Panda 's bookshelf: read en-US Tue, 29 Jul 2025 08:32:38 -0700 60 Panda 's bookshelf: read 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg The Staircase in the Woods 231922357 A group of friends investigates the mystery of a strange staircase in the woods.

While on a camping trip, five high-schoolers bound by an oath to always protect one another discover something in the middle of the forest: a mysterious staircase to nowhere. One friend climbs up but does not come back down. Then the staircase disappears. Twenty years later it reappears, and the friends return to find the lost boy—and what lies beyond the staircase.]]> 13 Chuck Wendig Panda 5 Publisher: Books on Tape

The narration and audio are excellent.

The book is also excellent.

It starts off with a feel in the ballpark of Stephen King's It. While the story and style is uniquely it's own, there are some similar characteristics and vibes with both the individual characters and the friend group, as a whole.

I'm tired though so I might come back and write more later.

5 stars]]> 3.67 2025 The Staircase in the Woods
author: Chuck Wendig
name: Panda
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/07/28
date added: 2025/07/29
shelves: horror, fantasy, audio-is-good, narration-is-good
review:
Audiobook (13 hours) narrated by Jay Myers, Amber Benson, and Xe Sands
Publisher: Books on Tape

The narration and audio are excellent.

The book is also excellent.

It starts off with a feel in the ballpark of Stephen King's It. While the story and style is uniquely it's own, there are some similar characteristics and vibes with both the individual characters and the friend group, as a whole.

I'm tired though so I might come back and write more later.

5 stars
]]> Wanderers 45713351 A decadent rock star. A deeply religious radio host. A disgraced scientist. And a teenage girl who may be the world's last hope. In the tradition of The Stand and Station Eleven comes a gripping saga that weaves an epic tapestry of humanity into an astonishing tale of survival.

Shana wakes up one morning to discover her little sister in the grip of a strange malady. She appears to be sleepwalking. She cannot talk and cannot be woken up. And she is heading with inexorable determination to a destination that only she knows. But Shana and are sister are not alone. Soon they are joined by a flock of sleepwalkers from across America, on the same mysterious journey. And like Shana, there are other “shepherds” who follow the flock to protect their friends and family on the long dark road ahead.

For on their journey, they will discover an America convulsed with terror and violence, where this apocalyptic epidemic proves less dangerous than the fear of it. As the rest of society collapses all around them–and an ultraviolent militia threatens to exterminate them–the fate of the sleepwalkers depends on unraveling the mystery behind the epidemic. The terrifying secret will either tear the nation apart–or bring the survivors together to remake a shattered world.]]> 33 Chuck Wendig Panda 0 to-read 3.74 2019 Wanderers
author: Chuck Wendig
name: Panda
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/29
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Wylding Hall 25647211
Now, years later, the surviving musicians, along with their friends and lovers—including a psychic, a photographer, and the band’s manager—meet with a young documentary filmmaker to tell their own versions of what happened that summer. But whose story is true? And what really happened to Julian Blake?]]> Elizabeth Hand 1482957175 Panda 2 Jennifer Woodward
John Telfer
Dan Morgan
Emma Fenney
Simon Victor
Kris Dyer
Charlotte Stevens
David Thorpe
others that are listed as various narrators.
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing (Blackstone Audio, Inc., and Buck 50 Productions, LLC)

The narration is quite good, with a decent chemistry within the group.
The audio is flawless.

This one was just OK. I was really excited as the young filmaker/band twist sounding interesting. You all know how I love characters!

But it was flat.

Most of the book was conversational. Almost script like. I think that the bulk of the emotion of the characters actually came from the work of the narrators, who were so easy to listen too even though there really wasn't much there to enjoy.]]> 3.58 2015 Wylding Hall
author: Elizabeth Hand
name: Panda
average rating: 3.58
book published: 2015
rating: 2
read at: 2025/07/29
date added: 2025/07/29
shelves: gothic, paranormal, horror, audio-is-good, narration-is-good
review:
Audiobook (5 hours) narrated by a full cast, including:
Jennifer Woodward
John Telfer
Dan Morgan
Emma Fenney
Simon Victor
Kris Dyer
Charlotte Stevens
David Thorpe
others that are listed as various narrators.
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing (Blackstone Audio, Inc., and Buck 50 Productions, LLC)

The narration is quite good, with a decent chemistry within the group.
The audio is flawless.

This one was just OK. I was really excited as the young filmaker/band twist sounding interesting. You all know how I love characters!

But it was flat.

Most of the book was conversational. Almost script like. I think that the bulk of the emotion of the characters actually came from the work of the narrators, who were so easy to listen too even though there really wasn't much there to enjoy.
]]> <![CDATA[The Body Farm (Kay Scarpetta, #5)]]> 122762323
From Author’s Website]]> Patricia Cornwell 147033075X Panda 0 to-read 3.84 1994 The Body Farm (Kay Scarpetta, #5)
author: Patricia Cornwell
name: Panda
average rating: 3.84
book published: 1994
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/29
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Conditional Citizens: On Belonging in America]]> 55768009 The acclaimed, award-winning novelist—author of The Moor's Account and The Other Americans —now gives us a bracingly personal work of nonfiction that is concerned with the experiences of "conditional citizens."

What does it mean to be American? In this starkly illuminating and impassioned book, Pulitzer Prize Finalist Laila Lalami recounts her unlikely journey from Moroccan immigrant to U.S. citizen, using it as a starting point for her exploration of the rights, liberties, and protections that are traditionally associated with American citizenship. Tapping into history, politics, and literature, she elucidates how accidents of birth—such as national origin, race, or gender—that once determined the boundaries of Americanness still cast their shadows today. Throughout the book, she poignantly illustrates how white supremacy survives through adaptation and legislation, with the result that a caste system is maintained, keeping the modern equivalent of white male landowners at the top of the social hierarchy. Conditional citizens, she argues, are all the people whom America embraces with one arm, and pushes away with the other.

Brilliantly argued and deeply personal, Conditional Citizens weaves together the author's own experiences with explorations of the place of nonwhites in the broader American culture.]]> 6 Laila Lalami 0593170342 Panda 4 Laila Lalami

Excellent narration by the author and nearly flawless audio. There's a bit of rustling paper in the beginning, barely audible. Sounds like page turning. It happens about a handful of times or less.

I read The Dream Hotel early last month and loved it. I wanted to see what else the author had to offer and I saw this. I was curious as there was some related content in the book that I read and I thought this book would give me a deeper view into the authors thoughts on the subject.

Conditional Citizens is well written. It comes from legal, logistical, and emotional viewpoints as well as taking into consideration societal norms and contexts.

I felt that it was well rounded, thoughtful, and throws out a wide net, covering a rather large range of topics and views.

At 6 hours, it is a good size for the topic, yet small enough to be able to slide in between other reads. It's also written in simple, yet not simplistic, terms so that it's easy to read and understand (no legal or political jargon for those new to the subject).]]> 4.30 2020 Conditional Citizens: On Belonging in America
author: Laila Lalami
name: Panda
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2025/07/29
date added: 2025/07/29
shelves: politics, biographies, memoir, nonfiction, narration-is-good, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (6 hours) narrated by the author, Laila Lalami

Excellent narration by the author and nearly flawless audio. There's a bit of rustling paper in the beginning, barely audible. Sounds like page turning. It happens about a handful of times or less.

I read The Dream Hotel early last month and loved it. I wanted to see what else the author had to offer and I saw this. I was curious as there was some related content in the book that I read and I thought this book would give me a deeper view into the authors thoughts on the subject.

Conditional Citizens is well written. It comes from legal, logistical, and emotional viewpoints as well as taking into consideration societal norms and contexts.

I felt that it was well rounded, thoughtful, and throws out a wide net, covering a rather large range of topics and views.

At 6 hours, it is a good size for the topic, yet small enough to be able to slide in between other reads. It's also written in simple, yet not simplistic, terms so that it's easy to read and understand (no legal or political jargon for those new to the subject).
]]> Four Past Midnight 29536799 You are in the hands of Stephen King at his mind-blowing best with an extraordinary quartet of full-length novellas guaranteed to set your heart-stopwatch at- FOUR PAST MIDNIGHT.

Contents:

Straight Up Midnight
(An Introductory Note)

The Langoliers

Secret Window, Secret Garden

The Library Policeman

The Sun Dog]]> 30 Stephen King Panda 0 3.69 1990 Four Past Midnight
author: Stephen King
name: Panda
average rating: 3.69
book published: 1990
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/28
shelves: currently-reading, stephen-king, short-stories, horror
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas]]> 199782544
Jack Skellington, the beloved Pumpkin King of Halloween Town, has grown tired of his home's annual scaring routines and longs for something new. So when he and his loyal dog, Zero, discover a series of doors in the Hinterlands leading to other holiday towns, he can't help but explore--and quickly becomes enamored with Christmas Town, a place filled with jolly laughs, merry elves, and plenty of presents.

Jack shares all of his findings with the rest of Halloween Town, and together, they devise a plan to run Christmas themselves. But not all tricks can be turned into holiday treats, and Jack's dream to organize the best Christmas ever may just turn into a nightmare. Alongside friends like the rag doll Sally, can Jack find his true purpose as a holiday king?

Complete your Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas collection with these ghoulish reads!

The Nightmare Before Christmas, by Tim Burton

Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas : 13 Days of Christmas

Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Long Live the Pumpkin Queen, by Shea Ernshaw

Art of Disney

Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas

Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas Visual Companion]]> Megan Shepherd Panda 0 currently-reading, fantasy 3.78 2023 Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas
author: Megan Shepherd
name: Panda
average rating: 3.78
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/28
shelves: currently-reading, fantasy
review:

]]> Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell 16163985
Proceeding to London, he raises a beautiful woman from the dead and summons an army of ghostly ships to terrify the French. Yet the cautious, fussy Norrell is challenged by the emergence of another magician: the brilliant novice Jonathan Strange.

Young, handsome and daring, Strange is the very antithesis of Norrell. So begins a dangerous battle between these two great men which overwhelms that between England and France. And their own obsessions and secret dabblings with the dark arts are going to cause more trouble than they can imagine.]]> 33 Susanna Clarke Panda 0 to-read, historical-fiction 3.77 2004 Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
author: Susanna Clarke
name: Panda
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2004
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/25
shelves: to-read, historical-fiction
review:

]]> <![CDATA[To Say Nothing of the Dog: Or How We Found the Bishop's Bird Stump at Last (Oxford Time Travel, #2)]]> 11098522 From Connie Willis, winner of multiple Hugo and Nebula Awards, comes a comedic romp through an unpredictable world of mystery, love, and time travel.

Ned Henry is badly in need of a rest. He’s been shuttling between the twenty-first century and the 1940s in search of a hideous Victorian vase called “the bishop’s bird stump” as part of a project to restore the famed Coventry Cathedral, destroyed in a Nazi air raid.

But then Verity Kindle, a fellow time traveler, inadvertently brings back something from the past. Now Ned must jump to the Victorian era to help Verity put things right—not only to save the project but also to prevent altering history itself.]]> 21 Connie Willis 1470397854 Panda 0 3.96 1997 To Say Nothing of the Dog: Or How We Found the Bishop's Bird Stump at Last (Oxford Time Travel, #2)
author: Connie Willis
name: Panda
average rating: 3.96
book published: 1997
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/25
shelves: to-read, time-travel, historical-fiction
review:

]]> When We Were Real: A Novel 216775498 From multiple award-winning author Daryl Gregory comes a madcap adventure following two friends on a cross-country bus tour through the mind-boggling glitches in their simulated world as they grapple with love, family, secrets, and the very nature of reality in a simulation.

JP and Dulin have been the best of friends for decades. When JP finds out his cancer has aggressively returned, Dulin decides it’s the perfect time for one last a week-long bus tour of North America’s Impossibles, the physics-defying glitches and geographic miracles that started cropping up seven years earlier—right after the Announcement that revealed our world to be merely a digital simulacrum. The outing, courtesy of Canterbury Trails Tours, promises the trip of a (not completely real) lifetime in a (not completely deluxe) coach.

Their fellow passengers are 21st-century pilgrims, each of them on the tour for their own reasons. There’s a nun hunting for an absent God, a pregnant influencer determined to make her child too famous to be deleted, a crew of horny octogenarians living each day like it’s their last, and a professor on the run from leather-clad sociopaths who take The Matrix as scripture. Each stop on this trip is stranger than the last—a Tunnel outside of time, a zero gravity Geyser, the compound of motivational-speaking avatar—with everyone barreling toward the tour’s iconic final stop Ghost City, where unbeknownst to our travelers the answer to who is running the simulation may await.

When We Were Real is a tour-de-force and exploration of what really matters, even in an artificial world.]]> 1 Daryl Gregory 1668109840 Panda 1 Ari Fliakos
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Although Ari is an award winning narrator, specifically for paranormal audiobooks, this narration is lazy.
Granted, the group conversations are written more like a script than a conversation, with a lot of identifiers and prompts, but it could be read using the prompts instead of saying them, as most narrators do. For example (not taken from the book but on a similar level of what I was hearing over and over again) the sentences would be something like:
Sally giggled as she said, "Oh I'm sure you'd like that!"
Dan gruffly laughed and puffed out his chest and said, "Uh. Yeah, I would."
Dean chimed in. "You know it!" with a mocking laugh and gesture as Susan quietly said, "Children. I'm dealing with children." under her breath.
Ari read every single word. He did not laugh, he did not speak mockingly or with an ego, he didn't even whisper. What the hell is that?
The only reason that I made it through half of the book is because I was busy doing something and away from the app, so I couldn't easily change it.
The audio is flawless though, so there's that.

The book. The book is getting a lot of love and maybe if it were to be narrated better I could overlook some of the simplistic writing and really bad conversational wording, as if this is written by someone who doesn't get out much... because people don't speak like this, even young people. Maybe some of the words, but not all compiled together. It just reads as someone learning to write and learning how to create characteristics through conversation.

One of the telling things for me about this being rudimentary, is that the characters get identifiers instead of personalities. One character is either called 'the one with the glasses' or 'Harry Potter' almost every time he speaks, because he apparently wears Harry Potter like glasses. This isn't something his friends are calling him, this is the authors identification of the character, Harry Potter said, the one with the glasses said, said Harry Potter.

Every line also says said. She said, he said, even when there's more going on.. Sally said with a smile, James said as he made a menacing look. I just can't

The outline of the story is great! It's creative. It's inviting. I want to walk into this world, breath it in and enjoy the heck out of it but I am so fucking annoyed I am moving on.

If you try this book, try the print version, perhaps the brain can weed out the multiple says and poor conversational writing that the narrator couldn't or was told not too, or I mean if you are into self punishment, have at it.]]> 3.50 2025 When We Were Real: A Novel
author: Daryl Gregory
name: Panda
average rating: 3.50
book published: 2025
rating: 1
read at: 2025/07/25
date added: 2025/07/25
shelves: speculative-fiction, audio-is-good, narrator-is-award-winning, narration-is-lackadaisical
review:
Audiobook (13 hours) narrated by Ari Fliakos
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Although Ari is an award winning narrator, specifically for paranormal audiobooks, this narration is lazy.
Granted, the group conversations are written more like a script than a conversation, with a lot of identifiers and prompts, but it could be read using the prompts instead of saying them, as most narrators do. For example (not taken from the book but on a similar level of what I was hearing over and over again) the sentences would be something like:
Sally giggled as she said, "Oh I'm sure you'd like that!"
Dan gruffly laughed and puffed out his chest and said, "Uh. Yeah, I would."
Dean chimed in. "You know it!" with a mocking laugh and gesture as Susan quietly said, "Children. I'm dealing with children." under her breath.
Ari read every single word. He did not laugh, he did not speak mockingly or with an ego, he didn't even whisper. What the hell is that?
The only reason that I made it through half of the book is because I was busy doing something and away from the app, so I couldn't easily change it.
The audio is flawless though, so there's that.

The book. The book is getting a lot of love and maybe if it were to be narrated better I could overlook some of the simplistic writing and really bad conversational wording, as if this is written by someone who doesn't get out much... because people don't speak like this, even young people. Maybe some of the words, but not all compiled together. It just reads as someone learning to write and learning how to create characteristics through conversation.

One of the telling things for me about this being rudimentary, is that the characters get identifiers instead of personalities. One character is either called 'the one with the glasses' or 'Harry Potter' almost every time he speaks, because he apparently wears Harry Potter like glasses. This isn't something his friends are calling him, this is the authors identification of the character, Harry Potter said, the one with the glasses said, said Harry Potter.

Every line also says said. She said, he said, even when there's more going on.. Sally said with a smile, James said as he made a menacing look. I just can't

The outline of the story is great! It's creative. It's inviting. I want to walk into this world, breath it in and enjoy the heck out of it but I am so fucking annoyed I am moving on.

If you try this book, try the print version, perhaps the brain can weed out the multiple says and poor conversational writing that the narrator couldn't or was told not too, or I mean if you are into self punishment, have at it.
]]> <![CDATA[The Killer Across the Table: Unlocking the Secrets of Serial Killers and Predators with the FBI’s Original Mindhunter]]> 44566966 ‘John Douglas is the FBI's pioneer and master of investigative profiling, and one of the most exciting figures in law enforcement I've had the privilege of knowing’ Patricia Cornwell

‘John Douglas knows more about serial killers than anybody in the world’ Jonathan Demme, Director of The Silence of the Lambs

The legendary FBI criminal profiler, number-one New York Times bestselling author, and inspiration for the hit Netflix show Mindhunter delves deep into the lives and crimes of four of the most disturbing and complex predatory killers, offering never-before-revealed details about his profiling process, and divulging the strategies used to crack some of his most challenging cases.

The FBI’s pioneer of criminal profiling, former special agent John Douglas, has studied and interviewed many of America’s most notorious killers – including Charles Manson, ‘Son of Sam Killer’ David Berkowitz and ‘BTK Strangler’ Dennis Rader. Twenty years after his famous memoir, the man who literally wrote the book on FBI criminal profiling opens his case files once again. In this riveting work of true crime, he spotlights four of the most diabolical criminals he’s confronted, interviewed and learned from.

A glimpse into the mind of a man who has pierced the heart of human darkness, The Killer Across the Table unlocks the ultimate mystery of depravity and the techniques and approaches that have countered evil in the name of justice.

]]> John E. Douglas Panda 0 4.12 2019 The Killer Across the Table: Unlocking the Secrets of Serial Killers and Predators with the FBI’s Original Mindhunter
author: John E. Douglas
name: Panda
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/25
shelves: memoir, crime, psychology, currently-reading
review:

]]> The Haar 217397738 Runtime: 6 hours and 56 minutes

“I don’t fear death... but they do.”

Muriel McAuley has lived in the Scottish fishing village of Witchaven all her life. She was born there, and she intends to die there.

But when an overseas property developer threatens to evict the residents from their homes and raze Witchaven to the ground in the name of progress, all seems lost… until the day a mysterious fog bank creeps inland.

The Haar.

To some it brings redemption… to others, it brings only madness and death. What macabre secrets lie within… The Haar.

Romantic and deranged, The Haar is a gore-soaked folk horror fairy tale from David Sodergren, author of The Forgotten Island and Maggie’s Grave.]]> 7 David Sodergren Panda 5 Mhairi Morrison
Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc

Mhairi Morrison is an award winning narrator with a cool sense of humor, as displayed on her opening page of her site:
The narration and audio are flawless.

This was an unexpected gem of a read for me, that is a book club read for the month of August. I read the book a little early. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I fully enjoyed it.

There's a great deal of internal monologue. The author does a great job of portraying the emotional state of the characters. While we only get to fully see, hear, and fully get a look into the deeper personal thoughts of the main character, the author does a phenomenal job of writing what is going on through the eyes of the main character in such a way that we do get a full second hand experience of the emotions of the other characters. There isn't an over explanation or breaking down, it's just really great writing that makes it clear what is going on. Very character first.

The world building also very much relies on emotions in the way of scents and sounds, in which at one point the author switched the first person perspective to a supporting character to give the world first view. Exceptionally done. Every detail was felt, rather than being flat, making me take notice and wait for what was going to happen next. Actually putting me on alert.

There was so much packed into the 7 hour read. I feel like David Sodergren really put his passion into the telling of the story and I loved everything about it.

Horror or Heaven Book club read.
]]> 3.97 2022 The Haar
author: David Sodergren
name: Panda
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2025/07/25
date added: 2025/07/25
shelves: book-club, audio-is-good, narrator-is-award-winning
review:
Audiobook (7 hours) narrated by Mhairi Morrison
Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc

Mhairi Morrison is an award winning narrator with a cool sense of humor, as displayed on her opening page of her site:
The narration and audio are flawless.

This was an unexpected gem of a read for me, that is a book club read for the month of August. I read the book a little early. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I fully enjoyed it.

There's a great deal of internal monologue. The author does a great job of portraying the emotional state of the characters. While we only get to fully see, hear, and fully get a look into the deeper personal thoughts of the main character, the author does a phenomenal job of writing what is going on through the eyes of the main character in such a way that we do get a full second hand experience of the emotions of the other characters. There isn't an over explanation or breaking down, it's just really great writing that makes it clear what is going on. Very character first.

The world building also very much relies on emotions in the way of scents and sounds, in which at one point the author switched the first person perspective to a supporting character to give the world first view. Exceptionally done. Every detail was felt, rather than being flat, making me take notice and wait for what was going to happen next. Actually putting me on alert.

There was so much packed into the 7 hour read. I feel like David Sodergren really put his passion into the telling of the story and I loved everything about it.

Horror or Heaven Book club read.

]]> Artemis 36112610
Jazz Bashara is a criminal. Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is tough if you're not a rich tourist or an eccentric billionaire. So smuggling in the occasional harmless bit of contraband barely counts, right? Not when you've got debts to pay and your job as a porter barely covers the rent.

Everything changes when Jazz sees the chance to commit the perfect crime, with a reward too lucrative to turn down. But pulling off the impossible is just the start of her problems, as she learns that she's stepped square into a conspiracy for control of Artemis itself - and that now her only chance at survival lies in a gambit even riskier than the first.

Bringing to life Weir's brash, whip-smart protagonist is actress Rosario Dawson (Marvel's The Defenders, Sin City, Death Proof). With the breathless immediacy of one realizing they're one cracked helmet visor away from oblivion, Dawson deftly captures Jazz's first-person perspective – all while delivering sarcastic Weir-ian one-liners and cracking wise in the face of death. And with a cast of diverse characters from all walks of life calling Artemis home, Dawson tonally somersaults to voice Kenyan prime ministers, Ukrainian scientists, and Saudi welders. It's a performance that transports listeners right alongside Jazz, matching her step for step on every lunar inch of her pulse-pounding journey.

This edition is 9 hours long.]]> 9 Andy Weir Panda 0 to-read, fantasy 3.62 2017 Artemis
author: Andy Weir
name: Panda
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/24
shelves: to-read, fantasy
review:

]]> The Martian 50238871 Now, he's sure he'll be the first person to die there.
After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive - and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive.
Chances are, though, he won't have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment, or plain old "human error" are much more likely to kill him first.
But Mark isn't ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills - and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit - he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. Will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him?
Wil Wheaton, who has lent his voice to sci-fi blockbusters like Ready Player One and Redshirts, breathes new life (and plenty of sarcasm) into the iconic character of Mark Watney, making this edition a must-listen for both longtime fans of The Martian and new listeners alike.

BONUS MATERIAL: This edition includes the following extras:
“Diary of an AssCan” - Mark Watney, new astronaut
“I Made It!” - A happy letter to Mom
“Car Trouble” - A somewhat sad letter to Mom
“The Earthling” - A postscript. *Available for the first time in this recording]]> 11 Andy Weir Panda 4 Wil Wheaton
Publisher: Audible Studios

Wil Wheaton is a skilled, award winning narrator who does a great job in this narration.
This is an Audible publication, meaning that it is only available through Audible as an audio book with this narrator.
The audio is flawless.

Andy Weir does a great job building a story, with the majority of the story being a one man show. There is a great deal of space talk centered around Mars, with a lot of science details, some of which I cannot rightly say if the science is valid, speculative, or wildly fictitious. Not being an astronaut myself, not even of the 15 minute Amazon tourist variety, I don't have the education nor the skills to synthesize water or grow vegetation on an alien planet. I am curious about the authenticity of what happens in the novel, but even if it was on the wild side I don't see myself using any of the skills I learned here in practical applications, so it's probably OK for entertainment purposes.

I have had this book on my shelf for a long minute, probably having purchased it over a year ago, and happy that I finally picked it up. It was quite good. Not quite Project Hail Mary/Ray Porter good, but enjoyable and entertaining.]]> 4.40 2011 The Martian
author: Andy Weir
name: Panda
average rating: 4.40
book published: 2011
rating: 4
read at: 2025/07/24
date added: 2025/07/24
shelves: science-fiction, space, audio-is-good, narrator-is-award-winning
review:
Audiobook (11 hours) narrated by Wil Wheaton
Publisher: Audible Studios

Wil Wheaton is a skilled, award winning narrator who does a great job in this narration.
This is an Audible publication, meaning that it is only available through Audible as an audio book with this narrator.
The audio is flawless.

Andy Weir does a great job building a story, with the majority of the story being a one man show. There is a great deal of space talk centered around Mars, with a lot of science details, some of which I cannot rightly say if the science is valid, speculative, or wildly fictitious. Not being an astronaut myself, not even of the 15 minute Amazon tourist variety, I don't have the education nor the skills to synthesize water or grow vegetation on an alien planet. I am curious about the authenticity of what happens in the novel, but even if it was on the wild side I don't see myself using any of the skills I learned here in practical applications, so it's probably OK for entertainment purposes.

I have had this book on my shelf for a long minute, probably having purchased it over a year ago, and happy that I finally picked it up. It was quite good. Not quite Project Hail Mary/Ray Porter good, but enjoyable and entertaining.
]]> <![CDATA[Long Live the Pumpkin Queen: Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas]]> 61785116
Hear Sally's story in this young adult sequel to Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas written by New York Times bestselling Shea Ernshaw.

Jack and Sally are "truly meant to be" ... or are they? Sally Skellington is the official, newly-minted Pumpkin Queen after a whirlwind courtship with her true love, Jack, who Sally adores with every inch of her fabric seams—if only she could say the same for her new role as Queen of Halloween Town.

Cast into the spotlight and tasked with all sorts of queenly duties, Sally can't help but wonder if all she's done is trade her captivity under Dr. Finkelstein for a different cage. But when Sally and Zero accidentally uncover a long-hidden doorway to an ancient realm called Dream Town in the forest Hinterlands, she'll unknowingly set into motion a chain of sinister events that put her future as Pumpkin Queen, and the future of Halloween Town itself, into jeopardy.

Can Sally discover what it means to be true to herself and save the town she's learned to call home, or will her future turn into her worst... well, nightmare?]]> Shea Ernshaw Panda 0 to-read 3.79 2022 Long Live the Pumpkin Queen: Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas
author: Shea Ernshaw
name: Panda
average rating: 3.79
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/24
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Daughter of Egypt: A Novel 231690111 From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Marie Benedict comes an extraordinary story of the woman who helped uncover Tutankhamun's tomb and the mystery behind Egypt’s first woman Pharaoh.

1920’s London was enthralled by the discovery of the treasure-filled tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun. Filled with priceless statues, jewels, and the gold-encased mummy of the boy Pharaoh himself, the burial site unleashed a fascination with the ancient world and revolutionized the world of archeology.

The discovery was made by Lord Carnarvon of Highclere Castle and his associate, famed archeologist Howard Carter. What no one knows is that without the pioneering spirit of Lady Evelyn Herbert, Carnarvon’s daughter, the tomb might never have been found. As a young woman, Evelyn was fascinated by the story of Hatshepsut, a woman who had to assume the guise of a man in order to rule Egypt. Although she brought peace and prosperity to Egypt, her male successors ruthlessly and thoroughly erased her name from history.

Lady Evelyn’s ambition to find the tomb of Egypt’s first woman ruler exposes her to life-threatening danger and pits her against archeologists who refuse to believe the tomb can be found―and certainly not by a woman. Refusing to give up, Evelyn is on the verge of success when she is suddenly forced to make an agonizing choice between loyalty to her beloved father and Carter and realizing the dream of a lifetime.]]> Marie Benedict 125033022X Panda 0 to-read, historical-fiction 0.0 Daughter of Egypt: A Novel
author: Marie Benedict
name: Panda
average rating: 0.0
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/23
shelves: to-read, historical-fiction
review:

]]> Senseless 231758039 A supernaturally-tinged LA puzzle-box thriller – Zodiac with teeth, from the Bram Stoker Award-nominated and bestselling author of Come with Me.

What do you see...?

When the mutilated body of a young woman is discovered in the desert on the outskirts of Los Angeles, the detective assigned to the case can't deny the similarities between this murder and one that occurred a year prior. Media outlets are quick to surmise this is the work of a budding serial killer, but Detective Bill Renney is struggling with an altogether different a secret that keeps him tethered to the husband of the first victim.

What do you hear...?

Maureen Park, newly engaged to Hollywood producer Greg Dawson, finds her engagement party crashed by the arrival of Landon, Greg’s son. A darkly unsettling young man, Landon invades Maureen’s new existence, and the longer he stays, the more convinced she becomes that he may have something to do with the recent murder in the high desert.

What do you feel...?

Toby Kampen, the self-proclaimed Human Fly, begins an obsession over a woman who is unlike anyone he has ever met. A woman with rattlesnake teeth and a penchant for biting. A woman who has trapped him in her spell. A woman who may or may not be completely human. 

In Ronald Malfi's brand-new thriller, these three storylines converge to create a tapestry of deceit, distrust, and unapologetic horror. A brand-new novel of dark suspense set in the City of Angels, as only “horror’s Faulkner” can tell it.]]> 13 Ronald Malfi Panda 0 to-read, vampires, horror 3.00 2025 Senseless
author: Ronald Malfi
name: Panda
average rating: 3.00
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/23
shelves: to-read, vampires, horror
review:

]]> The Everlasting 229107184 From Alix E. Harrow, the New York Times bestselling author of Starling House , comes a moving and genre-defying quest about the lady-knight whose legend built a nation, and the cowardly historian sent back through time to make sure she plays her part–even if it breaks his heart.

Sir Una Everlasting was Dominion’s greatest the orphaned girl who became a knight, who died for queen and country. Her legend lives on in songs and stories, in children’s books and recruiting posters—but her life as it truly happened has been forgotten.

Centuries later, Owen Mallory—failed soldier, struggling scholar—falls in love with the tale of Una Everlasting. Her story takes him to war, to the archives—and then into the past itself. Una and Owen are tangled together in time, bound to retell the same story over and over again, no matter what it costs.

But that story always ends the same way. If they want to rewrite Una’s legend—if they want to tell a different story--they’ll have to rewrite history itself.

"Alix E. Harrow is an exceptional, undeniable talent."—Olivie Blake, New York Times bestselling author of The Atlas Six

"An utter masterpiece… I loved every single page."—Rachel Gillig, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of One Dark Window

A Macmillan Audio production from Tor Books.]]> Alix E. Harrow Panda 0 0.0 2025 The Everlasting
author: Alix E. Harrow
name: Panda
average rating: 0.0
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/23
shelves: to-read, historical-fiction, fantasy
review:

]]> The Buried Giant 25347674 Never Let Me Go and the Booker Prize-winning The Remains of the Day.

"You've long set your heart against it, Axl, I know. But it's time now to think on it anew. There's a journey we must go on, and no more delay..."

The Buried Giant begins as a couple set off across a troubled land of mist and rain in the hope of finding a son they have not seen in years.

Sometimes savage, often intensely moving, Kazuo Ishiguro's first novel in nearly a decade is about lost memories, love, revenge, and war.

MP3 audiobook, 11 hours, 48 minutes.]]> 12 Kazuo Ishiguro 0804191891 Panda 0 3.33 2015 The Buried Giant
author: Kazuo Ishiguro
name: Panda
average rating: 3.33
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/23
shelves: to-read, magical-realism, historical-fiction
review:

]]> <![CDATA[James Earl Jones: Voices and Silences]]> 355514 393 James Earl Jones 0684195135 Panda 0 to-read 4.04 1993 James Earl Jones: Voices and Silences
author: James Earl Jones
name: Panda
average rating: 4.04
book published: 1993
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Snow Falling on Cedars 52726855
Winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award 1995 and the American Booksellers Association Book of the Year Award

San Piedro Island, north of Puget Sound, is a place so isolated that no one who lives there can afford to make enemies. But in 1954 a local fisherman is found suspiciously drowned, and a Japanese American named Kabuo Miyamoto is charged with his murder. In the course of the ensuing trial, it becomes clear that what is at stake is more than a man's guilt. For on San Pedro, memory grows as thickly as cedar trees and the fields of ripe strawberries--memories of a charmed love affair between a white boy and the Japanese girl who grew up to become Kabuo's wife; memories of land desired, paid for, and lost. Above all, San Piedro is haunted by the memory of what happened to its Japanese residents during World War II, when an entire community was sent into exile while its neighbors watched. Gripping, tragic, and densely atmospheric, Snow Falling on Cedars is a masterpiece of suspense-- one that leaves us shaken and changed.]]> David Guterson Panda 3 George Guidall
Publisher: Recorded Books

Not gonna lie, I selected this book as my next read as I had it in my Audible library and while scrolling through I noticed it was narrated by the George Guidall. Absolutely love his narration and he did a fantastic job of this one. I do wish, however, that they had gone with two narrators as this is a Japanese-American story and it would have done well by having both countries represented, especially given the content and context of the story. This was recorded back in 1994, however, and unfortunately thought likely wasn't given as to representation of the story as a whole.
George does do well by the story and I do recommend his reading for anyone interested in the book.
The audio is flawless.

As far as Japanese-American internment historical fiction stories go, this one starts off pretty common. There aren't a lot of things that differentiate the early story from others that I have read. The author does take time and care to give a lot of personal details of the characters, and while not overtly comparing cultures the differences of the day to day lives, home, work, social, are apparent.

Later in the story, Guterson goes in on an exploration of people.

After I finish a novel, I often look up the author and narrator as well as the book and spend some time exploring. For this author and novel, it keeps coming up with comparisons and said influences of To Kill a Mockingbird. I haven't read this book since middle school so I don't feel confident in a comparison. It has been on my TBR for a while so it looks like I am going to need to make an attempt to read it sooner rather than later.

Where the beginning of the book is casual, like a walk in the park, the story gets more jumbled and busy as it goes on. I think that the author had a lot that he wanted to say by showing, which made the story increasingly busy. I do think it stopped short of being too busy, and although it added to the 'increasing noise' outside of the points or moralistic thoughts that he was trying to provoke, I really liked that he kept up with the social growth of the characters.

It seems that some have questioned why the author chose a subject that he was not a part of through his family or whatever. Obviously he was interested and invested in this part of American history that many have overlooked. Despite his lack of intimate connection, his passion for the subject is clear. While not a 5 star read for me, what I read is clearly lovingly and painstakingly researched and well written. The only part I really question is some of the legalities, but I am not invested enough to research the laws of the time to know how many liberties may have been taken, or if he was on point for the time. If anyone reading this has that knowledge, who has read the book, I would be very interested! I am more than a bit of a law nerd. My bff is a beast of a lawyer, practicing today's law in the state of licensing, so I cannot brain pick on this topic. sadge. ]]> 3.71 1994 Snow Falling on Cedars
author: David Guterson
name: Panda
average rating: 3.71
book published: 1994
rating: 3
read at: 2025/07/22
date added: 2025/07/22
shelves: classics, relationships, historical-fiction, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (15 hours 42 minutes) narrated by the George Guidall
Publisher: Recorded Books

Not gonna lie, I selected this book as my next read as I had it in my Audible library and while scrolling through I noticed it was narrated by the George Guidall. Absolutely love his narration and he did a fantastic job of this one. I do wish, however, that they had gone with two narrators as this is a Japanese-American story and it would have done well by having both countries represented, especially given the content and context of the story. This was recorded back in 1994, however, and unfortunately thought likely wasn't given as to representation of the story as a whole.
George does do well by the story and I do recommend his reading for anyone interested in the book.
The audio is flawless.

As far as Japanese-American internment historical fiction stories go, this one starts off pretty common. There aren't a lot of things that differentiate the early story from others that I have read. The author does take time and care to give a lot of personal details of the characters, and while not overtly comparing cultures the differences of the day to day lives, home, work, social, are apparent.

Later in the story, Guterson goes in on an exploration of people.

After I finish a novel, I often look up the author and narrator as well as the book and spend some time exploring. For this author and novel, it keeps coming up with comparisons and said influences of To Kill a Mockingbird. I haven't read this book since middle school so I don't feel confident in a comparison. It has been on my TBR for a while so it looks like I am going to need to make an attempt to read it sooner rather than later.

Where the beginning of the book is casual, like a walk in the park, the story gets more jumbled and busy as it goes on. I think that the author had a lot that he wanted to say by showing, which made the story increasingly busy. I do think it stopped short of being too busy, and although it added to the 'increasing noise' outside of the points or moralistic thoughts that he was trying to provoke, I really liked that he kept up with the social growth of the characters.

It seems that some have questioned why the author chose a subject that he was not a part of through his family or whatever. Obviously he was interested and invested in this part of American history that many have overlooked. Despite his lack of intimate connection, his passion for the subject is clear. While not a 5 star read for me, what I read is clearly lovingly and painstakingly researched and well written. The only part I really question is some of the legalities, but I am not invested enough to research the laws of the time to know how many liberties may have been taken, or if he was on point for the time. If anyone reading this has that knowledge, who has read the book, I would be very interested! I am more than a bit of a law nerd. My bff is a beast of a lawyer, practicing today's law in the state of licensing, so I cannot brain pick on this topic. sadge.
]]> To Kill a Mockingbird 22907938
One of the best-loved stories of all time, To Kill a Mockingbird has been translated into more than 40 languages, sold more than 30 million copies worldwide, served as the basis for an enormously popular motion picture, and was voted one of the best novels of the 20th century by librarians across the country. A gripping, heart-wrenching, and wholly remarkable tale of coming-of-age in a South poisoned by virulent prejudice, it views a world of great beauty and savage inequities through the eyes of a young girl, as her father - a crusading local lawyer - risks everything to defend a black man unjustly accused of a terrible crime.

©1988 Harper Lee (P)2006 HarperCollins Publishers]]> 13 Harper Lee Panda 0 4.37 1960 To Kill a Mockingbird
author: Harper Lee
name: Panda
average rating: 4.37
book published: 1960
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/22
shelves: best-audiobooks-list, currently-reading, classics, historical-fiction
review:

]]> The Manor of Dreams 218654868 Mexican Gothic meets Everything I Never Told You in Christina Li’s haunting novel about the secrets that lie in wait in the crumbling mansion of a former Hollywood starlet, and the intertwined fates of the two Chinese American families fighting to inherit it.

They say what you don’t know can’t hurt you. But silence can be deadly.

Vivian Yin is dead. The first Chinese actress to win an Oscar, the trailblazing ingénue rose to fame in the eighties, only to disappear from the spotlight at the height of her career and live out the rest of her life as a recluse.

Now her remaining family members are gathered for the reading of her will and her daughters expect to inherit their childhood Vivian’s grand, sprawling Southern California garden estate. But due to a last-minute change to the will, the house is passed on to another family instead—one that has suddenly returned after decades of estrangement.

In hopes of staking their claim, both families move into the mansion. Amidst the grief and paranoia of the families’ unhappy reunion, Vivian’s daughters race to piece together what happened in the last weeks of their mother’s life, only to realize they are being haunted by something much more sinister and vengeful than their regrets. After so many years of silence, will the families finally confront the painful truth about the last fateful summer they spent in the house, or will they cling to their secrets until it’s too late?

Told in dual timelines, spanning three generations, and brimming with romance, betrayal, ambition and sacrifice, The Manor of Dreams is a thrilling family gothic that examines the true cost of the American dream—and what happens when the roots we set down in this country turn to rot.]]> 1 Christina Li 1797190180 Panda 5 Catherine Ho
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Catherine Ho is an award winning narrator, with awards including the Earphones awards, and best of 2021 AudioFile award. She is fantastic. I absolutely enjoyed everything about her narration of The Manor of Dreams.
The audio is flawless.

As I started reading this book I had a whispering of influences by Shirley Jackson.

While a completely different story, time, place, and characters, the style, the storytelling and the feel kept giving me lingering sensations of a cross between The Haunting of Hill House and We Have Always Lived in the Castle, with an old school back of the neck tingling sensations type of horror.

The characters here are impeccable written, with the atmosphere being it's own character, lurking in the shadows, stirring up all sorts of feelings.

The timing is on point, which is incredibly important with this type and style of writing.

Christina Li nails it. I will be looking out for more by her. ]]> 3.94 2025 The Manor of Dreams
author: Christina Li
name: Panda
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/07/18
date added: 2025/07/19
shelves: horror, audio-is-good, narrator-is-award-winning
review:
Audiobook (12 hours) narrated by Catherine Ho
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Catherine Ho is an award winning narrator, with awards including the Earphones awards, and best of 2021 AudioFile award. She is fantastic. I absolutely enjoyed everything about her narration of The Manor of Dreams.
The audio is flawless.

As I started reading this book I had a whispering of influences by Shirley Jackson.

While a completely different story, time, place, and characters, the style, the storytelling and the feel kept giving me lingering sensations of a cross between The Haunting of Hill House and We Have Always Lived in the Castle, with an old school back of the neck tingling sensations type of horror.

The characters here are impeccable written, with the atmosphere being it's own character, lurking in the shadows, stirring up all sorts of feelings.

The timing is on point, which is incredibly important with this type and style of writing.

Christina Li nails it. I will be looking out for more by her.
]]> <![CDATA[The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo]]> 33161050
Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband has left her, and her professional life is going nowhere. Regardless of why Evelyn has selected her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.

Summoned to Evelyn’s luxurious apartment, Monique listens in fascination as the actress tells her story. From making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the ‘80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way, Evelyn unspools a tale of ruthless ambition, unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love. Monique begins to feel a very real connection to the legendary star, but as Evelyn’s story near its conclusion, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique’s own in tragic and irreversible ways.]]> 13 Taylor Jenkins Reid Panda 0 to-read, historical-fiction 4.26 2017 The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
author: Taylor Jenkins Reid
name: Panda
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/19
shelves: to-read, historical-fiction
review:

]]> Atmosphere 221039409
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and Daisy Jones & The Six comes an epic new novel set against the backdrop of the 1980s space shuttle program and the extraordinary lengths we go to live and love beyond our limits.

Joan Goodwin has been obsessed with the stars for as long as she can remember. Thoughtful and reserved, Joan is content with her life as a professor of physics and astronomy at Rice University and as aunt to her precocious niece, Frances. That is, until she comes across an advertisement seeking the first women scientists to join NASA’s Space Shuttle Program. Suddenly, Joan burns to be one of the few people to go to space.

Selected from a pool of thousands of applicants in the summer of 1980, Joan begins training at Houston’s Johnson Space Center, alongside an exceptional group of fellow candidates: Top Gun pilots Hank Redmond and John Griffin, who are kind and easy-going even when the stakes are highest; mission specialist Lydia Danes, who has worked too hard to play nice; warm-hearted Donna Fitzgerald, who is navigating her own secrets; and Vanessa Ford, the magnetic and mysterious aeronautical engineer, who can fix any engine and fly any plane.

As the new astronauts become unlikely friends and prepare for their first flights, Joan finds a passion and a love she never imagined. In this new light, Joan begins to question everything she thinks she knows about her place in the observable universe.

Then, in December of 1984, on mission STS-LR9, everything changes in an instant.

Fast-paced, thrilling, and emotional, Atmosphere is Taylor Jenkins Reid at her best: transporting readers to iconic times and places, with complex protagonists, telling a passionate and soaring story about the transformative power of love, this time among the stars.]]> 11 Taylor Jenkins Reid 0593614194 Panda 5 Kristen DiMercurio, and Julia Whelan with a forward by the author, Taylor Jenkins Reid

Absolutely excellent, award winning narration with flawless audio.
If you are one that is a sometimes audiobook reader, this is one that you should consider, as the narrators really grab a hold of the emotional depth on the page and transform it almost into a movie type situation without a full cast or scoring.

While I have at least one other book by Taylor Jenkins Reid on my tbr list, this is my first read by her, and what an experience!

I really love the characters and the relationships as much as the story. Characters are important to me, and Taylor wrote many fully formed characters. Even the smaller side characters are well rounded and developed, in the way that the main character would know as it is a first person narrative. There's no over or under developing here. Perfectly imperfect humans foremost and then the story, which is phenomenal.

I love science fiction, and space travel is something that has been a popular topic over the last year or two, with an unfortunate amount of the novels that I had picked up being disappointing. My most recent favorite space travel story would have been Project Hail Mary, of which I cannot compare this too as it is a completely different story all around, but it is just as well written, with a lot of significant moments due to the lives the characters in the story are living.

If I just wrote a one word review for this book, it would be 'Wow.'

This novel is unexpectedly inspirational as well as emotional on many levels and planes, both on earth and in space.

I tagged this one with #relationships as this is definitely a read for those who enjoy well written relationships and relationship dynamics. Work relationships, friendships, family dynamics, romantic relationships... did I miss any? They are all here, both positive and negative as well as those that kind of run down the middle.

Yeah. Wow.]]> 4.41 2025 Atmosphere
author: Taylor Jenkins Reid
name: Panda
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/07/19
date added: 2025/07/19
shelves: historical-fiction, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good, relationships
review:
Audiobook (10 hours) narrated by Kristen DiMercurio, and Julia Whelan with a forward by the author, Taylor Jenkins Reid

Absolutely excellent, award winning narration with flawless audio.
If you are one that is a sometimes audiobook reader, this is one that you should consider, as the narrators really grab a hold of the emotional depth on the page and transform it almost into a movie type situation without a full cast or scoring.

While I have at least one other book by Taylor Jenkins Reid on my tbr list, this is my first read by her, and what an experience!

I really love the characters and the relationships as much as the story. Characters are important to me, and Taylor wrote many fully formed characters. Even the smaller side characters are well rounded and developed, in the way that the main character would know as it is a first person narrative. There's no over or under developing here. Perfectly imperfect humans foremost and then the story, which is phenomenal.

I love science fiction, and space travel is something that has been a popular topic over the last year or two, with an unfortunate amount of the novels that I had picked up being disappointing. My most recent favorite space travel story would have been Project Hail Mary, of which I cannot compare this too as it is a completely different story all around, but it is just as well written, with a lot of significant moments due to the lives the characters in the story are living.

If I just wrote a one word review for this book, it would be 'Wow.'

This novel is unexpectedly inspirational as well as emotional on many levels and planes, both on earth and in space.

I tagged this one with #relationships as this is definitely a read for those who enjoy well written relationships and relationship dynamics. Work relationships, friendships, family dynamics, romantic relationships... did I miss any? They are all here, both positive and negative as well as those that kind of run down the middle.

Yeah. Wow.
]]> North American Lake Monsters 35694738 Ballingrud’s stories are love stories. They’re also monster stories. Sometimes the monsters collected here are vampires or werewolves. Sometimes they wear the faces of parents, lovers, brothers, or ex-wives, and sometimes they wear the faces we see in our mirrors. The people in these stories - ex-cons, single parents, unemployed laborers, kids seduced by extremism - are stranded by life, driven to desperate acts by love and a longing for connection. Sometimes they’re ruined; sometimes redeemed. They are always recognizably, wonderfully, and terrifyingly human. Even at their most monstrous.

©2013 Nathan Ballingrud (P)2013 Audible, Inc.]]> 7 Nathan Ballingrud Panda 0 to-read 3.42 2013 North American Lake Monsters
author: Nathan Ballingrud
name: Panda
average rating: 3.42
book published: 2013
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/19
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> When the Wolf Comes Home 228411899 Nat Cassidy, author of the acclaimed horror Mary , returns with When the Wolf Comes Home , an unabashed, adrenaline-fueled pop horror thriller where the darkest fears can become reality.

“This is the kind of great, big, epic horror novel we got back in the '80s that came out swinging for the fences and left everything on the field. Welcome back, you shaggy, bloody monster of a book!”—Grady Hendrix

"The Stephen King of TikTok"—The Lineup

The 25 Best and Most Anticipated Horror Books of 2025— Men's Health

Most Anticipated Horror of 2025— Paste Magazine , LitHub

One night, Jess, a struggling actress, finds a five-year-old runaway hiding in the bushes outside her apartment. After a violent, bloody encounter with the boy's father, she and the boy find themselves running for their lives.

As they attempt to evade the boy's increasingly desperate father, Jess slowly comes to a horrifying understanding of the butchery that follows them—the boy can turn his every fear into reality.

And when the wolf finally comes home, no one will be spared.

Other Books by Nat Cassidy

Mary, an Awakening of Terror

Nestlings

A Macmillan Audio production from Tor Nightfire.]]> Nat Cassidy Panda 0 to-read, book-club, horror 4.16 2025 When the Wolf Comes Home
author: Nat Cassidy
name: Panda
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/19
shelves: to-read, book-club, horror
review:

]]> The Alchemist 13425880
Paulo Coelho's masterpiece tells the magical story of Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd boy who yearns to travel in search of a worldly treasure as extravagant as any ever found.

The story of the treasures Santiago finds along the way teaches us, as only a few stories can, about the essential wisdom of listening to our hearts, learning to read the omens strewn along life's path, and, above all, following our dreams.]]> 4 Paulo Coelho 0060879076 Panda 4 Jeremy Irons
Publisher: HarperCollins (HarperAudio)

The narration and audio are flawless.

I read The Alchemist as a book club read. I had heard of it several times in passing comments, but never got around to reading it until someone put it on my list.

It's a great novel told in a fable style story, with a lot of breathing room for the reader to assert their thoughts and ideas into the philosophy.

At just four hours, told in an easy light style it can be read at surface level or personally brought into deep meaningful thoughts. How this story is perceived is entirely on the reader.

I enjoyed it.]]> 3.42 1988 The Alchemist
author: Paulo Coelho
name: Panda
average rating: 3.42
book published: 1988
rating: 4
read at: 2025/07/17
date added: 2025/07/17
shelves: book-club, philosophy, narration-is-good, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (4 hours) narrated by Jeremy Irons
Publisher: HarperCollins (HarperAudio)

The narration and audio are flawless.

I read The Alchemist as a book club read. I had heard of it several times in passing comments, but never got around to reading it until someone put it on my list.

It's a great novel told in a fable style story, with a lot of breathing room for the reader to assert their thoughts and ideas into the philosophy.

At just four hours, told in an easy light style it can be read at surface level or personally brought into deep meaningful thoughts. How this story is perceived is entirely on the reader.

I enjoyed it.
]]> <![CDATA[Isles of the Emberdark: A Cosmere Novel Secret Projects, Book 5]]> 231391541
All his life, Sixth of the Dusk has been a traditional trapper of Aviar—the supernatural birds his people bond with—on the deadly island of Patji. Then one fateful night he propels his people into a race to modernize before they can be conquered by the Ones Above, invaders from the stars who want to exploit the Aviar.

But it’s a race they’re losing, and Dusk fears his people will lose themselves in the effort. When a chance comes to sail into the expanse of the emberdark beyond a mystical portal, Dusk sets off to find his people’s salvation with only a canoe, his birds, and all the grit and canniness of a Patji trapper.

Elsewhere in the emberdark is a young dragon chained in human Starling of the starship Dynamic. She and her ragtag crew of exiles are deep in debt and on the brink of losing their freedom. So when she finds an ancient map to a hidden portal between the emberdark and the physical realm, she seizes the chance at a lucrative discovery.

These unlikely allies might just be the solution to each other’s crisis. In their search for independence, Dusk and Starling face perilous bargains, poisonous politics, and the destructive echo of a dead god.

Sanderson expands his thrilling novella “Sixth of the Dusk” into a mythic novel of legends, lore, and warring galactic superpowers.]]> Brandon Sanderson Panda 0 to-read, fantasy 4.46 2025 Isles of the Emberdark: A Cosmere Novel Secret Projects, Book 5
author: Brandon Sanderson
name: Panda
average rating: 4.46
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/16
shelves: to-read, fantasy
review:

]]> Rules of Civility 22365822 12 Amor Towles Panda 0 to-read 4.03 2011 Rules of Civility
author: Amor Towles
name: Panda
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2011
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/16
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing]]> 25203710 This best-selling guide to decluttering your home from Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo takes readers step-by-step through her revolutionary KonMari Method for simplifying, organizing, and storing.

Japanese organizational consultant Marie Kondo takes tidying to a whole new level, promising that if you properly declutter your home once, you'll never have to do it again. Whereas most methods advocate a room-by-room or little-by-little approach, the KonMari Method's category-by-category, all-at-once prescription leads to lasting results. In fact, none of Kondo's clients have been repeat customers (and she still has a three-month waiting list of new customers!). With detailed guidance for every type of item in the household, this quirky little manual from Japan's newest lifestyle phenomenon will help readers clear their clutter and enjoy the unique magic of a tidy home--and the calm, motivated mindset it can inspire. ]]> 5 Marie Kondō Panda 4 Emily Woo Zeller
Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc

Proof that Emily Woo Zeller can read anything and make it sound awesome!
Not saying that this book is badly written, it isn't, but it's a book about tidying up. Cleaning is not my happy space, but somehow Zeller made it sound like so much fun! Almost exciting!

Will I use the tips, tricks, and mostly the shifted perspective as presented by Marie Kondo?

That remains to be seen.

I did enjoy the book, which was humorous, thoughtful, and most important, thought provoking.

I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it wasn't this. I am glad that I picked it up.

Will read the next one.]]> 3.57 2010 The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing
author: Marie Kondō
name: Panda
average rating: 3.57
book published: 2010
rating: 4
read at: 2025/07/15
date added: 2025/07/15
shelves: nonfiction, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook narrated by Emily Woo Zeller
Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc

Proof that Emily Woo Zeller can read anything and make it sound awesome!
Not saying that this book is badly written, it isn't, but it's a book about tidying up. Cleaning is not my happy space, but somehow Zeller made it sound like so much fun! Almost exciting!

Will I use the tips, tricks, and mostly the shifted perspective as presented by Marie Kondo?

That remains to be seen.

I did enjoy the book, which was humorous, thoughtful, and most important, thought provoking.

I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it wasn't this. I am glad that I picked it up.

Will read the next one.
]]> <![CDATA[On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous]]> 45165366
On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous is a letter from a son to a mother who cannot read. Written when the speaker, Little Dog, is in his late twenties, the letter unearths a family's history that began before he was born — a history whose epicenter is rooted in Vietnam — and serves as a doorway into parts of his life his mother has never known, all of it leading to an unforgettable revelation. At once a witness to the fraught yet undeniable love between a single mother and her son, it is also a brutally honest exploration of race, class, and masculinity. Asking questions central to our American moment, immersed as we are in addiction, violence, and trauma, but undergirded by compassion and tenderness, On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous is as much about the power of telling one's own story as it is about the obliterating silence of not being heard.

With stunning urgency and grace, Ocean Vuong writes of people caught between disparate worlds, and asks how we heal and rescue one another without forsaking who we are. The question of how to survive, and how to make of it a kind of joy, powers the most important debut novel of many years.]]> 7 Ocean Vuong Panda 5 Ocean Vuong
Publisher: Books on Tape (Penguin Audio)

Flawlessly and beautifully narrated by the author. I cannot imagine anyone else voicing Ocean Vuong's words.
The audio is also flawless.

This is an unexpected gem in the picks of goodreads book club reads.

It has been a long time since I have read a novel so poetically written.

Beautiful.
Emotionally overflowing.
Full of love.
Full of pain.

I am touched at page after page of vulnerability.

I appreciate the first person view of the authors culture, from his young self through adulthood.

Excellent.]]> 3.78 2019 On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous
author: Ocean Vuong
name: Panda
average rating: 3.78
book published: 2019
rating: 5
read at: 2025/07/15
date added: 2025/07/15
shelves: book-club, poetry, narration-is-awesome, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (7 hours) narrated by the author, Ocean Vuong
Publisher: Books on Tape (Penguin Audio)

Flawlessly and beautifully narrated by the author. I cannot imagine anyone else voicing Ocean Vuong's words.
The audio is also flawless.

This is an unexpected gem in the picks of goodreads book club reads.

It has been a long time since I have read a novel so poetically written.

Beautiful.
Emotionally overflowing.
Full of love.
Full of pain.

I am touched at page after page of vulnerability.

I appreciate the first person view of the authors culture, from his young self through adulthood.

Excellent.
]]> The Dark Half 31218098
He'd like to say he has nothing to do with the series of monstrous murders that keep coming closer to his home.

He'd like to say he has nothing to do with the twisted imagination that produced his bestselling novels.

He'd like to say he has nothing to do with the voice on the phone uttering its obscene threats and demanding total surrender.

But how can Thad disown the ultimate embodiment of evil that goes by the name he gave it - and signs its crimes with Thad's bloody fingerprints?]]> Stephen King 1441738673 Panda 4 Grover Gardner
Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc (and Buck 50 Productions, LLC)


The narration and audio are excellent.

The Dark Half is a re-read in my journey of re-working through Stephen King's catalogue, relatively in order by publication date.

This is a very dark author centered novel that I believe Tabitha King doesn't like. After the re-read as an adult, I can fully understand why this might be a bit over the comfort line.
]]> 4.50 1989 The Dark Half
author: Stephen King
name: Panda
average rating: 4.50
book published: 1989
rating: 4
read at: 2025/07/14
date added: 2025/07/14
shelves: stephen-king, audio-is-good, narrator-is-award-winning
review:
Audiobook (15 hours) narrated by Grover Gardner
Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc (and Buck 50 Productions, LLC)


The narration and audio are excellent.

The Dark Half is a re-read in my journey of re-working through Stephen King's catalogue, relatively in order by publication date.

This is a very dark author centered novel that I believe Tabitha King doesn't like. After the re-read as an adult, I can fully understand why this might be a bit over the comfort line.

]]> The Nightingale: A Novel 22320450
In love we find out who we want to be.
In war we find out who we are.

FRANCE, 1939

In the quiet village of Carriveau, Vianne Mauriac says goodbye to her husband, Antoine, as he heads for the Front. She doesn't believe that the Nazis will invade France...but invade they do, in droves of marching soldiers, in caravans of trucks and tanks, in planes that fill the skies and drop bombs upon the innocent. When a German captain requisitions Vianne's home, she and her daughter must live with the enemy or lose everything. Without food or money or hope, as danger escalates all around them, she is forced to make one impossible choice after another to keep her family alive.

Vianne's sister, Isabelle, is a rebellious eighteen-year-old girl, searching for purpose with all the reckless passion of youth. While thousands of Parisians march into the unknown terrors of war, she meets Gäetan, a partisan who believes the French can fight the Nazis from within France, and she falls in love as only the young can...completely. But when he betrays her, Isabelle joins the Resistance and never looks back, risking her life time and again to save others.

With courage, grace and powerful insight, bestselling author Kristin Hannah captures the epic panorama of WWII and illuminates an intimate part of history seldom seen: the women's war. The Nightingale tells the stories of two sisters, separated by years and experience, by ideals, passion and circumstance, each embarking on her own dangerous path toward survival, love, and freedom in German-occupied, war-torn France--a heartbreakingly beautiful novel that celebrates the resilience of the human spirit and the durability of women. It is a novel for everyone, a novel for a lifetime.]]> 26 Kristin Hannah 1427212678 Panda 5 Polly Stone
Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Flawless narration and audio.
I believe that Polly Stone is the same Polly Stone that will forever be remembered on YouTube, PBS and other broadcast sites as the little girl who talked with Grover:


Two out of the three books that I have read by Kristin Hannah, including this one and The Women have been exceptional.

I both love and hate this book as it is so emotionally charged. I cried way too much.

Beautifully written. The characters are incredible. The world is a whole other character in the book, with the timing, the history, the details and the growth and changes of the world within the span of the story told.

Excellent.]]> 4.49 2015 The Nightingale: A Novel
author: Kristin Hannah
name: Panda
average rating: 4.49
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2025/07/14
date added: 2025/07/14
shelves: historical-fiction, war, book-club, audio-is-good, narrator-is-award-winning
review:
Audiobook (18 hours) narrated by Polly Stone
Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Flawless narration and audio.
I believe that Polly Stone is the same Polly Stone that will forever be remembered on YouTube, PBS and other broadcast sites as the little girl who talked with Grover:


Two out of the three books that I have read by Kristin Hannah, including this one and The Women have been exceptional.

I both love and hate this book as it is so emotionally charged. I cried way too much.

Beautifully written. The characters are incredible. The world is a whole other character in the book, with the timing, the history, the details and the growth and changes of the world within the span of the story told.

Excellent.
]]> <![CDATA[Clockwork Boys (Clocktaur War, #1)]]> 49981253
If they succeed, rewards and pardons await, but that requires a long journey through enemy territory, directly into the capital. It also requires them to refrain from killing each other along the way! At turns darkly comic and touching, Clockwork Boys puts together a broken group of people trying to make the most of the rest of their lives as they drive forward on their suicide mission.
]]> 8 T. Kingfisher 1721339612 Panda 0 currently-reading, steampunk 4.03 2017 Clockwork Boys (Clocktaur War, #1)
author: T. Kingfisher
name: Panda
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/09
shelves: currently-reading, steampunk
review:

]]> Swordheart 57580085 Return to the world of Clockwork Boys in this all-new novel from T. Kingfisher!

Halla is a housekeeper who has suddenly inherited her great-uncle's estate...and, unfortunately, his relatives. Sarkis is an immortal swordsman trapped in a prison of enchanted steel. When Halla draws the sword that imprisons him, Sarkis finds himself attempting to defend his new wielder against everything from bandits and roving inquisitors to her own in-laws...and the sword itself may prove to be the greatest threat of all....

Length: 14 hrs and 32 mins]]> 15 T. Kingfisher 1705297714 Panda 5 Jesse Vilinsky
Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc.

Loved this narration! I was not shocked to read that Jesse Vilinsky is skilled in many areas including voice overs, and has earned many awards for book narrations.
Truly enjoyable experience!
There are a lot of deep male voices along with the main character, who is a very young, precocious woman. The talent to be able to have multiple conversations of this young woman with a group of, what sounds to be burly men, and I am just now realizing how fantastically talented Jesse is as I just went all in as these people are real and I am listening in. Great experience!
I do hope that Jesse is narrating the second book in what is now a series, that comes out in 2026!

Outside of the last book that I picked up by Kingfisher that was an absolute miss for me, and we don't need to discuss that, I generally love the unique qualities of her writing and creativity.

Swordheart is endearing, creative, descriptively stunning, and just beautiful all around.

While the things that go bump in the night are still there, as they tend to be in Kingfisher's novels, there is a softness and romanticism that is perfect.

The characters and world building are fantastic, as is the ambience. There is a touch of knights in shining armor with an Arthurian feel in the midst of a dark Cinderella-esque type of fairy tale.

Reading the synopsis, this is set in the world of Clockwork Boys, which I have not had the pleasure of reading yet. What am I waiting for? Let's go!]]> 3.96 2018 Swordheart
author: T. Kingfisher
name: Panda
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2018
rating: 5
read at: 2025/07/09
date added: 2025/07/09
shelves: fantasy, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (15 hours) narrated by Jesse Vilinsky
Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc.

Loved this narration! I was not shocked to read that Jesse Vilinsky is skilled in many areas including voice overs, and has earned many awards for book narrations.
Truly enjoyable experience!
There are a lot of deep male voices along with the main character, who is a very young, precocious woman. The talent to be able to have multiple conversations of this young woman with a group of, what sounds to be burly men, and I am just now realizing how fantastically talented Jesse is as I just went all in as these people are real and I am listening in. Great experience!
I do hope that Jesse is narrating the second book in what is now a series, that comes out in 2026!

Outside of the last book that I picked up by Kingfisher that was an absolute miss for me, and we don't need to discuss that, I generally love the unique qualities of her writing and creativity.

Swordheart is endearing, creative, descriptively stunning, and just beautiful all around.

While the things that go bump in the night are still there, as they tend to be in Kingfisher's novels, there is a softness and romanticism that is perfect.

The characters and world building are fantastic, as is the ambience. There is a touch of knights in shining armor with an Arthurian feel in the midst of a dark Cinderella-esque type of fairy tale.

Reading the synopsis, this is set in the world of Clockwork Boys, which I have not had the pleasure of reading yet. What am I waiting for? Let's go!
]]> <![CDATA[The Blackwood Journals: The Red Wake]]> 237778276 The sea forgets. The ship remembers.In 1835, the barque Red Wake slips from port into a fog that does not lift, a realm where the sails hang limp without wind and the crew is condemned to a grey, unending purgatory.

For young Mire, seeking only to endure the brutal rhythms of life at sea, the voyage becomes a waking nightmare. His name appears carved into the ship’s timber beneath a date yet to come. A child’s weeping echoes from the hold. The ship itself seems to watch him, leaving tokens and whispering warnings only he can hear.

First Mate Russell Stone, trusts his logbook to anchor his mind against the impossible. But the entries rewrite themselves. Days repeat. The crew’s memories are quietly erased. And Stone is forced to question whether the greatest threat is the loss of his life, or the loss of his self.

Aboard the Red Wake, they are not merely lost. They are being devoured. The captain reads from a book that bleeds. The boatswain worships the rope that serves him. This ship is not just a vessel.

It is alive.
It has purpose.]]> 365 C.N. Harrow Panda 0 to-read 5.00 The Blackwood Journals: The Red Wake
author: C.N. Harrow
name: Panda
average rating: 5.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[There's a Giant Trapdoor Spider Under Your Bed (Dark Corners Collection, #3)]]> 41561433
It’s bad enough that its venom-dripping chelicerae can slice through flesh like warm butter. Worse? It’s right there under the bunk. It’s a fact now. To make it through the night, the children must obey the don’t get out of bed, stay out of the shadows, and don’t wake the beast. But as the threats multiply, so do the rules of survival. And with the safety of dawn still hours away, the fun is just beginning.

Edgar Cantero’s There’s a Giant Trapdoor Spider under Your Bed is part of Dark Corners, a collection of seven heart-stopping short stories by bestselling authors who give you so many new reasons to be afraid. Each story can be read in a single sitting. Or, if you have the nerve, you can listen all by yourself in the dark.]]> 24 Edgar Cantero 1542090423 Panda 0 to-read 2.85 2018 There's a Giant Trapdoor Spider Under Your Bed (Dark Corners Collection, #3)
author: Edgar Cantero
name: Panda
average rating: 2.85
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Lottery and Other Stories 228470398 8 Shirley Jackson Panda 0 to-read 0.0 1949 The Lottery and Other Stories
author: Shirley Jackson
name: Panda
average rating: 0.0
book published: 1949
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Daggerbound (Swordheart, #2) 231425241 T. Kingfisher Panda 0 to-read, fantasy 0.0 2026 Daggerbound (Swordheart, #2)
author: T. Kingfisher
name: Panda
average rating: 0.0
book published: 2026
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/07
shelves: to-read, fantasy
review:

]]> Queen of Bones 230025657 Set between Cubas 20 years apart, Havana native Teresa Dovalpage's new mystery features an unusual detective - an ex-cop turned Santeria priest and a familiar face from her acclaimed crime fiction debut, Death Comes in Through the Kitchen .

Juan, a Cuban construction worker who has settled in Albuquerque, returns to Havana for the first time since fleeing Cuba by raft 20 years ago. He is traveling with his American wife, Sharon, hoping to catch up with Victor, his best friend from college - and, unbeknownst to Sharon, discover what has become of two of his ex-girlfriends, Elsa and Rosita. Juan is surprised to discover that Victor has become Victoria, and runs a popular drag show at the local hot spot Caf. Arabia. Elsa has married a wealthy foreigner, and Rosita, still single, works at the Havana cemetery.

When one of these women turns up dead, it will cost Padrino, a Santeria priest and former detective on the Havana police force, more than he expects to untangle the group's lies and hunt down a killer.]]> Teresa Dovalpage Panda 0 0.0 2019 Queen of Bones
author: Teresa Dovalpage
name: Panda
average rating: 0.0
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/07
shelves: to-read, narrator-is-award-winning
review:

]]> Malinalli 60466426 An epic, magical tale, set against the backdrop of the final days of the Aztec Empire and reimagining the life of Malinalxochitl-otherwise known as La Malinche-a Nahua warrior priestess-in-training caught between two vicious men, both of whom have wronged her and her people.

Five hundred years ago, Spanish conquistadors destroyed the wondrous Mexica (known as "Aztec") city of Tenochtitlan, thus beginning the history of modern-day Mexico. Hernando Cortés and Moctezuma were at the helms of power, but today many people blame a young Indigenous Nahua woman for the cataclysm. Known by many names-Malinalli, Malintzin, La Malinche, Doña Marina and Malinalxochitl, she was only eighteen when she was awarded to Cortés as a war prize. Cortés saw the value in her command of Indigenous languages, and though her exact role has been lost to history, she has long been seen as a woman who betrayed her culture. Debut author Veronica Chapa reinterprets her epic story with great power and empathy.

The firstborn in a set of fraternal twins, Mali spends her early years eager to take her rightful place as a student in Tenochtitlan's House of Magical Studies. Then tragedy strikes and she leaves home to study elsewhere among powerful priestesses. All the while, she hungers for revenge against Moctezuma, whom she believes responsible for destroying her family. Turmoil lands her under Cortés's control, working as his interpreter. She takes pride in the role-until she discovers his quest to conquer both his "new world" and her spirit. Far from home and with nothing and no one to fall back on, she dedicates herself to brokering peace between Cortes and those he meets en route to Tenochtitlan, where her powers fully emerge and her loyalties will be tested, with fateful consequences.]]> 12 Veronica Chapa 1797185616 Panda 4 Cynthia Farrell
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Cynthia Farrell is excellent in her narration. She is an award winning narrator who received the Earphone Award for her narration of Queen of Bones, as noted:
Narrator Cynthia Farrell's mellifluous and confident rendering of Cuban speech patterns alternating with perfectly colloquial American ones gives the listener a delicious sense of having been transplanted to Havana, a treat you couldn't get from the page alone. In Dovalpage's atmospheric tale, Juan Chiong returns home 20 years after barely surviving his escape to Florida on a raft. He misses his old flame, Elsa, and has no idea that his best friend, Victor, is now Victoria, host of a prominent drag club. This is not the Cuba that Juan left behind. His prosperous American wife, Sharon, has at the last minute decided to come along precisely because she senses Juan doesn't want her to. Bad idea. Farrell's performance is atmospheric and assured, a delightful listen. B.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine [Published: JANUARY 2020]

I think I might have to give that book a looksie!
The audio is flawless.

I was drawn into this novel from the jump. Veronica Chapa worked her magic on me and I enjoyed every second of the 12 hour journey. Would do it again!

]]> 3.94 2025 Malinalli
author: Veronica Chapa
name: Panda
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/07/07
date added: 2025/07/07
shelves: historical-fiction, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (12 hours) narrated by Cynthia Farrell
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Cynthia Farrell is excellent in her narration. She is an award winning narrator who received the Earphone Award for her narration of Queen of Bones, as noted:
Narrator Cynthia Farrell's mellifluous and confident rendering of Cuban speech patterns alternating with perfectly colloquial American ones gives the listener a delicious sense of having been transplanted to Havana, a treat you couldn't get from the page alone. In Dovalpage's atmospheric tale, Juan Chiong returns home 20 years after barely surviving his escape to Florida on a raft. He misses his old flame, Elsa, and has no idea that his best friend, Victor, is now Victoria, host of a prominent drag club. This is not the Cuba that Juan left behind. His prosperous American wife, Sharon, has at the last minute decided to come along precisely because she senses Juan doesn't want her to. Bad idea. Farrell's performance is atmospheric and assured, a delightful listen. B.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine [Published: JANUARY 2020]

I think I might have to give that book a looksie!
The audio is flawless.

I was drawn into this novel from the jump. Veronica Chapa worked her magic on me and I enjoyed every second of the 12 hour journey. Would do it again!


]]> <![CDATA[Spark Joy: An Illustrated Master Class on the Art of Organizing and Tidying Up]]> 28961732 Spark Joy is an in-depth, line illustrated, room-by-room guide to decluttering and organising your home. It covers every room in the house from bedrooms and kitchens to bathrooms and living rooms as well as a wide range of items in different categories, including clothes, photographs, paperwork, books, cutlery, cosmetics, shoes, bags, wallets and valuables. Charming line drawings explain how to properly organise drawers, wardrobes, cupboards and cabinets. The illustrations also show Ms Kondo's unique folding method, clearly showing how to fold anything from shirts, trousers and jackets to skirts, socks and bras.

The secret to Marie Kondo's unique and simple KonMari tidying method is to focus on what you want to keep, not what you want to get rid of. Ask yourself if something 'sparks joy' and suddenly it becomes so much easier to understand if you really need it in your home and your life. When you surround yourself with things you love you will find that your whole life begins to change.

Marie Kondo's first book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying, presents her unique tidying philosophy and introduces readers to the basics of her KonMari method. It has already transformed the homes and lives of millions of people around the world. Spark Joy is Marie Kondo's in-depth tidying masterclass, focusing on the detail of how to declutter and organise your home.]]> 6 Marie Kondō Panda 0 currently-reading, nonfiction 3.81 2012 Spark Joy: An Illustrated Master Class on the Art of Organizing and Tidying Up
author: Marie Kondō
name: Panda
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/07
shelves: currently-reading, nonfiction
review:

]]> Nine Goblins 219293049
Nine Goblins is a novella of low...very low...fantasy.]]> 1 T. Kingfisher Panda 2 Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc.

I love this author but not this book.]]> 3.57 2013 Nine Goblins
author: T. Kingfisher
name: Panda
average rating: 3.57
book published: 2013
rating: 2
read at: 2025/07/06
date added: 2025/07/06
shelves: fantasy, magic, audio-is-good, narration-is-good
review:
Audiobook (5 hours) narrated by Jonathan Johns
Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc.

I love this author but not this book.
]]> The Fisherman 41218504 John Langan Panda 1 book-club Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc

I gave this a good 2.5 hours, as a book club read. I was not enjoying this at all, but I gave it a good go.]]> 3.58 2016 The Fisherman
author: John Langan
name: Panda
average rating: 3.58
book published: 2016
rating: 1
read at: 2025/07/06
date added: 2025/07/06
shelves: book-club
review:
Audiobook (11 hours) narrated by Danny Campbell
Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc

I gave this a good 2.5 hours, as a book club read. I was not enjoying this at all, but I gave it a good go.
]]> A Forgery of Fate 228408237 #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A breathtaking romantic fantasy inspired by Beauty and the Beast about a girl who paints the future and a cursed dragon lord, bound by love and deception in a plot to bring down the gods.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Six Crimson Cranes!

“Everything I love in a story—danger, complex characters, romance, betrayal and gorgeous writing.” —Mary E. Pearson, New York Times bestselling author of Dance of Thieves

Truyan Saigas didn't choose to become a con artist, but after her father is lost at sea, it’s up to her to support her mother and two younger sisters. A gifted art forger, Tru has the unique ability to paint the future, but even such magic is not enough to put her family back together again, or stave off the gangsters demanding payment in blood for her mother’s gambling debts.

Left with few options, Tru agrees to a marriage contract with a mysterious dragon lord. He offers a fresh start for her mother and sisters and elusive answers about her father's disappearance, but in exchange, she must join him in his desolate undersea palace. And she must assist him in a plot to infiltrate the tyrannical Dragon King's inner circle, painting a future so treasonous, it could upend both the mortal and immortal realms. . . .]]> Elizabeth Lim Panda 5
Mirai () does a fantastic job with this narration. While she has yet to win an award for her narration skills, she is sure to be recognized soon. It is only a matter of time.
The audio is flawless.

Elizabeth Lim has a knack of writing fantastical fantasy fairy tale like stories with beauty and prose.

When I say beauty, her writing is exceptionally beautiful, however not in an overly flowery or a way that seems like she is trying too hard to accomplish a certain style. It seems that the world and the characters just flow effortlessly from her pen, which generally the easier the writing looks the more that she and her editor worked hard to make it seem easy.

The world just opened up for me. She really drew me in, and I ended up spending the entire day with her.

I will be reading more.]]> 4.25 2025 A Forgery of Fate
author: Elizabeth Lim
name: Panda
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/07/04
date added: 2025/07/04
shelves: dragons, fantasy, narration-is-good, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (15 hours) narrated by Mirai

Mirai () does a fantastic job with this narration. While she has yet to win an award for her narration skills, she is sure to be recognized soon. It is only a matter of time.
The audio is flawless.

Elizabeth Lim has a knack of writing fantastical fantasy fairy tale like stories with beauty and prose.

When I say beauty, her writing is exceptionally beautiful, however not in an overly flowery or a way that seems like she is trying too hard to accomplish a certain style. It seems that the world and the characters just flow effortlessly from her pen, which generally the easier the writing looks the more that she and her editor worked hard to make it seem easy.

The world just opened up for me. She really drew me in, and I ended up spending the entire day with her.

I will be reading more.
]]> <![CDATA[Spin the Dawn (The Blood of Stars, #1)]]> 52052100
Maia Tamarin dreams of becoming the greatest tailor in the land, but as a girl, the best she can hope for is to marry well. When a royal messenger summons her ailing father, once a tailor of renown, to court, Maia poses as a boy and takes his place. She knows her life is forfeit if her secret is discovered, but she'll take that risk to achieve her dream and save her family from ruin. There's just one catch: Maia is one of twelve tailors vying for the job.

Backstabbing and lies run rampant as the tailors compete in challenges to prove their artistry and skill. Maia's task is further complicated when she draws the attention of the court magician, Edan, whose piercing eyes seem to see straight through her disguise.

And nothing could have prepared her for the final challenge: to sew three magic gowns for the emperor's reluctant bride-to-be, from the laughter of the sun, the tears of the moon, and the blood of stars. With this impossible task before her, she embarks on a journey to the far reaches of the kingdom, seeking the sun, the moon, and the stars, and finding more than she ever could have imagined.

Steeped in Chinese culture, sizzling with forbidden romance, and shimmering with magic, this young adult fantasy is pitch-perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas or Renée Ahdieh.]]> Elizabeth Lim 1984884549 Panda 0 to-read, fantasy 3.70 2019 Spin the Dawn (The Blood of Stars, #1)
author: Elizabeth Lim
name: Panda
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/04
shelves: to-read, fantasy
review:

]]> Hansel and Gretel 222156823 The haunting tale of two brave children lost in a dark and dangerous forest, reimagined by literary legends Stephen King and Maurice Sendak in an all-new picture book.

Let Stephen King, global bestselling and award-winning author, and Maurice Sendak, beloved creator of the Caldecott Medal–winning Where the Wild Things Are, guide you into the most deliciously daring rendition of the classic Grimm fairy tale yet. But will you find your way back out?

With a personal introduction from Stephen King, the beautiful book has been created in close collaboration with the Maurice Sendak Foundation. This stunning storybook makes the perfect gift for fans of King, Sendak, and the Brothers Grimm.]]> 48 Stephen King 0062644696 Panda 0
I am absolutely giddy for my childhood self. RAWR!

September 2.

I have just tightened up my budget again and I must not pre-order this book! I did make a notification setting at my library though... Ohhh.... my want for this one is strong.]]> 5.00 2025 Hansel and Gretel
author: Stephen King
name: Panda
average rating: 5.00
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/07/04
shelves: to-read, stephen-king, fairy-tales, retellings
review:
Wow! Stephen King and Maurice Sendak!

I am absolutely giddy for my childhood self. RAWR!

September 2.

I have just tightened up my budget again and I must not pre-order this book! I did make a notification setting at my library though... Ohhh.... my want for this one is strong.
]]> <![CDATA[Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil]]> 138390707 🎧Length = 18 hours and 26 minutes

This program is read by a full cast, including Grammy-winning narrator Julia Whelan, who has narrated over 600 audiobooks and is a multiple Audie and SOVAS Award winner; Marisa Calin, an Audie, Odyssey, and AudioFile Earphones Award winner; and Katie Leung, best known for her role as Cho Chang in Harry Potter.

“Julia Whelan skillfully narrates Sabine's story of bloodlust and decay…Katie Leung's soft Scottish accent suits the grieving Alice…Lottie is portrayed by Marisa Calin, whose crisp English accent reminds listeners of Lottie's high-society past.”—AudioFile

This is a story about hunger.
1532. Santo Domingo de la Calzada.
A young girl grows up wild and wily—her beauty is only outmatched by her dreams of escape. But María knows she can only ever be a prize, or a pawn, in the games played by men. When an alluring stranger offers an alternate path, María makes a desperate choice. She vows to have no regrets.

This is a story about love.
1827. London.
A young woman lives an idyllic but cloistered life on her family’s estate, until a moment of forbidden intimacy sees her shipped off to London. Charlotte’s tender heart and seemingly impossible wishes are swept away by an invitation from a beautiful widow—but the price of freedom is higher than she could have imagined.

This is a story about rage.
2019. Boston.
College was supposed to be her chance to be someone new. That’s why Alice moved halfway across the world, leaving her old life behind. But after an out-of-character one-night stand leaves her questioning her past, her present, and her future, Alice throws herself into the hunt for answers . . . and revenge.

This is a story about life—how it ends, and how it starts. ]]> V.E. Schwab Panda 1 Julia Whelan, Katie Leung, and Marisa Calin

The narration and audio of the first half of the book is fine. I did not finish, but imagine that the rest was likely just as good.

I was looking forward to this book. As I began reading I kept seeing it pop up in my timeline from friends who were either working on or finished with the book, mostly with 4 or 5 star ratings, with the exception of one with a 2 star who was having a similar experience.

Off the jump I wasn't thrilled with the book, mostly as it starts off with a third perspective narrative, which generally is bland. Not always, and I have seen it used creatively, however many of the times I have read a book with this type of outside telling the characters and world are flat, as in this instance. Also, I find that third person narrative's are sometimes used as a way to skirt around hiding information held on by the main character, so that they can do some kind of grand reveal later as 'how could they have possibly known that?' Yeah, no.

It's boring...

More than that, it sucks.

Yes, this is a vampire story, but not that kind of sucks. The kind that makes you not finish halfway through and makes me wish that I had stopped soon so that I could read something awesome.

If you love it, enjoy it. It just isn't for me.]]> 4.20 2025 Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil
author: V.E. Schwab
name: Panda
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2025
rating: 1
read at: 2025/06/29
date added: 2025/07/04
shelves: vampires, narration-is-good, audio-is-good, book-club
review:
Audiobook (18 hours) narrated by Julia Whelan, Katie Leung, and Marisa Calin

The narration and audio of the first half of the book is fine. I did not finish, but imagine that the rest was likely just as good.

I was looking forward to this book. As I began reading I kept seeing it pop up in my timeline from friends who were either working on or finished with the book, mostly with 4 or 5 star ratings, with the exception of one with a 2 star who was having a similar experience.

Off the jump I wasn't thrilled with the book, mostly as it starts off with a third perspective narrative, which generally is bland. Not always, and I have seen it used creatively, however many of the times I have read a book with this type of outside telling the characters and world are flat, as in this instance. Also, I find that third person narrative's are sometimes used as a way to skirt around hiding information held on by the main character, so that they can do some kind of grand reveal later as 'how could they have possibly known that?' Yeah, no.

It's boring...

More than that, it sucks.

Yes, this is a vampire story, but not that kind of sucks. The kind that makes you not finish halfway through and makes me wish that I had stopped soon so that I could read something awesome.

If you love it, enjoy it. It just isn't for me.
]]> The Tommyknockers 28112597 source: simonandschuster.com]]> 28 Stephen King 1508217262 Panda 3 Edward Herrmann
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Edward Herrmann was a well accomplished actor on both the small and large screens, as well as on and off Broadway. He also did quite a bit of voice work. Although he passed in 2014 from brain cancer, his family has licensed his voice in 2023 which has since been synthesized by DeepZen.io for new audiobook narrations.
As for this book and narration, although he was well traveled and lived in many areas, including New York, I do not believe that he had ever lived in Maine, however he rocked that Maine accent with style!
The audio is flawless.

The Tommyknockers is told in a third person narrative, which I generally loathe, however there are many many characters, none of which are present throughout the story as a main character, making a first person narrative not possible.

The book does have that long book slow start, with a lot of descriptives and introductions. It takes a while to be fully introduced to the people and the area, but many about an hour in or so, things pick up and the story starts to form.

This isn't one of my favorite King stories, although I still really enjoy it. I think that I very much enjoy being able to zone in one one main or supporting character and fully embrace what is going on with them. There are so many people in the story that it's a bit tedious for me. Although I do have a couple of favorites, there are just so many voices, which as I think about it really speaks to the narrator. Although there is a lot of third person telling, Herrmann did have to voice a lot of people in conversation throughout the story. He did so with ease. ]]> 3.26 1987 The Tommyknockers
author: Stephen King
name: Panda
average rating: 3.26
book published: 1987
rating: 3
read at: 2025/07/03
date added: 2025/07/03
shelves: stephen-king, narration-is-good, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (28 hours) narrated by Edward Herrmann
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Edward Herrmann was a well accomplished actor on both the small and large screens, as well as on and off Broadway. He also did quite a bit of voice work. Although he passed in 2014 from brain cancer, his family has licensed his voice in 2023 which has since been synthesized by DeepZen.io for new audiobook narrations.
As for this book and narration, although he was well traveled and lived in many areas, including New York, I do not believe that he had ever lived in Maine, however he rocked that Maine accent with style!
The audio is flawless.

The Tommyknockers is told in a third person narrative, which I generally loathe, however there are many many characters, none of which are present throughout the story as a main character, making a first person narrative not possible.

The book does have that long book slow start, with a lot of descriptives and introductions. It takes a while to be fully introduced to the people and the area, but many about an hour in or so, things pick up and the story starts to form.

This isn't one of my favorite King stories, although I still really enjoy it. I think that I very much enjoy being able to zone in one one main or supporting character and fully embrace what is going on with them. There are so many people in the story that it's a bit tedious for me. Although I do have a couple of favorites, there are just so many voices, which as I think about it really speaks to the narrator. Although there is a lot of third person telling, Herrmann did have to voice a lot of people in conversation throughout the story. He did so with ease.
]]> The Wilder Side of Rage 60800166 Robert ‘Rage’ Wilder is a police officer and he’s a werewolf. He’s getting a new partner and she’s a woman. He’s never worked with women and isn’t crazy about the idea. He must keep the world of the Lycan secret. No problem, right? Add to the mix, an arrogant and vicious werewolf causing trouble and he’s come into Rage’s territory. Oh, and a deadly virus is raising alarm bells.
Officer Jolene Killagan has a new partner, a charmer. She has a few secrets of her own. Her tragic childhood comes back to haunt her and Rage is right in the middle of it all. Jolene is pulled unwittingly into the world of the Lycanthropes. Can she survive their brutal ways?]]> 268 S.A. Ison Panda 0 4.58 The Wilder Side of Rage
author: S.A. Ison
name: Panda
average rating: 4.58
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/06/29
shelves: recommended-5-star-gr-friend, to-read
review:

]]> The Blood Orchid 229467699 Whatever power you think you have is an illusion.

Whatever your dreams are, they belong to me.

And wherever you run, I am already there waiting for you.

Since Zilan entered the world of royal alchemists, she has learned firsthand that alchemy comes at a price. She has lost her family and her beloved prince in her search for justice against the evil Empress. All Zilan wants now is to find some way to bring them back. Resurrection is her specialty, after all.

In search of Penglai Island, where the infamous myth says life can be fully restored, Zilan starts a new adventure. But Penglai Island has been kept well hidden by a group of unpredictable, and often dangerous, alchemists. Uncovering the secret means challenging some of the most powerful alchemists to ever live. And when old threats come back to haunt Zilan, she will have to decide just how much she is willing to sacrifice to save her loved ones—and the practice of alchemy that has long defined her and the world around her.

This gripping duology closer by the acclaimed author of The Keeper of Night is not to be missed!]]> Kylie Lee Baker Panda 4 Natalie Naudus

The narration and audio are flawless.

Great historical fiction fantasy, follows in line with the first book as far as story and writing.

I will be seeking out more by Kylie Lee Baker.]]> 3.75 2024 The Blood Orchid
author: Kylie Lee Baker
name: Panda
average rating: 3.75
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/06/28
date added: 2025/06/29
shelves: fantasy, magic, historical-fiction, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (11 hours) narrated by Natalie Naudus

The narration and audio are flawless.

Great historical fiction fantasy, follows in line with the first book as far as story and writing.

I will be seeking out more by Kylie Lee Baker.
]]> <![CDATA[The Scarlet Alchemist (The Scarlet Alchemist, #1)]]> 199423000 A dark YA fantasy duology set in an alternate Tang Dynasty China, where alchemy has led to income inequality as the rich eat gold to achieve eternal youth, and a poor biracial girl with the ability to raise the dead gets caught up in the dangerous political games of the royal family.

You cannot create good without also creating evil.

Zilan dreams of becoming a royal alchemist, of providing for her family by making alchemical gold and gems for the wealthy to eat in order to stay young forever. But for now, she's trapped in her impoverished village in southern China, practicing an illegal form of alchemy to keep food on the table - resurrecting the dead, for a price.

When Zilan finally has the chance to complete her imperial exams, she ventures to the capital to compete against the best alchemists in the country in tasks she'll be lucky to survive, let alone pass. On top of that, her reputation for raising the dead has followed her, and the Crown Prince himself seeks out her help, suspecting a coming assassination attempt.

The more Zilan succeeds in her alchemy, the more she gets caught in the dangerous political games of the royal family. There are monsters lurking within the palace walls, and it's only a matter of time before they - and secrets of Zilan's past - catch up with her.]]> Kylie Lee Baker Panda 4 Natalie Naudus

The narration and audio are flawless.

Unexpected entertaining fantasy read.

This is the first book of a duology, I am already reading the second book.

Kylie Lee Baker uses fictionalized history as her backdrop. She goes over the differences at the end of the book. The details, the characters, all excellent.]]> 3.93 2023 The Scarlet Alchemist (The Scarlet Alchemist, #1)
author: Kylie Lee Baker
name: Panda
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2025/06/26
date added: 2025/06/27
shelves: fantasy, historical-fiction, magic, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (12 hours) narrated by Natalie Naudus

The narration and audio are flawless.

Unexpected entertaining fantasy read.

This is the first book of a duology, I am already reading the second book.

Kylie Lee Baker uses fictionalized history as her backdrop. She goes over the differences at the end of the book. The details, the characters, all excellent.
]]> <![CDATA[Wicked: The Graphic Novel Part 1]]> 215564061 From the Epic Inspiration of the Major Motion Picture—Now Streaming


Experience the magic of Oz as you’ve never seen it before with this brand-new graphic novel adaptation of Gregory Maguire’s masterpiece Wicked, the inspiration for the Broadway show and major motion picture—the first in a two-part series featuring gorgeous full-color illustrations by Scott Hampton.

Like Dorothy when she crash-landed all those years ago, prepare to be swept into a new and colorful world in this first-ever graphic novel adaptation of Wicked. While the long-running Broadway musical and major motion picture take inspiration from this iconic novel, this is Oz as Gregory Maguire wrote it—a fantastical story with dark edges that explores morality and ambition, love and friendship, and discovering one’s inner power.

Elphaba was born with emerald-green skin—no easy burden in a land as mean and poor as Oz, where superstition and magic are not strong enough to explain or overcome the natural disasters of flood and famine. Still, Elphaba is smart, and by the time she enters Shiz University, she becomes a member of a charmed circle of Oz’s most promising young citizens.

But Elphaba’s Oz is no utopia. The Wizard’s secret police are everywhere. Animals—those creatures with voices, souls, and minds—are threatened with exile. Young Elphaba, green and wild and misunderstood, is determined to protect the Animals—even if it means combating the mysterious Wizard, even if it means risking her single chance at romance. Ever wiser in guilt and sorrow, she can find herself grateful when the world declares her a witch. And she can even make herself glad for that young girl from Kansas. 


]]> 178 Scott Hampton 0063391090 Panda 1 graphic-novels This is horrible 3.71 Wicked: The Graphic Novel Part 1
author: Scott Hampton
name: Panda
average rating: 3.71
book published:
rating: 1
read at: 2025/06/27
date added: 2025/06/27
shelves: graphic-novels
review:
This is horrible
]]> The Passengers 45286961
You’re riding in your self-driving car when suddenly the doors lock, the route changes and you have lost all control. Then, a mysterious voice tells you, “You are going to die.”

Just as self-driving cars become the trusted, safer norm, eight people find themselves in this terrifying situation, including a faded TV star, a pregnant young woman, an abused wife fleeing her husband, an illegal immigrant, a husband and wife, and a suicidal man.

From cameras hidden in their cars, their panic is broadcast to millions of people around the world. But the public will show their true colors when they are asked, "Which of these people should we save?...And who should we kill first?"]]> John Marrs 0593151178 Panda 4 Clare Corbett
Roy McMillan
Tom Bateman
Shaheen Khan
Kristin Atherton
Patience Tomlinson
Publisher: Books on Tape (Penguin Audio)

The narration and audio are excellent.

John Marrs has a decent voice as an author. He excels at taking characters who are drawn up as everyday people, generally with notable flaws that are either flaunted or hidden and discovered. The discovery is also often motivated by something moral.

While I enjoy his setup and writing of the story, I think that he writes to long after the end of the characters story. Marrs seems to not trust the reader to make or form their/our own opinions of what is going on, even when he goes to great lengths to make it clear who is the bad guy and who is the injured party. Marrs, in every novel I have read by him, goes on to have the 'great explanation' as to why this was bad, in great detail with extra and new information thrown in that shows that not only was this person bad for doing this obviously horrible thing but they also did these other horrible things along with way. The only thing that we don't get is the mustache twisting, black hat wearing, cartoon bad guy. ]]> 4.06 2019 The Passengers
author: John Marrs
name: Panda
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2025/06/24
date added: 2025/06/27
shelves: dystopia, audio-is-good, narration-is-good
review:
Audiobook (12 hours) narrated by:
Clare Corbett
Roy McMillan
Tom Bateman
Shaheen Khan
Kristin Atherton
Patience Tomlinson
Publisher: Books on Tape (Penguin Audio)

The narration and audio are excellent.

John Marrs has a decent voice as an author. He excels at taking characters who are drawn up as everyday people, generally with notable flaws that are either flaunted or hidden and discovered. The discovery is also often motivated by something moral.

While I enjoy his setup and writing of the story, I think that he writes to long after the end of the characters story. Marrs seems to not trust the reader to make or form their/our own opinions of what is going on, even when he goes to great lengths to make it clear who is the bad guy and who is the injured party. Marrs, in every novel I have read by him, goes on to have the 'great explanation' as to why this was bad, in great detail with extra and new information thrown in that shows that not only was this person bad for doing this obviously horrible thing but they also did these other horrible things along with way. The only thing that we don't get is the mustache twisting, black hat wearing, cartoon bad guy.
]]> <![CDATA[Road to Ruin (Magebike Courier, #1)]]> 205224040 An electrifying, gritty fantasy from debut author Hana Lee that takes a royal messenger on a high-speed chase across a climate-ravaged wasteland, featuring motorcycles, monsters, and magic.

Jin-Lu has the most dangerous job in the wasteland. She’s a magebike courier, one of the few who venture outside the domed cities on motorcycles powered by magic. Every day, she braves the wasteland’s dangers—deadly storms, roving marauders, and territorial beasts—to deliver her wares.

Her most valuable cargo? A prince’s love letters addressed to Yi-Nereen, a princess desperate to escape the clutches of her abusive family and soon-to-be husband. Jin, desperately in love with both her and the prince, can’t refuse Yi-Nereen’s plea for help. The two of them flee across the wastes, pursued by Yi-Nereen’s furious father, her scheming betrothed, and a bounty hunter with mysterious powers.

A storm to end all storms is brewing and dark secrets about the heritability of magic are coming to light. Jin’s heart has led her into peril before, but this time she may not find her way back.]]> 11 Hana Lee 1797172778 Panda 3 Natalie Naudus
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

This is the second book in a row that I have had the luck to have Natalie Naudus narrate and I have one more in my queue. Completely and totally a happy accident. Love Natalie! ]]> 3.75 2024 Road to Ruin (Magebike Courier, #1)
author: Hana Lee
name: Panda
average rating: 3.75
book published: 2024
rating: 3
read at: 2025/06/23
date added: 2025/06/23
shelves: post-apocalyptic, debut, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (11 hours) narrated by the award winning Natalie Naudus
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

This is the second book in a row that I have had the luck to have Natalie Naudus narrate and I have one more in my queue. Completely and totally a happy accident. Love Natalie!
]]> Little Women 48815462 Louisa May Alcott Panda 5 Emily Bauer
Laura Dern
Lauren Fortgang
Allison Hiroto
Carly Robins
Suzanne Toren
Publisher: Audible Originals

There are several versions of this book both in print and audio versions with many many different narrators. This version, by Audible, with Laura Dern doing all of the commentary, or everything outside of the character conversations, has been highly rated since it's publication in 2019. I have had it on my list, and had picked up a copy, as Little Women was one of my favorite reads as a child. It wasn't until it came up as a book club read that I actually got around to it, however, and it is fantastic.
The narration and audio is flawless.

The book itself is a classic. I read it all the way back in fourth grade, and believe that it was my first conscious read of a classic novel. I was so amazed by the book that I went down a rabbit hole where I would spend time in the library learning about the author, Louisa May Alcott, who I ultimately wrote a report on for English class.

As a child, the characters in the book seemed like friends. They were all so different, living life. They weren't perfect, they fought, but also loved each other dearly.

As an adult, I could completely relive my love for this book. I think that I was hesitant to read it in case it wasn't as good as I had remembered. It was.

What amazes me is that although this book was written well over a century ago, in 1868, the relationships are just as relevant today. While there are obvious points that date the novel back in years, the people themselves could very much be the same in today's world, perhaps with the addition of cell phones and bottled water. The issues that Alcott wrote about are still issues, and I find it incredible at how well traveled some of the characters were!

A beautiful book. Beautiful writing. Realistic, real world relationships. Flawed characters and a coming of age story for several characters along with an aging matriarch. Have I said beautiful enough yet, because the story is absolutely beautiful!]]> 4.08 1868 Little Women
author: Louisa May Alcott
name: Panda
average rating: 4.08
book published: 1868
rating: 5
read at: 2025/06/18
date added: 2025/06/22
shelves: best-audiobooks-list, book-club, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (12 hours 15 minutes) narrated by a full cast including:
Emily Bauer
Laura Dern
Lauren Fortgang
Allison Hiroto
Carly Robins
Suzanne Toren
Publisher: Audible Originals

There are several versions of this book both in print and audio versions with many many different narrators. This version, by Audible, with Laura Dern doing all of the commentary, or everything outside of the character conversations, has been highly rated since it's publication in 2019. I have had it on my list, and had picked up a copy, as Little Women was one of my favorite reads as a child. It wasn't until it came up as a book club read that I actually got around to it, however, and it is fantastic.
The narration and audio is flawless.

The book itself is a classic. I read it all the way back in fourth grade, and believe that it was my first conscious read of a classic novel. I was so amazed by the book that I went down a rabbit hole where I would spend time in the library learning about the author, Louisa May Alcott, who I ultimately wrote a report on for English class.

As a child, the characters in the book seemed like friends. They were all so different, living life. They weren't perfect, they fought, but also loved each other dearly.

As an adult, I could completely relive my love for this book. I think that I was hesitant to read it in case it wasn't as good as I had remembered. It was.

What amazes me is that although this book was written well over a century ago, in 1868, the relationships are just as relevant today. While there are obvious points that date the novel back in years, the people themselves could very much be the same in today's world, perhaps with the addition of cell phones and bottled water. The issues that Alcott wrote about are still issues, and I find it incredible at how well traveled some of the characters were!

A beautiful book. Beautiful writing. Realistic, real world relationships. Flawed characters and a coming of age story for several characters along with an aging matriarch. Have I said beautiful enough yet, because the story is absolutely beautiful!
]]> <![CDATA[Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng]]> 231749472 In this explosive horror novel, a woman is haunted by inner trauma, hungry ghosts, and a serial killer as she confronts the brutal violence experienced by East Asians during the pandemic.

Cora Zeng is a crime scene cleaner, washing away the remains of brutal murders and suicides in Chinatown. But none of that seems so terrible when she’s already witnessed the most horrific thing possible: her sister, Delilah, being pushed in front of a train.

Before fleeing the scene, the murderer shouted two words: bat eater.

So the bloody messes don’t really bother Cora—she’s more bothered by the germs on the subway railing, the bare hands of a stranger, the hidden viruses in every corner, and the bite marks on her coffee table. Of course, ever since Delilah was killed in front of her, Cora can’t be sure what's real and what’s in her head.

She pushes away all feelings and ignores the advice of her aunt to prepare for the Hungry Ghost Festival, when the gates of hell open. But she can't ignore the dread in her stomach as she keeps finding bat carcasses at crime scenes, or the scary fact that all her recent cleanups have been the bodies of East Asian women.

As Cora will soon learn, you can’t just ignore hungry ghosts.

For fans of Stephen Graham Jones and Gretchen Felker-Martin, Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng is a wildly original, darkly humorous, and subversive contemporary novel from a striking new voice in horror.]]> 9 Kylie Lee Baker Panda 5 Natalie Naudus
Publisher: Harlequin Audio

I sometimes don't look at the name of the narrator before I start the book. As soon as I started, however, I knew that voice. Natalie Naudus! I love her and she was as awesome as ever.
The audio is flawless.

I was pulled into this book so fast.

There is so much here.

Kylie Lee Baker expertly ties together the pandemic, racism, murder, and a kick-ass ghost story.

The entire novel just flew by, seemingly in a blink.

It's fast paced, dynamic, detailed but also laid out in a way that doesn't tell the reader what to think or feel. Instead Baker pulls you in and let's you live the experience and add the adjectives in your own mind. This is a perfectly executed way of showing you through another persons eyes rather than telling you or trying to convince you. I could feel the frustration throughout the novel without a character ever having to say the word. It was obvious.

Excellent novel.]]> 4.17 2025 Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng
author: Kylie Lee Baker
name: Panda
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/06/22
date added: 2025/06/22
shelves: horror, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (9 hours) narrated by Natalie Naudus
Publisher: Harlequin Audio

I sometimes don't look at the name of the narrator before I start the book. As soon as I started, however, I knew that voice. Natalie Naudus! I love her and she was as awesome as ever.
The audio is flawless.

I was pulled into this book so fast.

There is so much here.

Kylie Lee Baker expertly ties together the pandemic, racism, murder, and a kick-ass ghost story.

The entire novel just flew by, seemingly in a blink.

It's fast paced, dynamic, detailed but also laid out in a way that doesn't tell the reader what to think or feel. Instead Baker pulls you in and let's you live the experience and add the adjectives in your own mind. This is a perfectly executed way of showing you through another persons eyes rather than telling you or trying to convince you. I could feel the frustration throughout the novel without a character ever having to say the word. It was obvious.

Excellent novel.
]]> The Glassmaker 218629041 maestros spend their lives learning to handle.

Women are not meant to work with glass, but Orsola Rosso flouts convention to save her family from ruin. She works in secret, knowing her creations must be perfect to be accepted by men. But perfection may take a lifetime.

Skipping like a stone through the centuries, we follow Orsola as she hones her craft through war and plague, tragedy and triumph, love and loss.

The beads she creates will adorn the necks of empresses and courtesans from Paris to Vienna – but will she ever earn the respect of those closest to her?

Tracy Chevalier is a master of her own craft, and The Glassmaker is vivid, inventive, a virtuoso portrait of a woman, a family and a city that are as everlasting as their glass.]]> Tracy Chevalier Panda 4 Lisa Flanagan
Publisher: Books on Tape

Lisa Flanagan kills her narration! Seriously, I absolutely loved her performance from the very start of the book, all the way through.
Her bio:
I also found a fun 1 minute video of her speaking of another book that she recently narrated, The Faculty Lounge, that I have added to my tbr list as I really want to hear more by Lisa.

I picked up The Glassmaker as a historical fiction book club read.

Overall, I loved the story. There's so much richness of life, family, and relationships. The magical realism part of the storytelling is a bit odd, as is the wrap up. It's both beautiful but also a bit off-putting. I'm unsure as to what was behind the decisions to tell this story in the way that Tracy Chevalier did, but as odd as the time jumps were I very much enjoyed her work.]]> 3.92 2024 The Glassmaker
author: Tracy Chevalier
name: Panda
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/06/21
date added: 2025/06/22
shelves: book-club, historical-fiction, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (14 hours) narrated by Lisa Flanagan
Publisher: Books on Tape

Lisa Flanagan kills her narration! Seriously, I absolutely loved her performance from the very start of the book, all the way through.
Her bio:
I also found a fun 1 minute video of her speaking of another book that she recently narrated, The Faculty Lounge, that I have added to my tbr list as I really want to hear more by Lisa.

I picked up The Glassmaker as a historical fiction book club read.

Overall, I loved the story. There's so much richness of life, family, and relationships. The magical realism part of the storytelling is a bit odd, as is the wrap up. It's both beautiful but also a bit off-putting. I'm unsure as to what was behind the decisions to tell this story in the way that Tracy Chevalier did, but as odd as the time jumps were I very much enjoyed her work.
]]> The Faculty Lounge 202181808
By the acclaimed author of Moxie, a funny, bighearted adult debut that is at once an ode to educators, a timely glimpse at today’s pressing school issues, and a tender character study, following a sprawling cast of teachers, administrators, and staff at a Texas high school

With its ensemble of warm and unforgettable characters, The Faculty Lounge shows readers a different side of school life. It all starts when an elderly substitute teacher at Baldwin High School is found dead in the faculty lounge. After a bit of a stir, life quickly returns to normal—it’s not like it’s the worst (or even most interesting) thing that has happened within the building’s walls. But when, a week later, the spontaneous scattering of his ashes on the school grounds catches the attention of some busybody parents, it sets in motion a year that can only be described as wild, bizarre, tragic, mundane, beautiful, and humorous all at once.

In the midst of the ensuing hysteria and threats of disciplinary action, the novel peeks into the lives of the implicated adults who, it turns out, actually have first names and continue to exist when the school day is done. We a former punk band front man, now a middle-aged principal who must battle it out with the schoolboard to keep his job; a no-nonsense school nurse willing to break the rules, despite the close watch on their campus, when a student arrives at her office with a dilemma; and a disgruntled English instructor who finds himself embroiled in even more controversy when he misfires a snarky email. Oh, and there’s also a teacher make-out session in a supply closet during a lockdown.

As these people continue to manage the messiness of this school year, there is the looming threat of what will become of their beloved Baldwin High. Ultimately, at the heart of this unconventional workplace novel is a story of the power of human connection and of the joy of finding purpose in what it is we do every day.]]> Jennifer Mathieu Panda 0 3.82 2024 The Faculty Lounge
author: Jennifer Mathieu
name: Panda
average rating: 3.82
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/06/22
shelves: to-read, narrator-is-award-winning
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Odyssey (Stephen Fry's Great Mythology, #4)]]> 219582405
The next book in Stephen Fry's acclaimed internationally bestselling Greek myths series telling the story of The Odyssey.

Sometimes the hardest journey is the way back home . . .

Wily Odysseus, King of Ithaca, has won Troy for the Greeks – after a decade of brutal, bloody warfare. But now this warrior remembers he is a husband and father – and his gaze turns longingly towards home.

Setting sail with a small fleet, Odysseus dreams of soon lying in the arms of his beloved wife Penelope, and of teaching his son Telemachus the ways of a warrior. However, the gods laugh at the foolish hopes of mortals. And, angered by this upstart, Poseidon – God of the ocean realms – curses our hero to wander the seas for ten long years.

Encountering one-eyed giants, six-headed monsters, terrible storms, titanic whirlpools, hypnotic sirens, seductive witches and jealous goddesses, Odysseus is tempted and tormented beyond any man’s endurance.

Yet he is no mere mortal – and the lure of his wife and son draws him, step by step, stroke by stroke, ever closer to home and his ultimate destiny . . .

A tale of love and longing, return and redemption, home and hope, Stephen Fry’s Odyssey sees the author and national treasure weave the final threads of the fabulous story begun in the worldwide bestseller, Mythos, into an astonishing and mesmerising tapestry for the ages.]]> Stephen Fry Panda 4 Stephen Fry
Publisher: Chronicle Books

Stephen Fry is a beloved and award winning narrator, perhaps most known for his narration of the UK version of the complete Harry Potter series of books.
His narration and the audio of this novel are flawless.

This is the fourth book of the mythology series written and narrated by Stephen Fry.

In this edition we mostly hear of the tales of Odysseus with a bit a narrative of a few others, like Scylla.

Thus far, the first book of the series has been my favorite, however all of them have been decent and this one was done very well.

Anyone who enjoys Greek Mythology, should consider taking a look. Although the books are in a series, there isn't a reason to read them in any particular order or if you were to be a fan of just Odysseus, you could certainly just read this book as a one off.]]> 4.26 2024 Odyssey (Stephen Fry's Great Mythology, #4)
author: Stephen Fry
name: Panda
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/06/20
date added: 2025/06/22
shelves: mythology, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (11 hours) narrated by the author, Stephen Fry
Publisher: Chronicle Books

Stephen Fry is a beloved and award winning narrator, perhaps most known for his narration of the UK version of the complete Harry Potter series of books.
His narration and the audio of this novel are flawless.

This is the fourth book of the mythology series written and narrated by Stephen Fry.

In this edition we mostly hear of the tales of Odysseus with a bit a narrative of a few others, like Scylla.

Thus far, the first book of the series has been my favorite, however all of them have been decent and this one was done very well.

Anyone who enjoys Greek Mythology, should consider taking a look. Although the books are in a series, there isn't a reason to read them in any particular order or if you were to be a fan of just Odysseus, you could certainly just read this book as a one off.
]]> <![CDATA[Stephen King The girl Who Loved Tom Gordon pop up]]> 144984829 0 Stephen King Panda 5 pop-up Text adaptation: Peter Abrahams

Illustrations: Alan Dingman

Paper engineering: Kees Moerbeek

Publisher: Little Simon

All parts of this book are awesome.
I included a link to either the personal page or IG account for each of those partly responsible for bringing Stephen Kings book to life in such an artistic way.

The girl who loved Tom Gordon is such a great book. Stephen King, the Red Sox, some gratuitous horror... great stuff. So when I found out last year that there was a pop-up version, I was all in!

The book itself is awesome.

The illustrations, the overall construction of both the pop-ups and the 'mini books' spread throughout on thick cardstock paper with nice heavy corners that hold the mini pages in place to keep everything nice and tidy to prevent damage.

I had taken some photos to share but I found this great video on YouTube that pages through the entire book showing all of the magnificence of this book, where you can see the attention to details. They did such a great job that I am going to share their video for those who wish to see it, and in the meantime, I am going to read mine again, because I leave it out so that I can just leaf through it or casually read it whenever the mood strikes.


Enjoy the video! ]]> 3.20 1999 Stephen King The girl Who Loved Tom Gordon pop up
author: Stephen King
name: Panda
average rating: 3.20
book published: 1999
rating: 5
read at: 2025/06/22
date added: 2025/06/22
shelves: pop-up
review:
Pop-up book
Text adaptation: Peter Abrahams

Illustrations: Alan Dingman

Paper engineering: Kees Moerbeek

Publisher: Little Simon

All parts of this book are awesome.
I included a link to either the personal page or IG account for each of those partly responsible for bringing Stephen Kings book to life in such an artistic way.

The girl who loved Tom Gordon is such a great book. Stephen King, the Red Sox, some gratuitous horror... great stuff. So when I found out last year that there was a pop-up version, I was all in!

The book itself is awesome.

The illustrations, the overall construction of both the pop-ups and the 'mini books' spread throughout on thick cardstock paper with nice heavy corners that hold the mini pages in place to keep everything nice and tidy to prevent damage.

I had taken some photos to share but I found this great video on YouTube that pages through the entire book showing all of the magnificence of this book, where you can see the attention to details. They did such a great job that I am going to share their video for those who wish to see it, and in the meantime, I am going to read mine again, because I leave it out so that I can just leaf through it or casually read it whenever the mood strikes.


Enjoy the video!
]]> James and the Giant Peach 42181768
Now in splendiferous binaural!

Listen with headphones for a wondercrump audio experience that sounds like Roald Dahl's phizz-whizzing characters are in the room with you!

James Henry Trotter's parents have been eaten by a rhinoceros, so now he lives with his two repulsive aunts.

One hot day something peculiar happens and an enormous peach grows in their garden. Soon James and the Giant Peach are rolling away from his horrible aunts, towards a most marvellous and wonderful place....

Listen to James and the Giant Peach and other Roald Dahl audiobooks read by some very famous voices, including Kate Winslet, David Walliams and Stephen Fry - plus there are added squelchy sound effects from Pinewood Studios!

Look out for Roald Dahl apps in the App store and Google Play - including the disgusting Twit or Miss! - inspired by the revolting Twits.]]> Roald Dahl Panda 0 to-read, book-club 4.00 1961 James and the Giant Peach
author: Roald Dahl
name: Panda
average rating: 4.00
book published: 1961
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/06/17
shelves: to-read, book-club
review:

]]> The Unmapping 231390336 4 a.m., New York City. A silent disaster. There is no flash of light, no crumbling, no quaking. Each person in New York wakes up on an unfamiliar block when the buildings all switch locations overnight. The power grid has snapped, thousands of residents are missing, and the Empire State Building is on Coney Island—for now. The next night, it happens again. Esme Green and Arjun Varma work for the City of New York’s Emergency Management team and are tasked with disaster response for “The Unmapping.” As Esme tries to wade through the bureaucratic nightmare of an endlessly shuffling city, she’s distracted by the ongoing search for her missing fiancé. Meanwhile, Arjun focuses on the ground-level rescue of disoriented New Yorkers, hoping to become the hero the city needs.

While scientists scramble to find a solution—or at least a means to cope—and mysterious “red cloak” cults crop up in the disaster’s wake, New York begins to reckon with a new reality no one recognizes. For Esme and Arjun, the fight to hold the city together will mean tackling questions about themselves that they were too afraid to ask—and facing answers they never expected. With themes of climate change, political unrest, and life in a state of emergency, The Unmapping is a timely and captivating debut.]]> Denise S. Robbins Panda 4 dystopia Julia Whelan
Publisher: Audiobary

The narration and audio are good.

The Unmapping is an unusual and interesting dystopian novel from the mind of Denise S. Robbins.

The world building is fantastic, and although the synopsis states that this novel is character driven, I disagree. The characters are not bad, not dynamic but decent. The meat is in the world, which stands as it's own living breathing character. The people in the story are support characters to the world, which is literally changing, growing, moving.

Is it great? No. But it's good. It's a nice break from reality.

What I really like about the characters, intentional or not, is that they are developed enough to have a nice solid outline of average Americans where they are located, so that in a dystopian novel it's easy to slip yourself or someone you know who fits the vibes of the character into that role, making the story more personal, allowing the reader to mold the character in their minds into who they are thinking of, adding emotion to the story. An example of this would be in recent TV history, Westworld character Caleb Nichols. Those who watched the show may not recall the name. It was the character portrayed by Aaron Paul. Caleb was written as an 'every man character' who Aaron Paul is excellent at portraying. A character that many either identify with or see someone who they know in him, making him immediately loved (or in some cases hated but mostly loved in Caleb's case) and embraced. If done correctly it's an excellent way to gain sympathy and/or empathy for the characters without having to give a slog of information or a huge backstory and flashbacks.

If Denise did this intentionally, she nailed it. If it was a happy accident and/or part of her writing style, as long as her world continue to be as dynamic as this one, it's a huge plus, especially with this type of story as if the readers don't care about the characters, then what is happening in the dystopian world may not even matter.

This is a shade under 4 stars for me. It's early in Robbins' writing career and I will be looking out to see what she put outs next.]]> 3.08 2025 The Unmapping
author: Denise S. Robbins
name: Panda
average rating: 3.08
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/06/16
date added: 2025/06/17
shelves: dystopia
review:
Audiobook (12 hours) narrated by Julia Whelan
Publisher: Audiobary

The narration and audio are good.

The Unmapping is an unusual and interesting dystopian novel from the mind of Denise S. Robbins.

The world building is fantastic, and although the synopsis states that this novel is character driven, I disagree. The characters are not bad, not dynamic but decent. The meat is in the world, which stands as it's own living breathing character. The people in the story are support characters to the world, which is literally changing, growing, moving.

Is it great? No. But it's good. It's a nice break from reality.

What I really like about the characters, intentional or not, is that they are developed enough to have a nice solid outline of average Americans where they are located, so that in a dystopian novel it's easy to slip yourself or someone you know who fits the vibes of the character into that role, making the story more personal, allowing the reader to mold the character in their minds into who they are thinking of, adding emotion to the story. An example of this would be in recent TV history, Westworld character Caleb Nichols. Those who watched the show may not recall the name. It was the character portrayed by Aaron Paul. Caleb was written as an 'every man character' who Aaron Paul is excellent at portraying. A character that many either identify with or see someone who they know in him, making him immediately loved (or in some cases hated but mostly loved in Caleb's case) and embraced. If done correctly it's an excellent way to gain sympathy and/or empathy for the characters without having to give a slog of information or a huge backstory and flashbacks.

If Denise did this intentionally, she nailed it. If it was a happy accident and/or part of her writing style, as long as her world continue to be as dynamic as this one, it's a huge plus, especially with this type of story as if the readers don't care about the characters, then what is happening in the dystopian world may not even matter.

This is a shade under 4 stars for me. It's early in Robbins' writing career and I will be looking out to see what she put outs next.
]]> <![CDATA[Maybe I Don't Belong Here: A Memoir of Race, Identity, Breakdown and Recovery]]> 60778923 ONE OF THE OBSERVER'S BEST MEMOIRS OF 2021 AND THE TIMES' BEST FILM AND THEATRE BOOKS OF THE YEAR.

'As a Black British man I believe it is vital that I tell this story. It may be just one account from the perspective of a person of colour who has experienced this system, but it may be enough to potentially change an opinion or, more importantly, stop someone else from spinning completely out of control.' – David Harewood

Is it possible to be Black and British and feel welcome and whole?

Maybe I Don't Belong Here is a deeply personal exploration of the duality of growing up both Black and British, recovery from crisis and a rallying cry to examine the systems and biases that continue to shape our society.

In this powerful and provocative account of a life lived after psychosis, critically acclaimed actor, David Harewood, uncovers devastating family history and investigates the very real impact of racism on Black mental health.

When David Harewood was twenty-three, his acting career beginning to take flight, he had what he now understands to be a psychotic breakdown and was sectioned under the Mental Health Act. He was physically restrained by six police officers, sedated, then hospitalized and transferred to a locked ward. Only now, thirty years later, has he been able to process what he went through.

What was it that caused this breakdown and how did David recover to become a successful and critically acclaimed actor? How did his experiences growing up Black and British contribute to a rupture in his sense of his place in the world?

'Such a powerful and necessary read . . . Don't wait until Black History Month to pick up this book, it's a must-read just now.' - Candice Brathwaite, author of I Am Not Your Baby Mother

'David Harewood writes with rare honesty and fearless self-analysis about his experiences of racism and what ultimately led to his descent into psychosis . . . This book is, in itself, a physical manifestation of that hopeful journey.' - David Olusoga, author of Black and British]]> David Harewood 1529064163 Panda 0 4.38 Maybe I Don't Belong Here: A Memoir of Race, Identity, Breakdown and Recovery
author: David Harewood
name: Panda
average rating: 4.38
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/06/14
shelves: to-read, memoir, mental-health
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Nightingale's Castle: A Novel of Erzsébet Báthory, the Blood Countess]]> 224240313 In the vein of riveting historical novels such as Hamnet and Circe —with a touch of Dracula —a propulsive feminist reimagining of the story of Erzsébet Báthory, the infamous sixteenth-century Hungarian aristocrat known as the “Blood Countess”, who was rumored to have murdered hundreds of peasant girls and bathed in their blood.

In 1573, Countess Erzsébet Báthory gives birth to an illegitimate child. Secretly taken to a peasant family living in the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains, the infant girl is raised as their own. Years later, a young woman called Boróka—ignorant of her true history—is sent to join the Countess’s household.

Terrified of the Countess’s murderous reputation and the brutally cruel women who run the castle, Boróka struggles to find her place. Then plague breaches the castle’s walls, and a tentative bond unexpectedly forms between the girl and the Countess. But powerful forces are moving against the great lady whose wealth and independence threatens the king. Can the Countess trust the women seemingly so close to her? And when the show trial begins against the infamous “Blood Countess” where will Boróka’s loyalties lie?]]> Sonia Velton Panda 4 Elinor Coleman
Publisher: HarperCollins (HarperAudio)

The narration and audio were flawless.

I think this may have been a book club pick at one point, but it took a while for me to get my hands on a copy and I just finished it.

This is an interesting historical fiction, gothic read dating back to the 1800's. It had a really nice feel to it and the audiobook narrator did a good job keeping the ambience of the time and place.

The book wasn't overly detailed and I think that I would have liked a bit more of that for both of the world and the characters, however, after an initial slow start I was drawn in and Velton held my curiosity as to what was going on and what was going to happen next.

I would say this is a 3.5 star read for me. I rounded it up to 4 because although at first I wasn't sure if this was going to end up being for me, once it started to peek my interest, I was all in. It was like Velton laid out a bread crumb path of blood red gothic gummy bears and I needed to pick them all up like I was ET when he discovered M&M's (which the studio edited to Reese's pieces when M&M's declined to pay for a mention in the movie and Reese's said yes please, so chocolate became peanut butter). Yes, my ADHD is showing!

Anyway! These delicious pomegranate and strawberry bloody red gummies kept me on the path and I nearly read this 11 hour book straight through for the last 8 hours or so. It felt a bit like mythology in it's telling and style, which is probably part of what that pull was. Super cool that it's based on a true story, in which the author's notes at the end explains her research process as well as how she tried to keep it as accurate as possible to the available information.]]> 4.00 2024 The Nightingale's Castle: A Novel of Erzsébet Báthory, the Blood Countess
author: Sonia Velton
name: Panda
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/06/14
date added: 2025/06/14
shelves: historical-fiction, gothic, horror, audio-is-good, narration-is-good
review:
Audiobook (11 hours) narrated by Elinor Coleman
Publisher: HarperCollins (HarperAudio)

The narration and audio were flawless.

I think this may have been a book club pick at one point, but it took a while for me to get my hands on a copy and I just finished it.

This is an interesting historical fiction, gothic read dating back to the 1800's. It had a really nice feel to it and the audiobook narrator did a good job keeping the ambience of the time and place.

The book wasn't overly detailed and I think that I would have liked a bit more of that for both of the world and the characters, however, after an initial slow start I was drawn in and Velton held my curiosity as to what was going on and what was going to happen next.

I would say this is a 3.5 star read for me. I rounded it up to 4 because although at first I wasn't sure if this was going to end up being for me, once it started to peek my interest, I was all in. It was like Velton laid out a bread crumb path of blood red gothic gummy bears and I needed to pick them all up like I was ET when he discovered M&M's (which the studio edited to Reese's pieces when M&M's declined to pay for a mention in the movie and Reese's said yes please, so chocolate became peanut butter). Yes, my ADHD is showing!

Anyway! These delicious pomegranate and strawberry bloody red gummies kept me on the path and I nearly read this 11 hour book straight through for the last 8 hours or so. It felt a bit like mythology in it's telling and style, which is probably part of what that pull was. Super cool that it's based on a true story, in which the author's notes at the end explains her research process as well as how she tried to keep it as accurate as possible to the available information.
]]> <![CDATA[Journey to the Centre of the Earth]]> 52455936 9 Jules Verne Panda 3 Publisher: InAudio
Released: January 1, 2003

I couldn't find the correct edition as there are so many editions of this classic, including a plethora of audiobooks by various narrators.
This is an unabridged version and the narration is very good, as is the audio.

I read this as on of this months picks of the book club EVERYONE Has Read This but Me - The Catch-Up Book Club
/group/show/...
This is the third pick and the third book that I read from the club this month, including The Year of Magical Thinking, and And Then There Were None

I mean, it's Jules Verne. There's chatter, there's science that he collected in his time machine and sold as fiction, and it's entertaining. This one has never been a favorite of mine but it interesting.]]> 3.53 1864 Journey to the Centre of the Earth
author: Jules Verne
name: Panda
average rating: 3.53
book published: 1864
rating: 3
read at: 2025/06/14
date added: 2025/06/14
shelves: book-club, classics, audio-is-good, narration-is-good
review:
Audiobook (10 hours) narrated by Stephan Cox
Publisher: InAudio
Released: January 1, 2003

I couldn't find the correct edition as there are so many editions of this classic, including a plethora of audiobooks by various narrators.
This is an unabridged version and the narration is very good, as is the audio.

I read this as on of this months picks of the book club EVERYONE Has Read This but Me - The Catch-Up Book Club
/group/show/...
This is the third pick and the third book that I read from the club this month, including The Year of Magical Thinking, and And Then There Were None

I mean, it's Jules Verne. There's chatter, there's science that he collected in his time machine and sold as fiction, and it's entertaining. This one has never been a favorite of mine but it interesting.
]]> The Stationary Shop 216875733 0 Marjan Kamali 1508286582 Panda 0 to-read 4.26 2019 The Stationary Shop
author: Marjan Kamali
name: Panda
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/06/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Lion Women of Tehran 199235739 An “evocative read and a powerful portrait of friendship, feminism, and political activism” (People) set against three transformative decades in Tehran, Iran—from nationally bestselling author Marjan Kamali.

In 1950s Tehran, seven-year-old Ellie lives in grand comfort until the untimely death of her father, forcing Ellie and her mother to move to a tiny home downtown. Lonely and bearing the brunt of her mother’s endless grievances, Ellie dreams for a friend to alleviate her isolation.

Luckily, on the first day of school, she meets Homa, a kind girl with a brave and irrepressible spirit. Together, the two girls play games, learn to cook in the stone kitchen of Homa’s warm home, wander through the colorful stalls of the Grand Bazaar, and share their ambitions of becoming “lion women.”

But their happiness is disrupted when Ellie and her mother are afforded the opportunity to return to their previous bourgeois life. Now a popular student at the best girls’ high school in Iran, Ellie’s memories of Homa begin to fade. Years later, however, her sudden reappearance in Ellie’s privileged world alters the course of both of their lives.

Together, the two young women come of age and pursue their own goals for meaningful futures. But as the political turmoil in Iran builds to a breaking point, one earth-shattering betrayal will have enormous consequences.

“Reminiscent of The Kite Runner and My Brilliant Friend, The Lion Women of Tehran is a mesmerizing tale” (BookPage) of love and courage, and a sweeping exploration of how profoundly we are shaped by those we meet when we are young.]]> 10 Marjan Kamali 1797175343 Panda 5 Mozhan Navabi, and Nikki Massoud
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Both of these awesome women have won awards for their narration skills.
The audio is flawless

This book was read as this months book club selection for Historical Fictionistas
/group/show/...
As a lover of historical fiction, I have found many books to love through this group. If I am not reading a book with the group, it is most likely because I have already read it. Totally recommend if you enjoy historical fiction.

Marjam Kamali has 5 distinct works, and of those this is a first read for me.


Absolutely beautifully written. If you take a moment to read her bio, in the link above, you will see that this is personal. I could feel so much emotion in her writing, in all of the best ways. I loved everything about this novel, including that it reminded me of a once upon a time friend that I have lost contact with, from school, Naomi. Naomi and her family left Iran in a time of turmoil, and this story made me think of her and I do hope that she and her family are doing well.

This is a story about so many things. The world. Relationships. Growing up. Politics. Culture. A lot, there is so much packed in, without being tedious, or preachy, or too political... It's beautiful, heartbreaking, wholesome, full of love, some hate, and just real life stuff.

Awesome writing.

I highly recommend this story.]]> 4.50 2024 The Lion Women of Tehran
author: Marjan Kamali
name: Panda
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2024
rating: 5
read at: 2025/06/13
date added: 2025/06/14
shelves: book-club, historical-fiction, audio-is-good, narrator-is-award-winning
review:
Audiobook (10 hours) narrated by Mozhan Navabi, and Nikki Massoud
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Both of these awesome women have won awards for their narration skills.
The audio is flawless

This book was read as this months book club selection for Historical Fictionistas
/group/show/...
As a lover of historical fiction, I have found many books to love through this group. If I am not reading a book with the group, it is most likely because I have already read it. Totally recommend if you enjoy historical fiction.

Marjam Kamali has 5 distinct works, and of those this is a first read for me.


Absolutely beautifully written. If you take a moment to read her bio, in the link above, you will see that this is personal. I could feel so much emotion in her writing, in all of the best ways. I loved everything about this novel, including that it reminded me of a once upon a time friend that I have lost contact with, from school, Naomi. Naomi and her family left Iran in a time of turmoil, and this story made me think of her and I do hope that she and her family are doing well.

This is a story about so many things. The world. Relationships. Growing up. Politics. Culture. A lot, there is so much packed in, without being tedious, or preachy, or too political... It's beautiful, heartbreaking, wholesome, full of love, some hate, and just real life stuff.

Awesome writing.

I highly recommend this story.
]]> The Boy on the Bridge 35072307
The people thought the boy could save them, so they opened their gates and sent him out into the world.

To where the monsters lived.]]> 13 M.R. Carey Panda 1 zombies Publisher: Hatchette Audio

The narration and audio of what I read was good.

I read a large portion of this book and it was OKish, but not exciting. Was just bland and at some point I just thought to myself, "Why am I spending time on this?"

I don't hate it, but I don't like it either. So I picked up something a bit more interesting.]]> 3.98 2017 The Boy on the Bridge
author: M.R. Carey
name: Panda
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2017
rating: 1
read at: 2025/06/14
date added: 2025/06/14
shelves: zombies
review:
Audiobook (13 hours) narrated by Finty Williams
Publisher: Hatchette Audio

The narration and audio of what I read was good.

I read a large portion of this book and it was OKish, but not exciting. Was just bland and at some point I just thought to myself, "Why am I spending time on this?"

I don't hate it, but I don't like it either. So I picked up something a bit more interesting.
]]> Dracul 42398704 The prequel to Dracula, inspired by notes and texts left behind by the author of the classic novel, Dracul is a supernatural thriller that reveals not only Dracula's true origins but Bram Stoker's--and the tale of the enigmatic woman who connects them.

It is 1868, and a twenty-one-year-old Bram Stoker waits in a desolate tower to face an indescribable evil. Armed only with crucifixes, holy water, and a rifle, he prays to survive a single night, the longest of his life. Desperate to record what he has witnessed, Bram scribbles down the events that led him here...

A sickly child, Bram spent his early days bedridden in his parents' Dublin home, tended to by his caretaker, a young woman named Ellen Crone. When a string of strange deaths occur in a nearby town, Bram and his sister Matilda detect a pattern of bizarre behavior by Ellen--a mystery that deepens chillingly until Ellen vanishes suddenly from their lives. Years later, Matilda returns from studying in Paris to tell Bram the news that she has seen Ellen--and that the nightmare they've thought long ended is only beginning.]]> Dacre Stoker 0525640487 Panda 5 Pete Bradbury
Vikas Adam
Saskia Maarleveld ❤️
Raphael Corkhill
Alana Kerr Collins
Allan Corduner
Publisher: Books on Tape (Penguin Audio)

I was thrilled and excited to see Saskia Maarleveld as one of the narrators in this team. Once I started the novel, the excellence of the skills of all of those involved allowed me to get lost in the book. Absolutely fantastic.
The audio is flawless

Dracul is another homerun from one of the best bookclubs on goodreads, Horror or Heaven:
/group/show/...
Seriously, the group is quite active with it's members, and every month there are so many fantastic nominations, one each in the horror and science fiction genre's, that it is sometimes difficult to select a winner. As a group the selections are generally at least good and have landed in the 4 and 5 star reads for me frequently, as in this month. So I will shout out this group for anyone who enjoys either horror, sci-fi or both to take a look and see if you too may be introduced to great reads you may never have heard of or potentially be encouraged to clear off those on your to be read list.

I wasn't sure what would happen with this book. I saw the cover and the author and figured that it was either someone in the family or a fan trying to get in on the vampire authoring. From there, either it's going to be someone who is either awesome or thinks that they are, especially putting Stoker on the cover.

It's a great re-telling by Bram Stoker's great grand nephew.

There was an AMA (Ask Me Anything, basically an interview where people can post questions and have a chance for the person to answer them) done by Dacre Stoke 9 years ago on reddit:

with Twitter proof:



I have yet to read through the entire AMA. I read a couple of questions and noticed that for some reason the original account by Dacre Stoker has been deleted, but the questions and answers are still there. It says deleted but the blue OP shows which posts were answered by him, so still worth a look if you have the time and are interested in the back story of the book.

At the time they were having a contest for two people to win to sleep in coffins at Dracula's Castle, sponsored by Airbnb. I am really curious about this and if anyone knows about this, has any links or videos if you could point me in that direction. This sounds like it could have been a lot of fun!

The book itself has two authors, the second author being J.D. Barker:

The above link has a little blurb and has some info, like the movie writed have been optioned by Paramount with Andy Muschetti (It, Mama) as the director. I haven't seen much mentioned since this was mentioned back in 2018, so it could be in production or the option could have run out. I guess time will tell.

I'm not sure how much each author wrote but I gather that Dacre had access to tons of notes and whatnot from the family archives. There's definitely an influence, and yet it is a book all of it's own.

The writing is nice. It has a nice flow. The world is fantastic. Some of the characters are built well and slowly and others, while not shallow, are perspective characters, as we only know and see what our story teller sees. Sometimes that means that the character is mostly a voice with a few descriptors and other times, if the person is interesting to the story teller/narrator, we get more. What we do get from his perspective feels realistic. Just as we run into people and some we take notice of and others we may have an interaction with once or twice but there's not much there.

On the vampire side, I don't want to say much, as I feel less is more and yeah. There are some things that are very true to lore. It is a re-telling, and some things are very different and perhaps unexpected. The style of writing as it pertains to the vampirism itself, feels like a throwback. I'm not sure if Bram would like the story, but I think that he would be intrigued, humbled by the fact that someone so far down the line went into the family business and that people are still around and excited to read new content by the Stoker family, and ultimately proud of it's reception.

Barker has been on my radar for a minute and this is, I believe, my first encounter with one of his books and it will not be my last. As for Stoker, it looks like he has some things as well, mostly collabs with other authors, that I may have to take a look at and see what's up.

This book was definitely a win and I highly recommend it.

]]> 3.83 2018 Dracul
author: Dacre Stoker
name: Panda
average rating: 3.83
book published: 2018
rating: 5
read at: 2025/06/12
date added: 2025/06/14
shelves: book-club, vampires, audio-is-good, narrator-is-award-winning, narration-is-awesome
review:
Audiobook (16 hours) narrated by a full team with at least one award winning narrator, including:
Pete Bradbury
Vikas Adam
Saskia Maarleveld ❤️
Raphael Corkhill
Alana Kerr Collins
Allan Corduner
Publisher: Books on Tape (Penguin Audio)

I was thrilled and excited to see Saskia Maarleveld as one of the narrators in this team. Once I started the novel, the excellence of the skills of all of those involved allowed me to get lost in the book. Absolutely fantastic.
The audio is flawless

Dracul is another homerun from one of the best bookclubs on goodreads, Horror or Heaven:
/group/show/...
Seriously, the group is quite active with it's members, and every month there are so many fantastic nominations, one each in the horror and science fiction genre's, that it is sometimes difficult to select a winner. As a group the selections are generally at least good and have landed in the 4 and 5 star reads for me frequently, as in this month. So I will shout out this group for anyone who enjoys either horror, sci-fi or both to take a look and see if you too may be introduced to great reads you may never have heard of or potentially be encouraged to clear off those on your to be read list.

I wasn't sure what would happen with this book. I saw the cover and the author and figured that it was either someone in the family or a fan trying to get in on the vampire authoring. From there, either it's going to be someone who is either awesome or thinks that they are, especially putting Stoker on the cover.

It's a great re-telling by Bram Stoker's great grand nephew.

There was an AMA (Ask Me Anything, basically an interview where people can post questions and have a chance for the person to answer them) done by Dacre Stoke 9 years ago on reddit:

with Twitter proof:



I have yet to read through the entire AMA. I read a couple of questions and noticed that for some reason the original account by Dacre Stoker has been deleted, but the questions and answers are still there. It says deleted but the blue OP shows which posts were answered by him, so still worth a look if you have the time and are interested in the back story of the book.

At the time they were having a contest for two people to win to sleep in coffins at Dracula's Castle, sponsored by Airbnb. I am really curious about this and if anyone knows about this, has any links or videos if you could point me in that direction. This sounds like it could have been a lot of fun!

The book itself has two authors, the second author being J.D. Barker:

The above link has a little blurb and has some info, like the movie writed have been optioned by Paramount with Andy Muschetti (It, Mama) as the director. I haven't seen much mentioned since this was mentioned back in 2018, so it could be in production or the option could have run out. I guess time will tell.

I'm not sure how much each author wrote but I gather that Dacre had access to tons of notes and whatnot from the family archives. There's definitely an influence, and yet it is a book all of it's own.

The writing is nice. It has a nice flow. The world is fantastic. Some of the characters are built well and slowly and others, while not shallow, are perspective characters, as we only know and see what our story teller sees. Sometimes that means that the character is mostly a voice with a few descriptors and other times, if the person is interesting to the story teller/narrator, we get more. What we do get from his perspective feels realistic. Just as we run into people and some we take notice of and others we may have an interaction with once or twice but there's not much there.

On the vampire side, I don't want to say much, as I feel less is more and yeah. There are some things that are very true to lore. It is a re-telling, and some things are very different and perhaps unexpected. The style of writing as it pertains to the vampirism itself, feels like a throwback. I'm not sure if Bram would like the story, but I think that he would be intrigued, humbled by the fact that someone so far down the line went into the family business and that people are still around and excited to read new content by the Stoker family, and ultimately proud of it's reception.

Barker has been on my radar for a minute and this is, I believe, my first encounter with one of his books and it will not be my last. As for Stoker, it looks like he has some things as well, mostly collabs with other authors, that I may have to take a look at and see what's up.

This book was definitely a win and I highly recommend it.


]]> <![CDATA[The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society]]> 10924618 As Juliet and her new correspondent exchange letters, Juliet is drawn into the world of this man and his friends--and what a wonderfully eccentric world it is. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society--born as a spur-of-the-moment alibi when its members were discovered breaking curfew by the Germans occupying their island--boasts a charming, funny, deeply human cast of characters, from pig farmers to phrenologists, literature lovers all.
Juliet begins a remarkable correspondence with the society's members, learning about their island, their taste in books, and the impact the recent German occupation has had on their lives. Captivated by their stories, she sets sail for Guernsey, and what she finds will change her forever.
Written with warmth and humor as a series of letters, this novel is a celebration of the written word in all its guises, and of finding connection in the most surprising ways. "From the Hardcover edition.]]> 9 Mary Ann Shaffer 1415954429 Panda 0 to-read, book-club 4.10 2008 The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
author: Mary Ann Shaffer
name: Panda
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2008
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/06/13
shelves: to-read, book-club
review:

]]> Salvage: A Ghost Story 52725273
When his sister drowns, Owen Saddler follows in her footsteps, determined to uncover the circumstances surrounding her death by diving into the murky waters of Chapel Lake.

30 years ago, the town of Peace Falls was flooded for a hydroelectric dam, and its ruins remain below. The disappearance of the church’s Pastor and parishioners still haunts the citizens of Chapel Lake, but does the church haunt the lake itself? Is Owen really seeing ghosts, or has he succumbed to the depths of madness?

Salvage is the debut novel of author Duncan Ralston, a darkly disturbing story of depression, religious fanaticism, and the afterlife, illuminating the darkness lurking within us all.]]> Duncan Ralston Panda 0 to-read 3.73 2015 Salvage: A Ghost Story
author: Duncan Ralston
name: Panda
average rating: 3.73
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/06/11
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Kosa: DarkLit Books 229478539
However, as Kosa grows older, she begins to question the reality she has been presented with. Doubts eat away at her, fueled by a deep-rooted curiosity and a burgeoning sense of independence.

But Kosa possesses a mysterious and powerful ability that Mother desperately needs to sustain her own existence. Mother, a figure shrouded in shadows and secrets, will stop at nothing to ensure that Kosa's power remains potent and under her control. The sinister grasp that Mother has on Kosa becomes increasingly suffocating as she tightens her grip, isolating Kosa further from the truth that exists beyond their home.

In this dark and captivating tale, Kosa's journey unravels the intricacies of control, the strength of one's convictions, and the true nature of the world beyond the shadows. The choices she makes will not only determine her fate but also influence the fate of those around her.]]> John Durgin Panda 0 to-read 0.0 2024 Kosa: DarkLit Books
author: John Durgin
name: Panda
average rating: 0.0
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/06/11
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Life of Chuck 57213544
Originally featured in the acclaimed story collection If It Bleeds, this unforgettable, mind-bending tale unfolds in reverse, taking readers through the extraordinary life of Charles 'Chuck' Krantz.

In a crumbling world plagued by natural disasters, collapsing infrastructure, and mass panic, bizarre billboards and advertisements appear throughout town: "Charles Krantz. Thirty-nine great years. Thanks, Chuck!" Marty Anderson, a schoolteacher, becomes obsessed with these messages as the world, inexplicably linked to Chuck's life, seems to be approaching its end.

Told in three acts, presented in reverse order, The Life of Chuck explores one man's past. We see him in middle age on a business trip in Boston as he is seduced by a busker into spinning a gorgeous sidewalk dance. And we see him as a child, in a house haunted by a terrible secret, learning to dance with his grandmother. In these pages King reminds us that life's quotidian pleasures are even more glorious because they are fleeting: the outrageous good fortune of a beautiful blue day after a string of gray ones; the delight of dancing when every move feels perfect; a serendipitous meeting. King's ability to describe pure joy rivals his ability to terrify us.

Now a major motion picture and winner of the Toronto International Film Festival People's Choice Award, The Life of Chuck is a glorious story about community and about humanity at its best, a celebration of joy, mystery, existential wonder, and the multitudes contained in all of us.]]> 58 Stephen King Panda 4 If It Bleeds

The audiobook is under 2.5 hours at 1x speed, has high quality audio that is easily understood from 1x to 2x speed, as preferred.
Danny Bursten used a fun narration style that really fit this story, which was filled with emotion with a lot of personal movement, like dancing. I did enjoy his reading of this short story.

The Life of Chuck was, surprise!, about the life of... dum... duuum... dummmmm... Chuck!

There was a lot going on in this short story, mostly revolving around the relationships Chuck built with himself and those around him. I think that when I am done with the collection that I will probably go back and re-read this one as I feel that there are a lot of layers and I would like to double read it to fully realize the totality of it. Although not necessary, I really love relationships in stories, and this one was touching.

Recommend.

Edit: This is a release of the single story from the book If It Bleeds. I highly recommend going in for the full collection, if you are going in for a purchase or even a first time read borrow from your local library. As a second run through to pick up at the library, sure, but I would be remiss if I didn't mention that there are several awesome stories in the full collection.

The release of the single goes along with the movie that is currently in a limited theater run. The cast looks outstanding. I cannot wait to see it!
Trailer:

Finally there is a 5 minute read by Stephen Kings doppelganger, Stephen Kinds on YouTube:

King looks so happy as he begins and ends his new book introduction. Thrilled would probably be appropriate, with the biggest smile that engulfs his entire face! ]]> 3.97 The Life of Chuck
author: Stephen King
name: Panda
average rating: 3.97
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2023/10/21
date added: 2025/06/10
shelves: stephen-king, horror, relationships
review:
The Life of Chuck (Chapters 6-9) narrated by Danny Bursten, is part of If It Bleeds

The audiobook is under 2.5 hours at 1x speed, has high quality audio that is easily understood from 1x to 2x speed, as preferred.
Danny Bursten used a fun narration style that really fit this story, which was filled with emotion with a lot of personal movement, like dancing. I did enjoy his reading of this short story.

The Life of Chuck was, surprise!, about the life of... dum... duuum... dummmmm... Chuck!

There was a lot going on in this short story, mostly revolving around the relationships Chuck built with himself and those around him. I think that when I am done with the collection that I will probably go back and re-read this one as I feel that there are a lot of layers and I would like to double read it to fully realize the totality of it. Although not necessary, I really love relationships in stories, and this one was touching.

Recommend.

Edit: This is a release of the single story from the book If It Bleeds. I highly recommend going in for the full collection, if you are going in for a purchase or even a first time read borrow from your local library. As a second run through to pick up at the library, sure, but I would be remiss if I didn't mention that there are several awesome stories in the full collection.

The release of the single goes along with the movie that is currently in a limited theater run. The cast looks outstanding. I cannot wait to see it!
Trailer:

Finally there is a 5 minute read by Stephen Kings doppelganger, Stephen Kinds on YouTube:

King looks so happy as he begins and ends his new book introduction. Thrilled would probably be appropriate, with the biggest smile that engulfs his entire face!
]]> The Golem and the Jinni 16065751
Struggling to make their way in this strange new place, the Golem and the Jinni try to fit in with their neighbors while masking their true natures. Surrounding them is a community of immigrants: the coffeehouse owner Maryam Faddoul, a pillar of wisdom and support for her Syrian neighbors; the solitary ice cream maker Saleh, a damaged man cursed by tragedy; the kind and caring Rabbi Meyer and his beleaguered nephew, Michael, whose Sheltering House receives newly arrived Jewish men; the adventurous young socialite Sophia Winston; and the enigmatic Joseph Schall, a dangerous man driven by ferocious ambition and esoteric wisdom.

Meeting by chance, the two creatures become unlikely friends whose tenuous attachment challenges their opposing natures, until the night a terrifying incident drives them back into their separate worlds. But a powerful menace will soon bring the Golem and the Jinni together again, threatening their existence and forcing them to make a fateful choice.

Marvelous and compulsively readable, The Golem and the Jinni weaves strands of folk mythology, historical fiction, and magical fable into a wondrously inventive and unforgettable tale.]]> 20 Helene Wecker 0062263056 Panda 0 to-read 4.08 2013 The Golem and the Jinni
author: Helene Wecker
name: Panda
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2013
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/06/10
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Children of Nazis: The Sons and Daughters of Himmler, Göring, Höss, Mengele, and Others (Living with a Father’s Monstrous Legacy)]]> 55882958
How did the offspring of these leaders deal with the aftermath of the war and the skeletons that would haunt them forever? Some chose to disown their past. Others did not. Some condemned their fathers; others worshiped them unconditionally to the end. In this enlightening book, Tania Crasnianski examines the responsibility of eight descendants of Nazi notables, caught somewhere between stigmatization, worship, and amnesia. By tracing the unique experiences of these children, she probes at the relationship between them and their fathers and examines the idea of how responsibility for the fault is continually borne by the descendants.




RUNNING TIME => 7hrs. and 8mins.

©2016 Grasset & Fasquelle; English-language translation copyright 2018 by Skyhorse Publishing, Inc. (P)2020 Tantor]]> 264 Tania Crasnianski Panda 0 to-read, war, nonfiction 3.91 2016 Children of Nazis: The Sons and Daughters of Himmler, Göring, Höss, Mengele, and Others (Living with a Father’s Monstrous Legacy)
author: Tania Crasnianski
name: Panda
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/06/10
shelves: to-read, war, nonfiction
review:

]]> The Girl With All the Gifts 22567427
Every morning, Melanie waits in her cell to be collected for class. When they come for her, Sergeant Parks keeps his gun pointing at her while two of his people strap her into the wheelchair. She thinks they don't like her. She jokes that she won't bite, but they don't laugh.

Melanie loves school. She loves learning about spelling and sums and the world outside the classroom and the children's cells. She tells her favorite teacher all the things she'll do when she grows up. Melanie doesn't know why this makes Miss Justineau look sad.

The Girl with All the Gifts is a sensational thriller, perfect for fans of Stephen King, Justin Cronin, and Neil Gaiman.]]> 420 M.R. Carey Panda 3 Finty Williams

Finty Williams does an awesome job with her narration, so it was no surprise that I found that she was won multiple awards for her narration efforts. I think that I actually forgot it was just one person!
The audio is flawless.

This novel is kind of the zombie version of The Passage. It isn't as well structured or written, but it's in the ballpark. I did feel that the writing was a bit sophomoric, at times. I have to wonder, however, if that is an unfair assessment based on an unconscious comparison between Justin Cronin, due to the similarities of the main characters of this novel and The Passage. The writing styles are completely different. It wouldn't even be like comparing apples to oranges, it would be like comparing apples to an apple pie.

Looking at the publication dates of the two books, Cronin's coming out in 2010 and this one in 2014, I wondered if there was some inspiration there. According to this interview, there was not:


I do like how Carey added flare to his interpretation of zombies and how people might respond to a zombie apocalypse. While not completely unique or original, the story flows nicely, the overall tone is just off center from other similar type stories and the characters are tropes, but they work in the overall context of the story, which is entertaining.

Off to start the second book of the duology, The Boy on the Bridge, because, why not?]]> 3.95 2014 The Girl With All the Gifts
author: M.R. Carey
name: Panda
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2014
rating: 3
read at: 2025/06/08
date added: 2025/06/10
shelves: fantasy, horror, book-club, audio-is-good, narrator-is-award-winning
review:
Audiobook (13 hours) narrated by Finty Williams

Finty Williams does an awesome job with her narration, so it was no surprise that I found that she was won multiple awards for her narration efforts. I think that I actually forgot it was just one person!
The audio is flawless.

This novel is kind of the zombie version of The Passage. It isn't as well structured or written, but it's in the ballpark. I did feel that the writing was a bit sophomoric, at times. I have to wonder, however, if that is an unfair assessment based on an unconscious comparison between Justin Cronin, due to the similarities of the main characters of this novel and The Passage. The writing styles are completely different. It wouldn't even be like comparing apples to oranges, it would be like comparing apples to an apple pie.

Looking at the publication dates of the two books, Cronin's coming out in 2010 and this one in 2014, I wondered if there was some inspiration there. According to this interview, there was not:


I do like how Carey added flare to his interpretation of zombies and how people might respond to a zombie apocalypse. While not completely unique or original, the story flows nicely, the overall tone is just off center from other similar type stories and the characters are tropes, but they work in the overall context of the story, which is entertaining.

Off to start the second book of the duology, The Boy on the Bridge, because, why not?
]]> Blood on Her Tongue 231355035 "I'm in your blood, and you are in mine…"

The Netherlands, 1887. Lucy's twin sister Sarah is unwell. She refuses to eat, mumbles nonsensically, and is increasingly obsessed with a centuries-old corpse recently discovered on her husband's grand estate. The doctor has diagnosed her with temporary insanity caused by a fever of the brain. To protect her twin from a terrible fate in a lunatic asylum, Lucy must unravel the mystery surrounding her sister's condition, but it's clear her twin is hiding something. Then again, Lucy is harboring secrets of her own, too.

Then, the worst happens. Sarah's behavior takes a turn for the strange. She becomes angry… and hungry. 

Lucy soon comes to suspect that something is trying to possess her beloved sister. Or is it madness? As Sarah changes before her very eyes, Lucy must reckon with the dark, monstrous truth, or risk losing her forever.]]> 9 Johanna van Veen Panda 4
I wasn't able to find a lot about the narrator and goodreads points to an author, rather than her own page. I do have an instagram link though:
I very much enjoyed her narration, feeling that her performance fit the book perfectly.
The audio was good.

Johanna van Veen took an old school approach with her vampire story, placing her world allllll the way back in 1887, in the Netherlands.

This also isn't an action packed type vampire novel, but more of a slow burn that reminds me a bit like the writing of T. Kingfisher, like her novel What Feasts at Night. The world building is on a similar keel, and I feel as if the characters are as well. They aren't deeply written characters, but the main characters slowly come into focus as the story goes on and the side characters are animated and add a lot of structure and emotion to the story, if that makes sense.

Let me give an example, a rough one so as not to spoil anything.
Let's say that the main character is walking down the street, side character Stacy would run out and match a slow dragging pace with Manny the main character and start talking, "why so glum today Manny?" and perhaps a third character would enter the scene and Stacy would worryingly whisper to Thirdsidely (the second side character but third in the story because I am such a creative name provider) "I'm worried about Manny, he doesn't look so well." and Thirdsidely would respond, "yeah, doggo passed away last night after being sick for a few days. He was 18, if you can believe it."

So the side characters show emotion, provide the context of how the main character is moving and doing and what is going on. Of course the writing is a bit better than in my example, and the names are more regular and appealing, probably. lol

This is my second book by the author and also the authors second book. Looking over my review of My Darling Dreadful Thing, I want to add that both novels are conversation heavy, with the narrative of what is being said really carrying the weight of the story.

Johanna also used a historical point in time for her debut novel, however I feel like in my darling DREADFUL thing the point in time was another whole character, where in this novel the time was important but not vital.

Parts of the story also dragged on a bit and I think could have been tightened up. As a second book it is fantastic. I am curious as to what comes next!

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4]]> 3.71 2025 Blood on Her Tongue
author: Johanna van Veen
name: Panda
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/06/09
date added: 2025/06/10
shelves: vampires, audio-is-good, narration-is-good
review:
Audiobook (9 hours) narration by Emily Tucker

I wasn't able to find a lot about the narrator and goodreads points to an author, rather than her own page. I do have an instagram link though:
I very much enjoyed her narration, feeling that her performance fit the book perfectly.
The audio was good.

Johanna van Veen took an old school approach with her vampire story, placing her world allllll the way back in 1887, in the Netherlands.

This also isn't an action packed type vampire novel, but more of a slow burn that reminds me a bit like the writing of T. Kingfisher, like her novel What Feasts at Night. The world building is on a similar keel, and I feel as if the characters are as well. They aren't deeply written characters, but the main characters slowly come into focus as the story goes on and the side characters are animated and add a lot of structure and emotion to the story, if that makes sense.

Let me give an example, a rough one so as not to spoil anything.
Let's say that the main character is walking down the street, side character Stacy would run out and match a slow dragging pace with Manny the main character and start talking, "why so glum today Manny?" and perhaps a third character would enter the scene and Stacy would worryingly whisper to Thirdsidely (the second side character but third in the story because I am such a creative name provider) "I'm worried about Manny, he doesn't look so well." and Thirdsidely would respond, "yeah, doggo passed away last night after being sick for a few days. He was 18, if you can believe it."

So the side characters show emotion, provide the context of how the main character is moving and doing and what is going on. Of course the writing is a bit better than in my example, and the names are more regular and appealing, probably. lol

This is my second book by the author and also the authors second book. Looking over my review of My Darling Dreadful Thing, I want to add that both novels are conversation heavy, with the narrative of what is being said really carrying the weight of the story.

Johanna also used a historical point in time for her debut novel, however I feel like in my darling DREADFUL thing the point in time was another whole character, where in this novel the time was important but not vital.

Parts of the story also dragged on a bit and I think could have been tightened up. As a second book it is fantastic. I am curious as to what comes next!

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4
]]> The Year of Magical Thinking 9811904 6 Joan Didion 1598872079 Panda 2
Wow. I mean the writing is fine, but I known what I was in for I would have given this one a pass. Even as a 5 hour read, it was a lot.

As for the narration by Barbara Caruso, it was OK.
The audio had random word edits here and there, especially in the beginning, where the volume of the added or changed word was just a bit off from the rest of the words giving parts of the novella a wavy kind of feel.]]> 3.58 2005 The Year of Magical Thinking
author: Joan Didion
name: Panda
average rating: 3.58
book published: 2005
rating: 2
read at: 2025/06/10
date added: 2025/06/10
shelves: book-club, memoir, audio-is-just-a-bit-off, narration-is-just-ok
review:
This is a book club read and it's depressing af.

Wow. I mean the writing is fine, but I known what I was in for I would have given this one a pass. Even as a 5 hour read, it was a lot.

As for the narration by Barbara Caruso, it was OK.
The audio had random word edits here and there, especially in the beginning, where the volume of the added or changed word was just a bit off from the rest of the words giving parts of the novella a wavy kind of feel.
]]> The Berry Pickers 201555799
A four-year-old Mi’kmaq girl goes missing from the blueberry fields of Maine, sparking a tragic mystery that haunts the survivors, unravels a community, and remains unsolved for nearly fifty years.

July 1962. A Mi’kmaq family from Nova Scotia arrives in Maine to pick blueberries for the summer. Weeks later, four-year-old Ruthie, the family’s youngest child, vanishes. She is last seen by her six-year-old brother, Joe, sitting on a favorite rock at the edge of a berry field. Joe will remain distraught by his sister’s disappearance for years to come.

In Maine, a young girl named Norma grows up as the only child of an affluent family. Her father is emotionally distant, her mother frustratingly overprotective. Norma is often troubled by recurring dreams and visions that seem more like memories than imagination. As she grows older, Norma slowly comes to realize there is something her parents aren’t telling her. Unwilling to abandon her intuition, she will spend decades trying to uncover this family secret.

For readers of The Vanishing Half and Woman of Light, this showstopping debut by a vibrant new voice in fiction is a riveting novel about the search for truth, the shadow of trauma, and the persistence of love across time.]]> 9 Amanda Peters Panda 3 Aaliya Warbus, and Jordan Waunch

The narration is very good.
The audio is flawless.

Amanda Peters tells a compelling and disturbing story about relationships, family, and loss.

Overall I very much enjoyed the story.

While I wouldn't call the world dynamic, it is decently detailed and has a very realistic, and at times, an emotional and alive feel to it. Vibrant, might be a good way to describe it.

I felt that the particulars of what was going on with the characters, their emotions, and their personalities was a bit flat and lacking. I have surmised that some of the muted characteristics in the early story are intended, and Peters way of covering up, or hiding, the secrets and twist to come. That doesn't really account for the later story, however, that while it seemed bigger in many ways, character wise, was still a bit dull and murky.

I do want to note that Amanda Peters does have an interesting voice and writing style. The story itself was, as I stated above, enjoyable. I actually listened to it almost straight through, all day yesterday as I really enjoyed the cadence and overall delivery, even of the more twisted and unsettling parts. I felt that she handled some of the issues with care, almost too much care though as if she held the characters back from showing how they really felt, in some instances.

I have rated it a 3, I could go 3.5, it just isn't quite a 4 star read for me. Saying that I would read her again and see that this looks like only her second publication and her first long story novel, so we have a lot to look forward too as Peters hones her writing and finds her long format story telling voice.]]> 3.90 2023 The Berry Pickers
author: Amanda Peters
name: Panda
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2025/06/06
date added: 2025/06/06
shelves: historical-fiction, book-club, audio-is-good, narration-is-good
review:
Audiobook (9 hours) narrated by Aaliya Warbus, and Jordan Waunch

The narration is very good.
The audio is flawless.

Amanda Peters tells a compelling and disturbing story about relationships, family, and loss.

Overall I very much enjoyed the story.

While I wouldn't call the world dynamic, it is decently detailed and has a very realistic, and at times, an emotional and alive feel to it. Vibrant, might be a good way to describe it.

I felt that the particulars of what was going on with the characters, their emotions, and their personalities was a bit flat and lacking. I have surmised that some of the muted characteristics in the early story are intended, and Peters way of covering up, or hiding, the secrets and twist to come. That doesn't really account for the later story, however, that while it seemed bigger in many ways, character wise, was still a bit dull and murky.

I do want to note that Amanda Peters does have an interesting voice and writing style. The story itself was, as I stated above, enjoyable. I actually listened to it almost straight through, all day yesterday as I really enjoyed the cadence and overall delivery, even of the more twisted and unsettling parts. I felt that she handled some of the issues with care, almost too much care though as if she held the characters back from showing how they really felt, in some instances.

I have rated it a 3, I could go 3.5, it just isn't quite a 4 star read for me. Saying that I would read her again and see that this looks like only her second publication and her first long story novel, so we have a lot to look forward too as Peters hones her writing and finds her long format story telling voice.
]]> Dream Count 228718959 A publishing event ten years in the making—a searing, exquisite new novel by the best-selling and award-winning author of Americanah and We Should All Be Feminists—the story of four women and their loves, longings, and desires.

Chiamaka is a Nigerian travel writer living in America. Alone in the midst of the pandemic, she recalls her past lovers and grapples with her choices and regrets. Zikora, her best friend, is a lawyer who has been successful at everything until — betrayed and brokenhearted — she must turn to the person she thought she needed least. Omelogor, Chiamaka’s bold, outspoken cousin, is a financial powerhouse in Nigeria who begins to question how well she knows herself. And Kadiatou, Chiamaka’s housekeeper, is proudly raising her daughter in America – but faces an unthinkable hardship that threatens all she has worked to achieve.

In Dream Count, Adichie trains her fierce eye on these women in a sparkling, transcendent novel that takes up the very nature of love itself. Is true happiness ever attainable or is it just a fleeting state? And how honest must we be with ourselves in order to love, and to be loved? A trenchant reflection on the choices we make and those made for us, on daughters and mothers, on our interconnected world, Dream Count pulses with emotional urgency and poignant, unflinching observations on the human heart, in language that soars with beauty and power. It confirms Adichie’s status as one of the most exciting and dynamic writers on the literary landscape.]]> Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie 0008685762 Panda 1 historical-fiction Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the author,
Sandra Okuboyejo
A'rese Emokpae
Janina Edwards

The narration and audio of the first three hours is excellent, without flaw or issues.

I am 3 hours into this novel and feel like I have been reading for 3 days.

This is slow and painful and depressing.

I can see how some would love or enjoy this novel, for me I am not in the mood for depressing and I feel like since I lived through the pandemic myself and it wasn't that long ago, I am not ready to relive it. Years from now when those who were too young to understand what was going on or were not yet born, tales like this are going to be historical and bring forth questions and understanding in a first person point of view.

Moving on.]]> 3.66 2025 Dream Count
author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
name: Panda
average rating: 3.66
book published: 2025
rating: 1
read at: 2025/06/06
date added: 2025/06/06
shelves: historical-fiction
review:
Audiobook (19 hours) narrated by:
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the author,
Sandra Okuboyejo
A'rese Emokpae
Janina Edwards

The narration and audio of the first three hours is excellent, without flaw or issues.

I am 3 hours into this novel and feel like I have been reading for 3 days.

This is slow and painful and depressing.

I can see how some would love or enjoy this novel, for me I am not in the mood for depressing and I feel like since I lived through the pandemic myself and it wasn't that long ago, I am not ready to relive it. Years from now when those who were too young to understand what was going on or were not yet born, tales like this are going to be historical and bring forth questions and understanding in a first person point of view.

Moving on.
]]> <![CDATA[Uncommon Measure: A Journey Through Music, Performance, and the 카지노싸이트 of Time]]> 223117386 NEW YORK TIMES EDITORS’ CHOICE

A virtuosic debut from a gifted violinist searching for a new mode of artistic becoming

How does time shape consciousness and consciousness, time? Do we live in time, or does time live in us? And how does music, with its patterns of rhythm and harmony, inform our experience of time?

Uncommon Measure explores these questions from the perspective of a young Korean American who dedicated herself to perfecting her art until performance anxiety forced her to give up the dream of becoming a concert solo violinist. Anchoring her story in illuminating research in neuroscience and quantum physics, Hodges traces her own passage through difficult family dynamics, prejudice, and enormous personal expectations to come to terms with the meaning of a life reimagined—one still shaped by classical music but moving toward the freedom of improvisation.]]> 5 Natalie Hodges Panda 5 This is currently Libby's book club read, where they have unlimited copies across the platform from May 15 - May 29 2025.
If you pick up your book by May 29th, you will have the full regular time to read it, usually 2 weeks.
There is also a Zoom event on May 30th at 12PM eastern US and Canada, Q&A with the author that you can sign up through Libby's Big Library Read program through the Libby app.
Join us live for a special Big Library Read event featuring Natalie Hodges, author of Uncommon Measure: A Journey Through Music, Performance, and the 카지노싸이트 of Time. In this exclusive Q&A, Natalie will be interviewed by Leah Miller, Director of Book Publishing at AARP, for a conversation that explores the profound connections between music, neuroscience, and the nature of time.

Together, they’ll delve into Natalie’s personal and intellectual journey—from the world of classical violin performance to the frontiers of brain science and human perception. Whether you’re a musician, science enthusiast, or simply curious about how time shapes our inner and outer worlds, this is a conversation you won’t want to miss.

Uncommon Measure is available from May 15-29 as part of the global Big Library Read, free through your library’s Libby collection:


This is only a 5 hour/214 page read, so if you are interested, don't miss out!

Audiobook (5 hours) narrated by Cindy Kay
Publisher: Dreamscape Media

The narration and audio are great.
There is no music, nor any scoring. I note this specifically as although this is a novella about music, music is not played in the audiobook at all.

This is a great exploration of musical thought, especially for those who enjoy musical improv.

The author speaks a lot about the difference in the brain between playing a memorized and practiced piece to playing something improvised, or off the cuff.

She also speaks of how playing in a group the emotional connections and how people play to each other, matching beats and emotional play styles, lifting other playing up, and how the sum of playing in a group is larger than that of it's parts.

Theorizing, emotions, and thoughtfulness come up again and again. This is not an organized novella about musical composition but more of a deep theorizing or philosophies about the emotions about and behind music as well as the emotions of music itself.

For some this is going to be a 5 star read, all day, for others it's going to be a huge miss and boring af.

I loved it!]]> 3.33 2022 Uncommon Measure: A Journey Through Music, Performance, and the 카지노싸이트 of Time
author: Natalie Hodges
name: Panda
average rating: 3.33
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2025/06/04
date added: 2025/06/04
shelves: big-library-read, music, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
This is currently Libby's book club read, where they have unlimited copies across the platform from May 15 - May 29 2025.
If you pick up your book by May 29th, you will have the full regular time to read it, usually 2 weeks.
There is also a Zoom event on May 30th at 12PM eastern US and Canada, Q&A with the author that you can sign up through Libby's Big Library Read program through the Libby app.
Join us live for a special Big Library Read event featuring Natalie Hodges, author of Uncommon Measure: A Journey Through Music, Performance, and the 카지노싸이트 of Time. In this exclusive Q&A, Natalie will be interviewed by Leah Miller, Director of Book Publishing at AARP, for a conversation that explores the profound connections between music, neuroscience, and the nature of time.

Together, they’ll delve into Natalie’s personal and intellectual journey—from the world of classical violin performance to the frontiers of brain science and human perception. Whether you’re a musician, science enthusiast, or simply curious about how time shapes our inner and outer worlds, this is a conversation you won’t want to miss.

Uncommon Measure is available from May 15-29 as part of the global Big Library Read, free through your library’s Libby collection:


This is only a 5 hour/214 page read, so if you are interested, don't miss out!

Audiobook (5 hours) narrated by Cindy Kay
Publisher: Dreamscape Media

The narration and audio are great.
There is no music, nor any scoring. I note this specifically as although this is a novella about music, music is not played in the audiobook at all.

This is a great exploration of musical thought, especially for those who enjoy musical improv.

The author speaks a lot about the difference in the brain between playing a memorized and practiced piece to playing something improvised, or off the cuff.

She also speaks of how playing in a group the emotional connections and how people play to each other, matching beats and emotional play styles, lifting other playing up, and how the sum of playing in a group is larger than that of it's parts.

Theorizing, emotions, and thoughtfulness come up again and again. This is not an organized novella about musical composition but more of a deep theorizing or philosophies about the emotions about and behind music as well as the emotions of music itself.

For some this is going to be a 5 star read, all day, for others it's going to be a huge miss and boring af.

I loved it!
]]> <![CDATA[Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation]]> 28818221 I lost an arm on my last trip home.

Home is a new house with a loving husband in 1970s California that suddenly transformed in to the frightening world of the antebellum South.

Dana, a young black writer, can't explain how she is transported across time and space to a plantation in Maryland. But she does quickly understand why: to deal with the troubles of Rufus, a conflicted white slaveholder--and her progenitor.

Her survival, her very existence, depends on it.

This searing graphic-novel adaptation of Octavia E. Butler's science fiction classic is a powerfully moving, unflinching look at the violent disturbing effects of slavery on the people it chained together, both black and white--and made kindred in the deepest sense of the word.]]> 256 Damian Duffy 141970947X Panda 0 to-read 4.19 2017 Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation
author: Damian Duffy
name: Panda
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/06/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The River Has Roots 228393112 Follow the river Liss to the small town of Thistleford, on the edge of Faerie, and meet two sisters who cannot be separated, even in death.

“Oh what is stronger than a death? Two sisters singing with one breath.”

In the small town of Thistleford, on the edge of Faerie, dwells the mysterious Hawthorn family.

There, they tend and harvest the enchanted willows and honour an ancient compact to sing to them in thanks for their magic. None more devotedly than the family’s latest daughters, Esther and Ysabel, who cherish each other as much as they cherish the ancient trees.

But when Esther rejects a forceful suitor in favor of a lover from the land of Faerie, not only the sisters’ bond but also their lives will be at risk…]]> 4 Amal El-Mohtar 1250353351 Panda 1 Gem Carmella
Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Gem Carmella performs an absolutely beautiful narration, including singing.

While I absolutely loved the narration and the overall descriptive words used in the novella were flowery and beautiful, the story just was not for me.]]> 4.19 2025 The River Has Roots
author: Amal El-Mohtar
name: Panda
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2025
rating: 1
read at: 2025/06/03
date added: 2025/06/03
shelves: fantasy, debut, narration-is-awesome
review:
Audiobook (4 hours) narrated by Gem Carmella
Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Gem Carmella performs an absolutely beautiful narration, including singing.

While I absolutely loved the narration and the overall descriptive words used in the novella were flowery and beautiful, the story just was not for me.
]]> The Emperor of Gladness 229252882 Ocean Vuong returns with an achingly beautiful novel about chosen family, unexpected friendship, and the stories we tell ourselves in order to survive.

One late summer evening in the post-industrial town of East Gladness, Connecticut, nineteen-year-old Hai stands on the edge of a bridge in pelting rain, ready to jump, when he hears someone shout across the river. The voice belongs to Grazina, an elderly widow succumbing to dementia, who convinces him to take another path. Bereft and out of options, he quickly becomes her caretaker. Over the course of the year, the unlikely pair develops a life-altering bond, one built on empathy, spiritual reckoning, and heartbreak, with the power to alter Hai’s relationship to himself, his family, and a community at the brink.

Following the cycles of history, memory, and time, The Emperor of Gladness shows the profound ways in which love, labor, and loneliness form the bedrock of American life. At its heart is a brave epic about what it means to exist on the fringes of society and to reckon with the wounds that haunt our collective soul. Hallmarks of Vuong’s writing – formal innovation, syntactic dexterity, and the ability to twin grit with grace through tenderness – are on full display in this story of loss, hope, and how far we would go to possess one of life’s most fleeting mercies: a second chance.]]> Ocean Vuong 1529945887 Panda 5 James Aaron Oh
Publisher: Books on Tape

James Aaron Oh, wow! What a narration!
The audio was flawless

This book.

This is my first experience with Ocean Vuong. I will read more.

Absolutely beautiful.

The intricate, realistic, messy, beautiful and horrific relationships. Wow.

This entire book is people. People being at their best and their worst, helping and hurting, being selfish or selfless... The quiet moments that are not generally visible as well as those that are. Everything. All written as if you were able to be an invisible person floating around and quietly observing life.

Loved it so much!]]> 3.92 2025 The Emperor of Gladness
author: Ocean Vuong
name: Panda
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/06/03
date added: 2025/06/03
shelves: literary-fiction, narration-is-awesome, audio-is-good, relationships
review:
Audiobook (14 hours) narrated by James Aaron Oh
Publisher: Books on Tape

James Aaron Oh, wow! What a narration!
The audio was flawless

This book.

This is my first experience with Ocean Vuong. I will read more.

Absolutely beautiful.

The intricate, realistic, messy, beautiful and horrific relationships. Wow.

This entire book is people. People being at their best and their worst, helping and hurting, being selfish or selfless... The quiet moments that are not generally visible as well as those that are. Everything. All written as if you were able to be an invisible person floating around and quietly observing life.

Loved it so much!
]]> And Then There Were None 16159005 7 Agatha Christie 0062265873 Panda 5 Publisher: HaperCollins (HarperAudio)

Excellent narration and audio

Re-read, first time audio. Even knowing the ending, this was a great read.

Loved it. One of my favorite Christie novels.]]> 4.01 1939 And Then There Were None
author: Agatha Christie
name: Panda
average rating: 4.01
book published: 1939
rating: 5
read at: 2025/06/01
date added: 2025/06/03
shelves: best-audiobooks-list, book-club, audio-is-good, narration-is-good
review:
Audiobook (6 hours) narrated by Dan Stevens
Publisher: HaperCollins (HarperAudio)

Excellent narration and audio

Re-read, first time audio. Even knowing the ending, this was a great read.

Loved it. One of my favorite Christie novels.
]]> <![CDATA[Parable of the Talents: A Graphic Novel Adaptation]]> 217545467 This powerful graphic novel adaptation of Octavia E. Butler’s groundbreaking dystopian novel stands beside the acclaimed previous graphic novel adaptations, Kindred, a #1 New York Times bestseller, and Parable of the Sower, winner of the Hugo Award

Set against a background of a war-torn continent under the control of a Christian fundamentalist fascist state, Parable of the Talents is a modern masterpiece that resonates powerfully.

This graphic novel adaptation is brought to life thrillingly by Damian Duffy and John Jennings, the creative team behind the #1 New York Times bestselling adaptation of Kindred.

Parable of the Talents is told in the voice of Lauren Olamina’s daughter, Asha Vere—from whom she has been separated for most of the girl’s life—interspersed with sections in the form of Lauren’s own journals.

Asha searches for answers about her past while struggling to reconcile with her mother’s legacy—caught between her duty to her chosen family and her calling to lead humankind into a better future among the stars.

Octavia E. Butler's bestselling literary science-fiction masterpieces are essential works in feminist, Afrofuturist, and fantasy genres, and this compelling graphic novel adaptation of Parable of the Talents is a major event.]]> Octavia E. Butler Panda 2 Original novel author: Octavia E. Butler
Adaptation author: Damian Duffy
Illustrators: John Jennings, and David Brame

This is an adaptation of Parable of the Talents, the second book of the Earthseed duology.

The illustrations are fantastic.

As a graphic novel, the adaptation contains the ideas put forth in the original novel, however, Butler has a unique voice that doesn't come through in the graphic novel.

While I feel that it is an excellent idea, and I like that more people will see her work, I do hope that the graphic novels bring a curiosity to Butler's original works.

The thing about digging into a novel written by her is that she has a way of creating these beautifully intricate worlds with complex beings, who then proceed to almost scientifically test the parameters of the world and their lives. The push/pull dynamic is something that I love every time I pick up a book by her, be it the first time or a re-read, although I think I have read everything by her at least once at this point... but there is so much there that I feel like I have an observational viewpoint into this wondrous creation, that I just didn't feel in the graphic novel.

I may try another one that has a different type of story, as I see that Damian Duffy has done several of these. Perhaps Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation, which I think might translate better due to the content of the novel itself, and see what that looks like.

If graphic novels are your thing, definitely check it out, but also consider checking out the source material and see what you think.]]> 4.35 Parable of the Talents: A Graphic Novel Adaptation
author: Octavia E. Butler
name: Panda
average rating: 4.35
book published:
rating: 2
read at: 2025/06/03
date added: 2025/06/03
shelves: graphic-novels, science-fiction
review:
Graphic Novel 304 pages
Original novel author: Octavia E. Butler
Adaptation author: Damian Duffy
Illustrators: John Jennings, and David Brame

This is an adaptation of Parable of the Talents, the second book of the Earthseed duology.

The illustrations are fantastic.

As a graphic novel, the adaptation contains the ideas put forth in the original novel, however, Butler has a unique voice that doesn't come through in the graphic novel.

While I feel that it is an excellent idea, and I like that more people will see her work, I do hope that the graphic novels bring a curiosity to Butler's original works.

The thing about digging into a novel written by her is that she has a way of creating these beautifully intricate worlds with complex beings, who then proceed to almost scientifically test the parameters of the world and their lives. The push/pull dynamic is something that I love every time I pick up a book by her, be it the first time or a re-read, although I think I have read everything by her at least once at this point... but there is so much there that I feel like I have an observational viewpoint into this wondrous creation, that I just didn't feel in the graphic novel.

I may try another one that has a different type of story, as I see that Damian Duffy has done several of these. Perhaps Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation, which I think might translate better due to the content of the novel itself, and see what that looks like.

If graphic novels are your thing, definitely check it out, but also consider checking out the source material and see what you think.
]]> Never Flinch 221644656 From master storyteller Stephen King comes an extraordinary new novel with intertwining storylines—one about a killer on a diabolical revenge mission, and another about a vigilante targeting a feminist celebrity speaker—featuring the beloved Holly Gibney and a dynamic new cast of characters.

When the Buckeye City Police Department receives a disturbing letter from a person threatening to “kill thirteen innocents and one guilty” in “an act of atonement for the needless death of an innocent man,” Detective Izzy Jaynes has no idea what to think. Are fourteen citizens about to be slaughtered in an unhinged act of retribution? As the investigation unfolds, Izzy realizes that the letter writer is deadly serious, and she turns to her friend Holly Gibney for help.

Meanwhile, controversial and outspoken women’s rights activist Kate McKay is embarking on a multi-state lecture tour, drawing packed venues of both fans and detractors. Someone who vehemently opposes Kate’s message of female empowerment is targeting her and disrupting her events. At first, no one is hurt, but the stalker is growing bolder, and Holly is hired to be Kate’s bodyguard—a challenging task with a headstrong employer and a determined adversary driven by wrath and his belief in his own righteousness.

Featuring a riveting cast of characters both old and new, including world-famous gospel singer Sista Bessie and an unforgettable villain addicted to murder, these twinned narratives converge in a chilling and spectacular conclusion—a feat of storytelling only Stephen King could pull off.

Thrilling, wildly fun, and outrageously engrossing, Never Flinch is one of King’s richest and most propulsive novels.]]> Stephen King 1668131641 Panda 4 Audiobook pre-ordered!

The whole angry downvoting to counteract the ARCs is fun to see. I would like to think it's bored kids on school vacation having fun with trollololing, tis the season and all, but I don't want to blame potential innocents for those who grew up in age with brain rot. Perhaps Krampus with put them on his list?

Audiobook (14 hours and 44 minutes) narrated by Jessie Mueller and the author.

Note, because I looked, Jessie Mueller () is not related to the beloved long time Stephen King narrator Frank Muller (). Their last names are similar enough that at first glance it may bring Frank to mind, as many constant readers do miss him.
Although it does not appear that Jessie Mueller has won any awards for her narrator prowess, as of yet, she has both been nominated and has won many awards for her acting abilities both on stage and on screen, as noted in her Wiki page linked above.
As a couple of people mentioned Will Patton in the comments, who is an awesome and beloved narrator (if you are not caught up in the series, this will be a spoiler which is why I am tagging it, but it is NOT a spoiler for this novel, just for the previous ones in the series) [spoilers removed] I feel that Jessie Mueller does a fantastic job of embracing the identity of Holly. I would encourage anyone who is considering the audiobook to visit Libby or Audible or your favorite audiobook online vendor and listen to a sample so that you can hear a snippet of Jessie Mueller's narration. Unfortunately most take the first few minutes of the book and I am unsure if you will hear any conversation, but I feel like she was pretty consistent throughout and you should get a decent feeling of what to expect from the sampling.
The audio for Jessie Mueller's narration was flawless.
There is an authors note at the end, delivered by Stephen King himself, that has some audio issues.
There is a bit of noise as well as fluctuations in the volume. I could fully understand his narration as it was audible. While the volume is not consistent it doesn't dip too low or high to create issues with either being too soft or overly loud for someone with hearing issues. It is a bit messy and for someone with certain audio sensitivities, there could be an issue. The passage is relatively short and you may be able to run it through an app for a transcript. I do wish they would have cleaned it up before publishing.

This novel is a 3.5 stars for me.

King mentions in his afterword that he wrote this novel while dealing with a significant physical ailment. His right leg gave out and he had hip replacement surgery in 2023. This was a direct result of the accident in June 19, 1999 when he was hit by a van by Brian Smith that nearly removed him from life.

If I had to guess, the resulting recovery was not pleasant.

The story itself is solid, and enjoyable.

The characters, while not 2 dimensional, are lacking the little details that bring them from a great 3 dimensional character writer to the living breathing realistic people that live in the worlds created by Stephen King.

We know who Holly Gibney is. We know her little idiosyncrasies, both physically and vocally, and in this iteration of her she is a bit less Holly than we have previously seen/read. She isn't horrible. She is definitely Holly, just a less vibrant Holly.

Frankly it amazes me that King was able to write such a complex story while in recovery from a painful surgery. He is such a constant writer that I suspect that many will enjoy the story without much thought or that some constant readers may think that it is missing a little something but not be able to put their finger on quite what seems to be missing. It's very close. Just a bit off.

For those of us who love King and/or Holly, this is a great read and definitely worth the 15 hours.

Happy reading!]]> 3.75 2025 Never Flinch
author: Stephen King
name: Panda
average rating: 3.75
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/05/31
date added: 2025/06/02
shelves: stephen-king, mystery, thriller, crime, horror, audio-is-good, audio-is-poor-quality, narration-is-good
review:
Audiobook pre-ordered!

The whole angry downvoting to counteract the ARCs is fun to see. I would like to think it's bored kids on school vacation having fun with trollololing, tis the season and all, but I don't want to blame potential innocents for those who grew up in age with brain rot. Perhaps Krampus with put them on his list?

Audiobook (14 hours and 44 minutes) narrated by Jessie Mueller and the author.

Note, because I looked, Jessie Mueller () is not related to the beloved long time Stephen King narrator Frank Muller (). Their last names are similar enough that at first glance it may bring Frank to mind, as many constant readers do miss him.
Although it does not appear that Jessie Mueller has won any awards for her narrator prowess, as of yet, she has both been nominated and has won many awards for her acting abilities both on stage and on screen, as noted in her Wiki page linked above.
As a couple of people mentioned Will Patton in the comments, who is an awesome and beloved narrator (if you are not caught up in the series, this will be a spoiler which is why I am tagging it, but it is NOT a spoiler for this novel, just for the previous ones in the series) [spoilers removed] I feel that Jessie Mueller does a fantastic job of embracing the identity of Holly. I would encourage anyone who is considering the audiobook to visit Libby or Audible or your favorite audiobook online vendor and listen to a sample so that you can hear a snippet of Jessie Mueller's narration. Unfortunately most take the first few minutes of the book and I am unsure if you will hear any conversation, but I feel like she was pretty consistent throughout and you should get a decent feeling of what to expect from the sampling.
The audio for Jessie Mueller's narration was flawless.
There is an authors note at the end, delivered by Stephen King himself, that has some audio issues.
There is a bit of noise as well as fluctuations in the volume. I could fully understand his narration as it was audible. While the volume is not consistent it doesn't dip too low or high to create issues with either being too soft or overly loud for someone with hearing issues. It is a bit messy and for someone with certain audio sensitivities, there could be an issue. The passage is relatively short and you may be able to run it through an app for a transcript. I do wish they would have cleaned it up before publishing.

This novel is a 3.5 stars for me.

King mentions in his afterword that he wrote this novel while dealing with a significant physical ailment. His right leg gave out and he had hip replacement surgery in 2023. This was a direct result of the accident in June 19, 1999 when he was hit by a van by Brian Smith that nearly removed him from life.

If I had to guess, the resulting recovery was not pleasant.

The story itself is solid, and enjoyable.

The characters, while not 2 dimensional, are lacking the little details that bring them from a great 3 dimensional character writer to the living breathing realistic people that live in the worlds created by Stephen King.

We know who Holly Gibney is. We know her little idiosyncrasies, both physically and vocally, and in this iteration of her she is a bit less Holly than we have previously seen/read. She isn't horrible. She is definitely Holly, just a less vibrant Holly.

Frankly it amazes me that King was able to write such a complex story while in recovery from a painful surgery. He is such a constant writer that I suspect that many will enjoy the story without much thought or that some constant readers may think that it is missing a little something but not be able to put their finger on quite what seems to be missing. It's very close. Just a bit off.

For those of us who love King and/or Holly, this is a great read and definitely worth the 15 hours.

Happy reading!
]]> The Dream Hotel 60499589
From Laila Lalami—the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award finalist and a “maestra of literary fiction” (NPR)—comes a riveting and utterly original novel about one woman’s fight for freedom, set in a near future where even dreams are under surveillance.

Sara has just landed at LAX, returning home from a conference abroad, when agents from the Risk Assessment Administration pull her aside and inform her that she will soon commit a crime. Using data from her dreams, the RAA’s algorithm has determined that she is at imminent risk of harming the person she loves most: her husband. For his safety, she must be kept under observation for twenty-one days.

The agents transfer Sara to a retention center, where she is held with other dreamers, all of them women trying to prove their innocence from different crimes. With every deviation from the strict and ever-shifting rules of the facility, their stay is extended. Months pass and Sara seems no closer to release. Then one day, a new resident arrives, disrupting the order of the facility and leading Sara on a collision course with the very companies that have deprived her of her freedom.

Eerie, urgent, and ceaselessly clear-eyed, The Dream Hotel artfully explores the seductive nature of technology, which puts us in shackles even as it makes our lives easier. Lalami asks how much of ourselves must remain private if we are to remain free, and whether even the most invasive forms of surveillance can ever capture who we really are.]]> 11 Laila Lalami Panda 5 Frankie Corzo, and Barton Caplan
Publisher: Books on Tape

This book won an earphones award for the narration. The blurb about the award is quoted below:
This dystopian novel, set in an uncomfortably near future, features an innocent woman who is incarcerated for her dreams. Exceptionally well narrated by Frankie Corzo, with brief bursts of affectless officialese delivered by Barton Caplan, the story works remarkably well as an audiobook. Much of the narrative is the protagonist Sara's thoughts, feelings, and reactions. Corzo perfectly nails the angsty and bewildered tone of Sara's voice and does a fine job with the other characters in this engaging work--reminiscent of Kafka and Orwell had they lived in the Internet Age. Sara and her cohorts' mysterious plight seem frighteningly possible. This eloquently written audiobook lingers with the listener. A.D.M. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2025, Portland, Maine [Published: APRIL 2025]

I would agree with this assessment. There are a lot of emotions going on and both narrators are adept at conveying those feelings with their voice while conversing as their characters, which there is also a lot of conversations. There are also a good deal of group conversations, which are also handled well. It is easy to follow the conversations and who is who as the character voices are consistent.
Although it probably doesn't have to be said, I will note that these two work well together. I am unsure if they narrated together in the same room or if the pieces were edited together. In either case, the chemistry and audio are both flawless.
Congrats to them winning a narration award for The Dream Hotel!

The Dream Hotel is also a Pulitzer prize finalist! Laila Lalami captured fear, terror, personalities, relationships, social status and social norms or how people act and react to what is going on in the world around them. What I am trying to say is that Laila nailed how people act and react, the fluidity of how people tend to move together, the protection responses, fear responses and so much more. This is some special character creation, character development and character growth.

The world is terrifyingly close to today. Laila managed to take what is going on in our world and bend it a little here, half a twist over there, maybe add some shading and nuance drawing it all together into something that is haunting. A lot of readers are going to ponder over this one for a while, it may seep into our dreams... give us pause at the airport or at the Starbucks counter.

This isn't some dystopian novel cast 100 years in the future. This is something that could happen tomorrow, maybe even today... it might be happening right now.

The novel itself only takes a few pages to get going, or to get acclimated as to where you are and what is going on. This isn't a fast pace, fun type of entertainment. The world is set fairly close to a real time scenario at some points, drawing the reader up close and personal to the characters in crisis. There is no where to hide. It made me think about what I would think if this happened to someone I was close too as well as what would I do and what would the reactions be if it were to be me.

Overall this book made me angry and gave me the feeling of helplessness. It also made me wonder how many people would take notice or would the world just move on unless they were directly negatively effected, which pissed me off some more.

Great read.]]> 3.68 2025 The Dream Hotel
author: Laila Lalami
name: Panda
average rating: 3.68
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/05/28
date added: 2025/05/29
shelves: literary-fiction, dystopia, audio-is-good, narrator-is-award-winning, best-audiobooks-list
review:
Audiobook (12 hours) narrated by Frankie Corzo, and Barton Caplan
Publisher: Books on Tape

This book won an earphones award for the narration. The blurb about the award is quoted below:
This dystopian novel, set in an uncomfortably near future, features an innocent woman who is incarcerated for her dreams. Exceptionally well narrated by Frankie Corzo, with brief bursts of affectless officialese delivered by Barton Caplan, the story works remarkably well as an audiobook. Much of the narrative is the protagonist Sara's thoughts, feelings, and reactions. Corzo perfectly nails the angsty and bewildered tone of Sara's voice and does a fine job with the other characters in this engaging work--reminiscent of Kafka and Orwell had they lived in the Internet Age. Sara and her cohorts' mysterious plight seem frighteningly possible. This eloquently written audiobook lingers with the listener. A.D.M. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2025, Portland, Maine [Published: APRIL 2025]

I would agree with this assessment. There are a lot of emotions going on and both narrators are adept at conveying those feelings with their voice while conversing as their characters, which there is also a lot of conversations. There are also a good deal of group conversations, which are also handled well. It is easy to follow the conversations and who is who as the character voices are consistent.
Although it probably doesn't have to be said, I will note that these two work well together. I am unsure if they narrated together in the same room or if the pieces were edited together. In either case, the chemistry and audio are both flawless.
Congrats to them winning a narration award for The Dream Hotel!

The Dream Hotel is also a Pulitzer prize finalist! Laila Lalami captured fear, terror, personalities, relationships, social status and social norms or how people act and react to what is going on in the world around them. What I am trying to say is that Laila nailed how people act and react, the fluidity of how people tend to move together, the protection responses, fear responses and so much more. This is some special character creation, character development and character growth.

The world is terrifyingly close to today. Laila managed to take what is going on in our world and bend it a little here, half a twist over there, maybe add some shading and nuance drawing it all together into something that is haunting. A lot of readers are going to ponder over this one for a while, it may seep into our dreams... give us pause at the airport or at the Starbucks counter.

This isn't some dystopian novel cast 100 years in the future. This is something that could happen tomorrow, maybe even today... it might be happening right now.

The novel itself only takes a few pages to get going, or to get acclimated as to where you are and what is going on. This isn't a fast pace, fun type of entertainment. The world is set fairly close to a real time scenario at some points, drawing the reader up close and personal to the characters in crisis. There is no where to hide. It made me think about what I would think if this happened to someone I was close too as well as what would I do and what would the reactions be if it were to be me.

Overall this book made me angry and gave me the feeling of helplessness. It also made me wonder how many people would take notice or would the world just move on unless they were directly negatively effected, which pissed me off some more.

Great read.
]]> <![CDATA[The Knight and the Moth (The Stonewater Kingdom, #1)]]> 218126170
But just as she and her sister Diviners near the end of their service, a mysterious knight arrives at the cathedral, and Sybil dreams of a moth—the death Omen. Then, one by one, the Diviners begin to vanish.

To find them, Sybil enlists the knight’s help. But the world outside the cathedral’s cloister is wrought with peril. The seven Omens are not merely figures that visit her wakeless mind—they are real. Ancient, sorcerous, and cunning, Sybil must face each of them to recover the lost Diviners. And the knight, with whom she has become inextricably entangled, may be one of them.]]> 400 Rachel Gillig 0316582700 Panda 0 to-read 4.44 2025 The Knight and the Moth (The Stonewater Kingdom, #1)
author: Rachel Gillig
name: Panda
average rating: 4.44
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/27
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Ghost Eaters 62633084
Erin hasn’t been able to set a single boundary with her charismatic but reckless college ex-boyfriend, Silas. When he asks her to bail him out of rehab—again—she knows she needs to cut him off. But days after he gets out, Silas turns up dead of an overdose in their hometown of Richmond, Virginia, and Erin’s world falls apart.
 
Then a friend tells her about Ghost, a new drug that allows users to see the dead. Wanna get haunted? he asks. Grieving and desperate for closure with Silas, Erin agrees to a pill-popping “séance.” But the drug has unfathomable side effects—and once you take it, you can never go back.]]> 0 Clay McLeod Chapman Panda 0 to-read 3.41 2022 Ghost Eaters
author: Clay McLeod Chapman
name: Panda
average rating: 3.41
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/26
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Emily Wilde's Compendium of Lost Tales (Emily Wilde, #3)]]> 223990305 The third installment in the heartwarming and enchanting Emily Wilde series, about a curmudgeonly scholar of folklore and the fae prince she loves.

Emily Wilde has spent her life studying faeries. A renowned dryadologist, she has documented hundreds of species of Folk in her Encyclopaedia of Faeries. Now she is about to embark on her most dangerous academic project studying the inner workings of a faerie realm—as its queen.

Along with her former academic rival—now fiancé—the dashing and mercurial Wendell Bambleby, Emily is immediately thrust into the deadly intrigues of Faerie as the two of them seize the throne of Wendell’s long-lost kingdom, which Emily finds a beautiful nightmare filled with scholarly treasures.

Emily has been obsessed with faerie stories her entire life, but at first she feels as ill-suited to Faerie as she did to the mortal How can an unassuming scholar such as herself pass for a queen? Yet there is little time to settle in, for Wendell’s murderous stepmother has placed a deadly curse upon the land before vanishing without a trace. It will take all of Wendell’s magic—and Emily’s knowledge of stories—to unravel the mystery before they lose everything they hold dear.]]> 12 Heather Fawcett Panda 3 Ell Potter, and Michael Dodds.

Ell Potter and Michael Dodds continue on narrating the third in the Emily Wilde series. As in the second book, their familiar voices brought me right back into the world, immediately. Their narration style is complementary to one another, and they certainly add to the novel.
Ell Potter has won multiple AudioFile Earphones Awards.
The audio is high quality.

I began reading this series in late 2023 as part of a book club read. I found the book enjoyable enough that I have continued on, with the second in the series being my favorite of the three.

Heather Fawcett has created a magical and charming world, actually a few different worlds and times, for her entertaining characters to thrive in.

The finale of the series had a bit of a slow start and wasn't as fun for me as the second, but still was quite enjoyable and wrapped up nicely.]]> 4.04 2025 Emily Wilde's Compendium of Lost Tales (Emily Wilde, #3)
author: Heather Fawcett
name: Panda
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/05/27
date added: 2025/05/26
shelves: fantasy, audio-is-good, narrator-is-award-winning
review:
Audiobook (12 hours) narrated by Ell Potter, and Michael Dodds.

Ell Potter and Michael Dodds continue on narrating the third in the Emily Wilde series. As in the second book, their familiar voices brought me right back into the world, immediately. Their narration style is complementary to one another, and they certainly add to the novel.
Ell Potter has won multiple AudioFile Earphones Awards.
The audio is high quality.

I began reading this series in late 2023 as part of a book club read. I found the book enjoyable enough that I have continued on, with the second in the series being my favorite of the three.

Heather Fawcett has created a magical and charming world, actually a few different worlds and times, for her entertaining characters to thrive in.

The finale of the series had a bit of a slow start and wasn't as fun for me as the second, but still was quite enjoyable and wrapped up nicely.
]]> Don't Sleep with the Dead 231178763 Don't Sleep with the Dead, a standalone companion novella to The Chosen and the Beautiful, her acclaimed reimagining of The Great Gatsby.

Nick Carraway―paper soldier and novelist―has found a life and a living watching the mad magical spectacle of New York high society in the late thirties. He's good at watching, and he's even better at pretending: pretending to be straight, pretending to be human, pretending he's forgotten the events of that summer in 1922.

On the eve of the second World War, however, Nick learns that someone's been watching him pretend and that memory goes both ways. When he sees a familiar face at a club one night, it quickly becomes clear that dead or not, damned or not, Jay Gatsby isn't done with him.

In all paper there is memory, and Nick's ghost has come home.]]> 3 Nghi Vo 1250386926 Panda 2 Greg D. Barnett
Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Greg D. Barnett is a skill narrator, actor, and storyteller:

The audio is flawless.

Don't Sleep with the Dead is an interesting novella.

There isn't a lot of character building, but it is more of an encounter than a broad spectrum story.

The issue for me is that one of the characters in the encounter is annoying as ]]> 3.44 2025 Don't Sleep with the Dead
author: Nghi Vo
name: Panda
average rating: 3.44
book published: 2025
rating: 2
read at: 2025/05/26
date added: 2025/05/26
shelves: fantasy, audio-is-good, narration-is-good
review:
Audiobook (3 hours) narrated by Greg D. Barnett
Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Greg D. Barnett is a skill narrator, actor, and storyteller:

The audio is flawless.

Don't Sleep with the Dead is an interesting novella.

There isn't a lot of character building, but it is more of an encounter than a broad spectrum story.

The issue for me is that one of the characters in the encounter is annoying as
]]> Watch Me 228419625 OVER 8 MILLION COPIES SOLD. THE GLOBALLY BESTSELLING SERIES AND TIKTOK SENSATION IS BACK!

"Addictive, intense, and oozing with romance” Lauren Kate, Fallen

"Dangerous, sexy, romantic, intense! Kami Garcia, Beautiful Creatures

“My favourite series of all time” 카지노싸이트 review

“Perfection” TikTok review

James Anderson had a plan. Or half of one. He managed to do what his older brother, the famous Aaron Warner Anderson, never infiltrate Ark Island, the last refuge of The Reestablishment. No outsider has breached the stronghold of the authoritarian regime, but James is in. In a prison cell, sure, but as far as James is concerned, a win is a win.

It’s been ten years since the notorious duo Juliette Ferrars and Aaron Warner Anderson led a worldwide rebellion and established the New Republic of the West. But The Reestablishment is ready to make a devastating move, and they have the perfect assassin for the job.

Rosabelle Wolff had a plan. She always has a plan. On Ark Island, where constant surveillance is packaged as security, even emotions must be experienced with caution. Her every movement is monitored—and when she’s given an order to kill, she never hesitates.

Brimming with pulse-pounding action and torturous romance, Watch Me is an explosive journey through a dystopian landscape where enemies-to-lovers has never felt more impossible. Step into a beloved and breathtaking world that demands an answer to a desperate question—

Who are we when no one is watching?

*Watch Me was a Sunday Times and New York Times bestseller w/c 2025-04-21.]]> Tahereh Mafi Panda 3 Amanda Forstrom, and Gabriel Michael.
Publisher: Storytide

Both Amanda Forstron and Gabriel Michael are award winning narrators. Their narrations are fantastic, they have great chemistry and the audio is flawless.
Gabriel doesn't have a good link currently on goodreads, as it points to an author of the same name. I do have a link to his personal page:
Let me just link to Amanda's page as well:

This is my first Tahereh Mafi novel. I had no idea this was a 'TikTok sensation' nor did I know that this was a spinoff so I have no previous knowledge of these characters. It seems that a lot of the reviews have attachments to the characters, that I had to skim over in case I decide to read the other series, as they would have open spoilers.

Having no previous connections to what is going on, I enjoyed the writing. It got right down to business right away. I didn't feel like this was a sequel, felt that the characters were built well, that the world was also built well. I enjoyed the story and felt that I had enough foundation and was given enough info about the characters to form attachments enough to enjoy the story.

I enjoyed it so much, I do want to read the next book and now that I know that this is a spin off I am interested in what happened before. The characters, or at least the main character does speak and think about what happened prior to the opening of the story, so I do have some idea, and can easily see how it could be a whole other series.

This novel was fast paced. I wouldn't say that it was overly detailed or that the characters are on the level of authors like Stephen King, or Brandon Sanderson, but they certainly were not flat or 2 dimensional. I would give it a 3.5 stars, rounded down to a 3. Very entertaining as a single, and I am intrigued if the writing would hold out through an entire series. I think it might.

Edit: I actually did try and read Shatter Me, but the audio was so horrible that I just couldn't do it. There was a swipe or page turning noise that ruined it for me and I will not be trying to re-visit that series, which was the pre-quel that this one was spun off from. I am also not interested in the romantacy series that she has, so I will wait for the second of this series to come out and see what happens. It's pretty unfortunate but, it is what it is and I really don't feel like I am missing out.]]> 3.83 2025 Watch Me
author: Tahereh Mafi
name: Panda
average rating: 3.83
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/05/23
date added: 2025/05/24
shelves: dystopia, fantasy, narrator-is-award-winning
review:
Audiobook (8 hours) narrated by Amanda Forstrom, and Gabriel Michael.
Publisher: Storytide

Both Amanda Forstron and Gabriel Michael are award winning narrators. Their narrations are fantastic, they have great chemistry and the audio is flawless.
Gabriel doesn't have a good link currently on goodreads, as it points to an author of the same name. I do have a link to his personal page:
Let me just link to Amanda's page as well:

This is my first Tahereh Mafi novel. I had no idea this was a 'TikTok sensation' nor did I know that this was a spinoff so I have no previous knowledge of these characters. It seems that a lot of the reviews have attachments to the characters, that I had to skim over in case I decide to read the other series, as they would have open spoilers.

Having no previous connections to what is going on, I enjoyed the writing. It got right down to business right away. I didn't feel like this was a sequel, felt that the characters were built well, that the world was also built well. I enjoyed the story and felt that I had enough foundation and was given enough info about the characters to form attachments enough to enjoy the story.

I enjoyed it so much, I do want to read the next book and now that I know that this is a spin off I am interested in what happened before. The characters, or at least the main character does speak and think about what happened prior to the opening of the story, so I do have some idea, and can easily see how it could be a whole other series.

This novel was fast paced. I wouldn't say that it was overly detailed or that the characters are on the level of authors like Stephen King, or Brandon Sanderson, but they certainly were not flat or 2 dimensional. I would give it a 3.5 stars, rounded down to a 3. Very entertaining as a single, and I am intrigued if the writing would hold out through an entire series. I think it might.

Edit: I actually did try and read Shatter Me, but the audio was so horrible that I just couldn't do it. There was a swipe or page turning noise that ruined it for me and I will not be trying to re-visit that series, which was the pre-quel that this one was spun off from. I am also not interested in the romantacy series that she has, so I will wait for the second of this series to come out and see what happens. It's pretty unfortunate but, it is what it is and I really don't feel like I am missing out.
]]> Cloud Cuckoo Land 56783260
From the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of perhaps the most bestselling and beloved literary fiction of our time comes a triumph of imagination and compassion, a soaring novel about children on the cusp of adulthood in a broken world, who find resilience, hope, and story.

Set in Constantinople in the 15th century, in a small town in present-day Idaho, and on an interstellar ship decades from now, Anthony Doerr’s gorgeous third novel is a triumph of imagination and compassion, a soaring story about children on the cusp of adulthood in worlds in peril, who find resilience, hope - and a book. In Cloud Cuckoo Land, Doerr has created a magnificent tapestry of times and places that reflects our vast interconnectedness - with other species, with each other, with those who lived before us, and with those who will be here after we’re gone.

Thirteen-year-old Anna, an orphan, lives inside the formidable walls of Constantinople in a house of women who make their living embroidering the robes of priests. Restless, insatiably curious, Anna learns to read, and in this ancient city, famous for its libraries, she finds a book, the story of Aethon, who longs to be turned into a bird so that he can fly to a utopian paradise in the sky. This she reads to her ailing sister as the walls of the only place she has known are bombarded in the great siege of Constantinople. Outside the walls is Omeir, a village boy, miles from home, conscripted with his beloved oxen into the invading army. His path and Anna’s will cross.

Five hundred years later, in a library in Idaho, octogenarian Zeno, who learned Greek as a prisoner of war, rehearses five children in a play adaptation of Aethon’s story, preserved against all odds through centuries. Tucked among the library shelves is a bomb, planted by a troubled, idealistic teenager, Seymour. This is another siege. And in a not-so-distant future, on the interstellar ship Argos, Konstance is alone in a vault, copying on scraps of sacking the story of Aethon, told to her by her father. She has never set foot on our planet.

Like Marie-Laure and Werner in All the Light We Cannot See, Anna, Omeir, Seymour, Zeno, and Konstance are dreamers and outsiders who find resourcefulness and hope in the midst of gravest danger. Their lives are gloriously intertwined. Doerr’s dazzling imagination transports us to worlds so dramatic and immersive that we forget, for a time, our own. Dedicated to “the librarians then, now, and in the years to come”, Cloud Cuckoo Land]]> 15 Anthony Doerr 1797128531 Panda 2 Marin Ireland, and Simon Jones
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

I love Marin Ireland's narration style. She is fantastic.
Note that currently the audiobook points to the wrong Simon Jones. The narrator is the English actor, not the author: If you click on his resume you will see a long list of his acting credits on film, television, theater, and radio, as well as several narration awards!
The audio is flawless

Anthony Doerr writes beautiful descriptions of the world and the movement of the characters. The flow of the story is nicely detailed, however the conversation and actual story line is unexceptional and just did not do it for me.

Basically, I was moved by the positioning of a tea cup but bored and struggled to follow the storyline.

This was a book club read and I am not sorry that I picked it up. Now I know that Doerr isn't for me. I would suggest, however, trying out one of his books for yourself, if you are considering it, as his style is pretty and it may be a moving experience for you.

Happy Reading!]]> 3.97 2021 Cloud Cuckoo Land
author: Anthony Doerr
name: Panda
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2021
rating: 2
read at: 2025/05/24
date added: 2025/05/24
shelves: book-club, fantasy, historical-fiction, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (15 hours) narrated by Marin Ireland, and Simon Jones
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

I love Marin Ireland's narration style. She is fantastic.
Note that currently the audiobook points to the wrong Simon Jones. The narrator is the English actor, not the author: If you click on his resume you will see a long list of his acting credits on film, television, theater, and radio, as well as several narration awards!
The audio is flawless

Anthony Doerr writes beautiful descriptions of the world and the movement of the characters. The flow of the story is nicely detailed, however the conversation and actual story line is unexceptional and just did not do it for me.

Basically, I was moved by the positioning of a tea cup but bored and struggled to follow the storyline.

This was a book club read and I am not sorry that I picked it up. Now I know that Doerr isn't for me. I would suggest, however, trying out one of his books for yourself, if you are considering it, as his style is pretty and it may be a moving experience for you.

Happy Reading!
]]> <![CDATA[Burn to Shine (Rogue Team International #4)]]> 229115133 Rogue Team International joins Joe Ledger in a new, tension-filled mission to stop a wave of bioterrorism from devastating the country.

A covert group is infiltrating the world’s most secure bio-weapons research sites. All across the country, people are acting as human ‘disease bombs’ by infecting themselves and walking into public places. And heavily-armed groups of illegal private soldiers are massing for some unknown strike.

Joe Ledger and the members of Rogue Team International, still reeling from the devastation and heartbreaking losses of their last mission, are forced into relentless action to try and save the country, if not the entire world.

Old enemies are rising and joining forces to hit Joe and his team with one devastating blow after another. What is the end game for all of this madness and terror? Outnumbered, outmaneuvered, and outgunned, Joe Ledger has to find a way back from the fires of grief in order to make a stand between these enemies and millions of potential innocent lives. But Joe has allies, too. His team, the vicious fighters of Arklight, and friends who may or may not be entirely human.

A war of darkness and light is coming. Who will stand? Who will fall? And how will anyone ever survive?]]> Jonathan Maberry Panda 4 Ray Porter
Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Ray Porter nails it again, this time with a flawless audio. Yay!

The Jonathan Maberry, Ray Porter team come together for another audiobook saga starring Joe Ledger and his team in the fourth installment of the Rogue Team International series.

I appreciate the return of old friends and new as the excitement immediately jumps off the page. Fans of the Ledger series will likely appreciate the new twists and turns in the newest scenario.

I appreciate how Maberry continues to be openly expressive of the mental health of his characters, through his characters. It is a rare series that openly speaks of the traumatic events that happen as trauma in real world situations. I am unsure if Maberry's mental health knowledge comes from personal experience of himself and/or those he is close too, research, or a combination of the two but in 2025 it is refreshing to be able to read characters discuss and talk openly about how they are doing, complete with a therapist. The inclusion of mental health isn't intrusive or 'snow flakey' but real talk that fits well in with the day to day operations of a special operations team that deal with life and death situations, huge losses, traumatic violence, and end of the world situations. This isn't the first time mental health has appeared in the series, although I'm not sure if I have previously mentioned it in either this series or the Joe Ledger series, which this is a spin off of. In any even, it deserves repeating as it is something that Maberry does well and with intention, proving that talking about mental health doesn't soften our hard core military heroes. It is a critical part of life that we all need to take care of, as we do our physical health. Staying on top of it makes us stronger.

If you are in the US and need a therapist, a good place to begin your search is:


If you are anywhere in the world and need to talk, with or without suicidal ideation, there is a great list of hotlines available here:


For mental health information, visit any of the social media sites, including Twitch, Discord, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram of my favorite online therapist, Dr. Mick:




]]> 4.38 Burn to Shine (Rogue Team International #4)
author: Jonathan Maberry
name: Panda
average rating: 4.38
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/05/22
date added: 2025/05/24
shelves: jonathan-maberry, science-fiction, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (19 hours) narrated by the Ray Porter
Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Ray Porter nails it again, this time with a flawless audio. Yay!

The Jonathan Maberry, Ray Porter team come together for another audiobook saga starring Joe Ledger and his team in the fourth installment of the Rogue Team International series.

I appreciate the return of old friends and new as the excitement immediately jumps off the page. Fans of the Ledger series will likely appreciate the new twists and turns in the newest scenario.

I appreciate how Maberry continues to be openly expressive of the mental health of his characters, through his characters. It is a rare series that openly speaks of the traumatic events that happen as trauma in real world situations. I am unsure if Maberry's mental health knowledge comes from personal experience of himself and/or those he is close too, research, or a combination of the two but in 2025 it is refreshing to be able to read characters discuss and talk openly about how they are doing, complete with a therapist. The inclusion of mental health isn't intrusive or 'snow flakey' but real talk that fits well in with the day to day operations of a special operations team that deal with life and death situations, huge losses, traumatic violence, and end of the world situations. This isn't the first time mental health has appeared in the series, although I'm not sure if I have previously mentioned it in either this series or the Joe Ledger series, which this is a spin off of. In any even, it deserves repeating as it is something that Maberry does well and with intention, proving that talking about mental health doesn't soften our hard core military heroes. It is a critical part of life that we all need to take care of, as we do our physical health. Staying on top of it makes us stronger.

If you are in the US and need a therapist, a good place to begin your search is:


If you are anywhere in the world and need to talk, with or without suicidal ideation, there is a great list of hotlines available here:


For mental health information, visit any of the social media sites, including Twitch, Discord, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram of my favorite online therapist, Dr. Mick:





]]> The Memory Collectors 229621360
Four strangers time travel to the past and find themselves stuck on the day all their lives were changed in this stunning speculative mystery from award-winning film and television producer Dete Meserve, perfect for fans of Before the Coffee Gets Cold, Wrong Place Wrong Time, and The Paradox Hotel.

What would you do if you could spend an hour in your past? Four strangers in the beach town of Ventura, California are about to find out.

Elizabeth aches for one more precious hour with her son who died in a senseless accident. Andy is desperate to find his first love who vanished after a whirlwind romance. Logan craves the rush of surfing and mountain climbing, yearning to reclaim the freedom he lost after a misstep landed him in a wheelchair. Brooke is looking for an hour of relief from the guilt of an unforgivable mistake.

Enter Aeon Expeditions, the groundbreaking time travel invention of Mark Saunders—which allows some lucky clients the chance to spend an hour in their past. Even though Aeon’s technology ensures time travel can’t alter the future, all four clients, including Mark’s ex-wife Elizabeth, yearn to revisit the hour that changed their lives forever.

But when their “hour” extends beyond sixty minutes, they find themselves stranded in the past. As their paths intertwine unexpectedly, they unearth shocking secrets hidden in the shadows of their shared All their lives were shattered the same night on a secluded highway by the beach. As they delve into the hidden truths of that pivotal hour, a startling revelation emerges. They were not alone. Someone else was present, harboring deadly intentions.

The Memory Collectors is a heart-wrenching, genre-bending novel brimming with hope, grief, and second chances.]]> Dete Meserve Panda 0 to-read 3.69 2025 The Memory Collectors
author: Dete Meserve
name: Panda
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame]]> 228828326 A new Queer, Asian-inspired fantasy novella about a renowned dragon slayer who never takes her armor off in public, Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame reads like She Who Became the Sun meets The Mandalorian, with dragons!

The fiercely independent nation of Quanbao is isolated, reclusive, and something of a mystery to the rest of the world. It is rumored that there, dragons are not feared as is right and proper but instead loved and worshiped.

Yeva is perhaps a strange emissary to these people. Not only because their face has never been seen in public, but because they are a hero born to a birthright that makes them suited for their task—hunting dragons.

And so the dragon hunter must woo Quanbao's queen—the Lady Sookhee—to understand what secrets she is hiding. A woman reasonably suspicious of Yeva's intentions, and the imperial might of the throne she represents, Sookhee bears the burden of the safety of her entire people. How can she trust this stranger newly arrived to her court, a weapon forged in blood and fire, to understand what her people need and how best to safeguard their future?]]> 5 Neon Yang Panda 2 Nancy Wu
Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.

The narration and audio is great. The book is not.

Coming of of the awesome Pet Sematary is a hard novel to follow.

Some of my biggest issues include that Neon Yang did not write a world and characters, she told a story as if she was telling a campfire story. While I love when characters within a novel tell stories like this, to have an entire novella written in this way is a bit much. Even with an award winning narrator, there is only so much expression that can be made when it is a told story rather than having an actual talking character to narrate.

Stories told like this for 10 to 20 minutes, even a half hour can be engrossing, but 5 hours?

The result is a flat 2 dimensional reality with paper doll characters that have nothing to grab a hold of to like or dislike or have many emotions about at all.

If you enjoy this type of story telling, you may really get into this one, but for me, it's going to be a pass on this author going forward. I do, however, have an anthology that includes the author on hold, The Book of Dragons, and I am curious if her short stories hold up better in her writing style. Time will tell.]]> 3.52 2025 Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame
author: Neon Yang
name: Panda
average rating: 3.52
book published: 2025
rating: 2
read at: 2025/05/19
date added: 2025/05/19
shelves: fantasy, narrator-is-award-winning, audio-is-good
review:
Audiobook (5 hours) narrated by Nancy Wu
Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.

The narration and audio is great. The book is not.

Coming of of the awesome Pet Sematary is a hard novel to follow.

Some of my biggest issues include that Neon Yang did not write a world and characters, she told a story as if she was telling a campfire story. While I love when characters within a novel tell stories like this, to have an entire novella written in this way is a bit much. Even with an award winning narrator, there is only so much expression that can be made when it is a told story rather than having an actual talking character to narrate.

Stories told like this for 10 to 20 minutes, even a half hour can be engrossing, but 5 hours?

The result is a flat 2 dimensional reality with paper doll characters that have nothing to grab a hold of to like or dislike or have many emotions about at all.

If you enjoy this type of story telling, you may really get into this one, but for me, it's going to be a pass on this author going forward. I do, however, have an anthology that includes the author on hold, The Book of Dragons, and I am curious if her short stories hold up better in her writing style. Time will tell.
]]>