Executed

If I could give it a higher rating, I would

Simply brilliant. The author's deep understanding of human nature and mastery of dialogue = a riveting tale. Book 1 was great and I doubted the second book could be better. I was wrong. It's rare for an author to craft a story where the reader feels like they're right there, alongside the characters. I felt like I knew all the characters and cared what happened to them. I also felt like I understood them. The narrator was perfect. Too often a story is ruined by poor delivery. Carl Prekopp goes on my top 5 narrator list. Such a rare pleasure.

9 of 9 people found this review helpful

Incomplete

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I love the narrator and he kept me going with the second book in hope that there will be some development to the story but alas... two books back to back feel like the longest foreplay ever. Where is the beef?

8 of 9 people found this review helpful

WOW! WOW! WOW!

This was an awesome second book in the series. It flows so smoothly and effectively without being to drawn out or rushing too much. Just Brilliant!

6 of 7 people found this review helpful

Extracted and Executed

The series is SciFi-Fantasy. A time machine reveals that the end of the world will occur in 2111. Three heroic individuals are ‘extracted’ from their current lives/times to prevent the apocalypse. An interesting and promising premise. However, the main thrust, i.e., saving the world, is simply a vehicle for the author to move characters through time and have incredibly mundane conversations. The main characters argue about how to say 2111. Twenty one eleven? Two thousand one eleven? Really? Oh … wait … the world is ending! A WWII soldier becomes a Harry Potter fan - really? The characters banter for several paragraphs and through much stupid dialogue about if or not a character should ‘wank’, masturbate, to release tension. Really?? Oh … wait … the world is ending. A great deal of time spent on the psyche due to confinement … really?? Hello! The world is ending! The author should have spent much more time developing the fundamental plot instead of dwelling on character behaviors and interaction that adds nothing to the story.

Audiobooks listened to, Extracted and Executed, are about 12 hours of listening each, narrated by Carl Prekopp, stories written by R. R. Haywood. No particular issues with narration, Prekopp can only do so much with the material. You’ll have no issues with the reading.

Vulgar language might offend. No sex scenes, some violent scenes.

However, after struggling to the meat of the story through two books, the motivation to continue just isn’t there. Must be some merit to this series based on some stellar reviews. Beats me - not my cup ‘o tea.

5 of 6 people found this review helpful

Kinda boring, but awesome ending.

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Not entirely. This book was better than the first one, but except for periodic fist and firefights, it seemed slow. The story was mostly character driven, and that, I must say, was very well done. However, I bought the book as a time travel book, and that aspect of it was neither innovative or primary.

If you’ve listened to books by R. R. Haywood before, how does this one compare?

I really thought I was onto a hot one with the first book, especially given the reviews. However, the second half of that book really took a nose dive, being primarily about Ben's depression about his time displacement.

Which scene was your favorite?

The very ending, without doubt, and it redeems the whole project--even to the extent that I would likely listen to a third book if one should come out.

Do you think Executed needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

It won't kill me if one doesn't. While I loved the ending, it took a lot of perseverance to get there, and would be satisfied if it really was . . . The End.

Any additional comments?

Given all the fantastic comments, I thought I should add a dissenting voice, for the books certainly did not seem to me as good as many of the books I've listened too, and I've listened to over 150 Audible books. I'd give these two a six out of ten. But dang, that was a really good ending!!

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Incredible story, perfect execution!

This by far one of the best audio books I have ever listened to. The story was magnificent it held my attention throughout the hours of listening. The performance by Carl Prekopp was unbelievable. I was convinced there was actually 8 different people speaking. WOW. I want more from this author and narrator!

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

I liked this one

So sequels are suppose to suck but this one doesn't. RR Haywood just knows how to keep me entertained. I recommend this book if you already heard the first!

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

too much profanity

Great story, lots of fun, it's hard to get the meaningful words through the swearing.

4 of 5 people found this review helpful

The Extracted team continue onwards!

What did you love best about Executed?

The performance by RRH is amazing. His consistency and ownership of the various ongoing characters is the true highlight of this series. His voicing of Mother, and indeed all the female characters, is truly impressive.

What other book might you compare Executed to and why?

This is a very much a natural progression of the first book of the series.

Have you listened to any of Carl Prekopp’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

The Extracted, and several other speculative fiction works. This one is simply outstanding!

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The resolution is fascinating.

Any additional comments?

I simply hope the series continues. Not totally highest marks, as there is some repetition here, and it ran abit longer than it needed to IMHO. Aside from that, this is a brilliant offering. Highly recommended!

4 of 5 people found this review helpful

Excellent follow up to a great initial novel

I highly enjoyed "Extracted", and "Execution" was a solid follow up. For those who've read "Extracted" this one takes us a bit further down the rabbit hole in exploring the potential for the team's predicament. What I appreciate is that "Executed" isn't just a rehash of the same ideas as the first novel. Instead it's an escalation of the story into the pitfalls of their future world and how to better save it.

A big plus with this novel is the addition of extra characters, and Haywood does a fantastic job of giving them their unique personas that are relatable to the reader in likable or unlikable ways.

For those who haven't read the first novel, you probably should. Besides that, the only issue I have with the writing is it's changing of character POV rapidly. It's especially difficult in audio book format where we can't see the paragraph breaks to announce changes. However, after the first novel, I got used to it and in this one, the changes were much easier to follow.

This novel leaves off on a solid wrap up, but also leaves some cliffhangers that I expect will lead to a following continuation of the story. Definitely excited for that!

1 of 1 people found this review helpful