Michael
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- 169
- helpful votes
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Roverpowered
- Tales of an Aspiring Alchemist and Her Overwhelmingly Powerful Dog
- By: Drew Hayes
- Narrated by: Amy Landon
- Length: 3 hrs
- Unabridged
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Wanda and Wumble are a small pair with vast ambitions. One an aspiring alchemist, and the other her faithful hound, the pair bond as wizard and familiar to begin their pursuit of magic. As a newly made wizard without any training, resources, or even a home to return to, Wanda will have to forge her own way on a path where constant dangers lurk. Even the simple act of furthering her alchemy education swiftly becomes a harrowing ordeal.
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Lovely story disliked narration style
- By Michael on 08-09-24
- Roverpowered
- Tales of an Aspiring Alchemist and Her Overwhelmingly Powerful Dog
- By: Drew Hayes
- Narrated by: Amy Landon
Lovely story disliked narration style
Reviewed: 08-09-24
First, that's the first time an author's note has made me cry! As a past owner of a corgi cross, even before it was confirmed that wobble was one, I recognised him as such 😍
Narration note - this is narrated in a style that's common in America and I assume is an intentional choice. Basically it's a really flat monotone delivery. I actually found myself listening for the breath in the first minute or so because I thought it was was AI! I hate this style of narration but I guess others like it? Anyway, the story was good enough that I persevered through my initial distaste and eventually I was into the story enough that stopped noticing it.
Story is lovely, interesting and focused. In a full novel, this would basically be act one. It serves as a good introduction to a new world with focus on characters and tempting glimpses of the wider world history and forces at work.
I'm pleased to hear that more stories with these characters are planned but I may opt to go the standard book route if the narration choice is the same in the next one.
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Displeasure Island
- The Dead Woke, Book 2
- By: Alice Bell
- Narrated by: Sophie Roberts
- Length: 10 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Professional medium turned detective Claire, her best friend Sophie (a 17-year-old ghost) and their pals are enjoying a much-needed cheap holiday in an unfinished hotel on Spike Island off the West Coast of Ireland. Claire is flattered to be asked by the local ghost of a pirate captain to investigate the theft of treasure from the shipwreck that stranded him there several hundred years ago. But just when she thinks she is closing in on the culprit, a murder takes place, and Claire and her friends quickly become the chief suspects
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Enjoyable read, difficult listen
- By Anonymous User on 25-06-24
- Displeasure Island
- The Dead Woke, Book 2
- By: Alice Bell
- Narrated by: Sophie Roberts
As good as the first book, mixes it up nicely
Reviewed: 24-08-24
Make sure to read book one first as this has spoilers for that scattered through out. It's actually to this book's credit that there are spoilers as because the last book's events have consequences and affect characterisation nicely in this book.
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Day of Ascension
- Warhammer 40,000
- By: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrated by: Harry Myers
- Length: 5 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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On the forge world of Morod, the machines never stop and the work never ends. The population toils in the mines and factoria to protect humanity from the monsters in the void, while the Adeptus Mechanicus enjoy lives of palatial comfort. Genetor Gammat Triskellian seeks to end this stagnant corruption. When he learns of a twisted congregation operating within the shadows, one which believes that the tech-priests are keeping people from their true salvation, he sees in them an opportunity to bring down Morod's masters and reclaim the world in the name of progress.
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Superior stuff, but why so short?
- By Lertimo on 06-02-22
- Day of Ascension
- Warhammer 40,000
- By: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrated by: Harry Myers
I'd even recommend this to non-40k fans
Reviewed: 04-05-24
it's short, it's punchy, the characters are good, the narrative has twists and turns. I had a great time with this one.
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A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking
- By: T. Kingfisher
- Narrated by: Patricia Santomasso
- Length: 8 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Fourteen-year-old Mona isn't like the wizards charged with defending the city. She can't control lightning or speak to water. Her familiar is a sourdough starter, and her magic only works on bread. She has a comfortable life in her aunt's bakery making gingerbread men dance. But Mona's life is turned upside down when she finds a dead body on the bakery floor. An assassin is stalking the streets of Mona's city, preying on magic folk, and it appears that Mona is his next target. And in an embattled city suddenly bereft of wizards, the assassin may be the least of Mona's worries.
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Dough-lems
- By Amazon Customer on 07-09-22
- A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking
- By: T. Kingfisher
- Narrated by: Patricia Santomasso
cute middle grade book
Reviewed: 12-04-24
this book went places. it was fun. I was probably too old to properly appreciate it, but I was entertained the whole way through, which is more than I can say for a lot of middle grade books.
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Red Side Story
- By: Jasper Fforde
- Narrated by: Chris Harper, Jasper Fforde
- Length: 12 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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Imagine a world where your position in society depended on what bit of the colour spectrum you could see. This is the world inhabited by Eddie Russett (red, middle-level) and Jane Grey (monochromatic, lowest in society). Eddie and Jane must negotiate the delicate Chromatic politics of society to find out what the 'Something that Happened' actually was, how society got to be this way, and crucially, is there Somewhere Else beyond their borders?
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Everything I waited far far far to long for
- By Judge Tread on 08-04-24
- Red Side Story
- By: Jasper Fforde
- Narrated by: Chris Harper, Jasper Fforde
I owe Jas an apology
Reviewed: 03-03-24
I was absolutely convinced this book would never come out, and if it *did*, I was sure there was no way it'd be anywhere near as good as the first.
Well. I was wrong. I'm extremely happy to be wrong. Red Side Story was good! One of Jasper's better books, which is saying something. The story is riveting right up until the end. The characters continue to develop in interesting ways. The only thing I'm a little iffy on is the new narrator, who's okay. Not as good as the original narrator for Shades. Other than that, highly recommended.
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Legends & Lattes
- By: Travis Baldree
- Narrated by: Travis Baldree
- Length: 7 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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After decades of raising hell, Viv the orc barbarian is finally hanging up her sword for good. Now she sets her sights on a new dream—one that involves pulling more shots than punches. Armed with hope and a hard-earned secret, she plans to open the first coffee shop in Thune. To build something that will last, Viv needs a new crew. She enlists a gruff hob builder shunned by humans, and a shy baker whose cinnamon rolls are to die for. Then there’s Tandri, a charming succubus who’s determined not to let anyone assume anything about her.
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A cozy, slice of life fantasy
- By Arlena_reads on 25-02-22
- Legends & Lattes
- By: Travis Baldree
- Narrated by: Travis Baldree
cute & cosy
Reviewed: 09-09-23
it's cute, it's cosy, it's completely unchallenging, it's exactly what I needed. community solidarity ftw.
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Brute Force
- By: Scott Meyer
- Narrated by: Luke Daniels
- Length: 9 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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A peaceful organization of civilized planets is faced with a threat to their very existence. Desperate to save themselves, they turn for help to the most brutal, backward, violent species in the known galaxy: humans.
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A breath of fresh air
- By Mr.M on 15-04-23
- Brute Force
- By: Scott Meyer
- Narrated by: Luke Daniels
really good fun
Reviewed: 04-05-23
less innovative than Grand Theft Astro but still really fun. Scott's on a bit of a roll when it comes to crafting fun, accessable world's with straight forward characters and a tight narrative
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By Wingéd Chair
- Mark of the Least
- By: Kendra Merritt
- Narrated by: Kristin James
- Length: 11 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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Seventeen-year-old Merry has mucked up another chance to get into the University of Magecraft, so she doesn’t have time to deal with shape-changing creatures bent on stealing memories from the people of Woodshire. That’s her father’s job. But when an outlaw mage mistakes her for a damsel in distress on a drenched train platform, she’s dragged into a fight with the monsters and a sheriff mad enough to use them. She’d never admit it out loud, but the mage is actually kind of fun to work with—when she doesn’t want to run him over with her chair.
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pretty good but oof that ending
- By Michael on 26-04-23
- By Wingéd Chair
- Mark of the Least
- By: Kendra Merritt
- Narrated by: Kristin James
pretty good but oof that ending
Reviewed: 26-04-23
set out to be a tale of disabled strength, ended up at the 'our suffering made us strong' thing. Also, tediously hetero.
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Grand Theft Astro
- By: Scott Meyer
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Evans
- Length: 9 hrs and 55 mins
- Original Recording
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It is the distant future, and Baird is a loner, a part time spy, and a notorious alleged thief. “Notorious” for the audacity of her crimes; “alleged” because nobody has ever been able to legally prove she committed any of them. When the hush-hush agency known as the Toolbox recruits Baird, being a clandestine operative seems like a great way to get paid to do what she already does anyway. That is, until a mission goes wrong, and Baird is infected with a deadly virus.
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Like the story but not the narrator
- By kris adams on 08-08-21
- Grand Theft Astro
- By: Scott Meyer
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Evans
my favourite Scott meyer book
Reviewed: 17-09-22
a series of inventive, often tense sci fi heists with entertaining characters and fun twists. I really hope Scott continues innovating like this
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Among Others
- By: Jo Walton
- Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren
- Length: 10 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Startling, unusual, and yet irresistably readable, Among Others is at once the compelling story of a young woman struggling to escape a troubled childhood, a brilliant diary of first encounters with the great novels of modern fantasy and SF, and a spellbinding tale of escape from ancient enchantment.
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A spectacular ode to science fiction
- By Karen on 13-12-12
- Among Others
- By: Jo Walton
- Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren
Narrator's Welsh accent was learned in Jamaica!
Reviewed: 24-08-22
So in Googling to verify that 'yes, this narrator is not native to any part of Wales' I discovered she's recently passed.
In the spirit of of not speaking ill of the dead, I shall simply say that if you're from the UK/Ireland and have actually heard a real Welsh accent then you will possibly struggle to listen to this. I winced. Quite a lot.
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