after it's all set and done
341886
Aftertones isn't quite as impressive as Stars or especially Between the Lines, but nonetheless highly enjoyable.  Perhaps the songwriting not being quite up to par and most of the tunes played slowly are a couple reasons the for the 4 stars instead of 5.

"Hymn" features gentle guitar and vocals throughout its entire 4 minutes.  Phoebe Snow and Odetta contribute to the vocals.  Lyris are depressing about the ending of timing and for personal reasons, I *hate* lyrics that mention ones time ending prematurely.  It rubs me the wrong way.  I believe we should live forever darn it!  Anyway a pretty enough vocal melody but nothing that blows me away.  "Belle of the Blues" is another slow tune, this time reminding me of city blues with emphasis on Janis vocals.  She often soars with her vocal range.  Love the "Go down lightly, go down silently, I'll go down screaming" line.  This song is sung similarly to Carole King but with more passion.  "Give me my tomorrows, you an have my memories" is a line that actually describes how I feel.

"Don't Cry Old Man" is yet another slower than normal song.  It's more emotional with slight "Hush little baby don't you cry" type of nursery rhyme in the vocal melody.  Kind of forgettable.  "I Would Like to Dance" has an upbeat lounge feel with a REALLY strong verse melody.  Best song on the album!  Spanish vibes and a verse melody reminding me of Bread's "Make It With You" but I think that's coincidental.  You know one of those instances where I hear something but nobody else does.  We all have those moments!  Hearing a famous Bread song is just... let's just say, nobody else does, haha.  "Roses" is peacefully and delicately sung.  The atmosphere reminds me of roses blooming and a woman who occupies a garden in a Midwestern town.  Actually the lyrics seem to mention a mysterious girl, so I picture someone who prefers to live alone in peace and approaches people (townspeople or outsiders) with caution.

"This Must Be Wrong" is bluesy with tasty piano.  Nice diversity on Janis' part- she has the right range for this type of song, and this enhances the melody by quite a bit.  "Boy I Really Tied One On" is a nice country/laidback song.  The verse melody is the country part, the line "Wake up, I've got news for you, nobody's knocking at your door" is the chorus.  "Love is Blind" is a short devastating ballad with depressing piano.  A little Linda Ronstandt-like during the "How long will it take before I can't remember, memories I should forget" part.  Not one of the stronger vocal melodies.

Check out Between the Lines and Stars first, then decide if you'd like to check out Aftertones.  I've read that Aftertones was one of Janis Ian's biggest albums in Japan and other places, but I'm not sure I can understand why.  Unless this is a case of a fan following building so much based on Between the Lines, people were anxious to hear her follow up.
4723504
Puttered out at the end, but good for a first attempt
479355
With this book, things are finally getting somewhere. Because I ended up watching the series before reading this one for the first time, I had expectations, but there are several differences to this book and the show. Seems to be happening more often. Good read, but couldn't wait to be done with it. Its hard to read this anew after watching the show.
601961
i'm really enjoying almost done!  i cannot wait to see how it comes together.
4297491
A little tricky to set up, but really great when its all done.
4152437
lots of detail for most of the book and then gets down to final decisions and outcomes and it is like the word quota was met just wrap it up.
12264
the series had to finish, and this was a nice way to do it
4842157
Nice that it wasn't entirely predictable. I didn't start putting the pieces together for until the end.
2736612
I'm sorry to see these parts over..... Alas it is finished... But would recommend them whole

Heartily  to a friend ....
440325
Well, it didn't end quite how I expected it, but I felt that everything worked out the way that I wanted in the end.
370351
It takes a while to develop the plot and build the story line. However, if you can wait it out, the reward is significant. the ending ties everything together nicely and adds a final twist.
2640367
At first this book had me thinking what in the world was  reading,  I wasn't sure at first.  But hold on, everything gets wrapped up in the end.
837468
gets the though process working, good outline to follow .
2065468
Though it takes much longer than I expected to get it correctly set up. It looks VERY NICE after finally done. All the time I spent on installing it is worthwhile!
2842068
The finishing of the product can be improve
4795520
All good things must come to an end, and the Kilenya series has been a very good thing indeed. I'm not going to describe the plot, as others have done a good job doing so and I don't want to risk any spoilers, but things do indeed come together for a very satisfying conclusion. It's been a great (six book) run, and the finish is one that it deserved. Loads of fun and most definitely recommended for anyone who has been reading the Kilenya books.
169044
Took a little more time than expected to put together,but like the end results.