Listen to Best Full Audiobooks in Teens, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

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Title: The Keeper

Subtitle: Vega Jane, Book 2

Author: David Baldacci

Narrator: Fiona Hardingham

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 56 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-08-15

Publisher: Scholastic Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 442 votes

Genres: Teens, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Publisher's Summary:

Master storyteller David Baldacci is back with The Keeper, the follow-up to his instant number-one global best-selling and award-winning fantasy debut, The Finisher.

Vega Jane was always told no one could leave the town of Wormwood. She was told there was nothing outside but the Quag, a wilderness filled with danger and death. And she believed it - until the night she stumbled across a secret that proved that everything she knew was a lie. Now just one thing stands between Vega Jane and freedom - the Quag. In order to leave Wormwood and discover the truth about her world, Vega and her best friend, Delph, must find a way to make it across a terrifying land of bloodthirsty creatures and sinister magic. But the Quag is worse than Vega Jane's darkest imagining. It's a living, breathing prison designed to keep enemies out and the villagers of Wormwood in. The Quag will throw everything at Vega Jane. It will try to break her. It will try to kill her. And survival might come at a price not even Vega Jane is willing to pay.

Master storyteller David Baldacci unleashes a hurricane of action and adrenaline that takes listeners to the breaking point.

Members Reviews:

Looking forward to book 3

The Vega Jane books are a great new series from David Baldacci. Breaking from his usual thriller stories about bad ass heroes hunting government corruption and terrorists, David Baldacci has created a whole new world about a people called Wogs. The Wogs live in a mystical land where magic is real and monsters prowl. Vega Jane is our our heroine, her best friend Delph is a giant of a man, and her dog Harry 2 is loyal beyond measure. Together they must conquer the Quag, a mystical forest surrounding Wormwood. In this story we learn how the Quag came to be and why.

The book ended leaving me wanting more so I hope it doesn't take too long for book 3 to come out :)!

If you like fantasy books such as Lord of The Rings, Chronicles Of Narnia, and the movie The Village by M. Night Shyamalan then you will like this book!

Fiona Hardingham did a great job reading this fantasy tale and gave it a nice British flare.

Overall I enjoyed this story and will read book 3 but it was not quite as good at the first book in the series. I have high hopes for book 3 as David Baldacci is one of my all time favorite authors :)

Why change readers?

Excellent book and well read, but it does not make sense to start a book in a series with 1 Reader and then switch to a new reader for the second book, especially when the book is written in first person from the perspective of the main character in the book. Vaga Jane was one person in the first book and almost someone else in the second book because the reader was different, thus the tone was different. This should never happen in a series!

Need more Vega Jane!!!!!!

Clever. Interesting. I would like to know where Quinn is? I guess and hope there will be a third book!

thrilling

i was on the edge of my seat! I could feel every ounce of excitement, fear, pain and sense of victory.

i hope they make this into a movie.

So Glad I decided on book 2

I am so delighted that I did not stop at book 1. Changing the narrator gave this story and the main character a whole new personality. I absolutely loved it. What an incredible turn of events and evolution to the story. Definitely much better and the first book.

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Title: Hunter

Author: Mercedes Lackey

Narrator: Amy Landon

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 24 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-01-15

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 1887 votes

Genres: Teens, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Publisher's Summary:

They came after the Diseray. Some were terrors ripped from our collective imaginations, remnants of every mythology across the world. And some were like nothing anyone had ever dreamed up, even in their worst nightmares.

Monsters.

Long ago, the barriers between our world and the Otherworld were ripped open, and it's taken centuries to bring back civilization in the wake. Now, the luckiest Cits live in enclosed communities, behind walls that keep them safe from the hideous monsters fighting to break through. Others are not so lucky.

To Joyeaux Charmand, who has been a Hunter in her tight-knit mountain community since she was a child, every Cit without magic deserves her protection from dangerous Othersiders. Then she is called to Apex City, where the best Hunters are kept to protect the most important people.

Joy soon realizes that the city's powerful leaders care more about luring Cits into a false sense of security than protecting them. More and more monsters are getting through the barriers, and the close calls are becoming too frequent to ignore. Yet the Cits have no sense of how much danger they're in - to them, Joy and her corps of fellow Hunters are just action stars they watch on TV.

When an act of sabotage against Joy takes an unbearable toll, Joy uncovers a terrifying conspiracy. There is something much worse than the usual monsters infiltrating Apex. And it may be too late to stop them.

Members Reviews:

Refreshingly new

I'll start by saying I'm a HUGE Lackey fan and have been for almost 15 years. I will say that some of her more recent stuff had started to feel a little stale. This however is a very big departure (in my opinion) from her usual stuff. I really like that she decided to take a stab at distopian/post-apocalyptic type stuff because he take on it is just similar enough and just different enough to be exciting. I will agree with other reviewers in that Joy is very Katniss-esque but the introduction of magic and fairytale into this genre really makes what could have been a boring repeat of Divergent and The Hunger Games into something new and exciting.

That being said there was the similar Lackey pitfall of most of her characters in that the main character's internal monologue got extremely tedious at times. Lackey does action very well but when the action gets paused for a seemingly endless string of "what ifs" it can be a bit maddening. That was truly my only complaint with the story though and I'm really looking forward to the next installment in this exciting new series.

My only other complaint would be that the narrator did one very dull, deep, slow voice for every male character and it got very old very fast, not to mention confusing. Overall though I'd say this book was well worth the credit and got me excited for a Lackey series in a way I haven't been since I first found Talia.

The Story Vs The Narrator

This is the personal story of a girl, newly released from an isolated society, with a mission to protect people and slay monsters. Though the descriptions in the book are a little dull, the world built is interesting and full of history.

There are two major problems with this audiobook:

1. There are 1.5 interesting characters, the villain and half of the main character. After 3 hrs, one would expect there to be a cast of some kind, but there isn't.

2. This is a first person story narrated by an emotionless robot.

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Title: Lair of Dreams

Subtitle: A Diviners Novel

Author: Libba Bray

Narrator: January LaVoy

Format: Unabridged

Length: 20 hrs and 12 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-25-15

Publisher: Listening Library (Audio)

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 513 votes

Genres: Teens, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Publisher's Summary:

Audie Award, Young Adult, 2016

After a supernatural showdown with a serial killer, Evie O'Neill has outed herself as a Diviner. Now that the world knows of her ability to "read" objects and therefore read the past, she has become a media darling, earning the title, "America's Sweetheart Seer." But not everyone is so accepting of the Diviners' abilities....

Meanwhile, mysterious deaths have been turning up in the city, victims of an unknown sleeping sickness. Can the Diviners descend into the dreamworld and catch a killer?

Members Reviews:

Another Winner from Bray

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, the prose alone make it worth listening to/reading. The narrator makes the story come alive. There are several parts that seem to drag on endlessly, but that is probably due to my own impatience to get to the end. Now, of course, I'm sad that it is over and so I will have to start again from the beginning and savor it this time, so I'm sure I'll like those parts more the second time around.

What other book might you compare Lair of Dreams to and why?

I really don't know. Obviously it goes well with its prequel, but these novels are in a league of their own, combining YA romance problems, sci-fi, fantasy, and mystery. I loved Bray's debut trilogy, "The Gemma Doyle Trilogy," AND her book "Beauty Queens," AND this series is quickly joining the list. I cannot get enough of her stories.

Which character as performed by January LaVoy was your favorite?

Sam Lloyd or Theta Knight

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

Yes, but it is very lengthy, so that is not possible.

Any additional comments?

EVERYONE SHOULD READ THIS SERIES. Unless you're some kind of fuddy-duddy or you just don't like YA fantasy/scifi novels (basically making you some kind of fuddy-duddy).

Also, for fans of Bray's previous Gemma Doyle trilogy there's a tiny easter egg/treat in this second book for us!

Libba Bray at Her Finest

Libba Bray knows how to tell a story, or, in the case of The Diviners and Lair of Dreams, layers of story upon story. The second in the Diviners series, Lair of Dreams eerily mimics the climate in the US today: the fear of immigrants, the authoritarian views of many, the corruption. Evie and Sam and the rest of the characters pull the reader into a world of yesterday, while, all at the same time, connecting fluidly with the present-day America.

As far as the performance of the novel, January Lavoy was spectacular. I don't believe I've enjoyed an Audible book as much as I've enjoyed this one; her performance brought the book to life!

Better than the first book

I bought this book primarily on the strength of January LaVoy's performance, and was pleasantly surprised to find that many of the things that annoyed me about the first book were better here: the characters were more interesting, the plot less formulaic, and the ending more concise. I'm cautiously optimistic for the next installment!

when is the next book

love the story, the narrator, the characters. want the next book now! !!!

January LaVoy is a Joy!

I am so blown away by January's skills as a voice artist. She brings each character to life impeccably.

Libba Bray's writing is exactly what I was looking for. So glad I stumbled on this series.

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Title: Specials

Subtitle: Uglies, Book 3

Author: Scott Westerfeld

Narrator: Emily Tremaine

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 12 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-25-15

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 346 votes

Genres: Teens, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Publisher's Summary:

"Special Circumstances": The words have sent chills down Tally's spine since her days as a repellent, rebellious ugly. Back then Specials were a sinister rumor - frighteningly beautiful, dangerously strong, breathtakingly fast. Ordinary pretties might live their whole lives without meeting a Special. But Tally's never been ordinary. And now, in the third book in the series, Tally's been turned into a Special: a superamped fighting machine engineered to keep the uglies down and the pretties stupid. The strength, the speed, and the clarity and focus of her thinking feel better than anything Tally can remember. Most of the time. One tiny corner of her heart still remembers something more. Still, it's easy to tune that out - until Tally's offered a chance to stamp out the rebels of the New Smoke permanently. It all comes down to one last choice: listen to that tiny, faint heartbeat or carry out the mission she's programmed to complete. Either way,Tally's world will never be the same.

Members Reviews:

Favorite of the Bunch

Would you consider the audio edition of Specials to be better than the print version?

Before I bought the audiobook I read the whole series back when they were first published. I seem to recall throwing the book a few times in moments of frustration--can't do that to an audiobook. Unfair question though as I almost always prefer audiobooks to their printed siblings.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Fausto! I've always had a soft spot for Fausto even though he was never anything more then a main-minor character. I think that he "got it" more then most. He seemed to always be on the up and up even though nobody directly included him. I loved his awareness, determination, and independence.

Have you listened to any of Emily Tremaines other performances before? How does this one compare?

I've listened to her read the other books in the series. The reading is consistant from one book to the next if a little disconnected and flat.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I found myself becoming frustrated with the characters sometimes as they just 'didn't get it' yet. I also found myself worried for them.

Dull plot & frustrating protagonist

The main character's motivations by the final novel make no sense. She doesn't ever grow or evolve her thinking. Spends each book just wanting things to be the same even after each major change. Stay ugly, now stay pretty, now stay special. Stubborn and complacent. Easily casts away old relationships in favor of new ones. Overall frustrating lead to follow.

progressively worse...

Ugh! This series starred off interesting but each book has gotten worse. This one is hardly worth reading. I feel like the only way one could really like this series is if they haven't read a lot of books. Of all the books I've read/listened to this series is not my new favorite.

Great book

The best book of the entire series!!! Love it. I haven't started extras yet but I feel like the ending of the 3rd book was the end as though there shouldn't be another. I'm kinda shocked by the way this book ended that there's another waiting I expected more of a cliff hanger like the previous books.

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Title: White Raven

Subtitle: The Raven Series Book 1

Author: J.L. Weil

Narrator: Caitlin Kelly

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 24 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-21-15

Publisher: J.L. Weil

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 468 votes

Genres: Teens, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Publisher's Summary:

It only took one heartbeat to change my life - one chilling phone call in the middle of the night.

And then, as if my life didn't already suck, my dad sends my brother and me to some idyllic island for the summer to live with a grandma we never met. WTH. Naturally, I rebel. In the end, I find myself shipped off to Raven Hallow... and bored to tears.

Until I get an eyeful of the mind-bendingly gorgeous Zane Hunter. The dark-haired cutie makes my pulse go bonkers, and I think, maybe this might not be so bad after all. Six feet of swoon-inducing looks, with a hint of Celtic charm in his voice, he was the type of guy that left a string of broken hearts in his wake. And I had all the heartbreak I could handle.

Yet, there is something uncanny, almost supernatural about Zane, and it's not just his devastating smirk. No matter how much distance I put between us, Raven Hallow isn't big enough, and the sparking tension between is undeniable. Of course, the one person I want to avoid becomes my salvation.

My past comes back to terrorize me. Someone wants me dead, and the closer I get to the truth, the more I realize my whole life is a lie. I am no longer sure what is more frightening - the attempts on my life or the guy whose heart and soul are synchronized with mine.

Members Reviews:

Premise Overpowered by Weak Characterization

I struggled to finish the first few chapters - never reached the halfway point, let alone the end of this mediocre YA novel. It takes real talent for an author to write authentic young characters that can appeal to youth as well as adults...let's be clear, that J.L. Weil does not possess this level of talent. The main character's inner musings are shallow and barely tolerable...even her mother being murdered before the book's opening doesn't make me as a reader get on board with her. She literally says "I'm different from other girls" when in fact her inane complaints make her seem like every annoying girl stereotype ever committed to paper.

Swoon-worthy hero makes this book exciting!

Any additional comments?

The White Raven by J.L. Weil is an exciting YA paranormal with a young plucky heroine, Piper, whose mother was recently murdered and an old fashioned hot alpha-male bad-boy, Zane, who makes it his job to protect the heroine from the same forces that killed her mother. The angst and sexual tension between the two main characters was very realistic. The hero reminded me a lot of the hero in Meg Cabot's Abandon series, which is a reimagining of the Hades/Persephone myth. In the Abandoned series, the hero is the keeper of the underworld. In the White Raven Zane is the son of the Grim-Reaper who helps souls cross over into the after life.

I absolutely loved the premise of this book, which is not that unique: one group trying to destroy a much smaller group so they can possess all of the power held by the smaller group. What is unique though is that three different communities live in Raven Hallow and each one has superhuman powers with characteristics similar to certain bird species. I especially appreciated the thought that two souls can reach out to each other and be synchronized, especially across different "breeds." What I didn't like was how foul-mouthed Piper was, especially when she is verbally sparring with our hero.

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Title: The Master Magician

Author: Charlie N. Holmberg

Narrator: Amy McFadden

Format: Unabridged

Length: 6 hrs and 47 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-02-15

Publisher: Brilliance Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 1771 votes

Genres: Teens, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Publisher's Summary:

Throughout her studies, Ceony Twill has harbored a secret, one she's kept from even her mentor, Emery Thane. She's discovered how to practice forms of magic other than her own - an ability long thought impossible.

While all seems set for Ceony to complete her apprenticeship and pass her upcoming final magician's exam, life quickly becomes complicated. To avoid favoritism, Emery sends her to another paper magician for testing, a Folder who despises Emery and cares even less for his apprentice. To make matters worse, a murderous criminal from Ceony's past escapes imprisonment. Now she must track the power-hungry convict across England before he can take his revenge. With her life and loved ones hanging in the balance, Ceony must face a criminal who wields the one magic that she does not, and it may prove more powerful than all her skills combined.

The whimsical and captivating follow-up to The Paper Magician and The Glass Magician, The Master Magician will enchant readers of all ages.

Members Reviews:

An endearing, enchanting culmination to the series

Charlie Holmberg is a masterful literary tight-rope walker; she has written that fine line between fierce vs. frenetic, endearing vs. cloying, inventive vs. a show-off and clear headed vs. cold-hearted. The main protagonist is an almost ideal character in that she doesn't come off as a constructed character at all. She is clear headed, except when it comes to her own safety. She is brilliant except for some moments of her own relationships. She is brave, physically and emotionally, but not (usually) brash. She is not perfect, thank goodness. She can be impatient. Her feisty temper can flare; it is all too easy to push her buttons. She is less self-focused than Katniss or Bella, more aware than Triss or Clary and less annoying than Hermione (at least at the beginning of the HP series). She has heart, grit and talent. In short, the perfect protagonist (made better by not being perfect). I really like Emery as well, but he leans a little too much toward the perfect side; of course, this comes from the perspective of a guy who knows he doesn't live up to anything like Magician Thane. Ms. Holmberg draws their relationship and the series to a delightful culmination in The Master Magician.

As is my wont, I went between the Kindle and Audible versions of the book. Amy McFadden conveys the care and confidence of Emery, the pragmatism of Mg. Patrice Aviosky and the awkward infatuation of Bennet Cooper. Immersed within the spell of her voice, you can easily visualize Bennet's shyness, puppy-dog look and melancholic knowledge that he isn't really making any headway with Ceony. Her male voices are great, she keeps consistent, perfect inflection within each character and always keeps the attention on the story, not her narration. Absolutely spot-on. If you like audiobooks, this is one you'll want to get.

For full review: wp.me/p2XCwQ-19F

Great ending to a great trilogy

Loved this series. Fell in love with the MCs, their world, and their story. I hope there's a spinoff series in the future. Something a la Prudence by Gail Carriger. That would make it even better.

Perfect End.

Again, a wonderful story full of suspense, detail, and magic. The ending, of course, was perfect.

The second and this last book has much more romance the the first, but it's the sweet kind.

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Title: The Ables

Author: Jeremy Scott

Narrator: Jeremy Scott

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 52 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-01-15

Publisher: Clovercroft Publishing

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 1838 votes

Genres: Teens, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Publisher's Summary:

I did have fantastic hearing, mostly by virtue of being blind.But that couldn't actually mean that he's trying to tell me I have super powers, right? Because that would be ridiculous.

It wasn't the sex talk he expected. Phillip Sallinger's dad has told him he's a custodian - a guardian - and his genetically inherited power is telekinesis. He'll learn to move objects with his mind. Excited to begin superhero high school until he discovers he's assigned to a special-ed class for disabled empowered kids, he suddenly feels like an outsider. Bullied, threatened, and betrayed, Phillip struggles even as he and his friends - calling themselves the Ables - find ways to maximize their powers to overcome their disabilities and are the first to identify the growing evil threatening humanity. As vital custodians disappear and the custodian leadership is mired in indecision, a mysterious and powerful figure taunts Phillip, and the enemy is poised to strike. But what if the next "one who does all", the multigifted custodian predicted to come, is one of the Ables?

The Ables is a fast-paced, captivating debut novel from Jeremy Scott, a bold new voice in fantasy and sci fi and already a widely popular storyteller as cocreator and narrator of CinemaSins, a YouTube channel that has amassed more than 3.8 million subscribers in under two years.

Members Reviews:

The reading was way too fast! I love this book.

The reading was way too fast! I love this book. Figured out the ending pretty quick, but great plot development. Key word: development, because this is a book that gets better over time.

Genuinely entertaining

I don't read a lot of fiction, but I'm a fan of the author's CinemaSins YouTube channel so I decided to give this one a try. And I'm glad I did - The Ables is a thoroughly entertaining adventure tale reminiscent of childhood favourites like The Goonies.

Jeremy is a capable story teller with a visual style that shines through even in a novel written from a blind person's point of view. His experience with film is evident in the structure and story beats, which would translate almost one-to-one into a film script if ever this story were picked up by a studio.

The author also proves to be a capable narrator, which is not surprising given his background in entertainment. It took me a few minutes to settle in to his fast rhythm of speech, but once I did I found it brought the scenes to life more vividly than if a slower speaker had been running the show.

I did see some of the plot twists coming a fair way in advance. I imagine it's hard to fine tune a story like this to the point where everything is sufficiently foreshadowed so the twists make sense when they come, without giving the game away too early for most readers. For me personally, some were a bit too obvious, but I don't know if that means they really are too obvious or if I'm just smarter than average (if I had to choose, I'd say it's definitely the second one).

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Title: The Ruby Circle

Subtitle: A Bloodlines Novel

Author: Richelle Mead

Narrator: Emily Shaffer, Alden Ford

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins

Language: English

Release date: 02-10-15

Publisher: Listening Library

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 1322 votes

Genres: Teens, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Publisher's Summary:

The epic conclusion to Richelle Mead's New York Times best-selling Bloodlines series is finally here....

Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets - and human lives.

After their secret romance is exposed, Sydney and Adrian find themselves facing the wrath of both the Alchemists and the Moroi in this electrifying conclusion to Richelle Mead's New York Times best-selling Bloodlines series.

When the life of someone they both love is put on the line, Sydney risks everything to hunt down a deadly former nemesis. Meanwhile, Adrian becomes enmeshed in a puzzle that could hold the key to a shocking secret about spirit magic, a secret that could shake the entire Moroi world.

Members Reviews:

Disappointed with this book

I have loved every one of the novels in the bloodlines series. I think this could have gone out with a bigger bang.

loved it!!! BUT...

what a great ending to the series!!! I LOVE this series and the end did not disappoint. the only problem I had with listening to it was Emily Shafer didnt sound like Sydney to me. she made the action scenes sound a little cheesy. But she wasn't horrible.

Brilliant Gem of a book

If you love any of her other books then fasten your seat belts as you get ready for another adventure.

great book

as always this was a great story with real and likeable characters with great depth.

Flawless Finish to an amazing series!

First of all I have to say I love all of Richelle Meads books! She always gets me hooked! I am sad that this series is over I will miss all of my favorite characters. I enjoyed the narration of this but I think I enjoyed the original narrator doing adrians voice I liked the accent she gave him to have changed to a male in the las try few books kind of ruins my image of him.The ending was absolutely perfect.

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Title: Fairest

Subtitle: The Lunar Chronicles - Levana's Story

Author: Marissa Meyer

Narrator: Rebecca Soler

Format: Unabridged

Length: 6 hrs and 36 mins

Language: English

Release date: 01-27-15

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 1814 votes

Genres: Teens, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Publisher's Summary:

Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?

Fans of the Lunar Chronicles know Queen Levana as a ruler who uses her "glamour" to gain power. But long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, Levana lived a very different story - a story that has never been told - until now.

Marissa Meyer spins yet another unforgettable tale about love and war, deceit and death.

Members Reviews:

Not as sexual as other reviews imply

I listened to this book out of order, I listened to Cinder and then Fairest. This is the story of how Levana came to be the vicious ruler that we hear about Cinder, Scarlet and Cress.

Queen Levana didn't have very loving parents, and she had a truly pathological sister. We learn the sad tale of how Levana came to have the scars she had, and about her ruthless rise to the thrown, and what she was willing to do in order to never lose it.

A lot of reviews talk about the sexual aspect of this book; I feel that it's worth mentioning that, just like in Harry Potter, you grow with the book. As you move further into the series, the age of the reader is presumed to have grown as well. I don't think the book was overly sexual; but if the reader hasn't learned anything about sex, then you won't want them to learn about a 16 year old girl losing her virginity.

Remarkably, the sex wasn't the part of the book that I found upsetting. I was more upset/disturbed by the story of Levana's accident, and the things that she did to secure her role as queen.

**Possible spoiler; but related to sexual aspects of the book**

The only sexual events in this book include: the older sister sleeping with many men, in no detail other than you know that the relationship is sexual. Levana (at age 16) using her glamour to get a man to take her virginity, and then a brief sentence where she mentions the blood on the post coital sheets. Otherwise, Levana talks about wanting a baby, and sharing a bed with her prince, in little to no detail.

*I hope this information helps listeners decide if this appropriate to share with younger listeners/readers.

For fans only

This should really be called The Lunar Chronicles 0.5, not 3.5, because it is a prequel that takes us up to the start of events in Cinder. It's an interesting backstory on Queen Levana. As a fan of the series, I'm glad to have listened to it, although you can easily give it a miss and not lose any momentum of the main story arc.

However, my primary criterion for an audiobook's success is 'Will I listen to it again?', and by this measure, Fairest fails completely. I never intend to listen to this book again. It has no humor, no light moments at all. It is unrelievedly dark and sad, as Levana first experiences horrible physical and mental abuse as a child, always feels unloved, and grows up quietly turning into a sociopath. How many times would you want to listen to a child being forced into a fire, or a absolute monarch deciding to cut off a servant's feet so she'll have nothing better to do than sew the queen's clothes? See what I mean? It's ALL like that.

Rebecca Soler's narration is fine, but it's not going to redeem a story like this for me.

Also, buyer beware that this book really only clocks in at around 6 hours, which I generally feel is not worth an entire credit.

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Title: Undivided

Author: Neal Shusterman

Narrator: Luke Daniels

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 hrs and 57 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-04-14

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 845 votes

Genres: Teens, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Publisher's Summary:

Teens control the fate of America in the fourth and final book in the New York Times best-selling Unwind dystology by Neal Shusterman.

Proactive Citizenry, the company that created Cam from the parts of unwound teens, has a plan: to mass produce rewound teens like Cam for military purposes. And below the surface of that horror lies another shocking level of intrigue: Proactive Citizenry has been suppressing technology that could make unwinding completely unnecessary. As Conner, Risa, and Lev uncover these startling secrets, enraged teens begin to march on Washington to demand justice and a better future. But more trouble is brewing. Starkey's group of storked teens is growing more powerful and militant with each new recruit. And if they have their way, they'll burn the harvest camps to the ground and put every adult in them before a firing squad - which could destroy any chance America has for a peaceful future.

Members Reviews:

BonsaiCats are Gross

If you could sum up Undivided in three words, what would they be?

fun, creepy, fresh

What other book might you compare Undivided to and why?

I would compare the format to A Song of Ice and Fire or Zelazny's Donnerjack, or Gaiman's American Gods (which is a pretty blatant Zelazny rip-off, IMO). The point of view jumps from one character to another, and often to characters that are actually peripheral to the central plot line, characters with no name who do little more than witness the events. This keeps the story fresh in ways that other books do not.

Let's face it. YA dystopian novels are a dime a dozen anymore. But if you've ever found yourself sick of listening to Katniss talk about how she's not-so-hot but can't decide which dude she wants, or Triss talk about how she's really not-that-hot but can't stop obsessing about the dude she wants, or any John Green character talk about how they're not-so-hot but can't stop borderline stalkerish behavior over someone they like, then this book is for you. Sure, that stuff comes up in the Unwind series. But just when it could start to get annoying, the point of view jumps to a gardener across the country, or inside the head of someone being harvested for organs, or whatever.

Which scene was your favorite?

When Shusterman gets creepy, I enjoy it. And I need to be clear about this: I don't like horror. I find it gory and often silly instead of scary. Shusterman is not horror. He is suspense. He places the reader in the minds of characters slowly watching something terrible happen, slowly comprehending their levels of helplessness, slowly admitting to themselves that it is really happening. It sounds terrible, and it is. Which is what makes it so effective. Shusterman understands that enduring hope can sometimes be the worst thing to have in a bad situation.

Shusterman also does not always go for the cheap creepies. Which is not to say that the books do not go to extremes. They do. However, just when you think, oh gods, I am about to listen to some gross and predictable teen sexual assault, it turns out, no, actually, it's something completely different.