Heechee Rendezvous

By: Frederik Pohl

Narrated by: Oliver Wyman

Length: 11 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's Summary

After millennia had passed, Mankind discovered the Heechee legacy (an alien culture that fled to the relative safety of a black hole) - in particular an asteroid stocked with autonavigating spacecraft. Robinette Broadhead, who had led the expedition that unlocked the many secrets of Heechee technology, is now forced once more to make a perilous voyage into space - where the Heechee are waiting. And this time the future of Man is at stake....

©1984 Frederick Pohl (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Not as good as the first two

I thoroughly enjoyed the first two in this series (The Heechee Saga), but this title seemed a little forced. The book dragged on a little then the end seemed to be a bit of, jump the shark, and over to quickly.

But having said this I will continue with the fourth book in this series. I do love Frederik Pohl's works.

Good ideas in haphazard story with endless discussion

Third story in the series and far from my favorite. There are some great SF ideas related to artificial computer intelligences, black holes, manipulating the laws of the universe, etc. But the characters seemed to spend much of their time either in annoying personal conflicts or pondering what is going on. Even after it was revealed to the reader what is going on, some characters continued speculating about what is going on! Together with a somewhat haphazard plot line, it started to feel like a chore to reach the end. I am probably not going on to number four, which is disappointing having really enjoyed the first two.

Boring! No Story, No Action!

This one put me to sleep. This is SciFi? Why did they publish This?
A waste of my time and my credit!

all fizzle, no bang

lacked the mysterious aspects which I enjoyed so much in the first two in the series. plot timeline felt off and didnt build much tension for me personally.

I Enjoyed It ...

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

Probably in the middle. This is more of a traditional space opera story, and fits neatly into that genre. Pohl was an editor before becoming a writer and his familiarity with the genre shows here. This is a tightly plotted story that moves along nicely. Parts of it are a little "wordy' but overall it is traditional Sci Fi and a good third book in the series.

What did you like best about this story?

Understanding the Heechee, their intentions and the reasons for their retreat was interesting.In many ways the story is a backdrop to Pohl's fascination with physics and I enjoyed the argument between a pro-Einstein version and a pro-Quantum version of astrophysics.

Have you listened to any of Oliver Wyman’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I thought he was great. He has done all three int his series and I thought it was interesting how he made Robin "sound" like he had aged (from the first book). Also his representation of Albert was great.

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

No I rarely do that, but it doesn't diminish that this was a good book.

Any additional comments?

The first book in this series was a ground breaking book, no doubt about it. The second and third books are more conventional in their plot and storyline.Some readers might not like this, adn stopping after the first book might make sense. I enjoyed finding out what happened to Robinette after the first book, and adjusted my expectations during books two and three. It doesn't mean they are not as good, just that they are different in narrative, story and tone. Pohl is a traditional Sci Fi writer like Clarke and Asimov and readers of those authors will enjoy this book and this series.It is entertaining and interesting.

Great production

Third in the series by the same narrator. Very enjoyable and the different voices really makes the story come alive

Essential listening

Enjoyable performance of 3rd installment in Frederick Pohl's timeless Heechee saga. Old school science fiction, no wizards / zombies.

An amazing story continues!

I rarely follow a series to its conclusion, but Frederik Pohl delivers another page-turner in the incredible Heechee Series. The characters are now like well-known acquaintances--or even friends--and the scope and sweep of the story continues to expand and excite. Pohl is a great storyteller with an immense scientific knowledge. I'm now on to the next book!

Great book!

I very much enjoyed this one. I think it took a little longer to get to the Heechee than I wanted, but, the back and side stories helped develop the plit, immensely.

great read

excellent addition to the series, enjoy the ancient race concept. pure science fiction at it's best.

Another Great Addition to The Gateway Universe

Would you consider the audio edition of Heechee Rendezvous to be better than the print version?

Definitely. A really good narrator can help to bring a book alive for me.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Robin. I like his character because he is so 3-dimensional and a tortured soul.

Which scene did you most enjoy?

I enjoyed teh progression of the story and the evolving characters.

not a good part of a series

Very good narator but the story is hopelessly boring compared to the previous two books.