The Ancient Nine

A Novel

By: Ian K. Smith

Narrated by: Brad Sanders

Length: 15 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's summary

This program includes an introduction read by the author.

Spencer Collins thinks his life at Harvard will be all about basketball and pre-med, hard workouts and grinding work in class. The friends he’s made when he hits the storied, ivy-clad campus from a very different life in urban Chicago are a happy bonus. But Spencer is about to be introduced to the most mysterious inner sanctum of the inner sanctum: To his surprise, he’s in the running to be “punched” for one of Harvard’s elite final clubs.

The Delphic Club is known as “The Gas” for its crest of three gas-lit flames, and as Spencer is considered for membership, he’s plunged not only into the secret world of male privilege that The Gas represents, but also into a century-old club mystery. Because at the heart of the Delphic, secured deep inside its guarded mansion club, is another secret society: a shadowy group of powerful men known as The Ancient Nine.

Who are The Ancient Nine? And why is Spencer - along with his best friend, Dalton Winthrop - summoned to the deathbed of Dalton’s uncle just as Spencer is being punched for the club? What does the lore about a missing page from one of Harvard’s most historic books mean? And how does it connect to religion, murder, and to the King James Bible, if not to King James himself?

Ian Smith's The Ancient Nine is both a coming-of-age audiobook and a swiftly plotted story that lets listeners into the ultimate of closed worlds with all of its dark historical secrets and unyielding power.

©2018 Ian K. Smith (P)2018 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

"Pulls you into the depths of a secret world from the first page. Ian Smith’s novel is unmissable." (Harlan Coben, New York Times best-selling author of Missing You)

"With a masterful hand, Ian Smith has written a novel that immerses us in the dark intrigue of one of the country's oldest secret societies. The Ancient Nine is thrilling, exciting, and shocking from beginning to end." (Michael Eric Dyson, New York Times best-selling author of Tears We Cannot Stop)

Great Listen!

You won't want to stop listening. The narration takes getting used and is less theatrical than some but it fits nicely as book goes on. Excellent!

Standing ovation.

It was such an easy read. I purchased the book and audio to read together and was highly entertained. The voices, the cadence, and most importantly the story was great. I found myself lost in the tale of this black man discovering Harvard elite rooms and group. I highly recommend this title.

Elite Questions Shockingly Revealed

All I can say is WOW!! Wow wow wow! What a story! This is a great read and so suspenseful that I was scared in some spots to read the dang gum thang!! It’s a tale of tales with secrets told that shocked me!! This book is worth its weight in gold as I found the story opened my eyes to this side of society that I never knew existed! Run, buy and listen to this book! You won’t be sorry! Secrets galore read and be schooled!!

It's okay.

Interest in the "true" parts are the only thing that kept me listening. I'm an information junkie, so that's what kept me involved. The writing was okay and that's it. Slow moving and way too many details at times - and I'm a details person. However I don't want to listen to fiction for that. The narration was very monotone and hard to keep engaged with at times. This could have been a much better story.

A long book that just kept getting better.

This was a long book that just continued to get better as the story progressed. A great look inside the elite circles and how their power goes back centuries. This book shows the importance of having a great network and stepping outside of your comfort zone.

Great story but terrible audio performance

This book was a good story overall but the person reading it made it hard to enjoy. It’s a story about Harvard students read by someone who seems to barely seems to have graduated high school. Good read for an actual book.

Ancient Nine

It took me quite a few chapters to get into this story. it picked up for me around Chapter 20. I expected there to be an relation somewhere for his name to be in Uncle Randolph's book. Im glad he made it in and that he was able to keep his family's story alive for future generations.

Great

this was a great book. I recommend this to anyone that is curious about the hidden secret clubs of high society.

He soared 1st time around!

So overwhelmed at the realistic storyline! Ian you soared on your 1st attempt! Awesome work!

this is an interesting book

I highly recommend this. It's addictive. once I started, I couldn't put it down. A Must!!