Great story but I find it hard to recommend

Great story. Excellent writing. Awesome narrator. Some really good characters.

So, why a 3 rating?

I was really disappointed by the author's seeming obsession with sex, lust, body parts (nether regions mostly) and bad language.

I don't mind a little raciness. I can handle it. Really. But this was over the top. I feel like he could have done a PG-13 version and it would've been fine. Probably even better.

It's OK to leave a little mystery for the reader and allow them to use their imagination. Trust me, though. No imagination needed for this book. Nope. It's all spelled out with excruciating detail.

Total bummer because it's well written otherwise and I would have liked to recommend it. I also would have liked to read book #2 when it comes out. But I think I'll have to pass.

One more pet peeve: There were a lot of tangents and backstories, little side tales to explain a hand gesture or name. They also were not needed and were usually really, really distracting.

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66 people found this helpful

Truly outstanding - a top 10 read

What made the experience of listening to Nevernight the most enjoyable?

Good narrator; unique narrative style

What other book might you compare Nevernight to and why?

Name of the Wind, but with assassins

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. Absorbing, but may be better in segments, as the content and style can be rich.

Any additional comments?

Highly recommended. Book One of a trilogy (the others aren't out yet), but it wraps up enough - no need to wait.

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47 people found this helpful

This book is total shit

The author has no imagination over compensates with graphic sex scenes involving a 16 year old girl. I want this shit off my account now!!!!

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43 people found this helpful

Just try it....

I bought this book to kill time until another book was released and I'm sooooo glad I did. I was a little put off by the cadence and slightly odd tone of the narrator but the story was great! It contains just enough the popular fantasy elements (romance, revenge, grit, magic, mystery) to keep the story engaging. It's definitely a book meant only for adults.

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41 people found this helpful

Starts out in a lovely manner...

I started out loving this... but it goes from poem to Harry Potter: Assassin Edition to confused Murder Mystery/Adventure.

It feels as if the author wanted to write a beautiful epitaph carved in blood and pain, but then decided that it was lacking substance and changed formats several times over.

In addition, not only were certain sections rushed together removing any sense of immersion, but I was dismayed that although the performance was done passably well, the narrator is not female. Maybe later we'll find out that the reason for the narrator, but this felt out of place.

Given the maps and stylisation choices chosen by the author, should one choose to read this they're better off with the actual text.

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37 people found this helpful

Stupid Revenge Fantasy

I knew about halfway through that I hated this book, but since I'd already devoted 10-plus hours to it, I decided to keep going. What a mistake. At the end, we're no closer to understanding why a bunch of assassins who worship the goddess of death should be considered the good guys.

The acolytes and teachers kill and maim each other with abandon and the murder and torture scenes go on forever, read with a breathless, halting quality that I suppose is meant to be poetic but just made me yell at my iPhone. The entire book is like an extra-long version of Arya Stark's journey to Bravos and initiation at the House of Black and White. That was one of the most boring and pointless parts of Game of Thrones, but at least we'd already come to love and understand Arya when forced to endure those sections. At one point in this book, the protagonist, Mia, appears as an avenging demon caked in blood, reminding me of Carrie, but even stupider.

And, the sex scenes are beyond creepy. I was truly skeeved out when listening to an older male narrator read about the sexual awakening of a teenaged girl (once again with the breathless, halting quality of a voyeur). And, that creepiness was doubled when I remembered this book was written by a man. ("Oh the impossible hardness inside her, blah, blah, blah").

In the epilogue, the author explains away his failure to provide any answers to who this girl is or why we should care about her by telling us that this is just part one of a three-part birth, life, and death story. I, for one, do not plan to waste another 40 hours.

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29 people found this helpful

A.D.D. much?

Useless drivel when the author derails the story to explain some drink's past for no reason. He does it so often it gets extremely annoying.

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14 people found this helpful

Well-written torture porn with no satisfaction

What made the experience of listening to Nevernight the most enjoyable?

Nevernight is a well-written adult fantasy book, with an excellent narrator. I must say that this is a great book to listen instead of reading. The assembled cast is expertly given character development and the listening to the story creates an emotional effect on the listener.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

It is very difficult to review this book without spoilers. The book in itself is going to make the listener/reader feel a variety of emotions that should not be anticipated by reading a review. However, dear reader, this is a horror movie. Like most horror movies, the plot is not important and is never happy. Instead of scares, the author is going to make you feel annoyance, sadness, bitterness, hatred, and impotence. Therefore, the book is never about the ending or a satisfying conclusion, the book is about a poignant journey through adventure and horror.

Which character – as performed by Holter Graham – was your favorite?

I was extremely impressed with the unexpected villain. Holter Graham made me like the villain quite a lot and enjoy every single piece of dialogue that the villain had. The villain's character was very well represented by Holter Graham and I was totally hooked to it.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Nevernight: never fear, never flinch and never forget.

Any additional comments?

Let's go a little in detail about the audio experience. As said before, this is a perfect book to listen. I do not think I would have enjoyed the book if I would have read it. The book is a horror book with a lot of character development and poignancy.

As a plot-driven reader, my general feeling with the book is an utter disappointment. I do not read, listen or watch a story for the sake of feeling, which is why I call this torture porn. Very similar to Game of Thrones, nothing comes to fruition in this book and all the horror experienced by the main character and myself as a listener is never worth it because there is no satisfying conclusion. Nothing is ever accomplished and therefore I feel that there is no point in continuing the story.

However, the book is expertly crafted because it meets its own goal. Intelligently, the Author is making me feel the emotions that he is conveying within the book and I have to say that although I disregard those emotions as Author Manipulation, the hook of the story transcends any idea of boredom. In other words, this is a book that is Never-Boring.

Torture porn has been around in Japan manga and anime for quite a long time and is currently very popular in tv shows and movies that "Go Dark" or show the story from the villain's perspective. However, I simply do not enjoy the idea of killing relatable, likable and emotionally invested characters for the sake of shock, or the idea of creating a permanent pool of struggles and failures just for the sake of keeping interest.

Nevernight is neverboring but is also neversatisfying.

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11 people found this helpful

You'll be glad you read this

Exciting from start to finish. I couldn't stop listening. Characters so full of life, described in great detail. Such a wonderful story.

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11 people found this helpful

I liked it more than I thought I would

Nevernight was one of those books that take you by surprise. It had good ratings, so I thought, it should prove entertaining, at least. But I found it much more than entertaining. It was thoughtful, seductive, mysterious, and funny in its prose. Mia is a strong and resilient character. I immediately liked her zeal for getting what she wants. There is a love interest, but it isn't all consuming. Sexual tension exists between Mia and Trig, but it is not distracting. Mia merely sees him for who he is and both loves and hates it. It's a friendship of convenience at first, then morphs into something different.

The story constantly moves and builds then comes to a climax at the end. There is resolution (no cliff hanger) but you feel compelled to move on. I really like the way Jay Kristoff writes. He has a refreshing style (for which I cannot articulate). It's simply.....poetic. Eager for Godsgrave.

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10 people found this helpful