Into the Abyss

An Extraordinary True Story

By: Carol Shaben

Narrated by: Tiffany Morgan

Length: 10 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's Summary

Only four men survived the plane crash. The pilot. A politician. A cop... and the criminal he was shackled to.

On an icy night in October 1984, a commuter plane carrying nine passengers crashed in the remote wilderness of northern Alberta, killing six people. Four survived: the rookie pilot, a prominent politician, a cop, and the criminal he was escorting to face charges. Despite the poor weather, Erik Vogel, the 24-year-old pilot, was under intense pressure to fly. Larry Shaben, the author's father and Canada's first Muslim Cabinet Minister, was commuting home after a busy week at the Alberta Legislature. Constable Scott Deschamps was escorting Paul Archambault, a drifter wanted on an outstanding warrant. Against regulations, Archambault's handcuffs were removed - a decision that would profoundly impact the men's survival.

As the men fight through the night to stay alive, the dividing lines of power, wealth, and status are erased, and each man is forced to confront the precious and limited nature of his existence.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.

©2013 Carol Shaben (P)2013 Hachette Audio

Too long, and it got boring.

I picked this book because I thought it would be a little like a Mayday episode, except those last about 45 minutes not 10 hours.

The story was not just about the accident, what led up to it, how the survivors survived, the trial, the outcome and the aftermath but also (and forgive me for the indelicate way I am phrasing this) The Biography of 4 Nobodies. That sounds derogatory, I’m sorry, but I guess what I mean by that is that I found it unnecessary and superfluous. I could have done without all that.

Quoting a reviewer who quoted another reviewer: the experience did not really transform these four men's lives as the cover suggests--they all took a break and then eventually went back to doing pretty much what they were doing before.

I got so bored after a while that I listened in fast forward to get it over with.

Lackluster

I hate to leave a negative review, however, I found the story lackluster. Of course surviving a crash is amazing but I found the story lackluster. The narrator was the worst I have ever heard. The orator stops at every conjunction for emphasis and many, many other odd places. Her style is akin to reading to a toddler. I hated listening to it, but hoped the story would compensate. No such luck. Thumbs down.

Well written, poorly narrated.

What made the experience of listening to Into the Abyss the most enjoyable?

Having grown up in Alberta, this is a story with which I had some familiarity. Each character is given sufficient time in the spotlight, and the circumstances were well researched and described. I was turned off however by consistent pronunciation errors on behalf of the narrator, usually involving terms with which most Canadians would be familiar. It took away from an otherwise well done story.

Would you be willing to try another one of Tiffany Morgan’s performances?

Probably not; aside from the obvious lack of research into some of the minutiae of the story, the narrator had an odd cadence that sometimes bordered on robotic.

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

Possibly. I believe I listened to it in 3 or 4 sittings, as I usually listen while driving. I enjoyed the breaks to ponder on various aspects of the story.

Good story, not good narration

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

I was interested in the story as heard on NPR. However the narration on the audio book made it difficult to listen to. Morgan pauses in strange places, emphasizes unimportant words and sometimes sounds like she is reading a shopping list.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Tiffany Morgan?

ANYONE

So much unnecessary boring detail

Maybe we tried to turn an article into a beer here? I just couldn’t last through all the excruciatingly unnecessary details.

OMG this lady can't read

Her voice sounds like Siri. She emphasises all THE wrong WORDS...I had to stop listening. Also the story is sort of interesting but it's not THAT amazing.

Absolutely riviting

Any additional comments?

I first heard of this book from an NPR story. It listens like a page turner through the crash and survival, then remains compelling as the effects of the experience on each of the survivors is recounted. Highly recommended!

bad choice

This book just wasn't as interesting as expected. Sometimes I wonder if the reviews shown are even real.

bad narration mars good story

What disappointed you about Into the Abyss?

The narrator has an odd cadence. The choppy narration makes it a very hard listen. A shame as the story is good.

Would you be willing to try another one of Tiffany Morgan’s performances?

no

Just a summary of post-crash victims

I enjoyed everything up to the biographies, which is a large part of the book. I wanted to know about the crash, the reasons, the struggle for survival, etc. That part of the book came and went quickly. Then it stuck to biographies that had absolutely nothing to do with the plane crash. "My dad was carjacked and almost died years later." I'm sorry... sad story. But was he on that plane when it happened? Cause thats the reason I got this book - a plane crash story.