Captain

By: Thomas Block

Narrated by: Thomas Block

Length: 12 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's Summary

Thomas Block has created Captain - his most ambitious, intricate, and action-packed aviation tale yet. It is a chilling and all too real story about a routine Trans-Atlantic airline flight that suddenly turns absolutely insane.

In the doomed airliner's cockpit, inside the passenger cabin, and on the ground, a complex array of characters have been propelled at jet speed into a sudden and frantic race for survival.

Captain is a story that pits man against man and man against machine. It is about the need for human judgments, hard-learned experiences, gut feelings, and unbridled perseverance in an effort to rise up against a world where the strict adherence to written rules, regulations, and procedures have been accepted as the norm.

©2012 Thomas Block (P)2013 Thomas Block

Great author, horrible narration though

The author narrates this book, it sounds like he did it at home in an echo chamber. It is too painful to listen to the whole book. I want to stop 5 minutes into the book. I love the author's writing and his other book, Mayday, is one of my favorite audiobooks, but it was by a professional narrator and professionally done and produced. I gave the story 5 stars because Audible forces one to rate the story in order to give the audiobook a review.

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

A Fabulous Experience from Beginning to End!

What made the experience of listening to Captain the most enjoyable?

The storyline was VERY strong, and the author's narration added a really great quality to it - he conveyed the story perfectly.

What did you like best about this story?

The blending of action/adventure with romance, intrigue and personal insights.

Which scene was your favorite?

Almost too many to mention; the action scenes were all riveting, and the other scenes had absolutely no trouble sustaining reader interest.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Action, Adventure, Romance, Intrigue - Captain has it all!

Any additional comments?

I'm looking forward to listening to more of this author's narrations.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

An Audible A+ Listening Experience Thrilling!

What did you love best about Captain?

I got so involved in the story, I was startled by the knocking on my passenger side window as I sat in my car, in the garage, the engine off, in the dark, listening to Captain. I was mesmerized by the need to find out what was going to happen in the gripping drama unfolding to the characters I had come to know in the course of the story. The knocking on the window, was my wife. She said I had been in the garage for over 10 minutes and she thought there might be something wrong.

What did you like best about this story?

I think Mr. Block's reading of his own words, significantly enhanced the character development. He has a very pleasing vocal quality and I enjoyed how fluidly he moved from one character to the next.

Which scene was your favorite?

When the words of Lee Frankel (the shrink) were able to calm a passenger uprising, stimulated by Peter Fenton, the 1st Officer.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I was moved by the prologue and the ending.

Any additional comments?

Captain, could only be written by someone with years of experience as an airline Captain. The masterful blending of Mr. Blocks story telling ability and his wealth of flying experience combine to produce and Audible A+ audio book!

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Horrible narration

The book uses repetitive phrasing and the voice of the author/narrator is very painful to listen to!

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

AUDIBLE, you owe me, big time!

What disappointed you about Captain?

Sooooo much repetition, and he said the same things over and over again. The first looong 8 chapters established ad nauseum the fact that there are some sleazy corporatel types who are not first and foremost interested in the passengers' safety. The last bit of the book could have been rewritten more tightly, and therefore less distressing.

And,oh, the narration is painful.

What did you like best about this story?

The plot of the last third of the book is actually quite good and would make an exciting movie.

What didn’t you like about Thomas Block’s performance?

STOP SAYING "cotpit"!!! You are making me crazy!" Aaarrrgghh.

Note to self: "Never read you own work."

The author is sitting at the breakfast table in his home on Long Island. There are two cups of tepid coffee and some whole wheat toast crumbs on the red and white tablecloth. Mr. Block, with grey stubble on his chin is wearing sweats with a smear of fried egg yolk on the chest, and Mrs. Block is in her chenille bathrobe as Mr. Block reads her his opus pecked out with two fingers on his grandfather's Royal typewriter.

The sound is hollow because he is recording it on the tape recorder his daughter left behind when she went off to college. (She now has an 8 track player.)

A crumpled cigarette pack (his second this morning) lies forlornly next to Mr. Block's left hand which drifts mindlessly from it to his absent breast pocket (sweatshirts don't have pockets) looking for the third. Mr. Block's narration takes three forms: 80-year-old male smoker's screech, 80-year-old female smoker's screech (slightly more breathy than the male version), and deep plodding Neanderthal, which is actually refreshing since there's no screech. Conversations are all held in these voices despite lines being described as "hesitant," "murmured," or "whispered." Anyone who finishes listening to this audio deserved a medal-- a Purple Heart.

Disclaimer: Any cliches noticed here are inspired by the novel itself.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Frustration, resignation as I walk to the lethal injection room, stuff like that.

Nevertheless, I always sympathize with the washed-up retiree who has the experience to save the day. You figure this out very early on and spend a long time for the story to get there.

Any additional comments?

I try to be nice to people who actually manage to put 2 fingers to the keyboard and actually finish a story. I commend anyone who does this even if they should really keep that Starbuck's job.

And I have heard that Mr. Block has written many other well-received books. If this is the case, may I suggest that Mr. Block could stop self-publishing, get himself an agent, and let the publisher foot the bill for a professional narrator to do the reading in a real recording booth.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Thrilling! Engaging! Can't put it down!

What made the experience of listening to Captain the most enjoyable?

Knowing the reader had created each of the characters and was portraying them as he envisioned them...

What was one of the most memorable moments of Captain?

There were too many "seat of the pants" moments in Captain to choose a single most memorable moment.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Absolutely!

Any additional comments?

I've read or listened to a number of Thomas Blocks' books. This is his best to date! I can't convey how exciting almost the entire book was. Thank goodness there were some pauses in the tension!

Excellent

Great book for pilots to listen to. It is very detailed on how pilots think and work through issues.

Suspense with an aviation theme

What made the experience of listening to Captain the most enjoyable?

The credibility of the aviation scenes

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

I found the pace and plot development to be intense and consistent.

What about Thomas Block’s performance did you like?

Mr. Block presents the narrative of the story in a comfortable voice and is able to vary the dialog enough to develop the characters individually.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

The captain is pilot in command. An airliner in flight is not a democracy.

Good story, but bad narration

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

The story was a bit trite, but enjoyable enough, but the narration was less than enjoyable. The writer tired to save a few bucks by doing his own narration. No offence, but he is no John Nance.

What other book might you compare Captain to and why?

Sort of a MAYDAY style book, but less accurate.

Would you be willing to try another one of Thomas Block’s performances?

Yes, just as long as he isn't the narrator.

Could you see Captain being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

The premmis has bee made into movies several times.

Good story, very poor narration!

What would have made Captain better?

Thomas Block is a good author of aviation and airline industry stories. However he does not have the skills or ability to be a good story reader and this spoiled the whole experience with this book. It needs a professional actor/narrator to keep the listener interested and involved.

Would you be willing to try another one of Thomas Block’s performances?

I will continue to read Thomas Block's book with enjoyment. However I will never, ever listen to him narrating again!