The Swarm

A Novel

De: Andy Marino

Narrado por: Candace Fitzgerald

From the bizarre and audacious imagination of horror author Andy Marino comes a harrowing tale of the insect that will herald the apocalypse…

"The literary equivalent of swallowing a wasp that's crawled inside your Coke can. Do yourself a favor and read this book."–Nick Cutter, author of The Troop

"Creepy, crawly, and endlessly dark, this is Marino's best novel yet."–Gabino Iglesias, Bram Stoker award winning author

It begins with cicadas. It will end with the swarm.

When a bizarre murder case lands on the desk of Detective Vicky Paterson, it's just the start of her nightmare. On the same day, her young daughter, Sadie, is swarmed by cicadas emerging off-cycle from their seventeen-year pattern. Sadie barely survives, and her condition is critical.

Across town, Will and Alicia, two dysfunctional private investigators, are on the trail of a missing girl and the shadowy cult involved in her disappearance. But after the first wave of insects hit, they are forced to barricade themselves in a motel where they must work together with a group of strangers to outlast the invasion.

Soon the infestation is impossible to contain. Humanity rests on the knife's edge of extinction. And there is a terrible purpose behind the emergence–one that Vicky, Will, Alicia, and a small group of unlikely allies must unravel if they are to survive.

"Marino's work is unlike any other's in the genre–horrifying, complex, fascinating, and utterly unique."–Hannah Whitten, New York Times bestselling author

"Relentless, brutal, and brilliant. An apocalyptic tour de force."–Craig DiLouie, author of How to Make a Horror Movie and Survive

"Marino has taken the safety of sensations away from me. Every prickle along my arm, the slightest buzz anywhere near my ear–it's all fodder for nightmares now. Suggesting your skin will crawl after reading this unnerving novel doesn't come close. Your flesh will fly away."–Clay McLeod Chapman, author of Ghost Eaters

©2024 Andy Marino (P)2024 Redhook

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Moving with the relentlessness of a winged insect coming straight for your face, Andy Marino's The Swarm is a fiendishly compelling assault on the senses. Its procedural elements are reminiscent—in all the best ways—of horror classics like The Wolfen or The Manitou, while its more apocalyptic scenes are as thrilling as the best that subgenre has to offer. This is a weird, wild ride you'll want to revisit more than once every seventeen years."—Nat Cassidy, author of Nestlings

"Relentless, brutal, and brilliant! Andy Marino's The Swarm reads like an apocalyptic tour de force, a Michael Crichtonesque fever dream that goes all the way with its terrifying premise. A five-star read."—Craig DiLouie, author of How to Make a Horror Movie and Survive

"The literary equivalent of swallowing a wasp that's crawled inside your Coke can, The Swarm is a burst of bright, unexpected, feverish prose blazing straight across your brain-pan. If you like that kind of thing (and I very much do) then do yourself a favor and read this book."—Nick Cutter, author of The Troop

Kept me interested.

I didn’t see the end coming. It was all a surprise, but I guess it had to happen the way it did.
Leave us wondering, I guess that’s an opening for another book

Creepy and Fun with a Sci Fi Bent

The narrator in this one was terrific! The book itself gets a little bogged down in the details of what’s happening rather than the emotion and thrills, but still has a bunch of tense, scary moments and satisfying character work

I guess I expected something else

It was good ! Well written and I loved the narrators. I was just a little disappointed on why the swarm began . I would have loved nature turning against us instead of what it was .

Awesome

Loved everything about this listen, wonderful narration and a great story. 10/10 would recommend

Not Great, but Decent

There is a bug invasion. The book has significant sci-fi, horror, and spiritual elements. I liked how much the author leaned into the horror without cop-outs for people you would expect to be somehow exempted from cruel fates, but the sci-fi elements and spiritual elements were just too jarring when they suddenly appeared, and they were never explained. There is some technology that is clearly sci-fi despite the present-day setting, yet the origin of this technology is never explained.

Ms, Fitzgerald does an adequate job as narrator. It took me a while to grow accustomed to her narrating style. At some points, her performance and voice affect was a bit too "smoky," almost as if she was narrating an erotic novel rather than a horror novel. On balance her performance was decent, but not great.

Overall, the book is a decent read. It never really captivated me, It's not a 5 star or 4 star book, more of a 3.5. Kudos for the originality though.

Better and Better

What starts off as eerie and off-kilter happenings in the search for a missing girl slowly unfurl into a planet encompassing machination.
Marino may not wax poetic in order to transport the reader into chittering cityscapes but his prose truly capture the small details within frightening moments and slows them down to a degree where you find yourself hoping that the car crashes, the stomach splits and the eyes finally close.
Anything, if only the scene will change.

Good narrator: tedious story

OMIGOSH! This story went on forever!!! A lot of the “blood and guts” could have been eliminated.

I would not recommend

The ending that I was holding out for did not deliver. That made listening to the middle that just droned on and on without being pertanant to the story. The ending was so jumbled that I'm not certain what happened. Honestly, I don't even vare. I'm just happy it's over.

captivating

Incredible writing, intense storyline and captivating right from the start. I was hooked within minutes!

I’m in a cicada spell

Loved the entomology as the cicadas evolved. Thrilling plot and descriptions. I love it and was creeped out!