surprisingly good!

I'm often disappointed by the quality of LGBT friendly books, but this story is actually very very good. Someone should make a mini series, it's every bit as engaging as Homeland.

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Love it, even with its flaws

I love Tal Bauer's books, and this is one of my favorite. so thoroughly researched and loving a portrayal of how the American "War on Terror" caused more terror and harmed is own people and identity, all with the spoonful sugar of a love story to make the medicine go down. I had my own role in this international effort and can say that Tal's rendering is both highly fictionalized and faithful. you definitely need to suspend some disbelief about certain things around what happens towards the end of the book, but not too hard to do. It's the kind of book that is so devastating that you can only read it once, but will love it.

A few irritants: Bauer's writing style does tend to stray a little too often into overwrought, purple-ish prose, but not so much that it's not worth the read/listen.

Commendations are due to John Solo for the narration. But, and this is a matter of personal taste because fans of the book are gushing with praise for Solo's performance, I found the performance also overwrought in its way, perhaps consistent with Bauer's own writing style. But I prefer understated narration, rather than the overacting which is often preferred by Americans. I wanted a little bit more of letting the writing speak for itself, or not needing to ADD to the already overwritten emotion.

Also, and this was my biggest irritant: I was disappointed by the relatively poor pronunciation of the Spanish and Arabic. I would have expected better, if the narrator had had better coaching from native speakers. The one that hurt my ears the most was the constant mispronunciation of "Iraq," even when the word was uttered by an Arabic-speaking character. it is NOT pronounced Eye-rack. In English it is Ih-rack, at a minimum, although preferably it's Ee-rock, and that is certainly closer to how an Arabic speaker would say it. Everytime I heard Eye-rack, it interrupted my immersion in the narrative.

For all that, though, I recommend this book highly. Especially for those who still think the world is easily divided into The Good Guys (America), and The Bad Guys (Muslims).

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Beautiful and heartrending!

Firstly this story is absolutely lusciously written and plays like a movie in my brain. Kris and David are fantastic characters whom I really fell in love with and the plot kept me guessing. It was so wonderful to learn more about Islam through this progressive lens and as a Canadian I never knew much about the wars in Afghanistan or Iraq so this was a very inciteful look that helped me understand them better. I loved the slice of life in the story too which was just so expertly composed and the wonderful narration was the perfect icing on the cake. 1000/100 stars!!!

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So Amazing

♥️YOU NEED TO READ THIS BOOK NOW!!♥️. For a while it was sitting in my library because i have a horrible attention span and 25hrs looked intimidating but i’m so happy i started it. I struggled to put it down even when my battery was almost dead. This book really took me through so many emotions and it has become my favourite book. I love it so much, Chris and Daud will remain in my heart. This is the longest review I’ve ever written 😫♥️

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Deserves a Nobel Prize

5 Blue Roses
4 Blue Flames
5 Blue Headphones 🎧🎧🎧🎧🎧
The audiobook of the Month August 2021 - Bluerose Reviews

Narrator John Solo delivered his personal best performance ever (in my opinion). Stunned me speechless like a deer looking into the headlights, he did. And, that’s all I have to say about that. Awesome job dude!

This book deserves a few awards and should definitely be shelved onto the shelf they put books for literary Nobel Prize winners. I can’t see why not… Absolutely amazing work!

The author wrote a humanized representation, encompassing the meaning of empathy. Putting readers squarely into the shoes of the “others.” Listeners can expect to experience 911 from multiple angles, without being force-fed from a narrow-minded point of view.

I remember exactly what I was doing when it all went down back in 2001. It’s made a mark on my personal calendar. Even in South Africa, we could feel the anguish and absolute shock. The author took that anguish and shock and created an MM romance around it. The character building was extraordinary, and although this book was over 25 hours long, I can not pinpoint one dull, moment. I listened to the book over a 3-4 day period, it was just that intense.

Every scene was written meticulously and whether we were in prison, the desert, or just at the office, the plot flowed beautifully without any hindering. The action scenes and the enhanced interrogation scenes were heartstopping, I mean adrenalin overflow. John Solo contributed to that tension with his ability to inject drama and tension. Just bloody amazing!

I loved that we got to know more about Islam and what the religion entails. This is the reason why this book is so markedly outstanding. Not, solely because as I fell in love with the protagonists, but I fell in love with their background. The author showed us the truth about fanatism and terrorism. I was able to draw the conclusion that it does not matter which religion is used as an excuse, it always comes down to acting out of hate, instead of love. Terrorism is to cause terror, and that is never done out of love.

Yes, this is absolutely a recommendation.

Happy Listening

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2 people found this helpful

WOW!

When I read what this story was about, I wasn't sure if I could listen to hours and hours about 9/11. Well I was wrong! This story was so good I couldn't put it down. Love Tal Bauer novels and will definitely keep reading them.

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2 people found this helpful

Please don't ever stop writing

I just finished. OH MY GOODNESS! I almost didn't get this one as I listened to the Executive Office series prior and enjoyed it so much. I thought there's no way this one will compare as it's a single book. All be it 25 hours of book lol. Well I laughed, felt gut punched, cried, felt betrayed, felt anger, dispaired, laughed and cried some more. How you manage to weave together the story lines of serious worldly issues with love stories so deep and intense is amazing. And don't get me started on the descriptive love making and sex lol. There were times I thought John Solo would pass out from speaking with no extra breaths taken. He seems as invested in the story as the author and characters are. All I can say now to finish is WOW! Thank you Tal Bauer

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1 person found this helpful

Exceptional!

Amazing novel about the invasion of Afghanistan after 911, following the POW of the main character, CIA analysis Chris. It’s the best novel I have read so far regarding the detailed events on the invasion. I mean the author definitely did a lot of research on the event and the plots are just amazingly intense. I was crying so much towards the end of the story and for the first part, I felt the rage and unfairness along with Chris, and his love affair with David? It’s phenomenal! You just can’t not be moved by their commitment. If I could, I would give the book 6 stars. John solo’s voice is amazing too

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Extraordinary book

I just finished this book and I'm utterly speechless. It's spectacularly written and the narrator is doing an amazing job. It's the fourth book by this author I've read in the past month and I can't get enough. His storytelling is just so vividly humane and as a reader, you can't help but care so deeply about those characters who grow on you and you just need to know what's going to happen to them... Absolutely recommend.

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Amazing!

Tal Bauer is at his absolute best here, and John Solo is just magical bringing this complex story to life. A must listen- highly recommend!

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