THE REPUBLIC OF THIEVES by Scott Lynch

Narrated by Michael Page

…..Magical Mystery Cure

Filled with flashbacks to the time of their apprenticeship under Master Chain the Thief Maker, this novel follows Locke and John first in the present time and then in the past in a series of comic misadventures. Always they practice their religion, reliving people of their money in the name of the Crooked Warden.

Michael Page again delivers an energetic dramatic performance. 

RED SEAS UNDER RED SKIES by Scott Lynch

Narrated by Michael Page

…..Blackmailed to Fly the Jolly Roger

This series came to life with this second book. Now that we know the characters of Locke and John their exploits take sail. Their love for pilferage gets them into some very dicey situations that are festooned with danger, (mis)adventure and comedy. This is a great big fun book that will keep you entertained from the first chapter to the last. Unexpectedly tightly plotted, the action takes Locke and John from one peril to another, first operating within their comfort zone—thieving and running confidence games—to being cast adrift in a nautical word of freebooters where their only assets are their wits. This novel has a strong plot that elevates is far above the first.

Michael Page tailors his performance to the over-the-top nature of the action in the story. His voicing is expertly energetic and melodramatic as the story requires. As a result this fun book is made even more fun by listening to his dramatic portrayal. Sit back and let Michael Page tell you a rousing story.

THE LIES OF LOCKE LAMORA by Scott Lynch

Narrated by Michael Page

…..Meet Two Loveable Rogues

This is a very likeable start to the series. Scott Lynch gives his main characters a detailed back-story so that we feel that we know and understand the life of crime that Locke and John are thrown into. A variety of misadventures ensues to let us know that crime does not pay, at least not forever. As is typical of caper stories humor is a steady companion to these exploits of the Gentlemen Bastards. This book is entertaining and the next is even more fun.

Michael Page gives an enthusiastic performance, attaining emotional heights that lend to the already considerable fun. 

THE DARK DEFILES: A Land Fit for Heroes, Book 3 by Richard (K) Morgan

Narrated by Simon Vance

…..NC-17 Sword and Sorcery…..

Richard Morgan’s third entry into the fantasy genre again downplays the explicit scenes that were so prominent in the first book. I am trying to be discrete here. It is evident that there has been a conscious decision to be a little less in-your-face on such gratuitous scenes at the end of this series. Here the events of the trilogy are allowed to unfold without too much of the rainbow desensitization techniques he employed so copiously in the first installment—and for this I am grateful. What we are left with is a quite mundane sword-and-sorcery novel. The three main characters are back again and live up to their nicknames in every sense. It is fun to see them in action. And nobody does action better than Morgan.

At the end of the day I think that I failed to fully engage with this series because of the aforementioned salacious elements and so have not really much cared what happens to the characters. There is a dearth of redeeming social value here. As a result I just let the audio play out and tried to follow the plot, which at times was difficult because the action seems focused more on the grubby details of mercenary life than it does on the grander story arc with the fate of the world at stake. This is not, therefore, an epic fantasy by any means. The unfolding Duenda war feels like little more than a manufactured crisis to allow the characters to misbehave. Alfred Hitchcock would call this the MacGuffin—the thing the characters in the story care about who facilitate the action that the audience cares about. The characters want to save the world and we in the audience want to witness them hacking and slashing their way to victory. So, while this series may have broken ground in introducing the genre to a sympathetic portrayal of an openly gay main character, it is pretty standard Sword and Sorcery fare otherwise. Knowing the dizzying heights that Richard Morgan is capable of hitting in his Science Fiction novels, this is a bit of a letdown.

Simon Vance is a little too subdued for my tastes in his reading of this book. With such flamboyant characters the story would have been better served with a more emotional rendering in the dialog scenes. Vance is excellent in translating the words on the page into sounds in your ear. For the most part he is unobtrusive and this makes it possible for him to become the sub-vocal voice-in-your-head that every reader experiences when reading a book on your own. 

TOKYO RAIDER by Larry Correia

Narrated by Bronson Pinchot

…..The Enemy of My Enemy is My Friend

Now twenty years after WARBOUND we learn, in passing, what Francis and Fae are up to.  The son of Jake and Origami joins forces with the Imperium to defeat a foe that could threaten the world if not stopped on the Island.  Knowing that Larry Correia is still playing in the Grimnoir world leaves hope for a follow-up novel in the future.  This little teaser makes me want more.

Bronson Pinchot is top-notch as usual. 

MURDER ON THE ORIENT ELITE by Larry Correia

Narrated by Bronson Pinchot

…..Travel in Style

This is a fine short story set four years after the events in WARBOUND.  It was great to keep up with Jake Sullivan and the Alienist.  The real joy was hearing Bronson Pinchot exercise his talents again.

CHAPTERHOUSE DUNE by Frank Herbert

Narrated by Simon Vance (main text), Scott Brick, Katherine Kellgrin, Ewan Morton

…..Bucket list complete

Back in the day I read the original DUNE and then followed with DUNE MESSIAH and CHILDREN OF DUNE, but then I stopped because I didn’t like the direction the series was going. Over the intervening years I kept hearing high praise for the rest of the series. I just wasn’t motivated enough to undertake reading all six books. But now that they are available on Audio I thought I would give it a try. After all I had been richly rewarded in a similar situation involving the works of Neal Stephenson. (I had avoided The Baroque Cycle after loving Snowcrash but disliking The Diamond Age) So, in the case of the Dune novels I felt compelled to check off this nagging omission from my bucket list. I was hopefully expecting a buried treasure. Sadly, my original estimation was confirmed. The original DUNE is wonderful and inventive, fresh and new. The balance of the Dune novels are slow plodding—focused too much on fanciful, imagined philosophy. The second book, DUNE MESSIAH, reads like an outline—just advancing the plot so the third, CHILDREN OF DUNE can be told. This third book has some mildly interesting characters and promises a Space Opera scale expansion of the story for the remaining novels. The fourth, GOD EMPEROR OF DUNE, documents the tyrannical reign of human-turned-worm Leto II but does not make good use of the vast scale of a multiple-planet empire. The creepy giant larvae-like emperor, and his entire dialog, seems less then majestic or oppressive, as later recollections will portray his reign. The idea is there but the execution is lacking. The next, HERETICS OF DUNE, advances the plot but leaves much to be desired when it comes to holding my interest; which it could have done with more interesting people or with witty dialog (Again the reader is referred to The Baroque Cycle). And this last novel is no improvement. Mercifully, Frank Herbert ended his series with CHAPTERHOUSE DUNE. This last novel has the same feel as the previous two books. I did not like it. And unless someone can convince me that the other Dune books, written by Frank Herbert’s son are of a completely different quality, my exploration of Dune is at an end.

As a public service I can say that if you enjoy exploring the outlining of a future society based on treachery and long range planning—but without fleshing out the characters or establishing an engaging storyline, then the last five Dune novels may be for you. My chief complaint is that the new characters which necessarily populate the later novels are just not very interesting. I was never made to care about them and so had a hard time following their concerns.

I sympathize with the plight of the narrators. The dissertation-like nature of the text as a sociological treatise demands  a slow monotone reading, and the narrators faithfully comply. 

HERETICS OF DUNE by Frank Herbert

Narrated by Simon Vance (main text), Scott Brick

…..Variations on a Theme

Here many of the political and religious plot lines begin to converge. Set thousands of years after the time of Paul; this novel exemplifies one of the problems of a wide scope Space Opera that extends over such vast time scales: The writer has to introduce a new set of characters for every installment. Frank Herbert strives to overcome this problem in his series by always having an Atreides in a key role. He always has a Bene Gesserit trying to pull the strings behind the scenes. And, of course, the recurring figure of Duncan Idaho again makes an appearance in one of his many clones. This novel has some interesting personalities placed in these standard roles and for this reason holds my interest better than the other sequels so far. At the end of the day, it is still a far cry from the drama of the original. By the end I was longing for a conniving villain like baron Harkonnen to add a little drama.

Simon Vance again reads the text. His delivery is uncomfortably dispassionate and leads to the depiction of strangely uncomfortable antiseptic coitus in more than one scene. This book gives me a chance to editorialize: There is something commendable in translating a book from the print to the audio format with as little deviation from the mood of the original. I would say that there is a higher commendation deserved in taking a stolid, phlegmatic novel and imparting some sense of drama to it that would make it a more entertaining listening experience. 

GOD EMPEROR OF DUNE by Frank Herbert

Narrated by Simon Vance (main text)

…..The Worm Turns

While a necessary part of the sequence of the saga, this is the most uncharacteristic novel in the series. Clearly the figure of the God Emperor is pivotal to the development of the series, but I found this installment merely a place-holder for the era of the Tyrant. I think the account of Leto II and his millennia-long empire could have been handled better as a brief retrospective in the next novel Heretics of Dune than it was executed here as a novel-length episode of its own. Herbert fails to impart the necessary sense of vitality and irresistible power that the figure of the God Emperor holds in the story. The dialog for Leto II is so feeble and mundane that it is a wonder that such an impotent personality could wield such megalomaniac power over all of mankind on many different worlds.

Simon Vance again handles the reading. He is excellent at enunciating each word perfectly so Frank Herbert’s words come through without alteration. I would have enjoyed it more had he played Emperor Leto II with a bit of campy melodrama—it would have been so much more fun.

CHILDREN OF DUNE by Frank Herbert

Narrated by Simon Vance (main text), Scott Brick

…..Dune the Next Generation

Here Herbert expands the scope of the story to make this a true Space Opera. This is a somewhat satisfying follow-up to the classic Dune. Here it becomes plain that he has an epic planned. He begins to lay down the political foundations for the balance of the series.

Simon Vance handles the great majority of the narration. He is a fine reader. I find that his voices for young children do not have a youthful energy. This sometimes gets in the way when I was trying to visualize a scene in my mind. 

DUNE MESSIAH by Frank Herbert

Narrated by Simon Vance (main text), Scott Brick, Katherine Kellgrin, Ewan Morton

…..Bridge to Book Three

My impression of this book remains unchanged from my reading of the print version many years ago: It is just a necessary linking novel to the next volume.

Again the production is quite good, with several narrators taking the task of delivering certain sections. Simon Vance handles the bulk of the narration. And while I appreciate Vance’s obvious talents in sight reading, his limited range of characterizations sometimes causes the various characters to blend together. 

DUNE by Frank Herbert

Narrated by Simon Vance (main text), Scott Brick, Katherine Kellgrin, Ewan Morton

…..First Dune Book and Still the Best

I have read the print version of Dune twice in the distant past and thought it was time to revisit the story to determine if my original impressions still held.  When I first read it as a young boy I thought the story very difficult to engage with but ended up enjoying it very much. Reading it a second time was a revelation; everything seemed so vivid and well-described. I remember finishing that second reading on the very day the David Lynch movie was released. I remember being enthralled at seeing the sandworms come straight out of the book and onto the big screen. I am now undertaking the task of listening to all six of Frank Herbert’s Dune books.

As of this writing I am in the middle of book six, Heretics of Dune and believe I can safely make some assessments of the first in relation to the rest. The first is still the best. In this first Dune novel Frank Herbert obviously has a real spark of genius. His original creation is so vivid, so vast that it takes on the quality of myth. I really enjoy the narrow scope of this Space Opera. This may seem like a complete non-sequitur, but hear me out! Except for the first few opening scenes all the action takes place on Arrakis. The central character Paul becomes more and more isolated; his personal domain reduced from a planet-wide Dukedom to an outcast given refuge by the Fremen. Herbert focuses on storytelling in this book, building and borrowing heavily from Sunni Islam legends of the Twelfth Imam. So the scope of this book may masquerade as a Space Opera but it is really quite narrowly focused on the central characters.

Listening to Dune was a grand experience.  This is a very fine production of this classic novel. Many key scenes are given a full cast performance, which really brought the story to life. I only wish this full cast was in place for each and every scene. Simon Vance handles the balance of the text in his trade-mark perfect and clear diction. 

A HYMN BEFORE BATTLE by John Ringo

Book 1 (of 12) of the LEGACY OF THE ALDENATA

Narrated by Mark Vietor

Audible Frontiers

Black Ops are So Secret Sometimes They Never Happened

Combat Science Fiction punctuated throughout with Kipling Quotes at the start of every chapter.  This is one of the better written books in the Military SF category, spending equal time on character development and story plotting as it does on combat strategy and ordinance. The people in this story seem like real people. This book portrays many of the ranking military brass in a less than battle competent depiction, a concept that gives verisimilitude to the far-fetched space opera setting of this novel.

I tend to gravitate toward SF where the galaxy is populated with more advanced civilizations. It is fun to play in that world, so different from reality. Here we have recently made first contact with an advanced alien federation. These prolific aliens have superior technology but still find a desperate need for the innate human ability to fight their wars. I find it amusing that in this age of the rise of pacifists in many sectors of our society that these stories of martial glory are still so popular. Every culture has its warrior class, people that do the brutal work of killing and breaking things when the more genteel pursuits are inadequate to provide the preservation in the face of a determined and hostile foe.

I really enjoyed the performance of Mark Vietor. His character voicings are very distinct from each other and well-suited to the people in the story. He projects the sarcastic tone needed for the portrayal of the many soldiers. 

This is a review I wrote on 6/26/14. DDE

UNDERSTANDING GENETICS: DNA, Genes and Their Real-World Applications By Professor David Sadava

…..Disruptive Genetic Technology 

This Great Courses presentation is very well done. Professor David Sadava knows his material inside and out. It is a joy to hear him deliver the complicated concepts that are necessary to understand even the most rudimentary ideas that relate to genetics. The very technical information in his lectures flows off his lips as easy as a Trekker would explain the reasons for his preference of Picard over Kirk. Prof. Sadava is really good at pointing out the recent discoveries in the field of DNA research that are revolutionizing our understanding of the way the human body works. Whether you are a Darwinist or a Creationist you will marvel at the incredible complexity of life that is now being revealed by modern advances in research. It is amazing what can be done with the building blocks of DNA once its structure and chemical make-up is known. We now have a herd of just eighteen cows excreting the entire world demand for Human Growth hormone in their milk. Sheep now make insulin in the protein of their milk. We now have bacteria that eat oil spills; others glow in the dark in the presence of land mines with TNT. In this course you will learn the way vaccines work—by prompting the body’s existing immune system to produce antibodies. The varied applications of genetic research is a tribute to the ingenuity of modern man.

David Sadava is a materialistic scientist, and therefore his sense of right and wrong takes on a very pragmatic nature. Moral issues are not deeply considered. He recounts dispassionately the decisions of people acting of information garnered through genetic testing with no regard to the morality of those decisions. Couples desiring healthy babies are using the information made available to us through genetic research to select for a superior human babies. Who doesn’t want healthy babies? The unspoken down-side, recounted in Lecture 18, is that genetic screening leads to Jewish babies being aborted after they are discovered to be afflicted with Tay Sachs disease, or multiple embryos dying in the test-tube when their healthy sibling is inserted into the mother’s uterus. This criticism of the morality of this course does not detract from the ability of Professor Sadava to provoke one’s thoughts. On the contrary, people with deeply held moral convictions need to keep informed on the advances of genetic science. This is a stimulating and educational set of lectures that I recommend to anyone with an interest in how things work. Moralists and theologians need to listen to this course to keep abreast of the social change that is being conducted in the absence of their guidance.

The Professor ends the series with the sentence, “The genetic genie is out of the bottle.” Apparently even those closest to the scientific discipline of Genetic research realize that we have move very far very fast—so fast that the long-term consequences cannot be predicted with surety. Obviously Sadava is of the belief that the problems we may have already caused can be fixed by future scientists. I think he places too much trust in the men in The Men in the White Lab Coats. By cutting and splicing genes we are not merely dabbling with a harmless genie that has the potential to cure mankind’s problems with disease and hunger. We are like children playing in God’s toy box; breaking apart what to us looks to be just a bunch of Lego parts that can be reassembled in the way that seems right to us; when in reality we have no idea of the complex interactions we are causing to the environment and to our own bodies. We have not released a benevolent genie. We have opened Pandora’s Box.

…..Other books useful for aspiring geneticists and ethicists:

INHERITANCE by Sharon Moalem

THE SPORTS GENE by David Epstein

THE VIRAL STORM by Nathan Wolfe

THE EDGE OF EVOLUTION by Michael Behe