Strings

De: David Estes

Narrado por: Kate Rudd

Sometimes the strings that tie us down are the same strings that set us free.

Sixteen-year-old Pia has always lived in a mysterious facility where mechanical strings control her existence. She plays apprentice to her father, Gio, in performing nanotech designs for the Company, and she soon suspects there are diabolical human forces behind the manufactured reality of her world.

Though her childhood memories and the origins of the strings remain strangely elusive, she begins to find solace with the introduction of two unlikely friends: daring, irrational Sofia, and calm, tender Marco.

As the truths of the past and present unravel together, Pia must find a way to free herself from her strings and escape the facility before facing the wrath of the unstable head of security, Mr. Davis. But to gain her freedom, she must navigate the dangers posed by Davis and by her suspicious new friends to find the real identity of the puppeteer.

If Pia can succeed in revealing the secrets of the Company, she may very well find the independence she so desperately seeks. But in her controlled world nothing is as it seems, and the closer she gets to the truth, the graver the consequences.

©2015 David Estes (P)2016 David Estes

very slow, but poetic

Any additional comments?

There's nothing wrong with the writing in this book, and there's some lofty aspirations in the story itself. It just didn't work for me. It was slow, so very slow. The days and the conversations are somewhat repetitive, and, because nearly the whole story takes place in one building, there's not even much in scenery-world building to focus on while the story drags on.

I did love Fig, and, honestly, the entire cast of characters was pretty good. The main character, Pia, had some pretty poor decision making skills, which made her my least favorite.

While the message of the story is an important one, the set-up seemed somewhat contrived and implausible. I'm OK with having to suspend my belief systems to envision another culture, society, and future -- but I suppose this just went too far... and although I could identify with Pia's imprisonment, I could not identify with her.

Despite my complaints, it was an original re-telling and very poetically written. Perhaps if I had started this audiobook with the expectation of listening to a 10.5 hour poem I would have more nice things to say... I've now read at least 6 Estes books, and this is by far my least favorite... In fact, I pretty much love all the others. We can't all love everything I guess.

The narration was beautiful. She had a great speaking voice that fit the mood of the story quite well. All of the characters were spoken uniquely, and I did not hear any production noises or things like that.

*This audiobook was provided for free from the author.*

Not one of David's best...

Any additional comments?

Loosely based on Pinocchio, this is a dark, futuristic (I think, actually it's hard to pinpoint) take on the classic tale. My last fairytale retelling was a hit and so I really thought I would like this but it really fell flat for me.

While, ultimately, it has a profound message to impart, I was unable to connect with the characters and their darkly told and sad story. I'm not sure if it was the narration, but I believe it's at least partially to blame. I've loved some of David Estes' other works, namely the Dwellers and Country Saga's. Maybe…it's the humor that is so prevalent in them, and is decidedly missing from Strings that has made it so I couldn’t really connect with this story.

Fantastic

Any additional comments?

This book blew men away.It is incredibly unique and I was engrossed in the story till the last word.The author provided an intriguing cast of characters and an unusual premise.The impressive world building and the mystery of the strings kept me up late so I could finish the book.The narrator did an excellent job portraying the book and has a very pleasant voice.I received an audiobook from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Unique and Engrossing

Excellent story! Different than anything else I've read. Lots of twists and turns. Very emotional. I'd recommend it to anyone that enjoys a well written story with characters you can care about. Narration was enjoyable and filled with emotion that was believable.

Pinocchio Reimagined

What did you love best about Strings?

Estes' fantastic reimagining of a classic story.

What other book might you compare Strings to and why?

Pinocchio because that's the book redone here.

Have you listened to any of Kate Rudd’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I don't believe I've listened to Kate Rudd before but I'm not certain. She did a good job with this and pronounced an astonishing number of worded correctly. There were a few places that sounded "flat" to me (almost bored or sardonic) and while men and women sounded different, I often couldn't tell one woman or man from another. (Pia sounded a lot like Sofia, Marco sounded like Gio, etc.) Overall though, I enjoyed it!

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

I'll Tell You No Lies