Had I Not Chosen

Book 1 of the ArchAngel Missions

By: Joshua Loyd Fox

Narrated by: Corrie Beard

Length: 9 hrs

Publisher's summary

"The only choice that matters, Gwendolyn," the ArchAngel said. "The choice between life and love."

An elder ArchAngel of the host was given a mission. Change the world, while changing the lives of those who could do the impossible. The rub? The ArchAngel Chamuel could only use choice to fail or succeed.

In a world that desperately needed clean, renewable energy, Benjamin Reeves created a way to achieve the impossible, but for him, it was merely fiction. On the opposite side of the country, Gwendolyn Murphy found a way for this impossibility to become reality, but for her, it was a matter of applied theoretical physics, in which she was the world's foremost expert. Two people, worlds apart, both with pasts rife with loss and pain, are given choices: to change the world, or to change their own lives. Had they not chosen the way that they had, Earth's future would have suffered for it, as would their own.

And so begins the seemingly separate stories that make up The ArchAngel Missions series.

©2021 JLFoxBooks, LLC (P)2023 JLFoxBooks, LLC

a Great Book

A real page-turner: Very engaging characters but also depth and magic and a narrative sweep that never leaves these characters behind. An impressive tour de force that is always working at multiple levels, with the small human stories and the hints of expansive, even cosmic changes which are afoot. I look forward to reading the other novels from Joshua Loyd Fox. Expect to be impressed.

Cute love story with an interesting plot angle

I really enjoyed listening to this book. While the dialogue seems a little forced in a couple of places, the overall storyline was hopeful and engaging. The narration was spot on, smooth, expressive, and believable. Very impressive for a first novel and a first-time narrator.

An interesting read

Overall, I enjoyed this love story aspect. I see where some fantasy/science fiction elements become present and wished there were more. I felt the bones of a great story were hidden in this book. I loved the idea of a mystical presence trying to help humanity, but the interactions felt repetitive. I will say the narration was great and gave the characters a sense of presence. However, the plot that brings our two main characters together felt stretched out to a point that I wondered where the story was supposed to take me.

Great start

Great start to a fantastic series.

I can not wait to hear the next one.

The reader was pleasant as well.

the journey the main character took before he finally found his twin flame

I was engrossed in this book when I read it (5 stars) and was excited to listen to it just to hear it read out loud adding an additional lair of inflection to how I interpreted this talented authors words and amazing story.

Excellent narration but that is all.

Corrie Beard, the narrator, was the best part of this audio book. Her voice acting was top notch and enjoyable. She gave distinctive, believable differences for all of the characters. Her work was the only engaging part of this experience and I'm looking to hearing more of her.

The story was poorly written and tedious. About an hour into it, the story jumped forward, skipping what the 2 main characters did for a few years. Then the author backtracked with what happened during that skipped time, dragging the story to a standstill. The characters were flat. The female protagonist seemed like a place holder for toxic male fantasy. The religious tropes dealt with tired old patriarchal themes: God on *his* throne manipulating *his* creation. There are more examples but I am tired of thinking about this book. Boring!

Phenomenal Performance, Subpar Story

Corrie Beard’s performance on this book was incredible, and I am in fact going to need her to narrate every book ever written and every book written from here on out. The attention to detail and the presence she gave to each character was the only thing that kept me from turning the book off and asking for a refund.
The story is not only poorly written, but it’s lazily repetitive and lacking in even a fundamental understanding of how people actually work. It’s clear the author favors his male protagonist, the female protagonist reduced merely to a shiny accessory even though she is a brilliant scientist. She’s frequently put in positions where she bows her head, accepting the blame for the flaws of the men in her life. She lacks any originality, instead being strung along through the story to serve as nothing more than a one-dimensional inspiration of lust. She is the idea of a “strong independent woman” the stereotype of a “woman in stem” packaged into the body of a conventionally attractive, demure, and submissive woman who at times exists only to stroke the male ego. This story was boring, twice as long as it should have been, and riddled with the sense that the author wanted you to believe he was a lot smarter and more clever than he actually is. Instead, he just furthers a narrative that women are novelty items to be gawked at instead of being appreciated for their accomplishments. In turn, he shows how he views women in frankly a barbaric and medieval way. Also, Stuart???