A major let down.

8 stories, ranging from WTF?! to this-saved-the-whole-anthology.

I’ve expected much more from a list of the best in the genre, so maybe this is why I was so disappointed. but when even the best narrator there is (joel lesley) messes up, I tend to believe that it’s not me, it’s the story.

so here they are, in the order they appear in the anthology, with my opinion on each:

1. Entre to Murder, by nicole kimberling, narrated by kale williams – I only inferred this is nicole kimberling’s story, because

the narrator does not mention it. as boring, unimaginative and cliche the title sounds, is hard to believe that the story is even worse. from bad writing, to unclear story line, to flat mismatched characters, this story brings them all in. and kale williams’s narration does not make anything better: even he get’s confused sometimes, and mis-pronounces stuff.

2. 12 Seconds, by meg perry, narrated by joel lesley – creative take on the “behind the scenes” of space industry, with an unclear story line, a truncated style of writing (or maybe it was bad editing) and a bit of stereotyped characters. far from being the worse in the bunch, is just enough over mediocre to merit an additional listen

3. Reality Bites, by c.s. wynne, narrated by kale williams – a very promising idea, betrayed by bad writing and totally unprofessional story line. It’s painfully clear that the author did not know how to construct a murder story line, and didn’t know how to explain it to the reader. one of the disappointments.

4. Blind Man’s Bluff, by l.b. gregg, narrated by kale williams – this is really the worst. the writing is so bad, the idea so weird, the characters so unbelievable, that I could not listen to the end. btw, if you feel the same, next story begins with chapter 56

5. A Country for Old Men, by dal mcLean, narrated by joel lesley – not only the best in the anthology, but a very good story however you look at it. the story line is interesting, the writing intelligent, the characters complex and believable at the same time. there is enough human nature in there to be serious and just enough descriptions of an unusual place to make it attractive. as for joel lesley’s scottish accents? there is nothing better and more exotic to make a story captivating. and as the author says more than once: hearing all that gaelic makes everything much more poetic.

6. Pepper the Crime Lab, by z.a. maxfield, narrated by joel lesley – good, entertaining, sweet little story. occasionally surprising sometimes creative, not always believable, and yet, always heart warming and funny. and after you listen to the whole story, you get how witty the title is – no spoilers!

7. Lights, Camera, Murder, by c.s. poe, narrated by kale williams – another of the nice, but not brilliant type. the story line is a mix of original and cliche, as if the author is not sure if she’s good enough to finish the original idea she wanted to write. some of the characters are a bit too flat and stereotyped, others are well built and creative. the narration also gets better.

8. Stranger in the House, by josh lanyon, narrated by joel lesley – this is the hardest to mark. no doubt that knowing it comes from the pen of josh lanyon makes me want more from it. there is a bit of hit and miss with the character building; too much weirdness in the story line; too much french to be likeable. it really does sound like she wanted to elaborate, but the story had to have just this many words. Have to also admit, that the last line – untranslated french, that I don’t know enough of, to guess how it should be written, so I can translate myself – got my hackles up, big time! undoubtedly a good one! none of the brilliance I expected from josh lanyon, with all the sweetness and creativity I love from her.