The Unhappy Medium

A Supernatural Comedy

By: T.J. Brown

Narrated by: Marston York

Length: 15 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

Meet the ultra-rational Dr Newton Barlow. Cool, cynical, scientific, he’s the last man you’d want to be a bridge between the living and the dead. But with his academic reputation in tatters, and nothing to lose but his few remaining marbles, the great skeptic is about to discover that the past that haunts him will be nothing compared to his ghost-ridden future.

Thrust into a rollicking struggle between good and evil, can Dr Barlow forget everything he ever believed in to save this world...and the next?

Thrilling, chilling, and utterly hilarious, The Unhappy Medium is a bone-dry British comedy in the great tradition of Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett.

©2014 Tim Brown (P)2020 Tim Brown

Simply Amazing

What a story! The details, characters, performance, plot, everything; ...a definite repeat and keeper! A-maz-ing!

I Hope You Like Exposition

Do you like exposition? I hope so because that's what you'll get for the first hour or so of Unhappy Medium by T.J. Brown. If you can survive through that, what you'll find on the other side is a rather fun story. I get why some of it, at least, was necessary, but any editor worth their chops should have sliced out a decent portion of the preamble.

So, after the mountains of expositions, the story settles down into a slow burn that slowly picks up pace as the stakes get higher and the story builds. Some interesting takes on life after death and how some people have it worse than others - not just bad guys, but anyone who made a name for themselves in life.

The narration by Marston York was quite good. I enjoyed his style and pacing. A few minor issues I jotted down while listening, the big issue being the occasionally repeated line that wasn't removed in post-production. Nothing major like huge swathes of text, but the occasional line that had me wondering if I were suffering from deja vu.

I was expecting something "utterly hilarious", but what I got was something occasionally funny. I don't want to make it sound like I hated it, far from it. I just think it was oversold a little. Will I listen to it again? Honestly, I don't know. Maybe? Probably not for a few years, though.

very unevenly paced story

it went on and on about the least interesting parts, but there were beads of very good story strung along. it all mostly related but I had trouble getting through it. loved the narrator except for cartoonish villain voices. half a dozen good book ideas here, and seems right for a mediocre movie script

fabulous

i highly recommend
very sorry when it was over
wishing for a sequel, for sure

I wanted to enjoy it but…

I found the sexism a barrier, alas. The backstory of the MC’s scientific family both nuclear and family of origin is rife with women who dropped out of science. Although there’s a nod to this being their choice…I couldn’t help but think of several generations of the Curie family in which it’s a choice that didn’t have to be made.

Wish this series was complete

I love this book. The author has hooked me and I want the entire series. Love the narrator! Great choice. Story has all of the makings of Dresden Files with a Terry Pratchett twist. Please release more!

great british wit and fighting vicars

yes. well written. engaging. fun. outrageous in just the right way. well done. has he written more?

Must be patient

This is definitely not a book for someone that wants action from the beginning. It’s a slow build and can be confusing. It took about 5 hours for all the different pieces of the story to come together. After the 5 hour build it all comes together beautifully and the fun takes off.

Very Good

I didn’t find it as funny as I thought I would but the story is really good.

not all that funny but not a bad story.

okay storyline, entertaining and we'll thought out.
cookie cutter bad guys. moderate humor. smiles but not a laugh fest.