Audiobook Reviews:The Midnight Heir, The Rise of the Hotel Dumort & Saving Raphael Santiago

A couple of The Bane Chronicles audiobooks released recently; therefore I decided to round up their reviews in one post. Enjoy!

The Midnight Heir by Cassandra Clare & Sarah Rees Brennan
Read by David Oyelowo

In the fourth part of The Bane Chronicles, Magnus Bane is back in London to meet with a potential shadowhunter client. Who that client may be isn’t divulged immediately, especially because Magnus’ attention is focused an obnoxious, riotous and very drunk Shadowhunter that looks very familiar. James Herondale, son of Will Herondale and Tessa Gray, is a very troubled individual, and Bane decides to look after him for the rest of the night, eventually taking him back home to his parents.

One of the chief reasons I enjoyed The Midnight Heir was meeting Will, Tessa and even Jem again. The Infernal Devices being Cassandra Clare’s strongest work to date, I look forward to any opportunity to revisit those characters again. While the scene wasn’t as long as I hoped, it makes the biggest and most lasting impression that anything that happens afterward in this novella is forgettable.

Actor David Oyelowo (Lee Daniels’ The Butler) narrates The Midnight Heir, and his smooth, soothing tone is perfect for Bane’s thoughtful asides. His accents and voicing seem a little robotic during the dialogue, but that seems more like a technical issue than anything else.

The Midnight Heir may not be the best installment in The Bane Chronicles, but reading about Will, Tessa and Jem again makes it worth the time and money.

Rating: 6/10

The Midnight Heir is now available wherever e-books and Digital Audio are sold.

Book Info:

Publisher:  Simon & Schuster Audio (September 2013)
Length: Approx. 1 hour, 33 minutes
Series: The Bane Chronicles #4
Source: Unabridged Audio Download (Provided by publisher)
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Completed: September 2013

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The Rise of the Hotel Dumort by Cassandra Clare & Maureen Johnson
Read by Stephen Lunsford

The Rise of the Hotel Dumort finds Magnus living it up at 1920’s speakeasy. Of course, Magnus runs the place, servicing mostly New York mundanes and some downworlders. One night, he spots a young vampire girl, dancing at his club. She comes with a message and prediction from a mysterious friend. Magnus’ first reaction is not to take the prediction seriously; he just wants to get drunk and have fun. But he finds that he can’t leave it alone, which leads a series of events to unfold.

The late 20’s New York City backdrop is the life of this novella. The story revolves around it and the history of that time. Because I always had a love for the 20’s, I found myself absolutely enjoying The Rise of the Hotel Dumort. For being just a short story, it managed to capture the atmosphere of the time. Narrator Stephen Lunsford tackled those old-style New Yorker accents precisely. It’s a true American story, the first one of the Bane Chronicles really based here. So a good choice was made when choosing Lunsford to narrate this particular story.

The Rise of the Hotel Dumort is really about its backdrop and accomplishes in bringing the listener back into that era. It was enlightening to see some of the beginnings of Bane’s time in New York. A bit better than Part 4, this novella is another reason why fans love Magnus Bane so much.

Rating: 7.5/10

The Rise of the Hotel Dumort is now available wherever e-books and Digital Audio are sold.

Book Info:

Publisher:  Simon & Schuster Audio (September 2013)
Length: Approx. 1 hour, 11 minutes
Series: The Bane Chronicles #5
Source: Unabridged Audio Download (Provided by publisher)
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, History
Completed: September 2013

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Saving Raphael Santiago by Cassandra Clare & Sarah Rees Brennan
Read by Michael Trevino

How did the vampire Raphael Santiago come to be? We know him from his supporting role in The Mortal Instruments, but as I feel with most interesting side characters, I am always open to backstory. Part Six of The Bane Chronicles is really Raphael’s story, more so than Bane’s even though he’s the one telling it.

It’s the 1950s, and Magnus Bane is taken by the lure of the “private detective.” Therefore, he decides to become one and almost immediately gets his first client: a woman looking for her missing son to be saved. Vampires have taken over the Hotel Dumort since the 20’s catastrophe and been haunting the city, looking for prey. One particular vampire has an unsavory appetite for young children, which appalls Bane. To stop this nasty vampire, a group of young teens, including the woman’s son, Raphael, decide to go after the vampire. Bane agrees to help the woman by finding and saving Raphael Santiago.

Michael Trevino of The Vampire Diaries narrates this installment and does a fine job with the accents. The story itself is interesting, but not as much as the characters, especially Mr. Santiago himself. He’s quite the opposite of Bane, and it’s so entertaining to see these two characters react to each other and then eventually care for each other in the only way they could.

Saving Raphael Santiago ranks as one of my favorites of The Bane Chronicles so far. It’s full of heart, courage and determination.  It also tackles the concepts of faith in a world like theirs. It’s hard not to appreciate and like these characters more after reading this.

Rating: 9/10

Saving Raphael Santiago is now available wherever e-books and Digital Audio are sold. 

Book Info:

Publisher:  Simon & Schuster Audio (September 2013)
Length: Approx. 1 hour, 18 minutes
Series: The Bane Chronicles #6
Source: Unabridged Audio Download (Provided by publisher)
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Faith
Completed: September 2013

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