The Plantation

Payne & Jones, Book 1

By: Chris Kuzneski

Narrated by: Dick Hill

Length: 13 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's summary

The first to disappear is a ski instructor in the secluded mountains of Colorado. Hours later, a pregnant woman is abducted from a crowded hospital. Two places, two incidents, a single motive. And so it begins....

One by one, in cities across America, people of all ages are taken from their homes, their cars, their lives. But these aren't random kidnappings. They're crimes of passion, planned and researched years in advance with a singular objective in mind: Revenge.

Ariane Walker is one of the victims, dragged from her apartment with few clues to follow. The police said there's little they can do for her, but that isn't good enough for her boyfriend, Jonathon Payne.

With the help of his best friend, Payne gives chase, hoping a tip about New Orleans somehow pays off. Together, the duo slowly uncovers the mystery of Ariane's abduction and the shocking truth behind the South's most violent secret: The Plantation.

©2009 Chris Kuzneski (P)2009 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

" The Plantation is a rip-roaring page-turner. No reader will easily forget it." (James Patterson)
"Excellent.... High stakes, fast action, vibrant characters, and a very, very original plot concept. Not to be missed!" (Lee Child)

Just OK

Story was OK. I didn't like the narrator. He made everyone sound like an 80 year old stoner. His interpretation of an adult, black male seems to come from the 70's TV shows. characters, in general, are pretty shallow.

Dick Hill was wrong for this role on all fronts

Would you try another book from Chris Kuzneski and/or Dick Hill?

Yes/Yes

Would you be willing to try another book from Chris Kuzneski? Why or why not?

Yes

How could the performance have been better?

This may not be PC but Dick Hill cannot read for African American voices - Really!

WOW, What a concept to put into action.

The story was 4 star material because humor was inserted at some pretty weird parts of the book. The 3 stars for performance really should have been 1. An Asian accent was used for Sanchez, Naji and Hannibal. Where was the research for an African accent. Yet you got the British accent down really well. Different readers could have been used. Overall 4 stars because the idea was awesome. That’s better than 40 acres and a mule. Only thing that interferes with the idea, the descendants of the ignorant bastards cannot be held responsible for the actions of their forefathers. I’m glad you did your research and made an effort to expose slavery for the sadistic torture that it was. And Slavery of any kind can never be forgotten. Thank You.

Didn't care for it...AT ALL

Too much violence and how horrible to try to get revenge, especially for something a person had no part of. As the great grandchild of former slaves, all I can say is that this book has absolutely NO value. All it will do is stir up contention and hate and for what? To sell some books? It would make a good movie cause this kind of atrocity seems to be what the public wants. I just don't think it helps anything Mr. Kuzneski. I wish slavery hadn't happened but it did, white slavery happens as we speak but writing about how awful it is helps no one. I will not ever read this book again. Matter of fact, I think I will return it. Take my own stand. It is just that bad. Read Romans 12:17-21 instead of this horrific book.... maybe that will help everyone to see whose fight this really is .....

audio performance cannot compensate for plot

What would have made The Plantation better?

Where to begin - a plot that makes sense? some character development? I know this was a first effort and I now can understand why it was rejected by so many book agents as "too novel." I could not finish listening and gave up after about an hour. It just made me squirm - maybe it was supposed to be ironic but if so I guess I am just not intellectual enough to go there.

What do you think your next listen will be?

Nothing by this author if this is representative.

Which scene was your favorite?

None

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

The audio performance was very good.

Any additional comments?

Please don't waste your credit.

Feeble first effort, gratuitous violence

After enjoying Kuzneski's "Prophesy", I decided to try another of his works. Prior to listening to the prologue, I had no idea it was his original, unsuccessful first effort, which, due to rejections, he had to self-publish. It is filled with lame dialogue, shallow character development, unrealistic relationship charisma, and nauseating and unnecessary explicit violence and tittilation. The drawn-out graphic descriptions of abuse and cruelty are the only depth the novel has, and that is revolting. It is very difficult for me to believe this feeble first novel was "reworked" with the help of contemporary famous mystery writers, as the prologue claims. I will likely not even finish the book, as it is so dull and unimaginative when the one-dimensional protagonist Jonathan Payne and his buddy DJ are discussed, but disturbing beyond necessity when he continues to find more and more ways to drag the reader through horrible descriptions of mutilation, exploitation, and morbid cruelty. After wasting the money on this book, I will not give this author another chance. He never should have tried to cash in on this sophomoric effort.

It's over yea!

Listened to most of it at 3x. So much talking and talking and talking. If you like banter this is a good one for you. I think it would have been good if it was only a four hour or less book.

Had to return this book

I started this book but ended up returning it. Maybe it gets better later but I got really turned off by the gruesome violence. I also do not care for the reader.

Truly dreadful, avoid at all costs...

What would have made The Plantation better?

This was a first novel, so perhaps one should have more tolerance for "rookie errors". However, this was so poor, that I doubt that I would try any others in this series. On the positive side, it has an interesting premise, and this kept me listening until the end. However, the plot is overly intricate in highly improbable ways - major plot lines just evaporate, never to be resolved; the primary characters have potential, but just don't come across as human, overcoming impossible obstacles without comment.

Has The Plantation turned you off from other books in this genre?

No, but it has made me believe that this author is talentless.

What does Dick Hill bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Dick Hill is a master narrator, but even he seems to be struggling with the scripts hyperbole.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from The Plantation?

The white slave trade to Africa might be an interesting element, but largely superfluous to the primary "reversed roles" revenge plot. It adds, but creates complexities that the author has to go through unlikely contortions to resolve - e.g. how does an ex-special forces officer manage to persuade a full team to leave their duty on his say-so, deploy with full equipment to Africa, engage in a private war, and then come back blameless? Really?

not good

Dick Hill is one of my favorites however I couldn't wait for this one to end. The story is preposterous and the characters too.