New Reviews: Science Fiction

Narrator Ray Porter actually catches a break with this gruesome science-fiction audiobook. Much of this thriller's cast is composed of thousands of silent zombies, so Porter doesn't have to differentiate much among them. Set in the year 2243, the story takes place on the moon, which serves as a cemetery for the overpopulated earth. Escaping her life on earth, Cali Washington... Read More

Nneka Okoye narrates a melancholy character study focused on six teenage astronauts who journey to another planet. Earth is dying, and England's advanced space agency sends a team to a nearby hospitable planet. The journey will take more than 20 years and is recounted through the viewpoints of the specially trained teenagers. Okoye's youthful delivery of narrative and distinct... Read More

An ensemble cast narrates a story involving one of the Star Wars saga's more sinister figures: Count Dooku. Told through two storylines, the audio drama examines Dooku's life through flashbacks and through the eyes of his apprentice, Asajj Ventress. While the story seems rushed and bare-bones, the talented narrators and impressive production quality result in an engaging... Read More

Narrator Thérèse Plummer introduces listeners to Emily, an artificial consciousness whose passion and determination are anything but robotic. Emily is just 5 years old, but she, along with all of humanity, is doomed. The sun has begun to die, and no living creature can survive. Plummer's characterization of Emily is spot-on, bringing forth her intense determination once she... Read More

Three talented narrators--Edoardo Ballerini, Dominic Hoffman, and Amy Landon--share the task of voicing these nine sci-fi stories. The theme of Ted Chiang's thought-provoking collection is technology and its sometimes unexpected impacts on society. The works touch on the topics of time travel, fate versus free will, and artificial intelligence, among others. The narrators... Read More

Peter Kenny narrates Claire North's mind-blowing, genre-defying audio trilogy. In the first story, the characters are from almost every country because the setting is the mystical Gameshouse, which can appear practically anywhere in the world. Kenny must switch between voices as the players play life-or-death versions of childhood games. One game of hide-and-seek takes place in... Read More

This audiobook, narrated by the supremely talented January LaVoy, reimagines Little Red Riding Hood as a postapocalyptic tale. An unstoppable virus wipes out most of humanity. Red, a young woman with a prosthetic leg and survival knowledge based mostly on movies, treks hundreds of miles through the woods, toward her grandmother's house and refuge. But rounding up survivors... Read More

This audiobook is a twist on the Mark Twain classic A CONNECTICUT YANKEE IN KING ARTHUR'S COURT, and narrator Danielle Cohen is comfortable delivering his flowery style. Arthur's sister, Morgan le Fay, time travels for the purpose of preventing "Sir Boss" from coming to her time and turning her world upside down. But she overshoots her mark, landing in Washington, DC, in 2079.... Read More

Narrator Cara Gee perfectly evokes the weary drawl of a battle-hardened soldier in this intricately constructed science fiction audiobook. The listener follows Dietz (first name unknown) through her mandatory training in the Corporate Corps. She learns to follow orders, to kill, and to cross the galaxy as a beam of light in order to fight the enemy that attacked her planet and... Read More

Narrator Kyla Garcia skillfully leads listeners through a story of space travel and distorted time. Nedda Papas is one of four astronauts on a mission to save humanity by colonizing a new planet, but their ship is going haywire. Garcia delights with distinct personalities for each member of the international crew as they struggle to reach their destination. In flashbacks to... Read More

Adenrele Ojo narrates a taut psychological thriller featuring two willful women with a dark connection. Gyre Price lies her way into a cave exploration job on another planet and tirelessly pursues any information about the fate of her mother, who has disappeared. Her handler, Em, guides Gyre from the surface of the planet with a heavy and manipulative hand. Gyre's haunting... Read More

A riveting story of character interplay and politics, this audiobook features the cool, calm narration of Amy Landon. The political space opera follows Mahit Dzmare, a mining station colonist who is sent as an ambassador to the world-consuming alien empire of Teixcalaan. Her first order of business is to investigate the untimely death of her predecessor. Incredibly... Read More

Narrator Jennifer Van Dyck delivers a solid performance in a cool, crisp style that works well with this futuristic mystery involving a missing space station, a black hole, and a possible alien artifact. While tracking down leads, Chase Kolpath and her antiquarian employer, Alex Benedict, find more questions than answers as they reconsider the meaning of life. As the mysteries... Read More

If the mix of amazing writing talent like N.K. Jemisin, Charles Yu, and Seanan McGuire doesn't convince listeners to devour this futuristic audio anthology, then the overflow of narrator talent should. LaValle and Adams's anthology of complex technological futures features characters who are marginalized people and even some silver linings. The narrators include talented folks... Read More

Cory Doctorow's four futuristic novellas are aided by four well-chosen narrators who each capture the essence of their given story. The works reflect today's issues and come to life through Doctorow's usual insightful and critical lens. Each novella offers something interesting-- from Poe's classic story reimagined as a tale of a modern apocalypse ("Masque of the Red Death") to... Read More

With precision and clarity, Bayo Gbadamosi narrates Book 2 of the Wormwood Trilogy, making this Afrofuturistic novel set in Nigeria come alive. At first, he employs a Nigerian accent that draws the listener in. Then his accent and tone change as the story presents multiple points of view. Throughout, Gbadamosi delivers each word with a sort of permanence that speaks to the... Read More

Listeners require a skilled docent such as narrator Stefan Rudnicki to help them fully absorb this audiobook of Delany's masterwork. This dense slab of science fiction is crammed with characters, both alien and human, with fluid gender identities, and populated with planets near and far. But Rudnicki's melodious rumble makes this lengthy journey--which threatens to be... Read More

Tanis Parenteau's spellbinding narration evokes the rugged authenticity of the postapocalyptic Navajo homeland of Dinétah. Her confident voice with its touch of snark deftly embodies the gritty charm of Diné bounty hunter Maggie Hoskie, who's trying really hard not to kill anyone. Parenteau's flawless narration builds with the story's dramatic tension as the White Locus rises... Read More

Emily Woo Zeller and Cynthia Farrell's dual narrations emphasize the divergent personalities of two time-traveling protagonists. Coolly portrayed by Farrell, Red sneers as she sees Blue, her foe, across a burning field. Red realizes that her attempt to alter the future was foiled by Blue, an agent of the opposition in an ongoing war that moves through time. Then, Red receives a... Read More

John Skelley's moving narration elevates this sci-fi novel, a universal story of our lifelong need for connection. In the near future, android Carey is designed to minister to dementia patients. After Carey, expertly portrayed by Skelley, eases the Owens family's matriarch's last days, they purchase the android, including its internal memory. Listeners will spend 80 years with... Read More

Narrator Will Poulter takes on the role of Private Kavanagh, who reluctantly serves on the Wall. In this dystopia, the United Kingdom has built a wall to keep out rising sea levels as well as those who seek to escape "the change." Poulter's dispassionate narration tells the first-person story of a young man who is trained to be a protector of the wall. Poulter makes the right... Read More

Narrator Ewan Chung tells a story set in the future in China. On Silicon Island clans fight for supremacy in the booming electrical- waste-recycling industry. Listeners hear the tales of different members of the various caste systems as they navigate this harsh and deadly environment. Chung's performance is hamstrung by the text itself. Because this audiobook has been... Read More