Samyann's Blog

Fairy Tale by Stephen King
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Plot. Charlie, a guy in his late teens, hears a dog whining while passing by a crumbling old house – investigation draws him to aid an old man and an aging German Shepherd. The guy fell off a ladder and broke his leg. Charlie becomes a caregiver and eventually learns about the massive amount of gold in the old man’s safe. The gold comes from another world – a fantastical world in the screwy mind of Stephen King – and the shed in the backyard.

Liked. It is a fairy tale – giants, castles, princesses, and magic. There are also dead people, evil curses, and painful, grizzly deformities. No objectionable language, no sex, no jump-scares. The narration, character voicing, and production are excellent.

Not so hot. Well, not much. But it is a Stephen King novel; ergo, it is long and verbose – he can’t help it. Besides, that’s why we love his books! Bumped the speed to 1.4; it’s a bit slow for my taste – not really a criticism.

Written by Stephen King, narrated by Seth Numrich and Stephen King, just over 24 hours of listening in unabridged audiobook format, released in September 2022 by Simon & Schuster Audio.

Fun listen.

The Red Address Book by Sofia Lundberg
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Plot. The gift of an address book to ten-year-old Doris in 1930s Sweden is the basis of this story. Now 96 and dying, Doris writes her story, using the address book as a guide through a life of family, friends, career, WWII, and lost love. The beneficiary of the writing is her grand niece, her only surviving relationship.

A rape, although the act is not dwelled upon, is part of the story. Doris had a tragic life, other than her relationship with her niece. A bit predictable at times.

Narration by Xe Sands is terrific. No objectionable language, nothing gratuitous. Not until writing this review did I learn the story is a translation from Swedish. Very well done; you won’t be able to tell. The Red Address Book is written by Sofia Lundberg, Alice Menzies – translator, narrated by: Xe Sands in unabridged audiobook format, 8.5 hours of listening, and released in January 2019 by Audible Studios.

Descent by Tim Johnston
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Plot: A man and his wife, struggling with marriage issues, take their 18-yr-old daughter and her younger brother on a trip to the mountains. While the parents have a lazy morning at the hotel, the girl and boy have a tragic encounter on a mountain trail – she is kidnapped, and he is gravely injured. Thus begins a tale of familial bonding, abuse, guilt, survival, and determination.

Warning – some areas are cringeworthy as there is severe abuse. It is a riveting story, page-turning. No sex, no objectionable language. There are flashbacks and dreams, sometimes difficult to follow. Descent is not told in a linear time fashion through most of the story. The father, mother, and brother go their different paths – each struggling with their guilt, wondering if the girl is alive.

The narration is terrific; no issues with production.

Written by Tim Johnston, narrated by Xe Sands and R.C. Bray, about 12 hours of listening in unabridged audiobook format, released in January 2015 by Recorded Books.

Recommended – chilling.

Moral Compass by Danielle Steel
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Plot: A prestigious, all-boy school turns coed, and shortly, one of the girl students is raped.

Liked: Not graphic, has no objectionable language, is a clean read, has a sex scene that is not graphic. Narration is fine.

Not so hot. It should be labeled “young adult”. Great gift for a tween or teen. Moral lesson. IMO, most adults would find Moral Compass patronizing.

Written by Danielle Steel, narrated by Dan John Miller, just over 7 hours of listening in unabridged audiobook format, released: 01-07-20 by Recorded Books.

Recommended YA.

Night of the Living Deed by E.J. Copperman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Plot. Alison Kirby, a 30-something divorced mother of a nine-year-old girl, purchases a large seaside fixer-upper house to create a vacation inn. During rehab of the property, Alison is hit on the head with a bucket of wallboard compound. She comes to with an amazing new ability. She can see ghosts. Two live in her home, a distinguished private investigator, Paul, and a saucy and misbehaving home decorator, Maxie. Alison makes a deal with her ghosts – she will help Paul with his private investigations if he and Maxie help her put on ghostly shows to keep a steady flow of guests for her inn. The novels traverse the lives of Alison, her daughter, mother, ghosts, and assorted quirky friends, like the local police chief and newspaper owner. Murders are solved, missing persons are found, and occasional mayhem ensues. The series, at this time, consists of 8 full-length novels and two shorts. More to come, no doubt!

Liked. Delightful listening. Sarcastic and funny lead character, excellent character development, a creative plot line for each book, no sex, no objectionable language.

Not so hot. A bit slow for my taste – not criticism, rather a preference.

Written by E.J. Copperman, narrated by Amanda Ronconi, Audible originals, first story released in 2013. Each novel is 8-10 hours of listening.

Recommended – nothing profound, simply fun reading.

The Lightkeepers by Abby Geni
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Plot: The Lightkeepers takes place throughout one year. A group of scientists settle on a desolate island off the coast of California – it is wild, remote, and full of aggressive birds protecting their territory, seals, and the resulting guava. The group studies the island’s fauna, sharks, sea life, etc., living in a house built by lightkeepers long since replaced by automation. The Lightkeepers is poetic at times; there is death and injury that appear to be accidents. The story is told to us via letters written to the deceased mother of a nature photographer. Are they accidents? There is the mystery!

Liked: The story is very ethereal – a ghost occasionally appears, but we’re never quite sure who she is – but there is more. The tale is deep and thought-provocing. Very descriptive – you can smell the salt air. Narration by Xe Sands is terrific and an excellent choice for The Lightkeepers. Xe could read a phone book and make it interesting. No objectionable language.

Not so hot: Well, more of a warning – there is a rape scene some might find diffiicult to read.

Written by Abby Geni, narrated by Xe Sands, about nine hours of listening in unabridged audiobook format, released in January 2016 by Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Recommended.

The Unknown Beloved by Amy Harmon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Plot: A mob hit in 1930s Chicago leaves a 10-yr-old Dani Flannigan orphaned. Beat cop Michael Malone, involved in the investigation, is charged with taking the child to relatives in Cleveland. While en route, the girl displays an eerie/paranormal ability. Time jumps fifteen years, and Malone is called to Cleveland by Elliot Ness, now a city civic leader, to hunt down a serial killer. Ness rents a room in Cleveland for Malone. Coincidently, Dani is the landlady.

Liked: The story is creative. A clean read, no objectionable language. Narration is excellent; no trouble discerning character voices. There is a sex scene, but it’s tastefully done. Settings of the 1930s and descriptions are vivid – a movie?

Not so hot: Not much – an enjoyable murder mystery. Bumped the speed on the iPhone to 1.4 – a preference, not really criticism.

Written by Amy Harmon, narrated by Rob Shapiro, about 15 hours of listening in unabridged audiobook format, released in April 2022 by Brilliance Audio

Recommended murder mystery.

Vanishing Girls by Lisa Regan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Plot. The Detective Josie Quinn series consists of several police procedurals, most involving missing or murdered women or girls. The setting is a small town in Pennsylvania. Josie’s childhood trauma is interwoven into each story; we watch her character struggle with her job, love life, and the brain-twisting murders traversing the series.

Liked, Characters. Stories are initially straightforward who-done-it murders that morph into complex mysteries to enjoy. Josie’s circle of friends consists of her fellow cops, the medical examiner, and her boss, each with a unique personality. Her family is initially small, but you’ll see it expand as the stories progress. Not too many characters to keep track of – as they are integrated into each story. You’ll have fun getting to know the characters and puzzling solutions. You’ll find yourself muttering, “Wait … what?” near the end of most books as the plots twist and surprises abound.

Not so hot. The first three books were poorly narrated by Eilidh Beaton as diction and child-like pronunciation were annoying. But stick with it as the rest are well read by Kate Handford. Production is fine, bumped speed to 1.4 – a preference, not a criticism.

The series is written by Lisa Regan and released from early 2018 through today. Bookouture published iinitially, later picked up by Hachette.

Recommended murder mysteries.

Wanderers by Chuck Wendig
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Plot. The human race has contracted a virus from bats, and a small group of survivors has been “infected” by an AI with nano-type-bots that give them immunity to the virus. In only a few months, most of the world population is winnowed to the few.

Liked. Wanderers is very long = problematic for many, but I like long, epic books. Character development is great as there are many to like, and many to hate. Page-turning adventure. Narration by Xe Sands is terrific, as usual.

Not so hot. Much of this book is a platform for the political views of the author. There is enough vitriolic hate in American reality today. Wanderers is not fictional escape from headlines but fuel to the flames. Warnings for some readers: Profanity throughout. There is a graphic M/M rape scene – in my opinion, gratuitous and adding nothing to the plot.

Written by Chuck Wendig, narrated by Dominic Hoffman, Xe Sands, about 33 hours of listening in unabridged audiobook format, released in July 2019 by Random House Audio.

Backyard Starship by J.N. Chaney
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Plot. Van Tudor inherits a farm from his grandfather. There is a spaceship in the barn. There is also a wise-cracking AI bird. Seems there was some truth in the stories of space grandpa told Van decades ago.

Liked. A great book for the young adult that likes space-based video games, if you can get them to read a book rather than play a video game. Or, grown-ups nostalgic for the space-based comic book characters of their youth. Squeaky clean reads, no sex, no objectionable language; buy it for a youngster. Narration and production are fine.

Not so hot. Not critical of this book at all – it’s just not my cup o’ tea – a bit too “Lost in Space”.

Written J.N. Chaney and Terry Maggert, narrated by Jeffrey Kafer, 13 hours of listening in unabridged audiobook format, released in December 2021 by Podium Audio.