The Never Hero

The Chronicles of Jonathan Tibbs, Book 1

By: T. Ellery Hodges

Narrated by: Steven Barnett

Length: 12 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

At the gates between worlds...

In a war outside of time...

He fights for us.

Reclusive college student Jonathan Tibbs wakes in a pool of blood, not a scratch on him. His life is about to undergo a massive shift. A violent and merciless otherworldly enemy unleashes slaughter in the streets, calling out in a language only he understands.

And it is seeking its challenger.

In order to defeat the threat, Jonathan must become a temporal weapon...while remaining completely anonymous. Unfortunately, harnessing off-world powers has its own special challenges...

The Never Hero is the first installment in The Chronicles of Jonathan Tibbs - a mind-bending, genre-crossing action-adventure trilogy.

©2014 T. Ellery Hodges (P)2015 Foggy Night Publishing

Tip: clear your schedule first.

What did you love best about The Never Hero?

A really good listen, an easy-to-follow narrator, realistic inter-character interactions. An intelligent book which doesn't "dumbify" the listener/reader.

What about Steven Barnett’s performance did you like?

First time for me listening to Barnett. He is easily one of the best I've listened to. He does female voices well, in contrast to other narrators who just make them sound "whiny". Perhaps a bit more contrast to the different male characters' voices to make it perfect. Sometimes some male character's would have the same voice as a female character, thus making a little bit confusing at times. This was mostly in the beginning, later it was easier to differentiate. Great narrator!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, absolutely yes. Will definitely aim to disrupt normal life as you might have to show immense will-power to turn it off.

Worthy read

A good take on the “power ranger” theme, unlikely hero with the weight of the world on their shoulders. Not quite a super hero, just a guy doing the best he can. The author does a good job, in my opinion, of capturing the struggles and emotions one would expect the protagonist to be facing, or at least that I can relate to as a disabled veteran myself and an awkward geeky guy. It’s a good story with a great deal of psychological truth to it for someone interested in peering into the mind of someone dealing with PTSD. I am very interested to see how this story unfolds.

Narration is amazing, highly recommend. Story++

What did you love best about The Never Hero?

The story was detailed and full of feeling. You really felt what the main character was feeling. You honestly felt a connection with him, and the environment was enveloping.

What did you like best about this story?

Never changes pace, this is full on, all the way through.

What about Steven Barnett’s performance did you like?

His voice is so intense, full of emotion. Best narrator I have heard yet.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Did so :)

Too much "teenage"angst

Whilst the storyline is quite good, the writing is not. It's full of endless rants meant to engender sympathy for the character, but all I want to do is go back to buying paper books so I could have turned the page and shut it off.
The plot is transparent and the character has anger issues that we are forced to listen to (Mr Hodges may need to see a therapist).
The story is entertaining however, and if I get bored I may even get the next one to find out what happens.
Maybe the main character will have "nutted up" and stopped whining by then. Do you think he could ask Hayer how to make some money?

Solid sci-fi action tale

If a hero falls in the woods and no one is around to see him, is he a hero? This tale has some weighty philosophical themes rolled in to a great action story, with a bunch of geek culture thrown in. I finished listening to it with my 11yo, who asked for a notebook right away, so, he could start writing his own book. We are eagerly awaiting the sequel.

Great storytelling in a original spin on the hero story!

Loved it! Can't wait for the second book! A different kind of hero story! Not what I expected.

AWESOME! AWESOME! AWESOME!

Absolutely loved it! Can't wait for the next in the series. Let's go Tibbs! Awesome!

Loved it!!

Any additional comments?

Slow to start and I wasn't crazy about that, but, stick it out and it ends up really hooking you. A really good story, and I can't wait for book 2.

deep hero book

very powerful and a backward approach to a hero. I think if we really think about it we can all relate to Johnathan Tibbs and his situation. Well done.

Awesomely original

I loved every part of this book... I couldn't stop listening to it. Can wait for the next book.