Unbound

By: Kim Harrison, Melissa Marr, Jeaniene Frost, Vicki Pettersson, Jocelynn Drake

Narrated by: Don Hagen

Not all hunters are bound by human laws....

Revisiting the paranormal realms they've made famous in their wildly popular fiction, New York Times best-selling authors Kim Harrison, Jeaniene Frost, Vicki Pettersson, and Jocelynn Drake—plus New York Times best-selling young-adult author Melissa Marr, with her first adult supernatural thriller—unleash their full arsenal of dark talents, plunging us into the shadows where the supernatural stalk the unsuspecting... and every soul is a target.

Get ready for the ride of your life—because the wildest magic has just been unleashed...and evil is about to have its day.

©2012 Kim Harrison, Melissa Marr, Jeaniene Frost, Vicki Petterson, Jocelynn Drake (P)2012 HarperCollinsPublishers

Books good, reader NOT.

What made the experience of listening to Unbound the most enjoyable?

The books in it were good but listening it to it was the hardest thing I've had to do. The reader for them was about the worst I've ever heard. I fear I may just buy the regular books for any other I find him reading.

How could the performance have been better?

A different reader!

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Yes, even with authors and books I really enjoyed I had a very hard time listening to them because the reader was to mono-toned.

Any additional comments?

For this book, I'd recommend buying the real book and skipping the audible book.

Where did they get this narrator

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The narrator was horrible. He sounded like the material was boring and it pained him to read the book. I love how Tavia Gilbert reads Jeaniene Frost's books she brings them alive. Don hagan turned this story into a sleep fest and I could not even get into the other stories because I had no attachment to the characters.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Unbound?

I loved the moment when Bones chose to get his hair dyed. It situated us just before his meeting with Cat. I love Bones.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Don Hagen?

Chris Patton or Max Bellmore would have done a better job. They make books come alive. You can hear Chris Patton narrate Deep Blue and Beastly among other books. Max Bellmore narrates the Dark Lord series.

Was Unbound worth the listening time?

Yes I wanted to hear Frost's story about Bones and I am glad I heard it.

No No No!!!! Narrator all WRONG!!!!!

Please don't use one narrator for these stories!!!!! These character's already have voices that readers are familiar with from these great writers. The choice made to use ONE, MALE narrator was all wrong!!!! Ruined works of writers I have grown to adore!

Narration was…

…pitiful in some places. For example, “Bones” had the same voice as Jinks? Way too high for a master vampire to have. The stories were well-written but vocal variations were almost non-existent.

excellent stories

unhappy with performance . the actors voice and inflections did not capture characters. he has an excellent voice but the cadence was more suitable to military or true crime stories.

Almost Wonderful

If the narrator didn’t make Bones sound like a girl, and we could remove the story by Vicki Petterson.. it would be a wonderful book.

5 stories, and I really enjoyed 3 of them.

I got this book to listen to Kim Harrisons book, and as it was the first one I really enjoyed it. The story and characters fit in her world, but it used Jinx as the main character and it was him doing his own adventure. This let it be a perfect set up for a short story that isn't in the main series but still stays true to it. Well done, but I was sad the story didn't have her normal narrator. Good story and I'm glad I got the book for just that.

"The dead, the damned, and the forgotten" by Jocelynn Drake was AMAZING. If I could just rate the book for that story I would give it 5 stars. I really enjoyed the balance of a really strong main character, yet a weak one who still gets hurt in a fight. The world was good and the character relationship was well done. After this review I will be looking for other books by Drake.

"Two Lines" by Melissa Marr was also rather good. At first I was a little disappointed, and felt the author didn't explain this enough. It felt like it was a romance novel and just wasn't great for the first 20 minutes, but then it ended up being a story that really pulled me in. It was the story of a girl trying to overcome her heritage, but when you throw in vampires and other things it ends up being a really interesting idea. The dialog was good, the character development was not bad for only a 2 hour short story, and the relationship between the MC and her family was perfect. I felt I completely understood that dynamic and it was just a good story. probably a 4 star, but a high 4.

Sorry, but the other two stories were just forgettable for me. Nothing that really drew me back or stood out as unique or interesting.

Overall, this book is worth the listen and hopefully I found a new author I like. recommended.

Mostly Boring

What disappointed you about Unbound?

Most of the stories were monotonous. I found myself thinking this has got to be over soon. There was good detail so you could visualize people and places, but that is it. Most of the stories were anticlimactic or preachy.

Would you ever listen to anything by the authors again?

I would not seek out any of the authors, except Jeanine Frost whom I already listen to. I also will not try any of these books with multiple authors again. I have tried them a couple times and was very disappointed. I am surprised there are others that like them.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

I would think there might be a type of story he could tell but not any of these, maybe the Neon Rain type of book.
He devastated Jeanine Frosts book. Bones sounded like a come hither girl with no English accent as he should have. That story I was eager to hear what happened so I suffered through. In his defense after Tavia Gilbert no one could do better.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Bored and just wanted to know what is the end. On a couple stories I just stopped and thought maybe I can look up on the computer if anything interesting happened.
Again, the Jeanine Frost was worth listening to if you have never tried any of her books.

Any additional comments?

If this was your first try of a Jeanine Frost book, please try a book that she is the only author.

Series Details but Uninspired Narration

This collection probably has important details for readers of these series. I am a Jeaniene Frost fan. There was some back story detail but overall it was not satisfying because of the narrator. He probably reads other types of books with gusto and emotion and the proper accents however not in this case. I would recommend this only if you need the back story or other details from these series.

Jeaniene Frost

Story by Jeaniene Frost has Bones doing a job in New Orleans before he meets Cat. The narrator Don Hagen cannot perform a british accent. What happened to Tavia Gilbert? She narrates this other "Bones/Cat" books for Ms. Frost and her british accent for Bones is always great!