The Supernaturalist

By: Eoin Colfer

Narrated by: Chiwetel Ejiofor

Length: 6 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's summary

In the future, in a place called Satellite City, 14-year-old Cosmo Hill enters the world, unwanted by his parents. He's sent to the Clarissa Frayne Institute for Parentally Challenged Boys. Freight class.

At Clarissa Frayne, the boys are put to work by the state, testing highly dangerous products. At the end of most days, they are covered with burns, bruises, and sores. Cosmo realizes that if he doesn't escape, he will die at this so-called orphanage.

When the moment finally comes, Cosmo seizes his chance and breaks out with the help of the Supernaturalists, a motley crew of kids who all have the same special ability as Cosmo: they can see supernatural Parasites, creatures that feed on the life force of humans. The Supernaturalists patrol the city at night, hunting the Parasites in hopes of saving what is left of humanity in Satellite City. Or so they think. The Supernaturalists soon find themselves caught in a web far more complicated than they imagined, when they discover a horrifying secret that will force them to question everything they believe in.

Eoin Colfer has created an eerie and captivating world (part Blade Runner, part futuristic Dickens) replete with nonstop action, humor, and a spellbinding cast of characters.

©2004 Eoin Colfer (P)2004 Random House, Inc., Listening Library, an imprint of the Random House Audio Publishing Group

Been looking for this book

Just as great as I remember it from 5th grade so that is a huge plus.

Awesome book! Love the world!

I love the writing style! The futuristic world is so cool! And all the main characters are interesting!
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The only thing I would have to say I didn't like about this book, is that the villain was a bit weak. Also the end set up for a sequel. But there isn't... Eoin! Please make a sequel!!

Not as good as Artemis Fowl

If you love the Artemis Fowl books, you'll be a little disappointed. Colfer creates an interesting world - a near-future corporate and lawyer-dominated society, and describes it in good detail. The characters too are interesting and well written. The one weak point, in my opinion, is the invisible blue creatures that are forced on to center stage. After creating such a gritty urban world with tons of real problems, any one of which would be enough to motivate vigilantes to fight for justice, the addition of a fantasy-esque creature feels forced. After all, this is a place where orphans are used to test new products - till they die at a young age! Maybe this is a transition book for Colfer, from kids fairy books to a more "Blade Runner" adult world, and he will shake off the remnant fantasy creatures next time.

Strong and Loyal

This is the story of Cosmo Hill, an orphan with the will to survive. Cosmo knows that he only has a short time to escape before the "testing" that corporations use orphans to do, eventually kills him. Cosmo dreams of independence and a family, all the while living with hundreds of other orphans in an orphanage that feeds them government banned food byproducts. Then one day he gets his chance to escape and finds his life will never be the same... if he lives through it.

A fantastic book from my childhood.

An exciting, dangerous, dystopian future. In a city designed to rule people by their occupation, rather than choice. Where corporations are the law, human experimentation is commonplace, and unless you have a sponsor you don't officially exist. Everything is run by computers all overseen by the Myishi satellite; but something is going wrong, strange creatures are being seen all over the city. claims of thrill-seekers rushing through gang wars and accidents, firing madly and leaving as quickly as they came. We begin in Clarissa Frane, an orphanage where the children are little more than lab rats. Following one Cosmo Hill, named for the place of his discovery. He has been "living" in Clarissa Frane over 13 years now, and has all but given up the dream of being adopted, and under the watch of the sadistic Marshall Redwood, a family seems naught but a far away dream. So for years now, he has watched, and waited for his chance to escape. ----------------
This was one of my favourite books when I was a child, and I am immensely satisfied that it has kept that title into my adulthood. The Supernaturalist has been lovingly read in this rendition by Chiwetel Ejiofor. His tone and pacing made the quiet and somber moments just as engaging as the tension-filled action scenes. My favourite scene in this audiobook is either the streets of Bushka or the HALO. Patza is officially the best street food ever. And i'm looking forward to the Z12 hitting the road in a few years.

my favorite book

If you have the time listen to this book! It has every thing a book about a mega city needs.

Very different from his Artmis Fowl series but bot

Very different from his Artmis Fowl series but both the story and narration were great.

Great story, horrible Narrator

I was able to listen to about half of this book, before I gave up. The narrator's complete lack of intonation and its variance ruined the story for me (Imagine a repeated rythm...up, up, down, down, up, up, down, down...this is the the narrator's "reading style". It rather reminded me of droning calculus lectures from college-at least they had overheads!). I would highly recommend all of Colfer's works on audible with this one exception. Take a pass and "read" the book.

It never hooked me.

I was hoping for the Colfer I have always enjoyed. Too little humor for me to do again or recommend.

That's one of the BEST books I've read.

Right now, I want to find Eoin Colfer and demand for a book 2 of this amazing universe he's built. I need to know how the Supernaturalists will do after all of this.