ghosts

Audiobook Reviews 4/5: Broken Branches by Brenda M. Spalding

Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, Author Resource, ghosts, Paranormal, romance, women's fiction , ,

 

Narrated by Eliza Wethers

4/5 Romance Mystery with Hints of Paranormal

*mild spoilers possible

Summary:

Megan Calloway loses her grandmother in a tragic accident. After going to her gran’s house to hold the funeral and close out her affairs, Megan’s not entirely convinced it was an accident. Mysterious things are still happening around the house.

 

Additional Comments:

  • Characters (3.5/5 stars): They’re believable, if somewhat ridiculous. Amanda and Zach were kind of superfluous.
  • Plot (3/5 stars): Have these people never heard of a locksmith? First break-in, okay, scary, but do the instinctive but stupid thing of investigating. Second break-in, what part of first one didn’t sink in enough to say, “hey, probably should change my locks?” Third break-in, really? Also, the costume party was an excellent addition to the plot, but the actual costumes people picked were painfully cliché in a few cases, which I won’t name to avoid spoilers.
  • Romance (3/5): I’m not a big romance fan, but I would have bought the relationship a whole lot more if it didn’t begin during this book. Even if it had started a few months before the opening, it would have made a lot more sense. Do people really meet and sleep with somebody in 24 hours? I mean when they don’t intend it as a one-night stand.
  • Narration (4.5/5): Good distinction between characters. Great accents.
  • Content Warnings: There are several adult scenes that don’t quite fade to black. That would place this on the very edge of being what I’d consider clean. A few curses worked in at appropriate points (at least they’re not flung about just for the heck of it.)
  • Paranormal aspects seemed out of place. They popped up at sporadic points around the book, which was otherwise very normal. Some people will find that charming. Don’t get me wrong, some of my favorite books are paranormal and genre mixing can be great for a story. Still, I found it odd here.
  • Don’t think the cover fits very well. It’s got too many literary vibes, not enough paranormal.

Conclusion:

If you like romance/mystery mixes with bits of paranormal, this is the book for you.

Associate links to follow…

(If you click through and buy something, there’s the chance I’ll earn like $0.04 … not kidding, that’s basically it.)

Amazon Prime

 

Audible – If you’d like some free codes, please email me at [email protected] with requests for any of my works.

Romance and mystery your thing? Check out The Kiverson Case. (A pair of FBI agents have it out with a man who likes to play games.)


OR

Awesome Audiobooks: The Automaton’s Wife by Vered Ehsani

Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, ghosts, mystery, Paranormal, Reader Resource , ,

Introduction:

This story picks up roughly where The Ghosts of Tsavo left off. The series is pretty cool if you’re into strange characters. The narrator’s perfect for the part.

Review:

5/5 Charming, Witty, Weird

Summary: Bee’s back and she’s got her hands full. There’s murder and mayhem afoot and bigger crises like warding off would-be suitors.

Additional Comments:

– I think I’ve said it before: this is my brand of weird. That said, it’s probably not going to be everybody’s cup of tea. If you’re in the mood for a serious book, definitely wrong series.

– If you’re in the mood for fun and weird, definitely a great series to try.

– The series combines the charm of Alexander McCall Smith’s #1 Detective Agency with the random, wacky weirdness of Seth Graham Smith’s Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies.

– I’ve listened to a lot of audiobooks lately and these are always a light-hearted bit of escapism.

– The character has a few quirks that can come across as annoying, especially in the way she describes things. But overall, it’s still highly entertaining.

– I find the blurb a tad misleading after you’ve heard or read the story, but if you enjoyed the first story, I see no reason for you to dislike this one. If this is your introduction to the series, you might want to grab book one so you have some context.

Conclusion: Decent entry in an awesome series.

Conclusion:

I’ve listened to dozens of audiobooks this year, and I have to say, this series is one of my favorites. They’re very, very strange, but quirky little mysteries. Most of the charm’s in the characters.

-Jules

Associate links to follow…

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Audiobook Reviews: Christmas and Ghosts – 3 Books by Paul Fitz-George

Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, ghosts, London, Paranormal, Reader Resource , , ,

Something New, Something Strange …

The review this round is going to be a tad different than normal. I’m reviewing three different books by the same author. Paul Fitz-George writes about ghosts. He’s a bit of a supernatural historian.

The Reviews …

4/5 The West End Ghost Book: A Ghostly Gallivant Through London’s Haunted Heartland

Summary: Sort of a who’s who of creepy ghosts and where to find them in London.

Additional Comments:

– Kind of glad that I didn’t have this book before my trip to London.

– I heard the audio version. The narrator did a lovely job with the performance, but some of the titles were really hard to distinguish because of the sound effect used to make it even creepier.

– It’s like an occult history book. I found it interesting because it’s vastly different from my usual listening fare.

Conclusion: If you’re up for some ghosts, give this a go.

4/5 The Whitby Ghost Book

Summary: A peek into the supernatural goings on in Whitby, England.

Additional Comments:

– Writing and narration are both good, though I could do without the sound effects. Sometimes they help, but in this case, they just made some sections hard to hear.

– Cover’s pretty creepy, but it fits the mood nicely.

– A nice companion piece to the West End Ghost Book (though I think this one was actually the first book).

Conclusion: Historical supernatural accounts. Not exactly sure what to call them.

4/5 Christmas Customs of Old Whitby by Paul Christopher Fitz-George

Summary: A super-short, niche book about Christmas customs in an old English town.

Additional Comments:

– The title sort of says it all.

– I heard the audioversion. The narrator fit the project well.

– If you’re into history, it might be a good fit for you.

Conclusion:

Small slice of history with a touch of weird.

Conclusion:

Paul Fitz-George’s works definitely fall outside the realm of normal, but they’re fun and short overall. He’s got two narrators: Time Winters and Petrina Kingham. Both handle their respective stories well. I’d listen to more works by them.

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.


Associate links to follow…

Amazon Prime

Free Kindle Reading App

Audible

Audiobook Reviews 4/5: When Dracula met the Jabberwocky by Paul Fitz-George

Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, ghosts, Kindle books, Nonfiction, Paranormal , , , , ,

4/5 Sort of a Paranormal Travel Guide to Whitby, England

Summary:

The blurb sums up the tale. It’s an essay about how Whitby, a town on England’s North Yorkshire Coast, might have influenced the works of Charles Dickens, Wilkie Collins, Lewis Carroll and Bram Stoker.

Additional Comments:

– I heard the audioversion. The narrator did a nice job. I might be a tad biased, but so is the rest of the world who thinks the British accent is just lovely to listen to.
– It’s a super-short work. ~35 minutes
– It probably would have meant more to me if I was a bigger fan of those authors. (Alas, Dickens is okay, but I find him a tad depressing and high school English sort of ruined his works for me. I’ve not heard of Wilkie Collins. A movie when I was a kid is probably my only experience with Lewis Caroll’s Alice in Wonderland. And I’ve never read Bram Stoker.)
– The other thing that could make the work mean more to me is if I planned a trip to Whitby. I heard a rumor that it’s been called the one book you SHOULD read if you plan to visit Whitby, England.
– I found it kind of cool to hear about the tie-ins to the literature anyway.

Conclusion:

Not sure if this book alone would tempt me to visit Whitby, but if I’d planned on visiting, it certainly would enhance the experience.

 

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.

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Audiobook Reviews: Next Stop, Chancey by Kay Dew Shostak

Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, drama, women's fiction , , ,

3.5/5 A Look at Small Town Life

Summary: Carolina Jessup panics after she finds condoms in her daughter’s purse. She sells her house, packs up her family, and moves them to a small town, all the while hating small towns as she’ll repeatedly let you know

 

Additional Comments:

  • There are a lot of characters to keep straight, but the audio performance was well-handled. Male voices sort of sound the same, but the main characters have distinct voices and the narrator does the female Southern accent very well.
  • The main character complains a fair amount in the book. She’s constantly doubting her decision to move the family, even though she knows her husband enjoys the new place and the fact that it’s near trains.
  • The book’s essentially a small town soap opera. The gossip flies fast and the muffins are fine. Everybody knows everybody else’s business. The teenage daughter finds herself competing for the top social slot. The boy finds a new friend and sort of disappears into the countryside to reappear from time to time and ask for food.
  • There’s the added intrigue of the ghost story, but to be honest, the explanation sort of ruined it. Maybe I’m just too much a fan of paranormal twists to books.
  • The main character does sort of find out what she wants by the end, but it was a pretty arduous mental “I should be happy here” journey.
  • I love the cover!

Conclusion:

If small town gossip’s your thing, then this is just the book for you. It’s a study in small town modern suburban existence.

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.

Can’t get enough audiobooks?
Audible

Awesome Audiobooks: Ghosts of Tsavo (Society of Paranormals Book 1) by Vered Ehsani

Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, Paranormal, Reader Resource , ,

 

Introduction:

If you like Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies, then you’ll probably enjoy the brand of weird presented here in Ghosts of Tsavo.

Summary:

Due to a change in financial fortunes, Beatrice Knight travels with her uncle and his family to Nairobi and becomes embroiled in a paranormal mystery. She’s an investigator for a society that seeks to study paranormals while at the same time keeping their existence a secret. As fate would have it, she’s also got the ghost of her dead husband Gideon following her.

Additional Comments:

Neutral:

– I’m guessing the way Bee speaks as a story narrator will evoke strong emotions. She’s hilarious, yet she comments on everything.

– There are some plot threads that aren’t resolved. This didn’t bother me as much as it does in some books. It’s balanced by the overarching fact that this episode of sorts wraps up nicely. There’s definite lead into a new story but I got enough of a sense of closure to satisfy my need for it here.

– Fact vs fiction thing at the end. This one was good, but those bother me in general.

What I didn’t like:

– Breaking the fourth wall – There’s no reason to address the readers! It busts that nice little bubble of fantasy the author’s weaving and yanks you out of the story.

What I liked:

– The narrator fit the story perfectly. This is definitely one of those stories where I believe the audiobook version is vastly superior to the written word. That’s akin to book blasphemy I know.

– It’s actually a rather simple story. What makes it funny is Bee’s commentary. The story’s the same brand of ridiculous as Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies. It’s probably less gory than that book, but it’s got the same obsession with old school British society and manners. (She points out things like how rude it is for ghosts to come through walls instead of using doors. Just because you’re dead doesn’t excuse one from having bad manners.)

Conclusion:

If you can handle weird, then you will likely enjoy this book.

 

 

Bonus:

This title is permanently free. Go grab a copy.

As Always …

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

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.

 

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