Actual Rating : 3.5

So, I am used to read Marvel Comics and watch movies, but this was my first ever novel in that space, and I enjoyed. I later realized that it is a prequel to the Guardians of the Galaxy video game.

It is nothing really new but if you enjoy comics and avenger themed movies, you would like it as well. The story is told in two different timelines. One 12 years ago when young Peter fought alongside, he Resistance on Mercury to prevent an invasion of Earth. The other timeline is present day, when Peter along with other Guardians are tasked with a new mission, go to Mercury station and escort squatter who is there off the base.

To me, old timeline had more appeal but nonetheless I enjoyed current events as well. In general I would recommend this to Marvel fans.

Thank you to #netgalley for the advanced reader copy.

Too much shifting back and forth between times. This would probably be ok in print form, but not for an audiobook. The story was good, but hard to follow.

Thank you Dreamscape and NetGalley for the audiobook!

Full disclosure: I have not played the game this is a prequel to. Going off just movie knowledge of the Guardians of the Galaxy, I was able to follow pretty well but there are little details movie fans won’t readily know compared to the video game. This did not hinder my enjoyment in anyway. On to the review!

This is such a fun romp with the Guardians. Humor, action, and lovely characters abound. The narration is wonderful and embodies the characters wonderfully. This book made me want to pick up the game, so I’d say it did it’s job quite well.
I will say given this is an off shoot of the game it is not kid friendly — there is quite a lot of adult content which I enjoyed and did not expect, but again, not kid friendly. Other than that I have no problem recommending this adventure.

Okay I confess I couldn't finish it... It turns out what comes across as zany and wacky and fun in movies and comics is very difficult to listen to - at least for me - and I had a really hard time staying in this story. My knowledge of the Guardians is not encyclopedic, I've watched the movies and read a few things, but this felt like it was pulling on references to details I wasn't privy to, which meant I constantly felt like I was not in on the joke or not catching the inside jabs. I found the voice differentiation a little over-the-top and distracting, and I just couldn't follow this one. I thought it was going to be a fun, light, easy listen but it just wasn't for me...

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an ARC of the audiobook.

3.5/5 stars - I love all things Marvel and I didn’t even realize this was a prequel to the Guardians of the Galaxy video game when I began reading. I thoroughly enjoyed the banter between the Guardians, especially whenever slang was explained to Drax. There were several laugh out loud moments. I do not plan to play the video game, but I enjoyed the audiobook experience very much.

Thank you to #netgalley for the advanced reader copy.

This read like fan fiction to me. While parts of the character's personalities from the original comics and even the movies felt similar, the writing was not engaging or well-developed. It was written as a prequel for a video game, so perhaps my expectations were too high. This was a 2.5 star read for me.

When M.K. England announced this book I was on board immediately. Having read their previous book The Disasters, I knew just how well and enjoyably they could write misfits in space and knew they were the perfect fit to write a book for the Guardians of the Galaxy. I absolutely loved the Disasters and yet, somehow, I might have enjoyed No Guts, No Glory even more. It was decidedly less queer which was my only real negative but I could tell it was a more adult book and I enjoyed that and the way the author tackled more adult topics. I think my biggest and favorite takeaway from this book was that I loved how much emphasis England put on mental health and therapy. This book deals with two timelines which include the throes of and the aftermath of war and England handled that with sensitivity and grace. I think by having the flashback timeline told mostly through Kor-El who is not one of the Guardians but instead one who interacted a lot with Peter 12 years ago was a smart choice. We were able to have a little bit more maturity and deeper looks into some of the action and motives than we would have gotten from Peter. I loved Kor-El and I actually found myself really engaging with the 12-years past interludes more than I would have expected given that it was in the midst of a brutal war. I think that's all to England's credit and story-telling. They did a good job at establishing the new rules and new timeline of the Guardians that exist in this book and how they differ from the movies. It took me a little bit to catch up but not very long at all and I found myself enjoying this new history that England was weaving and the new dynamics of the Guardians. I really enjoyed this book. England proved with the Disasters their skill at fun group dynamics but they really took it to another level here and really tapped into the particular levels of humor and chaos that the Guardians inhabit. There were a number of times listening to this that I had to stop and just wheeze with laughter.
The narrator also did a really good job. His Peter and Rocket were best but I could always tell who was talking and and he brought humor and heart in all the right places. When you're dealing with characters like this where several of the characters are extremely well loved and popular for their film portrayals it's a tall order for one person alone to voice them all but Austin Rising did an admirable job. His Rocket performance in particular was very similar to Bradley Cooper's to me and I was impressed. So my hats off to you Austin. That was a tough job but you did good.
Overall, Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy No Guts, No Glory was far more and better than I was expecting and a truly enjoyable audiobook. It had more depth, seriousness, and heart than I expected but plenty of heart and a wonderful narrator. I sped through this audiobook in a single day, I just couldn't stop listening. Well done everyone involved but especially M.K. England. Well done especially to you.

No idea about the video game or comics; I've only seen the movies. The story was fun and character interaction was well done. Good narration. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook

Meh. I hate to say it but the darn book seemed to rely so much on last knowledge and love of previously introduced characters in the MCU that there was zero character development in this book. Then throw in new characters and the constant back and forth in time.. ugh, my brain hurts. I'm mad at myself cuz I love all things superhero and/or comic related. I hate it but this book was a letdown for me. 😔

This was fun and entertaining.

England perfectly captures the frictions, bantering, and squabbles that make the Guardians such an enjoyable team-as-found-family to root for while also achieving a more progressive and deeper character exploration than in the recent films.

Told in a split timeline, we really get to see the growth that Peter has experienced but even more surprisingly, we get to see where he wants to be and how he knows he has more to learn and experience to get there.

This is a prequel to a video game and doesn’t share a continuity with the films, but is easy to access whether you’ve seen the films or not. I’m excited to pick up the game next time I have some extra cash.

The narration also adds to the fun, with a very intuitive reading voice that matches both the funny parts and the serious, emotional parts.

Definitely worth a listen.

Thank you to Marvel & Netgalley for an audiobook in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Guardians of The Galaxy are some of my favorite heroes. They help space and time and this book was such an adventure to listen to. Can't wait for more. M.K England did such an amazing job with his own interpretation of these heroes. The narrator was perfection as well, I listened to it at work and had to hold back a lot of my laughter.

No Guts, No Glory follows our heroes as they head to Mercury because someone is messing around on an old base there. The story jumps back and forth between the present day and the past with Peter's relationship with Ko-Rel.

I'll admit I spent far too much time trying to figure out where this book fit into the MCU timeline only to have England explain on Goodreads that it doesn't. D'oh.

I often think it must be easy to write established characters, but, in fact, it's probably pretty difficult. Here you have 5 separate characters whose unique voices are crafted by the actors who play them and not just by one author. To remain true to the fandom that's something an author needs to emulate. This is one thing I think England does really well. Peter Quill and Rocket were the two who stood out the most as sounding exactly like their on screen counterparts. Drax and Gamora were good, but not great, and well, Groot is Groot, so that must have been fun.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ALC. Austin Rising was an awesome narrator and kudos to him for sounding EXACTLY like Quill and Rocket. I really recommend this book for fans of the Guardians franchise.