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Cyteen
- Cyteen, Books 1-3
- Narrated by: Gabra Zackman, Jonathan Davis
- Length: 36 hrs and 47 mins
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The assassination of heroes was once a warning... for an invasion that nearly destroyed the world. Nations were slaughtered, cities were erased from existence, and defending armies were crushed into oblivion. In weeks, all life stood on the verge of extinction. But the end did not come. Instead the black horde vanished, leaving terrified survivors... and rumors. As the centuries passed the holocaust faded into legend, and finally myth. Across the southern sea a gifted young man is completing his training.
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Loved this book!
- By Andrew Stone on 10-06-13
By: Ben Hale
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The Safanarion Order Omnibus, Books 1-3
- By: Ken Lozito
- Narrated by: Vikas Adam
- Length: 30 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Aaron Jace had a normal life until they came for him. Now he's being hunted. Assassins will stop at nothing to find him. Aaron is from Earth; his family is not. He is the last scion of an ancient and powerful family. Thrust into another world, Aaron must find his way to the one man who can help him survive. The Safanarion Order includes the first three stories in the captivating epic fantasy series listeners describe as compelling and full of suspense.
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I spent my last credit on this steamy pile of dung
- By father_husband_ron on 01-10-18
By: Ken Lozito
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Runes of Issalia: The Complete Collection
- Books 1-3
- By: Jeffrey L. Kohanek
- Narrated by: Tim Campbell
- Length: 26 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Contains the complete Runes of Issalia series. The Buried Symbol: Rejecting his role as an outcast, Brock risks his life and obtains a false rune, marking him a member of the Empire's ruling class. The Emblem Throne: Brock and his friends resume their training at the Academy. However, an expansive web of lies resides within the Ministry. An Empire in Runes: Led by a teen named Brock, a squad of young heroes seeks a means of stopping a dark force from consuming the rest of the continent.
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Best series I've come across in a long time
- By justin on 09-05-21
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The End Time Saga Boxed Set, Books 1-3
- End Time, The Breaking, The Rising, and "The Gun"
- By: Daniel Greene
- Narrated by: Keith Szarabajka
- Length: 39 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Over the course of a few months, along with the rest of the world, America collapses piece by piece turning the nation into a grim wasteland where the chances for survival are slim. Watch your six with counterterrorism agents as they try to keep a doctor and each other alive. Join a team of CDC doctors as they race to find a cure and the virus picks them off one by one. Scramble with a retired Air Force colonel thrust into the command of a Special Forces team trying to prop up a dying government.
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How in the world does this rate so many good rvws?
- By Northern New Englander on 02-26-21
By: Daniel Greene
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Jack Foster Space Opera Box Set
- Books 1-3
- By: John Hindmarsh
- Narrated by: Shawn Compton
- Length: 32 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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This audiobook box set collects the first three installments of John Hindmarsh's epic Jack Foster Space Opera series: Violent Graduation, Rescue the Princess, and Jack's Planet. Join Jack and his team—ever increasing—in their epic adventures.
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Decent space opera but could have been 2 books with better editing.
- By Kristopher Andrae on 02-24-24
By: John Hindmarsh
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The Dwellers Saga Omnibus
- Books 1-3
- By: David Estes
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan, Will Damron
- Length: 29 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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In a desperate attempt to escape destruction decades earlier, humankind was forced underground into the depths of the Earth, creating a new society called the Tri-Realms. After her parents and sister are abducted by the Enforcers, 17-year-old Adele, a member of the middle-class moon dwellers, is unjustly sentenced to life in prison for her parents' crimes of treason.
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A Delicious and Unique Journey
- By UnreliableHeart on 09-01-15
By: David Estes
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Elseerian
- The Chronicles of Lumineia, Book 1
- By: Ben Hale
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 12 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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Story
The assassination of heroes was once a warning... for an invasion that nearly destroyed the world. Nations were slaughtered, cities were erased from existence, and defending armies were crushed into oblivion. In weeks, all life stood on the verge of extinction. But the end did not come. Instead the black horde vanished, leaving terrified survivors... and rumors. As the centuries passed the holocaust faded into legend, and finally myth. Across the southern sea a gifted young man is completing his training.
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Loved this book!
- By Andrew Stone on 10-06-13
By: Ben Hale
-
The Safanarion Order Omnibus, Books 1-3
- By: Ken Lozito
- Narrated by: Vikas Adam
- Length: 30 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
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Performance
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Story
Aaron Jace had a normal life until they came for him. Now he's being hunted. Assassins will stop at nothing to find him. Aaron is from Earth; his family is not. He is the last scion of an ancient and powerful family. Thrust into another world, Aaron must find his way to the one man who can help him survive. The Safanarion Order includes the first three stories in the captivating epic fantasy series listeners describe as compelling and full of suspense.
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I spent my last credit on this steamy pile of dung
- By father_husband_ron on 01-10-18
By: Ken Lozito
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Runes of Issalia: The Complete Collection
- Books 1-3
- By: Jeffrey L. Kohanek
- Narrated by: Tim Campbell
- Length: 26 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Contains the complete Runes of Issalia series. The Buried Symbol: Rejecting his role as an outcast, Brock risks his life and obtains a false rune, marking him a member of the Empire's ruling class. The Emblem Throne: Brock and his friends resume their training at the Academy. However, an expansive web of lies resides within the Ministry. An Empire in Runes: Led by a teen named Brock, a squad of young heroes seeks a means of stopping a dark force from consuming the rest of the continent.
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Best series I've come across in a long time
- By justin on 09-05-21
-
The End Time Saga Boxed Set, Books 1-3
- End Time, The Breaking, The Rising, and "The Gun"
- By: Daniel Greene
- Narrated by: Keith Szarabajka
- Length: 39 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Over the course of a few months, along with the rest of the world, America collapses piece by piece turning the nation into a grim wasteland where the chances for survival are slim. Watch your six with counterterrorism agents as they try to keep a doctor and each other alive. Join a team of CDC doctors as they race to find a cure and the virus picks them off one by one. Scramble with a retired Air Force colonel thrust into the command of a Special Forces team trying to prop up a dying government.
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How in the world does this rate so many good rvws?
- By Northern New Englander on 02-26-21
By: Daniel Greene
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Jack Foster Space Opera Box Set
- Books 1-3
- By: John Hindmarsh
- Narrated by: Shawn Compton
- Length: 32 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
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Performance
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Story
This audiobook box set collects the first three installments of John Hindmarsh's epic Jack Foster Space Opera series: Violent Graduation, Rescue the Princess, and Jack's Planet. Join Jack and his team—ever increasing—in their epic adventures.
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Decent space opera but could have been 2 books with better editing.
- By Kristopher Andrae on 02-24-24
By: John Hindmarsh
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Thinblade
- Sovereign of the Seven Isles, Book 1
- By: David A. Wells
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 18 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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When second son Alexander Valentine loses his brother to an assassin's arrow, he discovers that his family protects an ancient secret and reluctantly finds himself at the center of the final battle of a war that was supposed to have ended two thousand years ago. Pursued by the dark minions of an ancient enemy, Alexander flees to the mountain city of Glen Morillian where he discovers that he is the heir to the throne of Ruatha, one of the Seven Isles, but before he can claim the throne he must recover the ancient Thinblade.
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Worst Book I've Ever Listened To or Read
- By Samantha S on 11-29-16
By: David A. Wells
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The Jewel of Dantenos
- Lee Starfinder Adventure: From the World of the Godling Chronicles, Book 0.5
- By: Brian D. Anderson
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 1 hr and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Filled with confidence and no small measure of arrogance, young Lee Starfinder and Millet Gristall set off on their very first adventure. Lee quickly discovers that life beyond Hazrah can be far deadlier than he could have ever imagined. And soon he must learn that muscle and steel cannot replace loyalty, bravery, and friendship.
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A fine example of a short story
- By Amazon Customer on 01-19-22
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The Breakers Omnibus
- Books 1-3 and Prequel Novella
- By: Edward W. Robertson
- Narrated by: Ray Chase
- Length: 42 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Books 1-3 and the prequel novella of the Breakers series.
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So glad I downloaded this one.
- By Stevie Havoc on 11-16-15
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Earth's Nexus, Books 1-3
- By: Eve Langlais
- Narrated by: Tanya Eby
- Length: 20 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Ruby's got a special talent for disrupting magic and it's been causing problems her entire life. When she's recruited by the Special Monsters Unit, she finally discovers a use for her ability—and gets embroiled in a supernatural mystery that might destroy the world.
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Absolutely a fantastic adventure!!
- By Elisha on 07-11-24
By: Eve Langlais
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Ascension Series: Volume I
- Books 1-3
- By: Ken Lozito
- Narrated by: Jeff Hays
- Length: 21 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Contains books one, two and three of the action-packed space opera Ascension series. They’ve been watching us for hundreds of years. Now they need our help. Earth is not safe. Zack is good at finding things, but when he discovers a global conspiracy, life as he knows it is over. Kept secret for 60 years, the discovery of an alien signal forces an unlikely team to investigate a mysterious structure discovered in the furthest reaches of the solar system. Join the crew of the Athena, Earth’s most advanced spaceship on the ultimate journey beyond our wildest imagining.
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Clearly written for the Jr. High School age group
- By Ed H. on 03-11-21
By: Ken Lozito
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Void Wraith Origins: The Complete Trilogy
- Books 1-3
- By: Chris Fox
- Narrated by: Ryan Kennard Burke
- Length: 18 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Contains the complete Void Wraith Origins trilogy: Dryker's Folly, Book One; Dryker's Stand, Book Two; and Dryker's Fall, Book Three.
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Very glad I listened...
- By Connie J. Cooper on 12-01-21
By: Chris Fox
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A Pause in Space-Time: Publisher's Pack
- The Stasis Stories, Books 1-2
- By: Laurence Dahners
- Narrated by: Andre Blake
- Length: 13 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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Contains books one and two of The Stasis Stories: A Pause in Space-Time (Book 1) and The Thunder of Engines (Book 2). Kaem Seba is a sickly and financially destitute young man with extraordinary math skills. With the help of Arya Vaii, a business student, he has developed a theory and an electronic device that allows him to stop time within limited volumes of space-time.
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great book but
- By Amazon Customer on 07-14-21
By: Laurence Dahners
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Last Command
- Fallen Empire, Book 0
- By: Lindsay Buroker
- Narrated by: Kate Reading
- Length: 2 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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In the final days of the empire, Cyborg Corps Colonel Leonidas Adler plans to die in a manner befitting of an imperial officer. He will fight until his last breath, giving his life to defend Emperor Markus, as it was meant to be. But when the emperor himself summons him for a final special mission, how can he refuse?
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Pretty good teaser for lighter space opera
- By 🔥 Phx17 🔥 on 10-15-21
By: Lindsay Buroker
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Rogues of Magic: The Complete Trilogy
- Rogues of Magic, Books 1-3
- By: J.T. Williams
- Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds
- Length: 29 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Sviska is a man of the shadows, an assassin without any one place to call his own. But in the Far North, he discovers a secret. Magic, long thought lost to the world, is alive. The genocide to destroy every elf, wizard, and sacred being of old is not yet complete. Sviska's masters work the strings of the world and he has been sent for a task he does not even fully understand yet. When at last he feels he has what he has always wanted, darkness falls upon the world.
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Great Series: In depth backstory
- By Kdg on 05-01-20
By: J.T. Williams
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131 Days: Omnibus 1
- Books 1-3
- By: Keith C. Blackmore
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 40 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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Once every year, in the city of Sunja, gladiators Baylus, Goll, and Halm meet in the arena known as Sunja’s Pit. Their battles are epic, but deadlier still are the shadowy forces that conspire against them outside the Pit. Only by applying their brutally honed survival instincts can these brave warriors hope to win their freedom and exact grisly revenge upon their enemies.
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Narration is amazing, story is a joke
- By Vi on 12-11-22
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Jack of Thieves
- The Master Thief, Book 1
- By: Ben Hale
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 10 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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The Thieves Guild is renowned for their ability to steal anything. Its elite members have robbed nobles of wealth, reputation, and even their honor. The Guildmaster rules them with brutality and fear, yet his name and past are a mystery. From the depths of the Evermist swamp, he seeks a master thief, one who can help him reclaim his lost power. Young and brash, Jack Myst has drawn the Guildmaster's attention. His feats mark his potential, but his audacity and cunning make him dangerous.
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Annoyingly juvenile
- By Alex on 05-06-17
By: Ben Hale
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Stone Cold Mage: The Complete Trilogy
- Stone Cold Mage, Books 1-3
- By: Jamie Hawke
- Narrated by: Leo Barnabas
- Length: 18 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Performance
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Story
Then I go to stay at my aunt's while starting college, and she's killed because of me, her home invaded by demons, and I learn there is so much more going on in the world than I could have ever understood. Throw in a couple of gargoyles and me unlocking an ancient path to insane amounts of magic, and you have my story. Be careful, though, as it's not for the prude at heart.
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Complete shit.
- By chasen conaway on 04-27-20
By: Jamie Hawke
What listeners say about Cyteen
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Mickey
- 07-01-15
Read Cyteen years ago - fantastic listen
I read Cyteen and many of C.J. Cherryh's books some time ago but haven't read one in a while. Listening to the book was like reading it the first time. I am "re-marveling" at the author's deep character and psychological development. Her portrayal of power, paranoia and politics is so deep and occurs within a fully formed technological and spacefaring future society. Overall, the book was very enjoyable to listen to. In addition, I have to note major kudos to the narrator, Gabra Zackman. She is a fantastic actor and her use of different voices for the characters was so good that I stopped noticing that everyone had a voice in the female range. They truly became the characters in the "play" of Cyteen. I wish that Audible would provide a recording of the sequel to Cyteen, Regenesis, if it's available.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Mike Martin
- 05-08-19
Great book
All around great book. Iv Listened to this book at least three times and will listen to it at least 3 more before I’ve had enough. This is my all time favorite book without a doubt. Amazing story and amazing writing :)
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- BaconFace
- 03-28-14
Political Drama Disguised as Science Fiction
What about Gabra Zackman and Jonathan Davis ’s performance did you like?
Very animated performance, easy to follow which character was speaking.
Any additional comments?
I kept thinking to myself, just keep listening, any moment the political drama will subside and we will segue into more action, or at the very minimum, a different setting than meetings in board rooms. That may have happened at one point but not in the first couple of hours, and I couldn't take it anymore.
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- Chris
- 07-13-12
Solid Story
If you could sum up Cyteen in three words, what would they be?
Complex story with logical twists and turns.
What other book might you compare Cyteen to and why?
Courtship Rite - both create a world and follow trends and scienfic break throughs.
What does Gabra Zackman and Jonathan Davis bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
Mr. Davis gives a solid reading. Ms. Zackman added some inflections that enriched the story.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
The story was complex. I enjoyed taking breaks to mull over developments.
Any additional comments?
Ms. Cherryh has long been a favorite author. Having some of her books on audio adds to the joy of revisiting old friends.
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- troy
- 05-20-12
This is a Heavy Book (lovely too)
Every now and again you read a story at the right time in your life. Stuff was going on around me, and this story gave me perspective. It's wonderful when SciFi can help and inspire in the non-fiction world.
I am avoiding talking about the plot or the characters, because I don't want to give anything away.
The world building that takes place in this novel is astounding. It fully fleshes out a universe where sustainable economic systems work... sometimes you run into stories where planets only have one theme or purposes, like in Star Trek TNG - Risa the pleasure planet full of vacation resorts. This book actually makes sense.
I wouldn't have thought a story full of psychologists would be worth while, but Cherryh does an outstanding job.
This novel is definitely worth finishing.
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39 people found this helpful
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- Lisa
- 05-23-12
Sci-Fi at its best!
I'm generally not a reader of sci-fi, but murder and intrigue set 3 thousand years in the future caught my attention. The detail of the story is extraordinary. What a marvelous imagination this author has! I want to hear more, but this is the only one of Ms. Cherryh's books currently available.
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16 people found this helpful
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- Timothy
- 12-08-15
Just didn't seem to get to a point
What did you like best about Cyteen? What did you like least?
The idea of the story was good, but it just
didn't seem to fill out. Characters came and
went with no particular significance
Would you ever listen to anything by C. J. Cherryh again?
Maybe
Did the narration match the pace of the story?
Yes
Was Cyteen worth the listening time?
No
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1 person found this helpful
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- Maxine Borcherding
- 07-12-16
No sequel!
What did you love best about Cyteen?
I have always thought that Cyteen was one of Cherryh's greatest works, but there are few of them that I do not thoroughly enjoy. The only problem is that Audible hasn't published the sequel- and I need to know what happens next!The characters are flesh and blood and the action takes place within a history and context that make sense. The storyline stands on its own, but is more enjoyable, I think, if a reader has already read or listened to the previous novels detailing the Company wars, and the experiment on Gehenna.But I need to know- was only one person responsible for Ari Senior's murder, or were others involved as well? What will happen to Jordan? We need the sequel: Regenesis !!!!
Who was your favorite character and why?
Justin Warlck- who had to overcome so very much and who seems finally to have found his place. Will it give him the safety and security that he has been denied since he was 17, or will politics both inside and outside of Resune continue to threaten him?
What does Gabra Zackman and Jonathan Davis bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
Great job on the narration- voices of individual characters different enough and consistent enough to make them instantly recognizable.
If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?
Any additional comments?
If you are a fan of Cherryh, you will love this book. Every bit as well developed as the Foreigner series, and with that jolt of an ending like Cuckoos Egg.
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- Jefferson
- 06-05-23
“The brain has to rule the flux”
C. J. Cherryh’s Cyteen (1988) is a big, impressive novel, an imaginative and exhaustive exploration of politics, identity, free will, responsibility, relationships, and nature vs. nurture in the 23rd century: genetics, womb-tanks, clones, education tapes, psychology, longevity augmentation, etc. Despite being a harsh planet hostile to humanity, Cyteen has been colonized and become the central planet in Union, which has been caught in a Cold War with Alliance for decades. Union has its factions: Expansionists, who want to keep colonizing worlds and using clones to augment the population, Centrists, who want to suspend colonization, and Abolitionists, unrepresented in the government and resorting to terrorism to stop the exploitation of clones. Then there are the factions within those factions, like those aligned with or hostile to Defense, which has its own factions, and so on. And there are some aliens lurking in the shadows (though they never appear in the novel).
The most important Administrative Territory in Union is Cyteen’s Reseune, which, thanks to its corner on genetics and psychology, wields great scientific, economic, and political power. Reseune is the sole producer of azis ("artificial zygote insemination" clone workers, soldiers, companions, and so on) and the sole producer of the computer tapes (programs?) that mold them into ultra-capable and obedient servants. The leader of Reseune and of the Expansionists is the 100+ year-old “special” (rare genius) Ariane “Ari” Emory. While thwarting or coopting the Centrists and working on her own genetics projects, Ari finds time to sexually harass Justin Warrick, the teenage clone “son” of colleague Jordan Warrick (another “special” specializing in education), until she is found dead, presumably murdered. The head of Reseune Security, Giraud Nye, forces Jordan to confess to the crime (despite his probably being innocent) by promising to protect his son Justin and his son’s azi companion and “brother” slash lover Grant, while implicitly threatening them if Jordan doesn’t cooperate.
The bulk of the novel depicts the twenty-year development of the traumatized Justin (prey to flashbacks of being drugged and raped by the original Ari) and Grant (aware that as an azi he belongs to Reseune and may be reprogrammed or “put down” against his will) and especially of Ari’s “PR” (parental replicate), an exact clone of Ari who will be raised as much like the original Ari as possible in order to end up with another Ari who will eventually continue leading Reseune as effectively as the first one did. One of the interesting things about the novel is the evolution of Ari’s feelings about being a PR as she matures.
In addition to all the cloning, there’s plenty of other future sf tech in the novel, like rejuv (by which people extend their life spans up to 140 years), terraforming (though it takes a long time), faster than light travel (though the entire novel takes place on Cyteen), and “tape” education. The computers seem primitive by today’s standards, with time using them limited to prioritized projects.
I could never quite grasp how the education by “tape” works, though it involves a combination of drugs and computers and includes “deep tape,” “skill tape,” and “entertainment tape.” While azis receive deep tape programming from the time they’re decanted newborn from the womb-tanks, CITs (citizens) don’t start receiving tape education until age six, having parents to educate and socialize them from birth.
Other differences between azis and CITs concern the clones’ superior speed and strength and appearance and their discomfort with ambiguity, gray areas, and “flux” (change from one state to another), while CITs are able to handle such things and even to thrive intellectually on them.
Cherryh’s writing is serviceable, and if it suffers from some repeated tics (e.g., characters do too much biting or gnawing or chewing of lips till they bleed), it does neat things with the future technology, as when people say things like, “Don’t go azi [robotically compliant] on me,” or “Animals do tape on [manipulate] each other,” and has some nifty lines, like “Politics may make strange bedfellows, but bedfellows make deadly politics.”
It's a very talky novel! Very little suspenseful violent action. Apart from a small number of scenes featuring an escape, a rescue, security training, and sex, the vast majority of the novel is conversations, transcripts, book excerpts, hearings, interviews, parties, medical procedures, interrogations, and so on. It is a different kind of science fiction from that of, say, Tchaikovsky, Reynolds, and Banks. Cherryh’s characters have a LOT of room to feel, think, talk, and live in her big novel (680 pages or 36.5+ hours), and although I came to really like new Ari, Justin, Grant, new Florian, new Catlin, and others, I do think it could have had wee less conversation.
The novel may be ahead of its time for positively depicting two homosexual relationships and hinting at a third. Readers worried about kids acting precociously may shudder at the alcohol, tranquilizers, porn, sex, and parties of new Ari and her teen friends (but my own teenage memories from the late 70s are about par for Cyteen’s course). There is a distressing rape scene—though Cherryh doesn’t write it for titillation and uses it as a core plot pivot with long-lasting ramifications.
The ending is abrupt, leaving plenty of outstanding questions a sequel could wrap up. Fans of mystery novels may be disappointed by the ambiguous resolution of the who-killed-Ari plot strand (though we can guess as to their identity!).
The audiobook readers, Gabra Zackman and Jonathan Davis, are fine. Zackman reads the main chapters of the novel, Davis the excerpts from books and interviews and diaries etc. that come between the chapters.
I enjoyed reading the novel! Cherryh interestingly explores independence and free will and emotions and stress and creativity and change for azis compared to CITs and what it’d be like for a CIT to love an azi and vice versa and what it’d feel like to be a PR. The way politics work and the ethics of exploiting clone servants are carefully thought out. The relationships between politics and technology/science and between personal and social politics are all convincing.
Finally, how much of our behavior and personality and “free will” is based on our biology and how much on our environment/education?
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1 person found this helpful
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- J. Suggs
- 04-07-17
A story quilt woven with politics and science
Reads like a political mystery drama sprinkled with science.
Voice acting was great! I could listen to them read with no problem. I could visualize each character. Just by listening.
The storyline was good, but just a little too politically themed for me.
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