Customer Reviews

Nora Roberts Circle Trilogy CD Collection: Morrigan's Cross, Dance of the Gods, Valley of Silence

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
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I am not a normal Nora Roberts reader, however I have to say this trilogy was excellent. I liked the abridged audio books so much I went out and bought the actual books so I could read the entire story (which I so recommend).

The only negative I can state is the reader, who did have a lot of characters to narrate was off a bit on the accents and voices. On occasion he would apply the same voice for two characters who were speaking to eachother, which made it a bit confusing as to identify who was speaking. He also applied a New York/New Jersey accent to Blaire who was actually from Chicago.

But overall, highly recommend this collection. Well worth the price.

Dick Hill does a wonderful job narrating this story. Mr. Hill uses a thick Irish brogue accent to bring Ms. Roberts' tale to life.

Morrigan's Cross (Book 1)
The tale begins with a battle between Hoyt Mac Cionaith the sorcerer and Lilith the Vampire. Hoyt is trying to save his brother Cian, but is too late. He has already been turned. Hoyt, injured and weary has a vision/visit from Morrigan the Goddess of Battle. She charges him with the most important of duties. He must gather and lead the members of the circle of 6 (the sorcerer, the one who was lost, the witch, the warrior, the one of many shapes, and the scholar) who will rise up to fight Lilith in the battle to keep her from taking over the world as we know it. It is a tale steeped in ancient Irish Tradition and lore, magic, mythical creatures and romance. While forming the circle of 6 Hoyt meets his love, Glenna.

Dance of the Gods (Book 2)
In the second installment, the circle of 6 continues to train and prepare for battle. Several skirmishes with Lilith's minions occur and Larkin takes on a mission to learn more of the enemy. Blair the Warrior and Larkin the Gaellian Shapeshifter fall in love. The circle of 6 travels to Gaell to begin the next stages of preparation for the battle in the Valley of silence.

The Valley of Silence (Book 3)
The final chapter in this 3 part series begins in Gaell with Moira the Scholar taking up the sword to take her place as Queen. When an assassin makes an attempt on her life, Cian the one who was lost, saves her by taking the arrow himself. You can only imagine the romance that blooms from here. More training and preparations take place and the battle ensues on Samhain.

What I liked: The characters are wonderful; each has a history and their own personal demons to deal with. Hoyt, Larkin and Moira have adjust to living in the 21st century, learning of things they couldn't imagine existed like showers, camera's, modern appliances and cars. When they travel to Gaell; Cian, Glenna and Blair have to learn to live in a castle with dragons littering the skies. They have to learn to live without luxury's such as indoor plumbing and the internet (Gods! How did people ever live without the internet!). Each story focuses on a a pairing of 2 but all 6 main characters still play a large part in each book. Ms. Roberts makes it easy to envision her characters and landscapes, I felt as though I was watching a movie in my head (watching a movie in your head while driving is not advisable... do not attempt this at home.)

What I didn't like: Each book begins and ends with an old man telling this story to children gathered around him, next to the hearth. While heartwarming and charming, when the violence, language and descriptive sex scenes would come around, I would think of him reciting his tale to young ones. I just assumed that these parts were his memories and not spoken aloud. But, my next complaint was not so easy to dismiss. (Watch out, I'm getting out my soap box here.) While listening to the 3rd book, I was really put off by one sentence. There were places in the books that alluded to acts that should never take place between a child and an adult, whether they be vampire or human, but this one sentence, spoken by a child, hit a nerve. The thing is, I can handle reading about this type of thing if it is pertinent to the story, but when thrown in for shock value, I find it distasteful. Ms. Roberts made a clear case of what monsters these vampires are without having to mention such acts.

Last word: This is a great story if you are into Irish lore, romance and the paranormal. There is a little bit of each. Also if you are a sucker for Irish accents, like me,I would recommend listening to the audio version.

Reviewed by Christel

Nora Roberts does an excellant job of writing this time travel piece and Dick Hill is fantastic at reading it and giving the
charachters depth. I have finished Morrigans Cross and am about to embark futher on this journey in Dance of the Gods. With Nora, you can't go wrong and I feel this is one of her best.

I love this product! It was in great condition and arrived very quickly! I was extremely pleased!

I travel at least 30-40 minutes each way to work and can't stand the radio anymore. This was a great story that had me wanting to go listen to it even when I wasn't driving.

I commute and hour to work and looked forward to my going and returning trip. Would sit in the drive to finish a chapter prior to getting out of the car. Loved every minute of tthe Circle Trilogy. Hated to see it come to an end.

This is an exciting mix of the modern world with an ancient and other-world battle of good versus evil. The six members of the "circle" were a different combination, yet they all fit together quite well. As these characters moved through time and worlds, the author used the characters' strengths and weaknesses to perfection in their own personal battles as well as in the battle of mankind.