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Title: The Disappearance Boy

Author: Neil Bartlett

Narrator: Neil Bartlett

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 57 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-16-14

Publisher: Audible Studios for Bloomsbury

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 2 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Reggie Rainbow has found the perfect profession for someone who likes to keep himself to himself: It's his job to make sure that some things stay out of sight and out of mind.

Reggie Rainbow is an angry young man who treads the backstage corridors of down-at-heel theatres for a living. Childhood polio has left him with a limp, but his strong arms and nimble fingers are put to perfect use behind the scenes, helping the illusionist Mr Brookes to "disappear" a series of glamorous assistants twice nightly. But in 1953, bookings for magic acts are scarce, even in London. So when Mr. Brookes is unexpectedly offered a slot at the Brighton Grand, Reggie finds himself back out on the road and living in a strange new town. The sea air begins to work its own peculiar kind of magic, and, as the bunting goes up in the streets outside the theatre for the Grand's forthcoming Coronation spectacular, Reggie begins to wonder just how much of his own life is an act - and what might have happened to somebody who disappeared from that life long ago.

Set in the tarnished world of 1950s Variety, The Disappearance Boy is a masterful and dark tale of love lost and found; of blood, sweat - and all the other secrets that are kept hidden away behind those red velvet curtains.

Members Reviews:

Deeply touching and bittersweet

A lovingly narrated story about three very human Post-war theatricals in England; well researched, nicely detailed and quite interesting.

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Title: Finding Willow

Subtitle: Hers, Book 2

Author: Dawn Robertson

Narrator: Natalie Duke

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs and 55 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-12-14

Publisher: Dawn Robertson Publishing

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 3 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Where do you turn when all the bridges you have built in life have gone up in flames? When the ones you love don't protect you from the monsters lurking in the dark? I never thought at twenty-eight-years-old I would have nothing to show for my life. A child given away for strangers to raise. A childhood ruined. A life full of dead ends, drug abuse, and one night stands. I'm at a crossroads, and I have a choice to make. I choose salvation. I choose life. I choose myself, for the first time ever. I will find her. I will find the life I was forced to give up. I just pray that he stays out of my way. I am Starburst Bloom and this is my story. This title is intended for mature audiences.

Members Reviews:

This series keeps getting better!

Starburst Bloom has sent herself under the bus for the last time. She has to clean herself up and fix things before her last chance passes her by.

Star is running from Blue who still thinks she belongs to him. "Belonging" that means he can do whatever he wants to her including beating her black and blue. She can't go through this again so she decides she is finally going home to Woodstock and find her daughter, Willow, she was forced to put up for adoption when she was 16.

Stopping at a motel for much needed sleep was the first sign her luck was changing. Star meets the desk clerk, River , who becomes her first friend. When she goes to meet River for dinner she runs head on into a mountain of a man, and falls into immediate lust.

This man is Chrome, River's brother, he's Star's 2nd change of luck.

From here Star's journey to find her daughter starts. She's going home to Manhattan after she finds Willow but she feels Chrome sneaking into her heart.

This is part 2 of Her's, Seven James story. It's really easy to fall into these characters. I'm jumping right into This Girl Striped, book 3. I loved this book and hope there will be more soon.

Top Recommended gritty read

Starburst "Star" Bloom is nearing 30 and all she has to show for herself is a bad drug addiction, a messed up past, and fame as a porn star. Star decides its time to change her and life and start over- the way things should have been. Star embarks on a journey to reclaim her life and the child she was forced to give up as a teen.

Seven, the main character from Hers, is back in Star's story as the two of them cool off their long-term relations-ship.

"This is how our relationship has always been, and will always be. She is the protector. I am the victim. She is strong. I am weak."

Despite her rough-around-the-edges persona I absolutely loved Star! Her story was heart-breaking and I rooted for a happily ever after for her the whole way. This book kept me interested from page one and has made me devoted to the entire series. We see Star reclaim her self-worth, return to her hometown, and meet a new love interest who is DEFINITELY swoon-worthy. However, you will HAVE to read this yourself to discover if Star actually finds Willow, her long lost daughter.

"I have always been the wrong girl for all the right reasons."

This is a very intense story and tackles some very difficult topics.

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Title: The Last Black Man

Author: M.B. Munroe

Narrator: Anthony Mark Barrow

Format: Unabridged

Length: 44 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-09-14

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 3 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Is the black man who sends his children to a very white private school "a sell out"? Is the black man with a good job and a white wife, a "race betrayer"? The nameless black narrator has done all the above, dragging himself from an impoverished urban ghetto to an upper-middle-class life. He has done everything to assimilate into polite white English society, playing strictly by "their rules". As he attends a polo match with "society's finest"; his mask is slipping; cracks are beginning to appear in his apparently perfect life. Has all the sacrifice been worthwhile?

The Last Black Man is an emotional journey into fear of failure, of desperately trying to fit in, and what it means to be successful, black, and male in contemporary England.

Members Reviews:

There Is So Much In This Short Story

Long after you finish reading M B Munroe's engaging prose you will be thinking about his layered and insightful story. This is the kind of work that has so much woven into it that to really read it you have to ponder to understand or should I say experience what his primary character does. You will understand that success is not a single event but a process and that only through the contribution of many can success be achieved.

Another issue this book raises is the questions of what success really is and when it is achieved, whose success is it? The father's or the son's?

Really wonderful writing.

Powerful and Illuminating

The Last Black Man is a narrative of a black man, who lives in predominately white London. He voices his thoughts, and emotions about his past situation as a man from a poor upbringing, and how he feels about his present, more affluent situation, with his job, family, and the decisions he's made to get there. The author does a brilliant job of allowing the reader to truly look inside the head of our narrator, and present us with realities that we as a society, overlook and in many cases, ignore. Powerful at its core, this story, while short, is a thought provoking must read. *****5 Stars*****

The Last Black Man

This is excellent prose with great plot development. The author finds a soft spot to express what happens out there in reality with practicality. The author has placed himself strategically as the main character and the point of reference. It drives emotions interestingly and creates empathy. I give it a five star.

Great!

This book was great, short but great! As another reviewer mentioned, it's amazing how much emotion and information were packed into such a short space without it feeling like overkill. I recommend this book!

Fabulous

This is an excellent short story, well written and grabbed my attention and made me want more

from the author.

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Title: Incident at Lukla

Author: David Padwa

Narrator: David Padwa

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 hrs and 24 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-04-14

Publisher: Hapax Press

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

This fast-paced novel of the Himalayas imparts a gripping sense of place and offers an intricate espionage story with an unforgettable cast of characters and settings. The droll humor of a madcap plot delivers dramatic counterpoints of political intrigue, sexual ambition, and mystical meditation practice where everything is linked. The narrative action from a region mostly explored by scholars and academics provides enlightening details of Tibetan Buddhism and mountaineering, leading to an amazing chase scene across the worlds highest mountains.

Members Reviews:

This was a lot of fun to read - read it out loud to my ...

The other reviews say it well. This was a lot of fun to read - read it out loud to my wife while she made dinners - and we probably ate out less because of that. Great story, realistic and knowledgeable Buddhism, sympathetic and non judgmental treatment of all sides political, religious, national - people with polarized and conflicting attitudes. Very good treatment of women and men and sex and what they're thinking. I'm so sick of violent, rushed, supposedly steamy sex scenes. Padwa brings a lifetime of involvement in Buddhism, mountain climbing, science, business and a great deal more together in an enjoyable non didactic story that took me places I'd only go in a book. Glad I went there.

A very enjoyable read!

All four story lines that converge towards the end at Lukla are so interesting and unique. Quirky and fun!

Not the greatest mystery writing or story

Not the greatest mystery writing or story, but a great book for reading while trekking in the Everest region -- since that's where the story is set. Taken along with a trekking group, everyone will read it in turn.

High-order fun.

A page-turner packed with Asiatic arcana. High-order fun.

Pynchon meets Tom Robbins at 23,000 feet in the Himalaya

David Padwa's Incident at Lukla is a labyrinthine, Pynchon-like tale of espionage that unravels high in Nepal's Himalaya. An elaborate but fragile drug and weapons trafficking infrastructure has grown up around the collection, transport, and sale of a rare alpine mushroom, Cordyceps sinensis, with an unusual life cycle and highly sought after medicinal properties. Against this backdrop our cast of characters is set: two CIA officers, a peacecorps volunteer, a Nepali mountaineer, a Lama, a Maoist guerilla commander, a colonel in the Chinese Border Forces, and a Chinese general. There is a richness to the novel that is derived in part from the wry humor of a crazy plot in which everyone and everything are linked, and in part from Padwa's ability to move fluidly between swashbuckling action and thick description. It's all there in compelling detail: the cultural and spiritual history of Buddhism and allusions to the American obsession with it, hints at a science of consciousness and spirituality, the history of relations among Nepal, China and India, Nepali social customs and Sherpa culture, the geology and ecology of alpine environments, moutaineering basics, and an amazing chase scene at 23,000 feet. A great read at basecamp or anywhere.

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Title: Abide with Me

Author: Ian Ayris

Narrator: Karl Jenkinson

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs and 52 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-02-14

Publisher: Caffeine Nights Publishing

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 1 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Two boys. John and Kenny. One streetwise and football mad, the other cold and unfathomable.

It's 1975. The heart of London's East End. As John celebrates the Hammers beating Fulham in the Cup Final, Kenny tumbles out the door of the new people's house across the street having taken a beating of a different kind.

When the new school year begins, John befriends Kenny, defending him from the ridicule of his classmates. But when you become mates with someone as odd, as downright terrifying as Kenny, nothing is ever straightforward. Amidst the turbulent years of late seventies London, the lives of John and Kenny spiral out of control. They meet again, years later, and local villain, Ronnie Swordfish, is after Kenny's head. All John can do is watch. Kenny, he ain't saying a word. He never does.

So when Ronnie gives the order to fetch his three foot Samurai sword, John thinks the game's all but up. Thing is, he don't know the half of it...

Abide With Me is a story of football, friendship, and hope. And gangsters.

A story of how two boys walked blind into the darkness... and emerged as men.

Members Reviews:

Excellent

What made the experience of listening to Abide with Me the most enjoyable?

I read the book in print and its so specific to it's time and setting I kept hearing the words in the accent already, though through my American filter. Now I could hear the world of this fascinating book told as it was meant. It really enhanced the experience of an already superb book.

What did you like best about this story?

It's poignant, gritty, unexpectedly emotional at times. It's a coming of age tale, a crime story, a snapshot of London at a specific point in time. It all comes together in a fully realized world that transported me the way great books are meant to.

Have you listened to any of Karl Jenkinsons other performances before? How does this one compare?

I had not. He nailed the tone and attitude of this book perfectly.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

It would probably do well in one sitting. I gave it 3-4 days, but it's a compact story you could knock out in one afternoon or long car ride.

Any additional comments?

A great book made even better by a stellar read.

A good listen to a British book set in East London

If you could sum up Abide with Me in three words, what would they be?

East London, kids, gangsters

What other book might you compare Abide with Me to, and why?

No idea!

Have you listened to any of Karl Jenkinsons other performances? How does this one compare?

I believe this is one of Karl's first, and is a very solid performance.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Without giving the game away - what happens to Kenny at the end of a difficult life, is very moving.

Any additional comments?

The first part of the book takes you through the life of a young boy, and it took me a little while to adjust to hearing an older man's voice. However, as the story unfolded, and the coarse language which punctuates the book continued, I think this made a lot of sense, and added to the retrospective feel of the book. Karl's voice was comfortable to listen to, with a wonderful gravelly tone to it.

The story was moving and I was sucked in to discovering more about these two boys lives, always hoping for a better future for them.

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Title: Little Egypt

Author: Lesley Glaister

Narrator: Janice McKenzie

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 17 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-01-14

Publisher: Oakhill Publishing

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 3 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Little Egypt was once a well-to-do country house in the north of England. Now its derelict and trapped on a small island of land between a railway, a dual carriageway and a superstore, and although it looks deserted it isnt.

Nonagenarian twins, Isis and Osiris, still live in the home they were born in, and from which in the 1920s their obsessive Egyptologist parents left them to search for the fabled tomb of Herihor a search from which they never returned.

Isis and Osiris have stayed in the house, guarding a terrible secret, for all their long lives until chance meeting between Isis and young American anarchist Spike, sparks an unlikely friendship and proves a catalyst for change.

Critic Reviews:

"Glaister's rounded gift is to show life as it really is." (Independent on Sunday)

"Superb. Glaister's ratcheting unease and suspense are flawlessly paced." (Glasgow Herald)

"Glaister's fresh and vivid voice shouts above the insipid ranks of so much contemporary fiction." (The Times)

"This tale of imprisonment and neglect explores our passion for nostalgia, with hints of Dodie Smiths darker side. An excellent read that pulls at the heart as well as the head." (Victoria Clark, The Lady)

Members Reviews:

Riveting!

What a ride! Should be made into a mini-series, couldn't stop listening. Stories inside stories. Delicious and rich in emotion, character and mystery.

Put yourself to sleep with this one !!!!

Would you try another book written by Lesley Glaister or narrated by Janice McKenzie?

No ! Not by Lesley, perhaps Janice as she did her best with this "Tripe"

What will your next listen be?

Hum ! Not quite sure but it won't be anything like this one ,I Hope ...

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

Perhaps Janice McKenzie she has a nice voice but way to slow ,I had to put up the speed in the attempt to keep awake!,

The story was weak, childish, and long drawn out. Too much padding about Diddly Squat !

Don't use a credit on this one , you will be Sorry !!

If this book were a film would you go see it?

A big Fat NO !!

Any additional comments?

I think by now you will realize I didn't enjoy this !!

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Title: Nobody Survived the Wilderness

Author: Sally Demaray Hull

Narrator: Steven Mosley

Format: Unabridged

Length: 7 hrs and 16 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-21-14

Publisher: Sally Hull

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

This book is complete in itself and is not part of a series. Lee Graham is faced with the decision of remaining in his beloved city, whose pollution is toxic to his lungs, or taking up the offer of free land in a Michigan wilderness. The magazine that offers Lee the free land has one stipulation: he cannot step foot off of the designated area in the wilderness for an entire year without forfeiting the land. The magazine crew covering the story consists of self-centered, conniving Photographer Cal Tyler, his sister Kate the harried writer who is also the guardian of their teenage brother Sean. For his part, Sean is doing his best to be sent to Juvenile Hall. Lee's faith in God is tested by the harshness of wilderness living as well as by living next door to the three Tylers. Even he begins wondering if anyone will survive the wilderness.

Members Reviews:

Great reading

I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who loves the outdoors, the adventure of starting over somewhere and God.

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Title: Christmas at the Crescent

Subtitle: A Noella

Author: Veronica Henry

Narrator: Lucy Price-Lewis

Format: Unabridged

Length: 2 hrs and 18 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-20-14

Publisher: Orion Publishing Group

Ratings: 2 of 5 out of 1 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Behind the gorgeous Georgian sweep of Pelham Crescent, Bath, everyone's getting ready for Christmas.

At Number 14, Josie Ballard is up to her ears in brandy, raisins and cherries as she battles to make forty Christmas puddings to sell at Bath Christmas Market. Ever since Giles walked out the day their baby was born, Josie has had to work twice as hard to make ends meet. Sacrificing a career as a chef, her famous steamed puddings keep her and her gorgeous baby boy Titus afloat. Almost. So when, in the middle of Stir Up Sunday, a new neighbour in the Crescent complains about the noise that Titus is making, Josie gives him a basinful...

Giles, meanwhile, is finding life in the fast lane with his uber-glamorous new girlfriend Rebecca rather draining. With one party blurring into another, he's now wondering if he hasn't made a terrible mistake in abandoning Josie and his child. Isn't it time he grew up, his mother asks, and Giles is starting to agree. So when he discovers Josie has a handsome new neighbour, Giles decides it's time to step up to his parental duties.

Christmas just got complicated.

Members Reviews:

Don't waste a credit on this

What would have made Christmas at the Crescent better?

Longer or cheaper ! This is a very insubstantial audiobook for the price of one credit. I know it is a novella but I feel that this should be reflected in the price. Also please be aware that 18 minutes of this was taken up by Christmas recipes which I was not interested in.

Has Christmas at the Crescent put you off other books in this genre?

No, I do enjoy a good chick lit novel. However I do feel that audiobook listeners are being ripped off by chick lit authors Christmas novellas that are available on kindle at a fraction of the cost.

Would you be willing to try another one of Lucy Price-Lewiss performances?

I have listened to a few of her performances before and while she is not the worst narrator I wouldn't be keen on listening to her performances in the future.

You didnt love this book--but did it have any redeeming qualities?

I chose this novella as it was by Veronica Henry and set in Bath - a city I know well. Unfortunately it was far too short and predictable. However it does have a real Christmassy feel and I did love the characters. It would be good to see them in a full length novel.

Any additional comments?

Don't waste a credit on this. I felt ripped off when I came to the end.

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Titel: Ich bleibe hier

Autor:: Catherine Ryan Hyde

Erzähler: Elke Schützhold

Format: Unabridged

Spieldauer: 11 hrs and 31 mins

Sprache: Deutsch

Veröffentlichungsdatum: 11-13-14

Herausgeber: AmazonCrossing

Bewertung: 2.5 von 5 von 2 Stimmen

Kategorien: Fiction, Contemporary

Zusammenfassung des Herausgebers:

Der ehemalige Broadway-Tänzer Billy Shine leidet an Agoraphobie und hat seit fast einem Jahrzehnt keinen Fuß mehr vor die Tür seines Appartements gesetzt. Seine Nachbarn sind die attraktive Nagelpflegerin Rayleen, die einsame alte Mrs Hinman, der engstirnige und übellaunige Mr Lafferty, der gutherzige Felipe und die neunjährige Grace - und ihre mit der Drogensucht kämpfende Mutter Eileen.

Billy hat nur kurze Blicke auf sie erhascht - aber die meisten von ihnen haben ihn nie gesehen. Doch dann sieht er Grace täglich stundenlang auf der Vordertreppe des Gebäudes sitzen, in unmittelbarer Nähe zu seiner Veranda. Durch diese Änderung der natürlichen Ordnung beunruhigt, schafft Billy es weit genug heraus, um Grace zu fragen, warum sie nicht ins Haus geht, wo es sicherer ist. Ihre Antwort: "Wenn ich drinnen bin, erfährt keiner, dass ich in Schwierigkeiten bin. Und dann kann mir niemand helfen." Diese Antwort ändert alles.

>> Diese ungekürzte Hörbuch-Fassung wird Ihnen exklusiv von Audible präsentiert und ist ausschließlich im Download erhältlich.

©2014 Amazon EU S.à r.l. (P)2014 Audible GmbH

Mitglieder Bewertungen:

Need to hear in English.

Need to hear English. How to get English? Please change the reading to English.Please change language.

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Title: The Cement Garden

Author: Ian McEwan

Narrator: Julian Rhind-Tutt

Format: Unabridged

Length: 4 hrs and 26 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-13-14

Publisher: Random House Audiobooks

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

In the relentless summer heat, four abruptly orphaned children retreat into a shadowy, isolated world, and find their own strange and unsettling ways of fending for themselves

Members Reviews:

Review without Spoiler - Pros & Cons

The Cement Garden was written in 1978 a is a very short novel (hardcover 153 pages) authored by Ian McEwan. I list the pros and cons of this book without giving a spoiler:

1. This short novel had me from the beginning and I read the book in its entirety in one sitting.

2. I found the taboo subjects of consensual sibling incest, gender identity / communication, coming of age, and attraction to be written in a realistic manner, as well as the subjects of death and dying and family communication.

Cons:

1. The only part I don't like at all was the last two paragraphs. The ending to me makes little sense to Derek's motive as he will face repercussions too. It would have seemed a better ending just to leave them all in bed without knowing how much longer they could go on or to continue the story (so I just made up my own ending in my mind).

2. WARNING: IF STORIES THAT INVOLVE SIBLING INCEST UPSET YOU, THIS BOOK MIGHT NOT BE FOR YOU.

Short, dark and brilliant

Sometimes short fiction is the best fiction and I think it's the mark of a great writer when they can capture a world and the lives within that world in the space of less than 200 pages. Clocking in at 152 pages The Cement Garden is on the border between long short story or short novel but either way it's top quality writing.

An English family living in the rundown part of town lose their father to a heart attack then their mother to sickness. The children hide their newly orphaned status and try to continue life as best they can. They experience all the usual trials of puberty and growing up with no guidance as they idle away the days in their ramshackle old house. Dark undercurrents of sexuality, incest and loss bubble away beneath the surface of this book and the author portrays what life is like when you have no-one very well.

Easily read in a single sitting this book will haunt you for weeks afterwards.

The Children of the Rock

It is hard not to like anything written by Ian McEwan. He's a master story teller. The Cement Garden is about four children who, having lost their parents about the same time, are left alone to to take care of themselves. Thus, unsupervised they gradually succumb to their lower instincts and forget the norms of behavior as taught by their parents. This transformation is so gradual and so skillfully presented by McEwan that we, the readers, find ourselves at a loss when we reach the macabre ending. How did we get to this point? He takes us step by step through the daily lives of these children. Though each child or teen is locked in his or her own world, together they form a subculture of their own which is in total contrast with the one outside of their isolated house. One wonders, however if the foundation of this breakdown was not already laid down by the parents before they each died by different natural causes. When the father set the first rock in the garden.

It ended too soon

I thought it was the beginning of a really good novel, and then it ended. I guess I didn't realize it was a short story 'til it was over.

the cement garden

The book is beautifully written, the theme is very original and unique.

I would have given the book 5 stars, except for the characters.