Chapter 1 or so is available on youtube so you can preview.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ApLktLIJQD0
I listened attentively. The narration is good, proper pacing. The background music and use of stereo are both excellent.
The scene describes a combative encounter between a loanshark's enforcer and the hapless banned professional gambler. The description of their encounter is reasonably accurate though not perfectly so. Here the narration suffers a bit, since it's not possible to dramatize hand to hand fighting in a calm voice. I did not think it perfectly realistic, but also didn't find it ridiculously inaccurate. Happily, most people have little or even no combat experience. I also felt the description of being punched unconscious stilted: when one loses consciousness one doesn't dream about grandma or such.
The story brings out related conflicts: the debtor faces the economic crunch, the familial crunch, and also the crunch of the consequences of his past bad choices.
I enjoyed listening to it, despite its limits, since "it's just a story". I didn't feel something compelling about it, but also didn't click out.
I can recommend this if you enjoy good narration, excellent uses of sound effects, background music, and violent conflict somehow interests you: with caveats.
If someone telegraphs their inbound punch, you can always react to it to reduce the effect of their blow, for example.
WIth a few caveats I can recommend this audio book as a way to pass the time on your commute, or as a way to give your eyes a rest, or as an insight into how Nicolas Cole thinks of literature. I suggest taking a "second order" view: Why does Cole write this story in this way? Ignore monetization, that's just the question of the paywall.
In any event: three narrative arcs are open. Listen to or read the whole story to find out how they play out!
I loved the story! Incredible job for a first fiction book! The story is interesting and engaging, the characters are fun, and the narration of the audiobook is excellent! Super high quality and a definite worthwhile read!
A fun, fast-paced adventure with fun characters and a world of mystery to explore.
Possibly the best writer's writer of our time! From strategy to execution, Cole does what many authors attempt to do but fail. There's no downtime in this book and no wasted words.