Long Paradise

Wanderer Universe

By: James Murdo

Narrated by: The Voice of Nick

Length: 7 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's Summary

Wanderer Universe (stand-alone story)

An ancient, unsolved mystery. Everyone wants to survive. Everyone wants answers.

The Outer Layer is an enigma to its residents. Representatives from countless races and civilizations wander the many territories, hoping to unlock the secrets and progress further into its depths.

An anomaly has been detected in space by an artefact from an extinct civilization. Ciqalo, a machine intelligence from the Wanderer civilization, is tasked with investigating and weaponizing the anomaly for a galactic war.

Tolren, playmate to the heirs of a powerful Roranian family, becomes a hunted fugitive. He finds himself thrust into a dangerous adventure aboard a structure in space that defies understanding. What’s more, he’s not alone. Seremend, a fellow Roranian, has also been ensnared.

Why have they all been chosen?

A stand-alone novel from the Wanderer Universe.

Cerebral sci-fi with an emphasis on the "Sci". If you enjoy hard sci-fi, complex space opera, and authors such as Iain M. Banks, Alastair Reynolds, and Dan Simmons, then this is for you.

©2019 James Murdo (P)2021 James Murdo

Promising Sci-Fi But Confusing At Times

I've enjoyed the listen but at some points it was a bit difficult to follow. The story is engaging and interesting, especially in the beginning. I'm not the biggest fan of the overall arch but definitely worth the listen. The story is tied in with the other books from the Wanderer Universe but you don't have to listen to anything else in order to enjoy it. Still not a fan of Nick's.

Fascinating premise. a well told story

the setting has lots of potential, I hope to see more stories in this setting.

Complex secrets buried within the journey

Received as an audio review copy from Story Origin, this is an honest review. Narrated by The Voice of Nick, leads you through the labyrinthine adventure that Tolren and Seremend find themselves plunged into an adventure aboard a mysterious alien vessel deep in space and forced to build a friendship out of the necessity of survival. The truth they discover is a complex journey that is subtle and surrounded in layers of gray shadows that will shatter the trust they've built for each other they come to know each other on such a deep level. The narrative is beautifully complex and well keep your attention as you work to hold the threads of the story together that has a memorable ending. Highly recommended.

INTRIGUING & INTERESTING SCI-FI DRAMA

INTRIGUING THRILLER AND INTERESTING STORY LINE THAT KEEPS YOIR ATTENTION.
STORYLINE IS GOOD BUT WAS A LITTLE DIFFICULT TO FOLLOW FOR SOMEONE NOT REALLY FAMILIAR WITH SCI-FI.

ACCEPTABLE FOR FOR TEENS AND OLDER AGES


NARRATOR WAS GREAT AND EASY TO FOLLOW.

Unique and interesting scifi story

The parts of this novel I enjoyed included the early interactions with Trict and her family as they pressure her to have a medical implant. The arguments and debates are well done and the outcome is both understandable and heartbreaking. Another favored part of the book is when Tolren and Seremend are trapped in a space station. Both characters interact well, questioning one another and exploring their surroundings in a way that helps the world building of the story to great effect.

Although this is a standalone novel, there are references to many things that are not easily clarified. Those who have read the rest of the series may understand the entirety of the story more than those who have not. Overall, Long Paradise is an interesting scifi book. The unique non-linear story provides mysteries, challenges and an array of strange characters and unexpected dangers.

Exploring a Mysterious Megastructure

I received a promo code for this from the author.

This bok was not what I was expecting, along the way, I didn't think I was liking it, but by the end, I changed my mind and I enjoyed it and would like to read more in the universe it is set in. The world building is similar to what was in Ninefox Gambit, in which the world is super detailed and well though out, but the author does not engage in the tradition of hand holding and explaining it all to the reader. This is a little jarring at first, and the way the time spans jump around between the book parts made it confusing at first, but then you know to expect it. Eventually, you have enough tools to piece together the world in a way that allows you to understand what all is happening, By the end, I felt very satisfied, there is more explanation about what all is going on in the last couple of chapters, so if you are still lost byu then, that should clear it up.

As far as the narration goes, I think The Voice of Nick does a great job, and I am excited to see how he progresses as he gets more titles under his belt. I appreciate that he differentiates character voices inside of chapters, but I feel like voices get reused for different characters across chapters. This is fine, normally, but when you have non-linear scene changes, like here, it makes itr hard to identify who is talking if they are a new character or not. Overall, I liked the tone and delivery of the narration, although some of the dialogue felt a bit melodramatic. Not sure if that was how it was acted or how it was written, but it wasn't too big of an issue.

If you like Big Dumb Object stories, where people explore mysterious megastructures (Ringworld, Rama, Heaven's River), you will probably enjoy this one.

Good buildup to the great finale.

I found this book a bit confusing at times, which you’ll understand why as you progress. It’s a bit difficult to describe this book without spoilers, but the closest resemblance to another story is Interstellar. Don’t get me wrong, they are actually nothing alike except for the slow buildup and a great reveal at the end and of course the sci-fi theme.

The narrator did a great job with this book, good narration with just the right amount of dramatization and good voice acting. The only thing I found a little annoying at first was that I got the impression that the book was recorded in a kitchen or something alike. Not sure if the narrator moved location or got better recording equipment but further on I didn’t notice it anymore, maybe I just got used to it.

Overall I enjoyed the story and the narration.

Stick with it, it'll pay off in the end

I was given a review code for this book and having not listened to Gil's World I wasn't sure what to expect. Well I didn't care much for the first two hours I did end up thoroughly enjoying the rest. The start of the book served it's purpose later on so I'll probably end up listening to this again in the future to see what I missed due to the initial lack of interest.

If the book was longer I'd definitely check out Gil's World but I'm a miser with my credits so I'll throw it on my wish list in case it shows up in a sale some day.

Quite the ride I liked it

This book felt like a mix between maze runner, interstellar, sphere and a touch of star trek. Definitely worth checking out. The only thing I really didn't like was the beginning there were a lot of things happening and it was bouncing between 2-3 different stories which made it a little hard to follow along but by the quarter mark you're put in the present and things start to make more sense and easier to follow. By the end of the book it all ties together.

An interesting adventure

This was my first exposure to the Wanderer Universe and I was quite intrigued. It’s definitely hardcore sci-go, and that’s exactly what I was looking for.

James Murdo is very creative with his characters and storyline. I also found his writing to be very descriptive.

The narration, by The Voice of Nick, was very well done. I thought his style worked well for this story.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and I have voluntarily left this review.

An unforgettable kaleidoscopic trip into great sci-fi

Murdo’s Long Paradise is a pleasure to listen to. This book is a mind bending gymnasium of thought provoking sci-fi that is intense, intelligent and served beautifully with each anticipated chapter. Murdo draws you skilfully into his universe with dynamic elegant writing and paints a rich and detailed landscape that leaves a lasting impression on his audience. The narrative is also excellent and I was amazed by the talent of The Voice of Nick who, surfing Murdo’s writing, sets the scene for a truly wonderful piece of story telling. I highly recommend that you treat yourself to Long Paradise, you will not be disappointed. Put simply this is great sci-fi.

Interesting

I enjoyed this book, but I do agree with another review that you need to listen to it uninterrupted, because it is easy to lose track. It is worth it though. Also loved the names for some reason. A few got a chuckle out of me.
The narration is on point and suits the material. So overall a good audiobook!

A masterpiece made even better on audio

When I originally read this book in 2019, I loved it. It's a book you have to really focus on. No distractions if you truly want to be absorbed in the story. I was blessed to come upon this audiobook, though, and having it being narrated opened up a whole new vision of the story that I had not realized I was losing out on by just reading it. Listening to the story helped my mind envision things much more clearly. Even parts that I thought I had understood, became crystal clear and I would rewind to hear it again. The narrator was perfect in bringing clarity to the story and life to each character. James Murdo has a fascinating imagination! Thank you, sir, for helping to expand my mind. I'm in awe!

An enjoyable Interesting story

An enjoyable and interesting hard science fiction story. The writing is excellent and the story complex, it took me a while to get my head around it but in the end everything comes together to a satisfactory conclusion. Excellent narration make this an enjoyable listening experience.

Sci-fi space opera to blow you away

I loved this story. Time travel, technolgy beyond our current comprehension makes this an intriguing tale to listen to. I will need to listen to it again a few times as it is a complex plot, but has led me to buy the book and others that James Munro has done. I won't spoil anything, you need to listen for yourself. Perfect for a sci-fi lover like myself. Thank you James!

The narrator expertly brings you into the world of James Murdo, I felt like I was there along with the characters. He cleverly tailors his voices to give life to each character, narration flow is steady throughout. Some narrators can come across as boring for me, however, The Voice Of Nick keeps his flow throughout and to me, sounds like he enjoys reading it out to us as much as we enjoy listening or reading for ourselves. Look forward to more from the narrator.