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Crude  By  cover art

Crude

By: J. L. Davis
Narrated by: S.W. Salzman
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Publisher's summary

Lock the doors and board up the windows. The power grids are down. Food is gone. Communications are reduced to short-range transmission and the only sound on the radio is a killer's heavy breathing.

Moving as it is gripping, CRUDE takes the listener inside the world of Eddie Slate, a smooth-talking car salesman who finds himself caught up in the red zone after a catastrophic incident shuts down the global fuel and power supply. With the gas pumps spitting air and law enforcement failing, self-preservation is the only rule for survival until help can arrive.

Alone and frightened, Eddie spends the hours on a hand radio searching for Beth Andrews, a woman he once loved. Nobody ever answers, at least not until a mysterious drifter starts transmitting and takes a dark step into his life.

The time is now and the place, your hometown. See what happens to Eddie Slate the day the world stops.

©2014 Jeff Davis (P)2016 Jeff Davis

What listeners say about Crude

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

A New Kind of Post-Apocalyptic Adventure

This could have been a story about any one of us. The world imagined by the author takes place after a very plausible oil shortage scenario. Everything that we use in our daily lives, including electricity, heat, food, and transportation comes to a screeching halt. Enter Eddie, a completely ordinary car salesman who happened to prepare a little better than most for the end of the world. What follows is a sometimes unbelievable sequence of events that turns mild-mannered Eddie into a post-apocalyptic hero of sorts. There were times where the action dragged or was interrupted by a flashback or internal musings of Eddie. I understand that the author was attempting to show us how events from the past can determine our future, but I felt it was a little overused. It was like ice water to the face, just when things were getting good. I really enjoyed the narrator's work though. He sounded exactly like I would imagine Eddie to sound. I didn't care for Frank's voice though...he sounded too Brooklyn thug rather than hardened killer. Almost too comical for the part, in a way.

I received this book at no charge through AudioBookBoom in exchange for my unbiased review, so my final thoughts are that this was a 3.5 star book that could have been a 4 or more if the author were to rework certain parts. Overall a good listen and I would like to hear more of both the author and narrator's work in the future.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Not what I expected but still good

What disappointed you about Crude?

Just was my type of world ending story, but it was still enjoyable

Would you be willing to try another one of S.W. Salzman’s performances?

Salzman always does a great job

Any additional comments?

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Boom.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

The world, if we let it happen.

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

Eddie's struggles, both internal and external, and the way he challenges them. How he adapts to situations far beyond what he imagined within his ability.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I'd have to say Eddie. I believe the author wanted him to have few others if any to rely upon, forcing him to be resourceful and draw from within.

What does S.W. Salzman bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

A very focused performance

If you could take any character from Crude out to dinner, who would it be and why?

Frank of course. For an arsenic burger.

Any additional comments?

I'm not usually a fan of 'the world after' stories, but this one showed a good amount of humanity (where not expected) along with strength and a fight for survival.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Very good book

Very good story. Kept my interest throughout. Great to listen too it was really suspenseful and kept you guessing.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Gripping

“Crude” takes place in a future where a global catastrophe has shut down fuel and knocked out the power grid. People are running out of food and civilization is devolving into savagery. Former car salesman, Eddie Slate is doing his best to get by while using a radio during the empty hours to try to find a woman he once loved named Beth Andrews. What finds Eddie is a psychopath who wants to take everything Eddie has for survival away from him.

S.W. Salzman does a fine job narrating this gripping cat and mouse story. Crude could have gone a lot of different ways with it’s post apocalyptic future. The direction author J. L. Davis chose was a refreshing change from zombies and other undead things. I think you’ll find Crude well worth your time and your purchase.

Finally, this audio book was provided by the narrator at no cost in exchange for an honest review, courtesy of Audio Book Blast.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Thrilling & Gripping with good story

Would you try another book from J. L. Davis and/or S.W. Salzman?

Yes, the storyline was telling and creative.

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

The plot was well created and the characters of the story came together gracefully.

What about S.W. Salzman’s performance did you like?

Narration was what kept me going till the end. Great job!

Did Crude inspire you to do anything?

To find my moral conscience in the worst of situations.

Any additional comments?

I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot com

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Intense, Gripping Apocalyptic Sci-Fi Thriller

"Crude" was a fast-paced story that started out good and built up to intense fairly quickly. It was a different and interesting take on an apocalyptic situation that was hard to turn off. Not only was it based on the exhaustion of the global fuel supply, one of the characters, Frank was crude, (marked by raw emotion, evil, primitive, and down right scary).

The protagonist, Eddie finds Beth and her daughter, but they're all found by Frank who heard Eddie searching for her on the radio. I can't leave out a comment on the dog Shadow. He played a good role in the story as well.

I have to say that this was twisty to me. I had a whole other ending I thought was going to happen. About halfway through, I was sure I had it figured out but I was wrong. This was a great edge of your seat story by J.L. Davis. He's on my author to watch list now.

S.W. Salzman's narration was exceptional. He portrayed all the characters very well and he was especially good with the desperate grittiness in Frank's voice. He has quite impressive vocal skills and I feel like he was half the success of this audiobook. A great match up with author/reader.

"I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot com."

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Loved the dog, Shadow

This book starts moving and keeps moving which is great. Here is an overview (no spoilers) of the "good versus super evil" premise: Boy meets girl in high school. Girl gives boy a comms radio. They attend different colleges and drift apart. Girl marries and divorces someone else, but boy hangs on to the comms radio. Although there had been no contact between them since they parted for college, Boy uses the radio during an apocalyptic event to idly blast Girl's full name over the comms radio (hmmm...). Enter Bad Guy, and the cat and mouse games begin, and somewhere in the midst of the multiple chases, a dog named Shadow comes into the play. I really liked Shadow.

There was an overuse of somewhat corny dialogue/analogies (".... make her moan, you know, maybe sing Felicia..."; "You should be running like a deer…"; "...fear crawled on her face like ticks on a dead fawn"; "…the fight will be over faster than throwing a firecracker on a loaded uzi...") I vote not quite. While analogies and quirky dialogue is good for levity, and it breaks things up a bit while adding texture. In this case, use of technique detracted from the story to the point where I no longer enjoyed it. There are plenty of other reviewers who feel differently so it may be worth your credit/purchase to check it out.

The narrator has skills. My only comment is that something is lost during parts where characters aren’t actually speaking. It left me with the distracting sense he was “reading” the backstories and not "telling" the story.

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks AudioBlast.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Good vs Evil at World's End

If you could sum up Crude in three words, what would they be?

Survival and more.

What did you like best about this story?

What I liked best was that this is more of a story of people interacting instead of struggle against lost technology or nature.

What does S.W. Salzman bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I haven't read the book but found the narration compelling. Some narrators, unfortunately, detract from an audiobook. This wasn't the case here.

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

My listening attention span seems to be up to three hours or so. So though Yes, I wanted to, I broke it up into two sittings.

Any additional comments?

This was an attention keeping listen. Thanks for making it available.

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBoom dot com

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Gripping, moving and fast paced

Where does Crude rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

CRUDE hits the mark with great characters and twists. Definitely one of my top picks and with its short snappy chapters, difficult to stop listening. Intense, moving, full of surprises and a satisfying end as the tension continually builds.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Both the protagonist (Eddie Slate) and the villain (Frank Myers) were rock solid when pitted against each other, making for edge of the seat entertainment. Eddie's battle within himself to maintain moral values in a world gone crazy, not to mention find his old flame Beth, was often moving, sometimes to tears, while at the same time pulse pounding as a rapid fire machine gun. Great characterization on all fronts.

What about S.W. Salzman’s performance did you like?

Salzman did a fantastic job through the entire novel, but particularly excelled in those moments of confrontation between the major players. His dialogue was crisp as a whip and nearly picture perfect. A few emotional but highly tense moments nearly brings the listener to tears, and at other times, the performance unfolds in high drama keeping the listener heavily engaged and wanting more until its satisfying conclusion.

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

Yes. The twists, turns and unexpected moments combined with short snappy chapters leaves the listener wanting more.

Any additional comments?

CRUDE is the combination of a well thought out, thought provoking novel that employs tense situations, tender moments and tons of twists that keep the listener guessing until the end. This was a slick thriller and an apocalyptic view of the world with delicious villains we love to hate, and a hero in Eddie Slate that makes you want to stand up and cheer. A great read.

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