New Reviews: Fantasy

Peter Berkrot narrates an adventurous story of three brothers who learn of special gifts passed on to them by their father. Berkrot convincingly employs distinct tones for each brother, conveying their personalities. One brother has a conservative savior's complex, another brother is young and worrisome, and the third displays a flirtatious nonchalance. The exaggeration in... Read More

Anneliese Rennie's imaginative performance enhances this fully immersive story of a virtual reality game. After Byron Byron, a.k.a. Bye-Bye Jack, takes his seed pod and jumps into a VR game called World Tree, his quests take him on a hell of a ride. He meets other players, as well as a host of monsters and creatures who inhabit the world called Hurlig. Rennie uses a variety of... Read More

Suehyla El-Attar impeccably voices Special Investigator Fatma el-Sha'arawi as she sets off on a case involving the mysterious deaths of Cairo's paranormal beings. Fatma races against time to prevent a catastrophic world-unraveling event. Though this is a short tale, the listener will be enthralled with El-Attar's audio performance of the story, set in 1912 in an alternative... Read More

Narrator Ralph Lister does much more than assign distinctive voices to his characters. He creates complete personas. He includes attitudes and mannerisms and builds personalities for both men and women so there is no doubt who is holding forth or taking others to task. In the first installment of a new series, Sins of the Father, Yazid is trying in vain to get everyone to focus... Read More

Narrator Emily Beresford obviously likes the heroine in this audiobook, Bethany Anne, as evidenced by the narration notes at its end and the great enthusiasm she displays throughout. Beresford makes it clear that the five-foot-three Bethany Anne has enough attitude to make her a force to be reckoned with. Beresford is also comfortable with the street language in this story. And... Read More

Narrator Emily Woo Zeller returns for the second audiobook in The Poppy War series. War is all Rin knows anymore, and she'll destroy anyone and anything that gets between her and her revenge upon the Empress. Zeller's fierce narration couples well with the story's many dark and fantastical twists, keeping listeners on the edge of their seats. She creates clearly differentiated... Read More

Sometimes moles are all the company one needs, at least when it comes to Gareth Armstrong's marvelous performance of William Horwood's classic fantasy of love, drama, and societal conflict. Just as Richard Adams's WATERSHIP DOWN isn't really about rabbits, Horwood's novel isn't about moles. Simply put, this is a tale of the love between Bracken and Rebecca, and their efforts to... Read More

Korey Jackson narrates a fantastical musing on life and death, steeped in the mythos of New Orleans. Renaissance Raines is a psychopomp, a guide who leads the newly dead through the Seven Gates of the Underworld. Jackson's portrayal of Renai is a believable characterization of a (dead) 20-something who is confused, frustrated, and disheartened with her afterlife. It is his... Read More

Narrator Yetta Gottesman successfully tackles the worlds of gods and men in this sprawling historical fantasy set in Mexico during the Jazz Age. When browbeaten Casiopea rebels against the cruelty of her family, she accidentally frees the Mayan god of death, Hun-Kame, from imprisonment and links her fate with his. Gottesman excels at evoking the dreamlike qualities of Casiopea... Read More

Robert Petkoff spends most of this audiobook narrating from the point of view of a sentient talking crow called "Shit Turd," who has survived the zombie apocalypse. Even though his human owner, Big Jim, named him such an absurd and insulting name, he loves humans and wishes to find a cure. With passion and longing, Petkoff recounts ST's adventures across the Pacific Northwest... Read More

Narrator Sam Peter Jackson capably delivers as he portrays a no-nonsense German wizard in this addition to the Rivers of London series. When a man turns up dead in a vineyard under mysterious circumstances, the locals know to call in Tobias Winter, seasoned policeman and experienced wizard. Jackson's melodic and authentic-sounding German accent pulls the listener into a story... Read More

An unusual comedy of the workplace, narrated by Matthew Lloyd Davies, follows the Consular Mission as they try to keep the peace between Earth and a cabal of malicious Lovecraftian old gods. What follows is a strange, surreal, and zany series of misadventures with odd people and even odder creatures, including the hilariously evil Steve the Destroyer--a possessed doll. Davies's... Read More

With his signature deep baritone, narrator Prentice Onayemi delivers a spectacular performance of this epic fantasy focused on revenge. Tau was born without any gifts, but he doesn't let his common lineage stop him from becoming the greatest swordsman the Omehi have ever seen. Onayemi's depiction of Tau accurately reflects his development; his soft voice hardens and deepens... Read More

This audiobook is the first of the Children of D'hara series. Narrator John Skelley conveys the authority of the main characters, Richard and Kahlan, and their respect for each other. Goodkind intends to explore their lives after the events in the epic Sword of Truth series in a series of novellas scheduled for publication three months apart. Skelley creates an atmosphere of... Read More

Just in time for Halloween season, narrator Luke Daniels delivers a satisfying dark performance of the latest in the Krewe of Hunters series. A paranormal investigation group recruits nonfiction author Kerri Wolf into their ranks as they examine a haunted inn in Pennsylvania. Although the inn is infamous for the ax murders that were committed there in the 1920s, the crew... Read More

Catherine Ho delivers an emotional performance of this queer young adult fantasy. Maren is an ordinary girl leading a quiet life when her girlfriend, Kaia, is taken by the Aurati. Now Maren will do whatever it takes to save Kaia, even steal a dragon. Ho's narration changes over time, beginning in a wispy timbre with a higher pitch and a relaxed pace. As Maren builds up her... Read More

Fleet Cooper delivers a dramatic narration from the very start of this first installment in the Wake the Dragon series. Anderson returns to epic fantasy with larger-than-life characters, swords, destruction, and sleeping monsters. Two continents are at war, but a common enemy develops, which makes them consider the unthinkable--an alliance. The saga is told from many points of... Read More

January LaVoy's breathtaking narration shines in a fantasy in which Doors offer infinite possibilities for adventure. January Scaller is a daring and bold "in-between" girl who feels like another foreign curiosity in Mr. Locke's home. She lives for her father's brief returns from his travels, when he brings his employer new treasures. She is 7 in 1901 when she discovers a... Read More

Barrie Kreinik and Raphael Corkhill co-narrate an epistolary fantasy novel about the joys (and dangers) of translating newly discovered ancient manuscripts. Audrey Camherst, granddaughter of the intrepid Lady Trent, is eager to make her mark on the world and jumps at the opportunity to translate a cache of newly discovered material. Kreinik narrates Audrey's diary, which... Read More

The smooth and elegant voice of Robin Miles guides listeners through a world out of time. This is the world in which Dr. Miranda Ecouvo, a forensic therapist, finds herself after a near-death experience. Here she meets the immortal brothers, Chance and Trickster, who help her finish an investigation of seven unusual murders. While Miles's narration is solemn and steady, she... Read More

This audiobook is an epic fantasy retelling of THE MAHABHARATA, an Indian classic about three heirs to a powerful throne whose fight to claim their inheritance could tear apart the very nation they wish to rule. Banker offers listeners exotic imagery that comes from viewing storytelling through the lens of a different culture. Vikas Adam narrates with infectious energy that... Read More