Audio Book Review: The Utterly Uninteresting and Unadventurous Tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant by Drew Hayes

This is fun, easy listening.

The Utterly Uninteresting and Unadventurous Tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant --
Written by Drew Hayes
Narrated by Kirby Heyborne

Series: Fred, the Vampire Accountant, Book 1
Length: 7 hrs and 2 mins
Unabridged Audiobook
Release date: 02-24-15
Language: English
Publisher: Tantor Audio
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Humor, Satire
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.25; Narration 4.25.

Publisher Description
Some people are born boring. Some live boring. Some even die boring. Fred managed to do all three, and when he woke up as a vampire, he did so as a boring one. Timid, socially awkward, and plagued by self-esteem issues, Fred has never been the adventurous sort.
One fateful night-different from the night he died, which was more inconvenient than fateful-Fred reconnects with an old friend at his high school reunion. This rekindled relationship sets off a chain of events thrusting him right into the chaos of the parahuman world: a world with chipper zombies, truck driver wereponies, maniacal necromancers, ancient dragons, and now one undead accountant trying his best to “survive.”
Because even after it’s over, life can still be a downright bloody mess.

Review:
Many people expect a vampire to be powerful, fierce, and maybe even suave. That isn’t Fred. Fred tells you himself that he was a timid, awkward, physically soft nerd while living and that didn’t change too much when he died. He may have slimmed down some and has strengths he calls on occasionally, but he is still timid and socially awkward. Fred attends his high school reunion and runs into a girl he liked during school but who he thought barely noticed him. Surprisingly, Krystal recognizes Fred and treats him nicely. Not only that, it turns out she recognizes what he is because she is an agent who hunts down out of control parahumans.

Though it is a bumble, Fred manages to help Krystal escape a dangerous situation. Then he joins her on several unexpected adventures where Fred accumulates unique friends like a cheerful zombie (not a brain-eating variety), a werepony. Fred and Krystal also face their share of monsters and Fred has to try to outthink some of them since he certainly can’t outwrestle them.

Fred may be mild-mannered, but he isn’t totally uninteresting. He repeatedly ends up in engaging adventures where it is fun to watch Fred outwit his opponents/enemies. I liked the easy flow of the chapters that share different misadventures, introducing the new characters along the way. In the end, there is a fun, interesting twist. The author is creative in the parahumans and writes with light humor that makes it fun to read/listen. I recommend this to readers who enjoy lighter paranormal characters.

Audio Notes: Kirby Heyborne does a good job with the narration. He captures Fred’s mild personality and manages to make the listening move along with interest. I am glad I listened to this.

Source: September 2019 Chirp Purchase $.99. This qualifies for 2020TBR and 2020Audiobook goals.