Audio Book Review: And They Called Her Spider by Michael Coorlim

This is a fun, quick listen!

And They Called Her Spider:
A Bartleby and James Adventure, Book 1

    UNABRIDGED
    by Michael Coorlim
    Narrated by Wayne Farrell
        Series: Galvanic Century, Book 1
    LENGTH      56 mins
    RELEASE DATE      12-07-12
    PUBLISHER      Michael Coorlim

Gernre: Mystery, Steampunk
My Rating: 4.5 of 5.0

Publisher's Summary

The Bartleby and James Adventures steampunk mystery series follows the cases of consulting detectives Anton Bartleby and James Wainwright through an alternate Victorian history.

In their debut adventure, London is in the grip of an unstoppable assassin known only as the Spider, and consulting detectives James Wainwright and Alton Bartleby have been commissioned to catch her.

Can the surly inventor and savvy gentleman track her down and stop her string of murders, or will Queen Victoria be her next victim?

Who Are Bartleby and James?

Alton Bartleby is a social savant, the scion of a once proud and noble bloodline, working to restore his family's name. James Wainwright is a brilliant engineer and inventor. Together they take on the cases that Scotland Yard cannot or will not handle.

©2011, 2012 Michael Coorlim (P)2012 Michael Coorlim

Review:
Alton Bartleby and James Wainwright work together as private detectives consulting, but not always welcome, with the authorities in a Steampunk Victorian world. Alton is all that is proper with his noble background and worldly social experiences, but he is in the position of having to work to rebuild his family reputation. James is a quirky engineer and inventor who can get lost for days in his laboratory, 'lair', before popping out with a solution or gadget to help in their investigations.

Alton and James have been called upon to help track and stop a sly assassin who is known as the Spider. She has been able to slip into places, through crowds and windows, where with acrobatic grace and moves she decimates her prominent victims with venomous dagger strikes. Then she boldly and blithely waltzes away to her escape.

There is a fear that the Queen is an intended victim and the detectives are in a race against time to stop the Spider. Once they have a clue to follow they press on diligently, even with some recklessness.

This pair reminded me of a lighter Sherlock Holmes and a more technically skilled Dr. Watson. The story is told from the view of James. They make a good pairing and balancing in their intuitive and deductive skills as well as their areas of experience. The story was fun and I loved the steampunk and mechanical aspect.

Audio Notes: The narrator presents the story with perfect British hauteur and aplomb. The pacing, of the story as written and read, is brisk and intriguing. I would be glad to read more by Mr. Coorlin and hear more narrating by Mr. Farrell.

This is a good choice for mystery buffs looking for a fun, fast hour. 

I received this MP3 download at Audible through AudioBook Jukebox.

Martha's Bookshelf***Friday Pick Giveaway June 21, 2013

[** If you are new to Friday Pick Giveaway - Welcome!  Scroll down a bit (below book group #19) for instructions on how to enter.]

Happy Friday and HAPPY SUMMER!! I had such a strange week -- a couple of nights I was wiped out from the heat. My car AC is not working and we have to get it fixed. I didn't realize until tonight I hadn't updated the Giveaway links and had three winners to pick. Whew - guess I got behind a bit. I hope everyone else is keeping up. :-) (I'll be adding another group of books next week.)

[UPDATED NOTE - US entrants I prefer, please, that you pick a book as that is the first purpose of this giveaway - to find new homes for books. The GCs are for the  international entrants because postage has jumped up.]

Thank you to all who entered the June 14 Pick. Yay- there were THREE Automatic wins this week. (Automatic winners are those who requested the book four times and I did not note other people asking for that book during those weeks). There were FOUR titles blocked by multiple picks this week, with one won.

Bookishqueen gets Note of Peril
rubynreba gets Dial Emmy for Murder
and
Texas Book Lover gets Tom Clancy Pair
 

CONGRATULATIONS
to Random.org picked Winners from June 14 Pick:

miki gets a GC - 

Di gets the Hannah Howell pair - through a block

All winners please fill in the Winner's Acceptance Form or email me to confirm your win, send your snail mail address information and let me know if you would like bookmarks - sensual or sexy and I have a new supply of sweet bookmarks.

Let's surf those pages - Yeah!

Image found at LA Times Books.

New Book Group #39 May 31, 2013 - Plenty of "summer" titles!
Oops - I never added all the links last month so no promises on these either.

Pairs:
Hannah Howell
     Highland Hearts and Highland Destiny
Catherine Anderson
     My Sunshine and Blue Skies
Elizabeth Lowell
     Remember Summer and Too Hot to Handle
Singles:
Touched by Fire by Kathleen O'Reilly
Playing with Fire by Gena Showalter
Shetland Summer by Janet Lynnford
That Summer by Joan Wolf
Shadow of the Sun by Tammy Hilz
Dark Summer by Iris Johansen
Summer at Willow Lake by Susan Wiggs
Summer by the Cottage by Susan Wiggs
Shadow Beach by Barbara Freethy
It All Began at Monte Carlo by Elizabeth Adler


New Book Group #38 April 20, 2013
Here is a group with many mysteries.  Links to be added as I get time.

Pairs:
Amanda Scott
      Abducted Heiress and Highland Bride
Sandra Brown
     Texas! Chase and Exclusive (spine wear) (not the covers as on the links)
A Murderous Yarn by Monica Ferris
Deadly Advise by Roberta Isleib
Dial Emmy for Murder by Eileen Davidson 
On Deadly Ground (Love Inspired Suspense) by Lauren Nichols
Happy Never After by Kathy Hogan Trocheck
Female Intellignece by Jane Heller
Improper English by Katie MacAllister
Sheer Dynamite by Jennifer Skully
Golden Chances by Rebbecca Hagen Lee
Caitlin's Guardian Angel by Marie Ferrarella
Burning Alive by Shannon K. Butcher
Awaken the Senses by Nalini Singh


New Book Group #37 March 22, 2013

As I am linking these titles it is clear to me why they were in my TBR boxes and it is really hard to let them go but I have soooo many. Better that they find good reader homes than sit on my shelves, or in a box, and collect dust. 
Pairs:
Carly Phillips
     The Heartbreaker and Simply Sinful
Singles:
Anthology: Something Borrowed, Something Blue - this book has spine creases and minor water damage...I thought I had read it and liked it but now I realize it was another anthology I read with Elaine Barbier.
Bride by Command by Linda Winstead Jones
To Tame a Rebel by Georgina Gentry
While Passion Sleeps by Shirlee Busbee
Lord Liar by Laurie Grant
Lady in Red by Karen Hawkins
The Admiral's Bride by Suzanne Brockmann
Marry Me, Maddie by Rita Herron
Lady Ice by Joan Hohl
Dark Roots & Cowboy Boots by LuAnn McLane
Only My Dreams by Anna Blundy



New Book Group #36 February 15, 2013

Pairs:
Tara Taylor Quinn
     Father: Unknown and McGillus v.Wright
Tom Clancy
     Power Play: Cold War (paperback) and Power Play: Ruthless.com (audio cassette tapes)
Singles:
Timeline by Michael Crichton
Bride of Shadow Canyon by Stacey Kayne
The Trailsman: Texas Lead Slingers by Jon Sharpe
Always a Lady by Sharon Sala
Her Wedding Wish by Jillian Hart


New Book Group #35 January 11, 2013
*asterisks indicate lighter, smaller books possibly suitable for international mailing 

Pairs
Mary Baxter
    His Touch and One Summer Evening
Singles-- I found a couple of boxes of romances (a lot of Harlequins) that I haven't gotten to read over the past 8 years so... I will send them off to others to read!
Never Say Never Again by Tori Carrington
*Merger of Fortunes by Peggy Moreland
*The Banker's Convenient Wife by Lynne Graham
* The Millionaire's Daughter by Sophie Weston


New Book Group #34 December 7, 2012--- (All gone)

New Book Group #33 October 27, 2012
*asterisks indicate lighter, smaller books possibly suitable for international mailing

SINGLES - CHRISTMAS TITLES (Better sizes for international) 
*Deck the Halls by Arlene James (slight spine creasing)
*A Holiday Prayer by Deb Kastner  (slight spine creasing)


New Book Group #32 October 5, 2012

- Oops upside down book! NOTE This book has dog bite damage; it is missing half back cover and the edges of pages in the back third of the book... it does not effect the text but I will understand if no one wants this one - A Courtesans Guide to Getting Your Man by Susan Donovan and Celeste Bradley
Please Remember This by Katleen Giles Seidel
The Boy's Tale (Sister Frevisse Medieval Mysteries) by Margaret Frazer


New Book Group #31 August 31, 2012
I pulled some more books from several of my boxes.

An Honorable Man by Rosemary Rogers (spine creases)


New Book Group #30 July 27, 2012
This time I pulled some books from one of my older boxes.
*asterisks indicate lighter, smaller books possibly suitable for international mailing

The Willful Widow by Valerie King (spine wear)
Wild Escapade by Lisa Bingham
Dancing on Snowflakes by Jane Bonander (postage too much - replaced with GC)

New Book Group #29 June 29, 2012
*asterisks indicate lighter, smaller books possibly suitable for international mailing

Magic: The Gathering Distant Planes, An Anthology
*One is the Lonliest Number - Tom Clancey's Net Force

New Book Group #28 May 18, 2012 (All gone)

New book Group #27 April 13, 2012 (All gone)

New book Group #26 March 2, 2012--- (All gone)

New Group #25 January 12, 2012---(All gone)

New Group #24 Pick Books November 25, 2011---(All gone)

New Group #23 Pick Books October 14, 2011
I tried to pick some books that would be good for October -
Halloween or dark minded.
Ghost Writer (Shivers #3) by M.D. Spenser


New Group #22 Pick Books September 2, 2011---(All gone)

New Group #21 of Pick Books July 29, 2011
Mallory's Oracle (Kathleen Mallory Novels) by Carol O'Connell

May, 2011 New Group of Pick books Group #20
Luciano's Luck by Jack Higgins - Audio Cassettes

3/25/11 I did get to set up a new group of books: Group #19
Primary Colors - audio tapes
*Note of Peril (black strip on cover)

2/19/11 Book Group #18- Pairs!---(All gone).

I have finally updated the intro and Entry paragraphs here:

If you saw the pictures posted of my bookshelves and boxes you know I do have lots of books! And that doesn't include the other eight or so boxes at my office!! And more books as I find deals too good to pass up! I am sharing my book bounty by these Friday Pick Giveaways.

I started Friday Pick in November 27, 2009 and in three years I have posted 33 groups of 16 (528) books to find new homes! (November 2012)

I periodically update the lists - deleting those won. You can still go to the Friday Pick list link to see older posts and the older lists book pictures if you want! I am happy to say that so far about 522 books have found new homes! YAY. I have to update my print out to check the exact number sent out - a few were never claimed.

Note rules here regarding international entries.

Because postage to overseas can be prohibitive I am willing to give a $5.00 book certificate to international winners - Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Borders, ARe, TWRP, ClassAct Books, eTreasures, Desert Breeze, etc....you tell me where and I'll set it up. So for my overseas visitors your comment may indicate a smaller book and I'll check postage or note your choice of gift card.

I learned that The Book Depository does not ship to everywhere. The postage for some of the books to far away places runs between $5.00 and $6.00 and up. Since I would award $5.00 for The Book Depository to an international winner, as an alternative you may choose a smaller book and we will hope the postage will not exceed $6.00. If the postage is more, or if you want to pick a larger book and you are willing to pay any extra postage beyond the $6.00 I will work with you on that. This may not make a difference to many but if it helps one or two of you to give one of my books a home that will make me happy too. :o)

TO ENTER:

Leave a comment and tell me WHICH BOOK you would like to get from the Friday Pick lists.
CUT OFF TIME IS THURSDAY NIGHTS AT 10:00 PM CENTRAL so I do not have to stay up past midnight to do the winner post!
I will randomly pick two winners to announce Friday mornings with the next Pick post.
Automatic wins are those who requested the book four times and I did not note other people asking for that book during those weeks.
WINNERS PLEASE CHECK THE WIN POST ON FRIDAYS AND fill in the Winner's Acceptance Form or email me at mesreads@gmail.com. [I will confirm receipt of the addresses- well I realize I haven't always done this. But if you filled out the form and don't get the book within two weeks nudge me with an email please!] If I have the winners e-mail I will send a reminder in a week or so....

Thanks for helping these books find new homes!!

Repeating this helpful blog tip: You can right click on a link and you will be given the choice to open the link in a new window or tab so you do not navigate away from the screen you are on!! I use this all the time!

1/14/11 New List #17--- (All gone)

12/3/10 Book Set: #16
Sleight of Hand by Robin Hathaway
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown  (postage too much - replaced with GC)

List #15---(All gone)

List #14---(All gone)

Here is set #13 of Used books! ---(All gone)

Group #12---(All gone)

Group #11
Cat's Eyewitness by Rita Mae Brown
Alien Chronicles - The Crimson Claw by Deborah Chester

List #1
Circle of Stars by Anna Lee Waldo

Pick #2---(All gone)

Pick #3---(All gone)

Pick #4
Talking God by Tony Kellerman

Pick #5
See Jane Lead by Lois P. Frankel
Cold Hit by Linda Fairstein - Audio Tapes

Pick #6---(All gone)

Pick #7
Prey by Michael Crichton - Audio Tape
Princess Charming by Jane Heller (slightly creased)

Pick #8
(sc) = slightly creased on binding otherwise all in good shape
The Jury by Steve Martini - Audio Tapes
No Safe Place by Richard North Patterson - Audio Tapes

Pick #9
On Treacherous Ground by Earl Murray
Guardian by Dee Henderson - Audio Tapes
Time to Hunt by Stephen Hunter - Audio Tapes

Pick #10---(All Gone)

Audio Book Review: The Wolf Path by Judith Van Gieson

This is an interesting mystery packed with details on wolf issues.
The Wolf Path
Author: Judith Van Gieson
Narrator: Meredith Mitchell
Publisher/Date: AudioGO, 04/01/13

Length: Approximately 6 hrs 40 mins.
Genre: Mystery
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0

Book Description
It's a 104 degree day in Albuquerque when attorney/sleuth Neil Hamel gets a call asking her to go to southern New Mexico to help a wolf advocate who calls himself Juan Sololobo. Juan, who attracts trouble wherever he goes, is visiting the town of Soledad to give an educational program featuring his timber wolf, Sirius. After someone lets Sirius out of his pen, a federal official is murdered and Juan becomes the prime suspect. As Neil defends him she finds herself immersed in a deadly conflict between ranchers and environmentalists over wolf reintroduction. The Wolf Path is Judith Van Gieson's fourth Neil Hamel mystery. Since it was first published to critical acclaim in 1992, Mexican gray wolves have been reintroduced to the Southwest, and there are now several packs free-ranging in Arizona and New Mexico. Wolf advocate Bobbie Holaday, the founder of Preserve Arizona's Wolves (PAWS), updates this edition with an introduction summarizing the progress that has been made. Van Gieson has published eight mysteries featuring Neil Hamel and five with University of New Mexico librarian Claire Reynier.

Review:
Neil Hamel is an attorney who likes to conduct her own investigations rather than using a private investigator. She is often called in to handle environmental issues and this time she is asked by a friend (a former almost love interest?) to cover permit issues for a client who is transporting and exhibiting a wild wolf in an educational program. Juan Sololobo, a strong wolf activist tends to attract trouble. He brings along a timber wolf, Sirius, who is not to be considered a pet even though he may be accustomed to humans. Juan has brought Sirius to Solodad, near White Sands, where they are touring the schools and staying on a ranch owned by his ex-wife.

White Sands is being considered as an appropriate location for a relocation program. There are local ranchers and hunters who are strong opponents to the idea of reintroducing the wolf anywhere near their town. A meeting of the supporters and opponents isn’t going well when it is interrupted by a freak hail storm and the discovery that someone has cut the chain that locked Sirius into a secure holding area. Now Juan is desperate to rescue the wolf while there are others arming themselves to hunt it down.

Neil returns home to Albuquerque only to get a call that one of the bureaucrats, a man whom Neil had learned to respect, has been murdered.  Juan had attacked the man in a fit of anger fueled by exhaustion and alcohol when he learned that he had locked Sirius up until an investigation could be completed. That makes Juan the prime suspect in the man’s murder.

The murder mystery is a little slow to develop as there is a lot of environmental build up and detail.  The author provides fascinating information covering the history of wolves, release programs, free roaming risks and the dilemmas the ranchers face from wild animals. Ranchers also have the opportunity for wildlife smuggling, human smuggling and drug trafficking. Although I didn't necessarily like Neil's methods of investigation, I did like the action and suspense that accompanied the gathering of clues.

Ms. Van Gieson takes a couple of off beat rabbit trails regarding water and sun which are presented in beautiful, prosaic streams of thought. These were odd in a mystery but still enjoyable. I rather enjoyed the slower pace of the story - it made me think of really hot weather when one might tend to move a bit slower. I puzzled a bit over the protagonist’s relationship with her live-in friend and sometimes ‘convenient’ lover, known as “kid.” I think this must be clearer in an earlier book but it didn’t hurt this mystery.

Audio Notes: Meredith Mitchell does a good job with the reading. The voices and accents are authentic and distinguishable. The environmental data is conveyed with good enthusiasm that keeps the reading moving along. I sense that I would prefer this author and her stories in audio as I might struggle with the slowness if I was reading and waiting to get to the murder.

I received this MP3 download from AudioGo through AudioBook Jukebox.

Celebrating Audiobook Week 2013

I am late in joining Audio Book Week but my blog readers know I love audio and I want to participate so I am hopping in the middle of the week. (I'll be posting several audio reviews shortly and an audiobook giveaway too.)

Today we answer the questions provided by Jen, host of Audioweek, at Devourer Of Books:



Current/most recent audiobook:

I am currently listening to:

Hearts of Shadow
Author: Kira Brady
Narrator: Xe Sands

Impressions:
I am enjoying the plotline of the dragon shifters in a post apocalyptic struggle of ‘races.”  The narration is clear with a good portrayal of mystery and intensity.


Current/most recent favorite audiobook:
 
 Ohhh- it is so hard to pick a favorite. I guess for recent favorite I will pick And They Called Her Spider:.  I will be posting a review for this title tomorrow or Friday. I pick it as a favorite because it has so much that I liked: Steampunk elements; Mystery (along the lines of Sherlock Holmes); a short quick listen to enjoy; British accent narration; and all around fun to listen to. .




Favorite narrator you’ve discovered recently:
There are so many good narrators that I enjoy. I am listing two more recent favorites and two older favorites.
Luke Daniels does a super job narrating the Iron Druid Chronicles. He really nails the characters through voices and expression. The narration enhances the danger and fun of an already good story.

Marguerite Gavin, who reads the Hollows Series and many more, also does a great job with the different voices and the emotional inflections. I have noted in previous reviews that “It surprises me how seamlessly Ms. Gavin makes the shifts from one voice to another. I get caught up and love listening.”

One all time favorite narrator is sadly no longer with us. Anna Fields always was a fun narrator particularly for light romantic stories such as those by Susan Elizabeth Phillips.

Another 'older' favorite is Rene Auberjonois who did the later Pendergast Series. My husband, who is not a reader or regular listener, loves listening to Rene narrate Pendergast.



One title from your TBL (to be listened) stack, or your audio wishlist:
Just ONE? Are you kidding???

I will say that I am interested in getting to listen to The 5th Wave that I recently got through my Audible subscription
The 5th Wave
    UNABRIDGED
    by Rick Yancey
    Narrated by Brandon Espinoza, Phoebe Strol
Epic Fantasy

  and

The Raven Boys that I got through  SYNC YA last week.

The Raven Boys
By Maggie Stiefvater
Read by Will Patton
Published by Scholastic Audiobooks

Audible Review: With Morning Comes Mistfall by George R. R. Martin

With Morning Comes Mistfall by George R. R. Martin

Published December 16th 2011 by Random House Audio (first published May 1973)

ASIN  B006M4OU36

original title: With Morning Comes Mistfall

literary awards

Hugo Award Nominee for Best Short Story (1974), Nebula Award Nominee for Best Short Story (1973)

Genre: Fantasy, Science Fiction
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0

This was a free download I picked up in 2011. I finished it at the end or May but failed to include it in my Monday Reading list and remembered when I saw it in my calendar for review.
A science fiction short story, first published by Analog magazine in May 1973. It was the first story by George R. R. Martin to be nominated for Hugo Award and Nebula Award.
Recently it was included in published in 2003 GRRM anthology
Dreamsongs collection: A RRetrospective (Volume I).

Review:
This is a really a lovely, dreamy, ethereal story - rather unexpected. I have not read George R. R. Martin's better known stories and I thought this might be a way to get a feel for the author.

The story is set by in the future where space travel is every day. There is a misty world on the planet of Wraithworld complete with a mysterious uncovered ancient civilization to explore, a resort castle and unexplained deaths. The story is told from the view of a female photo-journalist. She is following the scientific investigations of a man and his team who are intent on disproving the rumor of wraiths killing explorers.   Several visiting groups have suffered deaths leading to the rumors of wraiths. The resort owner is angry at the scientist. If the wraiths are proven then tourists may stay away due to danger and if they are dis-proven then the planet might become a destination for greedy investors. The scientist doesn't even realize that mistfall occurs in the morning and mistrise occurs at night but the photo-journalists is able to catch the ethereal beauty of the place.

This was only about 45 minutes long and the narration fits the ethereal mystery of the tale. I enjoyed both the beauty, mystery and political arguments presented from the impartial but sensitive view of the journalist. I do need to put the Song of Ice and Fire series on my TBR list.