New Earth

The Grand Tour, Book 18

By: Ben Bova

Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki

Length: 9 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's summary

We’ve found another Earthlike planet, but what secrets does it hold?

The entire world is thrilled by the discovery of a new, Earthlike planet. Advance imaging shows that the planet has oceans of water and a breathable, oxygen-rich atmosphere. Eager to learn more, an exploration team is soon dispatched to explore the planet, now nicknamed New Earth.

All the explorers understand that they are essentially on a one-way mission. The trip takes 80 years each way, so even if they are able to get back to Earth, nearly 200 years will have elapsed. They will have aged only a dozen years thanks to cryonic suspension, but their friends and family will be gone, and the very society they once knew will have changed beyond recognition. The explorers are going into exile, and they know it. They are on this mission not because they were the best available but because they were expendable.

Upon landing, the team discovers something unexpected: New Earth is inhabited by a small group of intelligent creatures who look very much like human beings. Who are these people? Are they native to this world or invaders from elsewhere? While they may seem inordinately friendly to the human explorers, what are their real motivations? What do they want?

Moreover, the scientists begin to realize that this planet cannot possibly be natural. They face a startling and nearly unthinkable question: Could New Earth be an artifact?

©2013 Ben Bova (P)2013 Blackstone Audio

Pretty terrible

I actually only finished this so I could write a review.

Minor Spoilers.

Story:
Unlikable, two-dimesnional characters. No way would a team of future scientists be a bunch of whiny, immature, idiots. These people were pretty awful and sounded like a bunch of lame middle school kids.
The conflict in this story just wasn't believable, the scientists who didn't trust the aliens just didn't have any real reason not to, and weren't convincing in their arguments against trusting the inhabitants of New Earth. And then the capitulation at the end was extremely anticlimactic and flimsy.
The whole plot was flimsy actually, why these advanced predecessors would want a bunch of people as ignorant and immature as this group to help them defies logic.
One reviewer called this book 'hard sci-fi'?? Not even close.

Narrator:
I honestly cannot believe people listen to this narrator more than once. His rendition of a Chinese accent had to be the single most cringeworthy thing I've ever heard from a narrator, it was downright offensive. No narrator should try an accent if they sound like they are mocking said accent.
He has absolutely no ability to do accents in general. He made the characters sound either ridiculous or robotic, or both. It really sucks Amazon has chosen him to narrate so much classic sci-fi.

Incredible Story

First Bm Bova novel I’ve ever read and his style is just my taste. Incredible story here.

Excellent Sci-Fi Story of the Grand Tour series

Any additional comments?

Unforgettable sci-fi novel that kept me reading! Like the space explorers, I had to find out more and more about the alien species. I am glad I was able to switch between reading and listening to the outstanding professional narration,w or else everything in my daily life would have been on hold, while I was totally engrossed in this wonderful book. By all means, this is a five star read! I highly recommend it. Ben Nova's novels are getting bigger and better with each new release.

Interesting plot, dated and simplistic writing.

Interesting plot, dated and simplistic writing. This book reads like it was written in the 1950s not 2013. Think Ring World. I like cute women as much as the next guy, but despite a token effort to include women with actual roles, all female characters remained undeveloped sex object accessories to the end. Every description it women was about their attractiveness. Also unmalicious use of national stereotypes occurred at multiple points. I thought this was supposed to be an adult book, but I think it would be suitable for 12 year olds. It wasn't without merit, I got to the end and was happy to read, but no masterpiece at all I'm afraid.

I wanted more to happen

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Yes. I've been needing a new author to dive into, and I'm not completely turned away from Bova.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

I liked the fork of the species. I would have liked more characterization (or even a sequel) about the new earth inhabitants. I'd like more about their culture. It's like there was a great framework for a story...and then...no story.

Did Stefan Rudnicki do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

Yes, I did like the characters. The main squeeze wasn't believable though.

Could you see New Earth being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

It is a great premise for a TV series. But every episode would have to invent a new plot.

Any additional comments?

Neat idea, elaborate on it. The story ended before it began.

New earth isn't why you expect

First and foremost the story works slowly, which in no way is a drawback in this case. As the plot unfolds it dose well to keep you wondering what is going to happen and once or twice will leave you scratching your head. All in all a good time with excellent narration

Boring

The story started off interesting but the character development stagnates. We have race stereotypes that border on offensive and the characters seem so one dimensional. The narrator voice is also unappealing.

Good story overall but...

...the selection process for the main characters didn't sit right. It just felt like the characters were meeting for the first time rather than knowing each other very well which I would expect given the nature of the mission.

sci fi at its best

a good hard look at the human condition. if you enjoy scifi listen to this.

A new start or an ambush

What made the experience of listening to New Earth the most enjoyable?

Two things, first the flow of the story and the true to life characters. Second was the excellent reader.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The Irish scientist, he portrayed the true Irish attitude to life and problems, for example, he was willing to allow himself to be connected to the machine. He was prepared to "have a go".

Which scene was your favorite?

When Jordon spoke to the predecessor.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No, but I just had to listen to every minute.

Any additional comments?

Ben Bova has scored another goal and won the match with this excellent book, Stefan Radnicki combined are just the right combination. This is an excellent book and I highly recommend it to all.