WARBOUND, Grimnoir Chronicles 3 by Larry Correia

As Constant as Gravity

Volume III of the Grimnoir Chronicles

As is to be expected of the final volume of a trilogy WARBOUND manages to wrap up all the character story arcs nicely. It is clear that the end was in the mind of the author from the very beginning since all things seem to work toward the climax. I commend Larry Correia for his strong plotting. But the plot is not the strong point of this audiobook; its strength derives from the collaboration between the writer, in creating a cast of quirky characters and giving them exciting things to do, and the narrator, Bronson Pinchot, who literally gives these characters a voice. This is a great sudiobook. I am not sure if I would have ever stuck with it had I read it in its print form, but as an audio performance by voice artist Pinchot this becomes an enthralling adventure.

Bronson Pinchot has impressed me as being a top flight performer. I am now seeking out books not for their content alone, but for their suitability for a performer like Pinchot to demonstrate his artistry in my ears.

SPELLBOUND. Grimnoir Chronicles 2

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

This second installment of the Grimnoir Chronicles carries the story along directly from where the first left off. The plotting of this trilogy was carefully planned and well executed. By now the listener is comfortable with the characters and the rules of how things work is familiar. This allows the story to get underway immediately. One unexpected delight in these first two novels is the political slant of author Larry Correia comes through as clearly American conservative. He does not miss any opportunity to jab at Teddy Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, or FDR. And the totalitarian countries of the Soviet Union, Germany and Nippon are depicted as enslaving regimes.

The theme of freedom and respect for life is strong among the Grimnoir Knights. The lead character Jake Sullivan is always as good as his word. Even the Imperium Iron Guard acts within his brutal code of honor knowing that his actions will cost him his life if he fails of even if he succeeds.

Bronson Pinchot is once again superb; displaying a wide range of personalities with aplomb. There are many instances where it is evident that careful planning was done to give just the right emotion for a character. Once even the charcter’s usual accent is not used so as not to give away a vital plot element. This is just as it would be if one were reading the novel listening to the voice in your own head. Another top notch performance that places Pinchot at the top of the very best audio book performers.

HARD MAGIC by Larry Correia, Book I of the Grimnoir Chronicles

I got this book for one reason, it was narrated by Bronson Pinchot whom I had come to admire as being among the very top flight of audiobook performers after listening to his excellent rendition of MATTERHORN by Karl Marlantes. 

From the very start the story grabbed me. The characters are well drawn by author Correia , and given distinctive voices by Pinchot that are spot on for their personality. Whenever a new character speaks the voice makes them immediately identifiable. This is a tightly plotted story but in a completely over-the-top magic super-hero action movie sort of way and is a lot of fun. As with many contemporary magic novels, magic has certain rules to obey, and the back story of this one gives the manifestation of magic powers a science fiction explanation. 

Setting the story on the 1930s is a nice touch; mostly because it affords the author the chance to introduce the hard-case tough guy lingo of noir movies in an alternate history venue. There are many memorable witty one liners in this movie, er book. This listening experience is much like a movie. I listened to it while making a long road trip and the hours just seemed to pass without any trouble. I became so engrossed in the plot that I could vividly imagine the action scenes in my head as the image out my windshield changed only ever so slowly. 

Bronson Pinchot delivers a superb performance in his narration of this novel. He ranks with the very best audiobook narrators. He is right up there with Todd McLaren in ALTERED CARBON, Craig Wasson in 11-22-63, or Jonathan Davis in THE SHADOW OF THE TORTURER. I try to seek out narrators that do more than deliver a competent, well articulated reading of a novel. I look for a performance, a one man show. Here I found just what I was looking for. Sit back in your driver’s seat, head for the open road and enjoy the show.

More of the Best of Science Fiction and Fantasy

I listened to this book and while doing so kept track of the stories. I had to deduce the names of the stories because the audiobook does not announce them. Many listeners on Audible.com complain that there is no table of contents. So here it is.

Table of Contents (Listed by Audible Chapter)


1 “This is Audible” Introduction.

2 "The Sentinel" by Arthur C. Clarke, read by Siddig El Fadil.

3 "Fat Farm" by Orson Scott Card, read by Roddy McDowall.

4 "Our Lady of the Sauropods" by Robert Silverberg, read by Robin Curtis.

5 "Options" by John Varley, read by Claudia Christian.

6 "Why I Left Harry's All Night Hamburgers" by Lawrence Watt-Evans, read by Wil Wheaton.

7 "The Poplar Street Study" by Karen Joy Fowler; Narrated by Terry Farrell

8 "Skin Deep" by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, read by Robin Curtis.

9 "Permafrost" by Roger Zelazny, read by Siddig El Fadil.

10 "Feedback" by Joe Haldeman, read by Nana Visitor.


Review of “Options” by John Varley

I wanted to listen to this collection because of one story: “Options” by John Varley. “Options” is one of Varley’s 8-Worlds stories and fits early in the overall chronology, circa 100 O.E., Occupation Earth. Varley handles the subject of what would happen to society if easy, safe and completely reversible sex-changing were to become a reality. When this was written in 1979 is was far more shocking and fantastic that it may seem today. The wonder of the story is that Varley manages to take the reader, or listener in this case, from the initial reaction of shock and disgust to the point of empathy for the sex-changing character. Varley is one of the science fiction greats. Listen to this story and you will hear why.

THROUGH THE EYE OF A NEEDLE by Peter Brown

Through the Eye of a Needle: Wealth, the Fall of Rome, and the Making of Christianity in the West, 350-550 AD

Narrated by Fleet Cooper

The Economics of Roman Christianity

I really enjoyed the approach of this history. It is a history of Rome from the fourth to the sixth century from the perspective of the economics of a changing world in a state of flux caused by the rise of Christianity. The importance of Northern Africa to the Roman world was brought out in a way that I have never understood before. The fact that history is made by the rich and powerful is made profoundly clear in this work. The poor and down-trodden leave no mark save for the manner in which the rich are moved to bring them aid. This is a fine book.

Fleet Cooper gets kudos for his excellent diction. I could always understand what he was reading. Some of his odd pronunciation choices, however, rise to the level of annoyance after a time. He has obviously done some study of different languages and he pronounces foreign words with ease. The problem is that he lets this foreign language training influence the way he pronounces words that are to be spoken in a certain way in English. This is pervasively noticeable for names containing the letter “U.” He insists on giving it the long vowel sound even when the short vowel sound is correct. Towards the end the historical figure Pelagius enters the narrative and I had to suffer through many pronunciations of “Pell-ay-gee-OOS” before he began to say it correctly: “Pell-AY-gee-us.” These oddities of pronunciation were a distraction but did not detract from making this an excellent audio book. 

ARMOR by John Steakly.

Narrated by Tom Weiner

You are what you’ll do when it counts

This is an ambitious novel that largely succeeds in delivering the requisite dose of violent action to satisfy the modern gamer addicted fan. Unexpectedly, it also provides a fair degree of warrior introspection. I listened to it letting the story flow past me and when it was done I discovered that I could benefit from a second session. I appreciate the way in which author Steakley does not lay things out for the reader. His portrayal of the hero dealing with his fear is very well done.

Tom Weiner is very good narrating this novel. His voicing of the different characters adds a lot to the enjoyment of this novel. I always appreciate a narrator that uses different character voices. 

Posted on Audible.com 8/8/13