The Jennifer Morgue

A Laundry Files Novel

By: Charles Stross

Narrated by: Gideon Emery

Length: 13 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

Hugo Award-winning author Charles Stross continues to make a name for himself in the sci-fi genre. The Jennifer Morgue is an extension of Stross’ award-winning novella The Concrete Jungle.

Bob Howard is a special operative for the British agency called The Laundry, and his task is to stop a rogue billionaire from using an artifact, known as Gravedust, with the power to reanimate the dead. The U.S. Black Agency sends the lethal Ramona Random to aid Bob’s mission, but she seems to have a different agenda.

©2006 Charles Strauss (P)2009 Recorded Books, LLC

Critic reviews

"[A]lternately chilling and hilarious....It's up to Bob and a collection of British eccentrics even Monty Python would consider odd to stop the bad guy and save the world, while getting receipts for all expenditures or else face the most dreaded menace of all: the Laundry's own auditors. Stross has a marvelous time making eldritch horror appear commonplace in the face of bureaucracy." ( Publishers Weekly)

good but...

too much technical jargon
not enought fantasy like in book one
a good story likeable caracters

Getting better

The Laundry Files series gets a lot better with the second installment. This is a fun romp through a very interesting world.

Fabulous

The reader, Gideon Emery, was perfect for this book, and the material was a fascinating blend of Lovecraftian tropes, computer technical geekery, and the application of over-the-top spycraft.

And damn it if the interpersonal relationships didn't have extraordinarily satisfying arcs! Stross's characters have really begun to feel like real people in the best possible way.

This has me slavering to hear the previous Laundry book, also read by Emery. I hope you've got Emery already producing the Fuller Memorandum, now that I'm on the topic, because if you can't tell, I think Stross, the Laundry books, and Emergy are a winning combo.

GREAT NEW LISTEN

Once I got used to the accent it turned out to be a really fun listen. Lots of twists and turns. Wish I had listened to Book 1 first. Have ordered Book 1 to listen to better late than never. The characters are very richly portrayed by the narration. Easy to pick up where you left off and get absorbed in the book each time you start listening.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would highly recommend to any sci-fi enthusiast.

good, but not his best

Stress has an excellent turn of Phrase and an excellent sense of snark. I enjoyed this tho He really gets up to speed with The Fuller Memorandum and The Apocolypse Codex.

Second book in the series

This is my second book in the series. I have been a little unsure whether to listen to it or not after having found the first book a little mixed.

Well I think this book is better than the first. There is still something about it that doesn't sit quite right with me - especially the second mini story at the end and the appendix; those I hated.

But for the main story which is the bulk of the book it was pretty decent and enough for me to give the third book a try.

I'd recommend this book if you work in IT and laugh (or cry) at bureaucracy.

good book. great plot over all. stupid word limit

great plot over all. stupid word limit on reviews. hate that.
HH HHH huh jjjj

Surprisingly good!

I enjoyed this book but was not expecting to. Fantasy is not my thing, but this story is well-constructed and has just enough pseudo-science to enable suspension of disbelief.

The Laundry series continues to thrill

What made the experience of listening to The Jennifer Morgue the most enjoyable?

Charles Stross' dry geek humour makes the book feel like a conversation with my friends.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Bob Howard is the perfect hero - flawed, honest and dealing with all situations in dry humour.

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

The narrator manages to insert the story directly into the listener's mind without intruding on the narrative.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I almost fell off the treadmill laughing at several points, and chuckled through most of the story.

a good story

this was a really good story, but not a good one to listen to while on a drive. the main character was suffering from sleep deprivation for a good chunk of the story and it kind of made me sleepy while driving. once I was off the road it was far more enjoyable.