Fresh and vibrant after all this time

25 years. Or more, and after all that time I still had vivid memories of it such is the impact it had on me then.
I was slightly scared going back in after all this time, I've ruined some of my fondest old memories by re-watching old tv shows but in the end I could not resist one more look at the old carpet and I was not disappointed.
Some of the accents were mildly annoying when I first started but I soon settled in and actually enjoyed the characterisation by the time I got to the end. Anyway, decent though the performance was it is irrelevant really, this is all about the story. A beautifull woven fairytale with allegory both subtle and bold and wonderfully written snippets describing a wondrousl world.
I have almost literally been somewhere else for the last 20 or so hours, laughing inside at the other commuters who have no idea I have another world in my headphones.
Bravo.

22 people found this helpful

More please!

Superb story read by excellent narrator. Weaveworld has always been a favourite story of mine, I got my hardback signed by Clive Barker at the Forbidden Planet bookshop in London years ago, The audio version is amazing and highly recommended.

Now Audible, can we please have The Damnation Game, The Great and Secret show, Everville, and Imajica as soon as possible please!

11 people found this helpful

An Unending Tale, That Goes Nowhere and Back

Clive Barker has a knack of telling tales that would otherwise not work under another less capable author. Unfortunately Weaveworld is so bloated with the unnecessary, that the story gets lost in the detail and detracts from what otherwise might be a fun ride through a strange magic world.

The story follows a number of characters that are caught in the majesty of the Weaveworld, a hiding place for magic. Created to hold the people of this magic world and hide them from an evil, the scourge.

Following a number of twists and turns, in which the book could have quite happily concluded several times, the people of magic and humanity must work together to hide from and maybe even kill the evil that hunts them.

Weaveworld is well written and Barker is clearly accomplished, but that comes with certain responsibilities to oneself. Not unlike Stephen King's recent efforts, the inability to reign in the imagination has turned this creative story into a dull and tiring affair that I couldn't wait to finish.

The adventure is contained in only a few chapters, which are exciting and enthralling. The rest is a mixture of unneeded character development and travel. The anticipation and world building isn't enough to keep the reader entertained and the detail covers any real pace the book could have had.

If you like to get lost in a story, then there is plenty to get lost in. If you however want an interesting read/listen from start to finish then this is not for you, and wasn't for me.

Simon Vance is his effervescent self and does a wonderful job. Bar one character, an ill advised, stereotypically offensive Chinese accent. Why the producer let that slip, who knows. The rest of the performance however was perfect.

5 people found this helpful

Great Story. So-so reader

Where does Weaveworld rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I looked forward to this one more than most. I have getting on for twenty audible titles in my library, about half of which, I'd read at some point, usually many years ago. Weaveworld was one of those that I was revisiting. It's an exceptionally good story, narrated by an adequate reader.

What did you like best about this story?

It's the best Clive Barker I've encountered. One of the best I've ever read in any format, and as an unabridged audiobook, it retains everything from what I remember reading.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

The narrator uses only a small range of accents. That the voices don't agree with my mind's ear is inevitable, but the lack of range was noticeable, particularly in the dialogue. The narrator is not local, and that quickly becomes apparent if you're reading this from the perspective of someone who lives in the area. Specifically, the pronunciation of "Thurstaston" was jarringly inauthentic. Not something that would matter to a listener from even 50 miles away, but it stopped me in my tracks. The stress is on the first syllable, not the second. THURstaston, not Thurst ASTon. I was listening to this audiobook in my room, and my wife came in. She'd been in the room next door, reading, and generally ignoring the muffled sound of this audiobook, but she too had been distracted by the obviously fake and forced Scouse accent. If Scouse was halfway between Irish and Brummie, the voice would have been spot on, but it isn't, and while a less local listener would either not have noticed, or could have shrugged it off, for me it detracted from the overall experience.

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

None of the books I want to listen to are intended to be listened to in one sitting. I travel locally between clients in my car, and get perhaps 15-20 minute slots of story. For reasons that are probably almost entirely beyond Audible's control, almost all of the audiobooks on my ipod fail to work properly in my car, so I've been listening to this on my PC instead. It's too long to even consider listening to in one sitting, unless I planned to either sit or drive for a ridiculously long time.

Any additional comments?

The introduction, where Clive Barker recaps his own thoughts, ideas, and feelings about Weaveworld, many years after it was written and released were informative, interesting and thought provoking.

4 people found this helpful

One of my fave Clive Barker novels

Great story and narration only let down slightly by the poor Liverpudlian accents. Simon Vance is usually great and he is throughout the rest - but in places where Cal and Brendan's accents were wavering between Yorkshire, Birmingham and Liverpool it was pretty jarring.

3 people found this helpful

life is too short to listen to Weavworld

why say it in 6 words when you can say it in 76?
Having read this book back in the early 90's I remembered it fondly and have been threatening to re read it for years. I have just finished the audio book and and wish i hadnt. Maybe it's me? Maybe reading it gave me the luxury of skipping through the endless, unnecessary waffle that just goes on and on and on and on...
unfortunately you can't do that when it's being read to you.
If my opinion is worth anything to you, there are much better books out there, I wouldn't bother... Sorry Clive,

2 people found this helpful

Much ado about nothing

What did you like best about Weaveworld? What did you like least?

The story set off at a detailed and intricate pace, then continued the same. Not impressed.

What could Clive Barker have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Opened the story more quickly.

What does Simon Vance bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

Don't know. I got an hour, maybe two into it, then gave up. I shall return this book.

Did Weaveworld inspire you to do anything?

Go outside and complete my irrigation pipe system instead of listening to it.

Any additional comments?

This is a much hyped tale that, frankly, didn't live up to the hype. I expected something along the lines of Deborah Harkness, but with much darker undertones. I was bored bored bored. There was no early hook after the episode with the first viewing of the carpet (which promised much to come). I shall return this book.

2 people found this helpful

Confusing

This book requires a great imagination, which I do not have. I found it a bit confusing.

1 person found this helpful

It's a lot for a Cuckoo to understand

I was happy having the audiobook assessable on this app as reading it was going to be troublesome. Brilliantly read, I foud this very captivating. Clive Barker's opening was a real treat.

1 person found this helpful

Tom

Would you try another book written by Clive Barker or narrated by Simon Vance?

I bought Imajica and found it superb so I had hoped for something as good or better. However, Weaveworld is gory tedium and Mr Vance struggles to enliven the inane characters, which even his talent cannot.

What could Clive Barker have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Cut out the gore and developed the characters.

Have you listened to any of Simon Vance’s other performances? How does this one compare?

Mr Vance is an excellent reader

What character would you cut from Weaveworld?

Rewrite the whole lot of them .

Any additional comments?

A disappointment.

1 person found this helpful