• The Fold

  • By: Peter Clines
  • Narrated by: Ray Porter
  • Length: 10 hrs and 52 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (37,063 ratings)

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The Fold  By  cover art

The Fold

By: Peter Clines
Narrated by: Ray Porter
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Editorial reviews

Editors Select, June 2015 - Obligatory lecture: If you love audio, and you have not yet checked out 14, you should. That said, The Fold – which is set within the same universe, but stands on its own – may just as easily make a Peter Clines groupie out of you. This sci-fi mystery follows Mike, a not-so-ordinary high school teacher hired to investigate the scientists behind The Albuquerque Door, a machine that has made teleportation possible. It seems to work fine... but as he digs deeper, Mike soon realizes the scientists are hiding something. It's a signature Clines story, full of puzzles, fun characters, and plenty of weirdness. The cherry on top is 14 narrator Ray Porter, who so perfectly embodies the authors' characters and tone, mastering his unique blend of sarcasm and suspense. —Sam, Audible Editor

Publisher's summary

Step into the fold. It's perfectly safe.

The folks in Mike Erikson's small New England town would say he's just your average, everyday guy. And that's exactly how Mike likes it. Sure, the life he's chosen isn't much of a challenge to someone with his unique gifts, but he's content with his quiet and peaceful existence. That is until an old friend presents him with an irresistible mystery, one that Mike is uniquely qualified to solve.

Far out in the California desert, a team of DARPA scientists has invented a device they affectionately call the Albuquerque Door. Using a cryptic computer equation and magnetic fields to "fold" dimensions, it shrinks distances so a traveler can travel hundreds of feet with a single step. The invention promises to make mankind's dreams of teleportation a reality. And, the scientists insist, traveling through the door is completely safe. Yet evidence is mounting that this miraculous machine isn't quite what it seems - and that its creators are harboring a dangerous secret.

As his investigations draw him deeper into the puzzle, Mike begins to fear there's only one answer that makes sense. And if he's right, it may be only a matter of time before the project destroys...everything. A cunningly inventive mystery featuring a hero worthy of Sherlock Holmes and a terrifying final twist you'll never see coming, The Fold is that rarest of things: a genuine pause-resister science-fiction thriller. Step inside its audio and learn why author Peter Clines has already won legions of loyal fans.

©2015 Peter Clines (P)2015 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Narrator Ray Porter deftly captures the emotions of a group of people who are caught up in a force they don't understand.... Porter ably voices a wide range of characters--from the gruff team leader to the foul-mouthed female engineer and the stammering alien leader. Porter is an affable travel guide on this thrilling trip to a frightening world." ( AudioFile)

What listeners say about The Fold

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  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    19,974
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Loved it until the last couple of hours.

I have the same issue with this novel that I did with "14" - the ending just kind of went off the deep end into weirdness. Don't get me wrong, I loved the story! However, once the "secret" was revealed then we went from an engaging mystery to a horror film with several action sequences. It's almost as if both stories deliberately jumped from one genre to another.

I would have been supremely satisfied if the story had wound up two hours earlier. But that's just me. I'm not a fan of horror scifi. It's why I've never read any of Clines' zombie books. Just not for me. The mystery though, FANTASTIC, if a bit predictable.

Narrator does an amazing job!

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174 people found this helpful

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

Fun premise, great performance, weak story

Have seen quite a few reviews praising this as being an original and even "out-of-the-box". It's not. It borrows heavily from the plot lines of several 1990's video games and ends with a scene ripped straight from a 1997 blockbuster sci-fi movie.

What it is, however, is a great opener, with an interesting mystery and a couple of initially intriguing characters. The setup is sort of trope-y (secret govt science, ominous signs of something going wrong, super competent hero-protagonist), but the prose, banter and character development of a genius English teacher are slick enough to make you feel that anticipation you get as you slowly climb to the first apex of a roller coaster.

Unfortunately, for me, it was all anticipation and no rush. The plot was close to transparent from outset, which of course dims the payoff, but it was really the characters themselves that really irritated me.

First, the protagonist was never really developed beyond the opening chapters. All we ever manage to learn about him is that: a) he likes being an English teacher, b) he's really, really smart and c) he has a perfect memory, which can be a burden. We are given the barest glimpses of the internal workings of a mind that, by all rights should be running NASA, but instead chooses to be a high school teacher.

Second, the conclusions and decisions of the characters do not prove out the premise that they are extremely intelligent scientists and a super-genius. With my middling IQ, I sorted out what was happening to the science team in the first chapter with little more than the title and cover graphic to go on. Yet, the super-genius protagonist couldn't rationalize it with several traditional clues, even as a far flung possibility, until much later on. This theme would run throughout the book, with the protagonist failing to make connections and manage obvious risk until it was too late to prevent bad things from happening. It started to feel like a Hollywood action script where characters are forced to make poor decisions for no better reason than to expedite the plot. Indeed, there were times when I actively disliked the characters I was supposed to be rooting for because their obviously terrible decision making was putting billions of fictional lives at risk.

If you are someone who easily suspends disbelief and don't get too wrapped up in the logic of how a story progresses, this could be a fun, fluffy, sci-fi romp. If you are looking for something equally lightweight and fun, but with intelligence, check out John Scalzi.

P.S. Vocal performance was excellent!

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164 people found this helpful

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

Star Trek: Q-Squared

GAME OF THRONES
First, you got to like a book that starts out with references to Game of Thrones, the best drama ever, with or without boobs. Although, I prefer with. This starts out a bit slow, but than about chapter 24 hits on all cylinders and Clines never lets up on the gas. At first I thought maybe Clines made a mistake going all hard Sci-Fi, but than he starts with the crazy stuff and it was great.

Star Trek
Throughout the book are references to Game of Thrones and Star Trek. If you are not familiar with these shows, you will not get some of the references. Course if you are not familiar with these, you probably would not be reading this. I enjoyed the book, as I have enjoyed most of what Clines has wrote and I hope he writes more along these same lines.

Ray Porter
One of the best narrators. He does not do a lot of voices, matter of fact these characters all sound the same as the Joe Ledger characters. Porter is the master of inflection and tone. He knows how real people talk and does a perfect job of bringing across the meaning of the writer's words.

Q-Squared
If you are a big fan of the theme of this story and a fan of Star Trek, you will want to check out Q-Squared by Peter David.

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144 people found this helpful

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

Especially good if you've already read "14"

Any additional comments?

Peter Clines is quickly becoming my favorite thriller / mystery / horror writer. While "The Fold" is a stand-alone novel much of mysteries that where solved in "14" are revisited in this book and serve as a foundation for the new mysteries in this book. You don't have to read "14" to understand "The Fold" but I believe you will find the solutions to the mysteries of this book more satisfying with that back ground. At first I thought "the fold" was completely new standalone novel that had no connections to his other works. Then I read what I thought was a cameo/shout out to some green iridescent roaches. That put a grin on my face. I don't want to say anything further so as not to spoil anything but I really suggest reading "14" if you haven't done so. As a note of warning, I would not read "The Fold" 1st and the "14". Some of the things discussed in "The Fold" are answers to the main mysteries the protagonist and his friends are trying to solve in "14".

Neither though is this book a true sequel to "14". Maybe it could be considered a spin-off Though as a stand alone book and you could enjoy it by itself. The closest experience I've had with something like this was watching Stargate Atlantis. I had never seen the original Movie or StarGate SG1 series before watching season 1 of Stargate Atlantis. I really enjoyed Stargate Atlantis so while I waited for season 2 to premier I went back and watched SG1 and the original movie. Doing that made Atlantis at the more enjoyable for me as I started to pick up on a lot more background things that I wouldn't have noticed without watch the earlier show. "The Fold" and its predecessor "14" bring out that extra information and world building in that same way.

Unlike "14", "The Fold" starts of with a more thriller vibe. To me the book really felt like I was listening to a Lincoln Child / Douglas Preston type novel for the beginning 2 hours.Our protagonist "Mike", who is blessed/cursed with a high IQ & Idetic memory being sent to investigate a secretive project being funded by DARPA, (unlike our everyday day joe hero of 14 just falling into the middle of a mystery). After those first 2 hours, the mystery kicks into high gear and all the things I loved about the way "14" was wrote started to appear. The character development and character relationships appear and you slowly see it change from the protagonist curiosity being the driving force to the entire group becoming interested working together.

This book is in my personal opinion a lot rougher than "14". If your expecting the same formula as "14", the core elements of it is there but there are also many changes. This time your even working with a governmental oversight viewpoint right from the start rather than just a group of friends. Does this make it better or worse than "14"? To answer I would go back to the StarGate analogy. I know some people really loved Atlantis & others where die hard SG-1 fans. IMHO, they where both good and I while I did have my own favorite of the two, both shows complimented each other so well that I could enjoy either show. That's what "14" & "The Fold" are in a sense. Two stories that compliment each other. You'll probably having a favorite among the two but having already read "14" will make you enjoy "The Fold" all the more, especially if you go in with the knowledge that it will feel quite different at least to start with, but all core elements that made "14" so good will eventual find a way into the story.

As for narration/voice acting. Ray Portor continues to give a stellar performance. If I see his name as narrator and it's a genre I like it's nearly an automatic buy. I can't think of anybody I've listened to with his narration that was a disappointment. It's kinda like Micheal Kramer and epic fantasy. I've been willing to purchase epic fantasy 20+ hour books whose authors I've never heard of and their plot summary I only find vaguely interesting, just because they do such a good job with narration, I'm willing to take a risk. Ray Portor is easily in my top 5 narrators and he does his gives his regular outstanding performance in this book.

So if you haven't read "14" I suggest you read that and then come back and read "The Fold" to maximize your enjoyment of the story. If you didn't like "14", I also suggest you give the "The Fold" a chance because it's just different enough from 14 that whatever you may not have like from "14", might have been replaced with a different writing style that you may enjoy more. Finally if you were expecting a "14" continuation/clone may I suggest you read at least halfway through before giving up. I believe all the things that made "14" such and enjoyable book are in "The Fold" in some form or another even if it's not immediately obvious. I do hope that Mr. Clines eventually picks something to put in the titles of these books to show that they are connected so future titles that occur in this "world" will be easy to spot. I do apologize if I rambled a bit in this review or came across as vague but found it extremely difficult to talk about any similarities between both books or make direct comparisons without spoiling any of the story/mystery. To give you an idea of how much I enjoyed "The Fold", I finished it in one non-stop binge and as for "14" I think I read it at least 6 times in the past year. All I can say is that I hope you will give both "The Fold" & "14" a try and that you enjoy it as much as I did.

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124 people found this helpful

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

You're wasting listening time! Get it!!!

This book is a side-quel to "14"--not a sequel. Although I do hope for a true sequel or even novella to 14, I was so pleased with this side-adventure in the "14" reality. There aren't many people who can write Tesla fiction to my delight, but as always Mr. Clines is good about it. This book is a science fiction tale of an English Teacher with an IQ higher than 180. His friend recruits him to look a project called the Albuquerque Door. Although his buddy has tried to recruit him in the past, Mike Erickson has never taken the opportunities. Mike is also a genius with eidetic imagery, who visualizes ants bringing him information. It was a great idea and had me thinking more about my memory and how it is formed.

Much like 14, this book explores the multiverse theory, and did I mention that Clines writes Tesla fiction well??? Throughout the read, Mr. Clines explores the complication that occur when one explores alternate realities. He does use some off-colored jokes (I laughed at every one). But that's not all! You get --sex--fights--morality exploration-- and suspense! This book was a fast paced adventure that when I purchased it, I stopped everything else and listened.

If you are trying to decide on whether to read this or not, I have lead off with the best part....stop reading reviews, get the book. It is well worth it. There's some swearing and some sex and some hand-to-hand combat, but enough that my 13-year-old was listening with me but asked for the hardcover book. Mostly, it's about science and a gifted team figuring out and dealing with a huge mystery in a high tech secret government project. Now if I can get a 13-year-old to put down the playstation to read the book and you still cannot decide....I don't know what else to tell you!

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96 people found this helpful

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

Disappointing

14 was campy and fun so I gave Fold a shot. Very similar in formula - a little too similar. There's a slightly quirky leading man and a spooky mystery with an assorted gang of secondary characters. But this time the characters felt flat and the mystery/plot did not hold together.

Also, I can suspend reality and enjoy a good scifi turn, but this one felt tinny and for a group of super smart protagonists, they sure seemed clueless a lot of the time.

I have never returned an audible book before, but I honestly feel like I deserve my credit back this time. And not one is ever re listen to.

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73 people found this helpful

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

Starts strong but fails to deliver in the end

Clines creates enough intrigue to grab the reader and taken them on a wild adventure. However, when the plot twist is revealed, it feels extremely underwhelming, overused in today's entertainment outlets, and unoriginal. The story then takes even more twists and turns that left me quite unimpressed and feeling emotionless towards the ultimate outcome of the main characters.

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47 people found this helpful

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

How many times can one character say “F*** me”?

The Fold started great, but failed to deliver. This having been a semi-sequel to 14, I had high hopes for it. The quantum science behind it is a great plot device. But the characters and rehashed dialogue have me yelling at my stereo in annoyance. I won’t stop listening to Peter Clines, but

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43 people found this helpful

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

From Promising to Disapointing

When I started this book I was excited to hear a non-traditional storyline with a star character who had a "super power" that bordered believable. I really enjoyed the first part of this book, and was excited to see where it went... I never expected it to crash and burn like it did. I enjoy science fiction books, but I wasn't expecting a 1950's horror film genre. Once I realized it had taken a turn for the worse, everything became predictable and it was all I could do to force myself through the end. Thanks Audible for 3X speed!

I gave it 2 stars because I think that the author has potential, I really liked the first part of the book, but the reality of it is, 1 star would be pushing it.

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

starts elegantly, ends as bad as it gets

The book opens elegantly, witty and smart. It's mysterious and riddle like. Then in some point it seems that a different author takes place - a 14 years old teenagers that turns the book into Marines vs bug prople. And the book goes to toilet.

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37 people found this helpful