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Moris Senegor

  • 8
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  • 5
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  • 10
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A DECENT STORY TOLD VERY BADLY

Overall
1 out of 5 stars
Performance
5 out of 5 stars
Story
3 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 07-14-22

This could have been a truly gripping story in the hands of an accomplished writer. Instead, a decent yarn of complex plots devices and potentially interesting characters degenerates into cartoonish or soap opera scenes and dialogue. I kept telling myself over and over that in real life people do NOT talk the way these characters do. The plot twists and turns, presenting even the most innocent characters as the perp(s). Numerous repetitive theories are presented in dialogue or internal thoughts as potential solutions of the mystery. This author is no Agatha Christie. The solution is obvious. I guessed it correctly beyond the half way point.

This was an excruciating audio to listen to. No criticism for the narrator. She did a good job. The blame goes to the author for very poor writing.

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NOT UP TO THE USUAL STANDARDS

Overall
2 out of 5 stars
Performance
5 out of 5 stars
Story
2 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 01-04-22

I have become a fan of Nick Louth & hıs Guillard series. They are usually tightly constructed stories, well written and with amazingly detailed police procedurals. This one does NOT live up to those standards. I wonder whether in a rush to publication they failed to edit the story from the standpoint of overall composition. There are two running stories here, that of Guillard and his investigation and of Julia stuck in an unusual bind with a “ferile” young woman who enters her life. These two stories are unbalanced. Louth spends way too much time on setting up the Julia story. This results in sheer boredom in the first 2/3 of the novel, the rare Guillard diversions lighting up the story up. When the two stories converge & Julia takes unexpected directions the novel gets a bit more exciting. But then there is an awfully abrupt ending. The story badly needs a denouement. I don’t know how any editor allowed that ending to go into publication. As I said, think this was a rush job. Louth is a good writer. He needs to take stock in this fiasco and take his time to publish a well. constructed, well edited story.

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1 person found this helpful

ANNOYINGLY AWFUL STORYTELLING

Overall
1 out of 5 stars
Performance
3 out of 5 stars
Story
1 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 03-13-21

This author might know a thing or two about police procedures but he cannot tell a story properly. His scenes are full of sidetracks into meaningless characters that are uselessly elaborated, contributing nothing to the main storyline, inane, cliche filled dialogue and irrelevant site details. The story does not move along because of all these obstacles. In one early scene a veteran detective arrives at a hit & run homicide site and converses with a patrol officer already there, who also happens to be his sister. She has a perp in the back of her car, totally unrelated to the story (inappropriately elaborated earlier), arrested and handcuffed, and now waiting to be taken to the station while the hit & run is investigated. The veteran officer notices the arrestee and says, “He doesn’t look happy.”

Really? I gave up at that point & abandoned this book.

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ABSOLUTELY DELIGHTFUL

Overall
5 out of 5 stars
Performance
5 out of 5 stars
Story
5 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 03-13-21

This author takes you a fantasy world of bygone times where societal norms, shockingly different than ours, told through the eyes of a child, is actually real. Kids play “massacre the Armenian,” wives demand that their husbands get another wife to keep them company, families fight and insult each other in unimaginable ways, an obscenely wealthy lifestyle comes to a violent end with Communism. Throughout all this, the reader/listener can’t help but smile at all that happens, for it is told by a crafty storyteller, blunt and humorous, and so captivating. Banine has been obscure for too long.

Kudos to the narrator whose thick accent, a mix of French and Persian, most apropos, gives a refreshing life to the story. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

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2 people found this helpful

Righteous Assassin Audiobook By Kevin G. Chapman cover art

AWFUL NARRATION

Overall
2 out of 5 stars
Performance
1 out of 5 stars
Story
3 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 11-10-20

I’ve listened to hundreds of audiobooks. This one has, by far the worst narration. It sounds as if it is coming from a computer with a bad connection. Very hard to listen to. The writing style is stilted, most of the the dialogue cartoonish. For those who like police procedurals, the technical details if the story, far fetched as it is, are quite interesting. It is a worth while story but I recommend that you read it in print.

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NOT WHAT I EXPECTED

Overall
1 out of 5 stars
Performance
1 out of 5 stars
Story
1 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 03-24-20

This was a huge disappointment. I expected a book about Amundsen and the history of polar explorations. It started that way, promisingly. Then it quickly derailed into a disjointed account of the author’s personal diary as she visited and swam in various icy locales. If you know this author and her swimming history is of interest, you might like it. If you’re interested in polar exploration & Amundsen, look elsewhere.

Incidentally, the narrator’s delivery, with inflections that belong to a children’s story, was extremely annoying. She made the book even less tolerable.

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2 people found this helpful

OUTSTANDING STORY

Overall
5 out of 5 stars
Performance
5 out of 5 stars
Story
5 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 11-30-18

The world of medicine & finance can be convoluted, hard to understand and difficult to tirn into a gripping yarn. Yet Carreyrou manages to create a gripping page turner out of it. Excellent story. I would highly recommend it.

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OVER THE TOP

Overall
3 out of 5 stars
Performance
4 out of 5 stars
Story
2 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 06-27-17

Over the top story. Starts so slow that I almost abandoned it. The characters are cartoon-like extremes. They have no nuances. Once the action gets going it is breathless and entertaining but the ending is abrupt and unsatisfactory, hastily put together it aeems. The narrator was probably the best part of this audiobook.

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