A few months ago, I was approached by Jess @ Audiobookworm Promotions to consider reviewing audiobooks and hosting the authors and/or narrators attached to the audiobooks as a bit of a switch-up from reading print books! I, was quite excited by her pitch to me, as for one, I had already started to consider breaking into audiobooks in the New Year (2017) as my chronic migraines returnt this past Spring (2016) and have continued to be an annoyance straight into Autumn!
Ergo, I have heard positive feedback from readers who have chronic migraines such as I do finding a better balance of reading their books and listening to audiobooks – wherein, you off-set your physical books by giving a go at the audio versions! It’s a whole new territory for me! I was quite the traditionalist, too! I never fathomed I’d get so giddy over listening to digital audiobooks until of course, my previous computer died a sad death in a lightning storm and had to be replaced post haste approx. a month later (early October). You see, my old computer was half dead already from the 90 days of lightning storms from Summer of 2015; part of the casualty then were the speakers! So you see, without the benefit of needing to replace said computer, digital audiobooks, podcasts or even internet radio was all a ‘non-go’ for me!
All things being equal, my new computer has opened a few new doors for me! Listening to digital audiobooks is just one of them! Coincidentally, my local library offers physical copies of audiobooks and digital audiobooks – which is rather smashing! If I’m in the mood for either of them, at least they are readily available! They also take purchase requests and can fetch others via ILL’ing (inter-library loan). You can well imagine my surprise then, when Ms Jess approached me! All of this was being considered in due haste on my part, sorting out how to navigate the new world of audiobooks (as I’ve been privy to some of the movement therein via chats on Twitter) whilst embracing a new avenue for me to pursue as a book blogger! I’ll talk more about this new path of mine between now and when my second audiobook tour arrives in December, but I wanted to give a bit of an introduction to my new showcasing of audiobooks – especially to those of you who have been so very loyal in following my bookish life and might be curious to know about this new interest of mine!
I do still credit Katie @ Doing Dewey as being the one person who initially inspired me towards this end, as one of her Non-Fiction Book Club choices was a CD audiobook I enjoyed listening whilst reading the print book in tandem! This is a special treat I enjoy doing, perhaps you do as well!?
Today, marks my first contribution to the blog tour featuring the Historical Suspense Thriller “The Cryptic Lines”. I had originally planned to post my review today, but have inverted my tour stops (the 6th and 8th respectively) at the last minute! Please return mid-week to see my ruminations on behalf of the story and a bit of a new method of revealling my impressions as I change my format of how I review a novel I’ve read, er, listened too!
I am looking forward to hosting narrators and sorting out which narrators will become my most beloved in the industry. I can attest the one I am interviewing today is definitely at the top of the list for owning his characters and for the incredible capacity he has for theatrical voicing!
The Cryptic Lines
Subtitle: an audiobook read by Jake Urry
Set in a sprawling Gothic mansion in a remote coastal location, somewhere in the British Isles, the elderly recluse Lord Alfred Willoughby is deciding what is to become of his vast fortune after his death. Whilst his head is telling him to leave nothing at all to his wastrel son, Matthew, his heart is speaking differently.
After much deliberation, in a last-ditch attempt to try and show to his son the importance of applying himself to a task and staying with it to the end, he devises a series of enigmatic puzzles cunningly concealed within the lines of a poem – the cryptic lines.
If he completes the task successfully and solves the puzzles he will inherit the entire estate; but if he fails he will receive nothing. However, from Lord Alfred’s Will it emerges that Matthew is not the only interested party. The mysterious old house holds many secrets, and nothing is as it first appears…
Places to find the book:
ASIN: B01D0E6ZK6
on 16th March, 2016
Length: 4 hours and 13 minutes (unabridged)
I love how you’ve taken such a theatrical tone in narrating “The Cryptic Lines” to where it feels textural like a live-action play rather than a narration of a novel. What is your process for enveloping yourself inside the atmosphere of a story such as this one that has a unique pacing of revelation of it’s twists, events and the final reveal?
Urry responds: Thank you! It was important for me to get across the different personalities of the characters in this book, as they are all so well written. For me the process starts with finding the voices for each character and then thinking about how they fit in with the overall atmosphere of the story. For instance Lord Alfred in many respects sets the whole mysterious atmosphere up and revels in the game he’s created, so his voice was more theatrical and menacing. In contrast the character of Meg is very much acting in her own tempo, unconcerned with the urgency of the contest, so I had fun making her more whimsical and carefree. Read More
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