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Cobra  By  cover art

Cobra

By: Timothy Zahn
Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
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Publisher's summary

The colony world Adirondack and Silvern fell to the Troft forces almost without a struggle. Outnumbered and on the defensive, Earth made a desperate decision. It would attack the aliens not from space, but on the ground - with forces the Trofts did not even suspect. Thus were created the cobras, a guerrilla force whose weapons were surgically implanted, invisible to the unsuspecting eye, yet undeniably deadly. But power brings temptation...and not all the Cobras could be trusted to fight for Earth alone. Only Moreau would learn the uses - and abuses - of his special abilities, and what it truly meant to be a Cobra.

©1994 Timothy Zahn (P)2009 Audible, Inc.

What listeners say about Cobra

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    161
  • 4 Stars
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  • 3 Stars
    53
  • 2 Stars
    16
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Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • 4 Stars
    87
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    30
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Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    144
  • 4 Stars
    83
  • 3 Stars
    43
  • 2 Stars
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  • 1 Stars
    5

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

A Pleasant Surprise

I really didn't expect that the focus of the novel would be a study of human nature. But, that is what it was. The combat segments were fast and furious (that somehow made it more believable), which is much better than those stories that seek to fill 90% of the plot with combat. I'll defintely buy book 2.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Little action and Lots of talk

This was not what I thought it was. I purchased this because I read the “Star Wars Thrawn Trilogy” years ago and really enjoyed it, and I thought that this would be an action packed “ Military Science Fiction” story which it was not. It started out OK and it did have some action around the start of the book but most of it was just talking and politics. If I want politics I'll watch the news! If you want action and suspense then I wouldn't bother with this. I think that Timothy Zahn is a very good writer and by all means there should be a live-action film adaptation of the Star Wars thrawn trilogy or at least a CGI animated one. Its just that this book was not for me

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Better every time.

Genuinely one of my favourite books ever. Every time read (or now listen) to it I like it more! Cannot recommend it enough!

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

A solid thoughtful military scifi story

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

The Narrator has a deep resonant voice, and a slight accent. For me, this was excellent, and made the story feel more multicultural than maybe it would appear in print.

What did you like best about this story?

It is the standard formula for military science fiction, an ernest young man joins the military for the best of reasons and gets made over into a soldier,but with a thoughtful constraint to it. It is not a book about how soldiers are somehow better than everyone else, or how they are more terrible, but it deals with the effect of war on a man. It is oddly like a commentary on PTSD, and the difficulties soldiers have in returning to a normal world.

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

I listened to one of the later books in this series and he had the same qualities in it.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Science can make better equipped and trained soldiers, but it can not change the nature of people who fight.

Any additional comments?

I read the book when I was a kid. I recently picked up one of the later books and realized I wanted to go back through the first series again, so I can be better grounded for the later books.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Not Bad!

This book isn't bad to listen to. It held my atension, but it always seemed to be leading up to something action packed that never happened. It had some action but not what the name Cobra implies. The narration is very good, thats is what kept me listening. I'm just starting to listen to book 2 Cobra Strike. I hope it has more then the first book. Now don't get me wrong about this book. It's not a bad book, not by a long shot. I was just hoping for some nail biting action!

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great story!

I read this 30 years ago & completely enjoyed listening to it all over again.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

The life of a cobra

It is interesting how this story isn't just focused on a single major event, like a war, but instead follows over character through about 30 years of life, including war, family life, exploration. It is well told and kept me interested the whole time.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Wandering and anticlimactic

Not bad, but not good either. Felt like 5 self contained ideas strung together without planning.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Outstanding book

Came from reading Thrawn books, an excellent sci-fi novel
Production was excellent as well

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

a Zahn masterpiece

Timothy Zahn was already my favorite Star Wars author, then Cobra popped up in my recommended list after a few other books with Stefan Rudniki narrating (the enderverse).
Cobra is my start on this new journey with Zahn and I am already placing it in my top favorite SciFi novella. It has the politics and warfare one comes to expect of genre related titles, as well as the awesome character development and love that Zahn typically delivers!
A must have masterpiece for any SciFi collection!

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