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Hello my friends, welcome to another audiobook review from Mrs. Y. This review is my second this year, and I am reviewing an audiobook I wanted to listen to for ages. Unlike last week's review, no one asked me to review this for them. I have no sponsorship or anything here. I picked up this audiobook on Audible on my own entirely. Today I review "The Utterly Uninteresting Unadventurous Tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant" by Drew Hayes. This is the first book in the series.
As I did last week, we are going to start with some critiques. I'll start with some issues that I felt were part of the story. First, we go into issues with consistency. I mean by this that there are bits where Fred explains what he sees or does not see using vampire senses. And then, when it's convenient, the senses pieces are missed or skipped. Occasionally this gets resolved in bits, such as the final story's climax, but there are other times it's utterly lost in the story. I found that to be a constancy issue, and it's worth noting.
Next, and most importantly for me and reviewing, are pacing issues, precisely when the drive or change tension. And for those of you who score at home, this section of my critiques had the heaviest weight on my decision for the score later. There is tension at times that is perfect, but it becomes lost in a joke or a minor aside that is intended to be funny. I love funny things, but I don't particularly appreciate when a story has the breaks put on hard because of an unnecessary sight gag or joke. There is such a thing as "Comedic Timing," It's a skill to write it correctly. Unfortunately, it misses the mark sometimes. While everyone is entitled to their own opinion on jokes and the timing of jokes, for me, it just blows some of the tension in the story out.
For example, there is a section where there is a rescue going on. There are some magical guardians used to protect something. The description of the guardians is leveled thickly in the story. Then comes the chase scene. The reader has a description of what the guardians look like and what the chase scene is. The reader then has to navigate the comic value of the scene mentally with the story's pacing. It can be a leap at times, and it becomes more difficult when you are also trying to keep track of who is where in proximation to the narrator. I had to go back and listen to this part again so that I could mentally keep track and going back to relisten, well which also breaks tension and pacing. I found examples of this all over the story, and some are worse than others, but overall it's something I want to mention.
Lastly, there is some ensemble vagueness to the story regarding how the characters were in their places at various times. There is a cast of characters that are slowly added on with each story's progression, only to have it all come together at the end. In that ending piece, not all of the ensemble members are in proximity of each other and their actions. I have this critique as it relates to fighting scenes in ways that are difficult to keep up with from time to time. The listener/reader can quickly lose track of who is doing what and where they are doing it. I think this was intentional, but it comes off rather clunky. It could have been tightened up a bit and not brushed over with sweeping terms. Every character is unique, so why shouldn't their participation also have the same consideration?
Let's go into the positive aspects of "The utterly uninteresting unadventurous tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant."
One of the best parts of this story is the fact that it starts small and becomes grander as you go. Several acts in the story are written, like short stories or novellas even. Then as you go, they interconnect, and it encompasses a whole story. I genuinely enjoy this approach to storytelling. Instead of a bunch of diary settings that would have been dull or odd, this turned into a very comfortable way of hearing the tale of a Vampire Accountant and how he made friends.
Let us talk about the narrator of "The Utterly Uninteresting and Unadventurous Tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant," and that is Kirby Heyborne. Kirby has an excellent speaking voice, and it never sounds like he needs a glass of water between chapters or sections. He can make different voices for characters believable. Kirby can also delineate between female and male voices in a way that isn't comical or a stretch. His voice stays consistently toned, and when he switches to make new voices, he does so brilliantly. Female characters sound like females, males sound like males, and the more power or lesser of stature, the voice conveys it perfectly. I also enjoyed the pacing of how he read the story and acted it out.
Lastly, let's go into the humor. Aside from what it does with pacing, the jokes are funny. I have to admit, there is a specific piece where an amuse bouche was mentioned, and not only did that make me laugh, but it also gave me a fantastic picture of what it was about. I've watched enough Food Network chuckle at that. Thus, humor is good for humor, but my criticism above about the pacing and tension remains.
Overall, this is an enjoyable book. I enjoyed it, and after scoring everything, I'm giving it a 4-star review which comes to 81% for me. If you are into vampires or funny stories or want a good book to enjoy, please pick this up!
