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A Game of Thrones
- A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 1
- By: George R.R. Martin
- Narrated by: Roy Dotrice
- Length: 33 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 147,078
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 127,747
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Story5 out of 5 stars 127,497
Winter is coming. Such is the stern motto of House Stark, the northernmost of the fiefdoms that owe allegiance to King Robert Baratheon in far-off King's Landing. There Eddard Stark of Winterfell rules in Robert's name. Far to the north, behind the towering Wall, lie savage Wildings and worse - unnatural things relegated to myth during the centuries-long summer, but proving all too real and all too deadly in the turning of the season. Yet a more immediate threat lurks to the south, where Jon Arryn, the Hand of the King, has died under mysterious circumstances....
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4 out of 5 stars
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Terrible editing, though...
- By Kristie on 05-09-13
- A Game of Thrones
- A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 1
- By: George R.R. Martin
- Narrated by: Roy Dotrice
Reader could be better, but not as bad as some say
Reviewed: 11-02-11
Look, the story is really good, the reader is decent. I listen during my commute, and it's entertaining and enjoyable. Some are saying that the reader ruins the story, and maybe to the GRR Martin purist, but I think it's still good. Coming from someone who has not read the books previously, I think it helps that the reader acts the characters, just for the purpose of differentiation. If you have listened to the Harry Potter series with Jim Dale, you will be familiar with this approach. While Dotrice come no where close to the quality of Dale, he is still tolerable and does not ruin it. His few mistakes here and there, and poor interpretations of a few character voices were easy for me to ignore. Good book, give it a shot.
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Hyperion
- By: Dan Simmons
- Narrated by: Marc Vietor, Allyson Johnson, Kevin Pariseau, and others
- Length: 20 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 25,022
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 21,276
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 21,316
On the world called Hyperion, beyond the law of the Hegemony of Man, there waits the creature called the Shrike. There are those who worship it. There are those who fear it. And there are those who have vowed to destroy it. In the Valley of the Time Tombs, where huge, brooding structures move backward through time, the Shrike waits for them all.
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4 out of 5 stars
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The Shrike Awaits. Enter The Time Tombs...
- By Michael on 10-13-12
- Hyperion
- By: Dan Simmons
- Narrated by: Marc Vietor, Allyson Johnson, Kevin Pariseau, Jay Snyder, Victor Bevine
Only the beginning....
Reviewed: 12-22-09
Do not be disuaded by the reviews that say to end after this book. In my opinion, all four books in the series are amazing, and none should stand alone. I actually cannot imagine having read any of them without knowing all of them. If you like Simmons style of speculative fiction, and you are a sci-fi/fantasy geek like me, you will enjoy these.
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1 person found this helpful
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Don Quixote
- By: Miguel de Cervantes
- Narrated by: David Case
- Length: 39 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 117
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 63
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Story4 out of 5 stars 65
It's the classic adventure of a madman: the "renowned Don Quixote de la Mancha". He attacks windmills, believes a peasant girl to be a lady, and fancies that he is a knight-errant, dedicated to righting wrongs and rescuing damsels in distress.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Great book, horrible narration
- By Scott M. GRUSSING on 10-16-06
- Don Quixote
- By: Miguel de Cervantes
- Narrated by: David Case
Tough, but very rewarding
Reviewed: 06-04-09
I realize that this is a tough book to get through, but be assured that you will be rewarded if you stay with it. It is quite dense, but the beauty of this piece is at least as much in its richness of language as it is in the actual adventures. In fact, the encounters with windmills, and the likes, weren't that funny in my opinion. It is the human interactions that had me laughing out loud more times than I could count. Great book and a difinite masterpiece of literature. Cervantes' style and originality is truly impressive.
As far as the narration goes, I can see why some people don't like it, but I really grew to love it. The narrator does a fantastic job acting out the characters, adding color to the experience.
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8 people found this helpful
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The Golem's Eye
- The Bartimaeus Trilogy, Book 2
- By: Jonathan Stroud
- Narrated by: Simon Jones
- Length: 16 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 4,104
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 3,017
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,017
When a seemingly invulnerable clay golem begins making random attacks on London, Nathaniel and Bartimaeus must travel to Prague to discover the source of its power Meanwhile Kitty and the Resistance attempt their most audacious plot yet…robbing the beloved magician Gladstone's tomb in Westminster Abbey.
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5 out of 5 stars
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great fun
- By Richard on 09-27-04
- The Golem's Eye
- The Bartimaeus Trilogy, Book 2
- By: Jonathan Stroud
- Narrated by: Simon Jones
Great Listen!
Reviewed: 06-25-06
This entire series is an excellent listen! The reader is truly a great performer and injects just the right personality into the story. I highly recommend Bartimaeus!!
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Ptolemy's Gate
- The Bartimaeus Trilogy, Book 3
- By: Jonathan Stroud
- Narrated by: Simon Jones
- Length: 15 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 3,785
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 2,845
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Story5 out of 5 stars 2,835
Three years after the events of The Golem's Eye, the young magician Nathaniel is an established member of the British Government. But he faces unprecedented problems: foreign wars are going badly and Britain's enemies are mounting attacks close to London.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Hated the Ending
- By Paul on 04-28-06
- Ptolemy's Gate
- The Bartimaeus Trilogy, Book 3
- By: Jonathan Stroud
- Narrated by: Simon Jones
Great Listen!
Reviewed: 06-25-06
This entire series is an excellent listen! The reader is truly a great performer and injects just the right personality into the story. I highly recommend Bartimaeus!!
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The Amulet of Samarkand: The Bartimaeus Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Jonathan Stroud
- Narrated by: Simon Jones
- Length: 13 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 6,276
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 4,771
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4,761
Nathaniel is eleven-years-old and a magician's apprentice, learning the traditional art of magic. All is well until he has a life-changing encounter with Simon Lovelace, a magician of unrivaled ruthlessness and ambition. When Lovelace brutally humiliates Nathaniel in public, Nathaniel decides to speed up his education, teaching himself spells far beyond his years. With revenge on his mind, he masters one of the toughest spells of all and summons Bartimaeus, a five-thousand-year-old djinni, to assist him.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A real treat
- By Eric Shields on 02-08-08
Great listen!
Reviewed: 06-25-06
This entire series is an excellent listen! The reader is truly a great performer and injects just the right personality into the story. I highly recommend Bartimaeus!!
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The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches
- By: Robert Stanek
- Narrated by: uncredited
- Length: 5 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall3 out of 5 stars 1,120
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Performance2.5 out of 5 stars 141
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Story2.5 out of 5 stars 140
After the Great War that divided the peoples, the kingdoms of men plunged into a Dark Age that lasted 500 years. To heal the lands and restore the light, the great kings decreed that magic and all that is magical, be it creature, man, or device, shall be cleansed to dust. The cleansing raged for so long that no human could recall a time without it and it is in this time that the Dark Lord Sathar returned from the dark beyond.
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5 out of 5 stars
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No Wonder it Was a Top BookSense 76 Pick!
- By Patrick Y. on 04-24-05
- The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches
- By: Robert Stanek
- Narrated by: uncredited
As bad as it gets
Reviewed: 06-25-06
One of the worst. I can't listen to another minute of this guy reading. Story is mediocre at best, but the reader drags this one down to the 'pathetic' category. Sorry folks, this one is not worth your credit.
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5 people found this helpful
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The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches Book II
- By: Robert Stanek
- Narrated by: Karl Fehr
- Length: 4 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 573
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Performance3 out of 5 stars 74
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Story3 out of 5 stars 73
The epic adventure continues! Unleash the power of your imagination and enter a world you've never dreamed existed. Best-selling author Robert Stanek delivers an epic fantasy adventure that will open your mind and your heart.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Absolutely Awesome!
- By Amy on 04-23-05
- The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches Book II
- By: Robert Stanek
- Narrated by: Karl Fehr
Absolutely Horrible!!!
Reviewed: 09-02-05
I do not understand why this series gets such great rating from so many listeners. It is, in fact, for that reason that I gave it a chance in the first place. I understand that many people have many different interests and tastes in entertainment. However, in regards to this book, I just can't understand the masses. I do not consider myself particularly picky and generally like "a good book." This Stanek stuff, though, is some of the worst I have come across. I know that just about anything can be made to look bad by Tolkein, C.S. Lewis, and the likes, but this series is hardly worth mentioning in the same breath as those guys. Making it even more painful and nauseating, is the narrator. In fact, this aspect may be what truly ruins the story and weighs it down to the lowest depths of any audiobook I have heard. Please, whoever values their book credits and/or time, make sure you listen to the sample cuts offered by audible. I know that I should have done this myself, and take responsiblity for not doing so. If, though, I can aid any of my fellow book lovers (and for that matter lovers of simple thought and reason), from losing precious hours of their lives, I hope I can do that with this review. In my opinion, and it is only one person's opinion, this book (and the first book) of this series is an insult to my intelligence. I know that the story continues past book 2, but it stops here for me! Thank you for taking the time to read this review. I must go now and try to regenerate the brain cells I lost while listening to this book. What is society coming to? Oh well, what can ya do? (Who is John Galt?)
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2 people found this helpful