-
Children of Time
- Narrated by: Mel Hudson
- Length: 16 hrs and 31 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Buy for $29.41
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Publisher's summary
Adrian Tchaikovksy's critically acclaimed stand-alone novel Children of Time is the epic story of humanity's battle for survival on a terraformed planet.
Who will inherit this new Earth?
The last remnants of the human race left a dying Earth, desperate to find a new home among the stars. Following in the footsteps of their ancestors, they discover the greatest treasure of the past age - a world terraformed and prepared for human life.
But all is not right in this new Eden. In the long years since the planet was abandoned, the work of its architects has borne disastrous fruit. The planet is not waiting for them pristine and unoccupied. New masters have turned it from a refuge into mankind's worst nightmare.
Now two civilizations are on a collision course, both testing the boundaries of what they will do to survive. As the fate of humanity hangs in the balance, who are the true heirs of this new Earth?
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
Shards of Earth
- By: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrated by: Sophie Aldred
- Length: 18 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Idris has neither aged nor slept since they remade him in the war. And one of humanity's heroes now scrapes by on a freelance salvage vessel, to avoid the attention of greater powers. After Earth was destroyed, mankind created a fighting elite to save their species, enhanced humans such as Idris. In the silence of space they could communicate, mind-to-mind, with the enemy. Then their alien aggressors, the Architects, simply disappeared - and Idris and his kind became obsolete. Now, 50 years later, Idris and his crew have discovered something strange abandoned in space.
-
-
Not sure what the point was [Spoilers]
- By C. Andrew Hessler on 08-27-21
-
Hyperion
- By: Dan Simmons
- Narrated by: Marc Vietor, Allyson Johnson, Kevin Pariseau, and others
- Length: 20 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On the world called Hyperion, beyond the law of the Hegemony of Man, there waits the creature called the Shrike. There are those who worship it. There are those who fear it. And there are those who have vowed to destroy it. In the Valley of the Time Tombs, where huge, brooding structures move backward through time, the Shrike waits for them all.
-
-
The Shrike Awaits. Enter The Time Tombs...
- By Michael on 10-13-12
By: Dan Simmons
-
We Are Legion (We Are Bob)
- Bobiverse, Book 1
- By: Dennis E. Taylor
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There's a reason We Are Legion was named Audible's Best Science Fiction Book of 2016: Its irresistibly irreverent wit! Bob Johansson has just sold his software company for a small fortune and is looking forward to a life of leisure. The first item on his to-do list: Spending his newfound windfall. On an urge to splurge, he signs up to have his head cryogenically preserved in case of death. Then he gets himself killed crossing the street. Waking up 117 years later, Bob discovers his mind has been uploaded into a sentient space probe with the ability to replicate itself.
-
-
Ignore the Publisher's Summary! This is Amazing!
- By PW on 04-12-17
By: Dennis E. Taylor
-
Project Hail Mary
- By: Andy Weir
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 16 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ryland Grace is the sole survivor on a desperate, last-chance mission - and if he fails, humanity and the Earth itself will perish. Except that right now, he doesn't know that. He can't even remember his own name, let alone the nature of his assignment or how to complete it. All he knows is that he's been asleep for a very, very long time. And he's just been awakened to find himself millions of miles from home, with nothing but two corpses for company.
-
-
Bazinga
- By Davidgonzalezsr on 05-04-21
By: Andy Weir
-
Artemis
- By: Andy Weir
- Narrated by: Rosario Dawson
- Length: 8 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Jazz Bashara is a criminal. Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is tough if you're not a rich tourist or an eccentric billionaire. So smuggling in the occasional harmless bit of contraband barely counts, right? Not when you've got debts to pay and your job as a porter barely covers the rent. Everything changes when Jazz sees the chance to commit the perfect crime, with a reward too lucrative to turn down.
-
-
A ferrari with no motor
- By will on 11-18-17
By: Andy Weir
-
Cage of Souls
- By: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 23 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The sun is bloated, diseased, dying perhaps. Beneath its baneful light, Shadrapar, last of all cities, harbours fewer than 100,000 human souls. Built on the ruins of countless civilisations, Shadrapar is a museum, a midden, an asylum, a prison on a world that is ever more alien to humanity. Bearing witness to the desperate struggle for existence between life old and new is Stefan Advani: rebel, outlaw, prisoner, survivor.
-
-
Slow Start, Strong Finish
- By Jacob McCollum on 05-01-23
-
Shards of Earth
- By: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrated by: Sophie Aldred
- Length: 18 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Idris has neither aged nor slept since they remade him in the war. And one of humanity's heroes now scrapes by on a freelance salvage vessel, to avoid the attention of greater powers. After Earth was destroyed, mankind created a fighting elite to save their species, enhanced humans such as Idris. In the silence of space they could communicate, mind-to-mind, with the enemy. Then their alien aggressors, the Architects, simply disappeared - and Idris and his kind became obsolete. Now, 50 years later, Idris and his crew have discovered something strange abandoned in space.
-
-
Not sure what the point was [Spoilers]
- By C. Andrew Hessler on 08-27-21
-
Hyperion
- By: Dan Simmons
- Narrated by: Marc Vietor, Allyson Johnson, Kevin Pariseau, and others
- Length: 20 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On the world called Hyperion, beyond the law of the Hegemony of Man, there waits the creature called the Shrike. There are those who worship it. There are those who fear it. And there are those who have vowed to destroy it. In the Valley of the Time Tombs, where huge, brooding structures move backward through time, the Shrike waits for them all.
-
-
The Shrike Awaits. Enter The Time Tombs...
- By Michael on 10-13-12
By: Dan Simmons
-
We Are Legion (We Are Bob)
- Bobiverse, Book 1
- By: Dennis E. Taylor
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There's a reason We Are Legion was named Audible's Best Science Fiction Book of 2016: Its irresistibly irreverent wit! Bob Johansson has just sold his software company for a small fortune and is looking forward to a life of leisure. The first item on his to-do list: Spending his newfound windfall. On an urge to splurge, he signs up to have his head cryogenically preserved in case of death. Then he gets himself killed crossing the street. Waking up 117 years later, Bob discovers his mind has been uploaded into a sentient space probe with the ability to replicate itself.
-
-
Ignore the Publisher's Summary! This is Amazing!
- By PW on 04-12-17
By: Dennis E. Taylor
-
Project Hail Mary
- By: Andy Weir
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 16 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ryland Grace is the sole survivor on a desperate, last-chance mission - and if he fails, humanity and the Earth itself will perish. Except that right now, he doesn't know that. He can't even remember his own name, let alone the nature of his assignment or how to complete it. All he knows is that he's been asleep for a very, very long time. And he's just been awakened to find himself millions of miles from home, with nothing but two corpses for company.
-
-
Bazinga
- By Davidgonzalezsr on 05-04-21
By: Andy Weir
-
Artemis
- By: Andy Weir
- Narrated by: Rosario Dawson
- Length: 8 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Jazz Bashara is a criminal. Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is tough if you're not a rich tourist or an eccentric billionaire. So smuggling in the occasional harmless bit of contraband barely counts, right? Not when you've got debts to pay and your job as a porter barely covers the rent. Everything changes when Jazz sees the chance to commit the perfect crime, with a reward too lucrative to turn down.
-
-
A ferrari with no motor
- By will on 11-18-17
By: Andy Weir
-
Cage of Souls
- By: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 23 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The sun is bloated, diseased, dying perhaps. Beneath its baneful light, Shadrapar, last of all cities, harbours fewer than 100,000 human souls. Built on the ruins of countless civilisations, Shadrapar is a museum, a midden, an asylum, a prison on a world that is ever more alien to humanity. Bearing witness to the desperate struggle for existence between life old and new is Stefan Advani: rebel, outlaw, prisoner, survivor.
-
-
Slow Start, Strong Finish
- By Jacob McCollum on 05-01-23
-
Seveneves
- A Novel
- By: Neal Stephenson
- Narrated by: Mary Robinette Kowal, Will Damron
- Length: 31 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A catastrophic event renders the earth a ticking time bomb. In a feverish race against the inevitable, nations around the globe band together to devise an ambitious plan to ensure the survival of humanity far beyond our atmosphere, in outer space.
-
-
Odd narrator choice
- By Josh Mitchell on 05-30-15
By: Neal Stephenson
-
The Martian
- By: Andy Weir
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 10 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars. Now, he's sure he'll be the first person to die there. After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive - and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive. But Mark isn't ready to give up yet.
-
-
I love Wil Wheaton but why not R. C. Bray?
- By L. Newman on 01-11-20
By: Andy Weir
-
Drive
- An Expanse Short Story
- By: James S. A. Corey
- Narrated by: Jefferson Mays
- Length: 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A short story set in the universe of James S. A. Corey's NYT best-selling Expanse series. Now a Prime Original series. This story will be available in the complete Expanse story collection, Memory’s Legion.
-
-
Fun little short story
- By Carson on 12-28-21
-
Dark Matter (Movie Tie-In)
- A Novel
- By: Blake Crouch
- Narrated by: Jon Lindstrom
- Length: 10 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
“Are you happy with your life?” Those are the last words Jason Dessen hears before the kidnapper knocks him unconscious. Before he awakens to find himself strapped to a gurney, surrounded by strangers in hazmat suits. Before a man he’s never met smiles down at him and says, “Welcome back, my friend.” In this world he’s woken up to, Jason’s life is not the one he knows. His wife is not his wife.
-
-
Another Book Where the Ratings Lie
- By Matthew on 08-05-16
By: Blake Crouch
-
Snow Crash
- By: Neal Stephenson
- Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
- Length: 17 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Neal Stephenson is a blazing new force on the sci-fi scene. With the groundbreaking cyberpunk novel Snow Crash, he has "vaulted onto the literary stage." It weaves virtual reality, Sumerian myth, and just about everything in between with a cool, hip cybersensibility - in short, it is the gigathriller of the information age.
-
-
A solid sci-fi novel
- By Brent on 02-05-03
By: Neal Stephenson
-
Dune
- By: Frank Herbert
- Narrated by: Scott Brick, Orlagh Cassidy, Euan Morton, and others
- Length: 21 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Here is the novel that will be forever considered a triumph of the imagination. Set on the desert planet Arrakis, Dune is the story of the boy Paul Atreides, who would become the mysterious man known as Maud'dib. He would avenge the traitorous plot against his noble family and would bring to fruition humankind's most ancient and unattainable dream.
-
-
This classic deserves better
- By Matthew Salvo on 07-01-21
By: Frank Herbert
-
The Name of the Wind
- Kingkiller Chronicle, Book 1
- By: Patrick Rothfuss
- Narrated by: Nick Podehl
- Length: 27 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This is a tale of sorrow, a tale of survival, a tale of one man's search for meaning in his universe, and how that search, and the indomitable will that drove it, gave birth to a legend.
-
-
Not sure why the reviews are so polar opposite.
- By Aaron Altman on 06-28-09
By: Patrick Rothfuss
-
Ender's Game
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki, Harlan Ellison
- Length: 11 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A full-cast production of the science fiction classic featuring original recordings of Orson Scott Card
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Red Rising (Part 1 of 2) (Dramatized Adaptation)
- Red Rising, Book 1
- By: Pierce Brown
- Narrated by: full cast, Stewart Crank, John Kielty, and others
- Length: 7 hrs and 31 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations. Yet he toils willingly, trusting that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children. But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity reached the surface generations ago. Vast cities and lush wilds spread across the planet. Darrow—and Reds like him—are nothing more than slaves to a decadent ruling class.
-
-
Fantastic
- By Tyler on 07-06-23
By: Pierce Brown
-
The Singularity Trap
- By: Dennis E. Taylor
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 11 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Dennis E. Taylor, author of the best-selling Bobiverse trilogy, explores a whole different, darker world in this sci-fi stand-alone. Determined to give his wife and children a better life back home, Ivan Pritchard ventures to the edge of known space to join the crew of the Mad Astra as an asteroid miner. He's prepared for hard work and loneliness—but not the unthinkable. After coming into contact with a mysterious alien substance, Pritchard finds an unwelcome entity sharing his mind, and a disturbing physical transformation taking place.
-
-
Excellent.
- By Amy Scott on 06-13-18
By: Dennis E. Taylor
-
Nettle & Bone
- By: T. Kingfisher
- Narrated by: Amara Jasper
- Length: 9 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Marra never wanted to be a hero. As the shy, convent-raised, third-born daughter, she escaped the traditional fate of princesses, to be married away for the sake of an uncaring throne. But her sister wasn’t so fortunate—and after years of silence, Marra is done watching her suffer at the hands of a powerful and abusive prince. Seeking help for her rescue mission, Marra is offered the tools she needs, but only if she can complete three seemingly impossible tasks:
-
-
If Only I Could Cut Out Half the Story
- By Ree on 04-28-22
By: T. Kingfisher
-
Jurassic Park
- A Novel
- By: Michael Crichton
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 15 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An astonishing technique for recovering and cloning dinosaur DNA has been discovered. Now humankind’s most thrilling fantasies have come true. Creatures extinct for eons roam Jurassic Park with their awesome presence and profound mystery, and all the world can visit them - for a price.
-
-
CHAOS THEORY
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 01-30-16
By: Michael Crichton
Critic reviews
Featured Article: The Best Sci-Fi Audiobooks to Blast You into Another Galaxy
There’s a certain magic in losing yourself in the imaginative world of science fiction. But when new landscapes and realities are paired with brilliant audio performances, the experience is more immersive than ever. We’ve curated some of the best science fiction audiobooks, ranked not only for their vividly constructed narratives, but also for the compelling, stellar narration that brings them to life. So grab your headphones and settle in as reality fades away.
Related to this topic
-
Fleet of Worlds
- 200 Years Before the Discovery of the Ringworld
- By: Larry Niven, Edward M. Lerner
- Narrated by: Tom Weiner
- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Fleet of Worlds takes a closer look at Human-Puppeteer (Citizen) relations and the events leading up to Niven's first Ringworld novel. Kirsten Quinn-Kovacks is among the best and brightest of her people. She gratefully serves the gentle race that rescued her ancestors from a dying starship, gave them a world, and nurtures them still. If only the Citizens knew where Kirsten's people came from.
-
-
Hurrah!
- By Bruce on 01-25-08
By: Larry Niven, and others
-
Expendable
- League of Peoples, Book 1
- By: James Alan Gardner
- Narrated by: Christine Marshall
- Length: 10 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Under the benevolent leadership of the League of Peoples, there is no war, little crime, and life is sacred...unless you're an Explorer. The ugly, the flawed, the misfit, the deformed, they are the unwanted, flung to the farthest corners of the galaxy to investigate hostile planets and strange, vicious creatures. Out there, there are a thousand different - and terrible - ways to die.
-
-
FU@@ING EXPLORERS
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 03-06-15
-
Beyond the Aquila Rift
- By: Alastair Reynolds
- Narrated by: Tom Dheere
- Length: 1 hr and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Beyond the Aquila Rift: It's shorthand for the trip no one ever hopes to make by accident. The one that will screw up the rest of your life, the one that creates the ghosts you see haunting the shadows of company bars across the whole Bubble. Men and women ripped out of time, cut adrift from families and lovers by an accident of an alien technology we use but rarely comprehend.
-
-
Great story, mediocre audio book.
- By Amazon Customer on 04-17-12
-
Prador Moon
- A Novel of the Polity, Book 1
- By: Neal Asher
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 7 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Neal Asher takes on first contact, Polity style. This original novel recounts the first contact between the aggressive Prador aliens, and the Polity Collective as it is forced to retool its society to a war footing. The overwhelming brute force of the Prador dreadnaughts causes several worlds and space stations to be overrun. Prador Moon follows the initial Polity defeats, to the first draws, and culminates in what might be the first Polity victory, told from the point of view of two unlikely heroes.
-
-
Narration Terrible; Prador’s Moon has Big Ideas and Epic Scale
- By For_the_Love_of_Books on 08-09-18
By: Neal Asher
-
The Medusa Chronicles
- By: Stephen Baxter, Alastair Reynolds
- Narrated by: Peter Kenny
- Length: 12 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Howard Falcon almost lost his life in an accident as the first human astronaut to explore the atmosphere of Jupiter - and a combination of human ingenuity and technical expertise brought him back. But he is no longer himself. Instead he has been changed into an augmented human: part man, part machine, and exceptionally capable.
-
-
Almost stopped listening. Glad I didn't.
- By cek on 08-21-16
By: Stephen Baxter, and others
-
Conquest
- The Chronicles of the Invaders: Book 1
- By: John Connolly, Jennifer Ridyard
- Narrated by: Nicola Barber
- Length: 14 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Earth has been invaded by the Illyri, a beautiful, civilized, yet ruthless alien race. Humanity has been conquered, but still it fights the invaders. The Resistance grows stronger, for it is the young people of Earth who battle the Illyri.
-
-
Spoiled Teenager or Sci-fi?
- By Bob H. on 04-24-16
By: John Connolly, and others
-
Fleet of Worlds
- 200 Years Before the Discovery of the Ringworld
- By: Larry Niven, Edward M. Lerner
- Narrated by: Tom Weiner
- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Fleet of Worlds takes a closer look at Human-Puppeteer (Citizen) relations and the events leading up to Niven's first Ringworld novel. Kirsten Quinn-Kovacks is among the best and brightest of her people. She gratefully serves the gentle race that rescued her ancestors from a dying starship, gave them a world, and nurtures them still. If only the Citizens knew where Kirsten's people came from.
-
-
Hurrah!
- By Bruce on 01-25-08
By: Larry Niven, and others
-
Expendable
- League of Peoples, Book 1
- By: James Alan Gardner
- Narrated by: Christine Marshall
- Length: 10 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Under the benevolent leadership of the League of Peoples, there is no war, little crime, and life is sacred...unless you're an Explorer. The ugly, the flawed, the misfit, the deformed, they are the unwanted, flung to the farthest corners of the galaxy to investigate hostile planets and strange, vicious creatures. Out there, there are a thousand different - and terrible - ways to die.
-
-
FU@@ING EXPLORERS
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 03-06-15
-
Beyond the Aquila Rift
- By: Alastair Reynolds
- Narrated by: Tom Dheere
- Length: 1 hr and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Beyond the Aquila Rift: It's shorthand for the trip no one ever hopes to make by accident. The one that will screw up the rest of your life, the one that creates the ghosts you see haunting the shadows of company bars across the whole Bubble. Men and women ripped out of time, cut adrift from families and lovers by an accident of an alien technology we use but rarely comprehend.
-
-
Great story, mediocre audio book.
- By Amazon Customer on 04-17-12
-
Prador Moon
- A Novel of the Polity, Book 1
- By: Neal Asher
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 7 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Neal Asher takes on first contact, Polity style. This original novel recounts the first contact between the aggressive Prador aliens, and the Polity Collective as it is forced to retool its society to a war footing. The overwhelming brute force of the Prador dreadnaughts causes several worlds and space stations to be overrun. Prador Moon follows the initial Polity defeats, to the first draws, and culminates in what might be the first Polity victory, told from the point of view of two unlikely heroes.
-
-
Narration Terrible; Prador’s Moon has Big Ideas and Epic Scale
- By For_the_Love_of_Books on 08-09-18
By: Neal Asher
-
The Medusa Chronicles
- By: Stephen Baxter, Alastair Reynolds
- Narrated by: Peter Kenny
- Length: 12 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Howard Falcon almost lost his life in an accident as the first human astronaut to explore the atmosphere of Jupiter - and a combination of human ingenuity and technical expertise brought him back. But he is no longer himself. Instead he has been changed into an augmented human: part man, part machine, and exceptionally capable.
-
-
Almost stopped listening. Glad I didn't.
- By cek on 08-21-16
By: Stephen Baxter, and others
-
Conquest
- The Chronicles of the Invaders: Book 1
- By: John Connolly, Jennifer Ridyard
- Narrated by: Nicola Barber
- Length: 14 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Earth has been invaded by the Illyri, a beautiful, civilized, yet ruthless alien race. Humanity has been conquered, but still it fights the invaders. The Resistance grows stronger, for it is the young people of Earth who battle the Illyri.
-
-
Spoiled Teenager or Sci-fi?
- By Bob H. on 04-24-16
By: John Connolly, and others
-
Intrinsic
- By: Philip C. Quaintrell
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 15 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Kalian Gaines has a secret; he just doesn't know it yet. He looks like us, he lives like us...but he is not one of us. Kalian knows nothing outside of his mundane life teaching history on 30th-century Earth, until a day like any other triggers a series of events that will tie his fate to that of humanity. A human handprint, embedded into a rock with alien script, is discovered on a moon that mankind has never set foot on. This discovery holds a secret, which will sweep Kalian into the heart of a conspiracy that has corrupted the galaxy for 200,000 years.
-
-
Unexpectedly Brilliant
- By Fraser on 04-22-18
-
Predator - Incursion
- The Rage War, Book 1
- By: Tim Lebbon
- Narrated by: John Chancer
- Length: 11 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Predator ships stream into human space in unprecedented numbers. The Colonial Marines, controlled by Weyland-Yutani, respond to the incursion, thus entering the Rage War. This terrifying assault by the Yautja cannot go unchallenged, yet the cost of combat is high. Predators are master combatants, and each encounter yields a high body count. Then, when Lt. Johnny Mains and his marines - the VoidLarks - enter the fray, they discover an enemy deadlier than any could imagine.
-
-
I was really wanted to like this book!!
- By jeremy lamarch on 05-15-16
By: Tim Lebbon
-
The Course of Empire
- By: Eric Flint, K. D. Wentworth
- Narrated by: Chris Patton
- Length: 18 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Conquered by the Jao twenty years ago, the Earth is shackled under alien tyranny - and threatened by the even more dangerous Ekhat, one of whose genocidal extermination fleets is coming to the solar system. The only chance for human survival is in the hands of an unusual pair of allies: a young Jao prince, newly arrived to Terra to assume his duties, and a young human woman brought up amongst the Jao occupiers. But, as their tentative alliance takes shape, they are under pressure from all sides.
-
-
ERIC FLINT'S VENTURE INTO FULL SCI-FI MODE
- By Professor on 11-01-12
By: Eric Flint, and others
-
Altered Starscape
- Andromedan Dark, Book 1
- By: Ian Douglas
- Narrated by: Nick Sullivan
- Length: 12 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The year is 2162. Thirty-eight years after first contact, Lord Commander Grayson St. Clair leads the Tellus Ad Astra on an unprecedented expedition to the Galactic Core, carrying more than a million scientists, diplomats, soldiers, and AIs. Despite his reservations about their alien hosts, St. Clair is deeply committed to his people - especially after they're sucked into a black hole and spat out four billion years in the future. Civilizations have risen and fallen. The Andromeda Galaxy is drifting into the Milky Way. And Earth is most certainly a distant memory.
-
-
painful
- By AndyVee on 02-04-17
By: Ian Douglas
-
The Wrong Stars
- By: Tim Pratt
- Narrated by: John Glouchevitch
- Length: 10 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The shady crew of the White Raven run freight and salvage at the fringes of our solar system. They discover the wreck of a centuries-old exploration vessel floating light years away from its intended destination and revive its sole occupant, who wakes with news of First Alien Contact. When the crew break it to her that humanity has alien allies already, she reveals that these are very different extra-terrestrials and the gifts they bestowed on her could kill all humanity, or take it out to the most distant stars.
-
-
Save yourself a credit, read something else
- By Ian Thomas Healy on 09-19-18
By: Tim Pratt
-
The Tar-Aiym Krang
- A Pip & Flinx Adventure
- By: Alan Dean Foster
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 7 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Moth was a beautiful planet, the only one with wings - two great golden clouds suspended in space around it. Here was a wide-open world for any venture a man might scheme. The planet attracted unwary travelers, hardened space-sailors, and merchant buccaneers - a teeming, constantly shifting horde that provided a comfortable income for certain quick-witted fellows like Flinx and his pet flying snake Pip.
-
-
The First of the Flinx and Pip Novels AT LAST!
- By Chris on 01-20-09
By: Alan Dean Foster
-
Veiled Alliances
- A Prequel Novella to the Saga of Seven Suns
- By: Kevin J. Anderson
- Narrated by: David Colacci
- Length: 4 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This audiobook shows the origin of the green priests on Theroc, the first Roamer skymining operations on a gas-giant planet, the discovery of the Klikiss robots entombed in an abandoned alien city, the initial Ildiran expedition to Earth, the rescue of the generation ship Burton and the tragedy that leads to sinister breeding experiments. Veiled Alliances is an excellent starting point for readers new to the Saga, as well as an unforgettable adventure for fans of the series.
-
-
Start with Book One
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 06-05-14
-
More Than Honor
- Worlds of Honor #1
- By: David Weber, David Drake, S. M. Stirling
- Narrated by: Victor Bevine, L. J. Ganser, Khristine Hvam
- Length: 10 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
New York Times best-selling author David Weber invites David Drake and S.M. Stirling, two of today's top writers of military science fiction, to join him in an exploration of Honor Harrington's universe.
-
-
Honor Harrington Universe Book 8
- By Professor on 10-17-12
By: David Weber, and others
-
Ark Royal
- By: Christopher G. Nuttall
- Narrated by: Ralph Lister
- Length: 13 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Seventy years ago, the interstellar supercarrier Ark Royal was the pride of the Royal Navy. But now, her weapons are outdated and her solid-state armour nothing more than a burden on her colossal hull. She floats in permanent orbit near Earth, a dumping ground for the officers and crew the Royal Navy wishes to keep out of the public eye. But when a deadly alien threat appears, the modern starships built by humanity are no match for the powerful alien weapons.
-
-
A good solid effort at a Space Opera
- By Jim In Texas! on 08-05-14
-
The Atlantis Gene
- The Origin Mystery, Book 1
- By: A.G. Riddle
- Narrated by: Stephen Bel Davies
- Length: 15 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Seventy thousand years ago, the human race almost went extinct. We survived, but no one knows how.
Until now. The countdown to the next stage of human evolution is about to begin, and humanity might not survive this time. The Immari are good at keeping secrets. For 2,000 years, they've hidden the truth about human evolution. They've also searched for an ancient enemy - a threat that could wipe out the human race. Now the search is over.
-
-
Pretty bad, but not the worst I've ever read
- By january on 03-20-14
By: A.G. Riddle
-
Battle Cruiser
- Lost Colonies, Book 1
- By: B. V. Larson
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 13 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
One starship will either save Earth or destroy her. A century ago our star erupted, destroying Earth's wormhole network and closing off trade with her colonized planets. After being out of contact with the younger worlds for so many years, humanity is shocked when a huge ship appears at the edge of the solar system. Our outdated navy investigates, both curious and fearful. What they learn from the massive vessel shocks the planet.
-
-
Disappointing, Juvenile
- By Russ on 12-27-15
By: B. V. Larson
-
Mech Zero: The Dominant
- By: B. V. Larson
- Narrated by: Mirron Willis
- Length: 1 hr and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Death awaits the curious! Out along the rim of the galaxy hangs a loose configuration of some 60 stars known as the Faustian Chain. This whorl of sparkling suns is rich in planets and occupies an irregular volume of space some 20 light years in diameter. From an external viewpoint, the Chain presents a colorful display of plasma-streams, luminous nebulae and sparkling pinpoints of light.
-
-
No hero's here
- By SteveM on 07-17-16
By: B. V. Larson
People who viewed this also viewed...
-
Shards of Earth
- By: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrated by: Sophie Aldred
- Length: 18 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Idris has neither aged nor slept since they remade him in the war. And one of humanity's heroes now scrapes by on a freelance salvage vessel, to avoid the attention of greater powers. After Earth was destroyed, mankind created a fighting elite to save their species, enhanced humans such as Idris. In the silence of space they could communicate, mind-to-mind, with the enemy. Then their alien aggressors, the Architects, simply disappeared - and Idris and his kind became obsolete. Now, 50 years later, Idris and his crew have discovered something strange abandoned in space.
-
-
Not sure what the point was [Spoilers]
- By C. Andrew Hessler on 08-27-21
-
Service Model
- By: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrated by: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Length: 12 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Humanity is a dying breed, utterly reliant on artificial labor and service. When a domesticated robot gets a nasty little idea downloaded into its core programming, they murder their owner. The robot discovers they can also do something else they never did before: They can run away. Fleeing the household they enter a wider world they never knew existed, where the age-old hierarchy of humans at the top is disintegrating into ruins and an entire robot ecosystem devoted to human wellbeing is having to find a new purpose.
-
-
Another banger from Tchaikovsky
- By J. C. Amos on 06-09-24
-
Lock In (Narrated by Amber Benson)
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Amber Benson
- Length: 10 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Not too long from today, a new, highly contagious virus makes its way across the globe. Most who get sick experience nothing worse than flu, fever, and headaches. But for the unlucky one percent - and nearly five million souls in the United States alone - the disease causes "Lock In": Victims fully awake and aware, but unable to move or respond to stimulus. The disease affects young, old, rich, poor, people of every color and creed. The world changes to meet the challenge.
-
-
Love Amber's Narration
- By Anthony on 09-11-14
By: John Scalzi
-
14
- By: Peter Clines
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There are some odd things about Nate’s new apartment. Of course, he has other things on his mind. He hates his job. He has no money in the bank. No girlfriend. No plans for the future. So while his new home isn’t perfect, it’s livable. The rent is low, the property managers are friendly, and the odd little mysteries don’t nag at him too much. At least, not until he meets Mandy, his neighbor across the hall, and notices something unusual about her apartment. And Xela’s apartment. And Tim’s. And Veek’s.
-
-
Super solid listen!!
- By Magpie on 06-24-12
By: Peter Clines
-
Outland
- Quantum Earth, Book 1
- By: Dennis E. Taylor
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 10 hrs and 29 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When an experiment to study quantum uncertainty goes spectacularly wrong, physics student Bill Rustad and his friends find that they have accidentally created an inter-dimensional portal. They connect to Outland - an alternate Earth with identical geology, but where humans never evolved. The group races to establish control of the portal before the government, the military, or evildoers can take it away. Then everything changes when the Yellowstone supervolcano erupts in an explosion large enough to destroy civilization and kill half the planet.
-
-
I made myself finish. Glad I did.
- By RJPF on 05-26-19
By: Dennis E. Taylor
-
We Are Legion (We Are Bob)
- Bobiverse, Book 1
- By: Dennis E. Taylor
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There's a reason We Are Legion was named Audible's Best Science Fiction Book of 2016: Its irresistibly irreverent wit! Bob Johansson has just sold his software company for a small fortune and is looking forward to a life of leisure. The first item on his to-do list: Spending his newfound windfall. On an urge to splurge, he signs up to have his head cryogenically preserved in case of death. Then he gets himself killed crossing the street. Waking up 117 years later, Bob discovers his mind has been uploaded into a sentient space probe with the ability to replicate itself.
-
-
Ignore the Publisher's Summary! This is Amazing!
- By PW on 04-12-17
By: Dennis E. Taylor
-
Shards of Earth
- By: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrated by: Sophie Aldred
- Length: 18 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Idris has neither aged nor slept since they remade him in the war. And one of humanity's heroes now scrapes by on a freelance salvage vessel, to avoid the attention of greater powers. After Earth was destroyed, mankind created a fighting elite to save their species, enhanced humans such as Idris. In the silence of space they could communicate, mind-to-mind, with the enemy. Then their alien aggressors, the Architects, simply disappeared - and Idris and his kind became obsolete. Now, 50 years later, Idris and his crew have discovered something strange abandoned in space.
-
-
Not sure what the point was [Spoilers]
- By C. Andrew Hessler on 08-27-21
-
Service Model
- By: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrated by: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Length: 12 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Humanity is a dying breed, utterly reliant on artificial labor and service. When a domesticated robot gets a nasty little idea downloaded into its core programming, they murder their owner. The robot discovers they can also do something else they never did before: They can run away. Fleeing the household they enter a wider world they never knew existed, where the age-old hierarchy of humans at the top is disintegrating into ruins and an entire robot ecosystem devoted to human wellbeing is having to find a new purpose.
-
-
Another banger from Tchaikovsky
- By J. C. Amos on 06-09-24
-
Lock In (Narrated by Amber Benson)
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Amber Benson
- Length: 10 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Not too long from today, a new, highly contagious virus makes its way across the globe. Most who get sick experience nothing worse than flu, fever, and headaches. But for the unlucky one percent - and nearly five million souls in the United States alone - the disease causes "Lock In": Victims fully awake and aware, but unable to move or respond to stimulus. The disease affects young, old, rich, poor, people of every color and creed. The world changes to meet the challenge.
-
-
Love Amber's Narration
- By Anthony on 09-11-14
By: John Scalzi
-
14
- By: Peter Clines
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There are some odd things about Nate’s new apartment. Of course, he has other things on his mind. He hates his job. He has no money in the bank. No girlfriend. No plans for the future. So while his new home isn’t perfect, it’s livable. The rent is low, the property managers are friendly, and the odd little mysteries don’t nag at him too much. At least, not until he meets Mandy, his neighbor across the hall, and notices something unusual about her apartment. And Xela’s apartment. And Tim’s. And Veek’s.
-
-
Super solid listen!!
- By Magpie on 06-24-12
By: Peter Clines
-
Outland
- Quantum Earth, Book 1
- By: Dennis E. Taylor
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 10 hrs and 29 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When an experiment to study quantum uncertainty goes spectacularly wrong, physics student Bill Rustad and his friends find that they have accidentally created an inter-dimensional portal. They connect to Outland - an alternate Earth with identical geology, but where humans never evolved. The group races to establish control of the portal before the government, the military, or evildoers can take it away. Then everything changes when the Yellowstone supervolcano erupts in an explosion large enough to destroy civilization and kill half the planet.
-
-
I made myself finish. Glad I did.
- By RJPF on 05-26-19
By: Dennis E. Taylor
-
We Are Legion (We Are Bob)
- Bobiverse, Book 1
- By: Dennis E. Taylor
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There's a reason We Are Legion was named Audible's Best Science Fiction Book of 2016: Its irresistibly irreverent wit! Bob Johansson has just sold his software company for a small fortune and is looking forward to a life of leisure. The first item on his to-do list: Spending his newfound windfall. On an urge to splurge, he signs up to have his head cryogenically preserved in case of death. Then he gets himself killed crossing the street. Waking up 117 years later, Bob discovers his mind has been uploaded into a sentient space probe with the ability to replicate itself.
-
-
Ignore the Publisher's Summary! This is Amazing!
- By PW on 04-12-17
By: Dennis E. Taylor
-
Sufficiently Advanced Magic
- Arcane Ascension, Book 1
- By: Andrew Rowe
- Narrated by: Nick Podehl
- Length: 21 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Five years ago Corin Cadence's brother entered the Serpent Spire - a colossal tower with ever-shifting rooms, traps, and monsters. Those who survive the spire's trials return home with an attunement: a mark granting the bearer magical powers. According to legend, those few who reach the top of the tower will be granted a boon by the spire's goddess. He never returned. Now it's Corin's turn. He's headed to the top floor, on a mission to meet the goddess.
-
-
Very good book
- By Jason N. on 07-20-17
By: Andrew Rowe
-
Project Hail Mary
- By: Andy Weir
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 16 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ryland Grace is the sole survivor on a desperate, last-chance mission - and if he fails, humanity and the Earth itself will perish. Except that right now, he doesn't know that. He can't even remember his own name, let alone the nature of his assignment or how to complete it. All he knows is that he's been asleep for a very, very long time. And he's just been awakened to find himself millions of miles from home, with nothing but two corpses for company.
-
-
Bazinga
- By Davidgonzalezsr on 05-04-21
By: Andy Weir
-
The Wolf of the North Trilogy
- Wolf of the North, Books 1-3
- By: Duncan M. Hamilton
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 32 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Wolf of the North: It has been generations since the Northlands have seen a hero worthy of the title. Many have made the claim, but few have lived to defend it. Timid, weak, and bullied, Wulfric is as unlikely a candidate as there could be. Jorundyr's Path: Jorundyr's Path is walked only by the brave. As Wulfric pursues Adalhaid's Blood Debt, he soon learns that the path to revenge is never easy. The Blood Debt: A blade fit for a hero. An army for a tyrant. A reckoning long awaited, and a tale reaching its end.
-
-
Could have been so much more, a classic even
- By Listener on 01-14-23
-
The Cycle of Arawn
- The Complete Trilogy
- By: Edward W. Robertson
- Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds
- Length: 65 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The White Tree (book one): In Mallon the dark magic of the nether has been banned for centuries. Its users have been driven out or killed. Its secrets lost. But the holy book of the nethermancers has just been found by a boy named Dante. As he works to unlock the book's power, he's attacked in the street. The nethermancers aren't gone—and they want their book back. Caught between death cultists and the law, Dante fights for his life, aided by his growing skills and a brash bodyguard named Blays.
-
-
In Response to the Criticism from Other Reviewers
- By Jonah on 06-11-17
-
The Martian
- By: Andy Weir
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 10 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars. Now, he's sure he'll be the first person to die there. After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive - and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive. But Mark isn't ready to give up yet.
-
-
I love Wil Wheaton but why not R. C. Bray?
- By L. Newman on 01-11-20
By: Andy Weir
-
He Who Fights with Monsters: A LitRPG Adventure
- He Who Fights with Monsters, Book 1
- By: Shirtaloon, Travis Deverell
- Narrated by: Heath Miller
- Length: 28 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It’s not easy making the career jump from office-supplies-store middle manager to heroic interdimensional adventurer. At least, Jason tries to be heroic, but it's hard to be good when all your powers are evil. He’ll face off against cannibals, cultists, wizards, monsters...and that’s just on the first day. He’s going to need courage, he’s going to need wit, and he’s going to need some magic powers of his own. But first, he’s going to need pants.
-
-
Great!
- By tb3 on 03-10-21
By: Shirtaloon, and others
-
Gardens of the Moon
- The Malazan Book of the Fallen, Book 1
- By: Steven Erikson
- Narrated by: Ralph Lister
- Length: 26 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Malazan Empire simmers with discontent, bled dry by interminable warfare, bitter infighting and bloody confrontations with the formidable Anomander Rake and his Tiste Andii, ancient and implacable sorcerers. Even the imperial legions, long inured to the bloodshed, yearn for some respite. Yet Empress Laseen's rule remains absolute, enforced by her dread Claw assassins.
-
-
An engrossing yet demanding high epic
- By Adnan on 11-20-12
By: Steven Erikson
-
Artemis
- By: Andy Weir
- Narrated by: Rosario Dawson
- Length: 8 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Jazz Bashara is a criminal. Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is tough if you're not a rich tourist or an eccentric billionaire. So smuggling in the occasional harmless bit of contraband barely counts, right? Not when you've got debts to pay and your job as a porter barely covers the rent. Everything changes when Jazz sees the chance to commit the perfect crime, with a reward too lucrative to turn down.
-
-
A ferrari with no motor
- By will on 11-18-17
By: Andy Weir
-
The Swarm
- A Novel
- By: Frank Schatzing
- Narrated by: George Weightman
- Length: 37 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Whales begin sinking ships. Toxic eyeless crabs poison Long Island’s water supply. Around the world, countries are beginning to feel the effects of the ocean’s revenge. In this riveting novel, full of twists, turns, and cliffhangers, a team of scientists discovers a strange, intelligent life force called the Yrr that takes form in marine animals in order to wreak havoc on man for his abuses.
-
-
Borderline Boring
- By Allan on 10-05-23
By: Frank Schatzing
-
The Breakers Omnibus
- Books 1-3 and Prequel Novella
- By: Edward W. Robertson
- Narrated by: Ray Chase
- Length: 42 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Books 1-3 and the prequel novella of the Breakers series.
-
-
So glad I downloaded this one.
- By Stevie Havoc on 11-16-15
-
Cage of Souls
- By: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrated by: David Thorpe
- Length: 23 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The sun is bloated, diseased, dying perhaps. Beneath its baneful light, Shadrapar, last of all cities, harbours fewer than 100,000 human souls. Built on the ruins of countless civilisations, Shadrapar is a museum, a midden, an asylum, a prison on a world that is ever more alien to humanity. Bearing witness to the desperate struggle for existence between life old and new is Stefan Advani: rebel, outlaw, prisoner, survivor.
-
-
Slow Start, Strong Finish
- By Jacob McCollum on 05-01-23
-
Hyperion
- By: Dan Simmons
- Narrated by: Marc Vietor, Allyson Johnson, Kevin Pariseau, and others
- Length: 20 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On the world called Hyperion, beyond the law of the Hegemony of Man, there waits the creature called the Shrike. There are those who worship it. There are those who fear it. And there are those who have vowed to destroy it. In the Valley of the Time Tombs, where huge, brooding structures move backward through time, the Shrike waits for them all.
-
-
The Shrike Awaits. Enter The Time Tombs...
- By Michael on 10-13-12
By: Dan Simmons
What listeners say about Children of Time
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ginger
- 05-18-17
Great Narrator and a good if flawed story
What made the experience of listening to Children of Time the most enjoyable?
The narrator is excellent. I really enjoyed listening. The story is at times excellent but at other times it is very flawed where its motivations and portrayals of HUman nature are concerned.
Any additional comments?
The story is an excellent and compelling idea with one huge flaw that appears right at the beginning. The author seems to have a very black, almost cliche view of what motivates humanity, its response to the strange and unknown and does not even allow them the ability to understand blindingly obvious observations. The lead character of the book is timid, essentially contributes nothing aside from internal dialogue and in the end is unable to even suggest what he has already figured out as a result of a combination of cowardice and insecurity.
It was frustrating to have listened to 14 hours only to have the book end with the humans still unable to comprehend the most basic of things. They are supposed to have lifted themselves up from tragedy yet do not in any way reflect the necessary growth in perspective nor driving curiosity that had to be present for them to have restored so much of their lost civilization. The reasons and methods of humanity's initial collapse are very thin. To the point of contrivance.
I can see why so many consider this a great book. It smacks of the kind of great sci-fi you would find in the 60's and 70's. The problem is that where other great authors recognized the breath of Human emotion, experience and capacity with in their characters, or at least had a counter-balance, this book from beginning to end seems to exist on the premise that all humans do is attack what they do not know and will always destroy vs investigate or explore other possibilities.
It seems not to far a leep to think the author views HUmanity in a very narrow way and does not recognize our ability to deduct or take seriously any potential reaction than to attack all that is strange before ever trying to understand it. At the very least I find it unlikely in the extreme that people who lifted themselves out of near extinction as a result of a turning on each other, would so easily always turn to violence to solve problems. I really think that if the author had shown more balance in the scope of human emotion, motivations and capacity for curiosity this book would truly shine. Instead, almost as if the author simply thinks Mankind is nothing but a bunch of monkey destroyers, Humans have to be genetically modified to accept the strange and unusual.
If you do not mind having a lot of essentially, "Human bad all else good" you will like this book to the end. As for others, if they are honest with themselves, they will see how almost from the beginning every human is frankly a violent idiot. It is largely because of the last two hours that I found the story to be broken where motivation.
I don't know how to present this book to others. One is the dystopian view of humanity, One is the uplifting view but everything seems to come down to problems with the very poor dialogue and a poor understanding of the breath of HUman potential. It is almost written as if the author lives a very sheltered existence and thus does not any potential potential for Humans.
Be prepared to dislike the last two hours after spending 14+ hours listening to the book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
73 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Irene
- 06-10-17
Extraordinary, mind-twisting ideas
Any additional comments?
Absolutely riveting, unexpected. Best book I've listened to since The Name of the Wind (different genre completely but I have very eclectic tastes) Ending did not quite resonate, Octavia Butler would have done better with the concept, but it is what it is. Still, what a concept!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
24 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Brock Miron
- 06-16-17
Absolutely spellbinding!
Had zero expectations, heard it was a good read. Blew me away. Incredible writing, engaging story, world building is amazing. 6 out of 5
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
12 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jane
- 07-27-18
Creative. Different. Thoughtful.
Well done science fiction. I loved the thought provoking ending. And it was a feel good ending.
The audiobook narrator Mel Hudson was excellent.
DATA:
Narrative mode: 3rd person. Story length: 600 pages. Swearing: the s-word and the f-word used a couple times. Sexual content: none. Setting: a spaceship traveling and another planet 2,000-plus years into the future. Book copyright: 2015. Genre: sci-fi.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
6 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- joey carbo
- 10-22-20
Best narrator on all of Audible
This is the kind of narrators that should be hired. It’s obvious that she researched and developed her characters beforehand -and this process had to have been extensive! No errors, no flubs.
Some of the most inventive science fiction I’ve read in a long time. Very dense, maybe to a fault.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Rob
- 10-25-18
Pretty amazing
I’m a very picky sci-fi reader. I can’t finish probably a third of what I’ve picked up and force myself to suffer through maybe half of what I finish. Most sci-fi is just too unbelievable (you need some basis in reality for technology you present or none at all) or the plot is dumb or I dislike the characters. Children of Time is unlike any sci-fi book I’ve ever read (or listened to). It spans vast distances and times much like Frank Herbert’s Dune books (excellent classics) and it is similarly very very well constructed and written. It is believable (relative to what else is out there). The plot and subplots, like the characters, are well developed. I might’ve taken them elsewhere had I been the author, but this just added to the unpredictability of the story and ending. All in all, you should give it a try. If it gets too heavy halfway through, put it down to finish something shorter then come back to it. The narrator did a very fine job as well.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Emainiak
- 07-10-21
Exceptional Scientific Speculation
This book is an excellent piece of speculation, grounded in the biological science as well as spacecraft. Its views on evolution, communication, socialization, and technology built on foundatioms other than human are wonderful. Underpinning it is a narrative played out like Greek or Japanese drama, with plenty of archetypes stuck in their ways and playing their parts to move along the story and not so much nuanced changing perspective, agonized uncertainty, or angst. If you like science, amd a good story of space and otherness you will love this book.The performance is solid, and doesnt get in the way of the story.
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
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jakob
- 03-03-21
Great Story
This is an amazing work of science fiction. The author took on many complex themes and tied them together flawlessly. I would absolutely recommend this to anyone who enjoys hard science fiction.
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
-
Performance
-
Story
- cat16
- 09-17-17
Amazing narrator, amazing story
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
Definitely recommend. The narrator is able to portray a wide variety characters convincingly (with different voices and personality). The story itself is awesome.
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
-
Performance
-
Story
- Melissa B. South Carolina
- 11-17-17
super interesting
Funny that sentient spiders made me think about how this world perceives God's. I enjoyed everythi g about this book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful