In the Ocean of Night

Galactic Center, Book 1

By: Gregory Benford

Narrated by: Maxwell Caulfield

Length: 12 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's summary

It is 2019. NASA astronaut Nigel Walmsley is sent on a mission to intercept a rogue asteroid on a collision course with Earth. Ordered to destroy it, he instead discovers that it is actually the shell of a derelict space probe - a wreck with just enough power to emit a single electronic signal.

In 2034, a reply is heard. Searching for the source of this signal, which comes from outside the solar system, Nigel discovers the existence of a sentient ship. When the new vessel begins to communicate directly with him, the astronaut learns of the horrors that await humanity. For the ship was created by an alien race that has spent billions and billions of years searching for intelligent life… to annihilate it.

©1972, 1973, 1974, 1977 Abbenford Associates (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Not what I expected

Would you consider the audio edition of In the Ocean of Night to be better than the print version?

Haven't read the print version

Has In the Ocean of Night turned you off from other books in this genre?

No. I've read and enjoyed a number of similar "intercept the alien craft" titles. This one seemed a bit disjointed.

What about Maxwell Caulfield’s performance did you like?

Easy to listen to

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

No. it was very difficult to identify with any of the characters and the scenes seemed very superficial.

A bit slow paced for my taste.

What did you like best about In the Ocean of Night? What did you like least?

Good: Very interesting ideas, it seems well through through. I had to listen in bits.

Bad: Very slow paced and many times over analytical. I got bored at times, but the book had my rapt attention at other times. If I find a time where none of my other series have a new book out or I'm looking for something slower paced, I might buy the next book.

Be careful listening at the very end...

The author gives some spoilers about book 2 when he begins talking at the end of the story, itself.

A Jewel in Benford's Crown

Gregory Benford is one of sci-fi's famous "Killer Bees." These hard science fiction writers are my favorites. But it has been years since I had read Benford 's "Great Sky River" series of novels, and I had forgotten much of this first book. Listening to it, I found his writing style a little bit irritating! He often gets carried away and writes long, flowery descriptive phrases. It's like he's trying to fulfill a quota of words, rather than just tell a good story. People don't talk like he writes! At least none that I have ever known. But I like the plot and the characters! The story gets bogged down a little in places but overall is interesting and leaves the reader wanting more. I especially like the parts where Nigel explores the first alien ship and where he has to deal with the bureaucrats who are more afraid of an alien presence than they are fascinated and curious! I also like all the details about the "snark!" I'm looking forward to the next book in the series! This one has mystery, romance, conflicts, philosophical musings, and portents of doom. What's not to like?! Especially if you enjoy the writing style!

Oh, and kudos to the narrator for a fine job!

Slow start to a longer story arc

Benford's In the Ocean of Night is the 1st installment of a 6 part series originally published in the 1970's. The significance is that the theme deals with alien contact and machine intelligence so the story has a primitive quality today that comes naturally from inherent limitations of its perspective of that time. The story centers around an astronaut who discovers an alien artifact believed to be an errant comet about to strike Earth. He next identifies another alien artifact as it enters our solar system a few years later and makes contact with the onboard AI. Finally, he is brought in to investigate what appears to be an alien artifact buried on the moon after an apparent thermonuclear device that may be another alien artifact on Earth detonates. Against this background, there is a religious movement with unclear motives that comes to dominate politics.

While quite popular in its day, probably due to its unique take on alien first contact, the tale suffers from underdeveloped characters. While the main character seems mostly adrift, supporting characters get extremely short shrift that makes their motivations and reactions quite uninterpretable. The fascination with BigFoot may have also been unique to the time period when the book was written which does not gel well today. By the end, it just wasn't clear what the author was trying to relate and the conclusion was far from satisfying. As an intro to a longer story arc, this is a disappointing appetizer.

The narration is good with a solid range of voices and good pacing with a tone suitable for the overall tenor of the tale.

Very Different from "Hunger for the Infinite"

After listening to the novella by Gregory Benford, "Hunger for the Infinite," I was intrigued and ready for more of the same universe. This novel is very different. It is very slow moving and for much of the first half focuses strictly on main character Nigel and his "triad" relationship with Alexandria and Shirley. I was hoping for a little more science fiction, but patiently listened through Nigel's ups and downs with his lady loves. The lingering back story seems to be Nigel's struggle to over come politics within NASA and finally discover something real and true about the universe.

I was waiting for the "science fiction" part to dominate the "dramatic" part, and it doesn't really happen until the end of the first half. The creepy robots of Benford's novella have not shown up yet in Nigel's world, but he begins to get a sense of their presence. The entire novel is a build up to the idea that robotic life dominates the universe and that organic life is rare. My favorite character in the novel is actually the "snark", an automated craft that has been sent by these as of yet unseen robotic forces, to sniff out organic life. The snark does not know why it exists but only behaves as it has been programmed to behave. In its discussions with Nigel, there are some of the most interesting passages of the book. The snark drifts eternally through the "ocean of night" and finds its only fulfillment through learning about organic life forms.

I was disappointed that this novel was so different from "Hunger for the Infinite," but I enjoyed it anyway. Its slow and thoughtful, with no real gripping action or suspense, but contains some captivating musings about mankind and our relationship to the universe. I will continue with the series to see where it leads.

A Grand Opening For An Epic Series

What made the experience of listening to In the Ocean of Night the most enjoyable?

I have to confess that I've read Benford before, and his writing efforts are consistently very good reading/listening. In this case, I accidentally read Great Sky River first a number of years ago, and it is a strong hard tech scifi read that sweeps you along to its great conclusion. That being said, I walked into this audiobook listen with high expectations, and wasn't disappointed! It reads different, because it takes place prior to the third book, and is in a completely different environment. So, it was a great experience, and my expectations were well met. Thanks, Benford, for a solid scifi series I already knew was great before I started the very first book.

What was one of the most memorable moments of In the Ocean of Night?

I won't answer this question. I don't often give away parts of a good read. This is a great series, so I'll plead the fifth on this one.

What does Maxwell Caulfield bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

He's a good narrator, but I'll want to hear his performance on the rest of the series, and then I'll update this review. It's only fair to give him his proper due.

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

An unending galactic war is about to begin, and it waits...for YOU.

Any additional comments?

Enjoyable. Well paced. Strong plot. Solid character development. Captivating story. Nuff said. Get the audiobook.

I Enjoyed This 70's Sci Fi

If you could sum up In the Ocean of Night in three words, what would they be?

Nigel the Curmudgeon

What was one of the most memorable moments of In the Ocean of Night?

Trying not to give it away...what happens to one of the main characters after she dies....

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

No I haven't but he did a good job.

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

Probably not

Any additional comments?

This is a great start to a series that the author wrote over the span of more than 20 years. As a 1970's novel it is tied to that era, which is not a bad thing. I plan on listening to the rest of the books in the series. Good solid space opera.

I wish I liked it

When I purchased this title I made a mistake: I didn't check the date of the first publication. The audio book was published in 2012. Into one third of the story I started to suspect that the original book is older than my daughter, and later my suspicion was confirmed by mention of microfilms used in 2034. I should have known better to check the reviews more thoroughly before buying it. In the Ocean of Night was born in 1972. Almost as old as me. It's not that I'm against old books, but I pick them only if I want to be nostalgic. Otherwise I prefer books of this century.

The story, however, started well, right into hard science fiction, astronauts discovering an alien artificial asteroid. Just what I wanted. But then the author made me jump fifteen years, to arrive into the daily life of the astronaut who made the first contact. The family setup was interesting, I must say, a blossoming triangle of a man and two woman, enjoying the threesome love-life. Besides that, a family drama unfolded in front of me, with the sadness of one of the partners having cancer. Oh, as a subplot, some slow development happened concerning an alien automated spaceship called Snark passing by. But not much.

The story seemed to speed up when the Snark started to communicate through a medical implant, and resurrected the said partner. I thought "yes, real science-fiction, finally". It didn't last long, though. The alien spaceship left the Solar system running from a missile. Why, of course the US government had to shoot at it, it's standard Hollywood procedure.

Then there was the wreck of another alien spaceship on the moon, which almost caused the death of the character who stumbled in its shield by chance. Space accident. Fight for life. Good stuff. But then jump again, and now I was discovering the alien ship's computer. Oh, the ship lowered its shield sometime in between, but I never learned how and why. Anyway, there was the promise of hard sci-fi again. But what I really got was description of dull images downloaded from the alien computer. Boring. I wondered why the scientists didn't go exploring the ship. Yes, they told me that it was dangerous, and they had plenty of time, it wasn't going anywhere. Serious? It was an alien ship, for god's sake!

And then came Mr Itchino (I hope I spell it right after hearing), who went to play being a hermit in the woods on the hillside. But only after that I had to listen to all the wonders of singing birds and landscapes he was amazed of. Did I mention boring? After an agonizingly long time he finally learned about the secret of the mountain: Bigfoot existed. No kidding. Mr Grave saw them, they shot at him with their laser gun.

By this time I listened to the audiobook at x1.25 speed to get over it quicker. I still had my hope that there will be an amazing ending. False hopes.

Mr Walmsley suddenly was sucked into the alien computer, and the aliens told him everything he wanted to know, and he told me some of it. While chopping wood on the hill. For Mr Itchino. In an elevated mental state. All of these spiced with a high literature writing style, which was odd, because it didn't match the previous part of the book.

I almost forgot to mention the religious sect of the New Sons. I'm still wondering what was the author's purpose with them.

I found the cover copy misleading. In the Ocean of Night promised me so much, but definitely failed to deliver. John Scalzi would be able to write this story in thirty pages, and still find the room for a little sarcastic humour of his.

Some reviewers say that the next books in the series are better. I wouldn't know. I won't buy them. I go to listen to an Alastair Reynolds book instead.

The narrator did an excellent job, certainly I would listen to books he reads.

Interesting premise, very poor author.

The skeleton of the plot is good. Which is why I purchased the book. The writing, though, very poor. The author tries to be descriptive, overly so. As I read, I noticed that he uses two to three adjectives to describe every. single. thing. Like some sort of pseudo poetry only it's bad. It gets to the point that I couldn't find myself immersed in the story.
The main character isn't likable. Not in a flawed character sence, he's just a jerk. I found myself not caring about his musings (which again, are over wordy) and thinking about something else.
The side plots seem pointless. The main character's wife and their joint lover were useless color to the plot. It seemed like the author needed to fill pages for his editor.
Lastly, the reader. Why he chose to give one of the main characters a western/southern/rural accent when he couldn't be consistent is beyond me. Each time he read in the character's voice, it sounded different to the point where it was difficult to tell who was speaking.
In the end, it cost me kne credit to realize this author is not worth reading.