Title: The Mask of Inanna
Author: Alicia E. Goranson
Genre: Darkish Fantasy
Released: 21 February 2012
Located: iTunes, Podiobooks
Formats Available: Podcast only
Rating: PG for violence
As I’ve noted here before, my introduction to all things podcast was through my finding Old Time Radio shows in podcast form. I love Old Time Radio. I love podcasts. So when I stumbled upon The Mask of Inanna at Podiobooks.com and read that here was a work of podiofiction about an OTR show and cast, I immediately downloaded and began to listen.
So, on to the review.
Synopsis: The world isn’t kind to dreamers.
Like any boy of the radio era, Leonard Allen dreamed of hitting big in New York and Hollywood; to write or host that one big show that would make everyone notice. Even after he had his chance at both, that dream still burns inside him. He’s always been able to spark the divine somewhere in his work. And he’s been noticed.
He doesn’t know the lengths people will go to take advantage of such gifts. So when the mysterious David Lewis asked him finish his classic radio drama “After Dark” after a half-century from a pirate radio station in a New England lighthouse, Len didn’t realize it wasn’t as simple as that. The truth is that Lewis served a more powerful entity than even public opinion: the goddess Inanna, Sumerian patron of love and war both.
Sometimes, a god wants a sacrifice. Sometimes, a god wants praise and devotion. But the most fickle, and the most dangerous, are those who demand a show.
Journey into the creative mind of award-winning author Alicia Goranson, as she explores the nature of power and those who covet it in a genre-busting work that blends classic fifties radio drama, tense, paranoia-fueled thrillers, and the intimate knowledge born of a career working behind-the-scenes in the performing arts. Marvel at a stunning collection of award-winning stage actors, the Post-Meridian Players, as they provide the voice and heart to a cast of over thirty. Follow Allen and Lewis as their ideological conflict threatens to consume their friends and family, a battle neither can yield.
Is magic simply a tool, or a living thing to be respected? Does man have a right to make demands of the gods? What lengths would you go to for the power to protect what you love? Whatever you believe, don’t get caught out After Dark, in THE MASK OF INANNA.
Production: Wow. I don’t know if I’ve ever listened to a work of podcast fiction with a cast this large. If I have, it was by Dan Sawyer. This is radio theatre at its finest. This is audio drama. There is no narrator. There is no need. This is Decoder Ring Theater without the humour. (Not a typo.. I WANT the u there.) The Mask of Inanna is produced by Alicia Goranson. It is a feast for the ears. Simply, the production is as good as it comes.
Grade: A+
Cast: This is a very large cast that goes by the name of The Post-Meridian Radio Players. I’m guessing they’re all professional or semi-professional actors/actresses. I’ve never heard of them before, but their mic presence was amazing. Each actor voiced his character with aplomb and created a tableau awash with colorful voices to delight the ears.
Grade: A+
Story: The Mask of Inanna is good. It’s very good. That doesn’t mean I don’t have a quibble or two with it though. First of all, due to the nature of the story, it is told in a rotating pattern of flashbacks and present day. I’ve always hated this device with a passion. I’d MUCH rather have the back story told at the beginning and then give me a “jump” to the current story line. However, I do understand why it was necessary with Mask and I can’t say that it was too much of a detriment to the story. Also, when certain effects are used on some of the supernatural characters, I felt the audio might have been a bit shrill. Small complaints in a work this big.
Grade: A-
Verdict: I do recommend that you give The Mask of Inanna a listen. It is quite a different type of podcast than most of what you will hear on Podiobooks.com. I’m guessing the majority of my readers/listeners will greatly enjoy it. Let me know!
Shameless plug: Don’t forget, if you send an audio comment to me at Odin1eye at viewfromvalhalla dot com, I’ll include it in the podcast version of this episode next weekend (or when I receive it). You can also leave voicemail, for this or any other story, at the Valhalla Hotline simply by calling 956-307-ODIN (6346)
Disclosure: To be honest, I’d never even heard of anyone connected with The Mask of Inanna before giving this story a listen. However, I will be looking for these names in the future. Nothing was offered or accepted in return for this review.
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Title: Aladdin and his Wonderfully Infernal Device
Author: Tee Morris
Publisher: Imagine That Studios
Release Date: 2011
Available Formats: ebook only
There are certain inevitabilities in this world. Summer follows summer (I live in Texas, there is only one season) and babies will always make me smile. And Tee Morris will always be reviewed here. There are only a handful of authors I will read just because they wrote it. Fewer, it seems, as the years go by. Mr. Morris remains one of these. At least until Alladin and his Wondefully Infernal Device. Did it change my perception?
On to the review.
Synopsis: From the imagination behind the award-winning Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences series comes a steampunk novella to a legend from A Thousand and One Arabian Nights.
Aladdin is a street-wise thief that finds himself under the tutelage of a world-renown illusionist. He is escorted deep into the deserts in search of a treasure beyond his wildest dreams, and discovers instead something far more valuable—a destiny. (Stolen from Amazon.com)
Setting: It should be no surprise that a story about Alladin takes place in Bagdad. However, this is a bit different than the Bagdad represented in you history texts. It seems like the western sciences have entered into the arena a bit earlier than in world we know. Mr. Morris uses his steampunk brush to paint a landscape worthy of a master, adding neither too much or too little, in re-imaging this story that so many are familiar with.
Characters: The primary characters in this novella are the titular Aladdin and an illusionist known as the All Powerful Jaha. For a story that ends way to quickly, both of these characters are quite fully developed. Make no mistake, Aladdin might be a thief, but he’s good. Jaha.. well.. I’ll let you read about Jaha for yourself. Suffice it to say, this story has its foundations as a fairy tale, and it still feels like a fairy tale. The characters motivations are straight forward and allows the readers to easily slip inside their skins.
Odin’s recommendation: This delightful book is well worth the meager 199 pennies it’s listed for.. and I see Amazon Prime members can get it for free! (I believe this story is still available only in “kindle” format which can easily be read on your computer, android or idevice as well.) This is a short story. A novella. It is a fairy tale. It is priced reasonably as such. I had two nice 1/2 hour reading sessions to call it complete, and enjoyed each of those 60 minutes (caveat: I’m a slow, thorough, reader). This is a story you can share with the kids, but adults with a bit of imagination will enjoy it too. I truly enjoyed the steampunk elements that Mr. Morris added. His deft touch on where to employ the magic of technology and where to leave it out was marvelous. Truly, I’ll never look at this story the same again.
Title: Iron Dragons
Author: Derek P. Gilbert
Genre: Fantasy/Science Fiction
Released: 13 October 2008 – 22 November 2008
Located: iTunes, Podiobooks
Formats Available: Podcast and dead tree
Rating: PG for violence
Iron Dragons was another book I found simply by perusing Podiobooks.com. If this isn’t something you’ve done often in the past, I would recommend it should be something you do quite often in the future. I’ve found all sorts of new and interesting authors by doing this, and that is how I found Derek P. GIlbert, author of Iron Giants.
So, on to the review.
Synopsis:
Dragon pee really stinks.
With that bit of cautionary advice, master dragonslayer Davian begins his tale.
Davian is a Third Level Master of The Order, a group of men who alone have the power to battle the most fearsome creatures on all of Saramond. For thousands of years, the brothers of The Order have protected their world.
Now something has upset the balance of power between man and dragon, and Davian must face what appears to be a dragon that cannot be seen.
But Davian is losing his grip on reality — and the fate of the world rests with a stable hand, an underfed priest, and a gardener from beyond the stars. (Stolen from Podiobooks.com)
Production: Iron Dragons production is good. If you’re a picky listener, you probably will find something to complain about, but for most of us, this story was done sufficiently well to engage in you in the story without annoying you with artifacts or other production issues.
Grade: B+
Cast: Derek P. Gilbert does Iron Dragons as a self read, and he does it very well. If you’re a fan of Basil Sands narration and reading style, I’d recommend you give Mr. Gilbert a chance. I finished Karl’s Last Flight and immediately jumped into Iron Dragons. Mr. Gilbert and Mr. Sands have similar enough narration styles that I initially questioned whether they were both pseudonyms for the same writer; however, I am now completely comfortable with the fact that they are indeed two separate individuals.
Grade: A-
Story: This story starts out as a pretty straight forward fantasy story and I greatly enjoy it. Then it diverts into a science fiction story with elements of fantasy, and I continued to enjoy it. Perhaps not as much as I had originally, but still quite good. The synopsis is well written and I am hard pressed to try to say much more about the story without spoilers. So… well.. read the synopsis.
Grade: B
Verdict: Some of you might recognize that Iron Dragons isn’t the first book by Mr. Gilbert that I have reviewed. If you recognized this fact, you actually did better than I did. When I began checking his credentials in connection with Mr. Sands (non existent that I could see), I realized that Mr. Gilbert and written The God Conspiracy which I had reviewed sometime during 2011. I can say I enjoyed Iron Dragons more. It still might be a bit “preachy” for some, but it is well disguised in this story and I had no issue with it. Do I recommend it? Yes.
Shameless plug: Don’t forget, if you send an audio comment to me at Odin1eye at viewfromvalhalla dot com, I’ll include it in the podcast version of this episode next weekend (or when I receive it). You can also leave voicemail, for this or any other story, at the Valhalla Hotline simply by calling 956-307-ODIN (6346)
Disclosure: Nope… still nothing in the bribe department. Is this link not working????
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Title: Silent Victor
Author: J. Daniel Sawyer
Publisher: AWP Mystery
Release Date: 2011
Available Formats: ebook only
Once again, Dan Sawyer has presented us with a Clarke Lantham story. This one, if you can’t tell from the cover art, is all about aliens. Maybe. Or maybe not.
Does this new story hit like a .45 between the eyes, or does it pack the power of a squib?
On to the review.
Synopsis: The California Academy of Sciences, a bastion of integrity in scientific public relations, has agreed to play host to one of the most valuable travelling exhibits in the world: a Mars rock with microbial alien life. But the attention it’s drawing isn’t just international, it’s interstellar. When a commando team of gray aliens steals the rock and abducts a security guard, in full view of the cameras, the head of the security contractor has only one place to turn: Clarke Lantham Investigations.
Clarke Lantham already turned down an alien-related job earlier in the week, and has had his fill of kooks, cranks, and crooks of all kinds. Unfortunately, with an old client suing him, a employee to pay for, and a new ward chewing through his finances, he needs the paycheck. This time, though, he’s not the only one looking for a missing person: the FBI, Lloyd’s of London, and the Chinese Ministry of State Security are all breathing down his neck.
From the dark underbelly of the Tongs slave trade to the shark-infested waters of Bolinas Bay to the skies far above the concerns of mere mortals, Lantham races against spies, assassins, and conspiracy theorists to find the missing man–and the treasure that went with him–before the theft becomes a diplomatic incident between the world’s most fearsome superpowers and the alien overlords they allegedly support.
When the field gets that crowded, someone’s bound to get hurt. But even that might be okay for Lantham…if he didn’t have to sleep on the couch. (Stolen from author’s site)
Setting: One of the things I love about Dan Sawyer’s Lantham books is that, for the most part, they take place in locales that the author is obviously familiar with. This holds true with Silent Victor as well. Clarke travels all around the bay area doing what Clarke does best. The nice thing about an author writing about places they know about is that those places come alive on the page.
Plot: Seriously, have you ever read a Dan Sawyer story? If you have, have you tried to explain the plot of one of that story in a paragraph or two? This is exactly the position I’m in now. The plot of Silent Victor isn’t anymore straightforward than any of Dan’s other books, but I’ll do my best. Clarke Lantham is trying to find out whether Victor has been abducted by aliens or whether he has been the victim of foul play of a more human nature. Various other characters become involved and create situations that must be solved along the way. Sorry, that is about the best I can do.
Characters: As always, Dan Sawyer excels at characterization. In this volume, we are allowed to see some of the characters that float along the periphery of Clarke’s life take on a life of their own. Rachel and Nya become much more integral to the story, and by developing them to a greater extent, we also learn much more about Clarke. I’ve always enjoyed Clarke’s witty/sarcastic/sardonic inner voice, but in Silent Victor that voice can no longer be classified as inner. The best thing about this, however, is that Rachel keeps up.
Odin’s recommendation: It took me longer to read Silent Victor than I would have preferred. Life and all that. However, it is a story that deserves to be read. It is a story that is worth paying a hardback price for a ebook delivery (and no, it DOESN’T cost as much as a hardback). With each Clarke Lantham book, Mr. Sawyer solidifies his standing with those of us that grew up watching old movies with heroes like Sam Spade. Clarke Lantham is a character Bogart himself would rise from the grave to play if given the chance (forget that he would be completely miscast). If you haven’t read any of Mr. Sawyer’s Clarke Lantham stories, you need to buy them all. They get better with each one. This is a bit scary, because there are several more coming and I don’t see how Mr. Sawyer can keep up the trend. For my own greedy reasons, I hope he does.
Forget the .45, Dan targeted us with a freaking howitzer. Dude.
You may have noticed I usually don’t link to sites where you can purchase the books from in the reviews. However, if you look to the right, you’ll see a carousel of the books I’ve most recently reviewed. If you click on one of them it will take you to the Amazon page where that product is sold. I’ve done this for two reasons. One, Amazon may not be the only place the book is sold, but most authors are now using Amazon so I can reliably assume that the book is sold there. Secondly, any clicks you make from the carousel (and better yet, purchases) helps me as an Amazon affiliate. However, please, don’t worry about buying from Amazon if you prefer another vendor, just buy the books!
Title: The Price of Friendship
Author: Philip “Norvaljoe” Carroll
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Released: 18 January 2012 – 14 February 2012
Located: iTunes, Podiobooks
Formats Available: Podcast only
Rating: PG for violence
Quite a while back, long before I began writing these reviews, I was hanging out with a bunch of like minded people on Twitter and began participating in an online writing podcast by the name of Great Hites with creator and host, Jeff Hite. One of the fine folks that wrote very consistently for this podcast was a nice bloke by the name of Philip Carroll, who went by the name of Norval Joe. Through this podcast Mr. Carroll released the first chapter of his book, The Price of Friendship. Ever since, I’d been waiting to read, or listen to it. Recently, he released it as a podcast.
So, on to the review.
Synopsis:
Chad Baker is in love with Amy Snider, though he doesn’t know it. He thinks they’re just friends like the rest of the kids in eighth grade. But as the school year is coming to a close a mysterious boy shows up to complicate this ordinary teenage boy’s life.
Derrick claims Chad has broken his father’s proprietary hand held game player. The price to replace it can’t be paid in dollars and cents, but in lives.
Chad must travel across dimensions and learn the ways of bending time and space by manipulating sound.
The mysteries pile up as he meets the residents of the dimensions and learns the responsibilities inherited from the father who disappeared shortly after Chad’s birth. Who will help him rescue his friend, and who can he trust in a world of strangers and strange allegiances? The beautiful Amanda, four years older than Chad and a hundred miles out of his league? The manipulative recluse, Brendan Thrush? Or the dangerous and powerful Commander Lorantelle?
What will be the final price Chad must pay to prove his friendship? (Stolen from Podiobooks.com)
Production: I believe The Price of Friendship is Mr. Carroll’s first multi-ep podcast. He does an adequate job with it and I had no real complaints in listening to this story. The sound was clear and there were few distractions. I believe I remember hearing a repeated line or two, but that really isn’t that unusual.
Grade: B-
Cast: Lately, I’ve been listening to a string of self read stories. The Price of Friendship is another of these. Mr. Carroll does a very nice job of reading his story. He doesn’t go overboard on the voices or inflections, but the story flows nicely and it is easy to sit back and enjoy.
Grade: B+
Story: Mr. Carroll’s first foray into podcast fiction is a family friendly young adult tale about a teenage boy searching for a teenage girl that he has wronged. Though listeners might not have figured it out from the first episode, this story is an alternate reality, science fiction/fantasy story. There are elements of Zelazny’s Amber here, but no more than any story about alternate or parallel universes.
Grade: B
Verdict: I think most listeners that enjoy fiction with teenage characters and a YA target audience will enjoy The Price of Friendship. I did have a few issues with a couple of the plot points that were never explained to my satisfaction and I do think that a good editor could make this story even better. However, I quite enjoyed The Price of Friendship and am quite glad that Mr. Carroll completed it.
Shameless plug: Don’t forget, if you send an audio comment to me at Odin1eye at viewfromvalhalla dot com, I’ll include it in the podcast version of this episode next weekend (or when I receive it). You can also leave voicemail, for this or any other story, at the Valhalla Hotline simply by calling 956-307-ODIN (6346)
Disclosure: As mentioned above, I’ve known of Mr. Carroll for quite some time. I do not communicate with him often as he is not on Twitter nearly as much as he was previously. I was offered nothing in return for this review.
Title: Confessions of a Troll
Author: Artemis Greenleaf
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Released: 20 November 2011 – 19 February 2011
Located: iTunes, Podiobooks
Formats Available: Podcast and ebook
Rating: PG 13 for Violence and disturbing imagery
Twenty reviews back, I discovered a new story by a new author. Earthbound by Artemis Greenleaf. Not long ago I discovered that Confessions of a Troll by Artemis Greenleaf was complete at Podiobooks.com. That’s all the encouragement I needed.
So, on to the review.
Synopsis:
“It was just a simple computer prank. How could I have known that it would almost get us all killed?”
When sixteen year old Cai Peterson poses as an online troll to relieve the boredom after being grounded for drinking at a party, he tangles with a cyberstalker who’s not only willing to make his virtual life miserable, but his real life as well. As Cai searches for the stalker, it seems like nearly everyone in his sleepy Texas town has something to hide. Surrounded by suspects, Cai has to navigate a shifting landscape of treachery and truth to uncover a hidden enemy before he and his family pay the ultimate price. (Stolen from Podiobooks.com)
Production: Confessions of a Troll is a pretty straight forward production. There isn’t a lot in the way of effects or audio add-ins. A simple opening piece of music that is again utilized to close. This is a production model that many follow, and for good reason: its effective for producing a clean, professional listening experience.
Unfortunately, there are multiple instances of repeated lines and other small production details that should have been fixed but were left in, while not a huge criticism, it does jar the listener.
Grade: B
Cast: This is a single read story. Those of you who have listened to Earthbound will recognize the voice of the reader. Though not credited, this is not “Mr. Greenleaf”. It doesn’t matter because he has a mellifluous voice that succeeded in bringing the story alive for this listener. I really enjoyed the pacing and flow of this reading.
Grade: A-
Story: Though listed above as a Young Adult Fantasy, this is not exactly true. I would call it simply YA with elements of fantasy. It is a story about growing up in a large family being led by (effectively) by a single parent and struggling for an identity of your own. Cai, or young hero, makes some bad decisions in this quest and, unlike in many YA stories I’ve read, this comes back to haunt him.
This is the second story I’ve heard by Artemis Greenleaf, and I can verify that I felt that this was a better written story. However, as timely as Confessions of a Troll is, I found myself drawn to Earthbound more strongly.
Grade: B
Verdict: I enjoyed Confessions of a Troll and expect many of you will too. However, I also believe that Mr. Greenleaf’s target demographic for this story would probably have a stronger reaction to Cai. I mean, whom among us doesn’t remember the desire to start driving? Confessions of a Troll does bring in a bit of a mystery when Cai begins being stalked. At first, it seemed rather evident who the stalker was, but by the climax, Mr. Greenleaf has completely muddied the waters and reveal does indeed seem natural and works well.
Shameless plug: Don’t forget, if you send an audio comment to me at Odin1eye at viewfromvalhalla dot com, I’ll include it in the podcast version of this episode next weekend (or when I receive it). You can also leave voicemail, for this or any other story, at the Valhalla Hotline simply by calling 956-307-ODIN (6346)
Disclosure: I have interviewed Artemis Greenleaf for the podcast version of the Earthbound review. Mr. Greenleaf is neither a Mr. nor a male, but that makes little difference when listening to well told story. I was offered nothing in return for this review.
Title: Borrowed Time
Author: Keith Hughes
Genre: Time Travel Science Ficiton
Released: 15 July 2009 – 9 September 2009
Located: iTunes, Podiobooks
Formats Available: podcast, ebook
Rating: R for violence
If you don’t follow me on Twitter, I would think by simply reading (or listening) to these reviews you would know that I’m a big Twitter junkie. I follow a great bunch of people. Creative people. Talented people. Little did I know that some of them must be shy. @edgizmo, otherwise known as Keith Hughes, has been in my stream for a while and yet I had to find out on my own that he had released a science fiction time travel story well over two years ago. If you have a work of podiofiction and you read these reviews, please make sure I am aware of it.
So, on to the review.
Synopsis: Ness Relevant is living on borrowed time. Molecular implosion, cellular degeneration, and dangerous men are but a few of the perils faced by the friendly and unassuming forensic photographer. His quiet bachelorhood is interrupted when he receives an innocent looking device in the mail from a friend and former college professor. Ness unexpectedly finds himself embroiled in events driven by his friend’s success. This device is the focal point of a struggle that could overturn the whole world should Ness or his friend’s invention fall prey to greedy men. Before his time runs out Ness must travel back to an uncomfortable past to prevent an unthinkable future. (Stolen from iTunes)
Production: Mr. Hughes did a fine job on the production of Borrowed Time. A single piece of music was to open and close each ep. There weren’t a lot of production elements in between. The audio was not quite what I would call “crisp and clear” all the way through. I am not sure what software Mr. Hughes used to produce his book, but the sound is just a bit distorted, as if the noise filter was set a bit too high allowing distortion around the edges. However, this was at a level that I did not find distracting and was easily able to forget about it during the listening of the episodes.
Grade: B
Cast: Mr. Hughes does quite a nice self read on Borrowed Time. He does a few accents and intones each character in a unique manner. Each character lives on its own merit and Mr. Hughes does an equally commendable job on the narrated passages.
Grade: A-
Story: Borrowed Time uses the premise that time travel is possible but limited and must adhere to certain principals that I had not heard in previous time travel scenarios. Our hero, Ness, must not only accept the challenging position he has been thrust into, but master time travel in order to make these principals work in his favor.
Grade: B+
Verdict: I enjoyed Borrowed Time very much. Mr. Hughes stayed away from the obvious overplayed tropes in most places and made me think about what possibilities his protagonist had to work with within the constraints he placed upon him. Any story that makes me think about the possible outcomes instead of just taking me along for the ride has done an admirable job. Mr. Hughes did exactly that with Borrowed Time.
Disclaimer: As I stated at the top of this review, I follow Mr. Hughes on Twitter (@edgizmo). He is a pleasant person to have in your stream. As I stated however, he never even Borrowed Time to me, let alone offer me anything in return for a review.
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Title: Karl’s Last Flight
Author: Basil Sands
Genre: Military Action
Released: 2 July 2007 – 14 July 2007
Located: iTunes, Podiobooks
Formats Available: podcast, ebook, audiobook at Audible
Rating: R for violence
Back in Review 109, I discovered Basil Sands when I reviewed his story, 65 Below. Or, at least, I thought that is when I discovered him. Turns out, I had started one of his podcasts way back in 2007, and didn’t get through it. I enjoyed 65 Below so much that I searched for any other works when by Mr. Sands. I was a bit surprised when Karl’s Last Flight showed up, but knew I had to give it another chance.
So, on to the review.
Synopsis: Karl Alexander had been an adrenaline junky for twenty five years. Whether flying Harriers in the Marines, piloting the shuttle for NASA, or as the chief astronaut for StrataCorp Space Flight his happiness was only found when he hit five Gs. But when a series of minor mishaps sends his ship crashing into the desert of an unknown country, Karl finds a new kind of adrenaline rush as he is swept into a raging torrent of the world at the edge of war. Spies, insurgents, secret police, and an infamous Saudi millionaire terrorist all threaten to make his next flight, his last.
Come and get your fix of hardcore, adrenaline laced action that’ll make your heart race and your muscles tense. Basil Sands brings you the podcast novel that started it all.
When you listen, be sure to put your tray table in the upright and locked position and fasten your safety belt… it’s going to be a wild ride. (Stolen from Podiobooks.com)
Production: Regular readers of this blog, or listeners of the podcast, might remember that I gave Mr. Sands an A for production on 65 Below. I stated during the review that it was rare to find a story that had consistent high quality production throughout. Unfortunately, Mr. Sands proved my point with Karl’s Last Stand.
By necessity, I listen to all works of podiofiction through my earbuds (and if you’re looking for a very good earbud, I recommend any of the earbuds manufactured by the House of Marley.) It is the only way I feel I can provide a consistent listening environment needed to give a baseline for these reviews. The first several eps of Karl’s Last Flight made me regret this necessity.
The clarity and superb cleanliness of my earlier experience with Mr. Sands’ work left me a bit perplexed initially, but a quick check showed me that I had listened to the stories in reverse order to the way they had been produced. Karl’s Last Flight was Mr. Sands first foray into podcasting, and you can hear his learning curve throughout the story.
During the first 1/2 of the story, there is a number of pops and clicks whenever Mr. Sands enunciated with gusto. I don’t know if he changed equipment, added a pop filter or simply developed his mic technique during the period he produced this podcast, but by the end, the sound was much much nicer than when he began.
Grade: C+
Cast: Mr. Sands is a remarkable voice talent. He does a very nice self read. I truly hope that he never decides to do a full voice production, because I enjoy his style of reading so much. All of his characters are voiced uniquely. Again, I cannot say there are many self reads I’d put up against Mr. Sands.
Grade: A
Story: Karl’s Last Flight is a military action novel whose central character is rather a reluctant warrior. Karl Alexander, private astronaut, had no intentions of ending up on the ground in Iran. But that is what happened, and now he must get out. Once again, Mr. Sands uses a here again, there again approach to providing us with Karl’s history while also telling us about what is happening “currently”. I greatly enjoyed both story lines and knowing more of the characters backstory made the story more interesting to me than it probably would have been with only the current storyline.
Grade: B+
Verdict: I enjoyed Karl’s Last Flight and listened to it very quickly, finding excuses to plug in those earbuds and get just a bit more heard whenever I could. That being said, I can’t say I enjoyed it quite as much as 65 Below. It was good, but to me, it was just a notch or two below Mr. Sands later book.
That being said, I still prefer a sequential story and would love to have the earlier storyline told in one flashback near the beginning and then focus on the current storyline. I know I’m probably one of the few, but that is indeed my preference.
Karl’s Last Flight wil provide any military action junky with hours well spent, and I do indeed recommend it highly.
I feel I need to explain why I didn’t finish this podcast back in 2007. At the time, I was looking for a science fiction story. I loved the first ep with our hero and his annoying passenger realizing that they had a drastic problem. However, upon landing on Earth, I realized this was not a science fiction story. Though this is true, don’t let that fact of genre stop you from subscribing. If you like a story that is well told and decently produced, you’ll enjoy Karl’s Last Flight.
Disclaimer: Mr. Sands tweets occasionally under the name @alaskabasil and seems to be a “good joe”. I have spoken to him a few times and he provided time to be interviewed in the podcast version of my review of 65 Below. However, he has not sent me a moose or anything else in return for this review. (mmmmmm…. moose….. )
Title: Heku
Author: T.M. Nielsen
Genre: vampire love story
Released: 28 July 2011
Located: Podiobooks, iTunes
Formats Available: podcast and free ebook available through all the regular channels
Rating: R for violence and adult content
Occasionally, I get a query from someone on my Twitter stream from a friend asking if I’ve listened to a particular story they’re trying to decide whether to listen or not. This is exactly the case with Heku. I was asked about it by Micahel Simpkins. I thought I do him a favor and give it a listen.
So, on to the review.
Synopsis: Chevalier has never been told no. For thousands of years he’s sat on the Equites Council, ruling body of his heku faction, and for thousands of years his every order has been followed immediately and without question, until now.
One of the most important rules of the heku, is that no one is to feed from unwilling donors. Following a tip that a young mortal woman is being brutally attacked by his own kind, he seeks her out and immediately begins to experience unnatural feelings for the woman.
Emily, a beautiful rancher from Montana, has spent her entire life being violently attacked by beings she assumed were vampires. It isn’t until she meets Chevalier that she learns of her startling family history, a history that immediately throws her into the volatile world of the heku.
In a bid to protect her, Chevalier moves Emily into his isolated coven, which marks her as a prime target for the Valle and the Encala, enemy factions of the heku. Emily fights to fit into the militaristic world of the heku as her head-strong personality and independent ways turn their perfectly balanced world on end. She immediately befriends Kyle, a heku from Chevalier’s coven, and together they find Emily a niche among the immortal.
Emily’s violent past interferes with Chevalier’s plans, and he must first undo what her abusive ex-husband did before he can convince her how much he cares about her, and how much she’s worth to his faction. Chevalier’s growing feelings for Emily are unnatural to his kind, and must be hidden from the rest of the Equites Faction if he’s to remain a formidable part of their Council.
His jealous tendencies rage as Emily gets closer to Kyle, and both heku struggle to make her realize how important she is to the faction and how endangered she now is. (Stolen from Podiobooks.com)
Production: The production of Heku is nothing special, but it isn’t terrible either. It is simply the story, without any layering or added effects. On the positive side, there are no environmental noises or repeated lines. Nothing to get in the way of, or add to the story. Each episode opens and closes with a sampling of a song that the author credits in each ep.
Grade: B/B-
Cast: Heku is a self read by the author. The author does an adequate job of voicing her characters. I have no idea of the age of the Ms. Nielsen, though she sounds relatively young. This is to her advantage as her heroine is in her early 20′s and all the rest of the characters are ageless.
Grade: B
Story: Emily is a young woman who has many wonderful qualities. She is breathtakingly beautiful with red hair and green eyes. She is slender and athletic and an accomplished equestrian and animal lover. She is also vampire bait. Her blood draws vampires. The sweetness of it is intoxicating. She believes this is normal and everyone experiences much the same. She believes her abusive husband can turn them to ash, when in reality she does this herself. Yes. She is indeed special.
Grade: F or a charitable D-
Verdict: If you’re a fan of Twilight (yes, Mae.. you ,^) ) you might as well download this now. Ms. Nielsen either met that perfect storm of ideas with Ms. Meyer in isolation, or she was greatly inspired by her. Seriously, Twilight fans, download this one now. If you don’t like Heku it will probably be because you feel Ms. Nielsen ripped off your favorite series. However, Twilight fans, you might as well quit reading this review now.
For everyone else, this is the most miserable story I’ve ever heard in podiobook form. The characters are derivative. They are ridiculously and unashamedly hedonistic to the extent that they manipulate and abuse the ones they reportedly love.
There are no werewolves here, but that didn’t stop Ms. Nielsen from throwing in an (entirely unneeded) third person into the romantic tension she tried to create. I say tried, because it didn’t work for me. I truly hated all the characters and found myself yelling at the audio in my ears “DIE YOU IDIOTS DIE”. Yes, to the heroes. Blessedly, the story is relatively short at only 16 episodes. That is 8 hours of my life (at least) that I would have rather spent at the dentist.
Emily is content to be manipulated and believes her abuse to be her fault. Wait. Maybe that isn’t her fault. Maybe her idiot of a husband Keith beat that belief into her. Well then, it would be the duty of the new love interest and boss Heku to help her discover her own worth. Well, he doesn’t. He commits further acts of abuse on her person in several situations where she displeases him. She is weak. She has no value except what he gives her. If Bella made you angry, Emily is going to piss you off.
And yes, I do realize the Heku aren’t truly vampires. They’re just immortals that were once human (well, most anyway), live on human blood, dislike sunlight, and possess super human speed (though they can’t outrun a horse). Obviously, not truly vampires at all. What was I thinking?
Heku is the first of eight (yes, really) books in the Heku series. All of them can be found on Amazon.com. I see the second is also released as a podiobook.
Mike, as penance you should listen to both of them. With your daughter. I expect an in depth character analysis of each.
The rest of you non-Twilight fans, remember to stay away from this one.
If you loved Heku tell me why. Warning though, I will debate this one on anything other than personal preference. And of course, that is primarily why I hated it.
Disclosure: I’ve never had any contact with Ms. Nielsen. Nothing was received in return for this review.
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Title: Babcock
Author: Joe Cottonwood
Genre: non genre young adult fiction
Released: 26 August 2009 – 27 September 2009
Located: Podiobooks, iTunes
Formats Available: podcast (and a very expensive paperback at Amazon)
Rating: PG-13 for Young Adult content matter
Quite a while back I reviewed Joe Cottonwood’s Clearheart. I enjoyed it, though it has none of the elements of speculative fiction that I normally find myself gravitating towards. Recently, I wanted something light, not too long and perhaps a bit mellow. I found Babcock on the Staff Picks section of Podiobooks and decided to give it a try.
So, on to the review.
Synopsis: A fat boy with the blues. A skinny girl who runs marathons. And a con man on the lam. If you liked Clear Heart, or if you liked Boone Barnaby, you’ll like this one, too. The themes are a bit more grown up than Boone Barnaby, but it’s still family-friendly for reading. For any age it’s my brand of writing: humane, down to earth, good-natured, sometimes funny and sometimes sad.
Babcock plays electric guitar. He’s writing songs – and trying to figure out the true meaning of rock and roll – but he keeps coming up with the blues. Babcock is trying to start a friendship with a girl, Kirsten, who is as different as can be: Kirsten is skinny; she hates insects. And she’s white. Babcock is fat; he speaks to dragonflies. And he’s black.
In some ways Kirsten is like a dragonfly: quick and bright. She never walks; she runs everywhere. Her family has money. Her mother thinks Babcock is a little too “rough.” Opposites attract. But can they make music?
Babcock’s family is struggling for money. Then Babcock’s Uncle Earl moves in – and he moves into Babcock’s bedroom with Babcock’s menagerie of animals (including Martin Luther Kingsnake.). Uncle Earl is a con man on the lam. Uncle Earl used to play drums for Chuck Berry. Babcock wants to be Chuck Berry. Uncle Earl wants to coach a Little League baseball team – as a “business venture.” Babcock hates baseball. Babcock wants to learn “charm” from Uncle Earl. Uncle Earl wants to learn how to live a normal life and marry a normal woman – who happens to be Babcock’s schoolteacher. Maybe Babcock and Uncle Earl have something to teach each other.
Babcock’s father runs a car repair shop. At night, in the kitchen, he draws cartoons. Some day he wants to quit repairing cars and sell his cartoons. But nobody’s buying.
Kirsten is hotheaded. Sometimes she needs protection – from herself. Her mother tries to protect her – from Babcock. For help with his problems Babcock goes to an unlikely source: his Uncle Earl, the man with good charm and bad behavior. But the biggest lessons from Uncle Earl – and, perhaps, from rock and roll – are not what anyone expected.
In short, it’s about character. About making music. About family, hard work, about love and loss. Sometimes there’s laughter. Sometimes the lights are off in the kitchen; papa’s got blues. But always life is rich and deeply moving… (Stolen from Podiobooks.com)
Production: The production of both of the books I’ve listened to by Mr. Cottonwood are bare on frills, but high on value. There isn’t a lot of extras going on here, but what there is, is good quality recordings and an interesting premise where characters in the book are writing songs and you will hear parts of those songs sung between chapters. I enjoyed this approach and found it worked very well for this story.
Grade: B+
Cast: The author is joined by a small cast of voices in making Babcock come to life. Listeners of Clearheart will recognize at least one female voice although there may be more that were in both. My favorite character voice was the actress voicing Kirsten. Yes, the name was stated. No, I don’t remember her name. If you know, let me know and I’ll update the review. All the voices were done separately, or at least it sounds that way, but most of them sound pretty good none the less.
Grade: B
Story: Babcock is the story of all of us at one or another point in our life. It happened to us, or someone we knew. Perhaps we just heard about it happening to someone else. It is a slice of everyday life with all the anger, bitterness, humor and love that we have all experienced. In this case, it happens to a 13 year old boy named Babcock that lives in the town of San Puerco (Saint Pig? If there really is a San Puerco is CA, someday, I’m moving there). But it could have happened in my hometown, or maybe yours.
Grade: A+
Verdict: It has been a long time since I’ve heard a non speculative fiction story that I have enjoyed as much as I enjoyed this one. Throw into the mix that it is a young adult title that I could share with my eldest child and I can only say, listen. Especially if you have a young awkward teen around the house. Listen. Even if you don’t. Listen.
Disclosure: I don’t believe Mr. Cottonwood is on Twitter. If he is, I’ve never seen a mention or a tweet from him. I wasn’t offered anything, not even a broken down MG given “as is”, in return for this review.
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Title: The Mask of Inanna
