Showing posts with label The Feedback Loop series. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Feedback Loop series. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 15, 2017

Audio Book Review: High Fantasy

High Fantasy

By:  Harmon Cooper

Publish Date:  December 26, 2015, Audiobook Release June 1, 2017

Format:  Audiobook - 5 hrs 49 mins
Narrated By:  Jeff Hays

Genre:  Fantasy

Series:  3rd in The Feedback Loop series; 1st Book ~ The Feedback Loop, 2nd Book ~ Steampunk Is Dead

Impression:  Dive into a gaming fantasy world to find answers

Synopsis:
The third installment of The Feedback Loop Series is out now!
Quantum Hughes and the Dream Team dive to Tritania, an MMORPG fantasy Proxima World filled with dragons, orcs, swords, floating continents, and magic attacks. With the clock ticking, and his problems in the real world growing, including his legal troubles and his blossoming relationship with Frances Euphoria, Quantum is forced to make a decision that could change his life forever.

The stakes are higher than they’ve ever been. Steam, The Loop, Tritania and the real world – four worlds collide in the third installment of The Feedback Loop Series.

The thin line between dream and reality is pixilated.

First Sentence:
Aiden is in a basketball jersey with the initials M.A. across his back.

Purchase At:
Amazon

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:
*I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Jeff returns to continue with the series as narrator. Cool! I've grown to know the voices he's assigned the characters and enjoy the vast cast he can voice in a book with this many characters that speak. Totally mind blowing! It's great to hear. He also has Quantum's personality locked down, along with all the characters we've grown to enjoy. Another amazing job in vocals and audio.

Quantum likes a challenge, like trying to attack and kill with unconventional weapons in the loop. lol. Him and Aiden have a great friendship. I have enjoyed Aiden, aka Morning Assassin from the first book. I'm glad we get to carry on with many of the secondary characters that are created for in games. You wouldn't think they would have personalities, but goodness do they have them. And Quantum's interaction with them brings them to life.

Frances isn't as highly present in this story as previous one. But she still knows how to play Quantum in what needs to be done. In listening to the audio book, we can hear and get the feel of the excitement of Frances on the pain medicines in the hospital. And see her interact with Quantum in the real world. But with her accident and not diving into the loop it opens the opportunity for us to meet and interact with other members of The Dream Team. We do get to spend time with Zedic Woods. Zedic seems rather cool when we meet him. And he's in a band, which we get to "see". I like him thus far.

Oh, the FDA guidelines for foods and drinks. lol. This is terrible. The government regulates types of food and amounts one should eat. Quantum doesn't follow these guidelines and hears about it constantly. It's a continuous battle for him to get what he wants. It would get on my nerves too. I feel Quantum's irritation when he reads these emails as I'm irritated for him.

Other than fighting with the FDA, Quantum seems to be settling into real life. He's not as sassy. He seems to have found the balance in fighting in the Proxima worlds and living. We get to see Quantum interact with more people, and he does well.

I feel we get a closure to one piece of the story with Quantum. With his Proxima world he's lived in for eight years and finding Strata Godsick. This book also leaves open the next mission started here, finding Strata's son. We are left looking forward to the next book with plans of what they are to do.



****If you found my thoughts helpful, please click Yes at Amazon and/or Audible. Thank you!

Tuesday, July 11, 2017

Audio Book Review: Steampunk Is Dead

Steampunk Is Dead

By:  Harmon Cooper

Publish Date:  September 23, 2015, Audiobook Release June 2, 2017

Format:  Audiobook - 5 hrs 26 mins
Narrated By:  Jeff Hays

Genre:  Fantasy, Science Fiction, Steampunk

Series:  2nd in The Feedback Loop series; 1st Book ~ The Feedback Loop

Impression:  Fun in game story with action always present.

Synopsis:
The exciting sequel to The Feedback Loop.

Adjusting to the real world isn't exactly easy for Quantum Hughes. Instead of focusing on his recovery, he takes an assignment alongside Frances Euphoria to a virtual entertainment dreamworld called Steam, in search of a Proxima Developer. True to his nature, Quantum acts out of turn, causing the entire world to turn against him. This gives him two options: return to The Loop for help, or try and hold his own. There is also the problem of the Reapers, who have appeared in Steam ready to hunt him down or worse, kill him.

The real world, The Loop, Steam -- three worlds with their own rules, their own enemies.

The thin line between dream and reality is pixilated.

First Sentence:
I try in vain to access my inventory list.

Purchase At:
Amazon 

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:
*I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.


I enjoy listening to Jeff. He really makes the story feel like a full cast of people. Jeff does extras as he's narrating to go with what the characters are doing. One example is a slightly different sound to the air when talking to someone on a phone. All these small extras and the voices creates a world and people for us. Jeff is not only talented in voice, but portraying emotions felt in these characters. Good grief does he make it lively and fun to listen too!

From the first paragraph we see that Quantum is struggling with living in the real world. He was in the digital world fighting for so long, that those habits have stuck. Living style and slang from the noir fantasy he was in are still what's fresh in his mind, so we still get the sassy one liners. Quantum seems to find a balance in his trigger happiness and jobs, though this doesn't happen right away. It's, actually, kind of brutal for all around him until he does. lol. But, eventually it seems like there is a balance, when he finally goes to one place where he feels at home.

Quantum still has his sense of humor with living people, though they don't seem to react as creative with him as the characters in the feedback loop do. He toys with people all the time. lol.

I was excited to get into this book. I enjoy steampunk! With Quantum's humor and view of things around him, I thought it'd be interesting to see him in a steam punk world. Seriously! The weapons that could be crafted here...imagination run wild with ideas for weapons... Is it terrible that I got excited when we got to a big weapons cache? lol.

Just like in video games, there is always trouble when you least expect it and from people you may not expect too. This, along with Quantum always attacking everyone, is what keeps the story moving with action.

I thoroughly enjoy the way these storylines are written in the gaming world. I know we are in a video type game, but Quantum and Frances interact as though they were associating with other people. The worlds are different but a pleasure to visit. It's like a treat when we get to dive into The Loop.

The title of the book. I'm shocked! It'll all make sense when you read/listen to the book. It's totally cool and the best title!

This story is a fun listen for me. It's full of action and off hand comments and sayings from Quantum. Quantum makes it fun with his trigger happy feel to kill anyone that tells him no or questions him and his snarky remarks.



****If you found my thoughts helpful, please click Yes at Amazon and/or Audible. Thank you!

Thursday, April 6, 2017

Audio Book Review: The Feedback Loop

The Feedback Loop

By:  Harmon Cooper

Publish Date:  August 2015, Audiobook Release February 2, 2017

Format:  Audiobook - 4 hrs 46 mins
Narrated By:  Jeff Hays

Genre:  Science Fiction

Series:  1st in The Feedback Loop series

Impression:  Neat character driven story in the virtual game world. Great start to a cool series!

Synopsis:
Stuck in a virtual dreamworld called The Loop, a man named Quantum Hughes struggles to free himself from a glitch that forces him to live the same day on repeat. His life changes when a mysterious letter arrives one morning from a woman named Frances Euphoria, the first human player he has made contact with in a very long time. Once Frances appears, members of a murder guild known as the Reapers begin surfacing in The Loop, hoping to capture Quantum or worse -- kill him. To further complicate matters, The Loop itself is doing everything it can to stop Quantum from finding the hidden logout point by turning everything in the virtual dreamworld against him.

With time running out, will Quantum break free from his digital coma before he's captured or killed by the Reapers? Who is Frances Euphoria, and what does she actually know about how long Quantum has been trapped?

The Feedback Loop Series takes place thirty years before the Life is a Beautiful Thing Series. It shares the same world, but is a standalone series that focus on dream-based virtual reality worlds and the people who are trapped in them. The next book in the series will be called Steampunk is Dead, and will be released in the fall.

First Sentence:
I'm afraid to die even though I know I can't die.

Purchase At:
Amazon  

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:
*I was voluntarily provided this review copy audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator.

Quantum Hughes has been stuck in The Loop of a virtual game for nearly two years. Reliving the same day, over and over killing the assassins who come for him. Until one day he receives a message from Frances Euphoria claiming to have returned for him. Things change in the world, the way they interact with him and more.


Jeff is one of the amazing narrators I know I love listening to. He adds entertainment to the stories by voicing them all completely different. Each character has their own voice and personality. I love it! You can feel the moments in them, like when sarcastic along with humor and more. The different voices, for male and female, makes it tremendously easy to quickly differentiate the characters and get a feel for the story.

Sometimes the books of being stuck in a virtual game or video game are boring for me. I just feel as they are the same read written by a different person. This one, however, felt more alive to me. Quantum felt to be connected to his world he was stuck in. Even though it repeated he was use to a pattern and it became something he relied on. When it all changes, Quantum tries to slip back to what he knows best even though he doesn't want to be here any longer. This book was strong character wise.

The world in which Quantum lives has a 1950's feel with a dark dreariness to the places Quantum visits. There is danger with a higher tech feel as it's a virtual game setting he's stuck in that combines the elements. It's neat because we get small phrases from the time frame. Yet it's a fantasy setting as well with assassins.

What do you do to not get bored repeating the same day for nearly two years? Quantum tries changing up the weapon he kills the assassins coming after him with. This I found humorous at times. He does different things and goes different places, but you can only do so much after 544 days have passed.

I enjoyed the humor in some of Quantum's quick clips and comments. This was entertaining to listen to. I had a feel of a few different blends in this creation. Fantasy, 1950's, Matrix, and more. I enjoyed this story to the end and look forward to seeing Quantum get stronger and venture in the virtual world again to help more people.

I see there are many more books in this series and hope they will be narrated because I'd love to listen to them!



****If you found my thoughts helpful, please click Yes at Amazon and/or Audible. Thank you!