Tag: fantasy

New Releases: Dinotopia: The World Beneath

Jesse Willis

New Releases

I recently received an email from ZBS:

James Gurney’s handsomely illustrated book, Dinotopia, The World Beneath, has been adapted into an audio drama using a full cast of actors, original music by Tim Clark, and sounds recorded in Bali, Sumatra and the Amazon by Tom Lopez. The two and a half hour audio adventure was produced by ZBS Foundation.

Tom Lopez lives an awesome life, creating amazing audio drama while traveling the world!

ZBS Foundation - Dinotopia: The World BeneathDinotopia: The World Beneath
Based on the book by James Gurney; Performed by a full cast
MP3 Download – Approx. 2.5 Hours [AUDIO DRAMA]
Publisher: ZBS Foundation
Published: 2010 (originally released on CD in 1996)
ISBN: 1881137430
Close your eyes, open your imagination, and be transported to Dinotopia, the only place in the world where dinosaurs and humans live side by side. This peaceful island, first brought to light in James Gurney’s phenomenal bestseller, comes alive again in this spectacular audio journey. Join Arthur and Will Denison as they explore all the great landmarks, discover the hidden byways, meet the inhabitants (including the dinosaurs), and learn about the unusual lifeways of this fabulous land apart from time. No other audio adventure so effectively creates an entire world (a reality unlike any other) and so immediately plunges you into the full ambiance of an unknown civilization. All the excitement and adventure of this unique expedition is now within your reach through this very special production.

Sample |MP3|

Posted by Jesse Willis

Review of Pretty Maggie Moneyeyes by Harlan Ellison

Scott D.

SFFaudio Review

We’re in the home stretch now… Pick up the ball, and throw it to Who.

Audiobook - Pretty Maggie Moneyeyes by Harlan EllisonPretty Maggie Moneyeyes
Contained in The Voice from the Edge, Volume 3: Pretty Maggie Moneyeyes
By Harlan Ellison; Read by Harlan Ellison
1 Hour – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: 2010
Themes: / Fantasy / Ghosts / Gambling / Slot Machines /

Why don’t more narrators read stories like Harlan Ellison reads stories? I would say that the insistence with which he reads has to do with the fact that he’s delivering his own material, but he won an Audie Award for his narration of a Ben Bova story a while back. So he pours the same personality – and that’s what the quality really is; a personal one, like he’s right there with you – he pours the same personality into stories other than his own. I would therefore love to hear him read an anthology of his favorite stories from other writers.

But the story at hand is “Pretty Maggie Moneyeyes”, a sharp tale about a guy near the end of his luck who pulls the handle on a dollar slot machine and wins the jackpot. Then pulls the handle and wins again. Impossible, you say? Maybe. Maybe not.

I love the fact that after the story Ellison talks about writing it. And that’s an interesting story, too.

Visit the Blackstone Audio website for an audio sample from another of the stories in the Voice from the Edge, Vol. 3 collection.

Posted by Scott D. Danielson

Review of “Pop Art” by Joe Hill

Scott D.

SFFaudio Review

Take THAT, Reviewapalooza!

Horror Fantasy Audiobook - 20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill“Pop Art”
Contained in 20th Century Ghosts
By Joe Hill; Read by David Ledoux
12 Hours, 14 Mins – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Harper Audio
Published: 2007
Themes: / Fantasy / School / Mortality /

My best friend when I was twelve was inflatable.

This is a wonderful story. If I describe it you, it sounds absurd, and I guess it is. But through the absurdity, Joe Hill tells a poignant story. Arthur Roth is inflatable. Being inflatable means almost dying a dozen times by age 12. It means staying away from sharp things, including pens and pencils. Best to stick with crayons. Being inflatable also means that you are going to be picked on at school, because the bullies enjoy tossing you in the air like a balloon. None of this keeps Art from thinking big thoughts.

But then Art meets a friend who shares his bizarre life, and he lives fairly normally, except that death is always one puncture away.

Often science fiction uses aliens as a way to shine a spotlight on some aspect of humanity that the author wants to examine. This is fantasy, certainly, but the inflatable boy does the same sort of thing. He’s more vulnerable than the rest of us, but lives in the same cruel world. That the way he’s treated rings true lets us look at humanity from a slightly different angle than we would if the characters were all human. His finding a good friend rings just as true, and is perhaps the best thing the story gives us.

“Pop Art” stands out in a very good collection called 20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill. It’s read by David Ledoux. You can buy the whole collection at Audible, or you can buy just this story.

This was made into a short film. I found it |HERE| but I’m getting the old “not available in your area” block. Anyone know where I could watch that?

Posted by Scott D. Danielson

Knighttime: An audio drama series from The Hazardous Players

Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Online Audio

Knighttime is an “ongoing fantasy/humor adventure” audio drama series. Each week The Hazardous Players offer up a new chapter in the adventures of good Sir Cottington and Sir Bratwurst. They reluctantly stumble their way through the land of Udenland, while trying to avoid being eaten by any number of terrifying beasts. Along the way they meet several of the eccentric members of Udenland society who more often than not, prove a greater challenge than the terrifying beasts.

The voice acting in this show is actually pretty great, and there are some pretty fun jokes in there too.

All that Knighttime is missing, other than a blog feed, is a podcast feed! How can you have an audio drama series without a podcast feed? Crazy.

The Hazardous Players Present: Knighttime

Quoth The Hazardous Players:

“We, The Hazardous Players, have been building a fantasy adventure where we plan on constructing multiply narratives using various media: writing, audio performance and art, (eventually video), to create a story that is an expanding fantasy for children and adults. Though we realize this is a nontraditional approach to literature, we do see that this could be a unique way to tell a story, harkening back to the time of episodic adventures on the radio.”

Here’s the first episode of their first adventure |MP3|

Check out the rest HERE.

Posted by Jesse Willis

Review of Od Magic by Patricia A. McKillip

Scott D.

SFFaudio Review

Od Magic by Patricia McKillipOd Magic
By Patricia A. McKillip; Read by Gabrielle de Cuir
10 CDs – 11.7 hours – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: 2009
ISBN: 9781433223983
Themes: / Fantasy / Wizard School / Monarchy / Herbalism /

I had a hard time, at first, getting into this book. I didn’t relate to Brenden Vetch, who lost his parents, then his brother and girlfriend left him because he spent hours and days in the wilderness listening to and talking to plants.

Then he encounters Od, a giantess, who invites him to go to Kelior the capital city where the King lives, and become the gardener at the school of magic.

Brenden goes to Kelior, and for me, this is where the story starts to get interesting. He meets the teachers and students and keeps to himself a lot. Brenden, I’m afraid, is boring.

Fortunately, it is also here that we are introduced to the secondary characters. Valoren, the King’s wizard and a nobleman, Yar, one of the wizard teachers, Lady Thiel, cousin to Valoren and amour of Yar. Sulis, the King’s daughter, Arnath, Quarter Warden over the Twilight Quarter and Mistral, daughter of Tiriman, a magician who is visiting the Twilight Quarter.

King Galin keeps a very tight control over how and when magic is used in his kingdom. You have to be trained in the school of magic and you can only use magic the way you are taught. Everything else is forbidden. You can see the problem and where the story is going.

Tiriman, a traveling magician, enters the Twilight Quarter and everyone begins to wonder if he is using real magic, or if he’s simply using tricks. Arnath is sent in to determine if Tiriman is a threat to the King or not. The King’s daughter slips into the Quarter to see Tiriman as she has been told of him by her great grandmother, Ditany.

The story gets more complex as Brenden is found to have magic (no surprise).

By the time the story gets to chapter 5, I can hardly wait to hear what happens next. And how everything gets resolved. The King’s daughter is betrothed and Arnath falls for Mistral, Tiriman’s daughter, as he tries to meet the illusive magician.

The story builds, the characters get themselves in trouble and I’m looking forward to a great resolution… and then it’s over. But things are not all neatly wrapped up. Some things are clearly resolved. There’s a moral, but I don’t mind it. To me, the ending feels too abrupt. Too sudden. I would like a little more… resolution.

Do I recommend the story? Yes, with reservations. I love the secondary characters and their stories. I really didn’t care about Od or Brenden. I still don’t. I think part of the ending is a bit too contrived. There were NO hints to look back on and say, “Oh! Now I get it.” I felt blindsided. That being said, if there were a sequel, I’d buy it just to see what happens next. There really needs to be a next.

If this had been the first part of a series, I’d be happier with the ending. As a stand-alone, I give it a 6 out of 10. Good, but not great. No RIddlemaster of Hed here. Alas. Her latest book is a sequel to “Tam Lin.” I’m going to go out and buy it.

*Disclaimer: I listened to the audiobook. I never read the book. So, if I misspelled any of the character names, I apologize.

Posted by Charlene C. Harmon

Blackstone Audio and Audiofile Magazine: FREE Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland audiobook

Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Online Audio

Blackstone Audio and Audiofile Magazine are giving away a FREE unabridged audiobook of Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland by Lewis Carroll!

These free downloads are available only until March 16, 2010.

BLACKSTONE AUDIO - Alice's Adventures In Wonderland by Lewis CarrollAlice’s Adventures In Wonderland
By Lewis Carroll; Read by Michael York
Zipped MP3 Files or Zipped M4B Files Download – Approx. 3.1 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: 2008
Alice chases the White Rabbit down a rabbit hole and encounters a world of delightfully eccentric characters like the Mad Hatter, the March Hare, the Cheshire Cat, the Mock Turtle, and the Queen of Hearts. This enduring and evocative tale can be read on many levels and enjoyed by adults and children alike.

Posted by Jesse Willis