Audiobook review: Heroic Hearts Anthology
The Heroic Hearts anthology is a wonder mix of different urban fantasy stories and storytelling. I LOVE that each story is shared by a different narrator, especially for those set in series with established narrators. I enjoyed the mix of familiar and unknown. I love that the stories feature heroes/heroines of all ages, from the young to old. Some are female and some are male-centric. Some have romance, others do not. My favorite new-to-me author story is Troll Life by Kerri L. Hughes. I enjoyed the mythology and heart of the tale. I am going to look for more from the author. My favorite story overall is Dating Terrors by Patricia Briggs. I just adore her Mercy Thompson/Alpha-Omega world, and Asil is a favorite character. Getting a glimpse of him finally healing was heartwarming and made me so happy.
I ended up skipping over one story: The Return of the Mage by Charlene Harris, because I was lost after the first seven minutes and didn’t find it entertaining. I didn’t read the Sookie Stackhouse series, so it may be better suited for those who’ve read it. With that said, I had no trouble following along and enjoy the other stories, regardless if I was familiar with the world and/or characters.
My least favorite tale was The Vampires Karamazov by Nancy Holder. It is gritty, dark, and sad, although it ended with some hope. It just didn’t engage my emotions, and I didn’t care for the characters.
Narration: WOW! What an impressive recording cast. Each narrator is well-suited for their story and characters within the story. Some of the narrators were fully-voiced and some partially-voiced. Two narrators read their stories in fun voices suited to their main character creature status (a fairy and a dog). I found it hard to follow Marsters’ Toot-Toot fairy, but no problem with Daniels’ Oberon (although I’ve listed to a few Oberon-centric tales before). I was very impressed with each narrator and found their style well-matched to their story.
In the end, I highly recommend Heroic Hearts to all UF fans, regardless if you are familiar with the authors and/or characters. It is a highly entertaining, well-narrated book.
My Ratings
Stories: B+
Narration: A-
Jen
About the Book:
In this short story collection of courage, adventure, and magic, heroes – ordinary people who do the right thing – bravely step forward.
But running toward danger might cost them everything…..
In number one ‘New York Time’s best-selling author Jim Butcher’s “Little Things”, the pixie Toot-Toot discovers an invader unbeknownst to the wizard Harry Dresden and in order to defeat it, he’ll have to team up with the dread cat Mister.
In number one ‘New York Times’ best-selling author Patricia Briggs’ “Dating Terrors”, the werewolf Asil finds an online date might just turn into something more if she can escape the dark magic binding her.
In number one ‘New York Times’ best-selling author Charlaine Harris’s ‘“The Return of the Mage the Britlingen mercenaries will discover more than they’ve bargained for when they answer the call of a distress beacon on a strange and remote world.
And in number one ‘New York Times’ best-selling author Kelley Armstrong’s “Comfort Zone”, the necromancer Chloe Saunders and the werewolf Derek Souza are just trying to get through college. But they can’t refuse a ghost pleading for help.
Authors: Jim Butcher, Patricia Briggs, Charlaine Harris, Kelley Armstrong, Annie Bellet, Anne Bishop, Jennifer Brozek, Kevin Hearne, Nancy Holder, Kerrie L. Hughes, Chloe Neill, R.R. Virdi
Edited by: Jim Butcher & Kerrie Hughes
Narrators: James Marsters, Alexandra Harris, Cassandra Morris, Maggi-Meg Reed, Luke Daniels, Travis Baldree, Suzanne Elise Freeman, Sean Patrick Hopkins, Johanna Parker, Daniel Henning, Nancy Linari, Holter Graham, Jim Butcher
Genre: Urban Fantasy, anthology, novella
Audiobook Release Date: May 30, 2022
Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio
Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins
Source: publisher
Audio Speed: 1.25x
Purchase info:
Audible/Amazon (affilate link)