Preview
  • Darwin's Children

  • A Novel
  • By: Greg Bear
  • Narrated by: Scott Brick
  • Length: 17 hrs and 26 mins
  • 3.9 out of 5 stars (442 ratings)

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Darwin's Children

By: Greg Bear
Narrated by: Scott Brick
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $22.46

Buy for $22.46

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

Greg Bear’s Nebula Award-winning novel Darwin’s Radio painted a chilling portrait of humankind on the threshold of a radical leap in evolution. Now, Bear continues his provocative tale of the human race confronted by an uncertain future, where “survival of the fittest” takes on astonishing and controversial new dimensions.

Eleven years have passed since SHEVA, an ancient retrovirus, was discovered in human DNA - a retrovirus that caused mutations in the human genome and heralded the arrival of a new wave of genetically enhanced humans. Now, these changed children have reached adolescence...and face a world that is outraged about their very existence. For these special youths, possessed of remarkable, advanced traits that mark a major turning point in human development, are also ticking time bombs harboring hosts of viruses that could exterminate the "old" human race.

Fear and hatred of the virus children have made them a persecuted underclass, quarantined by the government in special “schools”, targeted by federally sanctioned bounty hunters, and demonized by hysterical segments of the population. But pockets of resistance have sprung up among those opposed to treating the children like dangerous diseases - and who fear the worst if the government’s draconian measures are carried to their extreme.

Scientists Kaye Lang and Mitch Rafelson are part of this small but determined minority. Once at the forefront of the discovery and study of the SHEVA outbreak, they now live as virtual exiles in the Virginia suburbs with their daughter, Stella - a bright, inquisitive virus child who is quickly maturing, straining to break free of the protective world her parents have built around her, and eager to seek out others of her kind.

But for all their precautions, Kaye, Mitch, and Stella have not slipped below the government's radar. The agencies fanatically devoted to segregating and controlling the new-breed children monitor their every move - watching and waiting for the opportunity to strike the next blow in their escalating war to preserve "humankind" at any cost.

©2003 Greg Bear (P)2003 Books on Tape, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Bear's sure sense of character, his fluid prose style and the fascinating culture his 'Shevite' children begin to develop all make for serious SF of the highest order." (Publishers Weekly)

"Top-shelf science fiction, thrilling and intellectually charged." (Amazon.com)

What listeners say about Darwin's Children

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    151
  • 4 Stars
    162
  • 3 Stars
    83
  • 2 Stars
    26
  • 1 Stars
    20
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    121
  • 4 Stars
    78
  • 3 Stars
    28
  • 2 Stars
    8
  • 1 Stars
    7
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    112
  • 4 Stars
    71
  • 3 Stars
    43
  • 2 Stars
    12
  • 1 Stars
    9

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

Science-driven plot; weirdly over-emoted reading

This book is a worthwhile sequel -- definitely worthwhile if you read and enjoyed the first book. I found the plot to be unconventional, lacking the traditional kinds of drama found in this genre, but I also found it quite engaging as it was, meandering through highs and lows without having a core conflict. The characters are interesting, and a number of them are developed enough to offer compelling subplots. Picking up with Kate and Mitch from the previous novel makes it easy to slide into caring about the characters.

The biggest drawback in this audiobook is the fact that the reader, whose voice is deep and clear, adopts a reading style in which virtually every sentence is read as though it is the most dramatic moment in the novel. This over-emoting is unbelievably distracting, at least at first, and makes it hard sometimes to stomach large doses of the audio. It's unfortunate, because it's not the most dramatic book -- and a straighter, more even-keeled delivery would fit the narrative well. However, in this case the producer got it wrong and gave terrible direction to the reader. It is this aspect alone that makes the audiobook hard to recommend.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Politics overwhelmed a good story

I read the first book and the series and was looking forward to the second one. However, the author's constant political drumbeat was just too much. I wanted a science fiction story, not a politcal rant. I gave up about one quarter of the way through the book. There is enough quality science fiction out there that doesn't try to make a blatent political point every few pages.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

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

disappointing

A trilogy that starts with detailed, if not realistic, science ends in mysticism. The afterword reveals the trilogy to be an argument for faith masquerading as hard science fiction. I will remember Greg Bear as a posuer to be avoided. Such bait and switch backdoor advocacy is extremely annoying.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!