Brian Leahy

Abandoned at about the 90 minute mark

Reviewed: 02-16-24

The prose is meandering, self-indulgent, digressive and - to me at least - like fingernails on a chalkboard. Unless you like having a scene interrupted by a half-hour digression about the political reputation of a character who happens to be walking past for some reason, avoid this like the plague.

I found myself facing each new listening session like going to war; I laid siege to the story which fought back with all its strength to keep me from becoming engaged. I fumbled for the playback speed settings, cranking it up to 2x speed in a desperate bid to get through the next dozen insufferable digressions from the story. Every listening session left me angry, impatient, and feeling ripped off. If there were a button to demand a refund, I'd have clicked it. This story may (eventually) have some great and mind bending ideas in it - but it's not remotely worth the effort to get to them.

I'm now irritated with Cixin Liu, Ken Liu, Luke Daniels, Audible and both the Hugo and Nebula organizations for subjecting me to this tripe.

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1 person found this helpful

About scientists more than science

Reviewed: 08-13-23

The story this book tells is important, and I am glad it's out there - but I'm afraid I went into it with very different expectations. If I stop now at chapter 31 (and I likely will) I'll have heard a brief (but fascinating) prelude that described the science of CRISPR, followed by an excruciating, lengthy, blow-by-blow account of various academics battling for credit over the discovery.

If that sort of drama interests you, you'll love this book. If (like me) you find it too infuriating to sustain your interest, avoid.

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Good but…

Reviewed: 06-08-23

Great story, lots of detail, very believable and compelling. However- it really needs one more chapter. You won’t regret listening but I suspect you’ll agree with me when you reach the end.

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Good, goes in unexpected directions

Reviewed: 02-22-22

I enjoyed the story, it unfolded in ways I didn't expect. Unrelated note: the premise of 'The Maid' has many similarities with "American Girl" by Wendy Walker. (Young, naïve, lovelorn female protagonist on 'the spectrum' who finds a man dead.) I happened to begin listening to AG right after 'The Maid' and had serious Deja Vu. Putting AG back on the shelf for a while for this reason.

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Ok story, bizarre presentation

Reviewed: 08-02-21

This isn't a narrated book, it's a dramatic performance. This means that, often, you must listen carefully even to figure out where the action is happening. I don't mean to say that's a flaw - but you'll want to know what you're in for.

Headphones are the best way to listen - unless you have an exceptionally quiet-running car, you might have to crank the volume way up to catch everything of importance if you're listening while driving.

Vivica Fox does a decent job - but the story calls for her to deliver almost every line in an angry, defiant, or distraught tone of voice. This wore on me after a while.

The story has a big and bizarre twist that I did not see coming - but by the time it drops, it has a LOT of heavy lifting to do. I'm not quite sure it worked.

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Biography, not science book

Reviewed: 02-07-20

This is the author’s life story, and his attempt to pass along a collection of ideas and techniques that have helped him throughout his life. Though the author is a neurosurgeon, there are only a few short anecdotes about neurosurgery.

His life story *is* fairly extraordinary, and worth hearing - but be prepared, he very much wants to teach the reader the secrets of his success - framed as lessons, not only anecdotes.

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Joe's version of The Stand

Reviewed: 08-02-16

I liked it though it's unmistakably a different take on The Stand. Another devastating plague, another group of plucky survivors, even another pudgy intelligent sexually frustrated troublemaker named Harrold and a deaf boy named Nick.

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Nice job Stephen...

Reviewed: 04-07-16

Where does Stephen Fry Presents a Selection of Oscar Wilde's Short Stories rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

About in the middle

What did you like best about this story?

My first exposure to Oscar Wilde. These stories were entertaining but more than a little heavy headed in their tone. Wilde beat his audience over the head with his points at every turn.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

Stephen Fry did a great job emoting for these fables.

Any additional comments?

The editing was not so good. Played on an iPhone, each successive story began at virtually the same instant the last ended. No pause at all, as if the title of story N was part of the last sentence of story N-1.

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Compelling. Start of a series?

Reviewed: 04-07-16

Would you listen to The Life We Bury again? Why?

Probably, though not until story details fade from memory a bit.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Life We Bury?

Joe's foolish (though narratively necessary) decision to confront "DJ" alone and without telling anyone.

Which character – as performed by Zach Villa – was your favorite?

Jeremy

Any additional comments?

A surprising number of dangling threads. Why did the dead girl say that Carl watched her a lot? If Carl did watch her a lot - why? What happened with Joe and Jeremy's mother? Or her boyfriend? Or with the dead girl's brother? Enough unresolved threads I wonder if the author is planning a sequel.

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A great listen, despite an editing problem

Reviewed: 02-25-16

Where does Stephen Fry Presents a Selection of Anton Chekhov's Short Stories rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

From 1 to 10, around a 7

Any additional comments?

There was an issue with the editing. Each time a story ended, there was, literally, no pause of any kind before the next story began. The first syllables of the next story would almost overlap the last syllables of the prior story. This was a little confusing - but otherwise a great listen.

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20 people found this helpful