cannot get it, or her, out of his mind. He becomes obsessed, living just to get back to sleep and dream again, hopefully of her. And the dream becomes more than just his sleeping period...

Very simply written, this short book is at first intriguing but later becomes a more regular quest, though still enjoyable. Narration by Victor Warren is good, if a little slow (best to turn playback to 1.25), clearly enunciated in a time which fits the somewhat naive text and conversations. Suitable for any age, it contains romance and seperation, adventure and determination, loss and longing all wrapped into a sweet story.

My thanks to the rights holder of Some Planets Aren't So Close to Earth, who, at my request, freely gifted me with a complimentary copy via Audiobook Boom. I did enjoy the quirky story but would I recommend it? I don't know.