Rather fascinating storyline, considering this isn’t my “go to” genre of audiobook. I requested this free book to review because I wanted to study the artistry of narrator Jeffrey Kafer (I’d heard excellent reviews of his craft.). As a narrator, I want to learn from the best, and I was rewarded in may ways as I listened to this 10 hour book.

Kafer, I presume, has that natural gravelly voice that a female narrator avoids, and that was exactly right for this gritty, seedy and convoluted tale. He seamlessly switched from character to character – male or female – with subtle vocal quality shifts that did not strain his voice to execute, yet were distinct w slight variation of pitch male to female. the intensity behind each vocalization created each personality, w a few accents thrown in as noted in the text, and speech pacing to suggest character’s size, status, special abilities, and loyalties. All skills which made this an easy listen (that is if you overlook the foul language throughout).

That brings up another fascination in Gibson’s text. Since I had not listened to the first book in this Technomancer series, I had to catch-up on backstory and was grateful for many “in the past” flashbacks. Technomancer cyborgs and all, the premise of God having retreated and left demons, Lucifer, and all, to rule and ravage the earth and humankind (or variations thereof) (allusions to post-rapture-Armageddon apocalypse on the earth) painted this horrific picture w a most foul-mouthed and violent killer as its hero. A hero who knows he has been worse in his previous – may I call them – “incarnations” – and is a bad person in many respects in the present one, in need of redemption; yet who makes many moral, conscience-driven choices.

This narrative spurs me to want to research details of the Biblical allusions it references.

I freely offer this review and highly recommend this audiobook.