The Darkling Thrush

By: Josh Lanyon

Narrated by: Max Miller

Fed up with his desk duty in the Imperial Arcane Library, book hunter Colin Bliss accepts a private commission to find The Sword's Shadow, a legendary and dangerous witches' grimoire. But to find the book, Colin must travel to the remote Western Isles and solve a centuries' old murder.

Please note: This book contains gay erotic content.

©2012 Josh Lanyon (P)2012 Josh Lanyon

Meh.

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The romance. It felt rushed and weird as hell. I didn't feel like they really had a relationship, and maybe I should have paid closer attention to the blurb because I didn't guess who his love interest was, and when it started I was really surprised and thrown for a loop. I mean, his boyfriend is an asshole for most of the book so I just couldn't see them actually being in love.

Would you listen to another book narrated by Max Miller?

Haha, I actually have and his voice cracks me up; I like him but he's definitely not my favorite. I probably will try to avoid buying more audiobooks with him as the narrator. I don't know, I keep changing my mind about whether I actually like his voice or not.

Could you see The Darkling Thrush being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

Haha, no. That would be awkward as hell.

Any additional comments?

I liked the main character, but other than that I found the plot confusing, and the romance awful. I'm not sure if it is because listening rather than reading this book caused me to get really confused about the weird book backstory, but I'm not even really sure what was going on half the time. Probably I won't read it again.

If books could talk

In this alternate reality, for certain people, books can tell the secrets of who has read, owned, and written them. Collin Bliss is one of the people who knows what books have to say. As a book hunter, he expects to have a year of field work in England when he accepts an exchange position with the Museum of the Literary Occult. Unfortunately, he's stuck behind a desk all day. Given the chance to use his talent, he takes a side job that the Museum would rather he didn't. Septimus Marx is challenged with stopping Collin from finding the book he seeks, by means fair or foul. Can love find it's way, can events be changed so that the world doesn't end?
.....................Of course, but it's a close thing.

Lanyon is top notch... Max Miller is a treat

Where does The Darkling Thrush rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This is one of the most enjoyable books I've listened to..I hope Max Miller reads more Lanyon in the future.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Septimos....I love the mysterious and strong type.

Which scene was your favorite?

I really felt the tension when Septimos told Collin he WILL obey him. Collin reacted as I suspected he would.

Any additional comments?

I loved this story...Josh Lanyon is the ice cream and Max Miller the whipped cream.

Just what I was looking for

I wanted something light, not too long, gay but not massively steamy, with a base story of fantasy. This fit the bill. There was more lore about magic than actual magic itself. The intrigue is interesting, the characters are all quite dark. I have to say I wasn't as enthusiastic about the narrator as in some of the other reviews, but he did grow on me. He does some other accents pretty well, and yes, the Gaelic should have tripped up just about anyone, yet he sailed right through it.

I would recommend this to anyone who likes tales about magic, with Celtic influence and who likes (or at least doesn't a bit of gay sex)

The Darkling Thrush

What did you love best about The Darkling Thrush?

I should state here, that I am not usually into fantasy and other worlds. What I liked best about this story was the fact that it was a mystery within the fantasy and I could follow both the story in the fantasy world and the mystery.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Colin Bliss because he was the hero of the story and Septimous Marx the love interest. Both are interesting characters and fun to read about.

What does Max Miller bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

As I have said, I am really not that into fantasy, but Max Miller's rendition of the story was wonderful. His words flowed so well and I felt he knew the characters and represented them very well. When I first read the book, I got a little lost in all of the "other world" stuff. Max Miller makes it real. You feel you are in the world with Colin and Marx.

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

Fantasy, gay mystery.

Any additional comments?

I thoroughly enjoyed this presentation and hope to listen to more of Max Miller and Josh Lanyon presentations.