There was background noise of microphone tampering at some points. You could clearly hear the distinction between the different audio files. The editing of this audio file was also quite poo.

You could hear her breathing in the microphone, etc.

The major problem I had with this book is the performance. Shame they did not go back and correct the first half. It seems the author finally found their voice about halfway through. The second half of the novel is worth listening to. The first half of the novel is weak in writing and in unoriginal in story. In fact, it is barely just OK to be completely honest. I would have to say that this story is just OK. As I said, this is just a brief list but these are the most egregious issues that pull me out of the story. It honestly affects the way the character is interpreted, though most of the characters end up with voices that don't match their character - Hermes' voice is slow, Pallas is childish, Hades is monotonous and masculine. Everything seems like a sorrow, which is completely out of character. Even if all she's doing is picking flowers. The way the narrator voices her, however, makes her seem meek and on the verge of tears constantly. Persephone is a strong, capable heroine who is taking control of her own destiny. Speaking of Persephone's voice, it is honestly the most grating sound I've ever heard. There are even times when the narrator drops Persephone's voice during narration, as if she's gotten tired of it. She gives each character a different manner of speech and I've found that narration immediately following dialogue keeps that character's voice rather than Persephone's (since the story is in first person). In the span of one paragraph she'll pronounce things differently, the most notable being Gaia (Guy-uh to Gay-uh) along with other general Greek pronunciation problems (Rhea, specifically).

Let me give you a brief overview of the issues: The narrator is inconsistent in pretty much everything. I honestly regret not reading the book myself because the narrator is the worst narrator I've ever heard. The story is well-written and while I would've liked a little more focus on the external plot, I absolutely loved the romance. To make them lesbians and reveal Zeus to be the douchebro we all know him to be is just awesome. The story of Persephone and Hades has always been a favorite of mine, especially when you delve deep into the various interpretations of the 'original' translations. The Dark Wife is a book I've been meaning to read for years but just finally found the time in the form of hour-long commutes to work.

The dark wife by sarah diemer