Peter Kenny narrates Claire North's mind-blowing, genre-defying audio trilogy. In the first story, the characters are from almost every country because the setting is the mystical Gameshouse, which can appear practically anywhere in the world. Kenny must switch between voices as the players play life-or-death versions of childhood games. One game of hide-and-seek takes place in Thailand with a Frenchman as the main storyteller. The second story is set in Venice in the 1800s, and the main character is a woman. In the final story, a game of chess is played with real people, all around the world. As Kenny disappears into his narration, the characters spring to life and capture the imagination of the listener.
Pub Date: May 28, 2019
Duration: 11 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781549121685
Publisher: Hachette Audio
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: N/A
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: N/A
Duration: 8 hrs
Publisher: Books on Tape
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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