Book description
March 15th
Dear Diary,
Just finished listening to Tim Pratt's "Briarpatch" and I'm still reeling. What a ride this audiobook took me on.
Our narrator Darrin starts off as your typical broken man - girlfriend gone, job gone, life falling apart. But then Pratt throws us a curveball that would break anyone: seeing your ex leap to her death? That's the kind of opening that grabs you by the throat and doesn't let go.
What struck me most was how the audiobook format really amplifies the emotional weight. You're stuck in Darrin's headspace for the entire journey, hearing his thoughts, his doubts, his desperate need to understand why Bridget left him this way. The voice actor (I should really remember to check who that was) captures that particular brand of grief and confusion perfectly.
The world-building here is deliciously weird. A car that drives between worlds? Check. A possibly immortal cult leader who's more depressed than menacing? Absolutely. And that bridge - oh, that bridge - that might just lead to heaven or somewhere else entirely. Pratt doesn't hold back on the strange, and thank goodness for that.
But here's what really got to me: beneath all the supernatural madness, this is fundamentally about loss and the lengths we go to make sense of it. Darrin's quest to find Bridget again, or at least find meaning without her, feels achingly real even when he's navigating what might be the universe's crawlspace or abandoned divine construction projects.
The supporting characters are wonderfully bizarre - especially that chrome shotgun-wielding woman who I'm still not sure was friend or foe. Each one feels like they stepped out of their own strange story and into Darrin's increasingly chaotic world.
This isn't just a story about grief, though. It's about rediscovering purpose when everything you thought you knew crumbles. The audiobook format makes that journey feel so intimate, like you're sitting in the passenger seat of Darrin's increasingly surreal adventure.
Highly recommend for anyone who likes their urban fantasy with a side of existential crisis.
Yours in literary recommendation,
A Satisfied Listener
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Playing a wide variety of audio formats
Works on all devices with iOS 13 and newer
Huge amount of features for a small price
Frequent updates to add new features and improve existing ones
Advanced playback controls
Live sound processing
Changing the timbre of the reader's voice and noise reduction
Translated into more than 20 languages
If you love listening to fiction audiobooks, ListenBook has features to make the process easier.
Edit book data: title, author, cover
Use equalizer to make the sound comfortable for you
Adjust the playback speed
Enjoy dark and light app themes
Supported formats: MP3, M4B, AWB, FLAC, OGG audio files and many more (must be DRM free)
Auto-Bookmarks make it easy to find your place
AirPlay support allows redirection of audio output.
VoiceOver support
Dark mode for night owls
Convenient bookmarking system helps you mark the most important places.
Unlimited bookmarks for each audiobook
Put your own cover on the wager
Share your audiobook with friends
Lock-screen control
Customise app with extensive options
Sleep timer with shake to reset, set custom notification sounds, and a few unique options
Auto rewind depending on paused time, customize rewind times to your liking
Removing background noise from recordings made in classrooms and meetings
Changing the timbre of the reader's voice for a better listening experience