Well Worth Persisting

I found the first couple of chapters dense with names and story detail. I find that kind of thing easier to process when reading a paper book, where a person can slow down and think, "Wait, who is that, again?" Actually the whole book is dense with detail and characters, but once you get oriented it is part of the fun. If you start this and it feels like too much detail is coming at you too fast, give it a little time. I ended up enjoying this very much.

Martha Wells has a great visual imagination and the first chapter has a glorious long scene that is full of action and invention. You know the better class of action movie, ones that have an actual plot that makes some kind of sense, and some character development, timing, narrative skill? You still can't process every little thing in the action sequences. You don't even try. It's not required. Lots of this book is like that. Yes, probably there is too much stuff being described and crammed in, but what is also present is subtlety and humour and great characters. I have listened to it several times and enjoyed it more each time.

There is a following book set quite a while later in the same world featuring a distant descendant of one of the characters. And then some more books after that. I am going to start the forth book in this chain soon. I found it quite enjoyable re-visiting the world and finding out more.

If my phone could play at .85 or .90 speed I would totally go with that for listening to this. Derek Perkins does a good job but I find he plows through at a workmanlike speed, when slowing down a little would enhance the experience.

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