AudiobookReviewer

ABR's full The Breadwinner audiobook review and many others can be found at Audiobook Reviewer.

This is the debut audiobook from a new author Stevie Kopas. I am sure that this will be a welcomed addition to a very crowded genre. As the story is primarily told from the females perspective, not only that but one that is not a survival expert or prepper.

Best part of this particular zombie apocalypse is the fast zombies or eaters as they are often referred to here. I remember the first time I encountered them in 28 Day Later, since then they have always held a very special place in my heart.

There were zombie attack scenes that made me squirm a bit. Kopas was able to inject each of them with just the right amount of terror and gore. The characters grew and evolved right before your eyes. I just couldn’t find a connection to any of them.

While to storyline was solid, I found it difficult to pay attention due to the narration and for this book, maybe the print version would have been much better. There were times that I got confused about whether the story was happening now or then, due to the amount of flashbacks and flash forwards.

This was my first time listening to a performance by Scott Birney. Unfortunately, I will have to think long and hard before choosing another by him. I found his voice pleasant overall, deep and resonating, he speaks clearly and concisely.

Firstly I think he was the wrong choice to narrate a book that is primarily from the female perspective. His strong and deep voice just didn’t fit. Then his pacing was perfectly steady, I find it much more of a pleasant listen when there is a fluctuation of the speed of the reading. Then he sounded almost completely emotionless throughout. The “from the author” at the very end of the book was one of the only points to where Birney added some sort of emotional fluctuation.

Audiobook provided for review by a friend of the author.