{Audiobook} Review: Premeditated by Josin L. McQuein

Title: Premeditated
Author: Josin L. McQuein
Narrator:  Jessica Almasy
Series: n/a
Length:  8 hrs 36 mins
Publisher: Audible, Inc.
Publication Date: October 8, 2013
Source: purchased
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

A week ago, Dinah’s cousin Claire cut her wrists.

Five days ago, Dinah found Claire’s diary and discovered why.

Three days ago, Dinah stopped crying and came up with a plan.

Two days ago, she ditched her piercings and bleached the black dye from her hair.

Yesterday, knee socks and uniform plaid became a predator’s camouflage.

Today, she’ll find the boy who broke Claire.

By tomorrow, he’ll wish he were dead.

After reading devouring Arclight earlier this year, I knew I'd be picking up Premeditated as soon as I could get my hands on it.  I do love a good revenge story, but that synopsis had me sold.  And apparently that is how the author queried the story!  That is fabulous in and of itself.

But the writing, the narrative voice...it's everything I'd hoped for after a debut like Arclight.  Dinah goes to extreme lengths to inflict retribution on the guy who broke Claire's heart so fully that she harmed herself in her despair.  But despite the rather dire circumstances, this story still manages to be humorous and clever and avoids gloomy when it can be helped.  I can't say, however, that I didn't see that ending coming.  I don't think that's because the story was overly predictable, just that the author was nonchalant in providing details, meaning that I was thoroughly engaged by this story and carefully tucked away every detail I could.  I'm intuitive like that.

The characters themselves were rich and well-fleshed out.  Dinah is quirky in her own right -- and I know most cringe at the use of that word, but I mean it in the best possible way -- and she's sacrificing a lot on her cousin's behalf, transforming herself from goth girl to prep school charmer.  That's enough to cause anyone to be a little quirky.  And then there are the two boys, neither of which is who he seems.  Brucie and Tabs rounded out the cast as Dinah's best friends, sidekicks, and fellow revenge-seekers, and they provide a lot of the comedy, as well.

I definitely felt that this story had a very Veronica Mars-vibe to it.  I mean, Dinah dons a disguise, infiltrates the "it" crowd, and falls for the wrong guy.  That premise has Veronica Mars written all over it.  Not that I'm complaining.  Dinah's even snarky like Veronica.  And awesome.  And badass.  Can you tell I liked her character?  Maybe even more than I should have?  :D

And the narrator chosen to perform this audiobook was fabulous.  Took me a minute to adjust to her, but she pulled off that snarky, quirky thing so. Freaking. Well.  And managed not to make all of the characters sound like that.  I'll definitely be checking out her other work.

Suffice it to say, Josin McQuein is going on my author auto-buy list.  I had already planned on picking up the sequel to Arclight, but now I'm just planning on reading everything she writes, maybe without even reading summaries going forward.  That's always fun...the little bit of risk that comes along with it is worth it, sometimes.  So, yeah, if you like darkly funny capers reminiscent of Veronica Mars, I highly recommend this one.  Also, if you like it when bad guys get their just desserts, I'd say this one is for you.  Revenge is a dish best served cold...then they won't know what hit 'em!

About the author:

Josin L. McQuein was born and raised in Texas and can trace every place she's lived in by the movies that were filmed there. She currently lives with three crazy dogs in a town so small that the buffalo outnumber the people and things like subways and consistent internet service are creations of that far away fantasy land called "Civilization."

Find Josin:

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Labels: audiobooks, favorites, josin l. mcquein, murder mystery, must-read, psychological thriller, random house, reviews, spies and espionage, tough subject, tx authors

{Audiobook} {Mendy} Review: Etiquette and Espionage by Gail Carriger

Title: Etiquette & Espionage
Author: Gail Carriger
Narrator:  Moira Quirk
Series: Finishing School, book #1
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Publication Date: February 5, 2013
Source: purchased
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

It's one thing to learn to curtsy properly. It's quite another to learn to curtsy and throw a knife at the same time. Welcome to Finishing School.

Fourteen-year-old Sophronia is a great trial to her poor mother. Sophronia is more interested in dismantling clocks and climbing trees than proper manners—and the family can only hope that company never sees her atrocious curtsy. Mrs. Temminick is desperate for her daughter to become a proper lady. So she enrolls Sophronia in Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality.

But Sophronia soon realizes the school is not quite what her mother might have hoped. At Mademoiselle Geraldine's, young ladies learn to finish...everything. Certainly, they learn the fine arts of dance, dress, and etiquette, but they also learn to deal out death, diversion, and espionage—in the politest possible ways, of course. Sophronia and her friends are in for a rousing first year's education.

Set in the same world as the Parasol Protectorate, this YA series debut is filled with all the saucy adventure and droll humor Gail Carriger's legions of fans have come to adore.

Sophronia. Sophronia. Sophronia.  That name pops into my head at the most random times throughout the week ever since reading Etiquette and Espionage.  The chick's voice that narrates the audio is so fun to listen to.  Sometimes, I'd just find myself not really paying attention to the words so much as how cool it sounded as she said them.  Sophronia Temminick isn't the only name that stuck out to me.  There's Dimity, her accomplice, and Soap and Vieve, whose characters I just adored.  Initially, I will admit I was a bit overwhelmed by all of the unique names and figuring out who was who, but they grew on me.

I love that this book is both charming and devious at the same time.  These girls have been sent to finishing school to learn about proper manners while also learning how to properly poison their future husbands.  Doesn't get any better than that.  Hehehe.  

I really love the cover of this book.  It's pretty awesome.  Something I don't love about this book?  Steampunk.  There are airborne highway men in balloons, mechanical servants, and even steam-powered dogs.  The idea of dogs that let little puffs of smoke out when they potty is just too much for me.

Can't wait to read the next book in the series to see if there are any budding romances, since the seeds were pretty much planted in Etiquette & Espionage.

Rating:  

About the author:

Ms. Carriger writes steampunk urbane fantasy comedies of manners to cope with being raised in obscurity by an expatriate Brit and an incurable curmudgeon. She escaped small town life and inadvertently acquired several degrees in Higher Learning. She then traveled the historic cities of Europe, subsisting entirely on biscuits secreted in her handbag. She now resides in the Colonies, surrounded by a harem of shoes, where she insists on tea imported directly from London and cats that pee into toilets. Her Parasol Protectorate books are all New York Times Bestsellers.

Find Gail:

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Labels: audiobooks, book trailers, finishing school, gail carriger, hachette, historical fiction, mendy, reviews, spies and espionage, steampunk

{Audiobook} Review: Also Known As by Robin Benway

Title: Also Known As
Author: Robin Benway
Narrator:  Robin Benway (the author!)
Series: stand-alone
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Publication Date: February 26, 2013
Source: purchased, also received review copy via Netgalley
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

Being a 16-year-old safecracker and active-duty daughter of international spies has its moments, good and bad. Pros: Seeing the world one crime-solving adventure at a time. Having parents with super cool jobs. Cons: Never staying in one place long enough to have friends or a boyfriend. But for Maggie Silver, the biggest perk of all has been avoiding high school and the accompanying cliques, bad lunches, and frustratingly simple locker combinations.

Then Maggie and her parents are sent to New York for her first solo assignment, and all of that changes. She'll need to attend a private school, avoid the temptation to hack the school's security system, and befriend one aggravatingly cute Jesse Oliver to gain the essential information she needs to crack the case . . . all while trying not to blow her cover.

Also Known As was a pretty freakin' cute read, er, listen.  I had a review copy, but I didn't get to it in a timely fashion, and it kind of fell off of my review schedule, but it sounded kind of awesome, so I didn't let myself forget about it entirely.  When I saw it pop up on Audible AND that the author herself was narrating, I knew it was fate.

Having the author read you her story is the epitome of good narration.  Seriously.  Who knows their material better?  Who better to voice the character's every feeling, their agitation, their triumphs?  No one, that's who.  Robin Benway narrating this book was pure genius.  She has a knack not just for different voices but also for conveying the emotions of her characters.  Benway knows exactly how her characters are supposed to sound, and it really shines through in the audio.  Truthfully, I hope she continues this trend and narrates all of her audiobooks.  Nay, not just hers but other YA novels, as well.  She. Is. Awesome.

But her narration wouldn't have been near as great if the story hadn't held up its end of the bargain.  What girl didn't/doesn't like to play dress up or the part of the sexy spy, a la Alias?  Well, for Maggie, that all comes with the job.  Sort of.  Okay, maybe not at all because of her skill set...until she was forced to attend an honest-to-goodness high school and act the part of a normal teenage girl.  But Maggie is all, "Whoa, is me," and not at all sure she can carry out her latest mission.

Maggie is a bit...sheltered.  That's probably the best word for it, despite the fact that she's a safe-cracking prodigy.  She's moved around a ton with her family of spies and hasn't ever really had the opportunity to make friends, go to school, or attend normal social functions like other peers her own age.    Maggie is a bit different, if not awkward, and it's never been more clear to her than on her first day of high school.  Thank goodness she has Roux to show her the ropes.  Roux was a great sidekick, the kind of girl you'd want to befriend if you were different because she goes against the grain herself.  And it also doesn't hurt that Maggie's mark is ridiculously cute and charming.  Okay, actually, that kind of doesn't help with the mission, but having something pretty to look at while you work never hurt anybody, right?

Honestly, though, it's Maggie's sardonic attitude that made this book.  I find spunky, good-hearted characters like her entirely appealing.  And the whole cloak and dagger bit is kind of fun, as well.  Plus, there are great parental role models in the picture, which I will never ever complain about.

All in all, a funny read that's fun to read and even funnier to listen to.


Rating:  

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Labels: also known as, audiobooks, bloomsbury, contemporary, crime, mystery, reviews, robin benway, spies and espionage