The Rock Rats Audiobook By Ben Bova cover art

The Rock Rats

Book Two of The Asteroid Wars

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 months free
Try for $0.00
Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT.
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 3 months. Cancel anytime.

The Rock Rats

By: Ben Bova
Narrated by: Ira Claffey, Amanda Karr, cast
Try for $0.00

$0.00/mo. after 3 months. Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $20.24

Buy for $20.24

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use, License, and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel
Visionary space industrialist Dan Randolph is dead, but his protege, pilot Pancho Barnes, now sits on the board of his conglomerate. She has her work cut out for her, for Randolph's rival, Martin Humphries, still wants to control Astro and still wants to drive independent asteroid miners like Lars Fuchs out of business. Humphries wants revenge against Pancho, and, most of all, he wants his old flame, Amanda, who has become Lars Fuchs's wife. Before it ends, many will die, and many will achieve more than they ever dreamed was possible.It rocks! Don't miss any of the action in Ben Bova's Asteroid Wars series, including the first book, The Precipice, the third, The Silent War, and the fourth, The Aftermath.©2002 Ben Bova (P)2002, 2005 Audio Renaissance, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishers, LLC Adventure Science Fiction Space Opera

Critic reviews

"Bova in top form." (Kirkus Reviews)
"Compelling." (Booklist)
"Hard-charging....Ambitiously juggling elements of space opera, western, and Sophoclean drama, Bova keeps the pages turning." (Publishers Weekly)

People who viewed this also viewed...

The Precipice Audiobook By Ben Bova cover art
The Precipice By: Ben Bova
Powersat Audiobook By Ben Bova cover art
Powersat By: Ben Bova
Engaging Sci-fi • Commercial Space Exploration • Excellent Story • Interesting Environment • Technological Descriptions
Highly rated for:
All stars
Most relevant  
As always, Mr Bova has done a wonderful job. Tight and well written, with enough science to satisfy a crusty old man like me.
Sleep well sir.

Rock Rats

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A bit slower than the first book in the series, and not as good as the third, but Bova seems to be drawing a breath, and taking a bit of time to let Poncho, the other characters, and the environment, "mature" a bit before going on. You see why he needed to do this as you get into the next book.

It's still WELL worth listening to as you move along the series. Still entertaining and fun (and "entertainment" is what's it's all about afterall)

I DID think there seemed to be a book missing between this book and the next (The Silent War), but it's not TOO big of a gap.

Poncho Matures

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Another Sci-fi mixed with political intrigue. Don't want to give away the ending, but all the bad guys prospered and the good guys stayed neutral and (mostly) alive. C'mon! Oh, now I get it. There's a sequel.

Oh? Now I get it

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
great day today for readers Ben Bova the best sci-fiery writer space seems like next door when you're reading for Ben Bova

great day today for readers Ben Bova the best sci-

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Bad guys win and we get to listen hours to find this out. Nice.

Not cool

Unsatisfactory ending

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Where book one of this series (The Precipice)is a fairly entertaining space opera, The Rock Rats get uncomfortably close to soap opera. I generally prefer hard science fiction where the technology is a logical or at least a plausible extrapolation of current knowledge. On this, Ben Bova generally succeeds, but instead of allowing the science to create most of the dramatic tension, the author relies on the hormonal response of the supposedly hard-headed businessman Humphries to fuel the conflict. Pretty silly really.

There are lots of interesting and unique problems that would be faced by anyone attempting to open up a new frontier such as the asteroid belt. A great example is the rudimentary beginnings of space battle techniques and tactics briefly touched on by the author. Instead, too much of the book is "powerful man wants beautiful woman and is willing to do anything to get her". You don't need science fiction for that theme.

Even so, the book isn't terrible - merely average and a disappointment compared to the first book in the series. Still worth reading though just to see how things turn out. I do hope there is more about Pancho Barnes in the third book. She was a far more interesting character.

One additional note: the voice talent is a bit disappointing as well. At least part of the appeal of book one was the fact that 80-90% of the book was read by Scott Brick and Amanda Karr - both absolutely superb. But even the first book had some short segments with different readers so noticeably inferior that is was disconcerting.

Here the female reader(s)is again outstanding. I can't even tell if there is more than one reader or if Amanda Karr is just so good that she can sound like several different people. Unfortunately, the men (except for Stefan Rudnicki) suffer by comparison. Barely average. I could get used to them, but every time the narration switches back to a female, you get reminded of the mediocrity of most of the male readers.

A little disappointing

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Excellent story by Ben Bova totally butchered by the narration. Whats the point of having multiple narrators if they all do all the parts? In different accents? You kind of get used to it after a while, but seriously, if you've got a male and a female narrator, at least have the male do the male characters and the female, the female ones. What's the point of letting both, do both, and the same characters to boot? Idiotic.

Horrible narration of a good story.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I thought a few seconds, should I work on the house or listen to another Bova Book… Rock Rats is a great book !!

House repairs vs Bova books

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A psychopathic business billionaire kills, manipulates, blackmails, and tells the reader all his sick thoughts. And he gets away with everything illegal and demented that he does. The end of the book shows up with this disgusting person still doing whatever he wants to.

Depressing

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I enjoyed this latest audiobook in my collection. I have enjoyed all of Bova's creations. He takes you on a grand tour of the solar system with his books. Go ahead and take the tour, you will be gald you did!!

Great Listen

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews