Audio: Queen's Gambit - Jessie Mihalik

Narrated by: Rachel Dulude

Series: Rogue Queen Series, Book 1

Length: 4 hrs and 14 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 05-31-19

Language: English

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Sci.fi

I received this book free of charge in exchange for a review

This was a sci.fi novella so things had to happen fast.

Samara is a queen (of course why no one just crushed her world in a day I do not know, it would be so easy). There are those who do not want to fight for the two other empires, and those who just want to escape.

Samara is tough as nails, dubious past, and was elected queen. And now she will save the emperor to get some money out of it, her people need food.

Valentin was, oh I liked him, I am sure he will be a good emperor if he can just get rid of the snakes around him.

Get him out, get him safe, get money. Baddies after them. Friendship blossoming (I hope for more one day too).

It was short and fully fleshed out it would have been even better. But it does work as a novella and there are more to come.

Narration

I did have to up the speed of the narrator to 2.0 cos I felt she was speaking too slowly. I did like her voice, but yes higher speed was needed for me. It might have to do with that this was built as a serial. So there are many moments in it for action and danger.

When the Quint Confederacy and the Kos Empire went to war - again - Queen Samara wisely kept her Rogue Coalition out of the conflict. But staying neutral in a galactic war doesn't pay the bills, not when both sides refuse to trade with neutral sectors.  

With her people on the brink of starvation, Samara hatches a daring plan to snatch the kidnapped Kos Emperor from the Quint mercenaries holding him. The Kos Empire will pay a fortune for their emperor's return, enough to feed the Coalition's citizens while they wait for the return to a begrudging peace.  

But when her plan goes sideways, Samara finds herself evading Quint mercenaries with the very man she intends to capture. And the more time she spends with Valentin Kos, the more she realizes that he's not the coldly indifferent villain she imagined. Torn between duty and desire, Samara must decide if saving her people is worth giving up the one thing she's always wanted.

Audio: A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers

Narrated by: Rachel Dulude

Series: Wayfarers, Book 2

Length: 11 hrs and 29 mins

Unabridged Audiobook

Release date: 05-21-19

Publisher: HarperAudio

Sci-fi

To review

I did like this one a lot more than book 1, but then I also listened to this, while I read book 1, and what can I say, audiobooks rock.

This was a Dual narrative. First we have Lovelace, yes we did meet her in book 1, but this is a stand alone, and I did also feel that I would not have needed to read book 1. In that one she had to be reset, and now she is in a body instead of a ship (being an AI and all). So she has to try to live as a human, and there is also the possibility of getting caught as it is illegal. And it was so fascinating as this AI is experiencing the world, getting friends and wondering what make her her. We also get different alien cultures thrown in as she lives in a place settled by many. And they are all so fascinating!

Then there is Jane, this was actually the POV I liked the most. She lives in a factory with other Janes. They are clones made for the purpose of sorting through trash. A horrible world and she gets away and works for years to get away. And we know she gets away as she meets Lovelace as Pepper. 

Does a lot happen? No not really. Jane's story is the story of a struggle to survive and grow up.

Lovelace's story is about finding yourself.

It is again a talking book, a character driven book, but it works wonderfully through audio. It is the perfect format.

Narrator
I liked her voice. At first I wondered about one of her alien voices, but it was meant to be that way since they do not really speak, then I realised how great it was. Considering all alien races, humans and AI she does a great job with them all

Lovelace was once merely a ship’s artificial intelligence. When she wakes up in a new body, following a total system shutdown and reboot, she has no memory of what came before. As Lovelace learns to negotiate the universe and discover who she is, she makes friends with Pepper, an excitable engineer, who’s determined to help her learn and grow. 

Together, Pepper and Lovey will discover that no matter how vast space is, two people can fill it together. 

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet introduced listeners to the incredible world of Rosemary Harper, a young woman with a restless soul and secrets to keep. When she joined the crew of the Wayfarer, an intergalactic ship, she got more than she bargained for - and learned to live with, and love, her ragtag collection of crewmates. 

Audio: The last wolf - Maria Vale

For three days out of thirty, when the moon is full and her law is iron, the Great North Pack must be wild.

If she returns to her Pack, the stranger will die.

But if she stays…

Silver Nilsdottir is at the bottom of her Pack’s social order, with little chance for a decent mate and a better life. Until the day a stranger stumbles into their territory, wounded and beaten, and Silver decides to risk everything on Tiberius Leveraux. But Tiberius isn’t all he seems, and in the fragile balance of the Pack and wild, he may tip the destiny of all wolves… 

Audio cd, 8 hrs 3 min
Publication: February 6th 2018 by Tantor audio
The Legend of All Wolves #1
Paranormal romance / UF
In exchange for an honest review

My thoughts:

I really have fallen in love with audio and that is why I wanted to give pnr another go, though I feel this was more UF in this. It was just, dunno, darker.

Silver is the runt of the pack. At the bottom, hopping around on 3 legs, and no mate. She was also more wolf than human. She did not like to be in skin, and it did make it a bit funny at times when she tried. She was nice and she was a wolf.

Tiberius shows up and asks for mercy and she is the only one that can save him. Because then she might earn a real place. But he is a shapeshifter, and they are bad. They always turn on wolves and kill them. But he really seems to want to work for it. And I liked seeing him trying to be a wolf cos here it was he who was bad at it.

He must learn to be a wolf so that the pack will accept him. There are troubles outside the gates. And Silver must think of her own future if they fail being accepted as a couple. So there is passion (obviously), danger and so many wolves.

I really liked how wolfish these people were. In other books they might be wolves but here they really were wolves. Pack was pack. Pack raises pups, pups runs around as wolves. Everything from mating (with a big M), to eating. Really wolfish. It made it different.

Conclusion:
I enjoyed it. I wonder if the next one is about them also, or another couple.

Narrator

Rachel Dulude

I liked how she narrated this and I felt she got Silver right. It made for a fast pleasant listen. And like always, def listen to it.