Rachanee Lumayno performs one of the most fascinating and unique novels of the year with skill equal to the quality of the book. Lumayno breathlessly delivers a truly frightening story about an early video game that is too powerful to resist. Her dynamic rendering makes this audiobook as current as today's scary headlines on the future of AI. In the novel, Andi, an aloof genius, is the first to figure out that the prototype video game was never supposed to be released. Her friend, Roman, is slower on the uptake, as is his dad, a sheriff. When their small town is plagued by mysterious deaths and assaults, they have to face the fact that the digital age has begun.
Pub Date: April 29, 2025
Duration: 10 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9781797189956
Publisher: Simon & Schuster 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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