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Carpet Diem cover art

Carpet Diem

By: Justin Lee Anderson
Narrated by: Matthew Lloyd Davies
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Summary

Fifteen years after losing most of his family to a devastating, pudding-related tragedy, Simon Debovar has settled into a life of self-imposed exile from the stinking, selfish morass of humanity. Content that his daily highlights will include hazelnut coffee, a long bath, and the occasional jar of olives, his life is completely upturned by the discovery that his ornate living room carpet is the deciding factor in a bet between God and Satan.

When mysteriously well-timed carpet thieves deprive him of the crucial heirloom, Simon is forced to leave his hermit's existence behind for a world of angels, demons, witches, and immortals.

And then it gets complicated.

©2015 Justin Lee Anderson (P)2017 Tantor

Critic reviews

"I laughed, I cried, I bought a fireside rug!" (Ian Pattison, creator of Rab C Nesbitt)

What listeners say about Carpet Diem

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

A Good Yarn

Although billed as a comedy I didn't laugh out loud. I think it true to say that it is a humour that youngsters might find more amusing. That aside it was witty, had a lot of novel aspects to it on the fantasy theme, ticked along at a good pace and I definitely wished to hear what happened to our hapless hero.
I haven't read (though this was audio!) any books (other than Neil Gaiman's) that throw such variety in. Well worth the indulgence of listening. The narration was great. Why not 5 stars? There are books out there that top this on every aspect but it all boils down to personal preference.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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Don't read unless ....

Don't read this book unless you're a teenage boy, or a middle aged man who never leaves his house and likes soft porn.
The story could've been fun and witty, with some likely characters, however the constant references to women's body parts, sex, lots of men objectifyung women, mild peodophilic references and constant unfunny Benny Hill style humour made this book unlistenable.
As a Terry Pratchett and Tom Holt fan I thought this might be right up my street from the description, nothing prepared me for how boring the constant lewdness became. If you enjoy Benny Hill, Carry on moveis and soft porn all done with very little real humour then this might be for you.
I couldn't even listen to the end. The description should be more clear on what you're actually getting if you purchase this book. I want my credit back!!!

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Better with less body parts

The story felt a bit tedious at first, but interest slowly built and the story got more interesting and was definitely worth sticking with. What was less enjoyable and not that funny was the constant reference to nipples, breasts and other body parts. The female characters were rather caricaturist and crude and it all felt like it had the potential to be a much sharper story with stronger characters than it was. A good story needing more grown up writing.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant 5 star audio book

If you could sum up Carpet Diem in three words, what would they be?

Funny, strange, Brilliant

Who was your favorite character and why?

I thought all the characters were brilliant and as realistic as possible when four of them are Angel/Demons, one is a man who turns into a faun who know what everyone is thinking, and two are mortals.

What about Matthew Lloyd Davies’s performance did you like?

I felt Matthew brought the characters to life in a way I have not heard from an audio book in a while. It was obvious when a different character was talking and he got all their voices consistent throughout the story

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4 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Weak imitation of better books

Derivative: Terry Pratchett meets Douglas Adams, pepped up (or down) with some obscenities. Read by a respectable-sounding narrator who seems uncomfortable with the text. Humour is hard to do, this doesn’t do it for me.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Harriet for Prime Minister

Superb narrative. Brilliantly written. Amazing characters. Extremely funny. Odd swear word, so beware. Long live all the Harriet 's of this world. This will be one of those books I will never tire of reading and listening too. I am a huge fan of Tom Holt and Robert Rankin. Mr Anderson is on a par with the pair of them. More please.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great story well read

Justin Anderson has created a wonderfully imaginative new world to explore and enjoy. Well read by Matthew Davies.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

I didn’t love this.

Fell for the blurb, do I never learn? Lack lustre, poorly conceived and hoping to hitchhike on Good Omens success. The agency promoting this book shouldn’t be allowed to name this book in the same breath as Good Omens. If it can’t stand on its own feet then let it fall.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Intruiging story and ace narrator

This is an odd and surprising story that makes you want to continue listening. The narrator does a great job with the personifications, voices and accents. Thoroughly enjoyed it!

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Quirky humorous tale.

Brilliant narration. Clever analogies with amusing characters that make you giggle. Plenty of twists in the tale.

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2 people found this helpful