Friday 19 February 2010

Borrowed Time

Official Blurb

Ness Relevant is living on borrowed time. Molecular implosion, cellular degeneration, and dangerous men are but a few of the perils faced by the friendly and unassuming forensic photographer.

His quiet bachelorhood is interrupted when he receives an innocent looking device in the mail from a friend and former college professor. Ness unexpectedly finds himself embroiled in events driven by his friend's success.

This device is the focal point of a struggle that could overturn the whole world should Ness or his friend’s invention fall prey to greedy men. Before his time runs out Ness must travel back to an uncomfortable past to prevent an unthinkable future.

My Review

Simply put, this is great little sci fi story. Set in our modern world when exceptionally talented scientist invents a time machine, so I guess that means you can call it speculative fiction ( not a term I'm ever happy with ).

The protagonist is just a regular guy, far from the gun toting mega budget movie hero. It's this characters naturalness that makes him appealing to the listener, a straight forward person caught in a world of the unusual.

The official blurbs hints that this is a time travel novel, and that's what it is. We dont travel back to Cullonden or leap into the far flung future of mankind, but as the story explains ( and my memory is a little fuzzy here ) the travel is limited to backwards and to your own lifetime.

The plot emerges through a series of exciting near-non-stop scenes where the protagonist is always on the run and flitting across time. It's a compelling listen and great fun. I really enjoyed it.

The author is reading his own work here and makes a fair attempt at some voices, which helps to bring the characters to life. Well worth downloading :)

Reading 2
Production 2
Story 3

Total : 7/9

Download from Podiobooks

Listen to chapter one

Sunday 14 February 2010

Short Ghost and Horror Collection 005

Official Blurb

A collection of fifteen stories featuring ghoulies, ghosties, long-leggedy beasties and things that go bump in the night. Expect shivers up your spine, the smell of human flesh, and the occasional touch of wonder.

My Review

This i sthe 5th collection of creepiness from Librivox. It's the usual mix of stories and you really don't have an idea of what you going to get from one story to the next.

Indeed there are some names in this collection of authors, Saki, Arthur Machen, Poe and even Lovecraft, so you can relay on getting some good listening. In that vein, I can tell you that I rated two as poor, one as good and the rest as OK.

the Bowmen by Machen was the Good one, and I suggest you save that until last ( you do save the best for last right? ). The story by Saki I didn't like, but as of yet, I don't think I've read anything of his that is to my taste.

In summary, it's an ok collection worth downloading with a gem or two in there.

Reading 2
Production 2
Story 2

Total : 6/9

Download from Librivox

My pick from the stories