Kathy B

Worth The Wait

Reviewed: 05-10-23

I am a fan of Tony Hillerman's books and George Guidall's narration (of everything), so I'm very happy that additional books are now available on Audible. Cayote Waits is everything that I like about the Leaphorn/Chee book series, namely it is so well written and the story is cleverly crafted as the plot lines come together. As an easterner, these stories set in the tribal nations of the Southwest are particularly appealing since I'm learning so much about the area and the cultures. I highly recommend the book and for newbies to Tony Hillerman, I recommend you start with the first in the series, The Blessing Way. I have never regretted spending a credit on a book in the Leaphorn/Chee series.

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3 people found this helpful

A Hot Mess

Reviewed: 04-16-22

I like Kel Kade's other books as well as Book 1 in this series, but Book 2 is a hot mess. There is so much repetition of: where are we? how do we get there? what are you? what are those things? will this work? I don't know and we're going to die. The dialogue of the characters of Mathias and Tezza is so immature that it is cringe and the humor falls flat. I would say this book should be listed as YA, except that would be an insult to well written YA books. I got bored half way through and the only thing that kept me going was Nick's narration. I won't be continuing this series. I recommend you skip this book and consider selecting one by Angus Watson instead.

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Promising Then Boring

Reviewed: 02-23-22

This starts out well, but becomes so boring that I almost didn't finish. The dialogue is juvenile and the characters are flat. I guess maybe it's okay as YA if you like that level of humor. The ridiculous combat situations are too long and totally unbelievable. If you're looking for something interesting, try Angus Watson's books.

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1 person found this helpful

KJ Barker Does It Again

Reviewed: 01-21-22

I so enjoy the dry wit and writing style of these books. This one starts off a little slower, but well worth the wait as the plot line escalates so don't be put off by the beginning pace. These are the kind of books I read more that once just for the pure joy of the subtle humor and unique characters. I can't think of a comparison in the fantasy category, so the closest I can come is if you like Mick Herron's Slow Horses kind of humor, you might like this trilogy. The narrator captures the tone of the book perfectly, so well done Mr. Sawyer.

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Slough House is Back!

Reviewed: 02-15-21

Slough House is another great installment in the Slow Horses series. Herron delivers everything that fans of the series love, including the usual or rather the unusual characters and suspenseful plot - because you just never know who Herron might decide to whack. I'm still mad that Marcus is gone. Herron writes with an abundance of comedic gems embedded in the dialogue and imagery which makes this unique spy series so entertaining and lol funny. Gerard Doyle's narration is perfect as always.

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5 people found this helpful

The Shadow That Lost the Plot

Reviewed: 04-07-20

This book is so poorly written and edited that I am perplexed by the other reviews making comparisons to Sanderson and Jordan. Because of those reviews, I kept listening, thinking that the book must get better at some point. It never did. No one seems to know what is going on because the world is so confusing, and the constant narration explaining the confusing world gets boring. I continued to listen only because I began to laugh at the ridiculous dialogue and sentences. The characters either hesitate, shrug, sigh, nod, or frown with so much repetition that it seems the author doesn't own a Thesaurus. Michael Kramer did the best he could with the stupid lines, I don't know how he kept a straight face having to say things like, “Wirr felt his eyebrows rise”. That's just dumb. Use your credit on something else, try Angus Watson's series of books.

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A Grisly and Engaging Victorian Crime Thriller

Reviewed: 04-07-20

This third book in the Arrowood series certainly kept me listening. The grit and grime, the smells and gore of Victorian England are so detailed that I wanted to shower after each chapter. The author knows his history and puts it on the page with such clever, sometimes funny, graphic descriptions. The Sherlock Holmes references are also funny and these bits provide some needed comic relief. The story is a page-turner as the events and actions are unpredictable, Set against this dark setting is the contrast of the decent humanity of Arrowood and Barnett, his side-kick. I just love those guys, and I hope the series continues. Malk Williams does a fantastic job. Best not to listen while you eat your lunch though,

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1 person found this helpful

Engrossing Mystery with Terrific Narration

Reviewed: 03-11-19

What a thoroughly entertaining book - I love the characters, dialogue and story. Through his writing, the author immerses us into the Victorian world, but not the one featuring lords and ladies with a butler-did-it story. No, this is gritty London with characters who are so vividly described that you can almost smell them, not surprising since most of them are the great unwashed. This is by no means a cozy, so expect some pretty dark themes and unsavory deeds.

Malk Williams does a masterful job in portraying all of the characters' voices. He really brings them to life and this type of superb voice performance is the reason why I love audiobooks.

This book can be read as a stand-alone. While it is not necessary to read them in order, I would recommend getting the first Arrowood because it will certainly add to a better understanding of the main characters' relationship and because it's an enjoyable book too. This book is well worth a credit because of both the gripping mystery and the spot-on narration. So for a change of pace, step out of those elegant Victorian drawing rooms and into a darker, Dickensian London with it's earthy characters and seamy atmosphere, along with a dash of that wonderful British humor.

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4 people found this helpful

Dickens Meets Dashiell Hammett

Reviewed: 08-22-18

I thoroughly enjoyed Mr. Finlay's excursion into the gritty world of 1890's England through this very entertaining and engaging mystery - a Victorian noir. Arrowood is an intelligent, curmudgeon of a detective who is a bit unappealing at first, but he grows on you. Finlay casts Arrowood as a contemporary of S. Holmes, but “The guv'nor can't abide Sherlock Holmes”. So it is really enjoyable when the author has Arrowood rant about the flaws in how Holmes solved certain cases – the details of which will be familiar to fans of A.C. Doyle's stories. Barnett is the detective's affable sidekick, and the story is told by him, as if he is a sort of lower class, East Londoner Dr. Watson. With Arrowood as the brains and Barnett as the brawn, and with their differences in temperament and class, Finlay creates a new team of detectives that I find to be quite endearing.

The listener becomes deeply immersed in a Dickensian England through the period dialogue, characters and settings that the author skillfully portrays. I love the imagery he uses to describe the characters and their exploits, many of which are down right lol funny. Malk Williams is masterful in performing all of the characters, his various accents wonderfully enhancing the atmosphere of the story. I am looking forward to the next book and hope this grows into a series. I would compare Mick Finlay's Arrowood to books by Lindsey Davis or David Freed - if you like their style, I think you'll like this one. So pull a credit from your quiver and let loose an Arrowood – it is sure to hit the mark.

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11 people found this helpful

Maximus Thumbs Up for Falco!

Reviewed: 08-20-18

This is the fifth book in The Marcus Didius Falco Mysteries and I am so glad that I found this series. I was never that much of a fan of the Roman era and pretty dumb about the history. I got the first book on sale and put it at the back of my listening queue. I finally got around to listening to it and duh, it was great. So I am working my way through all of the books and enjoying each one. Falco is an “informer” aka private detective in Rome around 70 CE, which should give you a clue to expect a more tongue-in-cheek approach to the stories. Lindsey Davis does a really fantastic job of blending historically accurate Roman life while using the modern terms and concepts that we are familiar with. The result is often lol funny. The events of the story are not always light-hearted since we are in Rome where there are slaves, entertainments with man-eating lions and such, so there are dark elements. The main character, Falco, is thoroughly enjoyable - a winning combination of smart, sarcastic, funny, and a very likable guy. But he is also an ex-Roman soldier so a tough guy too which means he can handle himself when the bad guys get dangerous. This can be read as a stand alone so if you what to dip your toe into the Falco series it is not necessary to read the previous books first.

So far, I have encountered two narrators with the series, Christian Rodska and Simon Prebble. Usually when narrators are changed, I become apoplectic, This is the first time that I found the change to be no big deal since Rodska and Prebble have similar tones and styles of delivery, Simon Prebble does a masterful job of narration with this book. He knows how to bring characters to life and his dry style makes the funny parts really funny. So Hail Falco – We who are about to listen salute you!

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3 people found this helpful