Audio Book Review: Nevermore: A Novel of Love, Loss & Edgar Allan Poe by David Nail Wilson

This is a marvelous dark fairy tale, reminding the reader that not all fairy tales have a happy ever-after ending.
Nevermore: A Novel of Love, Loss & Edgar Allan Poe
by David Nail Wilson
Narrated by Gigi Shane

    LENGTH    6 hrs and 6 mins
    RELEASE DATE    04-20-13
    PUBLISHER    Crossroad Press
Genre: Horror, Occult, Paranormal
My Rating: 4.75 of 5.0

Publisher's Summary
On the banks of Lake Drummond, on the edge of the Great Dismal Swamp, there is a tree in the shape of a woman.

One dark, moonlit night, two artists met at the Lake Drummond Hotel, built directly on the borderline of North Carolina and Virginia. One was a young woman with the ability to see spirits trapped in trees and stone, anchored to the earth beyond their years. Her gift was to draw them, and then to set them free. The other was a dark man, haunted by dreams and visions that brought him stories of sadness and pain, trapped in a life between the powers he sensed all around him and a mundane existence attended by failure. They were Eleanore MacReady, Lenore, to her friends, and a young poet named Edgar Allan Poe, who traveled with a crow that was his secret, and almost constant companion, a bird named Grimm for the talented brothers of fairy-tale fame.

Their meeting drew them together in vision, and legend, and pitted their strange powers and quick minds against the depths of the Dismal Swamp itself, ancient legends, and time.

Once, upon a shoreline dreary, there was a tree. This is her story.
©2013 David N. Wilson (P)2013 David N. Wilson

Review:
A young woman, Lenore, has a unique and special, mystical, artistic skill. Lenore is able to sketch and release spirits trapped in objects, in this case, trapped in the trees. She has been drawn to an off the beaten path hotel on the borderline of Virginia and North Carolina. Nearby is a swamp and a Lake with legendary trees that resemble living creatures. One tree is shaped like a grand stag and another is shaped like a woman. There are local legends but no one really knows the story -- except perhaps the mysterious, ancient woman who lives in the swamp.

Lenore strike up a friendship with the man in the room next door, Edgar Poe, who travels with his faithful companion, a crow named Grimm. Edgar struggles with his dark writing as he despairs the imminent loss of his ailing wife. Lenore continues her work with intense focus while Edgar weaves a strange story of a sorceress who seeks dark power through capturing a child princess. Suddenly it appears that the artists’ skills are changing time, history and reforming reality.

A young waitress and a young boy at the Inn agree to help Lenore and Edgar on their separate adventures into the swamp. Edgar and Lenore part, agreeing that they will meet again after they have completed their missions. But their destinies soon cross again as Edgar races to stop Lenore when he realizes that the woman Lenore is about to release from the trees could bring disaster, not only to the swamp, but to Lenore herself.

This is a haunting story; beautiful in its presentation, even though dark. The author manages to convey a Southern gentility in the primary characters and a dark malevolence in the evil character. The pacing moves well with the building mystery leading to the danger and action.  I love how the author uses Edgar Allan Poe as a character along with several of the famous poet’s characters such as Lenore and the raven. When I was finishing the story I was compelled to pull out a copy of The Raven to re-read in light of this fairy tale.  I recommend this to any reader who likes Poe and any listener who wants an engaging, quick listen.

Audio Notes: This was a wonderful narration and made for several hours of engaging listening. Gigi Shane does an excellent job of conveying the Southern tone and the haunting danger. I enjoyed listening to the smooth delivery as I anticipated discovering what would happen.

I received this audio book from the Author through Audiobook Jukebox to provide an honest review.

Audio Book Review: Silver by Steven Savile

This is a thriller with a complex plot and flawed heroes.
Silver (An OgmiosTeam Adventure)


Author: Steven Savile
Narrator: Dick Hill
Publisher/Date: Crossroad Press, 05/08/12
Formats Available: Audible Download
LENGTH:  16 hrs and 16 mins
Genre: Mysteries, Thrillers
My Rating: 4.0 of 5.0

Publisher's Summary

"There is a plague coming....For forty days and forty nights fear shall savage the streets. Those steeped in sin shall burn. The dying begins now"

With this chilling message a wave of terror unlike anything the world has ever seen sweeps the streets of Europe. Thirteen martyrs burn themselves alive in thirteen major cities simultaneously.

And this is just the beginning.

A religious cult calling itself the Disciples of Judas has risen in the Middle East. They twist the words of ancient prophecies to drive home the fear. Everything you believe in will be proved wrong. Everything you hold true will fail.

Day by day the West wakes to increasingly harrowing acts of terror. As fear cripples the capitals of Europe, the only question is where will be the next to fall? London? Rome? Berlin?

In a race against time - believing the terrorists intend to assassinate the Pope - Sir Charles Wyndham's unique Special Ops team, codename Ogmios, track a labyrinthine course through truth, shades of truth and outright lies that takes them from the backstreets of London to the shadow of Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin and all the way into the heart of the Holy See itself.

Review:
The story begins with a version of a Biblical event that is different than normally believed. Judas has been overcome by guilt for his betrayal of Jesus but instead of committing suicide he is apparently stoned and hung by fellow apostles. Today a religious cult, the Disciples of Judas, believe that Judas was the real Messiah who made the true sacrifice. The cult has sent messages to 13 cities in Europe promising a reign of terror - forty days and nights - to devastate the faith of the Christian believers. There are bio-chemical suicides in Berlin killing many innocents; then poisoned water in Rome killing more. Fear is wide spread as no one knows where or what evil will strike next as the forty days continues.

A covert government group, Ogmios, is racing in at least four directions to uncover the leaders of the cult and try to stop a believed plot to assassinate the Pope. Lethe is the computer data master who remains at home base pulling up data and talking the other team members through their field dangers. The story follows the other four operatives in their separate efforts. The rough Irish team member, Ronan Frost, chases an intruder into the subway and faces an oncoming train. Later he uncovers a murder scene, escapes the police and rescues innocent hostages only to face the police again. He returns back to home base to discover an attack on their intrepid leader, Sir Charles.

The volatile, female operative, Orla, returns to Italy where she is betrayed and tortured. Konstantin, a Russian defector, is sent to Germany with the intent to kill the assassin before the Pope is killed but he stumbles into a real mess. The crisp Englishman, Noah, tries to convince authorities in Rome of the threats; encounters a helpful priest who may be more than he appears; then races to the Vatican to a surprisingly twisted end of this story.

The story was a bit convoluted - maybe due to the audio. Chapters of history flashbacks popped in among the current day action without being identified by date so it caused some confusion.  I really was impressed though by a very complex plot that the author tied together by the end.

There was plenty of action and yet there were moments of slowness so I think the pacing could have been improved. There were some philosophical discussions included that might not interest readers who just want flash and bang. Although that slowed the story in parts I found it interesting especially in the full scheme of the plotline. I enjoyed learning the characters’ backgrounds, demons and vulnerabilities. This made them very real in their actions.

Audio Notes: I have always enjoyed Dick Hill as a narrator and he is part of the reason I chose this audio to review. He does a wonderful job with accents on the different character voices. The reading didn’t seem totally consistent as there were areas of heart stopping anticipation but other spots in the discussion portions and even some points of action where dry in the narration.

Overall this was a good reading performance and a positive listening experience of a very interesting story. I recommend it for readers who enjoy action thrillers and who don't mind a bit of philosophical, religious pondering mixed in with the action.

I selected this Audiobook to review for Crossroad Press through Audiobook Jukebox.