FanB14

Sweet Little Book

Revisado: 12-15-16

This is a sweet little book of a Jamaican girl about to be deported who by happenstance meets a Korean-American boy, conflicted about his path in life. Both fall in love in the span of a few hours. Her writing style is solid, but this one is okay in comparison to "Everything, Everything". The story is implausible and the female narrator was annoying. Overall, a cute story, but not as great as it was hyped to be. Still worth the credit.

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esto le resultó útil a 13 personas

Wanted to Like it, but

Revisado: 11-21-16

it was childishly written and saccharin. The message of being confident regardless of your appearance is a needed and positive one, but the story is conflicted at several points, sending mixed, unrealistic signals. There's no development between the main love interests and you're left scratching your head as to why these people got together; seemed forced. The narrator plucks the nerves and this book is just an over-hyped mess. Julie Murphy seems like a lovely person, but that's not reason enough to make the purchase. Wow, can social media pump up the volume on an otherwise tiresome book.

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esto le resultó útil a 5 personas

Ask Yourself Before You Buy...

Revisado: 11-21-16

Is this the book for you? If you're considering "Shift" chances are you read and liked "Wool". I don't like sci-fi and have little patience for immensely long books, but enjoyed this one. Know the book is extremely slow to develop, written in the third person narrator, and jumps time periods-causing a little confusion. Brush up on the key points of the first book if it's been a while.

It's worth the trip to continue this story to the days days before "it" happened with the character Donald and his unwitting role in the machinations of a corrupt political agenda. At the very end, the characters and premise from the first book finally merge.

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esto le resultó útil a 10 personas

We Need Diverse Books

Revisado: 11-13-16

Niven follows the movement and offers an obese heroine and a hero with prosopagnosia. In the world of YA, her writing style is engaging as was this book. Her first, All the Bright Places, was amazing. This one is interesting, but lacks the connection between the two main characters. They just started liking each other after a rather traumatizing beginning and I never understood why. Seemed a little forced.

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esto le resultó útil a 7 personas

Rowell Always Gets it Right

Revisado: 10-08-16

Would you consider the audio edition of Carry On to be better than the print version?

Yes. The narrators made the book sound far better than it would have in my head. I've found they can make or break a book and this one was cast well.

What did you like best about this story?

Didn't buy this book at first, not interested in a Harry Potteresque story and wasn't sure it would be as good as her others. I am happy to be wrong. I liked how Simon's magic was unpredictable he's far from perfect and his nemesis, Baz is sardonically witty. The ending was a nice surprise, Rowell strayed from a predictable conclusion.

What about Euan Morton’s performance did you like?

His voices were spot on. Baz sounded broody, bored, and slightly antagonistic. Loved it.

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esto le resultó útil a 18 personas

A Little Ludicrous

Revisado: 09-15-16

What disappointed you about The Conspiracy of Us?

Promising start, but it just became so over-the-top cheesy. The outsider kept in secret about her place as one of the most powerful and important people in the world was frankly sad and predictable. The love triangle was silly as was the entire book.

What do you think your next listen will be?

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

What aspect of Julia Whelan’s performance would you have changed?

I didn't like her male voices.

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

No.

Any additional comments?

Skip it, even on sale.

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esto le resultó útil a 2 personas

Fantastical!

Revisado: 06-24-16

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

In the world of fantasy, in the top 3.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Graveyard Book?

The tale of the witch. You're not quite sure of her intentions and she evolves from her story to play an interesting and surprising part in the next.

Which scene was your favorite?

They were all spectacular. To give too much detail would ruin all the delightful surprises.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I was so surprised how wonderful the story, writing, and narration were. I'd read another of Gaiman's books several years ago and was intrigued, but think I misunderstood the genre. Bought this on sale and absolutely love this/him.

Any additional comments?

I'm so late to the party on Gaiman's books and can't wait to catch up. He truly creates another world so odd and glorious. Excited to delve into the others.

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esto le resultó útil a 5 personas

It's illogical not to give this a try

Revisado: 06-24-16

I adore John Corey Whaley, so listened to this one right away. His writing is funny, at times, self-deprecating, and non-verbose. He's not a wordy writer, everything is precise.

Solomon is a high functioning boy, suffering from agoraphobia with two loving parents and a grandmother. The panic attack involving a fountain a few years prior pushed him to stay at home and Lisa, the girl who was closest to the scene hasn't forgotten him since. She enters his life with slightly dubious motives; using him as a project for her admission essay while helping him in the process. You can guess what happens next, but Whaley takes the story from predictable plot to a step above infused with his humor. By the end of the book, I loved all the characters and bought into the story.

If you've read his other novel, "Where Things Come Back," this is a true departure as the other was extremely and wonderfully odd with a few twists and parallel stories. This book is more straight-forward and down-to-earth. Both are from the mind of a talented young writer.

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esto le resultó útil a 8 personas

Set Your Expectations Accordingly

Revisado: 06-24-16

This book is touted as one of the stellar releases of 2016, so myriad sources state. Several call it a "coming of age" story, conjuring up images of a sweet YA novel. This is not the case.

Tess, or Fluffer as she's called, is an English grad looking for a job in Manhattan because "it was the only option." She doesn't want to be an actress, Broadway star, writer, publisher, etc. A low level job at a top rated restaurant is her first experience. This is a story of a 23 year old navigating the world of excess drinking, drug use, backstabbing, and sexual awakening. Know that before you listen.

The number of negative reviews surprised me. Maybe they were disappointed the book wasn't what they were expecting? Perhaps I have bad taste? I'll tell you why I like it.

What seems like a silly surface story of a naive girl in NYC is just window dressing for the selective, succulent language. I'm a pushover for any writer who can throw in the 500 SAT/GRE word list and have it come out in a non-pretentious, effortless flow, enhancing the story. This is the sumptuous story of Tess coming alive through her sense of knowledge and taste. The condescending, arrogant, yet seductive Simone opens up a world of fine wine and introduces Tess to the subtle differences between figs, oysters, duck, etc. we never notice or take for granted. You're immersed in the life that is the restaurant world and if you've worked in this field, some of it will feel familiar. They sit down for family meal and learn about the specials for the day. The cook is an aloof dictator; the manager likes the girls; fingers are pointed when things go wrong; some will do anything to get promoted. Everyone stays up late after, go out for drinks, take drugs, and sleeps together. The customers can be arrogant, funny, or treat you like a commoner. This may not be the book for you. It wasn't what I was expecting, but the turn of phrase, analogies, and unbridled confidence with which Tess exits this story made it a great listen for me.

As for the narrator, I found her voice raspy, unsure, pouty, sensuous, and at times confident, just bringing Tess into perfect focus. Since there are several negative slams of her, listen to the entire sample before you decide. She also narrates the YA novel, "Every Day" and I enjoyed her voice there, too.

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esto le resultó útil a 40 personas

Not even close to The Walls Around Us

Revisado: 04-04-16

I have a new writer crush on Nova Ren Suma. After rereading her latest, The Walls Around Us, thought I'd check out an earlier novel. It's listenable, but not as well developed, taking a long time to tell us what we knew would happen at the conclusion. The main character, Ruby is an unlikable tall tale of a shrew. Had to listen to how cool she was, but never felt why everyone was so awed and frightened by her; especially her sister. Don't like giving a negative review of a talented writer, but also don't want anyone who may read this to spend their hard earned, expensive credit on Imaginary Girls, either.

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esto le resultó útil a 3 personas