T-Rexes and Tax Law

By: Rachel Ford

Narrated by: John Carter Aimone

Length: 6 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's Summary

A routine tax fraud investigation. A strange lab. A mysterious button. 

He shouldn’t have pushed the button. But Alfred Favero, senior analyst with the IRS, pushed the button. And now he’s 67 million years in the past, stranded out of time with a coworker who hates him and a bunch of tax cheats. Oh, and then there’s the other inhabitants of his prehistoric home: the dinosaurs that want to make a meal of him. Things couldn’t get worse. 

Until a mysterious visitor from an uncertain future shows up with murder on his mind.

©2019 Rachel Ford (P)2019 Rachel Ford

T-Rexes and Tax Law

OMG!! This story is absolutely a mix between hilarious and logically serious. The characters are so life like and the narrator brings each one to life. A story about a tax account for the IRS traveling back into time and facing dangerous situations. How does an IRS agent make the columns mesh when the accounts are so out there!!
Fantastic audio and story!!!

Death and Taxes!

Engaging story and great narration!

This one was fun! A nerdy taxman is determined to pursue an evil corporation that is trying to dodge its fiscal responsibilities. Through his pursuit of justice he mistakenly gets himself and his lovely coworker transported back in time!?

I am looking forward to the next book in the series!

Exciting and Funny Time Travel

This was a fun listen, with humor and action/excitement. The how and why our "Tax Man" and associate end up in a time travel situation is at first funny, then goes darker with murder, mystery, and an exciting finish. Don't let the silly title fool you, this is an excellent start a series worth reading...

Turned out pretty good :-)

I found that keeping the narrative between 95-100x worked best to get the sarcasm down. It did take me a few chapters to really get into the story but once I did it kept me engaged. :-)

So, Alfred totally annoyed me at the start, until I started laughing at him. :-D Of. course, Nancy is the back bone & heroine. Therefore, her character is strong which makes Alfred seem weak. Lol, I became annoyed with him in regards to the Marine. ;-)

Good word building, put I'd like a little more depth to the Cretaceous period.

The narrative, a bit distracting & his enunciations were a bit off more so in some places than others. He alone would get a 2.5 out of 5 from me.

Nice ending, I'm certainly going to read the next in the series. :-D

My star ratings include these 5 elements:
1★ story line
1★ engaging characters
1★ use of world building/descriptions
1★ narration or editing
1★ the ending

Absolutely fantastic.

A story that involves time travel is enough to hook me. But this one went above and beyond. The reluctant hero, that actually really wants to be a hero. Time travel. Corporate coverup. A little romance. And a freaking wonderful listen.

This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.

Ridiculously awesome

There are two words that I would use to describe this book: ridiculous and awesome. Ridiculously awesome.

Picture a hybrid of Sheldon from Big Bang Theory and Sandra Bullock's character from The Heat. Now imagine that that character got dropped into the middle of the Cretaceous period with his "sidekick" (who, let's be honest, is really the hero) in the form of a hybrid Leonard/Melissa McCarthy. Ridiculous, right? Awesome, right? Why not create a hybrid of ridiculously awesome?

This is a book that does not take itself seriously, but does pack a lot of humor and enjoyment. I often found myself laughing or snorting out loud at Alfred's ridiculousness. He's not a completely likable character at first. In fact, he may only be tolerable. You'll get exasperated with his antics (or realize you know someone exactly like him) and roll your eyes. But you know that one person that can annoy the heck out of you, but you end up adoring anyway? That was Alfred for me, and the turning point was when Nancy had to educate him on mansplaining. I wanted to stand up and applaud her for it and give Alfred a pat on the back for realizing what he was doing and attempting to change it.

Now, Nancy. She's really the hero in this book, but I like that we're getting everything from Alfred's perspective. He's not the big, buff soldier that takes charge. In fact, Nancy is definitely the leader and capable one in this relationship. Which all leads to this adorable relationship between Nancy and Alfred as Alfred learns to become a little less rigid in rule following and a little more understanding about the rest of humanity.

I listened to the audiobook version of T-Rexes and Tax Law and absolutely loved it. I think the book would have been entertaining whether I read it or listened to it, but the narrator, John Carter Aimone, adds a whole other level to Alfred's ridiculousness. He created the perfect mix of comedic timing, cluelessness, and dry wit. Though sometimes the acting was a little over the top or added in odd places, overall it was incredibly enjoyable. The pacing is a little slow though and there’s odd pauses after sentences, but nothing that speeding it up to 1.35x can’t fix.

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

Not Your Typical Audit

The hero of this novel, Alfred, could easily have served as its primary villain. He’s not evil, just obsessively interested in enforcing every rule in the work place and the United States. In many ways, this is a perfect disposition for a Senior Analyst at the IRS, but when you add to the equation that Alfred is completely oblivious to how his need for orderliness negatively impacts those around him, he should have been the least sympathetic of heroes. It’s a testament to Rachel Ford’s skill as an author that I had the opposite reaction. I almost immediately connected with Alfred and I vigorously rooted for him as he struggled with both complex social interactions and the even more difficult problem that drives the plot of the story. And what a problem it is…

Alfred and his reluctant investigative partner, Nancy, are investigating a suspected billionaire tax cheat when they stumble upon dinosaurs in one of his abandoned corporate facilities and Alfred accidentally gets the two of them transported 67 million years into the past where they discover the missing billionaire and a few dozen of his employees trapped in the Cretaceous Period. This is where the book really gets interesting. There are several intertwined mysteries here all stemming from the question: how did the billionaire get trapped in the past? I was very pleased that I worked out most of the answers on my own and was even more pleased with the parts Ford had to fill in for me.

In any book involving time travel, the author has to deal with the problems of paradox and the circular possibilities that time travel brings to the table. I felt completely satisfied with Ford’s handling of these problems which she adroitly used to add quite a bit of tension to the novel.

The best part of the story was Alfred’s growth as a person. Being isolated under stressful circumstances with Nancy forces him to truly listen to another person for the first time in his life and he is shocked by her perception of him. This led to a moving and wholly believable evolution in his character. He doesn’t stop being a rules obsessed know-it-all, but he does learn a little about self-sacrifice and friendship which makes him increasingly endearing as the novel unfolds.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am looking forward to listening to the sequel.

I received this book free from Audiobook Boom in exchange for an honest review.

The tax man cometh

Death and Taxez, the only two things kings that are certain. But when a research group goes missing for 6 years, how far is a supremely focused agent willing to go. All the way to the Cretaceous period.... So funny! I want more Alfred and Nancy! I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

T-Rexes and Tax Law

I was given this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

Funny! The narrator wasn't perfect but I can't say I was too distracted by it. I plan to listen to this again!

Light hearted science fiction

T-Reyes and Tax Law is a light hearted science fiction adventure. Alfred, the time traveling tax man, starts the series as the epitome of the self important nerd, The series is told from his perspective with him blundering into fantastic situations. He is aided in this first adventure by Nancy, his coworker, a more well rounded individual. The background story is intriguing, the action continual, and Alfred both ridiculous and heroic. Although John Aimone has a few “ interesting “ pronunciations, he does an excellent job with the central character. This is an excellent series for those who like science fiction adventure with a dose of humor.

Unlikely hero!

The title of this book was what drew me to it! I'm a big fan of book with dinosaurs but couldn't figure what it had to do with tax but it quickly became apparent when I started to listen.

Senior analyst for the IRS, Alfred Favero, is sent to investigate a big company who is suspected of fraud. His reluctant companion is Nancy who is barely able to stand Alfreds' pompous attitude. When they arrive at the compound they find the place to be abandoned, and it looks like it's been abandoned for years. They enter a room and Alfred pushes a big red button which causes both of their lives to change forever!! Alfred and Nancy are transported millions of years into the past with no way home. they eventually find the missing people but they also find themselves embattled in a mystery that needs to be unraveled.

While the plot sounds ridiculous, it actually works extremely well! Who knew that the IRS would stumble upon such a mystery!! Lol. I do wish there was more dinosaur action though, there was one scene where it became very tense, but I wanted more. I did love the mystery intertwined with the time travelling plot though and couldn't listen to it fast enough in order to find out what happened.

But the absolute best thing about this book was Alfred. He is so sure of himself and his work, he follows the rules to the letter and is almost pompous in his attitude, but he is a lovable pompous and I immediately liked him. He reminded me a bit of Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory in a way, though he isn't geeky at all!! I also loved his interactions with Nancy. You can feel her exasperation with him but she gets Alfred to take a long look at himself when she reveals some truths to him. That's when he stars growing as a character and that's when he and Nancy become friends.

In all, this was a fun read, with plenty of laugh out loud moments... most of them from or about Alfred!! I'm intrigued to see what else Alfred gets up to and am so glad I have the second one to listen to right away!!

While I loved the story, I'm quiet torn with the narration. On one hand John Carter Aimone made for an awesome Alfred but on the other, he just read the story too slowly. It took me ages to get into because it sounded so boring and I ended up having to start again from the start and speed up the narration in order to finish it. Once I found a speed I felt comfortable with, I did end up liking his narration. He had plenty of tones and voices and put emotion behind his performance, which made it all the more fun with Alfred!!

I was given this audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. This in no way affected nor influenced my thoughts.

exellent

Great series...doing everything i wanted it to. Helped me kill some time. If you like this sort of thing go for it.

fantastic and quirky

Wow what a fantastic and quirky book, I loved every single minute of it.

It was great hearing Alfred becoming a much nicer person.

Well written and narrated as always xxxx

A monster of a book

This is a different book for me to listen, my choice is cozy mysteries but I fancied a change and the blurb sounded interesting so I gave it a go. Glad I did as I enjoyed it and am going to get book two. Again the title sounds strange and not one I would normally listen to- UFOs and unpaid taxes but some how the author made this one work so I am going to give it a try. I liked it because it was so unusual, there was also a slight mystery (which kept me happy) as to who had followed them and was trying to kill off the survivors. I liked the characters and the way Alfred used creative words for swearing, also the way he has no problems when it comes to his job and upholding the law but life and every thing else he is less assured of himself even if he doesn't know it.
When Alfred and Nancy go on a field trip to investigate some irregularities with a company's taxes and the fact that everybody in the company disappeared, they had no idea that the helicopter ride to the desert and a secret base would change there lives. The empty base in abandoned and there task seems impossible the computer doesn't work because there is no power. No power that is except for the power running to the big button. The big button that Alfred can't help but press. Sending them back in time to when the dinosaurs walked the earth and then begins a fight to survive, good job they are able to find the missing scientist. However any changes in the past could effect them in the future and by traveling back in time they have already made one big change that could effect every one and give Alfred a big headache trying to understand it all . Will the change mean they can get back to there own time line or are they stuck?
I liked the narrator but did have to increase the speed a bit because he talked a bit to slowly, the voices were good though and you could always tell who was speaking.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Finally! The exciting side to tax accounting!

Haha! What a fun tale! It’s perfectly ridiculous. I could tell from the cover that it would be silly but it was also clever. The idea of a tax fraud investigator stumbling upon a time travel conspiracy and getting sucked back into dino times makes me chuckle.

Nancy was my favorite character (sorry Alfred!). She’s got the harsh snarky comments (totally excusable when you’re being chased by a dino) and she’s the brains too. I think without her Alfred would have died and we would have had a very short, bloody tale.

There’s plenty of action, tax jokes (not nearly as boring as that sounds), and Alfred screaming like a small frightened child. Toss in a megalomaniac murderer, dehydration, and some indecipherable tax forms, and you got a pretty good story. 4.5/5 stars.

The Narration: John Carter Aimone needs to pick up the pace of his speech. He was so slow. I actually bumped up the playback speed on my app… and then bumped it up again… and again. I was at 1.75x on the playback speed and there were still these pauses inbetween some sentences that were just awkward and made it a bit of a trudge to get through this book. Other than that, he had a good voice for Alfred and a feminine don’t-mess-with-me voice for Nancy. Other than the slow speech issue, there were no tech issues with the recording. 3/5 stars.

A Quirky Time Travel Story...and the IRS

This is one of those quirky books that you finish a wonder "What did I just read?" (or listen to for audiobooks). It was fun and crazy and kept me interested. Enough that I am going to go and look for the rest in the series.Some of this may be lost on British readers/listeners who are not familiar with the stereotype of an IRS accountant, but that should be a minor inconvenience.

I enjoy time-travel stories, and I really enjoyed the way this one dealt with time paradoxes.

At first, I had some difficulty with the pacing of the narrator. Some parts seemed terribly slow, so I would adjust the speed setting in the app. Then it was too fast and I would have to slow it back down. I really prefer to have a single speed and not have it seem too draggy or too fast, but the early pacing was just too variable. Eventually I found something that worked and did not really notice the narration after that (which is how I like it).

I enjoyed the characters, although they may have been a little too stereotypical.

I received a free copy of this audiobook at my request in exchange for an unbiased review.

tongue-in-cheek time travel adventure

T-Rexes & Tax Law is the third ‘genre type’ by Rachel Ford that I have read. My first reading experience was set in a dystopian future, the second a short story I would call a horror fantasy.
Rachel has proven her versatility with this time travelling tale and I would say my enjoyment has grown with each book I have read.
This book is light-hearted with plenty of action and an look at human interactions.
The main protagonist Alfred Favero, senior analyst for the IRS is a pedantic, number obsessed burocrat to whom keeping and enforcing rules is the highest objective. Alfred pompously considers himself superior to others and whilst pragmatic is hopelessly impractical.
The female lead character is Nancy Abbot, she is the lead information technology analyst at the IRS, intelligent and a bit of a geek. At the same time she is a confident, practical and adventurous woman and absolute counterpoint to Alfred.
They are thrown together on a mission to uncover tax fraud of large corporation and are flown out to this company’s facility in an oasis in the middle of a desert. The place is abandond and they are forced to spend the night there. They encounter dinosaurs and then accidentally send themselves back in time to the Cretaceous Period, where they find the missing billionaire and facility owner, his wife and a number of employees who have set up a fortified, well stocked camp, but are trapped in this time zone.
From here on a number of adventures and experiences ensue; some are about exploring the fauna and flora, some uncovering the secrets surrounding the facility and why these people are trapped in the past and some exploring human feelings and interactions.
Alfred learns there are more things to life than rules and starts to develop socially and emotionally. Ultimately they bring Alfred and Nancy closer and they become close friends.
Overall this is an amusing, often exciting, sometimes surprisingly deep and well paced time-travelling adventure story, which I thoroughly enjoyed and I am looking forward to the next books in the series.

At first I wasn’t sure about the narrator John Carter Aimone; to my British ear his voice would be most suited to Western or Private Investigator stories. Somehow though John’s calm, but not monotonous, ‘drawl’ suited Alfred’s character perfectly and added to the story’s enjoyment.

PS: We all know an Alfred and love to hate him!

I received a free review copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review of my own opinion of it.

T-rexes and tax law

I really enjoyed this book!Imagine going to arrest people on tax fraud and ending up in the Cretacaus period! I found John Carter Aimone s narration good,but slow.It sounded forced.Just talk like normal man.His voices were good though.I can't wait to get to the next one!I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Brilliant and hilarious adventure

This book was absolutely brilliant. It’s a clever mix of science fiction, adventure and comedy gold from observational humour at its highest level.
There was literally nothing that I didn’t enjoy about this book- they even discussed the time travel paradoxes in a simple yet well versed way.
Really looking forward to the next book.

A USA Taxman as a hero - unlikely but read on

I loved the sound of this book and boy I was not disappointed.

Its a fun ride following Alfred and Nancy's trip into the past - but you ask 'how does a taxman end up back when the T-Rex once roamed the earth, well no spoilers from me but I will say Alfred is such an unlikely hero yet I adore him.

If you like a bit of time travel along with a mystery and a very ordinary taxman off on adventures then this is the book for you - it's so nice when ordinary unlikely people find themselves having adventures likes this.

I was given the opportunity to maybe receive this book for free and I admit grabbed at the chance and am so glad the author choose me as one of the ones who were given the book. I honestly love it and look forward to more of Alfred's adventures.........