Death's Daughter

By: Amber Benson

Narrated by: Amber Benson

Length: 9 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

Buffy fans will go wild! She was Tara on Buffy the Vampire Slayer..... Now she’s the author of Ace’s hottest new series - killer novels featuring Calliope Reaper-Jones, who doesn’t want to be daddy’s little girl anymore....

Calliope Reaper-Jones so just wanted a normal life: buying designer shoes on sale, dating guys from Craig’s List, web-surfing for organic dim-sum for her boss. But when her father - who happens to be Death himself - is kidnapped, and the Devil’s Protege embarks on a hostile takeover of the family business, Death, Inc., Callie returns home to assume the CEO mantle - only to discover she must complete three nearly impossible tasks in the realm of the afterlife first.

©2009 Amber Benson (P)2011 Penguin

Good Listening

What did you love best about Death's Daughter?

Overall a good listen & entertaining. I find Cleo too selfish and self obsorbed, but the other characters make up for her character defects.

Fun fantasy listen

What did you love best about Death's Daughter?

All the characters were created with such imagination.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Death's Daughter?

When she finally realized who she was.

Which character – as performed by Amber Benson – was your favorite?

All fun and distinctive.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I could have listened to it in one sitting but found that it was just as good coming back to it when I had a free moment.

Urban fantasy delight!

What does Amber Benson bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I'm not sure that just any narrator could have gotten Callie's voice right. Amber is an actress (let's many of admit that we came to Amber's book because we're fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer), and she makes Callie likable.

Any additional comments?

Lots of mythologies, delightful descriptions, and even a decent plot twist!

Great book

I love that Amber read this herself, she is a brilliant actress and conveys the voices and characters brilliantly

Great story, quirky, funny and a little mysterious

Don't Stop After Chapter 1

Let me warn that you must either resolve to listen to the whole book or not bother to start it. You will hate the main character in chapter one...and two...and probably a little longer. That's ok. Do you really like Luke Skywalker when he complains to his aunt and uncle? No. He's whiny and cocky at the same time. Of course, this isn't Star Wars or anything close, but it is a coming of age/father quest story. You must wait for the character to come of age before you decide whether or not you like the character.

The storyline is strong. It builds the way a story should, and the characters are consistent. Plenty of action is had as Calli sets out to help her family and find her dad. Why did I give it three stars? Because it is missing something. It is possible that I was just not in the right mood for it, but I failed to fall in love with the characters and plot the way that a reader/listener should. I cannot put my finger on why I was not madly in love with the story. The end was worth the read, I enjoyed the character's journey from chic lit to real woman, and the adventure was certainly well played. I will probably read another book in this series. I don't feel the burning desire to get the next one right away, though.

In addition to my not feeling terribly attached to it, Amber Benson's performance of it was not what I was expecting. Knowing that she is both the author and an experienced actress, I thought that it would be magical. I held my expectations too high for even an average narrator, I think. She seems rushed from the beginning. As a teacher, I have heard plenty of middle schoolers who are embarrassed to be reading their own writing. This is almost how the narrator sounds. She does distinguish between voices, but they are often very similar and distracted me a bit from the story. I did get used to it so that I could finish the story, but at no point was I convinced that the narration improved the book, like some narrators, do.

All in all, I am not sorry that I read it. It will be a while before I continue the series, though. I do recommend, however, that if it sounds appealing to you, vow to listen to the whole thing. Don't declare it a lost cause after chapter one.

Surprisingly good.

I have to start out by saying that Calliope Reaper Jones is a massively prejudiced, whiny wench. She frequently talks about how disgusted she is by fat people, judges people by what they wear (both good and bad), and generally acts like she's too good for most other people. (There was not any racism or sexism that I remember, so that was a very good thing.) There were a few times that she was acting so much like a petulant, spoiled child that I literally rolled my eyes and thought to myself that she clearly needed a good spanking and to be sent to her room without supper.

That being said, however, the book is actually sort of addictive. Despite her faults, or perhaps because of them, I found myself hoping she succeeded in everything she encountered and she encountered a lot.

The way Amber Benson structured the story was both slightly predictable and yet surprising. While this seems like an oxymoron, it made for a really great listen. Of course, Ms. Benson's acting and voice talent added a lot to the tale. It's always better to hear the story from the creator and her delivery of the story was phenomenal.

One thing that I was very impressed with was the descriptiveness of the tale. It was descriptive enough that it gave very clear images and feelings, including textures and scents, without being overly wordy. This is a very fine line that many authors never master, leaving too many questions or making readers want to skip ahead to escape it. Another thing that made the story so great was Ms. Benson's ability to weave together a believable yet almost completely supernatural world, incorporating many different mythologies and belief systems, including some that may very well be original.

I am looking forward to listening to the next two books, Cat's Claw (2010) and Serpent's Storm (2011), and am eager to discover whether the apparent changes, growth, and character development in Calliope Reaper Jones "stick."

I love this Series! Quirky and entertaining!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes! Amber Benson is the writer and narrator, you get the characters exactly as she wanted them, and she is an actress as well and does a great job of keeping you entertained

amazing

amazing book. amazing story. ama,ing performance. love love love love
amber benson is the greatest

Avoid at all costs

I had to rip the headphone's from my ears screaming, "Make it stop, make it stop." Do yourself a favor and do not get this book.

Hard to listen to...

There's not much to like about this main character. She is immature and, at many points, dumb beyond belief. The continuous internal monologues are very repetitious and formulaic. I found myself rolling my eyes every five minutes. The author's voice is great for the female characters, but terrible for everyone else, fawn included. There were some funny and thoughtful moments, but not enough to warrant even a middle rating.