Hailed for its “masterful storytelling” by Fandom, the groundbreaking Audible Original series continues.
The stakes couldn’t be higher. Darcy, who once seemed to be our only hope for surviving the vampire apocalypse, has gone to the dark side—she’s now the reigning vampire queen. Meanwhile, her sister Hope must lead the charge to save humanity—on a path that’s taking her straight to Darcy.
Will an emboldened Hope destroy her own sister to save the world? Would a godlike Darcy ever allow that to happen? They say hope is a dangerous thing, and they just might be right.
Please note: This content is for mature audiences only. It contains adult language and themes. Discretion is advised.
Another great audiobook production! I love how I feel like I’m the middle of the room with everyone. I’m upset that I’m already done with it and it just came out. I look forward to more!!
The second season left me a bit mad I can't deny it and this season ripped my heart out and put it back together only to rip it out again 🤣 I need more.
Audiobook (7 hours 30 min) narrated by a full cast.
This audiobook is a full production with a full cast, and fully scored. The narration and audio quality is excellent, however, it is an action packed series with a lot of sound effects. It isn't something that you would want to listen too at work or someplace where you would need to be at least partially alert.
As stated in the title of the novel, this is the 3rd episode/season. I was hoping that this would be a trilogy, not because I am not enjoying it, but because I want to know the conclusion. This season is twice as long as the previous two, so I thought a wrap-up was possible. Instead so much happened!
The details of the vampire communities are fantastic. Along with the usual vampire lore, Travis Beacham has broken out and added his own touch. Though not the same, by any means, the way that he made this world and the vampires his own, Travis' style reminds me of the creativity of Justin Cronin and The Passage trilogy. Vampire tales have been told for centuries, with the first English publication being The Vampyre, written in 1819 by John William Polidori. A fun fact is that this story came out of a night of fun with friends who had read Tales of the Dead: Ghost Stories of the Villa Diodati, deciding to each write a ghost story. John William Polidori wrote The Vampyre which has inspired countless authors, artists, and creators of various types. His friend, Mary Shelley, wrote a little book, you may have heard of, Frankenstein: The 1818 Text.
At present, this is an audible only publication, however, as I stated in my first review (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...), Audible's official YouTube channel has published both a trailer for the first season (https://youtu.be/79x63-Gbmxg), as well as the entire first season (https://youtu.be/bPUX4VliKMA) with some pretty sweet visuals that are only available on their YouTube channel. So if this series interests you and you are not an audible plus member, you can enjoy the first volume for free and decide if you want to pick up a trial membership or re-up for a month to catch the available episodes Impact Winter Season 2, and this one.
🍷 Recommend 🍷 🧛🦇 🥀 🕯 🪦 🩸🧛
A goblet of red wine is, of course, an optional listening indulgence, in lieu of popcorn.
Lots of fun, as the previous two installments. Darcy is the reincarnation of the Evil Queen. Or? What is happening? oh no, fights! sex scenes! lesbian sex scene! more fights! meanwhile, Hope is looking for Darcy! with a plan! more fight and sex! what's not to like!
This whole series was really good and I enjoyed listening to it. I do feel like this book left off in a way that was meant to have more to come, but then they just didn't for some reason? Too bad, because it was a fun series and loved the music and everything.
I really enjoy this full production audio. There were a few times that I was so wrapped up in the story that I actually would jump or turn around because my headphones made it sound like there was someone walking behind me. I loved it, and the fact that its included in the Audible membership is freakin gold. Get this serious Audible readers, its a good one.
Season 3 was a huge improvement over season 2 for me, thank goodness!! I feel like it was able to capture some of the spark from Season 1 and the storyline progressed beautifully!
Again, set months after the end of season 2, we follow Darcy and Hope as they head down separate but dangerous paths in order to protect the world as well as those they love. New adventures, new characters, plot twists and loads of action! I can safely say that I am firmly NOT a fan of either Darcy or Hope's love interests... In my opinion, the best thing would be for them to both perish is as meaningful a way as possible and to allow the sisters to grow from those experiences and find more worthy partners! My favorite character was quite absent from this season but fingers crossed, will be much more of a power player in season 4.
The production was better, with less whisper voices and music didn't seem to overwhelm as much. My main complaint at this point is that several of the female character's voices are too similar. It is often a challenge to decipher who is speaking until more context clues are given.
Overall, I am still really intrigued by the story and plan to continue listening when Season 4 comes out. I hate the waiting game in between with such a short listening experience!
The story has gotten worse as the series progresses but I do have some specific gripes.
1) There are scenes where there's narration, but this is also a dramatization with sound effects. Sometimes it was hard to hear what was being narrated over the sound of fighting, closing doors, et cetera.
2) I avoid romance novels in audiobook form because I think they're cringey, and it's even worse in a dramatization. Smacking kissing sounds, moaning and heavy breathing.
I don't want to continue, I wanted this to be the last book, and that's my sign to drop it.
Gutted that it's over, though whispers of a potential fourth season next year offer a glimmer of hope much needed after this intense chapter. Impact Winter's third season proves that even in the darkest timeline, Beacham knows how to ratchet up the stakes. There is a dramatic shift in dynamic between Darcy and Hope - from sisters united against the darkness to being on opposing sides of humanity's survival - which created some of the most compelling drama in the series thus far. Holliday Grainger deserves particular praise for her evolution of Darcy's character. Her internal struggle of a human-turned-vampire queen trying to maintain control over an ancient power structure whilst wrestling with her humanity is masterfully portrayed. There's a vulnerability beneath the newfound strength that makes her transformation all the more fascinating. Meanwhile, Esmé Creed-Miles brings a desperate intensity to Hope's mission that perfectly mirrors her sister's journey, as both women fight for survival through drastically different means.
The political intrigue amongst the vampire courts added a fresh layer of complexity to what was already a rich world. Beacham cleverly uses this supernatural power struggle to explore themes of legitimacy, identity, and the price of power. The scepticism Darcy faces from the vampire old guard created a constant tension that kept me on edge throughout the season. Where I feel the series truly excelled was in its ability to maintain intimate character moments amidst the grand scale of its apocalyptic setting. The winter continues to deepen, but it's the emotional frost between the sisters that truly chills. Their separate paths raised compelling questions about sacrifice, survival, and whether the ends truly justify the means.
Finished Impact Winter 3 by Travis Beacham. It ended on a… well, not quite a cliffhanger, but an implication there should be more. Currently I’m genuinely not sure I care for more, as it went in a strange direction from the first book.
My Opinion: I absolutely loathe prophecies. Instead of having ordinary people find ways to do extraordinary things, we get a pre-framed plot that has no means to change, only shift in the preset parameters, because it was so foretold in a vision, dream, or whatever else. There’s no clear development or choice, just linear marching forwards. Saving grace to the mediocre plot were a few more interesting characters, as some began showing their own personalities at last. But then, the horror aspect is gone for good, that formerly curious vampire hierarchy – near meaningless, and supernatural starts bordering magical, all things sad. Basically, slowly but surely these stories came to be no longer for me.
A 3 out of 5, it’s not per se bad, just not quite good.
Okay, so this season irked me the theatrical noises almost drowned out the story 😠. However, Darcy and Hope are those "ride or die sisters." Both go looking for each other by any means necessary after being separated. Darcy is part of something bigger, and Hope is evolving into herself. Vampires, ghouls, dragons, etc. need I say more. It's a great series for Spooktober.
Highly recommend. Have not loved an audio drama quite so much since Girl in Space by Sarah Werner. Love the story and the performances were well done. The music and sound effects the perfect touch. If you like vampire stories and have not tried an audio drama before this would be a good adventure for a first dive in.
Started slow, and the flashbacks sometimes made it a bit difficult to follow. But then with a few quick turns it got very interesting. I was however expecting episode 3 to wrap the story up. But apparently there's a season 4 for that, not coming out til February. Looking forward to the twists and turns of episode 4.
IM A RIDE OR DIE FOR THIS SERIES. I need season 4 ASAP 😭 the sister bond is something that truly makes this so fun and special to me. Seeing all the different storylines come together was so fun and I love the direction this has gone
This is the longest episode of the trilogy, yet currently my favorite because it's the most thrilling and emotional one, far better than the last episode.
Good but rather rushed end to this series that rather let's down the first two. All.the central characters meet for an inevitable showdown and things change. Good but lacking something.
I was actually surprised with this season. I had hoped that this season with have wrapped up the storyline, but... It ultimately went in a completely different direction from what I had expected from the shocking finale last season and had some nice twists and heartfelt and heart aching moments. There were a few things that were a little convenient, but didn't mar the story. Can't wait for the next one.
It’s always fun to read a graphic audiobook and I really enjoyed this season and the first two seasons of this fast-paced apocalyptic vampire story. Picking up where the previous season left off, Hope is still trying to help the humans survive an impending ice age as the weather worsens and they experience blackout. Weirdly, though, she is not afraid of the Blighters. Now that her sister, Darcy, has become Queen of the vampires, they don’t harm her. Meanwhile, the other vampires are skeptical of Darcy as first because she is claiming to be the queen who was killed but is now residing in this new body that is unfamiliar to them. But she tries to gain their trust, including a wife that she has now, apparently. Felix suddenly shows up and that’s when we find out that Darcy is still Darcy — she is herself but also has the queen’s memories. She missed Felix very much and I loved that he reunited with her but I was also so scared for his safety, being in this nest of vampires. He wants to help Darcy and be her spy because the Queen is still in hiding inside of Darcy and is holding the winter clouds up and spurring the darkness, which is what is causing the ice age. Darcy is looking for a way to stop her. Meanwhile Hope, Lydia, and Penelope visit this island where it’s rumored a healing spring is. Lydia thinks it could cure vampirism (and save Darcy) but also we find out that she has a tumor in her brain that could trigger an aneurysm. They get caught up with some blighters and manage to fight them off but the excitement causes the aneurysm in Lydia. Desperate to save her, Hope feeds her some of Penelope’s blood. She turns into a blighter which is not good. Someone is on to Felix and tries to lock him in a place where Darcy can’t sense him by staking him there, and again I was like oh god he’s gonna die, but he manages to break out of there because the stake doesn’t work on him. Turns out if you’re a scion of the Queen stakes don’t work on you. Maybe someone should have proposed that when Felix first showed up to show once and for all whether the Queen was the true queen?? Anyway. Hope used the spring that they went to find on Lydia, and it actually works — it cures her vampirism. They take some back with them in the hopes of using it on Darcy. Darcy and Felix hatch a plan for Felix, who is called the Perceptor and appears to be able to control people as if they were humans??? He sneaks in and gets video footage that shows the wife is trying to get answers about who Darcy really is. They know that she knows. Penelope, Hope and Lydia take some spring water with them in the hopes that they can cure Darcy. But along the way Penelope gets caught (Freddy Carter makes another guest appearance!) and taken to the Queen. She is meant to be killed and it’s a trap set by the wife, because she knows Hope is on her way and thinks she is going to kill the Queen. She wants that to happen now. Hope gets there and interrupts Penelope’s execution, saving her. Hope and Darcy get into it, but Hope sees that her sister is still in this Queen. Together, they turn on the others: the wife and the siblings. The wife turns into this giant dragon and they try to fight her off but she holds Felix hostage to get what she wants. Again, I was terrified for Felix in this moment. Darcy turns herself over to them, even though Hope doesn’t want her to, and tells her to light them up. Darcy takes that literally and uses her power to pull forth the sun for a brief moment, causing the vampires in that direct sunlight to catch on fire. The wife and her siblings have to retreat in order to survive, and Darcy is badly burned. I was scared that she was going to die, but she starts healing. We find out that one of the queen’s scions who I think is a sister of the wife and has allied herself with Darcy has told her that she knows where the queen is holed up. So now the plan is to track down the queen and end this once and for all. The story ends with them on a ship heading into the Antarctic. It feels very much like a whole band of misfits situation, off to take on an insurmountable task. But they’re like family, too: Darcy, Hope, Felix, Lydia, Penelope, Kexian, and Rook, who shows up in the last chapter to join them. I’m sure they’re going to do another season. They have to! I love this story and I love the audiobook with the full cast and sound effects and all that. We have to know if they can find the queen and stop her and bring sun back to the world. We also have to know what the fate of Lydia will be: we find out in the end that the spring water did something weird to her. She wants to drink blood and might have fangs but she also has a heartbeat like a human?? Spooky… This story is about family and doing what it takes to keep them safe, and I love the vampire aspect and just the overall horror piece of it. It’s really good and more people should listen to it!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.