Shadow Captain

Publisher's Summary

The gripping sequel to the Locus award-winning science-fiction adventure Revenger tells a story of obsession and betrayal as two sisters hunt for the greatest treasure in the universe.

Adrana and Fura Ness have finally been reunited, but both have changed beyond recognition. Once desperate for adventure, now, Adrana is haunted by her enslavement on the feared pirate Bosa Sennen's ship. And rumors of Bosa Sennen's hidden cache of treasure have ensnared her sister, Fura, into single-minded obsession. 

Neither is safe; because the galaxy wants Bosa Sennen dead, and they don't care if she's already been killed. They'll happily take whoever is flying her ship.

Shadow Captain is a desperate story of cursed ships, vengeful corporations, and alien artifacts, of daring escapes and wealth beyond imagining...and of betrayal. 

For more from Alastair Reynolds, check out:

• Revenger
• Elysium Fire

©2019 Alastair Reynolds (P)2019 Hachette Audio

The slurpening.

The first books problems with audio production continue into this book. It's not nearly as bad but it's till enough to regularly annoy you out of the story, since that's all that matters, it's still unlistenable.


For headphone users there exists a volume sweetspot that won't hurt too much during the loud bits, and you can still make out the soft bits without adjustment. If this were the only problem then this book would have been easier to soldier through than the first.


Remarkably the bad audio production is only a secondary dealbreaker with the introduction of the slurper; An important character described as having a "watery voice."


The narrator chose to depict this watery voice with a loud slurp sound after every sentence. This character has hours of speaking interactions with the main characters.


It sounds like the narrator is eating a bowl of ramen inbetween sentences. Every sentence.


That is hands down the worst narrative decision I've ever heard.


I tried to soldier through but couldn't make it, five hours to go and the interactions with the slurper have no end in sight.


I'm out, I am done with this series of Audiobooks. I wish I had time to read the text since it seems like it would be another good Reynolds book.

7 of 7 people found this review helpful

Slurped

Unlistenable.
The narrator depicts a “watery voice” by making a slurping sound after each sentence. The character with the “watery voice” plays a major rule. The slurping ruins the book.
Isn’t there some editorial input on these recordings? Why didn’t someone stop her from doing this?

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

Glimmery

I might stop listening in spite of the quality of the story because the voicing of this character is so obnoxious.

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

An entertaining book that goes nowhere

This is a fun and thoughtful book. Or, it would be if it had an ending. No questions are answered, no conflicts are resolved. One is left with the suspicion that this series was broken into sections by flipping through pages at random and tearing apart a larger book without any attention to plot. I realize this is book two of a series, but the degree to which the author has taken advantage of that is frustrating.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Great... Slurp Story...Slurp

I love the story, but the slurping noises from the Narrator are bugging the crap out of me.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

A weak follow thru for a sequel

Alastair Reynolds' Shadow Captain continues the escapades of the two sisters who got more than they bargained for when the ran off to find their fortune in space, similar to youths running off for the high seas. Having previously defeated to infamous space pirate, Bosa Seenum, and taken over her vessel, the crew is now forced to distance themselves from the pirate in order to avoid confusion. They pull into a frontier world for repairs and supplies, only to run afoul of a mobster who runs everything. In addition, they are being hunted by an organized effort to rid space of the former pirate and are trying to avoid run-ins with superior ships. Along the way, the sisters have begun to focus on the patterns of the current and prior occupations as humanity is lightly ruled over by more powerful aliens.

This universe is a far future, where humanity has spread across this portion of the galaxy, rebuilt their worlds from the remnants of the originals, and then subsequently lost of their technological dominance. Scavengers hunt for "baubles" which appear to be high tech found in abandoned space installations. The societal organization has a decidedly Victorian era feel down to the cocknyed accents. The aliens who seem more interested in economics than space or technology remain mysterious, but the historical pattern of recurring occupations as well as noticeable absences, is pointing to some unknown entity pulling galactic strings. While new characters are introduced, no one is who they seem. A few horrible late stages of 'glowie' infection are disclosed. Hopefully, the next installment will reveal the larger mysteries.

The narration is quite well done with a good range of voices and excellent character distinction. Pacing is reasonable and the tone is well aligned with the plot.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

sluuuuuuurp.

there is no reason to make slurping noises after every freaking line of a character ever. putty I liked the reader otherwise.

great story. can't wait for another installment

excellent narration. The story pulls you right along. I'm hoping AR keeps going with this series.

Better and better

This second book is better than the first, the audio problems with the first had been improved and is almost gone.

Very good plot tvist here and there, a very small bit predictable, still really good story.

Looking forward to the next chapter :)

A rare miss from AR

I have enjoyed all of AR's other works, including Revenger. I struggled through this - it adds very little to the Revenger world apart from teasers about greater events. I expected more from the Ness sisters.