Alien Clay Audiobook By Adrian Tchaikovsky cover art

Alien Clay

Preview

Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Alien Clay

By: Adrian Tchaikovsky
Narrated by: Ben Allen
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $24.95

Buy for $24.95

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

From Arthur C. Clarke Award-winning author Adrian Tchaikovsky comes a far-future epic that confirms his place as a modern master of science fiction, in which a political prisoner must unlock the secrets of a strange and dangerous planet.

The planet of Kiln is where the tyrannical Mandate keeps its prison colony, and for inmates, the journey there is always a one-way trip. One such prisoner is Professor Arton Daghdev, xeno-ecologist and political dissident. Soon after arrival, he discovers that Kiln has a secret. Humanity is not the first intelligent life to set foot there.

In the midst of a ravenous, chaotic ecosystem are the ruins of a civilization, but who were the vanished builders and where did they go? If he can survive both the harsh rule of the camp commandant and the alien horrors of the world around him, then Arton has a chance at making a discovery that might just transform not only Kiln, but distant Earth as well.

This audiobook edition includes an exclusive interview between Ben Allen and Adrian Tchaikovsky.

©2024 Adrian Tchaikovsky (P)2024 Orbit
Adventure First Contact Hard Science Fiction Space Opera Thought-Provoking Science Fiction
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Critic reviews

“Enthralling, epic, immersive, and hugely intelligent.”—Stephen Baxter

“Adrian Tchaikovsky: king of the spiders, master worldbuilder, and asker of intriguing questions. His books are packed with thought-provoking ideas (as well as lots of spiders; did I mention the spiders?). One of the most interesting and accomplished writers in speculative fiction.”—Christopher Paolini

“Adrian Tchaikovsky’s Shards of Earth is one of the most stunning space operas I’ve read this year....Tchaikovsky’s world building is on glorious display as he throws all manner of spaceships, creepy aliens and strange technology into a delicious sci-fi soup. It’s dense, it’s funny, it’s exciting, it’s touching and it’s perfect for someone looking for a space opera built on a grand scale.”—BookPage (starred review)

What listeners say about Alien Clay

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    130
  • 4 Stars
    31
  • 3 Stars
    15
  • 2 Stars
    10
  • 1 Stars
    3
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    147
  • 4 Stars
    24
  • 3 Stars
    9
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    123
  • 4 Stars
    31
  • 3 Stars
    15
  • 2 Stars
    9
  • 1 Stars
    4

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

This might be my favorite book of the year.

Tchaikovsky is fast proving himself to be the Heir to the dynasty of the science fictions grand masters.

I was a different person when I started this story... I'm still me, but I'm more now.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Thought provoking mystery

Another great novel by Tchaikovsky. I really enjoyed the mystery and thought it all fit together very well.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Wild and engaging!

Super story. I was hooked immediately and really sank into it. Great both as sci fi and as political thriller.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Danielle Olivaw Approved

The horrifying yet oddly beautiful beginnings of Asimov's universal Gaia.
Not really, but it felt like getting into the nightmarish bowels of the spread of Gaia from Asimov's Foundation series.
This was a good book, it started slow, but typically held me captivated while listening.
With a beautiful ending to a book that started as a nightmare.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Loved this

Where I found children of time to be a slow start though ultimately very rewarding, this hooked me right from the start. It has a lot to say about the world of here and now from a remote and alien vantage point. There was a moment in the middle where I felt a bit lost and thought maybe I had missed something but it all worked out. Really compelling characters, layered and flawed and relatable even in the most unknowable circumstances, except that we come to know them through Tchaikovsky’s marvelous writing which transports and transcends. Well narrated too. Grateful for the audiobook.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

another masterpiece of the genre

loved it!!! loved it!!! loved it!!!
brilliant on all accounts, best depiction of an alien ecology that I've read to date.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Excellent narration and great story

Good character development, perfect pace, novel and interesting concept. I didn’t want to stop listening. Ben Allen, narrator, is excellent.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Different but worth the time it takes to understand

I was quite confused by this book at first but grew to love it. Highly recommend if you love first contact stories of all kinds

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

"Boschian chimera"

They used a great voice actor to record this story. The author has a great sense of humor. It is a solid conceit for a sci fi story.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Another win!

This was an excellent shorter read that goes deep but resolves nicely. I was particularly happy with the philosophical bend at the end and felt the potential for more was nicely seeded.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!