The Dark Volume

This involved work of fantasy takes place in an alternate magical realm, where zephyrs are the preferred mode of intercontinental travel. Politics and intrigue are the usual orders of business as deviant factions employ magical mind control to gain power over one another. A continuation of GLASS BOOKS OF THE DREAM EATERS, THE DARK VOLUME is equally ambitious in its rich detail. However, the novel's intricate plot twists and multitude of characters may be too much for some listeners. John Lee's cadence also tends to be a tad monotonous. Taken separately, the two efforts are more-than-competent works deftly executed by seasoned practitioners. In combination, the book and performance are a lackluster experience. L.P. (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine

February 2, 2009
Readers unfamiliar with bestseller Dahlquist's 2006 debut, The Glass Books of the Dream Eaters
, which is set in an alternate world similar to Victorian Europe, may have trouble following this complicated sequel, despite the “preparatory word on what has already happened” at the start. In The Glass Books
, West Indies plantation heiress Celeste Temple, naval surgeon Abelard Svenson and criminal Cardinal Chang joined forces to combat an evil cabal that smelted a mineral into “a psychotropic blue glass” that “captures human memory.” Temple, who survived the previous book's cinematic climax involving a gunfight in a sinking dirigible, finds herself suspected of a series of mysterious murders, while Svenson and Chang discover new enemies to thwart. Too much going on at the same time, including less than engaging confrontations with various over-the-top villains, undermines a clever concept that may yet be the basis for a solid adventure series.