The Pain Colony

By: Shanon Hunt

Narrated by: Noah Michael Levine, Erin deWard

Length: 13 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

Six dead bodies with one disturbing similarity. An illicit genetic experiment. A secret society of true believers willing to do whatever it takes to become pure. 

And this is only the beginning. 

DEA Special Agent Peter Malloy is no stranger to the devastating impact of drugs. So when six bodies turn up with surgical ports implanted in their spines, he's sure a potent new opioid is the culprit. But when lab tests show zero evidence of any known narcotics, he fears something far more sinister.

Allison Stevens thought she knew everything about her boss. But after he disappears, she's stunned to discover his secret genetic research in pain tolerance. When she becomes the target of the FBI's investigation, Allison has only one move. She must expose his illegal experiment. There's just one problem. Some secrets will be protected at any cost.

As Malloy and Allison get closer to the truth, they begin to realize they're about to uncover the most chilling medical discovery in human history.

If it doesn't get them killed.

The Pain Colony is a gripping suspense thriller - you'll be plunged into terrifying twists of modern science, chilling tension, and shocking revelations that will leave you breathless.

"A nail-biting pause-resister you can't put down!" (BookTrib)

"A shocking finale that even jaded listeners won't see coming!" (BookLife)

©2019 Shanon Hunt (P)2019 Shanon Hunt

Drove Me Crazy

Lots of listeners loved this book but mot me. The story bumped and jumped all over the place just too many story-lines and too many POV's going on. I got about 70% through and just couldn't stand it anymore. There are four different story-lines, and the main character is an idiot. It was all over the place. The FBI good guys, the FBI bad guys, the fixer, the fake fixer (maybe that was the same person, or was that one of the corporate bad guys? Or the guy Allison picked up in a bar?), the weird cult, the cult brother, the cult father, the cult personal trainer, the cult shrink/therapist, the evil corporate guy, the OTHER evil corporate guy, the MS patient, the bank accounts, the secretary at the biotech company, the secretary at the other biotech company, the drugs. If I'm reading a masterpiece, the great American novel, maybe it's worth trying to keep track of everything. But this is the 21st century version of a supermarket paperback. It was ridiculous.

I’d like to give it an A for effort, but I can't. The author clearly put a lot into this, but it was TOO much. She overreached. I would read another book by this author, because I think she could do a lot better with a more streamlined approach. But I'd wait until there were a lot of reviews (and not all within 2 or 3 days of the original publication date) before I would pay for it.

I didn't give the book one star because I skipped to the last chapter and it looks like the ending has a nice twist. But did it make me want to push through and read the rest of the book? No.

Noah Michael Levine, Erin deWard were great with the delivery of the story

The Pain Colony

I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

The story was quite interesting with a couple of real surprises which I didn't see coming. Keeps you going ,always wanting to hear a little more before you stop. I usually prefer a single narrator but these two worked very well on alternating chapters so you never get pulled out of the book by a sudden switch. Definitely looking forward to see where the story goes next. Highly recommended.

The Pain Colony

Oh my gosh! This book was fantastic! I loved every second of it. It was strange, quirky, original, and oh so suspenseful! By the time I got to the end I was saying - "Are you kidding me!?!?!"
I can't wait to read the next one in the series - With Pain Comes Peace.

Great character development. I loved Leyla (a young woman who was living in "The Pain Colony") she was so sweet and innocent. You later learn that her innocence was stolen from her :-(
Also Allison I ended up liking very much but did not like her at all in the beginning.

Audio Review - Great! I though both did a fantastic job. I don't always like the narration and it sometimes ruins the book for me. But this one I really liked listening to - Great job all around!


I voluntarily posted this review after receiving a copy of this book from The Audio Bookworm - Thank You!

Billionaires & Medicine

The Pain Colony. ..
This is a book with a complex storyline.
A gripping story of Billionaires, medical research corruption and murder.
This is a page turner that will keep you up late.
Narration is excellent a great team.
I received a free copy of this audio book at my own request and voluntarily leave this honest review. .

Couldn't put it down!

This book is an amazing mixture of genres: not only a technothriller but also a dystopian novel. There are three main plots that intertwine forming a complex story: A girl living in a colony where pain is a mean to reach purification and find redemption; a DEA Agent investigating several murders in which the victims have died due to a new and unknown drug; and Alisson, who works for a pharmaceutical company, and whose boss and secret lover skips town leaving her as the main suspect in an embezzlement scheme.

This was an audiobook that I could not put down! It was clear from the start that these three stories had something in common, but what was it? Having three parallel narratives could have broken the rhythm of the book, but it was well planned and done carefully, and it just helped to get the listener more and more hooked to the story as details of the whole picture were slowly revealed.

There is an amazing plot twist towards the end that I dared to guess earlier in the story but it was so unexpected and edgy that I was not sure it could be pulled off… but it was, and masterfully! It left me astonished! I am sure it will surprise most readers.

The only aspect on which I would have liked a bit more development was the characters. I think the one I related to the most was Layla, even though her way of living was something I did not agree with. Perhaps I was able to forgive some of her mistakes because she did not remember her past, she was inherently incomplete. Allison, on the other hand, should have felt closer to me, but I had many troubles relating to her. She was a young and smart woman, but neither her head nor her heart seemed to be in the right place. Many of the things in this story went terribly wrong because she was either distracted or was pining for the wrong person, already knowing that he had betrayed her. There is a part of the story where her destiny suddenly changes, and it felt a bit forced, like during the first contact with the DEA. I guess Allison had some personal traits that contributed to this chain of events, but it is difficult for me to relate to somebody so careless. Half of the time I wanted to scream to Allison: “wake up, girl, this is a cruel world and the big fish are gonna eat you!”

At first, I had the impression that there were only women at the Pain Colony. I think it was because only female names were mentioned during the first part of the book. Somehow I missed male characters actively suffering and being victims, not just women. I know that there were male characters with a bad end but it was always quick and we did not have enough time to relate to them. It could have been because Hunt is a woman and she finds easier to describe women’s feelings, but I could not help but think about the woman in distress as a popular figure.

Erin deWard and Noah Michael Levine deliver a dual narration, as they have us accustomed to. I have to say that it perfectly matched the writing style and parallel stories, and both characters brought the characters to life with amazing interpretations. One minor setback that I would like to mention, and it is not the first time, is that deWard and Levine had slightly different speeds, and I found it a little distracting. I have experienced the same in other audiobooks narrated in the same fashion by both narrators. I know that each narrator has a personal style, but this speed difference was a bit noticeable and I had expected it to be better this time around.

The Pain Colony was a rollercoaster of emotions and events, and I am looking forward to a sequel!

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Hard to put down!

An absolutely amazingly well written book! In a not-too-distant future, experiments are being conducted to alter the DNA of people. Pain Colonies are set up to train and condition them. I don't want to give away the plot, but suffice to say that you will have trouble putting this book down once you pick it up! The ending leaves you begging for a sequel, or at the very least, a few more chapters. Well written and highly recommended!

Fascinating. Terrifying. Shocking. Read this book!

Here we have a beautifully written near-future science fiction thriller that is equal parts suspense, mystery, and terrifying science!

This is my first exposure to Erin deWard, but I've been a fan of Noah Michael Levine for a while now. Both narrators have a wonderful array of distinct voices and are phenomenal at both vocal inflections and matching their reading tempo to the tension in the scene.

While Noah is a bit better at opposite-gender voices than Erin is, she is an absolute master of emotional vocal inflections.

Listening to a book narrated by these two masters of their craft is an absolute pleasure.

This probably goes without saying, but I'm not normally a thriller reader. I enjoy Dan Brown, AG Riddle, and Thomas Harris, but not much else.

So I definitely went into this book unsure if it was something I would enjoy.

I am immensely pleased to be able to say that I was utterly blown away and currently in emotional recovery!

It took me a while to warm to Allison as a character, as she isn't the type of character I readily identify with. But Leyla and the detective both got my attention right away. They are both fascinating characters with really interesting perspectives on the world.

After a very short bonding period, the story jump starts into high gear and things get wild pretty quickly.

There are so many twists and reversals throughout that even when you finally figure it out, you still second guess yourself on whether that's really the end or if there's going to be one more huge twist to completely redefine the whole story yet again.

I'm not telling!

Suffice it to say that there's plenty to keep you guessing and there are more than enough shocking turns to keep the story moving.

And interspersed with all these exciting twists and turns, you'll also find plenty of topics for the philosophers to debate over for ages to come.

The technology that is the basis for this story is definitely terrifying and it really makes you wonder where the world is really heading.

Now, the closest thing I have to a criticism is there are some shifts into first person that don't quite mesh with the rest of the story, although they are used for a distinct purpose that works well. It's just a little jarring at times.

Now, the ending is nothing short of brilliant. We get plenty of final closure to the events of this story while still seeing wide open territory for a sequel.

This is definitely an author I'll be keeping my eyes on in the future!

Amazing suspense thriller

Agent Malloy is investigating six murders with strange similarities. Allison, who is unintentional involved, tries to help Malloy find out the truth before they both get killed.
 
The story is told from the perspective of Malloy, who is investigating the murders; and of Alison, trying to find out the truth about the murders. The change from one to the other makes you wonder about how their perspectives will come together. The different narrators really helped to add perspective to the different points of view and added to the atmosphere of the story. The book includes various twists that surprise you and keep you guessing to the end. It will keep you on the edge of your seat!
 
Erin and Noah narrated very well. They were both a very good fit for the story and I thoroughly enjoyed their performances. They have excellent intonation for the various characters and great varying of pace for the level of suspense in the chapters.
 
I recommend this exciting thriller full of mystery and suspense. You will be thoroughly entertained and absolutely not be able to stop until it is done.
 
Note: This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this objective review voluntarily.

such an interesting book!!

This book was not at all what I thought it would be but in a good way! Allison has no idea her what her boss and lover has been involved in until he is arrested and she is framed for his crimes! The science behind the genetic mutations and changes were interesting and believable enough to flow with the story.The back and forth between the Colony life to what is happening in to Allison as she tries to find answers and clear her name kept me very engaged and wanting to know what would happen next. The ending was was not at all what I was expecting but I should have because all the clues were there!! This was a great book! The narration was spot on! The narrators did a great job keeping each character separate and entertaining. I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

Holy smokes!

This audible is fantastic!
Under the disguise of a pain clinic funded by billionaires, there's genetic research, illegal of course, and experiments conducted on people.
A rollercoaster ride of a story, gripping edge of your seat thriller that won't disappoint!

Both narrators did an excellent job, they worked very well together

I received a copy of this audible free at my request. All comments in my review are strictly my own thoughts and opinions

I loved it!

Just wow, I really liked it ALOT!

The whole storyline sucked me in from the first chapter and kept me engaged until the very end. This was a suspense thriller with some futuristic scientific elements, it is labelled as a horror but I wouldn’t label it as that myself.
I really don’t want to give too much away as there is a lot of detail in the blurb, but I have not read or listened to anything like it before it was quite unique. The twists and turns were great although sometimes I did get a little confused with who it was talking about for a few seconds, although it did not stop from my enjoyment.

Shanon Hunt did a great job with this book, especially considering it’s her debut! I am eager for the next in the series now. But while I wait for the next instalment I will be buying a physical copy of the book to read too, It was that good.

Both narrators did a very good job, they were easy to listen to and they made the characters come alive.

Brilliant Thriller

I really enjoyed this exciting and enthralling thriller which was a little different to the usual ones I listen to, it grabbed me straight from the beginning and I just had to keep listening until the fantastic conclusion.
I thought the narration was excellent, I really like it when female and male narrators are used in audio books and they both did an excellent job.
I recommend this to anyone who enjoys an exciting and intelligent thriller.
I received this audio-book in exchange for an objective review.

Great book a must read / listen

Gripped me from the very first chapter. Clever book with interesting characters with a great end.

Wow

I loved it.
I enjoyed the book thoroughly all the twists and turns and surprises.
It has good characters, the author and narrator build a world which your able to visualise and join in.

Delicious slow burn plot

What a delicious slow burn technothriller! This story really grabbed my attention and held it all the way through. Both Layla and Allison were interesting characters. They both start off a bit subservient, definitely let others do the thinking for them. But their character arcs show that each has a hidden kernel of strength. Now they don’t necessarily put the kernel to a good use or the full use, but it was certainly an interesting character arc.

The Colony was creepy and fascinating at the same time. On the surface, it really looks like a fancy health spa or spiritual retreat. Those that suffered from a ‘poisoned’ life seek enlightenment and cleansing, striving for a better life in general. But each chapter brings up another small question, another little crumb of suspicion that all is not what it seems.

Out in the real world, there’s bioscience, big business, fraud, and more. This is Allison’s world. I found her character interesting even though I never really liked her. She thinks she’s a nice person, just blossoming into her job. Unfortunately, she’s used her sexual relationship with her boss to get her job position. Additionally, she spends her work time online shopping. So she’s not even really trying to earn her position in the business. And yet I found myself empathizing with her as her privileged life fell apart.

There’s more than one branch of law enforcement in the mix too. They definitely built the suspense as they creep closer and closer to the truth. And what was that truth? Well, I was surprised! So creepy! So possible! I’m definitely looking forward to Book 2. 5/5 stars.

The Narration: Erin deWard and Noah Michael Levine were great. The book was well set up for a dual narration. DeWard had the perfect voice for kind, gentle Layla. She had a more worldly voice for Allison. And I was impressed by how she captured the more extreme emotions of these two characters. Levine played the playboy company bigwig Austin. And I really liked his full-voiced, sincere voices for the male leaders of the Colony. The pacing was perfect and there were no technical issues for this recording. 5/5 stars.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are 100% my own.

A gripping thriller with many twists and turns

I received the audiobook version of the Pain Colony from the author, in exchange for an honest review.
We are introduced to Layla, an inductee into the “Pain Colony”, a strange cult-like organisation where the members are subjected to pain that they must endure and come to accept on the path via “cleansing” towards “purification” from their previous polluted lives. Layla is keen to be a model inductee and progress but is struggling with memories of her previous life, which we learn about through first-person flashbacks.

Outside the colony, Alison works for Quandary Pharmaceuticals, running development of some ground-breaking new gene editing therapies intended to cure many of humanity’s illnesses. However, people are dying and it soon becomes clear that her boss (and some-time lover) Austin is hiding something, and Alison is implicated.

What follows is a fast-moving thriller as Austin is arrested and Alison races to uncover the truth about what he is up to, with DEA agents (Malloy and his team) on her tail (unofficially since the FBI took the case back). Meanwhile Layla moves inexorably towards the mysterious purification ceremony.

This is a very enjoyable thriller with well drawn characters and a fast moving plot. A certain amount of suspension of disbelief is required, but I have no problem with that. The truth about what was happening at the colony was suprising and shocking, and I really didn’t expect the final twist.

The two narrators, Erin deWard and Noah Michael Devine did a good job, taking turns on the male and female viewpoints (Layla and Alison for deWard; and Austin and Malloy for Devine).

There are some fairly big questions about the colony that remain unresolved, that leaves me hoping there is a follow up book in the works. The end of the book advertises a companion short story that might answer some questions.

All in all, a very twisty, unputdownable read. Oh, and bonus points for the Princess Bride references :)