Impact

By: Douglas Preston

Narrated by: Scott Sowers

Length: 11 hrs and 38 mins

Publisher's summary

In Douglas Preston's Impact, Wyman Ford is tapped for a secret expedition to Cambodia... to locate the source of strangely beautiful gemstones that do not appear to be of this world.

A brilliant meteor lights up the Maine coast... and two young women borrow a boat and set out for a distant island to find the impact crater.

A scientist at the National Propulsion Facility discovers an inexplicable source of gamma rays in the outer Solar System. He is found decapitated, the data missing.

High resolution NASA images reveal an unnatural feature hidden in the depths of a crater on Mars... and it appears to have been activated.

Sixty hours and counting.

©2009 Splendide Mendax, Inc. (P)2009 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

“Scott Sowers's fully voiced reading is perfect...Sowers's accomplished, finely tuned pacing will keep listeners hooked. Great family listening for a long journey.” —SoundCommentary.com

“Be warned, once you start listening to this you'll will not want to switch it off... Definitely recommended!” —SFCrowsnest.com

“I highly recommended Impact on all levels. It is one of the best books I have ‘read' in a long time.” —SF Revu

Meh...

To sum up this book in one word... Meh. The book was fast pasted but did not move me. The language did not bother me. What 18 year old witnissing the event of her lifetime does not drop the F bomb. There was a lot of time spent building up to this final show down and it never happened. It was like he wrote the ending in one afternoon. Be sure to listen to the epilog it adds some much needed answers to the ending and should have been part of the ending. OK book, but not the block buster I had anticipated. Save for a rainy day, or if you have an extra credit you need to use up.

Not quite what you think!

I am a true fan of strange happenings set in our world - scientific mysteries that may be or could be real. This book took me on its twists and turns of scientific observations and deductions while developing the characters into people that you care about. Don't assume that you know what this book covers by the title. And, like good mystery novels, it is fun to see how soon in the story you deduce "who done it!"

Good adventure science story

I didn't like this one quite as much as Preston's other book featuring Wyman Ford, but I still enjoyed it. A lot of seafaring adventure and interesting "science."

Vulgar? yes, but overal, it's good

A real interesting thriller set around a sci-fi scene. I really like these kind of books...everyday people discover something that would be unlikely, or impossible to us. Then we see how they deal with it.

OK, these characters are a bit over the top, but it still works.

OK, it's vulgar at times, but it still works.

I really liked how this book evolved..slowly revealing different truths.

If some raw cursing doesn't offend you, you won't be disappointed.

Great book!!

I love the Preston/Child books. I am especially a big fan of the Agent Pendergast series(Relic, Cemetery Dance, Dance of the Dead, etc.); so getting this was not a great leap of faith. I knew it would be well worth the credit. I was not disappointed. It took off at light speed and never let up. If you are a fan of thrillers with a supernatural/paranormal twist, any of Mr. Preston's (or Lincoln Child's) books are great reads.

Different

This is not the book the title suggests. It is a fast paced thriller that starts in a New England fishing village with a teen looking for a meteorite and jumps to the jungles of Cambodia with seemingly unconnected stories. The author brings it together nicely though with a very unusual plot line. I did not mind the language and to tell the truth did not even notice it. I have never been sensitive to words though. I won't give away the plot here but I think you will agree this is not your usual meteor strike, Armageddon book. As they used to say on Laugh In, Verrrrry interesting.

Very Entertaining

I found myself deferring other activites to hear what happens next; and, I can see how the ending could lead to book two.

I thought it was good.

Yes it was a little far fetched - but its a story... fiction... fun... take it at face value. Good story... understandable science... nice ending.

Boom! The girls kick hiney in this one!

This was exciting and I loved the characters, I hope they will all show up in a sequel.

Interesting

This book has three different stories within it and all linked to the story. I found it a great read especially the ending there is also a message within the book for all mankind. .Narration was OK