Gary Ralston

New Narrator takes a while to get the characters

Reviewed: 02-28-25

In this book, the publisher chose a different narrator from the previous books. In the early chapters, he really didn’t have distinct voices. The good news is that by the end of the book, he was a little more synchronized with the previous narrator.

Hang in there.

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Protagonist too good - too powerful.

Reviewed: 02-27-23

Cliché plot. Protagonist with troubled past, Boot Camp, Mentor appears, rite of passage, Dominates in battle with only instincts. All powerful.
Arrogant, evil 2-dimensional alien antagonists. What can the reader identify with? I will start the next book with skepticism.

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1 person found this helpful

What a romp!

Reviewed: 02-20-23

I have enjoyed other more serious books by Michael Mammay, but this one was Fun! Kinda like consuming John Scalzi, then discovering The Kaiju Preservation Society. Wow!

Lots of smiling as I listened. Even a few outbursts of laughter (awkward in public, am I right??). Makings of a series with an ensemble cast…

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3 people found this helpful

A mind-bender the calibre of Philip K. Dick!

Reviewed: 12-16-22

What is reality? What is self? What is it to be human? (What the heck is going on??)

This standalone work of science fiction deserves five stars, from the premise, to the dialogue, to the performance. Among a flood of cookie-cutter work on Audible, this is a beautiful, fresh story from one of my favorite authors. Download and enjoy!

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Narrator steals the show – breathes new life into the story.

Reviewed: 01-11-19

I first read this story about 1975 and loved it. I passed up the audible version for years, thinking my love for the book would never stand the test of reading it again as an adult.

I could not have been more wrong. It is absolutely amazing to me how fresh the story is, even though it was published in 1965. Heinlein had a gift for creating “future history“.

It is still a Heinlein novel, so his female characters, though mostly portrayed as very strong, still can’t get very far from the female roles and stereotypes of that era. He also spends plenty of time making his case for how society should be run.

Now for my favorite part: Lloyd James provides the protagonist, Manny, a delightful, droll Russian accent and expression that brings our reluctant hero to life.

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1 person found this helpful

A social commentary punctuated by sex and violence

Reviewed: 01-03-19

This book definitely held my attention all the way to the end. The book made me smile and made me cry.

I believe this is an earlier work of Richard K Morgan and it shows. In many passages, Morgan dives deep into his thesis about the masculine, feminine and civilization - to the detriment of the story. The action sequences are well done. I found the sex scenes gratuitous and not necessary to the story.

Simon Vance did a good job of narrating.

I would still recommend it to Richard K Morgan fans.

Just before this book, I read one of Morgan’s most recent books, Thin Air. Both the stories are set in the same universe, but the later book is a lot tighter.

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Surprisingly good!

Reviewed: 05-28-18

I don’t think I will ever get over how Jack Campbell handles exposition and backstory. He really should leave it to the narrator rather than trying to work it into character dialogue.

That said, for those of us who have put up with the whole lost fleet series, the story is surprisingly good – a neat little prequel/origin story.

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Oh lord, what a sax solo. Dear lord, the puns!!

Reviewed: 04-29-18

If you are a hardcore Heinlein fan, read it knowing the publisher wanted Spider Robinson’s style and voice to be apparent in the work, while retaining some of Heinlein’s signature elements. Spider has delivered on both counts.

I’d forgotten Spider’s penchant for puns. At times, they distracted from the story, making it contrived. You have been duly warned.

In contrast, I do not recall a more beautiful, soaring prose description of a saxophone solo.

I was delighted Spider also narrated it. He did a great job.

Enjoy!

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A nice origins story with sequels sure to come

Reviewed: 03-11-17

I enjoyed this listen. It's a fresh story set in a universe distinct from others concocted by Alastair Reynolds.

The plot is a bit simplistic, and perhaps aimed at a young adult audience, but enough twists and turns to hold my interest.

Clare Corbett does a lovely job of narration, although strains a bit with a few of the male voices. Certainly not enough to dampen my enjoyment.

I recommend it.

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A Soap Opera. Comforting, but still a soap.

Reviewed: 11-25-16

Pro: Nice to visit with the characters again. Kind of like living with them for a few fortnights.

Con: unless you really, really like mild, situational relationship drama, you will be underwhelmed. Thinking back over the story, it's really hard to pick out where the characters actually go through a true reversal. Mostly, they proceed through the plot points with nothing more than complications.

I slogged through it mostly out of loyalty to the Milesverse - for completeness.

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