"My Life" abridged audio version By Bill Clinton

"My Life" abridged audio version
By Bill Clinton
read by author
Produced by Random House Audio
Approx 6 hours

Ever since I heard that President Bill Clinton wrote a book that was just over a thousand pages in length I was curious to find out what all he wrote. Clinton did serve two terms as President pretty much covering the 90s as president.he fought to balance the federal budget, presided over a government shutdown, beat back a conservative cultural backlash, skirmished with an ornery Saddam Hussein, ended a genocidal crisis in Bosnia, accelerated the Mideast peace process until its eventual collapse, and began to deal with the budding threat posed by Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda. But what Clinton is most remembered for are the scandals that plagued his efforts. Beginning with Gennifer Flowers in the 1992 campaign, to Whitewater, Travelgate, the FBI file scandal, Paula Jones and ultimately the Monica Lewinsky affair that led to his historic impeachment, Clinton endured what then First Lady Hillary Clinton termed a "vast right-wing conspiracy" to push him from office. So I'm guessing he may have had a lot to say and maybe a thousand pages could be filled.

I then took the easy way out and listened to the the abridged audio version of the book. Usually I steer away from abridged versions of a book but this time I wanted to know but at the same time the size of the book scared me off a bit. I do wish I had read the full version now and will probably be picking up that book sometime soon. But for now I think I got a good insight.

The book does do a great job of covering the decade of the 90s in politics. Many things that went through the White House affected America culturally. This book would be a nice primer when studying history and wanting to tackle the politics of the 90s. Keep in mind this is from one point of view and many of the issues were hard to look at in a black and white view. It was nice however to get his take on many of the scandals and controversies that surrounded his political career.

The book being read by President Clinton himself, seems like that could be the only way. It is nice to hear the emotion in his voice during the reading. Whenever he would talk about Ken Starr you could tell there was a touch of animosity toward Starr. As a piece of history this is a privilege to have a president speak of his presidency and life.

Speaking of Ken Starr, one of the many insights learned in this book I learned was that there was more to Ken Starr than just investigating the Monica Lewinski matter. Ken Starr was doing constantly trying to find bugs in the Clinton White House, and the Lewinski was the only thing he could find that would smear the President.

So, if you are interested in the book but afraid to tackle the full thousand or so pages give the audio book a try, I'm glad I did.

"The Demon Spirit - Part 2" The Demon Wars Saga by R.A. Salvatore

"The Demon Spirit - Part 2"
The Demon Wars Saga
by R.A. Salvatore
Multicast production
Produced by GraphicAudio
Approx. 5 hours

R.A. Salvatore created a phenom in the Demon Wars Saga, spanning seven books and a role playing game. This saga of high fantasy in the Land of Corona is one of action and adventure equal to that of the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy by Tolkien. In the first book, which Graphic Audio produced in audio form in three parts, the listener was introduced to the Heroes; Elbryan the Ranger, Jilesponie the warrior and wizard in training, Avelyn Desbris the Wizard Monk, Bradwarden the Centaur and Juravial the elf. The all went to battle the Demon Dactyl which had awakened and sent it's armies of dwarves/powries, goblins and giants into the Land of Corona to clear the way for the Demon to take command. Avelyn and Bradwarden and many humans lost their lives in destroying the Demon Dactyl and Elbryan and Pony returned to the humans in hopes the evil was gone.

"The Demon Spirit - part 2" continues with Elbryan, Pony and the elf, Juraviel trying their best to rid the land of Corona of Fomorian Giants, Bloody-Cap powrie dwarves and goblins. This time they run into the generals of the powries and giants and decide to destroy those higher ranking officials in hopes that without leaders the powries and giants will leave the lands and the goblins will soon follow suit. The battles ensue and when it looks like a major victory for the humans a problem arises. This problem is from one of its own. A thief turned hero by the name of Roger Lockless is Jealous of Elbryan, otherwise known as the ranger Nightbird.

To Roger it seems as though Nightbird is stealing his thunder and his possibility of being the leader of the rag-tag band of humans wanting to get their towns back from the leftover armies of the destroyed demon dactyl. Nightbird is constantly making plans for skirmishes and for routes the band should take to which Roger thinks Nightbird wants to take control. Roger must be taught the big lesson of humility, if he wants all his townfolk to remain safe, and realize his own pride is getting in the way. Juraviel, Pony and Nightbird are just the teachers for that lesson.

On the other side of the land the Abellican Church led by Father Abbot Markwart have found and are torturing the Centaur Bradwarden. Yes Bradwarden lives! Markwart is out to make the hero Avelin Desbris, who gave his life destroying the demon dactyl, seem as though he joined the dactyl and died deceiving the humans. Master Jojonah knows different and begins to see that the Church is turning into a very dark force. Pony's adopted parents are held captive by Father Markwart in hopes to find the stolen magic stones of Pimaninicut which Avelin had "stolen."

Pony's Ex-Husband, the nobleman Conner Bildeborough, learns of this and seeks out Pony, known to him as Jilly, to warn her of the danger.

Once again GraphicAudio continues the "Movie in your mind" tale in the audio book with great acting and production. This time around I found myself fascinated by the sound effects of the horses. All sound effects of the horses in this production are perfectly placed. When they need to run they run when they stop they stop. During one battle it sounds as though they recorded an actual horse stomping in the skull of an actual giant. Very realistic. Giants don't really exist do they?

"Snuff" by Chuck Palahniuk

"Snuff"
by Chuck Palahniuk
Read by Todd McLaren
Produced by Tantor Media
approx. 5 hours


Whoa! Okay, I knew what I was getting myself into when I picked up the is Chuck Palahniuk audio book...but still, Whoa! "Snuff" is a novel that explores the dark underbelly of the world of porn but also maybe a little dark lesson on life and relationships.

This novel is told through the voices of 4 main characters as the queen of porn, Cassie Wright, brings her porn career to an end by breaking the world record for serial fornication, on camera with six hundred men. Each of the 4 characters have a huge stake in the making of this movie and as the listener jumps from inside head to head of each character to hear their story something dark unfolds. The characters are; Mr. 72, Mr. 137, Mr. 600, and Wright's personal assistant, Sheila.

Mr. 72 is a young man out to save Cassie Wright. Mr. 72 thinks he is the son of Cassie Wright whom she put up for adoption. As the book progresses it is learned that Cassie may have had what is called a "porn-child," a child conceived during filming of one her movies. Mr. 72 reveals his strange childhood with his adopted parents and the eventual discovery and lusting after who could be he mother, Cassie Wright. Very disturbing is the best way to describe the way Mr. 72 discovers who his mom could be and the way he continues to act once that discovery is made.

Mr. 137 is a has been television actor. He once had the biggest show on television in which he was a detective. However it is revealed that once the public became aware of a gay porn movie he made in his youth the studio fires him and his series is cancelled. His appearance in this record-breaking movie could get him more "face-time" and maybe he could make a comeback.

Mr. 600 is legendary porn star Branch Bacardi. Branch is considered to be the father of Cassie's porn-child, but he denies this is possible. Branch is also looking at this film to revitalize his career but his reasoning is that in filming this record breaking feat, Cassie Wright could die from an embolism. So Mr. 600 wants be known as the man who killed Cassie Wright on film.

Finally we get to the wrangler, Sheila. Sheila is Cassie Wright's personal assistant who comes up with the idea to end her career with this film. Sheila also makes it possible for the lost child of Cassie to become very rich by talking her into taking out life insurance payable to the child. Sheila is also the one who decides who is next to be filmed. The "actors" are not filmed in numerical order, but rather randomly so that editing of the film can make the film more interesting. Sheila also has a hidden secret.

This novel is very dark and disturbing but in that darkness is some funny dark humor thrown in. It can't all be tragic, I guess. Some of the funnier moments are the various names for men which Sheila comes up with. Also funny are the names of the films listed in which Cassie has starred. Neither of these will be repeated by me, knowing that some younger folk may read this, but for the movies keep in mind the running joke of porn movies renamed after "normal" movies.

Once again Chuck Palahniuk dives into the dark seedy side of life to bring out a point. Good reading or listening.

Reefer Madness Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market by Eric Schlosser

Reefer Madness Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market
by Eric Schlosser
Read by the author
Produced by Simon & Schuster Audio 2003

Okay one more non-fiction book and then I'll get back to some more fiction. I picked up this audio book because I read the author's book on the meat and fast food industry, "Fast Food Nation." For a while after reading that book I would not touch fast food mainly because of the gross out factor caused by Eric Schlosser's expose' of the unsafe practices in those industries. Schlosser also exposed the greed and the lack of concern for the consumer's of those same products and the employees of the companies involved. The one thing that Schlosser excelled in was in following the money.

This book is no exception, in fact that's pretty much the gist of the book, following the money. "Reefer Madness" is a look at the three pillars of the underground economy of the U.S., estimated to be ten percent of American GDP: marijuana, migrant labor, and pornography.

In Reefer Madness, the first section of the book Schlosser argues, based on usage, historical context, and consequences, for the decriminalization of marijuana. This section revolves around Mark Young of Indiana, who was sentenced to life in prison without parole for his relatively minor role in a marijuana deal. This is one of the examples of marijuana laws being unreal, where in many states marijuana possession can get harsher penalties than committing murder.

In the Strawberry Fields, he explores the exploitation of illegal immigrants as cheap labor, arguing that there should be better living arrangements and humane treatment of the illegal immigrants America is exploiting in the fields of California. This segment seems like either an epilogue or prologue to this previous book "Fast Food Nation." In fast food nation the migrant workers/illegal immigrants are used in meat packing in extremely unsafe conditions and with very little pay. In this segment of the book those workers are trying to squeak by on very little money doing jobs no one wants to do. In one conversation the farm owner says every once in a while some college kids come looking for work but the work is so difficult they don't last half a day.

One thing I always found curious was; Why don't the farmers that employ illegals use machinery to do the harvesting and get rid of the problem of illegals sneaking across borders to do back breaking work? Schlosser explains this, and I'm summing up the explanation here, by saying for farms to do the work with the machinery an initial purchase of said machinery would cost into the millions and right now they only spend thousands paying the migrant workers, also that we Americans like for our fruit and vegetables to not be blemished and the workers can pick with care unlike the machines.

An Empire of the Obscene details the history of pornography in American culture, starting with the eventual business magnate Reuben Sturman, an enigmatic Ohio man who started out selling discarded comic books from the back of his car goes on to buil and control a formidable pornography empire. After beating a string of obscenity charges the government finally catches Sturman in the only way possible, tax evasion. Finally the government can put Sturman behind bars. But after all the court cases against Sturman bringing down religion based obscenity laws the business of pornography becomes a major business now backed by many Fortune 500 companies.

Schlosser unravels an American society that has "become alienated and at odds with itself." Like "Fast Food Nation", this is an eye-opening book with Schlosser doing some serious investigative leg work. Schlosser doesn't really come out in support of the Porn Industry or the legalization of drugs but does point out the hypocrisy that gives a marijuana user life and a murderer 10 years as sentencing and jailing obscenity while major corporations fund it, while that same America promotes indentured servitude (slavery) for the illegal immigrants. "..the price of freedom is often what freedom brings."

Schlosser closes by arguing that such a widespread black market can only undermine the law and is indicative of the discrepancy between accepted mainstream American culture and its true nature.

"Stranger Than Fiction: True Stories" by Chuck Palahniuk

"Stranger Than Fiction: True Stories"
by Chuck Palahniuk
Published by Anchor Books 2004


After a long run with reading some serious hardcore science fiction and fantasy novels I had to take a break and read some non-fiction. This tells you what genre my next book review will fall under. Anyway, I decided to ease into the Non-fiction by reading this book by one of my favorite authors, Chuck Palahniuk. Chuck is the author of some pretty strange pieces of fiction, many of you know of "Fight Club" and maybe "Choke" both of which were made into pretty decent film adaptations. The reason I consider this book easing into the non-fiction genre is that,well, to put it bluntly, reality in Chuck Palahniuk's world can be surreal.

This book is a collection of essays, stories, and interviews written for various magazines and newspapers. Some of the pieces had also been previously published on the internet. The stories cover 3 main categories: "People Together", articles about people who find unique ways of achieving togetherness; "Portraits", interviews and short essays mostly about famous individuals; and "Personal", autobiographical pieces. The introduction to the book is Mr. Palahniuk talking about the world of writing and what it takes to be a fiction writer, very interesting, indeed. The book then breaks into the first story, "Testy Festy," which covers the immoral and deviant behavior that happens at the Rock Creek Lodge Testicle Festival in rural Montana. From the opening line of that story I thought, uh oh, what have I gotten myself into? Well he is merely reporting the goings on of this raucous festival and it is definitely "Stranger than Fiction."

There are several stories in this collection that range from the bohemian activities of the Testicle Festival to celebrity interviews with Juliette Lewis and Marilyn Manson to some autobiographical essays in which the reader learns more details behind the murder of his father by the father's girlfriend's psychopathic ex-boyfriend.

Some of the stories are very funny and some are quite poignant. One of the funnier ones is his coverage of the Lind Combine Demolition Derby in Lind, Washington. Rednecks crashing combines seems like it would be fun. One of the stories is "The People Can" where chuck is reporting on the life of the crew on board the submarine USS Louisiana. Being an ex-Navy man myself I found the civilian insight on this story very interesting. One of the saddest stories is when he tells of his life as an assembly-line drivetrain installer by day, hospice volunteer driver by night.

So if you are a Chuck Palahniuk fan you will find this collection of true stories very interesting told from his point of view. If you have yet latched on to the writings of Palahniuk check this one out, it will prepare you for the world that is in Chuck Palahnuik's novels.

"The Atlantis Revelation" by Thomas Greanias

"The Atlantis Revelation"
by Thomas Greanias
Published 2009 by Atria Books


Thomas Greanias has closed out his Atlantis trilogy thriller featuring astro-archaeologist, Conrad Yeats. The first two books in this series not only were great action/thrillers with some puzzle/mystery solving thrown in.

In the first book, "Raising Atlantis" the reader is introduced to Conrad Yeats, an archaeologist that uses the alignment of the stars to find the great mysteries of ancient treasures. Conrad has a strange relationship w/ Sister Serghetti, a nun that is know for helping the unfortunate but with some attitude. I think the best way to describe Sister Serghetti is to take Mother Theresa and throw in a whole lot of "Tomb Raider's" Lara Croft. Serghetti and Yeats could almost become husband and wife or even just lovers if it weren't for the good Sister's marriage to Jesus Christ and the Catholic church getting in the way. This first book led the two to Antarctica to discover under the ice was the lost continent of Atlantis, which boasted great technology leading Conrad's father to take a massive transport to the original universe which seeded the Earth with human DNA.

In Book two "The Atlantis Prophecy" Yeats' father's gravestone provides an elaborate puzzle leading to the actual origin of the United States and its government. All the planning for the government in the new world was brought on by the Catholic Church, the Freemasons, the Knights Templar and many other subjects of conspiracy. This leads Conrad and Sister Serghetti to two globes, a terresterial globe and a celestial globe which when used in conjunction with each other can determine the fate of the New World. The sad part of this book is that Sister Serghetti steals one of the globes from Yeats to give to the Vatican.

Now feeling hate towards Sister Serghetti because of the betrayal, Conrad Yeats moves on. Here In book 3, "The Atlantis Revelation," Yeats begins the story with a hunt for a weapon that proves the Nazis were trying to use Technology developed in early Atlantis. The weapon is the Flammenschwert, translated from German means the flaming sword. This weapon can turn water into fire and with the Earth being over 70% water this could be dangerous in the wrong hands. The problem is that the Flammenschwert is stolen from Yeats before he can surface from the lost Nazi submarine in which it was found. This begins a chase across Europe as Yeats tries to prevent the Flammenschwert from being used to start Armageddon.

This thriller takes as from the Bilderbergers to the Alliance who all want control. All this is action is being conducted by Roman Midas a Russian multi-billionaire seeking world domination. In an adventure that takes us through to the beginning of man's exile from the Garden of Eden, Yeats, with the help of some surprising supporters tries to stop this Final War.

While this book does have some great action and some puzzle/mystery solving, it did not have the oomph of the first two books in the series. Don't get me wrong this book is a very fun, exciting romp through Europe and Ancient History, but the first two had more. Maybe because in the first two the main puzzle to solve was completely unknown, in this book the item (the Flammschwert) and the possible use was known as the thrills happened in the background.

The book does seem to bring a close to the adventures of Conrad Yeats and Sister Serghetti, or maybe just the beginning. It brings the trilogy to a full close but Greanias did leave room for more books following these two and their adventures. Greanias could go either way and I'd be happy but I would like to find more technology based in myth and legend.

"The Subtle Knife" Book 2 of "His Dark Materials" by Philip Pullman

"The Subtle Knife"
Book 2 of "His Dark Materials"
by Philip Pullman
Multicast performance
Produced by Listening Library


Continuing in my quest of trying to figure out why some folks are up in arms about the "His Dark Materials" books I gave this audio book a listen. To be honest, I'm still not seeing what the fuss is about. There are some minor mentions of organized religions stifling independent thought, and maybe towards the end of the book something that may be a threat to some religious zealots, but still the series seems to be just a fun adventure. Especially more so in this book as the main characters are travelling to alternater worlds/dimensions.

The story begins with Will Parry killing a man after hiding his OCD mother with a friend and setting off to find his father. The man was searching for information on Will's father. In his efforts to escape the police, he discovers a portal that leads to Cittàgazze, a city in another world. The city looks recently deserted, and Will chooses a house to find food. It is here that he meets Lyra Belacqua and her daemon Pantalaimon, who came here after entering the hole in the sky that her father, Lord Asriel, created at the end of "The Golden Compass."

In Will's world Lyra uses her alethiometer to instruct her what to do. She is told to find a scholar in Will's world who is experimenting with dark matter, which is equal to Dust in Lyra's world. The scholar, Dr. Mary Malone, has created a computer to communicate with dark matter trying to prove her hypothesis that dark matter is intelligent. Lyra uses the system to communicate with the dark matter as she does with Dust through the alethiometer. This proves to Dr. Malone, who lost funding for the project and was about to be shut down, that she was on the right track. During this time a man from Lyra's world steals the alethiometer and recruits Lyra and Will to steal the Subtle Knife in return he'll give back the alethiometer. The knife can cut through any material and more importantly cut through the veil between worlds allowing the user to travel between worlds.

This story branches out in from there following the witch Serafina Pekkala, who was separated from Lyra during a battle in "The Golden Compass,"and is searching for her. She discovers that the Magisterium and Lyra's mother, Mrs. Coulter, have learned of the prophecy surrounding Lyra and plan to destroy her. She calls a meeting of the witches council. The witches vote to band together and join Lyra's father, Lord Asriel, in his fight against the Magisterium.

The Aeronaut Lee Scoresby ventures out to find the explorer Stanislaus Grumman, who is rumored to know of an object that gives protection to whomever holds it. That object is the Subtle Knife.

The book follows the separate adventurers as they travel and fight their way back together to leave a huge cliff hanger as the end of the book. Along the way people die and get hurt, but in order to leave you with something to read I'll leave it at that. Trust me this one is just as good, if not better, than the first book in the series and will leave you wanting more. Again religion is not yet threatened and the concept of free will is emphasized. So read away my friends.

"The Demon Spirit - Part 1" The Demon Wars Saga" by R. A. Salvatore

"The Demon Spirit - Part 1"
The Demon Wars Saga"
by R. A. Salvatore
Multicast production
Produced by Graphic Audio
Approx 5 hours.


R.A. Salvatore created a phenom in the Demon Wars Saga, spanning seven books and a role playing game. This saga of high fantasy in the Land of Corona is one of action and adventure equal to that of the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy by Tolkien. In the first book, which Graphic Audio produced in audio form in three parts, the listener was introduced to the Heroes; Elbryan the Ranger, Jilesponie the warrior and wizard in training, Avelyn Desbris the Wizard Monk, Bradwarden the Centaur and Juravial the elf. The all went to battle the Demon Dactyl which had awakened and sent it's armies of dwarves/powries, goblins and giants into the Land of Corona to clear the way for the Demon to take command. Avelyn and Bradwarden and many humans lost their lives in destroying the Demon Dactyl and Elbryan and Pony returned to the humans in hopes the evil was gone.

Graphic Audio once again will knock you out of your socks with their superb audio production of this audio book. From the swords clanging to giant's skulls being bashed in to the screams of goblin agonies, Graphic Audio makes all the moments of battle or peace in this audio book seem as if they were recorded live and on the spot, placing you in the center of the action.

"The Demon Spirit - Part 1" tells the story of how after destroying the Demon Dactyl, Elbryan and Pony set off to return to their homeland hoping that the end of the Dactyl means the end of evil on the land. This is not the case, instead the armies of the Dactyl are now scattered throughout the land of Corona with no leader. The armies, giants and dwarves are wreaking havoc on the land. Elbryan and Pony meet up with Juraviel the elf and he tells them of how the Dactyl may have ruined the lands of the elves forever and that the humans could lose the battles with the leftover armies of the Dactyl. They then team up and decide to rid the land of the Demon Spirit left behind.

In the meantime the monks of St.-Mere-Abelle still believe that Avelyn Desbris has become in legion with the Dactyl and the monks set out to destroy Avelyn not knowing that he was the hero who destroyed the Dactyl. The monks head to the Barbicon and Mount Aida to recover the magic gemstones Avelyn stole from the monestary and to destroy Avelyn. When they arrive at the Barbicon a different story is told in the destruction that is found. But it seems the Demon Spirit has infiltrated the monks and maybe they don't want the truth to be know.

Great Production, Great acting and most of all a great story make this yet another Graphic Audio Production to seek out and enjoy.

"Innocent in Death" by J.D. Robb

"Innocent in Death"
by J.D. Robb
Read by Susan Ericksen
Produced by Brilliance Audio 2007

I'm not sure if it's a blessing or a curse that the "...in Death" series of books are written by J.D. Robb, a pseudonym for Nora Roberts. I love the brilliant detective/mystery/thriller aspect of the writing, but Nora Robb creeps in the stories and you get that bodice busting romance type feel during moments of these books. I personally read them for the sci-fi detective novels aspect and just kind of skim inevitable romance and skip over the gratuitous sex, not that I'm a prude, it's just they seemed forced into the story. With that out of the way let's talk about what draws me to these books.

Lt. Eve Dallas is a take names / kick butt NYPSD homicide detective that always cracks the case. This series of books is set in the mid 21st Century around the year 2060. Dallas is married to the richest man on and off planet, Roarke. One of the things that makes this series interesting to me is the cast of characters. Dallas' assistant Detective Delia Peabody and Electronics Detective McNabb are just a couple of characters that make these books fun. I think Peabody is the queen of sarcasm.

The audio books in this series (including this book) are read by Susan Ericksen. Her voice work is phenomenal. She has a unique voice for each character and makes the listening to these books even more fun.

"Innocent in Death" begins with the death of a private school teacher. The teacher is found dead at his desk in his own filth. Obviously this leads to Lt. Dallas to suspect poisoning and the school becomes a crime scene. Who would want to kill this teacher. He was newly married and him and his wife were overwhelmingly in love, so rule out the spouse. He did however find out about another teacher making unwanted sexual advances on one of the school employees. Maybe it was a cover up. But soon the teacher that was suspected is found dead. Dallas must catch the killer before another dies.

With no known motives and various backgrounds of the victims this one has her stumped. But soon she comes to a suspect that surprises all. The problem with this case is not the lack of evidence, but, and here's where the Nora Roberts writing takes over, Lt. Dallas' husband, Roarke, is visited by one of his old flames that wants to relight that flame. This drives a wedge between Roarke and Dallas and between Dallas and her work.

With an ending to surprise all, I'd recommend this book for the detective story enthusiast, however, this is one of those books in the series that leans highly on the romance novel side of Nora Roberts.

"The Lost Throne" By Chris Kuzneski

"The Lost Throne"
By Chris Kuzneski
Published August, 2009
by Putnam


I'm not sure who started the trend of treasure hunting, globe hopping, action and adventure novels, but I hope it is not one that ever goes away, especially after reading this latest novel from Chris Kuzneski. In Kuzneski's latest novel "The Lost Throne" a cast of characters hop the European continent in search of treasure and tracking down murderers with some great thrills to keep you glued to every page in this book.

If you haven't read a Chris Kuzneski novel, the best way to describe it is that his writing is very much his own. Okay, If I have to compare for the sake of introduction I'll say he's a bit of James Patterson, Dan Brown, Clive Cussler, James Rollins, with a twist of Tom Clancy for flavor. Simmer down until you have a heaping dish of thrills, action, adventure, and humor. Kuzneski’s novels follow the adventures of Jonathon Payne and David "D.J." Jones, former members of the MANIACs an elite Special Forces unit in the U.S. military, the main characters are ex-soldiers,but the novels are not “military” thrillers. The relationship and the resulting dialogue between these two is very real and at times very funny. And to top it off all there's a puzzle that you will be trying to solve alongside Payne and Jones.

"The Lost Throne" starts out with two separate sets of murders. One in a nearly unknown Greek Orthodox Monastery, in which 7 monks are beheaded while the group of assassins try to find a book. The other is a single man assassinated in St. Petersburg, Russia in broad daylight, both are professional but other than that seem unrelated.

Interpol agent Nick Dial takes on the case in Greece where the monks are murdered. Upon arrival he gets the gut feeling that something bigger than murder is at stake. The monks were at the monastery for a secret meeting between a group of Orthodox monks that come from various nationalities. Dial soon discovers that the monks had some modern facilities and on a security camera tape an image is caught of one of the assassins. The assassins seem to be Spartans, yes the same from Sparta, the subject of the film and comic book "300," from the battle of Thermopylae. The Spartans were after something and when Dial discovers the beheaded monks heads in a pyramid stack in a hidden chamber within the monastery he must find out why.

On the other side of the world the Heroes Payne and Jones are called upon for help. But the problem is that Payne mistakes the ringing of his cell phone for the ringing of the hotel phone and at 3 am he knocks the cell phone down getting to the other, thus breaking the cell phone. The next day after Jones fixes the phone (yes, he's a tech expert) he finds that every half hour an call came through his phone. The caller is an academic named Richard Byrd. Byrd fears for his life because he has nearly uncovered the location of a magnificent treasure. But there are those who have dedicated their lives to protecting it, and they will stop at nothing to prevent its discovery.

After Byrd is discovered to be assassinated Payne and Jones are called on to help smuggle Byrd's assistant out of Russia for her safety. There is the plight for the treasure uncovered and eager to help in all ways Payne and Jones seek to solve the puzzle of what the treasure is and where it is located.

With some great fights, chases, espionage-like moments and the fun humor of Payne and Jones, "The Lost Throne" will keep you on the edge of your seat and eager to help solve this mystery.

"The Demon Awakens - Part 3" The Demon Wars Saga book 1 by R. A. Salvatore

"The Demon Awakens - Part 3"
The Demon Wars Saga book 1
by R. A. Salvatore
Multicast production
Produced by Graphic Audio

The beginning of a new era comes to a close in part three of the high fantasy saga, The Demon Wars, by R. A. Salvatore. The demon Dactyl has awakened and has put together an army to destroy the land of Corona. The army is invading the towns and villages of Corona and the humans are slowly overcoming their denial and under the tutelage of Elbryan, Pony, Avelyn and Bradwarden and beginning to fight back. R.A. Salvatore has created a story that runs through seven books and is the basis of the role-playing game, Demon Wars. Now teamed up with Graphic Audio, these books come to life as an audio adaptation. In order to do justice to the books, Graphic Audio is producing each title of the series in multiple parts. This is the third of three parts which make up the first title, The Demon Awakens.

Once the villagers and townsfolk experience for themselves the devastation brought on by armies of goblins, powries and giants they realize the warnings have been true. Elbryan the Ranger, Pony the warrior and wizard in training, Avelyn (the Mad Monk) the Wizard and Bradwarden the centaur have trained some of the remaining humans in how to fight back against these foes. Once the humans are able to somewhat fend for themselves, the trainers must take on their own quest and leave for the Demon Dactyl's lair in Mount Aida to defeat Bestesbulzibar, the Dactyl himself.

This audio book is filled with numerous battle scenes and skirmishes and once again Graphic Audio has produced the "Movie in your Mind" with such talent and ambiance that the actual battles become more than real in this listening experience. Not to give anything away but when the heroes arrive at Mount Aida the volcano in the mountain and all the creatures defending the Demon Dactyl's throne come alive and the listener easily becomes lost in this epic battle. Graphic Audio not only provides great voice talent but the sound effects and ambient music are a bit of wizardry in themselves.

This audio book should be on any an well respected fantasy fan, and should be added to those who love great adventure. R. A. Salvatore has taken the fantasy realm and added some nice bonuses. The wizards in this realm are monks that use a variety of gems, crystals and stones to perform their magic. Each stone has its own power and Salvatore has made the magic within seem almost obvious and yet still maintain the creativity within their use.

Bradwarden the centaur has to be my favorite character, not only is he strong, smart and musically inclined with the bagpipes, but he also has a wit that creates a perfect fit within the group of heroes attempting to defeat the evil invading their land. Oh yeah, and he sometimes eats his victims.

R.I.P. Greg Camp

R.I.P. Greg Camp. I had the pleasure of Interviewing him & Jimmy Harlow on my Blues Show on KCXL back in the late 90s. I have his and Jimmy's autograph on my Camp Harlow CD...and will treasure it more.

"Hell House" Written by Richard Matheson

"Hell House"
Written by Richard Matheson
Performed by Ray Porter
Produced by Blackstone Audio
approx. 9 hours


Here it is folks the ultimate haunted house book, "Hell House" by Richard Matheson. The man that brought vampires (or zombies,depending on how you look at it) to life in the book "I Am Legend," created a very chilling story about the ultimate haunted house. This is the book that inspired the 1973 film "The Legend of Hell House" which starred Roddy McDowell, yes the "Planet of the Apes" guy. Anyway before we go much further let me warn you this one is not for those that have a low tolerance for bad language. The evil of this house is created through one man's excursions and the people that lived and died in the house did some very evil things, and in the playing out of some of the actions and possessions some very colorful vernacular is used. So be prepared.

The reader of this audio book, Ray Porter, does a phenomenal job of separating characters vocally and delivers the horror with the right level of chill too keep your hair standing on end. Without using digital effects Ray's voice portrays those of the haunting spirits as though the disembodied voice is right there with you, okay, i know that technically it is, with an audio book, but he does things with his voice that may creep you out.

The story follows four people; Dr. Lionel Barrett, a physicist out to prove that hauntings are merely electro-magnetic parts of nature, his wife Edith, Florence Tanner, a medium who will help clear the house of its spirits and Benjamin Franklin Fischer, a medium and the only survivor from previous excursions to Hell House.

A very rich man on the edge of life wants to find if there is, or not, life after death. The perfect place to prove this is the notorious Belasco House, Hell House. Two different groups of people have visited Hell House to explore the haunting and only one has survived. The house's original owner, Emeric Belasco, was know to throw parties in which all party goes reveled in evil. All manner of sin is said to have occurred and many people died in the house during these parties. Belasco's body was never found and his evil is said to destroy all who enter the house.

The hired experts have to spend a week in the house to clear out or to prove the evil of Hell House.
Immediately they are treated to the evil that is Hell House. From rocking chairs that rock on their own to violent attacks the party learns they are not welcome. Dr. Barrett has a machine that will clear out the haunting by using the electro-magnetic energy, but before he can get his machine running he must first survive the attacks and possessions.

This is one of those books that I so badly want to talk about the horrifying adventures, but the element of surprise is what makes this book such a great ghost story. So when listening remember even with the lights on or with someone keeping you company, it is not safe.

"The Strain" Written by Guillermo del Toro & Chuck Hogan

"The Strain"
Written by Guillermo del Toro & Chuck Hogan
Read by Ron Perlman
Produced by Harper Audio
approx 13.5 hours.


Let's start this review out by saying, "Whow," that would be the combination of whew and wow together. The whew from the the tension filled time you will spend listening to this audio book. The wow from the exclamation you will expel from listening to this re-imagining of the world of vampires. Guillermo del Toro, creator of such films as "The Devil's Backbone," "Blade II," "Hellboy" (I & II) and "Pan's Labyrinth," has teamed up with author Chuck Hogan (author of "The Standoff" & "Prince of Thieves) to create "The Strain." This book is part one of what is slated to be a trilogy. I will attest to the idea that this audio book can be treated as a stand alone book with great action and a conclusion, but there is a cliff hanger that will leave you wanting more, thus the trilogy will be absorbed by me.

Ron Perlman, who you may know as the star of the "Hellboy" movies or maybe as "the Beast" in the TV series "Beauty and the Beast," does a very nice job of performing this book. At times he almost seems monotone in quality but that is easily justified by the idea that he is allowing the listener to make the story in his mind. Don't get me wrong, monotone is necessary in some areas, but Ron Perlman delivers the action with a punch, slows down just right for the tense moments and keeps the voice quality different for each character. He does a smash-up performance in the voice of Professor Abraham Setrakian, a survivor of a Holocaust death camp and now vampire hunter.

The story begins in a post-9/11 New York City where a Boeing 777 has landed at JFK airport. The landing is perfect and without event, however once the plane begins taxiing it just merely stops and loses all power. The air traffic controllers need the strip for other planes to land and after repeated attempts at communication send a baggage cart out to investigate. The driver of the baggage cart sees a dead airplane with no lights anywhere and all the widow shades closed. The drive gets the feeling of being watched and immediately flees. Everyone suspects a hi-jacking or possible bomb but when the team arrives to investigate they find everyone on the plane dead.

Dr. Eph Goodweather, head of CDC's rapid-response team that investigates biological threats, is ordered to get his team on the plane and investigate. What he finds is a strain of parasite that could lead to the extinction of mankind.

That strain of parasite is what is delToro's & Hogan's re-imagining of vampirism. Vampires are all controlled by parasites. In this book there is more than just attacking vampires, there is a war being waged. Who will survive?

For the 13 plus hours it took to listen to this audio book I was completely enthralled by the great story telling, the complex story line and intense drama and thrills. This has got to be one of the best vampire books I've heard in a long time. Bram Stoker had me scared, Stephen King's vampires had me startled, Anne Rice had me wanting to become a vampire, but after this one...I'm carrying silver and keeping an eye over my shoulder.

The Old Man and The Sea by Ernest Hemingway

The Old Man and The Sea
by Ernest Hemingway
Read by Charlton Heston
Produced by Caedmon 1998
Approx 2.5 hours



Once again I've read one of those books that just should be read. This may have fallen into the category of "assigned reading" in either High School or University, but I was never assigned this book. This is the first Hemingway novel (or in this case novella) I've read or have listened in audio book form. It will not be my last. I'm not surprised at the storytelling talent in Hemingway, after all he is one of the greats, but I'm surprised that this writing seems to be so timeless. There were a few errors in the writing that I will write about later but nothing to really detract from a great story. All in all this was a great audio book to escape from reality during my commute to and from work.

One of the best things about this audio book is that it was read by Charlton Heston. His voice not only enthralled me, but his vocalization of the Old Man (Santiago) talking to himself seemed spot on. I understand there is another audio book read by Donald Sutherland, but I'm happy with the version I heard.

To summarize, "The Old Man and the Sea" is a story of human endurance and endeavor. Santiago, the old man in the story, has recently had an "unlucky streak" in his fishing. Living in a Caribbean fishing village a persons entire raison d'etre is fishing. He is so unlucky that his young apprentice, Manolin, has been forbidden by his parents to fish with Santiago. The night before the village is to go out fishing, Manolin hauls back Santiago's fishing gear, feeding him and discussing American baseball, especially Santiago's idol, Joe DiMaggio. Santiago tells Manolin that on the next day, he will venture far out into the Gulf to fish, confident that his unlucky streak is near its end. Their relationship is established and they have a very close relationship.

The next day Santiago, assisted by Manolin, prepares his skiff for a day of fishing. Santiago rows far off from the rest of the village and sets his lines. Eventually a fish grabs the bait on one line and starts pulling Santiago and his skiff far out to sea. Santiago eventually views the fish and sees that it is an 18 foot marlin and will yield about 1500 pounds of meat. Santiago is pulled out to sea for a couple of days before the fight can begin. The rest of the story is of Santiago's struggle to "land" the fish and then bring it back in. Being one man in a skiff the landing of the fish is a huge struggle but worse is his trip back to the village where he must fight off sharks to keep the fish. The sharks smell the blood in the water and the fish is hanging over the edge of the skiff, easy meal for sharks unless Santiago can defend his prize.

Now really the only thing I had a problem with in this book is the referring to dolphins as fish. Everyone knows dolphins are mammals. Now at first I forgave the error thinking that as a fisherman all bodies in the ocean are referred to as fish. But when Santiago catches a dolphin on the line and cuts it up to eat so he can sustain himself as the days long struggle with the large marlin, Hemingway writes that Santiago cut out the dolphin's gills. It just bothered me a bit, but after that was over the story was so great to hear that I forgave Hemingway for not knowing a dolphin has lungs.

"Juggler of Worlds" by Larry Niven & Edward M. Lerner

"Juggler of Worlds"
by Larry Niven & Edward M. Lerner
Read by Tom Weiner
Produced by Blackstone Audio
Approx. 13 Hours.


Be prepared to be whisked away from word one in this prequel to Larry Niven's classic sci-fi "Ringworld." I have yet to read the Ringworld series of books, but I found this book, being a prequel, did not rely on the series being required reading. This novel takes place 200 years before Ringworld and has a very interesting view of "Known Space."

"Juggler of Worlds" starts out jumping around from moment to moment, year to year, location to location. At first it was a bit hard to follow but once the story got rolling, all the pieces slipped in to place and the story was easily followed and understood. The first half of the book is basically and explanation as to why the characters act as they do in the first half.

This audio book is read by Tom Weiner. Tom's deep voice makes the book easy to listen to and his characterizations of the various humans and aliens helps to keep the story flowing with a good understanding as to who is speaking and thinking.

Sigmund Ausfaller is an Agent for the U.N. More specifically he is a highly valued Agent of the Amalgamated Regional Militia (A.R.M.). What makes him so valuable is that he is a Paranoid. Sigmund is perfect for rooting out conspiracies because he sees conspiracies in everything. The U.N. has several paranoids that are used to uncover conspiracies, these are all made to be paranoid through drugs. Sigmund is a natural paranoid, that's what makes him unique and actually better at the job.

Sigmund meets Nessus, an alien from the race known as The Puppeteers. The Puppeteers are an older race in Known Space and have sold most of the human race technology. Their biggest contribution is known as an indestructible hull space craft. Nothing (except light and gravity) can permeate the hulls thus creating a bit of peace in the universe. Nessus soon becomes Sigmund's adversary after all the Puppeteers mysteriously vanish from known space. The reason suspected is that the center of the galaxy is exploding.

After an indestructible hull returns in a deteriorated state the mystery of what could destroy the indestructible adds on to Sigmund's suspicions of the dissappearance of the Puppeteers. With an exciting chase through hyper-space and beyond Sigmund is determined to find out what is motivating Nessus and the Puppeteers .

Various jumps in space and various characters may seem confusing at first but the mystery unfolds itself with a very nice payoff to end this intelligent science fiction novel. The various aliens; including the Puppeteers, Kzinn and the Outsiders are well thought out races, especially for those of you who, like me, always wondered why every alien in Star Trek is bi-pedal. Here they are not in fact they are creatively constructed in "Juggler of Worlds."

Do yourself a favor and escape into this well written and well read audio book.

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

Brave New World
by Aldous Huxley
Read by Michael York
Produced by BBC Audiobooks America
approx 9 hours


Every so often I go back and read one of those books that you HAD to read in school. Whether high school or college, if they were on the reading/study list they had to be boring. Many of these books I found interesting but with the added feature of having to analyze and dissect these books it seemed to take away the enjoyment of just reading a good book. I went back to the shelves a couple of years ago and re-read "Moby Dick" and actually enjoyed that book.

This time around I decided on going back and re-reading "A Brave New World." At the time I decided to do that I found an audiobook version read by Michael York, and decided to give that a try. After all, It's the guy from "Logan's Run" reading it...I know some of you say the guy from the Austin Powers movies, but I enjoyed "Logan's Run" more and I like to show my age.

So after years of intense study & dissecting of this book in High School and in Freshman English @ SIU, I won't be overanalyzing this book. Been there, done that, even got a t-shirt. Instead let's talk about this book in generalities and for enjoyment purposes.

"A Brave New World" is one of those dystopian society books that warns us as humans what we may be headed for. (Oops starting to analyze here.) In this future society people are not born but are decanted from bottles in large factories. In these factories they separate the different castes of humans by slight chemical additions or deletions from the bottles on the assembly line. Through years of study scientists discovered that not everyone can be the super-smart Alpha plus plus, who would do the grunt work? So Epsilons are developed to do said grunt work. The other castes are Betas, Gammas and Deltas with varying degrees in each, signified by a plus or minus in their cast.

Also in this future history is ignored, for it is the past and the past is gone. The center of worship is not God but Ford (as in Henry, the man that perfected the assembly line) and Freud. At times the two are referred to as the same.

The society is kept at bay by doses of a drug called Soma. Soma the effects of Alcohol & Christianity without all the guilt.

The story centers around Bernard Marx who, rumor has it, accidentally had alcohol added to his bottle which stunted his growth and as an Alpha plus he's not as beautiful as the other Alphas. Bernard is a psychologist (specializing in hypnopædia). Hypnopædia is the sleep therapy that conditions infants and children to develop into loving society. Bernard decides to take his annual holiday to the savage (non-modernized) lands in New Mexico, USA.

Short and sweet he brings back a savage that is the son of a member of modern society that got lost in the savage lands and spent a number of years raising her son in the savage lands. In this future the concept of a Mother is similar to pornography and highly detested.

The savage in short revolts against the non-self-thinking society after the death of his mother. As a result Bernard and a colleague of his are exiled to islands of self-thinkers. The savage tries to isolate himself but the "natives" of London bring their Soma and celebrate the visual image of the savage with Soma induced orgies.

Interesting science-fiction and social commentary all rolled into one in this book. Michael York delivers this book with ease and grace. Being that London is the center of society in this book Mr. York's accent adds believability and his voicework keeps the characters separated and unique. So do yourself a favor and just read this book for fun. I found that reading it just for fun I actually was able to absorb the social commentary a little easier and could actually analyze the book with more ease.

Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

Dead Until Dark
from the "Sookie Stackhouse - Southern Vampire Series"
Written by Charlaine Harris
Narrated by Johanna Parker
Approx 10.5 hours



Once again a long about way to start reading a series led to this one, and yes I'm going to tell you about it before we talk about the book. Most of the time when picking out a book I have a list of favorite authors and go from there, usually in the science-fiction or horror realm. After all when reading I usually want to escape reality a bit so those are my chosen genres. Sometimes a friend will recommend a book or author and I'll check it out to see if something catches my interest. Another way is that I'll get books that are compilations of short stories from different authors, one of which will be on my list. That's how this one started.

I picked up the book "My Big Fat Supernatural Wedding," edited by P.N. Elrod because there was a Jim Butcher - Harry Dresden story in it. I immediately consumed that story and then went on to the others since they dealt with the supernatural and some had vampires. One such story in that book was one written by Charlaine Harris which took place in the world of Sookie Stackhouse but did not feature Sookie in the story. It was well written and had an intriguing view of vampires and the supernatural. So that stuck in my head, and when I wrote the review of that book I mentioned I would probably pick up a Sookie Stackhouse book and read it. I received a lot of emails telling me that Sookie is a must read. Hmmm...maybe I will.

Then I found out that HBO did a series, called "True Blood" which was based on these novels. I started watching and was hooked. What a great series with some cool views of vampires. Also the series featured something I love to read about and was happy to see in the book; sarcasm and humor. So I said "here goes," and picked up the first book in audio book form and was not let down in any way.

Sookie Stackhouse is a normal waitress in a bar in Bon Temps, Lousiana. (Already got me there, I love Louisiana.) Okay, Sookie may not be normal in all senses of the word, she does have a "disability," she can read minds. She considers this a disability because she can't help it all the time and no one really wants to know what everyone is thinking ALL the time. In Sookie's world there is a bit of a racial/social problem; recently vampires have "Come out of the Coffin" and revealed themselves to the world and want to live side by side with humans. Of course the vampires are not accepted by everyone easily and the fight for vampire rights is on. The thing that gets the vampires more accepted is that synthetic blood has been created in Japan and is sold in bottles so vampires do not have to hunt humans. Some still do.

During the excitement of vampires blending in society a sort of groupie following develops in which humans want to be bitten and/or have sex with vampires. These groupies are called "fang-bangers." And just like any groupie sub-culture they are looked down upon.

One night Sookie is waiting tables when Bill Compton, vampire, walks in. Sookie soon becomes attracted to Bill the vampire because his mind is closed to her. She enjoys the mental silence and they fall for each other. At this same time in Bon Temps, LA, a series of murders is occuring. Women who are known to have "cavorted" with vampires and work in the service industry are being killed. One of Sookie's co-workers is murdered, and since Sookie is well known to be "with" Bill she may be the next target. But not before more girls turn up dead, including Sookie's grandmother.

The police begin looking at Sookie's brother Jason ( well known for his bed-hopping), since he has slept with some of the victims. Sookie goes on her own investigation using her "disability" to find the culprit. She asks Bill to take her to a Vampire bar since all the women are known for their associations with vampires. The bar, Fangtasia, is owned by a powerful vampire named Eric. Eric is also somewhat of a political leader of sorts among the vampires. Eric learns of Sookie's disability which he refers to as a gift, when Sookie alerts him of a raid on the bar.

Eric then recruits Sookie to find out who's embezzling from the bar and Sookie promises to help at that time and again in the future only if the culprit is turned over to proper authorities. The embezzler turns out to be another vampire and before he can kill Sookie, Eric stakes him.

As you can tell there is lots of fun and excitement in this first book in the Sookie Stackhouse series and the narrator of this book Johanna Parker captures the southern accents and Sookie's voice perfectly. I should point out the book is told in first person from Sookie's own mouth.

Now on to the next book.

The Fantastic Four Radio Series

The Fantastic Four Radio Series
Originally broadcast in 1975
13 Episodes.


Okay I have been listening to the Graphic Audio productions of DC comics' Justice League novels. I was never really a fan of DC comics but these audio book productions are out of this world and I fell in love with the unique story telling combined with the production work. Being a fan of Marvel comics I wanted to look and see if there were any Marvel audio book productions that could equal these DC stories done by Graphic Audio. My first place to look the internets (sic ... inside joke).
I have come to find that the Internet contains the sum total of human knowledge, organized like the bottom of a teenager's closet, and with that knowledge I ran into some information that I couldn't believe; in 1975 Marvel comics had a weekly radio show featuring the Fantastic 4.

Now in discovering this I had to find the audio and one of the places that had mp3 files of the the actual radio broadcasts was the Internet Archive site http://www.archive.org/details/FantasticFour-10Episodes the problem with this was that this site only had 10 episodes and there were 13. I finally tracked all 13 episodes downloaded them on my iPod and had myself a Retro-Blast.

I've said before that Americans need more radio theatre and in doing my research it seems as though the 80s was the last radio theatre we had here in the U.S. of A. But maybe I can find ways to get that going again. Any investors out there? I think the comics world would be the perfect place to start.

Okay let's talk about this radio series. In listening to the series there are two great treats/surprises. These surprises are 2 of the voices in the series. First is none other than Smilin' Stan Lee as the host / narrator of the program. It is so great to hear Stan telling these stories, his voice really pushes the excitement along with the sound effects and dialogue. The other surprise is a very young Bill Murray as the Human Torch, Johnny Storm. Yes the same Bill Murray from Saturday Night Live (the talented years), Caddyshack, Stripes, Ghostbusters and Rushmore. Before SNL Murray was performing with the National Lampoon Radio so the voice talent was already known. There is one scene in which the the Fantastic 4 are returning from an adventure on the moon and what seems like some ad-libbing by Human Torch and The Thing, some very funny things are said, but you have to listen close because it is in the background.

The rest of the cast consists of:
Bob Maxwell....Mr.. Fantastic
Cynthia Adler...The Invisible Woman
Jim Pappas...The Thing
Jerry Terheyden...Doctor Doom

Many of the heroes and villains met in this series are:
Nick Fury, Ant-Man, Namor, The Hulk, The Puppet Master, The Watcher, Skrulls & the Super Skrull, The Moleman, the Hatemonger, The Red Ghost, and the Miracle man.

Here's the link once again for the internet archive site with the episodes:
http://www.archive.org/details/FantasticFour-10Episodes

Do yourself a favor and download these fun stories...most are based on actual Fantastic Four comic issues from the Silver age of comics.

"Give Me Back My Legions" By Harry Turtledove

"Give Me Back My Legions"
By Harry Turtledove
Read by Scott Vance
Produced by Tantor Media

Do you like books with gladiators in them? How about Legionnaires? This may be the audio book for you. Harry Turtledove explores in this novel one of Ancient Rome's greatest military disasters, what has become known as the Battle of the Teutoberg Forest. This is the battle in Which Arminius defeated Augustus Ceasar's appointed governor of Germany, Publius Quinctilius Varus, and kept Rome out of Germany.

Arminius is a German by birth but serves in the Roman army and gains Roman citizenship and an officer's rank. However Arminius does not wish to see his fatherland, Germany to come under Roman rule or its people to become slaves. While serving as an officer in the Roman / Pannonian front Arminius gets word the woman betrothed to him has been taken away by her father and betrothed to an older German. Arminius is granted leave to defend his honor. Going through Germany to his home Arminius decides that Germany must remain free. Arminius seeks assistance from the newly appointed governer to Germany, Varus. Varus takes an immediate likening to Arminius and treats him as his own son.

During Arminius' absence, Varus is told by the father of the betrothed girl that Arminius is spreading word and gathering forces to defeat the Romans. Varus sees this as merely an old man that is getting back at the loss of his daughter to Arminius. When Varus receives the same reports from some of his own officers he defends Arminius by mentioning that Arminius is a high ranking officer and a Roman citizen.

Arminius does continue to gather forces and finds the place where the Romans can be defeated. Using the Romans own military maneuvers against them, Arminius must get the Legions to march into the mountains on small trails between swamps.

Arminius continues to win the trust of Varus and spends the summers in Varus camp as the XVII, XVIII and XIX Legions cross Germany to conquer the Germans and collect taxes. The tax collecting is to get the Germans used to Roman rule. At the end of each summer the Legions must return south to survive the rough German winters. During these excursions the Roman Legions are bogged down by the swamp lands and the constant rains. Arminius hints to Varus that he knows of a route that could take them back south without the bad weather and improved marching conditions. Varus thinks about the idea but decides not to take Arminius up on the offer, until that fateful third summer, when everyone except Varus sees the treachery being built up by Arminius.

In creating this novel Harry Turtledove took some poetic license in creating some events and characters to help explore the hows and whys of the German's victory over the Romans. This military tale has many lessons for modern military and war-making in that the Romans were so confident of their victory they forgot to watch the people of the land. The summer Varus decides to take Arminius' route he is composing a "Mission Accomplished" type letter that is sent to Augustus Ceasar.

This audio book features the wonderful voice actor Simon Vance. However, I'm not so sure if the casting of Vance in this book was the best decision. While Vance does read each character's speaking part with distinct different voices, his British accent does not quite fit in with the Roman and German characters. Some of the minor characters seem to have a Cockney accent or other British Isles accents, while Augustus Ceasar has a vocal quality that sounds like a impersonation of Sean Connery.

Another aspect of this audio book production that made it a little bit hard to absorb, at first, was the lack of pauses between segments. During each chapter there may be two or three separate scenes, such as one with Arminius, one with a Legion officer collecting taxes and one of Varus being approached by someone. There were no pauses between these scenes and they blended in as though they were one continuous scene. Throw in the similar sounding Roman and German names and the story becomes hard to follow. On a good note after about five chapters this became easier to follow and was more tolerable.

All in all with a great historical story this audio book is worth the time spent. Harry Turtledove even adds a final chapter in which is discussed the differences between fact and fiction and what sources he used and why for the historical accuracy.

“The Demon Awakens - part 2” The Demon Wars Saga By R. A. Salvatore

“The Demon Awakens - part 2”
The Demon Wars Saga
By R. A. Salvatore
Multi-cast production
Produced by Graphic Audio
Approx. 6 hours



The beginning of a new era continues in part two of the high fantasy saga, The Demon Wars, by R. A. Salvatore. The demon Dactyl has awakened and has put together an army to destroy the land of Corona. R.A. Salvatore has created a story that runs through seven books and is the basis of the role-playing game, Demon Wars. Now teamed up with Graphic Audio, these books come to life as an audio adaptation. In order to do justice to the books, Graphic Audio is producing each title of the series in multiple parts. This is the second of three parts which make up the first title, The Demon Awakens.

Once again Graphic Audio delivers, with a punch, another "Movie in your Mind," with great production. Using a well cast multi-cast performance and incidental music the story is told superbly. Another feature of all Graphic Audio productions continues in this production and that is the very realistic sound effects.

In part one of this series the listener was introduced to Elbryan, Jilsesponie (Pony) and Avelyn Desbris. Elbryan and Jilsesponie are the only survivors of the goblin raid on their village of Dundalis. and Avelyn Desbris is a monk that has lost faith, not in God, but in religion.

Elbryan was taken in by the elves and trained to become a ranger and set out to guard the region from dangers. During this training Elbryan learned to fight and how to find his spirit guide. After years of conditioning his body and mind the elves tell him it is time to leave them. He finds himself protecting the region even if the locals don't feel they need protection. Elbryan also finds himself back in his hometown of Dundalis. This is not the Dundalis of Elbryan's youth but one that has been built upon the ruins of Elbryan's Dundalis. Elbryan is befriended by a bag-pipe playing, wise-cracking, Centaur who helps Elbryan find a horse and continues his training.

Pony has had the hard life thrust upon her mainly due to her not remembering who she was or where she came from. She finds herself married to a noble man but on their wedding night she attacks him out of fear and the marriage is annulled. At this time she remembers her name is Jilsesponie and becomes a soldier set to guard the region. Her fellow soldiers continuously shun their duties for drink and the company of women (Pony is the only woman in the fort). Pony soon becomes the only one aware of an attack by vicious dwarves known as Red Caps (they get their nickname because of their ritual of dipping their caps into the blood of their slain enemies). Pony escapes the attack after destroying the Red Cap Ship and her life then intersects with Avelyn Desbris.

Avelyn has lost faith in the Abellican Church after returning from gathering magic stones. Gems and stones hold power in the land of Corona and the abby is the only one able to gather the stones dropped from heaven. When the monks return from the gathering of the stones the abbey orders the destruction of the sailors and the ship that took the monks to the island. Avelyn witnesses this senseless murder, takes the stones gathered and leaves the Abellican Church forever. However, before he leaves he kills one of the monks in charge and is now a fugitive. A bounty hunter , of sorts, is trained to hunt down and kill Avelyn and sent out to find him.

Avelyn, through a vision, discovers the Dactyl has awakened and will soon destroy the land of Corona. He then takes it as his mission to warn all the villages he can by going to village pubs and preaching the end of the world. This turns out to always end in a bar brawl which Avelyn always loses. These brawls are what Avelyn calls "readiness training," because the villagers all learn to fight. After being thrown out of the pub which serviced Pony's fort and soldiers, Pony befriends the wayward monk. Pony meets up with Avelyn being thrown out again after she escapes from sure death in the Red Cap raid.

Avelyn and Pony develop a friendship and Avelyn takes it upon himself to return Pony to her homeland so she can deal with her demons and heal. Upon returning to Dundalis many things happen to the trio as this book winds up in preparation for the final installment in Graphic Audio's production of "The Demon Awakens."

This production has it all danger, excitement, battles and fun.

"His Dark Materials, Book I: The Golden Compass" Written by Philip Pullman

"His Dark Materials, Book I: The Golden Compass"
Written by Philip Pullman
Read by Philip Pullman and Full Cast
Produced by Listening Library 2004

Back in 2007 I was intrigued by the Movie based on this book "The Golden Compass," and had to go see it. What intrigued me most was that churches were protesting this fantasy story. Anytime organized religion says a movie is dangerous or in any way harmful, I have to go see it. I'm one of those folks that cannot fathom that arts and entertainment can warp a mind so badly that it will cause one to harm oneself or others. Art may reflect life but I don't think that art can bend life to its will. So began my journey into the worlds created by Philip Pullman.

After watching this wonderfully imaginative movie I couldn't figure why all the fuss. After discussing it with some folks I heard that the producers of the movie cut out much of the obvious anti-religion material discussed in the book. Well....that meant I now had to read the books. I got the books and was prepared to read them, I'm talking about the actual physical books here, with pages and all, but I ran across these audio books being narrated by the author and a full cast of performers and had to give that a listen. After all who better to read a book than the author. His voice could add emphasis to areas he wrote where he felt it was more important. Thus giving his intentions rather than something that could be misunderstood. I'm glad I did. The production was very well done with a cast of voices that fit into the characters voices perfectly. There are no sound effects or incidental music like some full cast production audio books, but that's what made this a better experience.

To answer the question about what has this book got to do with religion, well the book does not say at any point that religion is bad, merely that organized religion is power hungry and that could be a bad thing. Two simple examples as to how religion could be too powerful are "The Inquisition" and Reverend Jim Jones. Without getting into a debate about religion let's just say that religion CAN be used for bad as well as good.

In this book the religious negativity comes in the form of the church wanting to reclaim original sin and harnessing the potential power held within. After all without original sin we could all live in the Garden. However the evil way the church tries to harness that power is to create zombies out of children so they may never be touched by original sin. In this book original sin is represented by Dust. The Dust seems to settle on adults but not children, at least not until the child reaches puberty and their daemon settles on a permanent form.

In the world created by Pullman all humans have a daemon. The daemon is best described as the human soul taking and animal companion form. For children the daemon can shift it's shape into any animal form but once the child has hit puberty the daemon settles on one shape for the rest of the human and daemon's life. The daemon's form seems to reflect somewhat the soul of the person but that would require more research on my part to fully explain, in fact any aspiring students looking to write a thesis on these books could look into that aspect. For right now just understand the daemon's are best explained as being an outward expression of the soul. They can comfort the person during times of stress and can help with many tasks. The daemons also have the ability of speech.

"The Golden Compass" (originally titled "The Northern Lights") introduces us to the main character of Lyra Belacqua, supposedly orphaned and left in the care of the academic staff of Jordan College, Oxford. Lyra's "uncle" Lord Asriel is researching Dust in the north and finding the link between Dust, the soul, multiple universes, particle physics and the Northern Lights. The church does not want Asriel to continue his experiments and investigations. When Lyra discovers a plot to kill her uncle she warns him and saves his life. She then finds out, by hiding in a wardrobe, about Dust through a lecture given to the academ by Lord Asriel.

Lyra's journey begins when children start to go missing. These children vanish without a trace and when one of Lyra's good friends, Roger, disappears she feels the need to find him. The children all tell stories of the disappearances but most stories circle around the "Gobblers" who take the children and do all manner of unspeakable things to the children including eat them. The truth is actually more sinister.

Before Lyra can begin her search she is taken in by Mrs. Coulter. But before she leaves Jordan College the headmaster gives Lyra an alethiometer. Resembling a golden, many-handed pocket-watch, it can answer any question asked by the user. Although initially unable to read or understand its complex symbols, Lyra takes it with her to Mrs. Coulter's. Lyra learns that Mrs. Coulter is the head of the General Oblation Board, a.k.a. the Gobblers, and that she is the one abducting the children. Lyra is to be used to abduct more children. Upon finding this information Lyra runs away. She is then rescued by a group of Gyptians, a nomadic folk who live on boats. The Gyptians take Lyra to meed the King of the Gyptians and discover that Lyra has more to her life's mission, but cannot be told of her mission. Leaving the outcome to freewill.

In an adventure that leads Lyra to meet with Witches, Armored (intelligent) Bears, and seeking to rescue her uncle, Lord Asriel, from his imprisonment by the church, Phillip Pullman creates a novel of epic proportion that in this audio book form is an exhilarating listen.

"How to Mind Map" by Tony Buzan

"How to Mind Map"
by Tony Buzan
Published 2002 by Thorsons
103 pages

Before I get into the review for this book, need to explain how I found out about the concept in the first place. I'm a frequent visitor to the website giveawayoftheday.com, on this site each day they offer different software downloads free. These are full versions of the software and you get to keep forever. The makers of the software get reviews of the software and word of mouth advertising. One of the downloads offered was a program by the company Concept Draw. The program was Concept Draw Mind Map. At first glance it looked like a flow chart layout program, like (I thought) Microsoft's Visio. But the layout and tools were more "organic" in nature and the software was intended to be used as a computer assistant for Mind Mapping.

The software sat on my computer for a while and finally I decided to see what this Mind Mapping was all about. Tony Buzan has created or rather put to use the system that allows you to make the most of your brain and mind and to oranize, create and plan how the brain wants to do these things. Basically with pictures and colors and flow chart type of layouts that evolve from a central Idea or spoke. The sub-points then branch off in curvy colorful lines with pictures drawn to assist memory and learning. The first mind map you creat in the book is based on fruit. This is used to prove a point that the brain doesn't think in words or in straight lines but rather in abstracts and colors. In other words, in the book you are told to think of the word fruit and then close your eyes. What your mind's eye then sees is not the letters F-R-U-I-T, but maybe a basket of fruit, bananas, apples, oranges, you know actual pictures. From there you draw a mind map that branches out into several ideas for fruit in a way that your brain can read and interpret.

Below is a sample from the book of a mind map on fruit. This is from the Japanese printing of the book, and for those that speak english may not know what words written are, but the images allow your brain to translate and maybe get a good idea of what is written. If you were to draw this yourself using your own symbols it would then make even more sense



Now, take this concept further and with mind mapping you are able to make notes and lists and keep them in a way that your brain can interpret. Imagine, and yes it is possible, to have a lecture or presentation drawn out on one sheet of paper rather than on a stack of 3x5 cards. That is just one of the many uses of mind mapping. Maybe you are a student and with your notes you have to sift through pages of lined out notes. With Mind Mapping you can find your central concepts easy enough and make studying easier.

If you are interested in making your life easier and learn how to better create, organize and plan check out this cool book...I'm still learning how to do this right, but it is a fun process.

As for the computer software, I like using the software because my writing is atrocious and I've never been much of an artist. So I let the software do the pictures for me on some occasions. As an example, below is an incomplete Mind Map on the review of this book from that software. (I had to limit to just a little info so i can include it all in a small graphic)

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Tertiary Phase By Douglas Adams

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Tertiary Phase
By Douglas Adams
Published by BBC Audio books
Multicast performance
Produced by BBC Radio
Approx. 3 hours

I'm really not sure what it is but there is something about the British and their creativity and humor. Seriously, think about it all the best stuff entertainment related comes from the UK; The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Monty Python's Flying Circus, Dr. Who, The Office, Life on Mars, Ashes to Ashes and even American Idol was a British idea first. Continuing with that tradition the Britons birthed Douglas Adams.
The "trilogy in five parts" that makes up the books of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series has to be one of the funniest if not most creative science fiction works in existence. The series has seen many manifestations of itself in media, a BBC Television series, Computer games, movie, stage plays, games, comic books and the BBC Radio Productions.

The first two books in the series were produced for BBC Radio 4 in 1978. The latter books in the series, the Tertiary, Quandary and Quintessential Phases were broadcast on Radio 4 from September 2004 to June 2005. The only members of the original cast not on the new versions were absent due to death. However as tribute in episode one of the Tertiary Phase, Simon Jones, the voice of the book, is heard for a bit as the book is updating itself. A real treat is that Douglas Adams makes a posthumous appearance playing the part of Agrajag.

BBC Audio books has taken these "phases" and released them as audio books. The Tertiary phase basically, is the book "Life, The Universe, and Everything." This book tells of the evil xenophobic race of Krikkiteers who thought themselves alone in the Universe because their solar system was surrounded by a black dust cloud. After a ship crash lands on their planet they set out to kill anything that is not a Krikketeer. The game of cricket is based on these battles, okay so sayeth Douglas Adams, anyway.

At the beginning of the audio book we find Arthur Dent stranded on pre-historic Earth with only trees to talk with. A spaceship lands and Arthur thinks he may be saved. But the ship is manned only by a man that has set out to insult everyone in the universe. After he insults Arthur he leaves, and Arthur is stranded once again. But the story picks up when Ford Prefect appears and they go jaunting across the universe with Slartibartfast to keep the Krikkiteer robots from reassembling a key that will release the Krikkit solar system from its time lock and then destroy everyone.

With the greatest absurdism and dry wit that only Douglas Adams ever pulled off these audio book / radio release of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Tertiary Phase is a welcome presence to any Douglas Adams fan. If you are not yet a fan of Douglas Adams or the Hitchhiker’s series, you can easily give this a listen and jump right in to a hilarious romp without missing a beat with this production.

One other note, why can't the U.S. bring back radio theater?

The Flash: Stop Motion (Justice League of America) by Mark Schultz

The Flash: Stop Motion (Justice League of America)
by Mark Schultz
Multicast performance
Produced by Graphic Audio
Approx 6 hours.


I have become hooked, if not addicted, to the audio books by Graphic Audio. Their production is full of mind-ripping sound effects, mood driving background music and a cast that captures the voices of the super heroes perfectly.

In this edition DC comics hero The Flash (the Wally West version) gets his solo appearance. While this is a Justice League of America comic, and appearances are made from Batman, Plasticman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Martian Manhunter and Green Lantern, this story revolves around The Flash and his home turf of Keystone City. In fact in the final outcome it is only The Flash that can bag the bad guy.

Strange anomolies appear in different locations on Earth and within the Solar System that occur at the same times that some mysterious murders are occurring in Keystone City. These murders all occur at the exact same times as each other and the victims end up with a hollowed out skull and a brain that seems to have been burned out from the inside. With the time factor it seems that only a speedster type meta-human is capable of such horror. While The Flash is not really a suspect he is looked at as to having a connection somehow.

Investigation shows that a doctor has created a being from a speedster type meta-human gene and has unleashed something that will destroy the Earth and possibly the universe, as well as all quantum versions of Earth and the Universe in the space time continuum. Wally West, a.k.a. the Flash uses every sort of trick his accelerated state of being can come up with but not until he meets with a quantum being does he learn he is more than just fast.

For those Flash comic fans out there Wally is the nephew of Barry Allen the previous incarnation of the Flash and that family tie creates more than just an inherited speed skill.

With some great writing teamed up with great production this is one audio book that will keep you on the edge of your seat while listening. Like the old monster trucks commercials say, "We'll sell you the whole seat but you'll only need the edge."

One thing that stands out in this production is the sound affects used when The Flash enters his high speed state. You will just have to listen to get the full gist of the sound but it's as though all sounds are frozen but still happening. Great touch to the production.

"One Second After" by William R. Forstchen

One Second After
by William R. Forstchen
Read by Joe Barrett
Produced by Blackstone Audio
Approx 13.5 hours

Are you prepared for a natural disaster? What about a natural disaster that wipes out the entire United States of America's fundamental way of life? We all like to say that we have learned something from the disaster of hurricane Katrina or even the attacks of 9/11, but those disasters had something in common, we could turn on the television or radio and find out information and we knew help was eventually on the way.

"One Second After" by William R. Forstchen explores another aspect of an attack on the U.S, one that hits us in our soft underbelly, our lives in the modern age of electronics. Most of the world, especially the U.S, have come to rely on our electronic creature comforts, computers, television, diabetic monitors, pacemakers. In "On Second After" those are completely wiped out. There is a weapon in existence that can take this out, an EMP weapon. EMP stands for Electro-magnetic pulse, It was actually a side affect of a nuclear blast and the pulse created from early tests of nuclear weapons found that electronics were severely affected by these pulses rendering them useless. Today the electronic circuitry in every day devices have become more complex and more susceptible to this type of attack.

In this cautionary tale 3 nuclear missiles are detonated in the atmosphere above the United States and the U.S. is rendered useless. Every electronic device ceases to work, computers, phones, radios, cars and medical equipment. Basically anything with a chip in it ceases to function.

This story follows the citizens of Black Mountain, North Carolina as they fight for survival in what has turned the clocks back to medieval times. The town of Black Mountain is home to a small college which has a former Army colonel, who retired to be with his wife in her final days as she died from cancer. He is now teaching and raising his two young daughters in small town, U.S.A.

Once the power is out the community must reform its thinking to a survival mode, no supplies will ever come in, no one knows what is going on outside of city limits and only a small handful of cars will run. The town takes to rationing food and medical supplies as the population dies off from disease and starvation. They then begin to rebuild and try to survive with makeshift soup lines from the area's cattle farms and what little food can be hunted in the mountains.

Just when the town starts to level out from the deaths of those that would normally be treated at modern facilities, a horde of what used to be "gang-bangers" threaten the town. This threat is some of the more violent dregs of society getting by with what they know and are cutting a swath of death and destruction to loot the towns to survive. The most vicious of crimes this "gang" perpetrates is that of cannibalism.

Most of the issues explored in this story are told through the impacts of one family surviving. This creates a personal feel to the story and I was completely swallowed up by their exploits. The story even had me wondering, "What would I do?" and "How can I prepare myself?"

Joe Barrett delivers this audiobook with a great voice that easily gives you that hometown storyteller comfort and yet delivers the entire gamut of emotions in this story.

With the forward written by Newt Gingrich and the afterword written by Capt. Bill Sanders, USN. The reality of this situation is really hit home. Not a matter of If but When. While this may be what seems a sci-fi tale of a post apocalypse world, it does have its basis in reality. Be careful listening to this audiobook, you'll find yourself fully absorbed by the story and planning your survival at the same time.

"Portrait in Death" by J.D. Robb

"Portrait in Death"
by J.D. Robb
read by Susan Ericksen
produced by Brilliance Audio


I don't know what it is but I can't help but keep coming back to the "...in Death" series of books by J.D. Robb (aka Nora Roberts.) Okay, I confess, i do know what it is, it's the little twist of science fiction that make these books something more than just a good detective novel. The series takes place in the near future, this book in particular in the year 2059. Just enough sci-fi gadgets to make it seem fun. But the real draw to these books is the no-holds-barred main character Lt. Eve Dallas. Lt. Dallas takes nothing from noone. And she can brawl with the best of them.

Another aspect of this series is the colorful, unique and richly written characters. Not only do they all have depth but it is easy to imagine what they are doing in their "off" time. While Lt. Dallas could take on the world by herself she doesn't need to and she's finding this out as each book pushes the series. Her husband the extremely rich Roarke who worked his way from being a street thug to a man who thrives on "making the deal" in the business world and has made his life extremely comfortable through the riches.

In this book however Roarke, usually the crutch holding Eve up in her tough times, is out of sorts. He finds that the woman who walked out of his life at the age of 5, whom he thought was his mother was not his mother, and that his real mother was murdered by his father. This could be disturbing enough but he now finds out he has family, his mother's twin sister is still alive as well as many cousins, uncles, aunts and even grandparents. This throws Roarke into an emotional roller-coaster ride that Eve takes time away from her murder case to help him cope with these emotions.

That side story or Roarke dwells on the side of the murder mystery in which Eve has to solve before a serial killer kills again. Someone is killing young college students and posing them for death portraits and claiming to take their "light" within himself so he may live forever. Each student is young, innocent and "full of light." The case builds to where Lt. Dallas and her aid Officer Peabody are tracking down photographers and kids in the techno-clubs.

Once again J.D. Robb writes a book that keeps you guess as to "whodunit" and at the same time takes you on a great story focusing on friends and family and support groups within. Also Susan Ericksen provides the voice for the audiobook and putting as much depth in the character's voices as J.D. Robb puts into the book.

"The Dead Man" By Joel Goldman Published 2009 by Pinnacle Books

"The Dead Man"
By Joel Goldman
Published 2009 by Pinnacle Books


So do you love a good thriller/whodunit? Here's the book for you, "The Dead Man" By Joel Goldman. Jack Davis is a former FBI agent who was forced to early retirement due to his condition. As Jack says, "I shake, that's what I do." Jack's last case in the FBI was investigating the death of his daughter, a drug addict that stole a few million dollars in a drug sting. After her death the FBI is convinced that Jack now has that money. Now Jack has a mysterious ailment that causes his body to shake, or experience tics, not unlike Tourette's Syndrome, however after all the tests no one can explain the cause of these tics.

This book grabbed me from the beginning with it's reference to the story of the Clutter family murder in Kansas, as told in the great book by Truman Capote, "In Cold Blood." The prologue tells of a young girl who is found by a family member whose parents have just been murdered in rural Kansas in 1959. The murderer is never found and the case is never solved.

Jump to today in Kansas City where Milo Harper is the millionaire funding a company researching dreams, to be more exact nightmares. The idea behind the research is to teach Lucid Dreaming to the people experiencing nightmares so they may rid themselves of these nightmares. When two of the test subjects are found dead, having died exactly like their nightmares, Harper is sued by one of the families and he hires Jack Davis to find out how and why these people died.

In a case that not only brings back Jack's nightmares, but also stirs up some ghosts from Jack's past, the reader is thrust into a thriller that cannot be put down. Not only is Jack Davis up against trying to find a killer before they kill again, but the FBI wants Jack for the missing money and one of the bodies that turns up is a mailman that has been stealing mail. The man is found with an open envelope to Jack from his dead daughter.

Aside from being a great thriller and a whirlwind crime-solving adventure this book takes place in one of my favorite cities, Kansas City (Missouri and Kansas). As a former native of KC, I still have a fondness for the town and when the author, Joel Goldman, writes about moving around the city to solve the crimes I could follow perfectly what area he was in. In fact it was fun to even break out a map and map the adventures. Goldman is an attorney in KC and writes a great thriller that puts Kansas City on the literary map.