Spin

By: Robert Charles Wilson

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 17 hrs and 28 mins

Publisher's summary

One night when he was 10, Tyler stood in his backyard and watched the stars go out. They flared into brilliance, then disappeared, replaced by an empty black barrier. He and his best friends, Jason and Diane Lawton, had seen what became known as the Big Blackout. It would shape their lives.

The "sun" is now a featureless disk - a heat source, rather than an astronomical object. The moon is gone, but tides remain. The world's artificial satellites have fallen out of orbit. Eventually, space probes reveal that the barrier is artificial, generated by huge alien artifacts. Time passes faster outside the barrier - more than a hundred million years per day on Earth. At this rate, the death of the sun is only about forty years away.

Jason, now a promising young scientist, devotes his life to working against this slow-moving apocalypse. Diane throws herself into hedonism, marrying a sinister cult leader who's forged a religion out of the fears of the masses.

Earth sends terraforming machines, then humans, to Mars...and immediately an emissary returns with thousands of stories about the settling of Mars. Then an identical barrier appears around Mars.

Life on Earth is about to get much, much stranger.

©2005 Robert Charles Wilson (P)2008 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

• Hugo Award, Best Novel, 2006

"Wilson continues to surprise and delight. I can't think of another science fiction writer who understands the strengths of the genre so well and who works with such confidence within its elastic boundaries." (The New York Times)
"The best science fiction novel so far this year." (Rocky Mountain News)

Puzzled by glowing reviews

Listening to "Spin" on audiobook, rather than quickly skimming the printed page, highlights this book's need for editing. The premise is entertaining, but the writing is overwrought, and the narrator seems to have studied with at the William Shatner School of Acting. It's not hard to entertain me on a long car trip, but "Spin" fell far short of other recent audiobooks that I've listened to, both in the writing and narration.

Loved it loved it LOVED IT

This is one of the most imaginative science fiction stories I've read. The concept is very intriguing, with a mysterious cosmic event occurring suddenly and without explanation. Wilson deftly lets the mystery unfold during the course of the novel, which is told non-linearly -- the narration jumps back and forth between past and present, as the narrator recalls events from his life.

I found the ending VERY satisfying. Throughout the book I wondered how Wilson would tie it all together, but he did so masterfully, providing an explanation that explained it all in a way that was as imaginative as the initial concept.

Nested through all this is a personal story involving a wealthy (but dysfunctional) family who played a key role in both the narrator's life and the post-spin world events. I found some of this interpersonal drama to be a little tiresome at times -- not really bad, just overdone -- but overall it did not detract from the story.

Scott Brock is not my favorite narrator (I've HATED some of his work on other books, where he was often overly dramatic) but he was good here.

Tour De Force

If you like your science fiction with believable characters, believable plots grounded in the real world, and plots that tie together, this is an engrossing listen. I wish there was more of Wilson's work on Audible.

GREAT BOOK!!!!

I just finished listening to this book, what an incredible journey! This was an excellent book if you are into Sci-Fi. Well written. I hope there are more like this from this author.

Surprisingly Excellent

I was blown away by his good of a story this s after purchasing on a whim. Looking forward to finishing the trilogy.

I smell a series coming!

Excellent read, excellent listen. I've read most Scott-Card books, this equals them. Great story line. Kept me on the edge of my seat and didn't want to stop reading. Would really love to see this as a series.

A very good book with a few small flaws

Wilson has done a few things well here: a few interesting characters and a plot which is grandiose but somehow believable and intriguing. I'm a pretty tough critic, so take my criticisms with a grain of salt. That said, I think there are a few places where the writing takes some short cuts with the characters, and though overall I found the story successful I sometimes struggled with the "present" part of the plot (some tired tropes played out in it) ; the "Past" was far more interesting and worthwhile.

The narration is mostly successful, with a few moments of odd or repetitive inflections. Far better than many other narrators though, so I'll not complain too much.

Still, I give this my full recommendation, its very much worth both the time and the money.

Love the One You’re With

I totally enjoyed “Spin” by Richard Charles Wilson. Well written, strong characters and captivating story line. My favorite themes included “The End of the World”, “Science vs. Faith” and “Unrequited Love”.

Great Find!

This is the best book I've listened to in a while. It reminded me of the Ender series- great character development, strong plot, and Scott Brick as the narrator. I loved this book. I'm going to look for others by this author.

Couldnt put it down

This book was really excellent - I could hardly put it down. The plot line is gradually revealed to the reader, just fast enough to keep things interesting. It explores some very interesting ideas with respect to the scale of universe in both space and time. This narrator is one my favorites, he has great timing and expressiveness. Overall this was one of my favorite purchases.