The Great Zoo of China

By: Matthew Reilly

Narrated by: Sean Mangan

Length: 11 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

It is a secret the Chinese government has been keeping for 40 years. They have found a species of animal no one believed even existed. It will amaze the world.

Now the Chinese are ready to unveil their astonishing discovery within the greatest zoo ever constructed. A small group of VIPs and journalists has been brought to the zoo deep within China to see its fabulous creatures for the first time. Among them is Dr Cassandra Jane 'CJ' Cameron, a writer for National Geographic and an expert on reptiles.The visitors are assured by their Chinese hosts that they will be struck with wonder at these beasts, that they are perfectly safe, and that nothing can go wrong...

Get ready for action on a gigantic scale!

©2014 Matthew Reilly (P)2014 Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd

Critic reviews

"Matthew Reilly novels should come with health warnings on the cover ... the non- stop life-threatening action ... is not for the faint-hearted. It’s a wild ride." ( The Daily Telegraph)

WOW!!!!!!!!

This is the first book I have read from this author, it will not be the last. There is action from go to whoa, I just had to keep listening. From page one I was hooked, and listened far into the night. the action is wild and the timing well done, at times I found myself holding my breath. I noticed that This Narrator is used for all Mathew Reilly's books, which can only make them better, if that is possible. So if you like action and suspense, this is going to be the book to read,.I have since downloaded two more of his books, which I will review when I read them, so go onto the site and start downloading folks.

Fast, action, dragons.

The Great Zoo of China is fast, action packed and full of dragons. Big scary dragons that eat people. The storyline is not too good, but the book is an easy fun read. Sean Mangan does a reasonable job with the narration. Probably not Matthew Reilly's best work but enjoyable anyway. Definitely not a fantastic dragon tale for children though.

Couldn’t put this down

Fantastic story,great characters. This book was one of those that I couldn’t put down. Great narrator as well

Too level headed.

The narrator gave such an even keeled performance throughout this book that I think I missed most of the action scenes! I usually really enjoy Matthew Reilly, and I this time I may have to read the paper edition myself to give the book the emphasis it deserves.

Mathew has done it again

A Action packed listen/book. Easy read and to follow. I enjoy he's work and would recommend this to any one.

Non Stop Action

I had my reservations and was wary about the comparisons to Jurassic Park.
I enjoyed the story, non-stop action from start to finish which is to be expected when picking up a Matthew Reilly book.

FANTASTIC

Matthew has done it again! What a fast paced book I was not expecting what the story was about (no spoilers) I love Sean Mangan's narration of his books he does them so well.
What a roller coaster of a ride and a new heroine to boot.

Absolutely awesome!

All his work is captivating, fast and extremely entertaining. I'd love to see these all as movies, in the meantime I'm happy and always looking forward to the next one..

Mathews Bull farm is doing well

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

A believable story line and some credible characters

What do you think your next listen will be?

Going by this story, anything but a Matthew Reilly novel

Would you listen to another book narrated by Sean Mangan?

Yes...he provided a workman like performance for someone who didn't write the story

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from The Great Zoo of China?

All of them...an unbelievable story set in an unbelievable location populated by unbelievable characters

Any additional comments?

Bull is doing well....along with the tomatoe and vegetable patch it services

Tiresome repetition of "suddenly," "just as"

What disappointed you about The Great Zoo of China?

Apart from the blatant lifting of story lines from Crichton's novels, I found the never-ending cliffhangers very tiresome. Reilly used the overly dramatic transitions too liberally. The overall effect was to make me feel exhausted just listening to it. In addition, this novel - minus the odd "motherf***er" and descriptive violence - was more suited to a younger audience.

What was most disappointing about Matthew Reilly’s story?

The lack of originality and over-dependence on cliffhangers made Zoo less memorable for me. I've enjoyed all of his other work.

Which character – as performed by Sean Mangan – was your favorite?

Mangan has a beautiful reading style, but even he couldn't bring life to the trite characterizations. None were appealing to me.

What character would you cut from The Great Zoo of China?

See above.

Any additional comments?

Market this to a younger audience with some editing.