Narrators Jennifer O'Donnell and Laura Knight Keating's alternating voices work in tandem to create a complex portrait of life on the harsh planet of January. O'Donnell and Keating communicate the tense urgency of the planet's inhabitants, who live a precarious existence balanced between dangerous extremes of blazing light and frigid darkness. Conveying the perfect amount of vulnerability and grit, O'Donnell gives voice to Mouth, a wary smuggler searching for clues about her long-lost clan. For her part, Keating communicates the sweet-natured resolve of Sophie, who has triumphed over death and now fights to save her dying planet. The production is somewhat marred by occasional instances of uneven sound quality, but the narration is strong, and listeners will be captivated by the compelling story.
Pub Date: 2019
Duration: 14 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781501902475
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Multiple award winner Card is one of the greatest practitioners of science fiction; here he delivers a history fantasy of the Wabash Valley circa 1800, a world of hexes and folk magic. This is the first book about Alvin Maker, the seventh son of a seventh son, who has remarkable psychic powers. Card is a very good narrator, expressive and well paced. One can hear the excitement of an author as he brings his own well described characters to life. There is one momentary technical glitch, the only slip up in an exemplary presentation. Highly recommended for fiction collections everywhere.
Pub Date:
Duration: 7 hrs
Publisher: The Literate Ear
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Asimov's sweeping tale of the disintegration and fall of the Galactic Empire has never been more relevant or poignant. In the third book of the original trilogy, Dan Lazar handles the material adequately. He uses his limited range of voices nicely, if sometimes amusingly--he sometimes sounds like a foreigner attempting to mimic American accents. Varying pitch and pacing make for a lively narration, and his reading of a precocious young woman, who is ultimately an important figure, is delightful. Technical and editorial problems plague the title. Hearing Lazar repeatedly mispronounce a word that the text itself explains how to pronounce is very frustrating. Intermittent fade-outs on one channel; inconsistencies when switching sides; and low, rumbling background noise mar the sound quality.
Pub Date:
Duration: 8 hrs
Publisher: Books on Tape
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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