Sea Change

By: S.M. Wheeler

Narrated by: Bianca Amato

The unhappy child of two powerful parents who despise each other, young Lilly turns to the ocean to find solace, which she finds in the form of the eloquent and intelligent sea monster Octavius, a kraken. In Octavius' many arms, Lilly learns of friendship, loyalty, and family. When Octavius, forbidden by Lilly to harm humans, is captured by seafaring traders and sold to a circus, Lilly becomes his only hope for salvation. Desperate to find him, she strikes a bargain with a witch that carries a shocking price.

Her journey to win Octavius' freedom is difficult. The circus master wants a Coat of Illusions; the Coat tailor wants her undead husband back from a witch; the witch wants her skin back from two bandits; the bandits just want some company, but they might kill her first. Lilly's quest tests her resolve, tries her patience, and leaves her transformed in every way.

A powerful debut from a young fantasy author, S.M. Wheeler's Sea Change is an exhilarating tale of adventure, resilience, and selflessness in the name of friendship.

.©2013 Shannon M. Wheeler (P)2013 Recorded Books

Critic reviews

"Wheeler' s stunning debut is a sophisticated fantasy whose lush descriptions, lyrical dialogue, and engaging structure are reminiscent of the very best fairy tales. This profoundly beautiful evolution of fairy tale elements will have readers eagerly awaiting Wheeler' s next book." ( Publishers Weekly)

This was a nice surprise

What made the experience of listening to Sea Change the most enjoyable?

The whole experience worked for me. The story, the narrator, the pacing, the delivery...

Who was your favorite character and why?

Well...I didn't dislike any of the characters. The friendship between Lilly and Octavius is beautifully depicted and somewhere in that all other characters had a part in the telling. S.M. Wheeler doesn't put any character in there without their having something to add to the whole. Lilly's growth is pushed forward in all her interactions. Also, no character was strictly one thing, though they each had a stronger aspect that manifested.

Have you listened to any of Bianca Amato’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I haven't heard any other performances by Bianca Amato, but I would certainly enjoy another book read by her.

Any additional comments?

I think that what kept me engaged through some of the tougher sections was that there were so many different ways the author looked at the feminine. It was engaging and refreshing to hear her observations and explorations. She was just the right amount of challenging for me. And of course all of that would be useless if she didn't have such a strong handle on storytelling. It was all just the right combinations for me.

Again, the friendship was really quite beautiful in all this.

The story deserved a better rating from me

Would you try another book from S.M. Wheeler and/or Bianca Amato?

Yes, because there is nothing particularly horrible about either, I will give more details below.

Would you ever listen to anything by S.M. Wheeler again?

The story was creative, interesting, and unique, but p l o d d i n g.

What didn’t you like about Bianca Amato’s performance?

There was a pause
between every sentence
that a more experienced performer
would put between every
paragraph.

*breath*


It made the pacing
very annoying
and distracting.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Sea Change?

OK I am glad that Audible asked about editing, because here this the main reason that I gave this audiobook ratings in the pits.

The book "ends" halfway into the second half, after the sooper dramatic death of some baddie we have never heard of before, and the emotional burial scene of said stranger. Turns out, there are entire sections missing from the book. Poof. They just never showed up in the reading. Or did they? Some missing chapters seen to be there after the copyright info is read into the record, suddenly the story resumes ~~ somewhere.

This is a faulty recording and needs to be recalled/amended. I know somebody reads these reviews before they are published, so I will say this now. I intend to return this book if Audible does not recall this recording and fix this problem.

Too bad for the author, who is the one whose name is ultimately associated with a middling narrator and a suxxor recording.

Any additional comments?

Give writers some power over the performance and publication of audiobooks. We would get less dross in the marketplace.