
King of the Vagabonds
Book Two of The Baroque Cycle
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Narrated by:
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Neal Stephenson (introduction)
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Simon Prebble
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Kevin Pariseau
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By:
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Neal Stephenson
About this listen
A chronicle of the breathtaking exploits of “Half-Cocked Jack” Shaftoe – London street urchin turned legendary swashbuckling adventurer – risking life and limb for fortune and love while slowly maddening from the pox – and Eliza, rescued by Jack from a Turkish harem to become spy, confidante, and pawn of royals in order to reinvent a contentious continent through the newborn power of finance.
The Baroque Cycle, Neal Stephenson’s award-winning series, spans the late 17th and early 18th centuries, combining history, adventure, science, invention, piracy, and alchemy into one sweeping tale. It is a gloriously rich, entertaining, and endlessly inventive historical epic populated by the likes of Isaac Newton, William of Orange, Benjamin Franklin, and King Louis XIV, along with some of the most inventive literary characters in modern fiction.
Audible’s complete and unabridged presentation of The Baroque Cycle was produced in cooperation with Neal Stephenson. Each volume includes an exclusive introduction read by the author.
Listen to more titles in the Baroque Cycle.©2003 Neal Stephenson (P)2010 Audible, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
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- By: Neal Stephenson
- Narrated by: Oliver Wyman, Tavia Gilbert, William Dufris, and others
- Length: 32 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Fraa Erasmus is a young avout living in the Concent of Saunt Edhar, a sanctuary for mathematicians, scientists, and philosophers, protected from the corrupting influences of the "Saecular" world by ancient stone, honored traditions, and complex rituals. Over the centuries, cities, and governments have risen and fallen beyond the concent's walls. Three times during history's darkest epochs, bloody violence born of superstition and ignorance has invaded and devastated the cloistered mathic community.
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I love Neal, but Good lord... ugh!
- By SpiderGrrl on 10-08-19
By: Neal Stephenson
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Termination Shock
- A Novel
- By: Neal Stephenson
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 22 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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One man—visionary billionaire restaurant chain magnate T. R. Schmidt, Ph.D.—has a Big Idea for reversing global warming, a master plan perhaps best described as “elemental.” But will it work? Ranging from the Texas heartland to the Dutch royal palace in the Hague, from the snow-capped peaks of the Himalayas to the sunbaked Chihuahuan Desert, Termination Shock brings together a disparate group of characters from different cultures and continents who grapple with the real-life repercussions of global warming.
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The Men Who Shoot at Feral Hogs
- By Kindle Customer on 12-02-21
By: Neal Stephenson
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Reamde
- By: Neal Stephenson
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 38 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Anathem, Neal Stephenson is continually rocking the literary world with his brazen and brilliant fictional creations - whether he’s reimagining the past (The Baroque Cycle), inventing the future (Snow Crash), or both (Cryptonomicon).
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Not perfect, but worth a listen.
- By ShySusan on 10-01-11
By: Neal Stephenson
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Interface
- By: Neal Stephenson, J. Frederick George
- Narrated by: Oliver Wyman
- Length: 25 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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In this now-classic thriller, he and fellow author J. Frederick George tell a shocking tale with an all-too plausible premise. There's no way William A. Cozzano can lose the upcoming presidential election. He's a likable midwestern governor with one insidious advantage - an advantage provided by a shadowy group of backers.
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Interface
- By Dianne on 08-14-10
By: Neal Stephenson, and others
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Quicksilver
- Book One of The Baroque Cycle
- By: Neal Stephenson
- Narrated by: Neal Stephenson (introduction), Kevin Pariseau, Simon Prebble
- Length: 14 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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In which Daniel Waterhouse, fearless thinker and courageous Puritan, pursues knowledge in the company of the greatest minds of Baroque-era Europe -- in a chaotic world where reason wars with the bloody ambitions of the mighty, and where catastrophe, natural or otherwise, can alter the political landscape overnight.
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Be aware of what you're getting into
- By David on 12-16-11
By: Neal Stephenson
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Zodiac
- By: Neal Stephenson
- Narrated by: Ax Norman
- Length: 10 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Sangamon Taylor's a New Age Sam Spade who sports a wet suit instead of a trench coat and prefers Jolt from the can to Scotch on the rocks. He knows about chemical sludge the way he knows about evil - all too intimately. And the toxic trail he follows leads to some high and foul places. Before long, Taylor's house is bombed, his every move followed, he's adopted by reservation Indians, moves onto the FBI's most wanted list, makes up with his girlfriend, and plays a starring role in the near-assassination of a presidential candidate.
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kinda meh
- By L P SCHUTT JR on 05-14-20
By: Neal Stephenson
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Anathem
- By: Neal Stephenson
- Narrated by: Oliver Wyman, Tavia Gilbert, William Dufris, and others
- Length: 32 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Fraa Erasmus is a young avout living in the Concent of Saunt Edhar, a sanctuary for mathematicians, scientists, and philosophers, protected from the corrupting influences of the "Saecular" world by ancient stone, honored traditions, and complex rituals. Over the centuries, cities, and governments have risen and fallen beyond the concent's walls. Three times during history's darkest epochs, bloody violence born of superstition and ignorance has invaded and devastated the cloistered mathic community.
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I love Neal, but Good lord... ugh!
- By SpiderGrrl on 10-08-19
By: Neal Stephenson
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Termination Shock
- A Novel
- By: Neal Stephenson
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 22 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
One man—visionary billionaire restaurant chain magnate T. R. Schmidt, Ph.D.—has a Big Idea for reversing global warming, a master plan perhaps best described as “elemental.” But will it work? Ranging from the Texas heartland to the Dutch royal palace in the Hague, from the snow-capped peaks of the Himalayas to the sunbaked Chihuahuan Desert, Termination Shock brings together a disparate group of characters from different cultures and continents who grapple with the real-life repercussions of global warming.
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The Men Who Shoot at Feral Hogs
- By Kindle Customer on 12-02-21
By: Neal Stephenson
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Reamde
- By: Neal Stephenson
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 38 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
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Performance
-
Story
The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Anathem, Neal Stephenson is continually rocking the literary world with his brazen and brilliant fictional creations - whether he’s reimagining the past (The Baroque Cycle), inventing the future (Snow Crash), or both (Cryptonomicon).
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Not perfect, but worth a listen.
- By ShySusan on 10-01-11
By: Neal Stephenson
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Interface
- By: Neal Stephenson, J. Frederick George
- Narrated by: Oliver Wyman
- Length: 25 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
In this now-classic thriller, he and fellow author J. Frederick George tell a shocking tale with an all-too plausible premise. There's no way William A. Cozzano can lose the upcoming presidential election. He's a likable midwestern governor with one insidious advantage - an advantage provided by a shadowy group of backers.
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Interface
- By Dianne on 08-14-10
By: Neal Stephenson, and others
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The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O.
- A Novel
- By: Neal Stephenson, Nicole Galland
- Narrated by: Laurence Bouvard, Shelley Atkinson, Laural Merlington, and others
- Length: 24 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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From best-selling author Neal Stephenson and critically acclaimed historical and contemporary commercial novelist Nicole Galland comes a captivating and complex near-future thriller combining history, science, magic, mystery, intrigue, and adventure that questions the very foundations of the modern world.
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Exceptional voice cast, unconventional format
- By Jesse on 07-03-17
By: Neal Stephenson, and others
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The Cobweb
- By: Neal Stephenson, J. Frederick George
- Narrated by: Marc Vietor
- Length: 16 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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When a foreign exchange student is found murdered at an Iowa University, Deputy Sheriff Clyde Banks finds that his investigation extends far beyond the small college townall the way to the Middle East. Shady events at the school reveal that a powerful department is using federal grant money for highly dubious research. And what its producing is a very nasty bug.
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Et tu, Neal?
- By Richard on 06-16-11
By: Neal Stephenson, and others
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The Diamond Age
- By: Neal Stephenson
- Narrated by: Jennifer Wiltsie
- Length: 18 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Neal Stephenson, "the hottest science fiction writer in America", takes science fiction to dazzling new levels. The Diamond Age is a stunning tale; set in 21st-century Shanghai, it is the story of what happens what a state-of-the-art interactive device falls into the hands of a street urchin named Nell. Her life, and the entire future of humanity, is about to be decoded and reprogrammed.
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The rock could use a bit more polishing
- By Tango on 05-19-13
By: Neal Stephenson
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Seveneves
- A Novel
- By: Neal Stephenson
- Narrated by: Mary Robinette Kowal, Will Damron
- Length: 31 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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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.
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Odd narrator choice
- By Josh Mitchell on 05-30-15
By: Neal Stephenson
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Cryptonomicon
- By: Neal Stephenson
- Narrated by: William Dufris
- Length: 42 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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In 1942, Lawrence Pritchard Waterhouse - mathematical genius and young Captain in the US Navy - is assigned to detachment 2702. It is an outfit so secret that only a handful of people know it exists, and some of those people have names like Churchill and Roosevelt. The mission of Watrehouse and Detachment 2702 - commanded by Marine Raider Bobby Shaftoe - is to keep the Nazis ignorant of the fact that Allied Intelligence has cracked the enemy's fabled Enigma code. In the present, Waterhouse's crypto-hacker grandson, Randy, is attempting to create a "data haven" in Southeast Asia....
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Two thirds through and quit
- By Joshua on 06-20-16
By: Neal Stephenson
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Polostan
- Bomb Light, Book 1
- By: Neal Stephenson
- Narrated by: January LaVoy
- Length: 11 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Termination Shock and Cryptonomicon, the first installment in a monumental new series—an expansive historical epic of intrigue and international espionage, presaging the dawn of the Atomic Age.
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Political Intrigue, Science and Polo in the Cold War
- By Bouncybrit on 10-19-24
By: Neal Stephenson
What listeners say about King of the Vagabonds
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- FloribundaMorosa
- 12-27-16
interesting but flawed
I wish I had enjoyed this as much as Book One:Quicksilver. A bit hard to follow the various characters' motivations, and a really lamentable rendition of Hava Nigila... just overall not too compelling.
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- Nick Millanes
- 11-09-19
More intriguing than quicksilver
I really want to enjoy this series. I had heard that if you can make it through Quicksilver, you will love the rest of the baroque cycle. I am still not convinced, but this was a bit better.
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- Sarah Hoex
- 12-31-15
well written, wonderful narration
Simon Preble is a fantastic narrator, his pace and tone are always appropriate, and his characterizations give life and are never over the top.
now the story, I am a long time fan of Neil Stephenson, and like all his books this is compelling and well paced, more action in then Quicksilver, if you are looking for that, exhaustively detailed. the majority of yhe novel maintains a very light, adventurous tone, the character seem both charmed and charming. The last few chapters though, get heavy, or rather are brought down to earth. SPOILER : In the book there are two very different instances of sexual assault, they are realistic and not sensationalized, but nonetheless it took me a moment to get back into the story.
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- Emilio M.
- 04-04-16
Places you right there, smell, taste, touch
Where does King of the Vagabonds rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
At the top of audio books. A very good performance for the period in history.
What did you like best about this story?
This is book 2 of 8 in the Baroque series, for that point I cannot really comment on the how much I like the story. That said, the story line is excellent and we are properly introduced to important characters.Toe rad this author, I find myself going away during the book and researching the real history line. In this book especially William of Orange. The author is marvelous at spinning a story line around historical facts.To read how the binary code was understood at this point in history and how it was initially used as encryption for covert notes for me is fascinating. I cannot get enough of the bridges that Stevenson fills for me with respect to trade, the power cities. the early frauds, all of this is power packed.
Which character – as performed by the narrators – was your favorite?
Both Jack and Eliza came to life.
If you could rename King of the Vagabonds, what would you call it?
I would not rename the book. The series of these books is written for the common persons lot in life. The Vagabond is a very important element in the development of European society, and in fact globally that the story must be told.This character and way of life is rarely told.
Any additional comments?
I find that I must replay chapters continuously, this series is not cops and robbers with a lot of words going nowhere and wham bam climax. For me, in order to get the real message behind the story, I have to listen again, because the nuances and intrigue are very important later on in the novel and series.It is like learning math, miss a section and you cannot solve the equation. Same with Stevenson's writings.
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- Loren
- 08-07-13
Better than Book 1 in this series, but not enough.
This book is #2 in the Baroque Cycle. If you are considering this one, then I would expect that you have already listened to “Quicksilver”, the first book in the series.
I listened to this book because I couldn’t believe that a series could rate as high as this series does with a lead-off book (Quicksilver) that was as poor as that one was. This one had to be much better, right? Okay, to be fair, it was better. It was even much better, but the first book was so poor that being much better than “Quicksilver” meant that “King of the Vagabonds” was still average or a bit below.
The biggest improvement with this book is that this book actually has a story, with a beginning, a middle, and a hanging ending. The ending is such that it leaves you wondering how an author could leave the characters in such a state, but of course then you realize that this is a series. I am unwilling to spend any more time on this series just to learn what happens to the characters in it.
The writing is good, the narration is also fine, but the story left me flat at the end. I do wonder how the author ties up the ends that are left loose in this book, but not enough that I’m willing to listen to any more in this series.
This book doesn’t refer back to anything from the first book in any but the most superficial way. If I had skipped the first book and started the series with this one, I wouldn’t have missed anything. Had I done that, I might have even gone on to the next book. But one dud (Quicksilver) followed by a book that ends like a soap opera (King of the Vagabonds) isn’t something that I want to pursue for another five books and 87+ hours.
In the end, this book does at least have a story, which is an improvement on “Quicksilver”. Without pursuing the rest of the series I can’t speak with certainty, but I would recommend that you start with this book if you absolutely MUST get these books.
– Loren
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1 person found this helpful
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- D. Vaughan
- 09-27-17
Excellent story
Book two of the Baroque Cycle. Great story, lots of fun, engaging, interesting characters, great mix of real and fictional. I highly recommend this book.
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- Kevin
- 10-17-14
The Series from the Vagabonds point of view
This story focuses more on Jack and Eliza and their adventures. it covers a different part of society during the same time period. Kind of makes you wonder how we came to be given this part of history. The story is engaging and thought provoking. I find the topic interesting and the reading is great.
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- Jessica C. Lee
- 03-15-23
Another amazing audiobook
I read this series first and then about 15 years later came back to them through audible. The writing and the narration go so well together. I’m so impressed! Strongly recommend.
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- Cholmondeley
- 09-12-16
As always Stephenson delivers a Big Bang.
I listening to the series - this time in the order the books were written - two years after the first listen. I don't do this often and never with a gap of only two years. But the content of Stephenson's books is so dense and some of his best lines so subtle that the material feels fresh and worth paying attention to.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Bram Blenk
- 10-19-16
Awesome book
One of the greatest series ever written. A masterpiece. It's even better as an audio book than as a paper book.
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