The Rev. Craig

Yay

Reviewed: 04-27-24

Bailey trys hard to get it right and she does. She respects history. I enjoy her podcast.

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A bong is the title. Awsome!

Reviewed: 02-08-24

Another Serge caper. Read (heard) them all. This one is convolution at its best. Hilarious at its so-so. And is never boring.

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Narrator

Reviewed: 12-07-23

Please. Many authors read their books with excellent voice. Not here. Ms. Langley is not a good choice to read such an emotional story. She lacks the dramatic touch. Great book however.

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6 people found this helpful

Relentless

Reviewed: 08-02-19

You never know what will come of a fictional story with a real life protagonist. Fear not. Bram Stoker is perfect for this story.

The suspense IS relentless. From the early pages to the last pages the plot twists and turns become tornadic (I know, not a word), and settles back to simply (simply?) suspense.

Beginning in Romania and ending - of course - in London, the main female protagonist is a power unto herself. Bram comes to the story a bit later but in the midst of a drama - introducing the second plot and involving a second female protagonist - which can't be a subplot cause it stands alone, only connected to the other plot by a golden box.

Extended life, twice deaths, theater, graveyard, other creepiness, and the Titanic conspire to rivet you to the page (sorry - earpiece.) The use of the Titanic was disconcerting at first, but it did work.

If you like historical fiction, you'll find this opus uniquely suited to your taste. If historical fiction isn't your thing, read it for the mystery - which includes the supernatural. What else do you expect from a story about Bram Stoker? I'll reread this book a while after the nightmares end.

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1 person found this helpful

Open Audible

Reviewed: 07-10-19

Well read with excellent timing. I thoroughly enjoyed this standalone edition. Know it? Listen anyway.

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...then....

Reviewed: 05-18-19

I was listening closely to this book, then we came to Nicolo Machiavelli. The author then showed a total misunderstanding of Machiavelli and his work, The Prince. The author either got his information second or third hand, or he can't or doesn't read modern introductions - which happen to illuminate the book - or he didn't read the Cliff Notes.

Ole Nicolo was writing to satire the way princes should act and wrote it to a particular prince His points are well taken by despots, but Machiavelli was NOT advocating any of this. Mark never made the distinction. I assume he had no idea.

Now, does this lack of care extend to his other opinions? I dunno, but it was a waving red flag for me. That kind of misunderstanding tells me Mark may be too loosey goosey with his opinions or how he relates others opinions. I quit listening after that.

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Monotone

Reviewed: 11-30-18

That is one of two issues I have with Dead Mountain. The narrator reads as if he has no dramatic flair,
"Just the facts, m'am". My other issue is the author's denigration of those who have "explanations" of what happened to the Dyatlov party as he tells his story. Then he offers his own theory which is at least as specious as other theories. His expansion of some points regarding the affair is admirable, however. This is decent place to start if your knowledge of the incident is little or none.

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Great Blunders, But Not Necessarily THE Greatest

Reviewed: 07-04-17

This is good overview of great military blunders. They all fit the author's hypothesis, yet there are missing examples which could replace more than one event to more effective purpose. Cannae was full of Roman blunders. It is missing. Tetuburg may not have been decisive, but it was a blunder of major dummieness. He chose Carrhae. I suspect the author had to choose between significant Roman blunders. But Cannae is the most obvious example. Agincourt should have been the 100 years war choice because it was the third time France used the same tactics which failed twice already. Those are just two examples of my bias.

I wish there had been a PDF available for this listen. It would be helpful simply to refer to later. All in all though, it is well written and well narrated. I highly recommend it especially for those who are new to the subject of Military history.

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2 people found this helpful

Great Standalone Sequel

Reviewed: 07-07-14

(Not to be confused with a Sandilands squel!)

I like a good story and the quasi-medieval/premodern mixed setting works. BUT I couldn't put my finger on why I liked this book so much until I realized I was listening to Cary Grant and Victor McLaughlin in their roles as British Lancers in the movie Gunga Din. The Riyria play off each other like the movie characters.
There is a sense of fun here but there is a darkness which not only cannot be denied, it may be hard to stomach. The heroes aren't super. They get bloodied, they hurt emotionally, they simply screwup at times. This is a darkly fun tale which eludes to more danger and deceit in the next installment. Once you begin to feel the characters, there's no stopping. It becomes a listening obsession until the end when you say, What's next? A dead King? BUT DO read "The Crown Tower" first. If you don't you'll end up doing it anyway! This series has hooked me so it's off to "Riyria Revelations". Later.

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4 people found this helpful

Die Storyestmosthilariouslyfunnying

Reviewed: 12-19-13

Great Twain. Sarcastic, but oh so true. How many words can YOU stick together? Hint - the Germans will beat you every time.

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3 people found this helpful