Read Thebe Read
- 6
- reviews
- 2
- helpful votes
- 10
- ratings
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The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years
- A Novel
- By: Shubnum Khan
- Narrated by: Soneela Nankani
- Length: 10 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 64
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 60
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Story4 out of 5 stars 60
Akbar Manzil was once a grand estate off the coast of South Africa. Nearly a century later, it stands in ruins: an isolated boardinghouse for eclectic misfits, seeking solely to disappear into the mansion’s dark corridors. Except for Sana. Unlike the others, she is curious and questioning and finds herself irresistibly drawn to the history of the mansion: To the eerie and forgotten East Wing, home to a clutter of broken and abandoned objects—and to the door at its end, locked for decades.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Loneliness and compassionate
- By David M. Jacobs on 01-26-24
- The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years
- A Novel
- By: Shubnum Khan
- Narrated by: Soneela Nankani
I came up with excuses to keep listening to this book when I should have been working
Reviewed: 06-08-24
A well-written exploration of love and relationships set in an interesting multicultural setting. Although the book is full of paranormal occurrences and the protagonist is a child, this book feels more like magical realism than YA Romantasy. The fantastical in the book simply helped expose greater truths. I enjoyed getting to know the quirky inhabitants of the old house and, of course, the mystery and parallel story was compelling. (It brought back memories of a book I loved as a child, “The Velvet Room” with a similar creepy, old house, hidden room, a seeking girl and a secret not actually lost to the past.)
The reading was very good. She understood the story and phrasing, adding (subtle, natural) atmosphere of her own to an already laden story. Only Tamilians and South Africans will wince at her pronunciation, but who can know so many languages!? For me as a standard “gora,” it was really nice to have someone able to bring her version of the culture, say the words and add the intonation which really brought the characters to life. I was tempted to add the kindle version so I could gobble down the story faster, but her reading kept me from it. I knew I would lose too much without her take on the story.
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The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches
- By: Sangu Mandanna
- Narrated by: Samara MacLaren
- Length: 9 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,996
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 5,544
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 5,536
As one of the few witches in Britain, Mika Moon knows she has to hide her magic, keep her head down, and stay away from other witches so their powers don’t mingle and draw attention. And as an orphan who lost her parents at a young age and was raised by strangers, she’s used to being alone and she follows the rules...with one exception: an online account, where she posts videos "pretending" to be a witch. She thinks no one will take it seriously.
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5 out of 5 stars
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The perfect cozy fall read!
- By Chloë Ester K. Cook on 10-04-22
- The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches
- By: Sangu Mandanna
- Narrated by: Samara MacLaren
Such a sweet, gentle story
Reviewed: 03-07-24
This story is a balm. The dramas are largely in the past. It is all about hope, possibility and healing. Read/listen to this if you are in the mood for a bit of warm-hearted, feel-good sweetness.
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Greywaren
- The Dreamer Trilogy, Book 3
- By: Maggie Stiefvater
- Narrated by: Will Patton
- Length: 9 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 318
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 284
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Story5 out of 5 stars 283
The war between dreams and reality intensifies... with Ronan at its center.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Will Patton's best performance yet
- By Amazon Customer on 10-19-22
- Greywaren
- The Dreamer Trilogy, Book 3
- By: Maggie Stiefvater
- Narrated by: Will Patton
What a performance!
Reviewed: 11-01-22
This reading is on another level. I don’t think I have ever listened to a book where the reader so wholly embodies the story. He takes an excellent book and elevates and animates it. Seriously impressive.
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1 person found this helpful
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The Golden Enclaves
- The Scholomance, Book 3
- By: Naomi Novik
- Narrated by: Anisha Dadia
- Length: 14 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 3,719
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 3,305
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,296
The one thing you never talk about while you’re in the Scholomance is what you’ll do when you get out. Not even the richest enclaver would tempt fate that way. But it’s all we dream about: the hideously slim chance we’ll survive to make it out the gates and improbably find ourselves with a life ahead of us, a life outside the Scholomance halls. And now the impossible dream has come true. I’m out, we’re all out. We saved everyone. So much for my great-grandmother’s prophecy of doom and destruction. Ha, only joking! Actually, it’s gone all wrong.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Absolutely stunning
- By Tori on 09-28-22
- The Golden Enclaves
- The Scholomance, Book 3
- By: Naomi Novik
- Narrated by: Anisha Dadia
Simply excellent, deceptively deep
Reviewed: 10-22-22
On the surface this trilogy may seem to be just another take on the underdog coming of age in a magical school theme, but boy does it blossom into more. Each book gets better until it becomes nuanced and multi-layered to the point where the reader can interpret the subtexts in diverse ways which are moving and satisfying.
I think the audio performer does a good job as well. Often YA is fluffy enough and the reading slow and irritating enough that there is only benefit in listening at faster than natural speed. Not this rendition. The reader’s intonation showed she understood the story and could embody the characters to convey their wit and unspoken intentions. This is an alarmingly rare ability (Poor listeners of Rick Riorden!).
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The Indigo Girl
- A Novel
- By: Natasha Boyd
- Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
- Length: 10 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 12,052
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 10,960
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 10,903
The year is 1739. Eliza Lucas is sixteen years old when her father leaves her in charge of their family’s three plantations in rural South Carolina and then proceeds to bleed the estates dry in pursuit of his military ambitions. Tensions with the British, and with the Spanish in Florida, just a short way down the coast, are rising, and slaves are starting to become restless. Her mother wants nothing more than for their South Carolina endeavor to fail so they can go back to England. Soon her family is in danger of losing everything.
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5 out of 5 stars
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You must read The Indigo Girl
- By maureen m. mukhlis on 11-12-17
- The Indigo Girl
- A Novel
- By: Natasha Boyd
- Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
So glad for the introduction to the girl who radically altered the economy of the early American South
Reviewed: 07-28-21
The real-life inspiration for this book is a person we should all know about. What a powerful reminder this is that history is in the hands of its writers and all those past male historians wrote her out, but now Ms. Boyd has written her back in. I am so happy to have found her story presented so entertainingly in this book.
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The Mermaid's Sister
- By: Carrie Anne Noble
- Narrated by: Kate Rudd
- Length: 7 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 2,576
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 2,280
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Story4 out of 5 stars 2,271
There is no cure for being who you truly are.… In a cottage high atop Llanfair Mountain, sixteen-year-old Clara lives with her sister, Maren, and guardian Auntie. By day, they gather herbs for Auntie's healing potions. By night, Auntie spins tales of faraway lands and wicked fairies. Clara's favorite story tells of three orphan infants—Clara, who was brought to Auntie by a stork; Maren, who arrived in a seashell; and their best friend, O'Neill, who was found beneath an apple tree. One day, Clara discovers shimmering scales just beneath her sister's skin.
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5 out of 5 stars
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ASTONISHINGLY GOOD!
- By I-C Household on 05-08-15
- The Mermaid's Sister
- By: Carrie Anne Noble
- Narrated by: Kate Rudd
Stilted narration diminishes sweet story
Reviewed: 12-20-16
With all those "starving" actors out there I am always astonished that audio books hire readers without subtlety or nuance to their reading. What a shame. This is a book which would be far better read than heard with this reader. The story is a fairy tale and thus would benefit from a touch of lightness and magic in the reading but in good times and bad, the narration is stiff and clunky. At least the reader understood the story, which is far better than many.
A positive about the book if you are looking for a gift for a younger reader is that it has mature themes and ideas, but no gratuitous sex and limited violence.
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1 person found this helpful