Reader Resource

Audiobook Reviews: 4/5 Beacon by Chess Desalls

Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, Fantasy, Reader Resource , , ,

 

Summary:

A girl goes for a coveted apprenticeship and doesn’t know what exactly that entails.

Additional Comments:

– The story has some neat little twists but it also has some questionable points such as why the apprenticeship is so special. I won’t elaborate on those here to avoid ticking off those who hate spoilers.

– What’s so wonderful about the lanterns anyway? (That might have been answered in book one, but I’m new to the series at book two.)

– The blurb pretty much spells out the tale.

– Serah Kettel’s a decent character. She’s not the most spectacular at anything, yet you’ll probably find yourself rooting for her anyway. There’s an innocent quality to her.

– Master Machin’s just sort of the mysterious puppet-master type, respected, yet not really known.

– The cook’s probably the most fleshed out of the side characters. Loved her.

– There are some lovely descriptions in here.

 

Conclusion:

If you’re in the mood for a short fairy tale, go for it.

As Always …

If you want the chance to get the audiobook for free, please join Audiobook Readers’ Edge.

If you’re an author (or a narrator) with an audiobook you’d like featured, sign up for Audiobook Authors’ Edge.

Thanks for your time.

Sincerely,

Julie C. Gilbert

Audiobook Edge is completely free, but if you wanna donate anyway, go for it 😉

Er, just do it as a friend b/c otherwise, you’re basically just paying paypal.

Prime Student – definitely that time of year

Kindle Unlimited

Free Kindle Reading App

Audible

5 Fun, Free Clean Reads – Fantasy

Julie Gilbert Fantasy, freebies, Reader Resource, Uncategorized, Young Adult , , , ,

Hall of Heroes Cover

Introduction:

Tired of hearing nothing but negativity? Let me share some free books that will take your mind off the “real world” and its problems. And give you new heroes and villains to wrestle with.

First and Second up: Anthologies Hall of Heroes by various Fellowship of Fantasy authors.

This is the second anthology. The first being Fantastic Creatures. Get introduced to a whole slew of new authors. I really wish this could be on audiobook, but that would take like 19 hours.

Fantasy Retelling: Beauty’s Curse by C.S. Johnson

Beauty's Curse (Once Upon a Princess Series)

Love this cover. Retelling’s aren’t usually my thing, but I’ve read some excellent ones. Will have to put this on the “to read” list.

What’s Fantasy without Dragons?

Dragon’s Future by Kandi J. Wyatt

I heard this one on audiobook. All books should be on audio 🙂

How About Fantasy with some Romance?

An Ordinary Knight by H.L. Burke

Conclusion:

Let’s stop there for today. I’ve got a whole bunch of books to add, but I’ve learned that things get lost in the shuffle if too many are mentioned at once. If you’ve read any of these, please chime in with your thoughts. If you want to read any of them, go grab them. These are all permanently free.

If you don’t have a kindle yet, there’s an app here that will let you read on your computer. There’s also one for the iphone/ipad. I do most of my reading on that. (Head’s up. They’re associate links. This really doesn’t affect you in any way, shape, or form, but legally, I think I’m supposed to let you know that I benefit if you partake in the free trials below.)

Kindle Unlimited

Amazon Prime

Free Kindle Reading App

Audible


Fantastic Fall Freebies and Fun Stuff

Julie Gilbert dystopia, Fantasy, freebies, historical, Kindle books, mystery, Reader Resource, romance, scifi, women's fiction, Young Adult , , , , , ,

First up – Paperbacks

Don’t miss this grand opportunity to grab some awesome books. Ebooks are lovely things, but let’s be old fashioned and pick up the real thing. Join over twenty indie authors and enter for your chance at one of 10 prize packs full of swag and paperback books. (Full details available at this site. Also, go there to check out the goods.)

8 Scifi, YA, and Fantasy Books

Official giveaway ended a couple of days ago, but I was told the offers should still be good so grab ’em while they’re hot.

7 Free Romance, Mystery, and Dystopian Books

Oh, look, preview. Technically, this one isn’t running yet, but I twisted some arms and gotcha a sneak peek. Seriously, people, if you can’t find something to love within this oddball (I mean awesome!) collection, dunno what to tell you. Pretty sure 90% of the genres are covered by at least one of these giveaways.

 

The usual litany of Amazon affiliate links.

 

Prime Student – Basically, Prime is awesome but super expensive, so if you’re a student, take advantage of the lovely opportunity to save big.

Kindle Unlimited – Never tried it, but then my personal reading time is severely limited by that the need to work for a living. Why can’t anybody just pay me millions for being cute?

Amazon Prime – Okay, so all those of use who are official adultified, here’s the real deal.

Free Kindle Reading App – Got nothing to lose on this one. Just a way to READ MORE BOOKS.

Audible – And for those of us addicted to stories who don’t have reading time, there’s always Audible.

Sweet Summer Offers – August 21, 2017

Julie Gilbert Fantasy, freebies, Reader Resource, scifi , , , ,

Introduction:

Happy August, friends, family, and friendly strangers.

Thought you’d all be interested in some cool giveaways going on right now. No matter what you like, you’re probably going to find something to fall in love with.

My Book Cave promo Back to School with YA Fiction.

Click on the picture below to enter:

You could win a $50 gift card to Amazon/B&N/iTunes courtesy of the nice folks at My Book Cave.

Want More Freebies?

Click the picture to get in on some quick deals. Note: These are all available from Instafreebie.

On Sale!

Get Alabaster Island (YA, fantasy) for only $0.99!

Looks like paradise holds some dark secrets. 17-year-old Marei makes some choices that will affect the fate of many.

Another Cool Contest:

Win an entire epic fantasy trilogy on Audiobook.

With over 36 hours of epic fantasy adventure on audio you will live the journey, danger, and romance as forces strive to control a forbidden branch of magic in the world of Myrrah. I’ve heard one of the narrators (Thom Bowers) before. He’s excellent.

Personal Offers:

As always, you can get Ashlynn’s Dreams, The Kiverson Case, Awakening, and a rotating mystery free just by signing up for my newsletter. (All 3 pages will get you the same 3 books, so only sign up once.)

With over 36 hours of epic fantasy adventure on audio you will live the journey, danger, and romance as forces strive to control a forbidden branch of magic in the world of Myrrah.

Students get a discount on Amazon Prime.
Did I mention I’m jealous?

Can’t Seem to Keep Your Kindle Stocked?
Try Kindle Unlimited absolutely free.

Audiobook Readers’ Edge Update

Julie Gilbert Reader Resource, Uncategorized, Writing , , ,

What is Audiobook Edge for Readers?

·         A short, vetted list of clean indie audiobooks I recommend every month. I’ll try to give you a clear rating system in terms of curses, adult content, and the like. The first Sunday to be precise. By “clean” I mean the book has minimal curse words and adult content. (There will also be Matchmaker, which has some stuff I will not post to the main list – email me to get on that list.)

What do you get?

·         Free audiobooks. (The author emails of those willing to share audible gift codes or directly gift you the book you’ve select.)
·         News of any audiobook price drops, giveaways, and cool contests put on by the lovely authors on the list.

What’s the “catch”?

I run by the principle: “If you like it, then you shoulda put a review on it.” (And if you don’t like it, let the author know privately.)

These authors and their narrators have put hours upon hours into creating an entertaining or informative show for you. Listening and enjoying their hard work is one step, but it costs you about five minutes of your time to thank them with a review. It also helps other readers find and enjoy things you love.

Details:

By “vetted” I mean I’ve either read the book or know the author and the quality of their work personally. (I will be gathering a small team of audiobook readers I trust to make such decisions, but right now, it’s just me.) My reading tastes tend very strongly toward mystery, thriller, and science fiction with a smidgen of fantasy and a few other genres. Therefore, you can expect the list to lean heavily toward these genres. Also, I write (and therefore tend to read) squeaky clean stuff. I’m not saying there won’t be curse words here and there as it fits the story, but these will be the works you wouldn’t mind if your grandmother caught you reading it.

I’m just the middleman here as it were. I’ll show you thing I’ve enjoyed or am excited to try out. It’s up to you to contact the authors who are kind enough to offer some free codes.

Reviews:

Eventually, I’ll be posting the lists to my wordpress blog. After they’re up and running, I’ll send you a link to the recent post(s) at the bottom of the weekly newsletter.

If that sounds like a good deal to you, please sign up below. As a bonus, I’ll enter you into a drawing to win one of 5 ebook, audiobook, and paperback bundles of any of my applicable works. (Clarification: It has to be a title that has an audiobook, ebook, and paperback version.)

Update as of 8/12/17: I also have a matchmaker list of things rejected from the normal list due to excessive curses, too many adult scenes or gory descriptions.

Questions can be directed to: devyaschildren @ gmail.com (take out the spaces)

Ready to get your Audiobook Edge?

Join up here.

 

If 1-2 free books ain’t enough, check out Audible’s paid programs.

The first two books are free through the link below.

*Bonus: I also have free codes for all my audiobooks and if you join Audiobook Edge and email me the title of one of my books you’d like to review, I will send you a code to purchase it. See my Amazon page for a list of my books. (Eligible titles: Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts, Ashlynn’s Dreams, Nadia’s Tears, Malia’s Miracles, Varick’s Quest, The Collins Case, The Kiverson Case, The Dark Side of Science, Awakening.)

*Double Bonus: If you buy one of my books as your very first Audible.com account purchase (needs to be a paid account), I’ll give you a $10 gift card/code to Amazon.com (please note, you have to be able to buy from the US site.) Also, this is only doable because of Audible’s bounty program, you’ll need to prove the purchase and wait until the bounty clears on my end.

Audible

Prime Student

Free Kindle Reading App

Awesome Audiobooks: 4.5/5 Sink or Swim by Stacy Juba

Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, mystery, Reader Resource, romance, women's fiction , , , ,

 

4.5/5 Fame’s not what Cassidy thought it would be

Summary:

Cassidy’s stint on a hot new reality TV show, Sink or Swim, propels her into unwanted stardom and earns her a stalker. She misses the million by five points, but still winds up with more attention than she’d like.

 

Additional Comments:

  • It’s a predictable yet enjoyable story.
  • I heard the audiobook, and the narrator’s performance was very good.
  •  I like the concept of the reality TV show and the idea of stalker angle. It went on a tad longer than it truly had momentum for, but there were some interesting red herrings. It’s not really about the TV series, but that’s a neat angle.
  • Her family dynamics worked for me. Mother and father divorced amiably and a devoted kid half-brother. I enjoyed the fact that the family wasn’t picture perfect with a white picket fence.
  • The murder angle was okay, but I think it distracts from the terror caused by the stalker.
  • The gun thing was kinda dumb, but I can forgive the character under pressure some irrationality.
  • I didn’t get a big “personal trainer” vibe from Cassidy. I’m not sure the book describes her running once, though I do remember her lifting weights or something. I haven’t had a personal trainer, but I think a lot of their job is the mental piece. I would have expected some of that disciplined mindset to bleed into her thought process while dealing with the stalker.

Conclusion:

Intriguing stalker book.

As Always …

If you want the chance to get the audiobook for free, please join Audiobook Readers’ Edge.

If you’re an author (or a narrator) with an audiobook you’d like featured, sign up for Audiobook Authors’ Edge.

Thanks for your time.

Sincerely,

Julie C. Gilbert

Audiobook Edge and it’s Matchmaker Program are completely free now, but if you wanna donate anyway, go for it 😉

Please, just do it as a friend b/c otherwise, you’re basically just paying paypal.

Prime Student – Oh, how I wish I was still a student.

Kindle Unlimited – Keep that Kindle Happy. 30 FREE trial

Free Kindle Reading App

Awesome Audiobooks: 4.5/5 Stars Mercy’s Prince by Katy Huth Jones

Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, Fantasy, Kindle books, Reader Resource, Uncategorized , , , ,

Summary:

Prince Valerian, second son of Lavathia’s king and queen, suddenly finds himself Crown Prince. Thus, he’s thrust into a role he hadn’t trained for during a time of war. Mercy too finds herself in a position she’s not prepared for.

Additional Comments:

– For a fantasy romance book, there’s absolutely no interaction between the leading lady and the handsome prince for the first 1/3 of the book. I listened to the audiobook and it was well over 6 hours (of 15-ish) before they even met.

– The overarching plot’s not particularly unique, but the book’s awesome. (Second son finds himself the Crown Prince and has to grow into the role.)

– The author has done a nice job creating characters you can care about.

– I will admit I found the description of Mercy’s home life tedious after a while. The Brethren come across as a creepy little backwards cult. (i.e. arranging the marriage of a 14-year-old girl to the leader. Not teaching girls to read and so forth.)

– I would have prefer Mercy be slightly older, especially given where the book took the characters in the end. (She’s 14.) Even for a fantasy world, that’s really young. I do love her healing gift though. I enjoyed how her character developed throughout the course of the story.

– The side characters were reasonably fleshed out. I love Kieran. Love the name, but the character’s great too. He’s very loyal but also believable.

– The section with the dragons was surprisingly very quick.

– The bad guy’s a tad overdone, but he fits the role of loath-able villain well.

– Love the narrator.

– The climax happened an hour before the conclusion. That’s a really, really long denouement.

 

Conclusion:

It’s long but it’s great.

 

 

 

As Always …

If you want the chance to get the audiobook for free, please join Audiobook Readers’ Edge.

If you’re an author (or a narrator) with an audiobook you’d like featured, sign up for Audiobook Authors’ Edge.

Thanks for your time.

Sincerely,

Julie C. Gilbert

Audiobook Edge and it’s Matchmaker Program are completely free now, but if you wanna donate anyway, go for it 😉

Er, just do it as a friend b/c otherwise, you’re basically just paying paypal.

Audiobook Edge and it’s Matchmaker Program are completely free now, but if you wanna donate anyway, go for it 😉

Er, just do it as a friend b/c otherwise, you’re basically just paying paypal.

Prime Student – Oh, how I wish I was still a student.

Kindle Unlimited

Free Kindle Reading App

Awesome Audiobooks: 4.5/5 Stars The Shoulders of Giants by Jim Cliff

Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, mystery, Reader Resource , ,

 

Summary:

Jake Abraham’s a wet-behind-the-ears PI with an office and one heck of a first case. It fell to him because nobody else will touch it.

Additional Comments:

– I heard the audiobook version, and I think that made all the difference. The narrator pulls off the unassuming, still learning PI vibe very well. The first person perspective serves well here.

– I’m going to use quotation marks even though I might be paraphrasing here: “… unless she was held against her will or dead against her will.” That’s the kind of humor you can expect from this book. You either love it or hate it.

– The bad guy’s not particularly believable, but that’s typical of these sorts of books. Jake zeros in on the bad guy pretty handily even though nobody else will believe him.

– Things sort of just work out, but Jake’s lovable all the same. I think there’s room for his character to grow and sharpen his skills.

– Content warning: off-screen sex, some curses, including a half dozen f-bombs

– The title still doesn’t make much sense to me, but I’m going to chalk that up just one of those things.

– Narration – 5/5

– Story – 4/5

– Characterization – 4.5/5

 

Conclusion:

Jake Abraham’s a PI you may want to keep an eye on. He’s going to have many exciting adventures ahead.

As Always …

If you want the chance to get the audiobook for free, please join Audiobook Readers’ Edge.

If you’re an author (or a narrator) with an audiobook you’d like featured, sign up for Audiobook Authors’ Edge.

Thanks for your time.

Sincerely,

Julie C. Gilbert

Audiobook Edge and it’s Matchmaker Program are completely free now, but if you wanna donate anyway, go for it 😉

Er, just do it as a friend b/c otherwise, you’re basically just paying paypal.

Audiobook Reviews: 4/5 Stars Recovery of a Colony Ship by John Thornton

Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, Reader Resource, scifi , ,

Summary:

Michael and Jamie are sent on a desperate mission to find a new home for the sad remnants of Earth’s population.

Additional Comments:

– It’s a pretty grim future if the remaining population numbers in the thousands.

– The title is … functional, but it might have more zip with just the main colony ship’s name.

– Narration was all right, but the male AI voice got on my nerves. He did great with the female AI though. Other characters are good too.

– I’ve not heard too many stories of this type, but it’s definitely a type. I’m not a big dystopia, end of the world fan, but I enjoyed this tale. (I think it helped to have it read to me.)

– There are frequent references to a disaster in Dome 3, but that thread’s not really explored. I would have liked to see that be a prologue or something for the amount of references it garnered.

– Michael and Jamie are likable enough as main characters, but for Adventurers, they’re kind of naïve. How do they manage to get their stuff stolen out from under their noses on day one?

– The plot reminds me a bit of a video game. They have a mission which promptly goes awry, and they have to figure out a new way to reach their end goal.

– The wrap up is quick.

– The religious fanatics have a fiercer reputation than most of the people Michael and Jamie meet.

– I liked most of the side characters, especially Abigail and the quartermaster guy from Earth.

– Some of the tech was very cool. I like the part about them trying to get into the colony ship.

– I didn’t get a great feel for the colony ship itself. I think some of that was because of the terminology and acronyms. OCM and RC were both explained eventually, but I’m pretty sure I was confused on that (along with the characters) for about an hour. The dimensions were mentioned at one point, I think, but then, later, there was talk of other habitats as worlds.

– The last hour or so had quite a bit of action. I wish the main characters did more of the fighting though. Legionnaires = awesome.

Conclusion:

Scifi adventure across the stars to find a home.

 

As Always …

If you want the chance to get the audiobook for free, please join Audiobook Readers’ Edge. Last I checked, the ebook’s only $0.99.

If you’re an author (or a narrator) with an audiobook you’d like featured, sign up for Audiobook Authors’ Edge.

Thanks for your time.

Sincerely,

Julie C. Gilbert

Audiobook Edge and it’s Matchmaker Program are completely free now, but if you wanna donate anyway, go for it 😉

Er, just do it as a friend b/c otherwise, you’re basically just paying paypal.

Audiobook Reviews: 3/5 Zombie Park by Mark Cusco Ailes

Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, Horror, Reader Resource , ,

3/5 Zombie Park
*mild spoilers possible in discussion; sorry about name spellings, I heard the audiobook*

Summary:

Mad scientists create zombies for the government to use as soldiers. A down-on-his-luck guy submits an idea he clearly got from a video game to a local business man and wins the idea lottery. Boom – zombie park is born.

Character Comments:

 

  • With a ridiculous premise, one expects to have to suspend disbelief. Even so, there are quite a few giant coincidences that are hard to accept as a reader/audiobook listener. Ie. Forenstein has close ties to the military and General Poe. Why would they need Ben’s idea? They could have come up with something on their own or killed him and swiped the idea. Ben just happens to see and ad for Forenstein’s  “I’ll make you rich” scheme and just happens to submit his idea.
  • The general’s not exactly a people person yet he seems to be doing a lot of the leg work involving people.
  • The scientists clearly can’t stand each other, but their rivalry seems very childish as presented.
  • The emotional markings and cues are all over the place and not very believable. Nicholas Hollman’s reaction to certain events is completely incomprehensible. Even Ben’s reaction to an event when he’s in the donut shop is cold-hearted and unbelievable.

 

 

Additional Comments:

  • content warnings: It’s a zombie book. There’s the requisite descriptions of fountaining gushes of blood scattered throughout as well as a relatively high body count for a book this small. Number of curse words is minimal.
  • The premise of needing “smart zombies” to be soldiers is silly, but let’s indulge it for a moment. If thought about, it actually becomes dangerous as an idea. If you need humans to create zombies then it’s not about making soldiers, it’s about who becomes the soldier. At this pt, it’s actually kidnapping, assault, and ultimately slavery. (creating something/someone to fight for you)
  • The cost/benefit analysis doesn’t hold up. A program like this would cost billions with a b. The government could get hundreds of thousands of willing soldiers by less objectionable, less highly illegal recruitment methods. I am all for mad scientist books, but it needed a little more logic to make me buy in.
  • I’m not sure why pages are wasted on Gus and his two gamer friends. This is a relatively short book, and Gus doesn’t really seem that important. Perhaps he comes into play in a later book.
  • There are fun references to Jurassic Park and several zombie movies.
  • Book is decently narrated, but some of the voice choices were hard to listen to. (ie. Billy)
  • The story doesn’t really have an ending, it just sort of ends. There’s a distinct, this-is-the-first-in-a-series vibe that kind of stomps all over any sense of closure.

 

Conclusion:

If you’re willing to just read/listen without thinking, it’s a decently fun zombie book.

 

As Always …

If you want the chance to get the audiobook for free, please join Audiobook Readers’ Edge. Of course, this is going to go live the first Sunday of October …

If you’re an author with an audiobook you’d like featured, sign up for Audiobook Authors’ Edge.

Thanks for your time.

Sincerely,

Julie C. Gilbert

Audiobook Edge and it’s Matchmaker Program are completely free now, but if you wanna donate anyway, go for it 😉

Er, just do it as a friend b/c otherwise, you’re basically just paying paypal.

Prime Student

Kindle Unlimited

Amazon Prime

Free Kindle Reading App

Audible