3.45/5 Stars Classic Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie

January 8, 2022December 29, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, classic, Young Adult classic, J.M. Barrie, Victor Warren

(Performance 4/5 stars) Narrated by Victor Warren

Run Time: 5 hrs and 29 mins

Summary:

The original and definitely not the Disney version of the Peter Pan classic. A boy chases his shadow into a girl’s room and ends up inviting her and her brothers on an adventure.

Additional Comments:

I’d never heard the original. My only previous impressions were the Disney illustrated movie. Basically, every change they made to the story is for the better.
This version is dark, and Peter’s an arrogant jerk. The story narrator declares this pretty quickly. The characterization is spot on for that, but it made him not that fun to hear about. This is the storybook hero … and I hate him because he is legitimately forever a spoiled, selfish, idiot child. Oh, he’s clever, but that’s about the extent of his redeeming qualities.
4/5 stars The performance is solid. The voices are distinguishable. The reading is smooth and correctly inflected.
Not sure how this became a classic. It’s not very kid-friendly. Way more outright murders and death by meaningless fights going on.
It’s certainly fantasy. There are a lot of excellent world-building elements.

Conclusion:

If you want to see where it all began for Peter Pan, go for it. This is a nice reading of it.

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Many of my 57 audible titles are listed on Audiobooks Unleashed.
Whether you’re looking for mystery or suspense or fantasy, I’ve got a title for you. Free codes are probably on audiobooks unleashed.
Normal links go to audible. *The Amazon labeled links are affiliate links. That means I get a very small payment from Amazon if you go through with a purchase.*
Note: Filter by US if you’re looking for those codes as many titles are out.
Ones I think may still have US codes: Reshner’s Royal Ranger, Never Again, Innova, The Golden City Captives, The Holy War, Reclaim the Darklands, Eagle Eyes, Treachery Makes it Tense, Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts, The Dark Side of Science, Ashlynn’s Dreams, Nadia’s Tears, Malia’s Miracles, and Varick’s Quest
There are plenty of UK codes, but not many US ones left.

Review copies for many titles are available from StoryOrigin.

Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Awakening – Redeemer Chronicles Book 1, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
The Holy War – Redeemer Chronicles Book 2, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
Reclaim the Darklands – Redeemer Chronicles Book 3, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
River’s Edge Ransom – Prequel to Redeemer Chronicles (Amazon) (email devyaschildren @ gmail.com for free codes)

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Aeris Legends Books 1-3 ~17 hrs of epic fantasy. (Request a Review Copy)

4/5 Stars Deadly Start by Phillipa Nefri Clark

January 5, 2022December 29, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, cozyish, mystery Carla Kissane, cozy, Phillipa Nefri Clark

Narrated by Carla Kissane

Run Time: 6 hrs and 39 minutes

Summary:

Dr. Charlotte Dean starts over in a new town, helping out Rosie with her bookshop. Of course, she runs straight across a mystery: somebody’s stealing the town’s Christmas trees.

Additional Comments:

4/5 stars plot: the small-town intrigue is low key and interesting.
4/5 stars descriptions: lovely, especially Charlie’s walks in the forest.
4/5 stars main character: Charlie’s a solid, real-feeling character, but there’s a lot of stuff in her past that is alluded to but doesn’t ever come to fruition. We never really learn why she’s starting over. This being book 1 in the series, you’d think some of that would be explained.
4/5 stars side characters: The book club ladies got tiresome real quick. Rosie’s a saint. Trevor’s a handsome saint Charlie admires from afar.
Title fit: poor. Deadly Start implies somebody dies. Pretty sure the biggest crime was some people breaking in and making a mess to run away with Christmas trees.
3/5 stars closure: The mystery is explained but it doesn’t feel complete.
5/5 stars Christmas vibe: I happened to be listening to this around Christmas. It’s got all the gooey side trappings of the season.
4/5 stars performance: Decent. I usually listen to books at 2.3x speed, but had to back this one down to 2x to make heads or tails of the words in the Australian accent, but that’s fine.

Conclusion:

Christmas-y cozy mystery.

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Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Aeris Legends Books 1-3 ~17 hrs of epic fantasy. (Request a Review Copy)

2.5/5 Befogged by Catherine Johann

January 2, 2022December 17, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, literature Cathering Johann, dark, Denise Levine, sort of paranormal

Narrated by Denise Levine

Run Time: 11 hrs and 11 mins

*spoilers possible in discussion

Summary:

The description tells you absolutely nothing. The paperback description tells you a little more, but almost as bullet points. This is a long, complicated look at one woman’s life pretty much from birth to beyond death.

Additional Comments:

Performance 4/5 stars: Well performed. There weren’t many alternate character voices needed because this is very much all about Winnie. The narrator did a nice with the main character, following her a long way through many life changes and events.
If something bad could happen to someone, it’s probably happened to Winnie. Success, check. Failure, check. Sexual abuse, check. Rape, check. Homelessness, check. Loneliness, check. Love, check. Debilitating disease, check.
Content Warning: There are a few curse words and strong themes like emotional abuse, substance use (maybe abuse?), child abuse, rape, etc.
The story is certainly thoroughly described. It falls in the category of using 500 words to say something that should have been 50. Thus, it comes down to personal preference. If you like long-winded, literature heavy, depressing stuff, this is definitely something to check out. If you don’t, keep fishing for a different book because this isn’t for you.
Use of dialogue tags is atrocious. I finally get why people are like, said is the only dialogue tag that should ever be used. Personally, I like some variety, but wafted does not qualify. Other word choice is somewhat odd too. (Dismembering a tree.)
Not arguing that this woman didn’t have a rough life, but some of her reactions are off. I really can’t say much without running straight into spoiler territory.
The mystical aspects were fine. I like fantasy, but it seemed out of place in the type of story unfolding.
Random thing that sort of amused me. The woman and the person she loves make up a code for their own personal love language. That part is cool. The acronym AF is not. What they meant it to mean and what I’m used to that meaning are very different things.

Conclusion:

If you like literature and deep dives into people’s lives (the good, the bad, and the ugly), you might like this.

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Review copies for many titles are available from StoryOrigin.

Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Books 1-4 were re-released in audiobook form in 2021.
Ashlynn’s Dreams – Genetically altered Dream Shaper learns her gift. (Amazon) (Request a Review Copy)
Nadia’s Tears – Jillian tries to awaken her sister, Nadia, from a coma. (Amazon) (Request a Review Copy)
Malia’s Miracles – Jillian and her siblings try to save a friend’s mother. (Amazon) (Request a Review Code)
Varick’s Quest – Jillian and Danielle get kidnapped. Nadia’s also in trouble. (Amazon) (Request a Review Code)
More Scifi:
Reshner’s Royal Ranger (epic sci-fi) just made it there. (Amazon) (click for sample)
If you’re all in and want to review the entire trilogy (~35 hrs!) go here.

Aeris Legends Books 1-3 ~17 hrs of epic fantasy. (Request a Review Copy)

4/5 Free as a Bird by Missy Tarantino

December 30, 2021December 17, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, drama foster care, Julie McCarthy, Missy Tarantino

Narrated by Julie McCarthy

Run Time: 6 hrs and 20 mins

Genre: Foster Care, Family Drama

Summary:

Destiny’s had a rough life so far. Her mother is a hot mess and pretty much neglects the kid. Eventually, she enters the foster care system. The road to a forever home is fraught with mistrust, bratty behavior, and both conditional and unconditional love.

Additional Comments:

– Parts of the book were extremely annoying to listen to. Content-wise, don’t think most of the beginning was made to be comfortable, so that’s as designed. Some of the kid-voices were downright painful (part because the kid/character was screeching and/ or throwing a tantrum), but otherwise, it was handled fine. You could tell if a male or female was speaking.

– The bird rehabilitation angle was cool.

– The social worker’s a saint.

– The final family is super patient. I liked the fact that at least one family didn’t work out for the kid, not for anybody’s fault. That’s life, so it’s important to show that sometimes it’s nobody’s fault.

– I think it’s probably (sadly) accurate for some older foster kids who bounce from home to home because they’re behavior is awful, or they’re just too old for most couples looking to adopt want to tackle. In that sense, it’s a powerful book.

– The end works out swell. You kind of know that will happen if you read the description.

Conclusion:

If you can handle a rough beginning, it’s ultimately a touching and powerful book.

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Review copies for many titles are available from StoryOrigin.

Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Aeris Legends Books 1-3 ~17 hrs of epic fantasy. (Request a Review Copy)

4/5 Stars The Sweet Shop of Second Chances by Hannah Lynn

December 27, 2021December 17, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, cozyish, drama Hannah Lynn, Poppy Royana, sorta romance, Sweet Shop

Narrated by Poppy Royana

Run Time: 7 hrs and 24 mins

Summary:

Holly Berry impulsively returns to her hometown and tries to buy the candy shop she worked in as a kid. What follows is a series of fortunate and unfortunate events.

Additional Comments:

– There wasn’t enough of a relationship with Dan to make his betrayal have any sort of sting. I get that the author needed to get to the current tale, but it just sort of made me question the MC’s judgment from the get-go.

– The main character’s kind of dumb. Especially near the end, she makes a lot of assumptions. Plus, if some obviously rich dude sweeps in and takes you to a uber fancy, crazy expensive place, then offers to pay the bill, your line is thank you, not I insist on paying my half with the bill not even seen.

– Not sure how the book got qualified as a romance. It’s super slow building. Not sure anything happens of significance until well into the third act.

– Characters are mostly endearing. Holly’s the sort of normal young adult you can root for.

– It’s more a slice of life sort of book than a romance, let alone a romantic comedy. I think I laughed like 2x.

– There’s a bit of mystery, but it’s not billed as a mystery.

– The bad guys stay pretty nebulous.

– I do like that there are two sides to every story and it comes down to who do you believe.

– Well narrated. I’m American. I’m a sucker for a British accent.

– Content Comments: There are a few curse words, and the opening scene almost crossed the line of clean/not clean, but mostly, it’s a clean book. Just not squeaky clean.

– Not really sure how this could be turned into a series. Things wrap up pretty well.

Conclusion:

Easy to listen to. Light read. Only wanted to punch a character once or twice. Hinted at a happily ever after, so it’s all good.

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Review copies for many titles are available from StoryOrigin.

Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Devya’s Children Series Links:

Aeris Legends Books 1-3 ~17 hrs of epic fantasy. (Request a Review Copy)

3.45/5 Stars Hound Dog Blues by Virginia Brown

December 24, 2021December 17, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, cozyish, mystery amateur sleuth, Drew Commins, Karen Commins, Virginia Brown

Narrated by Karen Commins, Drew Commins

Run Time: 8 hrs 38 mins

Summary:

A dog gets dognapped, and Harley Jean Davidson sets out to find him. Her parents sort of flee the law for a while until things cool down. The Main Character inserts herself into an investigation in a bid to get the Crime Stoppers reward money.

Additional Comments:

– Narration 3.5/5 stars: This could have been handled by Karen Commins alone. The edits were decently done, but she seemed to have a better range of voices. I couldn’t tell most of the male characters from one another, especially at the end.

– Content Warning: It was mostly a clean book, except for some curses, until the end when in a bid for humor the action turned very crude. And then the end scene. It was handled well enough not to be filed with steamy, but it probably kicks it out of cozy.

– I wouldn’t really qualify it as a cozy mystery at all. Maybe amateur sleuth and female amateur detective, but not cozy. Don’t think I’d qualify it as a comedy either. There are slapstick things that happen, but it didn’t strike me as particularly humorous.

– I feel like the character’s one of dozens I’ve read already. Kinda down on her luck, out to prove somebody innocent, the normal one in a pack of weirdos, etc.

– There are colorful characters around the MC. The cross-dressing tech support guy is probably my favorite of the bunch. Kamy (sorry, I heard the audio, so I have no idea on spelling)

– It’s not much of a romance or much of a mystery. She just sort of bumbles around until the answers leap out and smack her.

– The title and cover are very misleading. It starts with the dog, but it doesn’t focus on that long.

– The MC’s relationship with her folks is odd. She refers to them as Yogi and Diva. I think that’s a reference to the author’s main series. Her brother is useless. Literally and figuratively. Waste of page space. I think his only function is to prove the MC’s not herself a complete waste of space.

Conclusion:

It’s okay. Not sure I’d seek out another book about this character, but it kept me occupied for the 5 ish hours it took to listen.

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Review copies for many titles are available from StoryOrigin.

Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Devya’s Children Series Links:

Aeris Legends Books 1-3 ~17 hrs of epic fantasy. (Request a Review Copy)

Guardian Angel Files:

Spirit’s Bane – Allister and Mina are training to be Guardians. Satan’s out to get them. (Amazon) (free codes)
Kindred Spirits – Mina’s exiled to Earth. Allister’s stuck in the Heavens. (Amazon) (free codes)

I have Author Direct codes from Findaway Voices for the combo book that has Spirit’s Bane and Kindred Spirits. (Click here for a review copy.)

3.5/5 Stars Deep Echoes by Melody Ash

December 21, 2021November 30, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, time travel Deep Echoes, Melody Ash

Summary:

Caitlin gets pulled into the past and meets a few people in the pre-civil war era.

Additional Comments:

– This is a short prequel to a larger work. There is a lengthy preview of the first official book at the end. It gives the feel of the work to be a long-winded ad for the next one.

– Caitlin is an interesting character. The blurb sort of oversold her as we don’t get to see her doing much in this story. It’s difficult to do much character development in a work this short, but the author manages some. She shows some promise. Given her mixed heritage, I am surprised that didn’t factor more here.

– The side characters weren’t memorable except in type. (The elderly slave healer, the master’s son who is kind, the good slave guy, the kid, etc). The exception to this is Caitlin’s goofy friend. He has a nice energy about him.

– There was a shred of romance but with the time being so short it basically went nowhere.

– about all that happens is she has some nice conversations with people in the past. There is a smidgen of action near the end.

– Cover is cool.

– Narration worked fine. The narrator handled the various voices well.

– It’s always intriguing how much modern thoughts deep into a work like this. The MC happens to land in a place with a guy who is anti slavery.

– The time travel aspect was fine. It’s not my favorite trope because it’s terribly illogical. This one at least doesn’t pretend it’s logical. The characters just accept. It at face value and go about their business.

Conclusion:

As a stand-alone story it’s just ok, but there is a grander feel to it like there’s a lot more to come for these people. So, as an introduction, it’s pretty good.

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Audiobook Promotions …

Many of my 50 audible titles are listed on Audiobooks Unleashed.
Whether you’re looking for mystery or suspense or fantasy, I’ve got a title for you. Free codes are probably on audiobooks unleashed.
Normal links go to audible. *The Amazon labeled links are affiliate links. That means I get a very small payment from Amazon if you go through with a purchase.*
Note: Filter by US if you’re looking for those codes as many titles are out.
Ones I think may still have US codes: Reshner’s Royal Ranger, Never Again, Innova, The Golden City Captives, The Holy War, Reclaim the Darklands, Eagle Eyes, Treachery Makes it Tense, Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts, The Dark Side of Science, Ashlynn’s Dreams, Nadia’s Tears, Malia’s Miracles, and Varick’s Quest
There are plenty of UK codes, but not many US ones left.

Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Devya’s Children Series Links:

Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – short stories featuring Jillian. (Amazon) (free codes)
The Dark Side of Science – official prequel to Devya’s Children; Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live. (Amazon) (Please email devyaschildren @ gmail.com for free codes)
Ashlynn’s Dreams – Genetically altered Dream Shaper learns her gift. (Amazon) (free codes)
Nadia’s Tears – Jillian tries to awaken her sister, Nadia, from a coma. (Amazon) (free codes)
Malia’s Miracles – Jillian and her siblings try to save a friend’s mother. (Amazon) (free codes)
Varick’s Quest – Jillian and Danielle get kidnapped. Nadia’s also in trouble. (Amazon) (free codes)
More Scifi:
Reshner’s Royal Ranger (epic sci-fi) just made it there. (Amazon) (free codes)

Guardian Angel Files:

4.45/5 stars Ebenezer by Douglas Bass

December 18, 2021December 1, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks A Christmas Carol, Douglas A. Bass, Ebenezer

Narrated by Benjamin Fife

*Discussion may contain spoilers*

Summary:

A prequel of sorts/ retelling for A Christmas Carol. This focuses largely on Ebenezer Scrooge’s life from birth to death and everything in between.

Additional Comments:

– It’s entirely too long. This story could have been adequately told in about 9 hrs. It took 25 minutes to say “hey, I have a story to tell you.” The style uses an excessive amount of words.

– One character did not get his comeuppance. That ticked me off. One did, that was satisfying.

– The character development of Scrooge from naive kid to tool for the wicked to curmudgeon to saint was fun to see.

– Quite a few sections repeated conversations. I get why-because it was often adding a different perspective – but it’s still annoying to hear sections repeated word for word. There was a nice song included, but even that, we don’t need to hear several times.

– The performance was great. Benjamin Fife was a good choice for the character.

– The premise of the story – that mankind’s purpose is to serve others and earn a happy afterlife – is inherently flawed but still comforting during the holiday season. (Ie. Ebenezer’s good deeds being counted as part of redemption for somebody else.)

– Ebenezer often made infuriating leaps of logic even after getting a prime example of things being different. (Ie. His insistence that he would die on the date he saw in the stone during the vision. He knew for a fact things could change because he changed Tim’s fortunes already.)

I had to stop listening a few times.

– The closing section took like two hours. The tie ins to A Christmas Carol were interesting but took 14 hours to reach. It’s not a traditional story in the sense of having a distinct climax near the end. There are a few ups and downs instead.

– I liked Belle. She was a little too perfect, but since the story was from the perspective of a guy who outright idolized her, it works.

Conclusion:

If you enjoy tie ins to classic works and can listen for 17plus hours, this is a good book to try.

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Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Devya’s Children Series Links:

Guardian Angel Files:

4.5/5 Stars Wild Rover No More by L.A. Meyer

December 15, 2021November 30, 2021 Julie Gilbert Action Adventure, Audiobooks Bloody Jack, Katherine Kellgren, Wild Rover

Narrated by Katherine Kellgren

Summary:

Jacky Faber is on the run yet again. The story contains several very long arcs. I liked her time as a governess best.

Additional Comments:

– Kellgren is amazing as usual but a lot of the middle was just painful because of the Russian accent and that Italian fool Jacky was playing around with.

– The end is satisfying but Oy, this is a long winded story. Unnecessarily so in some cases.

– It really ticks me off when parts are repeated. The entire letter from the previous book with Clarissa gloating was repeated in the beginning of this one. Do u know how annoying that is?

– Flashby finally got a fitting end, thank goodness.

– I like the irrepressible Jacky but she is also kinda a jerk to her closest friends, especially Jaimy.

Conclusion:

It’s a fitting end of an excellent series, even if it did drag on and on near forever.

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Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Devya’s Children Series Links:

Guardian Angel Files:

4/5 The Boy With the Golden Arm by William Graham

December 9, 2021November 30, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, children's David Kresser, William Graham

Narrated by David Kressler

Run time: 2 hrs and 10 mins

Summary:

Kid’s father agrees to coach his little league team. The gang of misfits first time baseball players shoot to win the league championship.

Additional Comments:

– completely predictable yet enjoyable.

– a lot unrealistic yet enjoyable.

– classic underdog vs the town bullies story

– I remember Gina but can’t remember the MC’s name. The characters are charming yet forgettable. They become their stereotypes.

– the performance worked.

– The kids parents are picture perfect living and supportive and understanding and insanely talented.

Conclusion:

Clean. Appropriate for middle age boys and girls.

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Audiobook Promotions …

Many of my 58 audible titles are listed on Audiobooks Unleashed.
Whether you’re looking for mystery or suspense or fantasy, I’ve got a title for you. Free codes are probably on audiobooks unleashed.
Normal links go to audible. *The Amazon labeled links are affiliate links. That means I get a very small payment from Amazon if you go through with a purchase.*
Note: Filter by US if you’re looking for those codes as many titles are out.
Ones I think may still have US codes: Reshner’s Royal Ranger, Never Again, Innova, The Golden City Captives, The Holy War, Reclaim the Darklands, Eagle Eyes, Treachery Makes it Tense, Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts, The Dark Side of Science, Ashlynn’s Dreams, Nadia’s Tears, Malia’s Miracles, and Varick’s Quest
There are plenty of UK codes, but not many US ones left.

Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Devya’s Children Series Links:

Guardian Angel Files: