Bioshock: Rapture

Bioshock, Book 1

By: John Shirley

Narrated by: Jeffrey Kafer

Length: 12 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's summary

It was the end of World War II. FDR's New Deal had redefined American politics. Taxes were at an all-time high. The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki had created a fear of total annihilation. The rise of secret government agencies and sanctions on business had many watching their backs. America's sense of freedom was diminishing... and many were desperate to take that freedom back.

Among them was a great dreamer, an immigrant who'd pulled himself from the depths of poverty to become one of the wealthiest and most admired men in the world. That man was Andrew Ryan, and he believed that great men and women deserved better. So he set out to create the impossible: a utopia free from government, from censorship, and from moral restrictions on science, where what you gave was what you got. He created Rapture - the shining city below the sea. But this utopia suffered a great tragedy. This is the story of how it all came to be... and how it all ended.

©2011 Take-Two Interactive Software, Incorporated (P)2012 Tantor

A Good Supplement.

So this was a book that took a while to get done for me, but I'm glad I did. Great precursor to what happens in the first game.

Return to Rapture

As a long-time fan of the BioShock games, I truly enjoyed this.
it's the backstory of how Rapture came to be, the familiar characters we've heard on the audio recordings along the way.
very well done.

Really good for those who have played the games

I see several reviews bashing this book and I do not understand why. It gives an in depth look into how Andrew Ryan created Rapture and how it slowly drove him mad. Characters that we only knew as hidden audio diarys in the game now have full backstorys which bring more life to their audio diarys in the game. Certain hidden rooms are mentioned as well that players can and may have explored in the game. The book tells how exactly how Fontaine and Ryans rivalry happened. The book has many easter eggs hidden in it that refer to parts of the game. I find it very interesting to see the complete story of rapture before the first game takes place.

Awesome!

I loved the game and the story is amazing. This fills in a little more of the story and helps flesh it out more.
I Enjoyed the performance! It was well done and the performer gave a nice voice to each person.
I look forward to the next books if and when they come out!

All the lore from first and second game being foreshadowed

Amazing book ! Great read for any fans of the games or people interested in the Bioshock story !

Highly Recommend for Rand Fans Like Myself

Would you listen to Bioshock: Rapture again? Why?

Ayn Rand's "Atlas Shrugged" is one of my favorite books of all time. The philosophy and story are at once complex and exhilarating, and have managed to inspire not only fans but generations of 'believers'. As an accompaniment to that book, I cannot recommend Bioshock: Rapture highly enough.Bioshock: Rapture has similar characters and themes to Rand's classic, albeit the author attempts to illustrate the dark side of how it would be possible for Rand's utopia, if it actually existed, to not work as she so eloquently depicts. And he provides many believable storylines and character developments to illustrate this.The story AS WELL AS the philosophy are very, very good. I will add that the first half was the best part, in my opinion, as the second half seemed to lose momentum and focus. But it was still a great ride.And I'll add that this book did not make me resign all of my affection for Rand's writings, rather, it provided a smart balance to the worldview. Yes, the book is based on a video game, and yes, it has some eccentric sci-fi elements as well, but what the author did with the material is just a few hairs short of what Rand did with books like Atlas Shrugged, and I consider that a surprising and wonderful achievement.The narrator was pretty good, he adopted a "film noir" tone that works for the material and the time period in which the material takes place.

A must for Bioshock fans

Great book on the rise and fall of rapture. A fantastic back story to a fantastic game.

For fans of the game...

This is just incredible for those that played the game(s). Understanding everything that led up to how the first game starts when your character finds themselves getting into Rapture and the whole game makes so much more sense. I want to play again now knowing all this to see how it enhances the experience.
Wish the narrator didn't try some of the character voices but otherwise an exceptionally good narrative job as well.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, with one complaint

This was a great book, my only complaint was that the narrator's female speaking voice was kind of annoying. However, the British, Irish, and Russian voices were well done.

The lore is there.

Adds some flourish to the existing in grange liye and backstory that many of us fans craved. The narrator isn't bad but i just rubbished the wither series and if thats 5 states i cant in good conscience say the same here as the vocal range id's rather limited. The story is good but kinda seems to rush through the 10 year timeline its on and leaves off just about where the first game picks up. Does leave a whole or two where in game audio diary mysteries are concerned. Atlas doesn't take over Suchongs life (but that may have been a weird leftover in the game that wasn't cut. Worth the listen if your a fan of the ip.