Tag: Audiobook

Posted in Audiobooks, Book Reviews

REVIEW: Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries #2) by Martha Wells

Posted on by elishasbookreview

*No Major Spoilers*

It has a dark past – one in which a number of humans were killed. A past that caused it to christen itself “Murderbot”. But it has only vague memories of the massacre that spawned that title, and it wants to know more.

Teaming up with a Research Transport vessel named ART (you don’t want to know what the “A” stands for), Murderbot heads to the mining facility where it went rogue.

What it discovers will forever change the way it thinks…

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

As I continue on in this series, I was excited to dive into Artificial Condition as soon as I found the audiobook for this on the virtual library. So, let’s explore this review of Artificial Condition.

Originally, on Goodreads and StoryGraph, I rated this novel 4 stars. I usually rate books as soon as I finish them so everything is still fresh in my mind. After a day or two to think about how I feel about this, and I’m feeling somewhat different about this novel.

Sometimes people do things to you that you can’t do anything about. You just have to survive it and go on.

Martha Wells, Artificial Condition

I’m not sure if the audiobook just didn’t hold my attention, or I had a hard time focusing on it. My memory of this book comes in patches. I like that Murderbot got an upgrade/the possibility to blend in to this futuristic society.

This story as a whole is okay, not the best one so far. I’m hoping going forward things will pick up and we get more entertaining temporary companions for Murderbot. I like that this A.I. is making friends along the way whether they want to admit it or not.

Overall, I thought this is novella was alright, I am going to continue the series and we’ll see where we go from there!

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Posted in Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: The Ogress and the Orphans by Kelly Barnhill

Posted on by elishasbookreview

*No Major Spoilers*

Stone-in-the-Glen, once a lovely town, has fallen on hard times. Fires, floods, and other calamities have caused the people to lose their library, their school, their park, and even their neighborliness. The people put their faith in the Mayor, a dazzling fellow who promises he alone can help. After all, he is a famous dragon slayer. (At least, no one has seen a dragon in his presence.) Only the clever children of the Orphan House and the kindly Ogress at the edge of town can see how dire the town’s problems are.

Then one day a child goes missing from the Orphan House. At the Mayor’s suggestion, all eyes turn to the Ogress. The Orphans know this can’t be: the Ogress, along with a flock of excellent crows, secretly delivers gifts to the people of Stone-in-the-Glen.

But how can the Orphans tell the story of the Ogress’s goodness to people who refuse to listen? And how can they make their deluded neighbors see the real villain in their midst?

Rating: 5 out of 5.

I found this book on TikTok, however I didn’t take a screenshot of the book so I can’t give proper kudos for showing me this amazing, adorable story. I guess I was that excited about reading it! So let’s bake our way into The Ogress and the Orphans!

Now, I normally don’t go reading other people’s reviews for fear that it’d taint my own opinions. However, I was trying to find some quotes for this since I listened to this on audio and this book seems to be somewhat controversial. Now, I’m not going to throw shade (call out or embarrass) these reviewers because everyone has a right to their own opinion. Let’s just say you should read this book with your inner child in the forefront.

Books are funny things. The ideas and knowledge contained inside their pages have mass and velocity and gravity. They bend both space and time. They have minds of their own.

Kelly Barnhill, The Ogress and the Orphans

Sure this novel is parallel to our current society but in a fantasy setting. I get it, but I thought this would be a really good book to help young kids understand in a kid friendly way of what’s going on in the world. The overarching message is that love and kindness defeats all evil and books are the greatest weapons of all.

However, politics be what they may, I loved the parallel take on this book. I loved all the characters and one of the orphans was names Elijah! Elijah was kind of that annoying character in movies who is foreshadowing to the point where they’re just giving away the rest of the plot.

One minor complaint I had with this novel is how often it repeats certain phrasing, I understand why the author did it, to mimic a story told around the campfire or a bedtime story. However, I appreciate the author’s commitment to the theme she set for in her story.

Overall, I really enjoyed this novel. It was charming and heart-warming. It made me wish I lived in Stone-in-the-Glen once the conflict was resolved. Sounded like a nice place to live. I’d recommend this novel for those looking for a light story for the kid at heart.

Posted in Audiobooks, Book Reviews

REVIEW: Nothing but Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw

Posted on by elishasbookreview

*Spoilers Probably*

A Heian-era mansion stands abandoned, its foundations resting on the bones of a bride and its walls packed with the remains of the girls sacrificed to keep her company.

It’s the perfect wedding venue for a group of thrill-seeking friends.

But a night of food, drinks, and games quickly spirals into a nightmare. For lurking in the shadows is the ghost bride with a black smile and a hungry heart.

And she gets lonely down there in the dirt.

Rating: 2 out of 5.

I was hearing mixed reviews about this novella, so when I saw this at my local library I thought I’d give it a chance to see what was in store. So let’s creep into this review for Nothing But Blackened Teeth.

First off, I hate this trope in horror where all the characters are unlikable. Even our main character is unlikable. I wish she was more fleshed out because I wanted to learn more about her. Everyone else seemed like a jerk with no justification for being that way.

This is trying to be visceral by making us question our main character’s perception of reality. I feel like a lot of it is wasted because we don’t know about our main character. She says she was in the mental hospital for exhaustion or something like that, but doesn’t go into more detail.

It wasn’t charitable but apologies didn’t exonerate the sinner, only compelled graciousness from its recipient.

Cassandra Khaw, Nothing But Blackened Teeth

When the horror kicks in, I felt like it wasn’t all earned. Sure, we get the typical urban legend, a bride who got left at the alter and was so heartbroken she asked her wedding party to bury her alive in the palace she was going to live with her future husband. However, the book admits that they aren’t even sure if that’s the urban legend to go with the palace they were spending the night. Ergo, it makes me think that by them being drunk they willed this legend into being.

Like I stated earlier I’d like to know more about our main character’s relationship to her friends. Why is she so loyal to these people who seem to treat her poorly after her hospital stay? No one’s motives and reasonings are fleshed out other than “I need to save them because they’re my friends”. Unless she is that type of person who attracts poltergeist activity, then I’d ditch them as soon as they showed their true colors.

Overall, to keep from beating a dead horse. I wasn’t impressed with Nothing But Blackened Teeth. The characters are jerks, no one really gets their comeuppance. I just felt like this was a waste of time. Maybe if negative or mixed reviews make you more determined to read a book then I’d check it out from the library.

Posted in Audiobooks, Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: Doctor Who: Scratchman (Adventures of the 4th Doctor #20) by Tom Baker and James Goss

Posted on by elishasbookreview

*No Major Spoilers*

In his first-ever Doctor Who novel, Tom Baker’s incredible imagination is given free rein. A story so epic it was originally intended for the big screen, Scratchman is a gripping, white-knuckle thriller almost forty years in the making.

The Doctor, Harry and Sarah Jane Smith arrive at a remote Scottish island, when their holiday is cut short by the appearance of strange creatures – hideous scarecrows, who are preying on the local population. The islanders are living in fear, and the Doctor vows to save them all. But it doesn’t go to plan – the time travellers have fallen into a trap, and Scratchman is coming for them.

With the fate of the universe hanging in the balance, the Doctor must battle an ancient force from another dimension, one who claims to be the Devil. Scratchman wants to know what the Doctor is most afraid of. And the Doctor’s worst nightmares are coming out to play…

Rating: 5 out of 5.

I’ve been a fan of Doctor Who for several years. For anyone who knows me personally, I collect the Doctor Who spin-off books. I have even reviewed several of them on this blog. Even though Doctor Who isn’t as popular as it was when the reboot started, my passion for this British icon still burns strongly.

This Doctor Who Adventure features the fourth incarnation of the Doctor who is traveling with his companions Sarah Jane Smith, and Harry Sullivan. Sarah Jane is a journalist for the local paper and Harry is a surgeon-general for the secret military group U.N.I.T.

When the Doctor and crew stumbled upon some scarecrows that are infecting the local villagers with a mysterious substance that’s turning everyone into scarecrows. I thought I’d heard some version of this idea before. Interesting how the human psyche fears things that somewhat resemble ourselves.

One of the more memorable moments in this novel features Sarah Jane running back to the TARDIS to fetch a contraption for the Doctor so he can build a mechanism that’ll help defeat the scarecrows. Well, a scarecrow got in by mistake and starts chasing Sarah Jane in the many hallways and corridors of the TARDIS. Well one of the rooms had a device that shows the occupant’s life. From the day they were born up until the day they die.

Well, the scarecrow is about to corner Sarah Jane in this room and infect her with this scarecrow dust and it sees it’s life play out before it. We see the humanity in the voiceless and nameless scarecrow and it gives Sarah Jane enough time to escape the TARDIS which is coming down with this mysterious infection. I love how Doctor Who shows the humanity in the monsters/aliens when they have those characteristics.

Overall, I loved Scratchman, the atmosphere is creepy and suspenseful. I highly recommend listening to the audiobook, but either way, check this story out.

Posted in Audiobooks, Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: Afterlife (Ghostland #2) by Duncan Ralston

Posted on by elishasbookreview

*Only Spoilers for Ghostland #1*

Six months after the “Ghostland Disaster,” Duck Falls has become a reluctant tourist trap, and a new home to the activist group Ghosts Are People Too. When the Return to Ghostland televised event ends in yet another tragedy, ghosts once again fall under scrutiny… along with the effectiveness of the Recurrence Field.

Away at college, survivor Lilian Roth has discovered she’s able to communicate with spirits. She and her best friend, Ben Laramie, use the skills they’ve acquired to free ghosts from their hauntings.

But Rex Garrote, the mastermind behind the Ghostland Disaster, is raising an army of ghosts to slaughter every living person on Earth. Left with no choice but to fight, Ben and Lilian must recruit their own army of freed ghosts, and prepare them for war.

Will it be enough to save the world?

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Last month, I reread Ghostland because I have been wanting to finish off the trilogy since the final book Infinite was released. I see Mr. Ralston’s other book Woom on TikTok and it’s encouraged me to try and finish this trilogy off. So let’s scare up this review of Afterlife.

Let me start off by saying that this is not as bloodbath driven as Ghostland. Afterlife takes more of a focus on the aftermath of the events of Ghostland and how some characters were affected by those events. A couple of characters, Lamb and Andy we meet through the events of the current story, not because of what happened at Ghostland.

One of the minor characters I really enjoyed from the first book was the detective Stan Beadle. He was at Ghostland because of a couple of cases he couldn’t close/solve. His daughter Sam, ends up following in her late father’s footsteps and chases down the clues that’s leading back to Garrote and the Ghostland park. Her story arc was my favorite besides the main characters Ben and Lilian.

Above them, Garrote’s massive face was displayed in mosaic over the entire wall of monitors, missing only the screens blacked out and cracked by the impact of Ms. Amblin’s body. He looked like a religious maniac who’d painted his face with a giant black crucifix from forehead to lips, the paint chipped and cracked. His dark grin filled the second row from the bottom.

Duncan Ralston; Afterlife

I feel the book takes more of a focus on the fact that famous/powerful psychics are committing suicide and that’s what catches Detective Sam Beadle’s attention to begin with. The ‘Ghost Brother’s’ TV show is just one of the nails in the coffin that kicks off the major event of Infinite.

I love how Ben ends up meeting Rex Garrote, and through bits and pieces of dialogue and minor characters we learn just how ambiguous Garrote actually is as a villain. I find it fascinating to try and figure out what is his master plan.

Overall, I really enjoyed Afterlife. I can’t wait to see how this series will be wrapping up. I know there’s going to be a lot of scares and trauma for all characters involved. If you enjoyed Ghostland I would highly recommend you continue the series. I wouldn’t recommend reading it out of order, although I guess you could if you wanted to.