The Twilight Before Christmas

By: Christine Feehan

Narrated by: Teri Clark Linden

Length: 7 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's Summary

Best-selling novelist Kate Drake is one of seven sisters gifted with amazing powers of witchcraft. Returning home in time for her northern California town's annual Christmas pageant, Kate catches the spirit of the season and decides to open a bookstore in a charming but run-down historic mill. Decorated former U.S. Army Ranger Matt Granite, now a local contractor, doesn't mind working in the undeniably eerie house -- not if it means getting closer to Kate. There's something about the quiet, sensual woman that powerfully attracts him. When an earthquake cracks the mill's foundation and reveals a burial crypt, Kate senses that a centuries-old evil has been unleashed…and that it's coming after her. Though Matt vows to guard her from dusk till dawn, Kate knows she will have to summon all of her and her sisters' powers to battle the darkness threatening to destroy both Christmas and the gift of soul-searing passion her hometown hero wants her to keep forever....

©2003 Christine Feehan (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Narrator so bad I quit after 5 minutes

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

No one over 12 years of age could listen to this narrator

What could Christine Feehan have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Different Narrator

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Made it impossible to listen to.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

couldn't get far enough to tell

Any additional comments?

DO NOT BUY.

Why not Alyssa Bresnahan?

Why did Audible switch narrators from Alyssa Bresnahan to Teri Clark Linden? I enjoyed the story of Kate and Matt but would rather read then listen to this one. This was really hard to get through.

Horrible!!!

I generally like Christine Feehan and assumed this would be a decent book. I was so wrong!! At first I thought it was just the narration making it so bad, but the characters are boring and there is no real plot and definitely no "development". You know what is going on and going to happen within the first chapter. I kept thinking it had to get better, maybe a twist here or there, but there was nothing. I wanted to stop listening so many times, but made myself finish it, though I started hitting fast forward a lot close to the end.

I can't even begin to describe how bad the narration was. My dog could have read it with more emotion and excitement. I will definitely never buy another book read by this person and I will probably never buy another Feehan book. I am going to request to return this one. DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY OR A CREDIT!!!

Narrator ruined the story

Delivery was flat and unemotional, character voices felt forced, unimaginative and were inconsistent. Possibly the most disappointing was the lack of humor when Danny was teasing Matt. She made many the characters sound childish and petulant. The reading made me feel like I was six years old and an adult without children was reading a story.

I'm glad I had read the book before listening to it.

Both the story and narrator are dreadful!

Would you try another book from Christine Feehan and/or Teri Clark Linden?

I'm glad I bought this book on sale, since I only wasted a few dollars on it. Both the writing and narration were awful! Teri Clark Linden reminded me of a grade school teacher reading a book she didn't care for to a class. But, I guess the book merited the boring and bored reading, since the characters were so poorly drawn and the plot so plodding. I didn't bother to finish it, since I have better things to do. Bleah. Save your money, credits, and time!

muh....

This is the second in the Drake series and it did not stand out any more or less than the others. My favorites are Dangerous Tides and Turbulent Seas, but in order to get the full effect on them books must be read in order. I was not a fan of the narrator which could make the difference between a good book and a mediorce book.

Very Poor Narrator

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I enjoyed the story - it was interesting and kept my attention.

What didn’t you like about Teri Clark Linden’s performance?

Teri Clark Linden was a poor choice as a narrator. When the book started, I was under the impression that I was listening to teenage boys speaking. However, as the story progressed I realized that the Matt was in his 30s and retired from the Army. I had to start the audiobook over once I figured this out. Ms. Linden also made the heroine, Kate, always sound breathless, like she was channeling Marilyn Monroe. The narrator definitely was a detriment to the story.

Read the book instead

I read the book first and love the story, so I bought the audiobook and was very disappointed in the narration. The voice was nice but the voices for the characters were very different from the rest of the series and flow of the story made me want to cringe.

Entertaining book!

I enjoyed the Drake sisters and the interplay between them. They are a strong and unusual family.

The reading was good. Good use of voice modulation and inflection.

Mostly a waste of time.

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

There is no way you can call the reading of this book a "performance". I perform better than this reading to my grandchildren. The narrator was horrible. There was enough of a story that I kept plodding on with the book, but eventually even that became lame. There was more telling of the sexual encounters between Matt and Kate than any supernatural story. This would have been a decent book if it had concentrated on the Drake sisters, their abilities and the problem at hand.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

The ending was nothing that couldn't have been foretold after chapter one.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Teri Clark Linden?

Anybody would have been better.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Disappointment and boredom.