{Audiobook} Review: The Rules

The Rules
by Mark Troy 

Series: Prequel to The Ava Rome Mysteries
Publisher: Ilium Books
Date released: 27 December 2013
Genre: Short Story
Source: Review copy via Audiobook Jukebox
Date Read: 24 January 2014
Narrator: Julie Hoverson
Unabridged audio: Length: 1 hour 14 minutes 

Personal Protection specialist Ava Rome follows three rules: A professional never calls attention to herself or her principal; a professional never leaves her principal; and, the most important rule, a professional never gets involved with her principal. To break the rules is to die. Paul, her principal, comes from a powerful family with many enemies. Murder and kidnapping are just means of business in Paul's family. Ava believes he is not like the rest of them. Good looking, intelligent, he has everything women want. And many women want him, which makes Ava's job harder. Does she want him too? She recognizes that the greatest threat comes not from the outside, but from her own growing desire. In order to save them both, Ava must leave Paul, against his wishes and in violation of one of her rules. Ava was wrong. A greater threat lurks outside Paul's secure compound. Two threats, in fact. One human and the other a hurricane. Ava focuses on the hurricane. She and Paul make preparations to ride out the storm. It arrives and so does the intruder. Now Ava is in a fight for her life as nature's fury assaults the house from the outside and a serial rapist stalks her on the inside.

**For adult audiences only**

My thoughts:
Ava Rome is a professional. She knows the rules. And up until now, she has followed them religiously. But Paul is making it all very difficult for her to remember them every minute of every day. He does not want to take no for an answer. And sometimes Ava does not want him to.

I really enjoyed Ava. She is a strong leading lady and she can definitely take care of herself and her principal. She takes charge of every situation and her training kicks in before she actively thinks about it. Loved that! She is a kickass heroine. 
Paul, on the other hand, did not sit well with me from the first sentences. He was sleek, rich and . . . well, slippery. I just could not put my finger on it but I mistrusted him immediately. And boy, was I right!

I do not like to read about love triangles, or abuse of any kind and definitely not rape. Yes, I

do read crime novels and all of those can be part of the plot but it is usually told in the past tense and in broad strokes. The Rules makes us part of this terrible event and we are inside Ava's head all the way. The blurb did warn me but I did not pick up on it. My fault. By the time the climax of the book started, I was already invested in the story. I admit that I considered not going any further but I wanted Ava to survive. And looking back, it was not as “in-your-face-awful” as it could have been. I think Mark handled it with a lot of sensitivity.

In the end, this is a brutal story where we cheer Ava on and she gives us the ending we want. I definitely want to read more about her and luckily this is only the prequel. Look out for The Splintered Paddle, the first in the The Ava Rome Mysteries series, coming later in 2014.

I loved the narration by Julie Hoverson. I have read a bit of her facebook page and it looks like she is not actively doing a lot of narration. But what a job she did in the novella. She has a strong voice and she quickly became Ava for me. She does change her voice somewhat for the other characters but it was easy on my ear and did not distract from the story at all. I hope that she will be narrating the upcoming series as I loved her voice flowing into my ears. 

 

{Audiobook} Review: Blue Ink

Blue Ink
by Nancy Fulda


Genre: Short Story 
Release date:  23 November 2013
Source: Review copy from the author 
via Audiobook Jukebox
Date Read: 23 January 2014
Narrator: J.R. Mangels
Unabridged audio: Length: approx 19 minutes 

Six-year-old Jason doesn't want to be cloned, even if his parents think it's a good financial investment. Concerned that his second self may not be happy, he secretly plans to violate the rules of his society... with unexpected results.

My thoughts:

Blue ink refers to the tattoos that all clones get in this futuristic world. Their serial numbers are tattooed in blue ink on their foreheads. Except for the menial jobs that clones do, I am not quite sure of their purpose in this world. Jason's father refers to the fact that if all goes well with his clone(s), Jason will never have to work when he becomes an adult. I can only assume that this means that the clones' “owners” are paid for their servitude in society.

This makes for a very sad life for clones. And Jason is very worried that his clone will not be happy. He has been discouraged for any interaction with clones but have secretly spoken with a few and feel sorry for the lives they have to lead. He wants to make sure that his

clone has a good life but his parents refuses to give him the opportunity to meet his first clone.

As soon as clones are “born” they are herded off to special institutions where they are taught all they need to know. Clones are definitely second class citizens in this world.

Short stories are either a hit or miss for me, there is just no in-between in this genre. Luckily the author got it right in Blue Ink. I think sci-fi fantasies lend themselves perfectly to this genre. If only we could have gotten to know more about Jason, his clone and their reality. I usually love these open endings which leaves you thinking . . . “oh no!” but with Blue Ink I found myself wanting more.

I think Blue Ink would make a wonderful novel and I hope that the author is considering it. I would love to learn more about this “sad” world.

I really enjoyed the narration too. JR Mangels made the transition from actor to narrator easily and had a very easy-to-listen-to voice. I think we will be hearing lots more from him in future.

All in all, I think Blue Ink is worth searching out. Although it is short, it packs a punch.

**edited**

{Audiobook} Review: Just after Sunset

Just after Sunset 

by Stephen King

Original Publication date: 03 September 2009
Genre: Short Story Collection, Speculative Fiction
Source: my own copy
Date Read: 19 January 2014
Narrator: Various
Length: 15 hours 11 minutes 

Stephen King — who has written more than fifty books, dozens of number one New York Times bestsellers, and many unforgettable movies — delivers an astonishing collection of short stories, his first since Everything's Eventual six years ago. As guest editor of the bestselling Best American Short Stories 2007, King spent over a year reading hundreds of stories. His renewed passion for the form is evident on every page of Just After Sunset. The stories in this collection have appeared in The New Yorker, Playboy, McSweeney's, The Paris Review, Esquire, and other publications.

Who but Stephen King would turn a Port-O-San into a slimy birth canal, or a roadside honky-tonk into a place for endless love? A book salesman with a grievance might pick up a mute hitchhiker, not knowing the silent man in the passenger seat listens altogether too well. Or an exercise routine on a stationary bicycle, begun to reduce bad cholesterol, might take its rider on a captivating — and then terrifying — journey. Set on a remote key in Florida, "The Gingerbread Girl" is a riveting tale featuring a young woman as vulnerable — and resourceful — as Audrey Hepburn's character in Wait Until Dark. In "Ayana," a blind girl works a miracle with a kiss and the touch of her hand. For King, the line between the living and the dead is often blurry, and the seams that hold our reality intact might tear apart at any moment. In one of the longer stories here, "N.," which recently broke new ground when it was adapted as a graphic digital entertainment, a psychiatric patient's irrational thinking might create an apocalyptic threat in the Maine countryside...or keep the world from falling victim to it.

Just After Sunset — call it dusk, call it twilight, it's a time when human intercourse takes on an unnatural cast, when nothing is quite as it appears, when the imagination begins to reach for shadows as they dissipate to darkness and living daylight can be scared right out of you. It's the perfect time for Stephen King.

My thoughts:
This unabridged audio version of the short stories of Stephen King made for a enjoyable few hours. Not all of the stories was a hit for me and some just left me feeling “huh?” but mostly the old King-magic shone through. 
Short stories allow for some of the “stranger” aspects of life to be shared with listeners and some of these stories definitely fit that bill.  It was exactly what we were looking for.

There are 13 stories in this bundle - let me tell you about a few of my favorites.  

Willa I loved this story. Stranded passengers wait for rescue after their train derail. Not all of them have escaped the wreck with their minds undamaged, so no-one is practically worried when a young man finds that his fiance has disappeared – Willa was not very well liked. But Willa knows the truth and slowly she shows him what he has not allowed himself to see for maybe the last 20 years. This story had all the elements that makes for a creepy story – and I love creepy stories.

Harvey's Dream  It is early morning and when Harvey meets his wife in the kitchen, he begins telling her of the disturbing dream that he has just awoken from wherein an early morning phone call described an awful accident that will change their lives forever.
Some reviews speculate that “. . . everything Harvey described were actual events from earlier that morning, only believed to be a dream due to Harvey's self-denial and his onsetting Alzheimer's disease.” Somehow that makes the story even more disturbing . . . loved it!

N    N suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder (or so we think). The story begins with a note sent to a childhood friend indicating that the doctor treating N has committed suicide (just like his patient). We hear transcripts of their sessions and come to believe that maybe N was not just imagining what was happening to him.  It is always a fascinating story for me when the mind starts to wander into the darker suburbs of our unconsciousness.  The mind can be a scary place.

There are some others that fits the creepy bill perfectly and still others that makes for disturbing reading and some others that will make you scratch your head.  A great escape.

There are quite a few different narrators in this book and King even narrated one of the stories himself (Harvey's Dream). It made for a nice variety. It felt like a brand new book every time I started a new story. The narrators' voices fit the feel of the stories perfectly and the overall quality was very good.  A wonderful compilation.

I would recommend this to satisfy your desire for the shady part of life . . .told through the voices of many characters.