When the Sky Falls

A Sky Fall Event Series, Book 1

By: Joseph Bendoski

Narrated by: Bill Nevitt

Length: 10 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's Summary

What makes you believe a lie? I'm not asking how you know someone is lying. What makes you believe? Because if you don't understand how that works, then you won't know when you're being manipulated.

In 1938 the War of the Worlds hoax panicked millions of Americans, then in 1988 another fictional media broadcast convinced nearly half of Portugal that sea monsters had risen from the ocean to destroy their cities. A team of CIA agents was sent to study the aftermath of this 6th Skyfall Event in the hope that they could turn it into a weapon of war. When the team consultant turns up dead, everyone scrambles to be the last man standing: the one who will decide if or when the sky falls.

©2017 Joseph Bendoski (P)2017 Joseph Bendoski

Book 1 in the series

The story is fast paced. The suspense, intrigue and darkness builds as I continue listening to the audio. The author takes the reader right to the terrifying core of the story With a great narration, this is totally worth to listen to.

The "what if" of this novel is a scary one

When the Sky Falls is an action novel by Joseph Bendoski that keeps a fast pace while delivering the alarming message of the atrocities that can result from the intentional and malevolent perpetration of Skyfall events. While the novel delivers relevant eye-openers and plenty of other food for thought with regard to manipulation of the public, is it a compelling story in itself? I'm still on the fence about this. It could happen, and apparently has happened, but was this story one that will resonate? Time will tell. I guess my disappointment lies in the fact that this novel delivers non-stop dialogue and break neck action, but it offers practically no character development, unless you consider the concept of Skyfall to be its main character. We are given little to no background on, or reason to care about, any of the agents, consultants or bad guys as they are introduced into the narrative. For the first half of the book, they all seemed almost interchangeable as they explained the concepts and pitfalls surrounding Skyfall events. I could barely tell them apart while I listened to the predominance of dialogue over characterization. They seemed to serve the sole purpose of providing information about Skyfall events and the massacre the carefully orchestrated events can inflict upon a community or nation. As for the narration, Bill Nevitt did a fine job but I believe he would be better suited for newscasts or military non-fiction. His declarative voice is too dispassionate and matter-of-fact to effectively deliver a thriller. The narrator here should be bringing the urgency and characters to life, but this comes across more like a business report.

Excellent story

This is an excellent CIA/spy novel with lots of intrigue and action. Excellent character development with just enough twists and turns to keep you on your toes without getting lost. The factual events in the story are just enough to make it real. The title makes it obvious there is more to come but the ending of the story does not seem so obvious for continuation. I can see it continuing but not real sure exactly which way it should go.

Bill Nevitt does an excellent job narrating this story. His voices work well and provide distinct character differentiation. He even has one character that sounds whiny when needed but not all the time. Unlike another story I recently read where several characters were whiny all the time, even when they shouldn’t be.


I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audio book by the author, narrator, or publisher.

Amazing..

This is my first intro to this author. I knew in the first few pages that this book had my undivided attention. I never reveal details in a review....just read this book and be riveted page after page.
"I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review."

Reminds me of a Dan Brown novel.

Love the high concept of a Sky Fall event. This is strengthened by the chapter epigraphs. It reads a bit like a serial, somewhat episodic in its plot. Also, the idea of the Nephilim is cool (though I didn't love that the little girl joined in). A few memorable characters too, primarily Alice. Looking forward to the rest of the series.

Very Interesting…

I was given this free review copy audio-book at my request and have voluntarily left this review. This review is for the audio copy of When the Sky Falls - A Sky Fall Event Series, Book 1 by Joseph Bendoski and narrated by Bill Nevitt. This was a twisty tale that is full of intrigue and possibilities. It kept me interested throughout the story and I enjoyed listening to it. Especially since Bill Nevitt was the narrator!

5 star entertainment

When the sky falls. . I found this audiobook to be intriguing and gripping from start to finish. Superb entertainment. I finished this book and can't decide whether I've been educated on a life mystery or I've just read a work of total fiction. Either way it is one of the best books I've listened to this year. I received a free copy of this audio book at my own request and voluntarily leave this honest review. .

Scary in it’s possible reality

This is the first book I have read/listened to by this author and I would listen to another. It is an intriguing bit of fiction wrapped around a very real phenomenon and interesting/ scary if the wrong person instigates it deliberately. Another reviewer commented ‘it is hard to tell apart the good and bad guys’. I would have to agree. This is the tenth book I have listened to by this narrator ( Bill Nevitt ) and I would definitely listen to another. I never fully forget I’m being read to, but I like the sound of his voice and his narration style. He uses accents (not truly authentic, but way better than I could ever do) and various voices to differentiate the characters. There are no explicit sex scenes, or excessively gory violence. There is some swearing. I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and voluntarily left this unbiased review. Please feel free to comment on whether you found my review helpful.

Great concept, very realistic but kinda depressing

The concept was on point and really leads you to start imagining the sky fall events all over the place, but the book is a bit depressing. Especially the ending is depressing. I can say it like this without spoiling too many secrets, the good guy wins, but there were a lot of people who left the team by the end, and it leaves you wondering for who the players are really working. It does have a lot of intrigue, and it is a spy vs spy kind of book, it was just so far from what I expected. (Forgive me for being elusive, but I don’t want to spoil anything for those who chose to read this book.) Overall, the book is well written with many unexpected plot turns and it sounds and reads like real events, I just wish the ending was a bit happier.

Very Interesting questions are asked

Given the current time my listening to this book the COVID-19 quarantine, this book does prompt several questions that are a bit scary to ask. I thought the premise was fantastic and well reasoned out. I'm really looking forward to more books in this series. Great narration. I received a copy of this book for free, in exchange for an unbiased review.

“Truth is what is agreed on, not what is real”

Wow, this really gets you thinking and keeps you gripped throughout. I have no idea if all the ‘facts’ quoted are for real, but I’d love to find out (and I’ll be quoting them to friends as fact anyway! Lol). Really enjoyed this, if a little difficult to keep up with at times, but I’m really excited to listen to the next in the series. Great storytelling by Bill, he’s a great narrator, although there were times I would have liked a little more distinction between the characters. This is my favourite work I’ve hear from Bill so far! This is my honest opinion of a free review copy.

Jones was right: I should have started smoking.

With Bill Nevitt narrating, the book had to be interesting and easy to enjoy. His is a well developed style of performance which enhances all that he reads. And he does full justice to this book, When the Sky Falls. A very fast paced techno thriller, the story is formed around the concept of Sky Falls (so called by the CIA) , events caused by social media where people's perceptions are altered, sometimes with very spectacular and alarming consequences - like the panic which was initiated by the Orson Wells radio play, War of the Worlds. To be able to cause of control such social reaction is obviously a valuable political weapon and a small team of HIS operatives is sent to Portugal in the same of one such occurrence to investigate it further - just how and why did the large scale reaction occur? The truths and otherwise are as bound into the story as the Sky Falls Events themselves. Written in a direct, almost journalistic style, with the addition of the instance of conversation, each chapter is preceded by a brief excerpt of a book on the subject purportedly written by the man most knowledgeable about the subject, William Stevenson. That this a a book not yet written, the author points out in a forward to the work, thus adding a double intrigue to the story. Just what, in the writing, is true, what merely fiction? There are some unpleasant developments which make for uncomfortable reading and a long list of protagonists who move in and out of the witing, focusing at first, but settling down later. Unfortunately the character development is slight, further giving the feel of journalistic reporting. But perhaps that is the whole idea. I received a freely gifted complimentary copy of When the Sky Falls, at my request, from the rightsholder. Thank you so much. It was original and unusual, and illuminated false news in a frightening way. I very much look forward to further books in this series.