RISE OF EMPIRE, Riyria Revelations 2, by Michael J. Sullivan

Narrated by Tim Gerard Reynolds

The Plot Thickens

Here the story does began to expand. Here we learn of the ancient plottings of those to control the empire and the counter-plots of those trying to preserve the freedom of mankind, albeit at great personal, and moral, expense. This sounds very epic but this book tells the story in a very personal way. The characters at the center of all this action are very engaging. This is a strongly plotted novel and can be enjoyed purely in this fashion. It is a bonus that the characters are so entertaining. Royce and Hadrian are two lovable rogues who are starting to develop a conscience.

Tim Gerard Reynolds again delivers a great rendering of this text into my ears. He relates the dialog with style and aplomb; much more than a straight reading. He is not afraid to add emotion to his voice when it will enhance the text. 

THE NIGHT LAND by William Hope Hodgson

Narrated by Drew Ariana

Monstrous Meandering Through Unfathomable Obscurity

I have never come across a book of this sort. It is essentially a meandering account of one man’s quest to recover a lost love set in an incomprehensible future where the sun has been extinguished.  Told in a sing-song prose and using language evocative of Shakespeare it sounds like an epic poem. Personally I did not find this to be a successful attempt at relating a quasi-Science Fiction tale is the format of an Elizabethan love poem. The repetition of many terms takes on the quality of poetic meter at times but to me revealed the lack of imagination of the author in selecting more descriptive words.

The narrator, Drew Ariana, is well suited to this material. He has a quaint accent that is not quite English in character but resonates with the echoes of a past era and is the sole reason that I persevered until the end. In whole, this is a bizarre listening experience that I can find none else with which to compare. 

ABHORSEN by Garth Nix

Narrated by Tim Curry

Third Time Not a Charm

I made it to this third volume due chiefly to the soothing voice of Tim Curry. The first two held my interest better. I found the plotting and characterization in SABRIEL and LIRAEL to be more engaging. The coming of age drama of the first two books and the conflict over evil seemed more accessible and interesting. Here in ABHORSEN, the culmination of the series the drama falls flat and the story nearly incomprehensible. Tim Curry is always entertaining. He is hampered here with a weak and thin story. 

MONSTER HUNTER INTERNATIONAL by Larry Correia

Narrated by Oliver Wyman

Harbinger of Grimnoir to Come

I listened to this after finishing the three Grimnoir Chronicles because it is rated even higher. Since that series turned out to be a pleasant surprise, due primarily to the sublime performance of Bronson Pinchot, I thought this one deserved a listen. Both are tightly-plotted non-stop action adventures with a nerdy strong man as hero. I never warmed up to this story or the characters. I much prefer the quasi-Science Fiction super-hero trappings of the Grimnoir Chronicles to this supernatural motivated monster shoot-em-up story. The novel did have occasional moments of greatness when it provides character situations that the narrator can really bring to life.

Oliver Wyman is excellent here and I may choose to pick up the next in the series just to listen to his fine characterizations. He is the best reason to listen to this book. The super-heroes of the Grimnoir Chronicles and the Monster Hunters of this book would never find their way into my reading shelf but when paired with great narrators, as these two series certainly are, I find that that is sometimes reason enough to give them my ear. 

THE STORM OF WAR, by Andrew Roberts

Narrated by Christian Rodska

Hitler Lost because He was a Nazi

This one volume summary of the vast global struggle that was WWII requires some familiarity with the great conflict. Roberts does has a few fresh things to say but in order to get to them he must rush past other elements of the war. This is unavoidable, I suppose with this subject. He is at his best when analyzing the causes for some of the key events. I especially appreciated his conclusion of the causes for Allied victory and Axis defeat. 

Christian Rodska reads this expertly. He even throws in a few impressions of major characters. His depiction of Churchill is spot on. 

THE THIRD REICH IN POWER, by Richard J. Evans

Narrated by Sean Pratt

Peace Through Joy and Other Nazi Propaganda Schemes Exposed

I am grateful to Richard J. Evans for this history. His matter of fact narrative somehow makes this subject come alive. One of the most intriguing aspects of Nazi Germany was how they managed to quell the resistance of the German people. They did it by ruthless totalitarian intimidation. It is a study in human depravity and weakness to stand against injustice. Be careful when reading this for you will begin to see Nazis everywhere when you realize that our government is resorting to many of the same propaganda measures the Nazis used. Hitler artificially reported the unemployment numbers by removing the jobs lost from the reporting; our government foes the same thing. And then there is Hitler’s fanatical hatred of the Jews. Here Evans does the best job at explaining this that I have read. Anti-Semitism had long been a part of European culture, but it was not officially sanctioned. When Hitler institutionalized and authorized hatred of Jewish people he allowed this evil to have free reign and it quickly became a widespread no holds barred cultural obsession not just a series of disjointed acts of closet racial prejudice. It is shameful to realize that members of the human race can actively act in this genocidal manner. It is also shameful to see the Western leaders fail time and time again to act when at many points they could have stopped this reign of terror from ever being launched.

This is one of the most fascinating periods of human history: one, because it did not happen so very long ago that we cannot relate to the world situation; two, because the characters on opposing sides, such as Hitler and Goering, Stalin and Churchill, are so dominant in their own spheres if influence to seem super human caricatures or comic book villains and heroes; and three, because WWII altered the world in which we live so profoundly that we must delve into the causes of this upheaval. I have read and listened to many volumes of lore on the Second World War and find that I still learn something new in every section of this book by Evans. I have recently listened to THE STORM OF WAR by Andrew Roberts, THE RISE AND FALL OF THE THIRD REICH by William L. Shirer. This book covers the topic from an entirely different, and more insightful, angle.

Sean Pratt again does a great job at reading giving clear pronunciation throughout. His voice is pleasant and never becomes a distraction.