The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O.

A Novel

By: Neal Stephenson, Nicole Galland

Narrated by: Laurence Bouvard, Shelley Atkinson, Laural Merlington, Joe Barrett, Will Damron, Luke Daniels

Length: 24 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

From best-selling author Neal Stephenson and critically acclaimed historical and contemporary commercial novelist Nicole Galland comes a captivating and complex near-future thriller combining history, science, magic, mystery, intrigue, and adventure that questions the very foundations of the modern world.

When Melisande Stokes, an expert in linguistics and languages, accidently meets military intelligence operator Tristan Lyons in a hallway at Harvard University, it is the beginning of a chain of events that will alter their lives and human history itself. The young man from a shadowy government entity approaches Mel, a low-level faculty member, with an incredible offer. The only condition: She must sign a nondisclosure agreement in return for the rather large sum of money.

Tristan needs Mel to translate some very old documents, which, if authentic, are earth-shattering. They prove that magic actually existed and was practiced for centuries. But the arrival of the scientific revolution and the Age of Enlightenment weakened its power and endangered its practitioners. Magic stopped working altogether in 1851, at the time of the Great Exhibition at London's Crystal Palace - the world's fair celebrating the rise of industrial technology and commerce. Something about the modern world "jams" the "frequencies" used by magic, and it's up to Tristan to find out why.

And so the Department of Diachronic Operations - D.O.D.O. - gets cracking on its real mission: to develop a device that can bring magic back and send Diachronic Operatives back in time to keep it alive...and meddle with a little history at the same time. But while Tristan and his expanding operation master the science and build the technology, they overlook the mercurial - and treacherous - nature of the human heart.

Written with the genius, complexity, and innovation that characterize all of Neal Stephenson's work and steeped with the down-to-earth warmth and humor of Nicole Galland's storytelling style, this exciting and vividly realized work of science fiction will make you believe in the impossible and take you to places - and times - beyond imagining.

Full cast of narrators includes Robert Fass, James Foster, Tavia Gilbert, Arthur Morey, David Stifel, Charlie Thurston, and Kate Udall.

©2017 Neal Stephenson (P)2017 HarperCollins Publishers

Poor Audio Quality

What did you like best about The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O.? What did you like least?

This is NOT a review of the whole novel As far as story and plot goes, the 40 minutes I've listened to so far is great. What is not great is the audio quality of this release (using Enhanced format, highest available on Audible). There seems to be a sibilant "echo" after certain phrases in the novel, most noticeable when the 's' sound is heard, that I have only encountered before when listening to audio files that have been transcoded one too many times.

I CANNOT confirm whether or not the cd release has the same issue, so for now I'm going to put this down to a hiccup in audible's transcoding process from the master files to their proprietary format. (encrypted AAC (LC) SBR m4b, essentially).

If possible (I'm not sure if you can edit reviews), I will update this review if and/or when this has been fixed.

Great story and a lot of fun

I really enjoyed this story and the excellent audio production. A great time travel novel with a unique approach based on science + magic. I liked the collaborative style of the two authors, resulting in something different from N. S. but retaining much of what makes his stories so compelling.

What dreams may come

The night after finishing this book, my dreams were haunted by the encroachment of many strands: for power over and manipulation of hundreds of situations, almost lucid.

Once Uncle Screwtape told Wormwood that the ultimate victory for their “father” would be to create the materialistic magician... Well, touché.

Like a tv drama

Written more like a tv drama than a novel, but this took me 2 hours before I cared about the characters enough to keep going. Interesting premise. Such a long buildup for a novel that could be half its length.

nice trip in past and present multiverse

I liked the situations characters were put in, misplaced in time. I am not big on witches but this book integrated them well into a good story.

I hope there is a sequel.

Unique storytelling format. It grew on me for the most part. It felt like the foundation of a series. I hope so. Due to the breadth of the story, not all characters fleshed out, but just enough to pull you into the world created by the authors. I enjoyed the multiple narrators.

Fun, but didn't know how to end

Would you consider the audio edition of The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O. to be better than the print version?

Haven't read the print version. I don't know.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O.?

When certain witch, and a certain viking and a lot KY jelly, came together.

Which character – as performed by the narrators – was your favorite?

The voice acting is good overall but a bit strained to cover all the characters.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

You can't listen all in one sitting. Silly.

Any additional comments?

Good premise. Fun characters. Lots of action.

entertaining. but there a plot hole or two

wibbly wobbly timey whimey.

as with all time travel stories that try to be clever, it kinda disappears up its own paradox.

that said. good fun. well narrated, and a solid time waster.

Another wonderful story

I thoroughly enjoyed this story and the production. It is the first audiobook I've listened to which used a cat of preformers. Very much added to the performance and my enjoyment.
As for the story itself, it's Neal Stephenson!

Another good Stephenson book

Excellent plot. Not too many plot holes. The vocal performance was well done. I enjoyed the story being told as a mix of diaries, log entries, and first person narative. I would have given five stars if they would have dropped the gratuitous f-bombs.