The Audiobook Shelf

Visionary: The Mysterious Origins of Human Consciousness
Graham Hancock, author/narrator
Brilliance Audio
https://audiobookstore.com/publishers/brilliance-audio
9781713631828, $29.99, MP3-CD (21 Hours 41 Minutes)

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/visionary-graham-hancock/1140141902

Synopsis: Less than 50,000 years ago mankind had no art, no religion, no so= phisticated symbolism, no innovative thinking. Then, in a dramatic and elec= trifying change, described by scientists as "the greatest riddle in human h= istory" -- all the skills and qualities that we value most highly in oursel= ves appeared already fully formed, as though bestowed on us by hidden power=
s. Humankind discovered the pathway to the gods.

In "Visionary:, Graham Hancock sets out to investigate this mysterious "bef= ore-and-after moment" and to discover the truth about the influences that g= ave birth to modern human mind. His quest takes him on a journey of adventu=
re and detection from the stunningly beautiful painted caves of prehistoric=
France, Spain, and Italy to remote rock shelters in the mountains of South=
Africa, where he finds a treasure trove of extraordinary Stone Age art.

Hancock uncovers clues that lead him to travel to the depths of the Amazon = rainforest to drink the powerful plant hallucinogen ayahuasca with Indian s= hamans, whose paintings contain images of "supernatural beings" identical t=
o the animal-human hybrids depicted in prehistoric caves and rock shelters.=
Hallucinogens such as mescaline also produce visionary encounters with exa= ctly the same beings. Scientists at the cutting edge of consciousness resea= rch have begun to consider the possibility that such hallucinations may be = real perceptions of other "dimensions."

Could the "supernaturals" first depicted in the painted caves and rock shel= ters be the ancient teachers of mankind? Could it be that human evolution i=
s not just the "blind," "meaningless" process that Darwin identified, but s= omething more purposive and intelligent, something that we have barely even=
begun to understand?

Critique: Previously published as "Supernatural" (2015), this new definitiv=
e edition of Visionary" includes a new Introduction by Graham Hancock as we=
ll as restored chapters that were omitted from the original paperback relea= se. This complete and unabridged audio book from Brilliance Audio is deftly=
narrated by Hancock and will have a very special appeal to students and no= n-specialist general readers who are interest in anthropology, prehistory, = and human evolution. It is an unreservedly recommended pick for personal, c= ommunity, college, and university library audio book collections.

Editorial Note: Graham Hancock (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Hancoc=
k) is a British writer who promotes theories involving many ancient civiliz= ations and lost lands. Hancock speculates that an advanced ice age civiliza= tion was destroyed in a cataclysm, but that its survivors passed on their k= nowledge to hunter-gatherers, giving rise to the earliest known civilizatio=
ns of ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Mesoamerica.

Scarlet Carnation
Laila Brahim, author
Bahni Turpin, narrator
Brilliance Audio
https://audiobookstore.com/publishers/brilliance-audio
9781713651802, $14.99, MP3-CD (10 Hours 56 Minutes)

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/scarlet-carnation-laila-ibrahim/1140145941

Synopsis: It's 1915. May and Naomi are extended family, their grandmothers'=
lives inseparably entwined on a Virginia plantation in the volatile time l= eading up to the Civil War. For both women, the twentieth century promises = social transformation and equal opportunity.

May, a young white woman, is on the brink of achieving the independent life=
she's dreamed of since childhood. Naomi, a nurse, mother, and leader of th=
e NAACP, has fulfilled her own dearest desire: buying a home for her family=
.. But they both are about to learn that dreams can be destroyed in an insta= nt. May's future is upended, and she is forced to rely once again on her mo= ther. Meanwhile, the white-majority neighborhood into which Naomi has moved=
is organizing against her while her sons are away fighting for their count= ry.

In the tumult of a changing nation, these two women (whose grandmothers sur= vived the Civil War) support each other's quest for liberation and dignity.=
Both find the strength to confront injustice and the faith to thrive on th= eir chosen paths.

Critique: Set in an early twentieth-century America roiling with racial inj= ustice, class divides, and WWI, two women fight for their dreams in author = Laila Brahim's novel "Scarlet Carnation". Impressively performed by the tru=
ly exceptional and award-winning story telling skills of narrator Bahni Tur= pin, This complete and unabridged edition from Brilliance Audio is a perfec=
t pick for personal and community library audio book collections.

Editorial Note #1: Laila Ibrahim (www.lailaibrahim.com) is also the author =
of Golden Poppies, Paper Wife, Mustard Seed, and Yellow Crocus. She spent m= uch of her career as a preschool director, a birth doula, and a religious e= ducator. That work, coupled with her education in developmental psychology = and attachment theory, provided ample fodder for her novels.

Editorial Note #2: Bahni Turpin (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bahni_Turpin=
) is an American audiobook narrator and stage and screen actor based out of=
Los Angeles. She has won 9 Audie Awards, including Audiobook of the Year f=
or Children of Blood and Bone; 14 Earphone Awards; and 2 Odyssey Awards. Tu= rpin has also earned a place on AudioFile magazine's list of Golden Voice N= arrators, and in 2016, she was named Audible's Narrator of the Year. In 201=
8, Audible inducted her into the Narrator Hall of Fame.

A Piece of Heaven
Barbara O'Neal, author
Raquel Beattie, narrator
Brilliance Audio
https://audiobookstore.com/publishers/brilliance-audio
9781713645672, $14.99, MP3-CD (14 Hours 8 Minutes)

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-piece-of-heaven-barbara-oneal/1120664599

Synopsis: In the sun-baked hills of New Mexico, Luna McGraw has lived a lif= etime of regrets, struggling to conquer the demons that destroyed her marri= age and caused her to lose custody of her beloved daughter. But as Luna fig= hts to rebuild a relationship with the troubled teenager, she remains haunt=
ed by images of her own childhood and the father she barely knew.

Strong and resilient as the houses he builds, Thomas Coyote comes into Luna=
's life one extraordinary night when his grandmother nearly dies while conj= uring a fiery brew of spiritual enchantment. Luna does not need a man (espe= cially one with a needy ex-wife) to complicate her fragile dreams of the fu= ture.

Yet their attraction pushes them both beyond reason into a place where ther=
e is only possibility. It will take more than passion to recover the tatter=
ed pieces of Luna's soul, more than time to forgive the sins of an offendin=
g husband, and more than promises to mend the broken heart of a child.

Critique: An original and deftly crafted story by Barbara O'Neal, "Piece of=
Heaven" is an irresistible novel full of colorful characters and lush sett= ings of the American Southwest laid out in a brilliant tapestry of romance = and magical realism. A complete and unabridged audio book edition from Bril= liance Audio, "Piece of Heaven" is brilliantly narrated by Rawuel Beattle a=
nd is recommended as a favorite pick for both personal and community librar=
y audio book collections.

Editorial Note #1: Barbara O'Neal (www.barbaraoneal.com) is the author of m= ore than a dozen award-winning, bestselling novels, including "When We Beli= eved in Mermaids".

Editorial Note #2: Raquel Beattie (https://raquelbeattie.com), who also nar= rates as Allie Lake. speaks conversational Spanish and French. She can do a=
range of voices and select accents, including American Southern and Mexica=
n. She has narrated over 85 books from her home studio..

No Rings Attached
Rachel Lacey, author
Zara Hampton-Brown, narrator
Brilliance Audio
https://audiobookstore.com/publishers/brilliance-audio
9781713652014, $14.99, MP3-CD (8 Hours 51 Minutes)

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/no-rings-attached-rachel-lacey/1140146883

Synopsis: Lia Harris is tired of being the odd one out. She's never quite f=
it in with her uptight family, and now that her roommates have all found lo= ve, she's starting to feel like a third wheel in her own apartment. Fed up = with her mother's constant meddling in her love life, Lia drops hints about=
a girlfriend she doesn't have. But with her brother's London nuptials appr= oaching, she needs to find a date to save face. Lia turns to her best frien=
d, Rosie, for help, and Rosie delivers -- with the fun, gorgeous Grace Post= on.

Grace loves to have a good time, hiding her insecurities behind a sunny smi= le. Her recent move to London has provided her with a much-needed fresh sta= rt. Grace isn't looking for love, and she hates weddings, having weathered = more than her fair share of heartache. Friendships are different, though, s=
o for Rosie's sake, she reluctantly agrees to pose as Lia's adoring girlfri= end for the wedding festivities.

Both Grace and Lia are prepared for an awkward weekend, complete with pryin=
g family members and a guest room with only one bed. As it turns out, they = get along well -- spectacularly, in fact. Before they know it, the chemistr=
y they're faking feels all too real. But is their wedding weekend a fleetin=
g performance or the rehearsal for a love that's meant to last?

Critique: "No Rings Attached" by author Rachel Lacey comes the second insta= llment in her Ms. Right series. An original lesbian romance about a relucta=
nt bookseller finding love in unexpected places, Deftly narrated by Zara Ha= mpton-Brown, "No Rings Attached" will have a special attraction for those i=
n the LGBTQ community and this complete and unabridged audio book edition f= rom Brilliance Audio is especially commended for personal and community lib= rary collections.

Editorial Note: Rachel Lacey (www.RachelLacey.com) is an award-winning cont= emporary romance author who can be followed on Twitter @rachelslacey; and o=
n FaceBook at Facebook.com/RachelLaceyAuthor. She has a newsletter for news=
and giveaways at: http://www.subscribepage.com/rachellaceyauthor

Editorial Note #2: Zara Hampton-Brown is a London based narrator who lives = and breathes all things romance. She is consistently in the Bestseller list=
s on Audible, and enjoys nothing more than breathing life into a love story=
.. https://podiumaudio.com/performer/zara-hampton-brown

Everything Must Go
Camille Pagan, author
Ready by Amy McFadden and Laural Merlington
Brilliance Audio
https://audiobookstore.com/publishers/brilliance-audio
9781713656005, $24.99, MP3-CD (9 Hours 4 Minutes)

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/everything-must-go-camille-pag-n/114019888=
4

Synopsis: Laine Francis believes there's a place for everything -- and New = York (where her family lives), isn't her place. But no sooner does the prof= essional organizer's marriage begin to unravel than her sisters drop anothe=
r bomb on her -- their mother, Sally, may have dementia, and they need Lain=
e to come home.

Laine agrees to briefly return to Brooklyn. After all, bringing order to ch= aos is what she does best. To Laine's relief, Sally seems no more absentmin= ded than usual. So Laine vows to help her mother maintain her independence,=
then hightail it back to Michigan.

Except Laine's plans go awry when she runs into her former best friend, Ben=
, and realizes she finally has a chance to repair their fractured relations= hip. Then she discovers that memory loss isn't the only thing Sally's been = hiding, forcing Laine to decide whether to reveal a devastating truth to he=
r sisters -- and whether to follow her heart when it means breaking her mot= her's.

Critique: Brought vividly to life in a true 'theatre of the mind' experienc=
e by the narrative talents of Amy McFadden and Laural Merlington, "Everythi=
ng Must Go" is author Camille Pagan's warm, wry, and original novel about s= ecrets, second chances, and the unbreakable bonds between mothers, daughter=
s, and sisters. Highly recommended for both personal and community library = audio book collections "Everything Muse Go" is a flawlessly produce, comple=
te and unabridged audio book from Brilliance Audio.

Editorial Note #1: Camille Pagan (www.camillepagan.com) is the author of ei= ght novels, including Don't Make Me Turn This Life Around, This Won't End W= ell, I'm Fine and Neither Are You, Woman Last Seen in Her Thirties, and Lif=
e and Other Near-Death Experiences, which has been optioned for film. Her w= ork has also been published in the New York Times; O, The Oprah Magazine; R= eal Simple; Time; and many others.

Editorial Note #2: Amy McFadden (https://www.amymcfadden.com) Has been doin=
g voice-over work for the last 10 years for commercials and industrial film=
s ranging from FORD (Fusion), to The Great American Cookie Company.

Editorial Note #3: Laural Merlington (https://tantor.com/narrator/laural-me= rlington.html) has recorded well over one hundred audiobooks, and is the re= cipient of several AudioFile Earphones Awards. An Audie Award nominee, and = has also directed over one hundred audiobooks. She has performed and direct=
ed for thirty years in theaters throughout the country. In addition to her = extensive theater and voice-over work, Laural teaches college in her home s= tate of Michigan.

Cleopatra's Dagger
Carole Lawrence, author
Kate Rudd, narrator
Brilliance Audio
https://audiobookstore.com/publishers/brilliance-audio
9781713646778, $14.99, MP3-CD (10 Hours 12 Minutes)

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/cleopatras-dagger-carole-lawrence/11399608=
18

Synopsis: New York, 1880. Elizabeth van den Broek is the only female report=
er at the Herald, the city's most popular newspaper. Then she and her bohem= ian friend Carlotta Ackerman find a woman's body wrapped like a mummy in a = freshly dug hole in Central Park -- the intended site of an obelisk called = Cleopatra's Needle. The macabre discovery takes Elizabeth away from the soc= iety pages to follow an investigation into New York City's darkest shadows.

When more bodies turn up, each tied to Egyptian lore, Elizabeth is onto a h= eadline-making scoop more sinister than she could have imagined. Her report= ing has readers spellbound, and each new clue implicates New York's richest=
and most powerful citizens. And a serial killer is watching every headline=
..

Now a madman with an indecipherable motive is coming after Elizabeth and ev= eryone she loves. She wants a good story? She may have to die to get it.

Critique: The riveting story of a female journalist in nineteenth-century N=
ew York who must match wits with a serial killer, "Cleopatra's Dagger" by C= arole Lawrence is a vivid murder mystery thriller that is superbly performe=
d by the narrative skills of vocal actor and storyteller Kate Rudd. This co= mplete and unabridged audio book from Brilliance Audio is a fine and recomm= ended pick for community library audio book collections and the personal li= sts of fans historical mysteries featuring a female sleuth trying to catch =
a killer in spite of the misogyny that surrounds her in latter decades of t=
he 19th Century.

Editorial Note #1: Carole Lawrence (http://www.celawrence.com) is an award-= winning novelist, poet, composer, and playwright. Among her published works=
are eleven novels, six novellas, and dozens of short stories, articles, an=
d poems, many of which appear in translation internationally. She is a two-= time Pushcart Poetry Prize nominee and winner of the Euphoria Poetry Prize,=
the Eve of St. Agnes Poetry Award, the Maxim Mazumdar playwriting prize, t=
he Jerry Jazz Musician award for short fiction, and the Chronogram Literary=
Fiction Award. She also writes under the names C. E. Lawrence and Carole B= ugge

Editorial Note #2: Kate Rudd (https://www.kateruddreads.com) is the winner =
of 2013 Audie and Odyssey Awards for narration of John Green's The Fault in=
Our Stars, and has been performing audiobooks for nearly a decade. A ten t= ime Audiofile Magazine Earphones Award recipient, Kate's performances have = garnered inclusion in Audiofile's Best Audiobooks of the Year 2012/2017/201=
8 and Best Voices of the Year 2012. She has narrated more than 450 titles a= cross a variety of genres. She Kate here can be followed on: Twitter @kater= udd

Murder in Florence
T. A. Williams
Boldwood Books
Ulverscroft Large Print, Inc.
www.ulverscroft.com
BN ID: 2940178038390, $20.99, MP3-CD (6 Hours 42 Minutes)

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/murder-in-florence-t-a-williams/1143244724

Synopsis: Life as a private investigator in the suburbs of Florence isn't a= lways as glamorous as Dan Armstrong imagined it to be, until he is asked to=
investigate a recent spate of violent attacks on a Hollywood movie set in = Florence. The star of the show, movie-star royalty Selena Gardner, fears he=
r life is in imminent danger.

As Dan investigates, he discovers secrets and scandals are rife within the = cast and crew. But with no actual murder, Dan believes these attacks could = simply be warnings to someone -- until the first body is found.

Now Dan and his trusty sidekick Oscar are in a race against time to catch t=
he murderer. But the more Dan uncovers, the more the killer strikes and Dan=
finds himself caught in the line of fire too! Is this one case Dan and Osc=
ar will regret?

Critique: A fun cozy mystery set in Tuscany, "Murder In Florence" by T. A. = Williams is a mystery buffs delight. Memorable characters, a plot with more=
twists and turns than a Disneyland roller coaster, and ably brought to lif=
e in a true 'theatre of the mind' listening experience with the storytellin=
g talents of professional narrator Simon Mattachs, "Murder In Florence" is =
an openly and enthusiastically recommended addition to personal and communi=
ty library Mystery/Suspense audio book collections.

Editorial Note #1: There is a website dedicated to listing all the publishe=
d works of T. A. Williams at https://www.bookseriesinorder.com/t-a-williams

Editorial Note #2: Simon Mattacks (https://www.simonmattacks.com) has been =
a prominent voice over narrator for over 30 years working in adverts, carto= ons, corporate videos, and video games.

EDITOR'S NOTE:

The Midwest Book Review is an organization of volunteers committed to promo= ting literacy, library usage, and small press publishing. We accept no fund=
s from authors or publishers. Full permission is given to post any of these=
reviews on thematically appropriate websites, newsgroups, listserves, inte= rnet discussion groups, organizational newsletters, or to interested indivi= duals. Please give the Midwest Book Review a credit line when doing so.

The Midwest Book Review publishes the monthly book review magazines "Califo= rnia Bookwatch", "Internet Bookwatch", "Children's Bookwatch", "MBR Bookwat= ch", "Reviewer's Bookwatch", and "Small Press Bookwatch". All are available=
for free on the Midwest Book Review website at www (dot) midwestbookreview=
(dot) com

Anyone wanting to submit books for review consideration can send them to:

James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
278 Orchard Drive
Oregon, WI 53575-1129

To submit reviews of any fiction or non-fiction books, email them to Frugal= muse (at) aol (dot) com (Be sure to include the book title, author, publish= er, publisher address, publisher website/phone number, 13-digit ISBN number=
, and list price).

James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review

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