Tag: Audio Review

Christina and Cara Parravini were identical twins.  Raised in a poorish home by a single struggling mother the girls made their own world between themselves eventually making their way to college, careers, and marriages.  While Christa kept moving forward, Cara seemed to get stuck in the past.  Unable to shake the happenings in their younger home life of revolving door “father figures” and rape, Cara struggles with depression, drugs, and inappropriate relationships with men.  Eventually her self-destructive behavior spirals out of control causing Cara to die at a young age.

As Christa deals with her sister’s death, she wonders if she too will fall into the same destructive behavior that took her sister.  She had battled so long and hard to keep her sister moving forward that without Cara to care for now, she hadn’t noticed that she had the same demons to fight.

 

 

 

 

*sigh*  I have really struggled with this review.  First let me say I can not imagine the bond between twins and especially twin girls.  I in no way mean to discount that, or the fact of the immense crushing loss of someone you are so close too.  I lost a sister when she was 5 years old and I know that pain, so I can imagine that losing someone you were with from the moment of birth into adult hood sharing so much has to be all that much more painful and for that, I extend my deepest sympathy.

I listened to Her on audio, which is narrated by the author, Christa Parravani.  I found the narration to be very monotone.  Very matter of fact and never really changing throughout the entire book. 

As far as the book itself, I struggled immensely with the self-destructive behavior not only in Cara, but eventually in Christa too.  The whole thing was extremely depressing like I could never catch a full breath as I waited for something light-hearted to happen – between the monotone narration and the all-consuming sadness of the book, it never came – or if it was there, due to the monotone narration, I missed it as “exciting” or “moments of lightness and humor” are not things you would say to describe this book.  In fact I would find myself using words like:   heavy, depressing, overly sad, confusing….

I wish I could say something more positive,  There was really nothing I enjoyed about this audio.  I remember thinking I was so glad I was an upbeat, fairly well-adjusted happy person as if I was a person prone to depression and read this book I think it would have been overall too much to handle.  In fact, it almost was. 

 

Now please do not take only my opinion on this book/audio.  Amazon and Audible.com both have great reviews posted about it.  It was just not a fit for me.

Raven Boys was so different than what I had expected… different good.  This is a different writing for Maggie Stiefvater, a more complex and engaging writing.

~Sheila

At sixteen, Blue knows her life is different than others her age.  For starters, her family are psychics.  This alone would be enough to make her stand out – and she is told that her presence in a room helps her family see into others lives more clearly although Blue sees nothing.

Until one day while Blue and her mother are waiting in the graveyard to see the spirits of those who will die in the next twelve months.  And this time, Blue sees something.  At first it is a flicker in the air, nothing you could put a shape too… but then.. she could.  It is a boy and his name in Gansey and now Blue knows he will die within the year….

Blue is told…

“There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve, Blue. Either you’re his true love…or you killed him.”

And days later when this same boy arrives at Blue’s door step for a reading… Blue knows she is in deep.  Warned by her family to stay away from Gansey and his friends known as the Raven Boys, Blue does what any sixteen year old girl would do when confronted with an ultimatum and a chance to hang out with some interesting boys… she starts sneaking around and helping then with their mission… to locate a line of energy that could connect them to a Welsh King, Glendover…

I admit that Raven Boys wasn’t what I thought it would be.  I have read Maggie Steifvater before with her Shiver series and enjoyed them finding then very YA, very Twilight like… good fun easy reads.  So when I put myself into Raven Boys I was surprised to find something deeper and more involved than I had bargained for.

Maggie Steifvater takes her writing to a whole new level in Raven Boys.  It is more detailed than her past writings that I have read, it is a meatier read and it took me a while to wrap my head around it.  Yet once I did, I couldn’t stop. 

The character of Blue takes on an interesting twist as she brings a little something to the party that most can not.  With her abilities through her psychic family… she is an asset on the Raven Boys Team.  But for me, the Raven Boys themselves trump Blue 100 fold.  They are well developed… the story line as they figure out clues to a past they are unsure of id truly impressive.  As I followed along I kept having these, “What the!” and “Oh…. awesome!” moments. 

There are many story lines that are left open and hearing this is a 4 book series (the second coming out this fall) I imagine that the teasers of this book… opening doors that we do not yet get to walk through, will lure this reader for sure, on to the next book… and probably the next after that. 🙂

I listened to this book on audio and narrator Will Patton did a wonderful job with the cast of characters he was working with. 

As Annie Colwater waves good-bye to her daughter as she travels to study abroad, she id not realize that was not the only thing she would be saying good-bye to that day.  On the drive home Annie’s husband Blake, confesses he has been having an affair and he would like a divorce.  Shocked and needing to get away from the pain that has just been placed on her, Annie heads back to where she grew up, Mystic Washington and to her father who still lives there.

Within a few short days Annie hears of the death of a long-lost friend and stops in on two widowed husband and Annie’s first love, Nick Delacroix.  Within a short amount of time (more on that later), Annie and Nick rekindle those old feelings (much like throwing gasoline on an already burning fire).

While Annie is experiencing feelings she did not know she could still produce, she also knows that eventually she must return home to sort out her life.  When a phone call flips her world once again.. Annie is forced to make  a hard choice, she just has to decide if she should follow her head or follow her heart… and some times, they may both lead in the same direction.

I have read Kristin Hannah before and enjoyed her books.  When I found this audio at a price I could not resist, I snatched it up.  One thing you can say about Kristin Hannah is she writes in a feel good, heart of the matters way that I was in the mood for.  Her writing gives you that feeling like you have been traveling for some time and are looking forward to a home cooked meal.  Kristin Hannah’s books are that home cooked meal.

 

 

 

While listening to this one on audio I had many battles with it.  For one, things were moving way way way to fast.  Annie’s decisions felt as though time and again they were made hastily with no thought whatsoever,consequences be damned. Of course, that does not make her a bad character, perhaps one could argue that Annie had been a rule follower all her life and look where that got her?  Maybe she was out breaking the mold…

but it felt like more than that to me.

As the audio went on there was a later happening that I jumped on feeling that the story had just jumped ahead skipping a vital section… and then I got it.

The audio I was listening to was abridged (my bad – I purchased it that way), meaning that it had been shortened from the original writing and as I recently learned through Twitter conversations and Google, abridged is to provide audio books at a much better cost and are therefore significantly shorter than the unabridged.  Abridged also appeal to people who may not have the time to listen to a whole audio book.  See my vocal thoughts on that idea here. 😀

Once I realized what I was dealing with I quit judging the book so harshly.  In fact, as it went on I found I did like the story and finished it.  While it was good, I was not invested enough in the book to go through it again in book format or unabridged. 

If you enjoy Kristin Hannah I think you will enjoy this one as well, just be sure to read it or get the unabridged audio book.

Hannah Smith comes from a long line of Hannah Smith’s before her.  And Hannah one, two, and three all seemed to be these strong self-sufficient women, who have left Hannah (Hannah four by the way) feeling as thought their shoes might just be too big for her to fill. 

Hannah is a fishing guide and she enjoys this sort of living, but then inherits her Uncles PI agency as well.  When asked by a fishing client to search for his missing niece, Hannah sees a way she can combine her love of the sea with her newly inherited position.  This Hannah thinks, will be a great way to try her hand at this PI stuff.

What Hannah discovers is a sick sociopath who likes to seduce young rich unsure of themselves women, kidnaps them and then after robbing them of their fortunes disposes of them however he pleases.  As Hannah works to hopefully save this latest missing girl, she learns a lot about herself along the way.

 

 

 

GONE was my first book I have read (or in this case listened to) by Randy Wayne White.  In the beginning I had a hard time absorbing all that was going on.  The constant mentions of the Hannah’s who has gone before our current protagonist Hannah four, had me thinking there must have been previous books featuring these Hannah’s… which as I learned, there was not.  This was the first book.

This was a book that felt like the plot had many holes, and relationships were just as holey and I didn’t understand the closeness of characters who had just met – both male and female. 

Eventually I found some rhythm to the book and started to enjoy the story line as long as I didn’t think about it too closely. 

Thank you to Penguin audio for

giving me the opportunity to listen to

and review this book.

In a post apocalyptic world of little light, no animals, and the only people you occasionally see may be as likely to kill you for food as to shake your hand…

the future… is not looking so bright.

The man (only referred to as The Man) and his middle grade age son, take to the road in look out for food, shelter, but all is temporary in this new world as staying in one spot too long is certain death and the times of warmth and food to eat are scarce. 

As the story moves on down the road the man, who is hardened by the weariness of the world tries to give his son hope when hope is nowhere to be found as they walk the boy grows in knowledge way beyond his years in ways many of as adults could not even comprehend. 

Why did I want to read this book?

The Road is one of those books that seems to be on my invisible “must read in my lifetime” list.  Actually… as I write this, I should really make that list.

The Road was a book I listened to on audio.  Tom Stechschulte (who also narrated Dennis LeHane’s Shutter Island) did a wonderful job of portraying a weary father trying to give his son a future when no future is to be found. 

The Road… I am not going to lie, is über depressing.  As the audio went on, even the good moments are short-lived and time and again the pair return to the road going onward…. towards… what?  They and you as the reader, have no idea.

So what makes The Road so popular?  Is it our thirst for the unknown even if it scares the poo out of us?  Initially released in 2006 was it a bit ahead of the great Apocalypse/Dystopian genre era we are currently in?  I don’t have the answers to these questions.  For me, The Road was good… but not outstanding.  I wonder why?  AM I desensitized by the current dystopian reads that are way more action packed?  Again, I don’t know.

The Road for me was interesting and sad and heartbreaking and frightening.  It made me look out the window and try to picture such a world where daily instead of blogging or going to work or hanging with friends at a coffee shop – the only thing to do is try to survive.  When we think about the growing earth population and the demand demand demand for more…. more media, more food, more rights, more control…. I have to wonder….

How far off is McCarthy’s world?  Is it a possibility?  Think of the last 50 to 100 years and how the world has changed.  Now go forward 50 to 100 years.  What do you see?

Overall – obviously The Road is a thinker and I am glad to be able to say I have read it.   I look forward to seeing the movie… perhaps tonight.