Audible Book Review: Detroit Christmas, A Grimnoir Chronicles Audio Drama, by Larry Correia

This is a fun, quick listen, although not quite what I hoped for. I was filling time before starting a long book for travel. This Christmas title by an author I enjoy seemed like a fit.

Detroit Christmas
A Grimnoir Chronicles Audio Drama
By: Larry Correia
Narrated by: full cast


Series: Grimnoir Chronicles
Length: 1 hr and 12 mins
Release date: 02-11-16
Publisher: Baen Books
Genre: Fantasy, Mystery, Science Fiction
My Rating: 4.0 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.0; Narration 4.0.

Publisher's Summary
Private eye Jake Sullivan is a war hero - and an ex-con. He's free because he has a magical talent, and the Feds need his help in apprehending criminals with their own magical abilities. Jake's talent is gravity spiking. He can vary the force of gravity however he wishes in an area. When it comes to spiking, Jake is the best.
Now a rich beauty walks into his office to hire Jake to find her missing husband, a magical healer who has ties to the Detroit mob. Jake takes the case, but little does he know that there are plots within plots waiting to ensnare him, and solving the case may require fighting for his life with the odds stacked against him. But Jake is used to that. And now it's Christmas. Time to deck the walls with splattered bodies!
Detroit Christmas is a richly imagined, fully produced audio play, with original music, film-quality sound effects, and an amazing cast.

Review:
Jake Sullivan is a tough guy – a former war hero and an ex-con. Now he is a private eye who works with the Feds to help capture criminals with magical abilities. Jake is needed as he has a unique magical talent – he can gravity spike increasing or decreasing the gravity around him to escape quickly or put a lot of pressure on others.

Jake is engaged by a rich beauty to find her missing husband, a magical healer. The man is sought by several groups prone to injuries, including a mob gang. Jake has to follow the clues to find the man, even if the clues draw him into pretty apparent traps. That’s okay, Jake is accustomed to leaving a trail of bodies behind him.

I totally enjoy the Monster Hunter International Series written by Correia. I have also listened to one of his stories in The Adventures of Tom Stranger, Interdimensional Insurance Agent. This story, in the Grimnoir Chronicles, is more of along the line of the Tom Stranger variety. Jack is a hard nosed-detective hired by a distressed female and that reminds me of old time private eye stories.

This is a very fast paced story, full of action which supersedes the mystery element. Of course, it is a short book so things move along quickly. I have book one and a couple more of the short novels to listen to in this series. I recommend this to fans of private eye stories and characters with supernatural abilities. Don’t expect it to be a sweet Christmas book.

Audio Notes: This is a performance by a full cast. There are 13 character voices and plenty of background sounds like gun shots, sirens, body slamming, and more. The background level noise was busy and sometimes made it hard to catch the dialog. Still, overall, I enjoyed the production.

(By the way, if you like old time detectives check out: The Great Detectives of Old Time Radio.)

Source: August 2020 Audible Plus Catalog Free Selections. This qualifies for 2022TBR and 2022Audiobook goals.