Clever, Imaginative, Disturbing, Thought Provoking

This is an excellent trilogy crammed full of imaginative story telling and compelling characters. It makes one think about how far humans might go with our love of technology and what desperate measures might some take to fight death. I loved each instalment, and have included reviews for each below, but basically this is great. The author reads the story himself and what a job he does! I can't think how anyone could have done better. His voice is perfect for the tone of the three books and he does a superb job breathing life into his characters.

The Annihilation Of Foreverland.
I’ve read a few of Tony Bertauski’s books before getting to this one and have enjoyed them all so it was no surprise that I enjoyed this one too. This has so many things I love in a story from Sci-Fi elements to characters trying desperately to solve a mystery and more besides. There are some clever explorations of how far humans could, and maybe should, take our addiction to technology. There’s also some dark themes resulting from where people will draw the line. It’s clever and it’s thought provoking too and the author asks a lot from both his characters and his readers with this excellent mind bending story.

Foreverland Is Dead.
When I finished reading Annihilation Of Foreverland, which is the excellent first instalment of this series, I wondered where the author could take this complex world he had created. Didn’t the events of that book leave little room for a follow-up? Of course, having created such a deep and engrossing world there are no doubt plenty of places he could have taken it but how could it relate to the first? What Tony Bertauski achieved is brilliant as he weaves another utterly engrossing story around his dark and complex world that not only follows the first book but takes it in a totally different direction. I might even say I enjoyed this one more than the former. The tone is dark and the whole thing oozes a claustrophobic atmosphere that makes for addictive reading. There are some great twists and turns along the way too which I didn’t see coming. If you’ve read the first book and are wondering whether or not to continue with this one then do so, it’s excellent. If you’re new to the series you could start here but having read the previous book heightens the enjoyment of this one.

Ashes Of Foreverland.
When I reviewed Foreverland Is Dead, book two of this series, I called it ‘an atmospheric follow-up that’s even better than the first’. I was then left wondering if the author could follow that up with a satisfying conclusion with this book. Well, rest assured because yes he most definitely can. He gives his readers another engrossing novel full of great characters and a plotline worthy of the best Hollywood blockbuster. It’s crammed full of tension and fast paced just as a great thriller should be but there’s more to it than that with an imaginative and clever story. To say I enjoyed this book is an understatement. It not only acts and a hugely successful conclusion to the series but also an addictive story in its own right. There are many threads from the previous books that are neatly tied together here whilst also adding some equally interesting new elements. Tony Bertauski never fails to deliver with his imaginative and entertaining books and this is the perfect example of that.

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really good story with clever twists

extraordinary detail and narration as only an inspired reader writer might perform, bravo my congratulations

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2 people found this helpful

Gripping story that keeps you listening

Great storyline with likable characters. I enjoyed listening to the first 2 books and am looking forward to the third.
However, I do have a note for the Narrator, which I believe, is also the author.

For the love of God, it's pronounced ESCAPE. Not EXCAPE. The mispronunciation is a jarring blow to the ear and actually slightly spoiled the listening experience for me. There were a couple of other words that were grossly mispronounced but none that are used as often as the word escape.

That being said, and if you aren't as particular about pronunciation as I appear to be, then this is definitely a good book.

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Super imaginative

But really disconcerting narration by the author - I haven’t see the printed book, perhaps there’s a new word ‘exscaped’, terribly disconcerting when you expect the word to be ‘escaped’! Perhaps replace every ‘exscaped’ with the proper pronunciation’escaped’?

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