Title: Specials
Series: Uglies, book 3
Author: Scott Westerfeld
Publisher: Recorded Books
Narrator: Carine Montbertrand
Duration: 10 hours, 48 minutes
Copyright: 2007
Genres: science fiction, action, young adult
Filed in: Audiobook reviews
THE GIST: Agents of Special Circumstances, known as Specials, are nearly super-human. They go through hours and hours of surgery, giving them increased strength and endurance, heightened senses, and a nearly indestructible skeleton. Oh yeah, and their brains are altered a little bit too, giving them feelings of superiority and contempt for anyone who is not Special.
And guess who just became one of these super-freaks; Tally Youngblood! Well, she really didn’t have much choice, did she? Her boyfriend, Zane, had a bad reaction to the Pretty cure, and it was either join up, or watch him die.
That doesn’t mean that Tally can't still have some fun, however. Tally and Shay decide to give their new abilities a little test run, by breaking into the most heavily guarded building in New Pretty Town; the city arsenal. They manage to get in and out of the building without being caught. The bad news is; the building is nothing but a smoking crater by the time they’re through. Not good.
Doctor Cable, nefarious head of Special Circumstances, wastes no time taking advantage of the situation, however. She manages to wrangle control of the city council, declare a state of war, and launch a full-scale attack on another city. It’s up to Tally and Shay to stop Doctor Cable and set things right again.
MY THOUGHTS: "Specials" is the third audio book in Scott Westerfeld's "Uglies" series. I’m really liking Scott Westerfeld. I’ve already talked about how much I like his creativity and attention to detail. I also really enjoy his writing style, the action scenes in particular. The whole scene with Tally and Shay in the arsenal was exciting and very well written.
My favorite Westerfeld invention this time? The skin-tenna. Standard equipment for all Specials; it turns the subjects skin into an antenna, capable of sending and receiving short range radio transmissions.
NARRATOR: Once again, Carine Montbertrand delivers a solid and enjoyable performance. She manages to speak clearly and concisely without sounding like a history teacher. I enjoyed her narration of “Specials” very much.
FINAL WORD: “”Specials” is A very worthwhile audio book. This brings the “Uglies” storyline to a close, but we haven't seen the last of Tally Youngblood. Westerfeld already has a fourth audio book in the series completed, and hopefully he will keep writing.
CHECK OUT THESE OTHER AUDIOBOOK REVIEWS:
“Uglies” by Scott Westerfeld
“Pretties” by Scott Westerfeld
“Specials” by Scott Westerfeld
“Extras” by Scott Westerfeld
If you liked this audiobook review, you can purchase the audiobook here:
Get "Uglies", The Collector's Set: Uglies, Pretties, Specials, Extras from Amazon.com
This audiobook review is based on the unabridged audio book.
Audio book review by Steven Brandt
Come back soon for more audiobook reviews from Audiobook-Heaven
Okay! I'm getting this for Adam pronto! :-) And I'll be sure to give it a once over too, you know, just to see if it's okay for a teen and all? *smile*
ReplyDeleteJust finished 'Specials'. Now what? I might just start the series over again. This series was so much fun! I have to admit, it took me a bit to get into this one. I had a major problem with the cutting. Still do. As a book aimed at teens, I really disliked the glorification of cutting oneself. I figured it would have redemption in the end, and it did, but it still really bothered me. But, I really like the way it all ended. Westerfeld could almost continue, with the way it ended, following Tally as she goes on her next adventure. I'm so glad you reviewed these, or else I probably never would have read them!
ReplyDeleteThe cutting bothered me too. Hopefully the teens that read this book will see the parallel Westerfeld is drawing between cutting and drugs.
ReplyDelete