As we learned from the iconic thriller ALIEN--"in space, no one can hear you scream." But thanks to Megan Tusing's narration of this chilling audiobook, listeners CAN hear the terror of this space mission gone horribly wrong. The titular character is Sally Jansen. The disgraced ex-astronaut was commander of a mission to Mars that went awry when a crew member was accidentally killed. Jansen gets a chance at redemption when she is chosen to lead a mission to contact a large, alien structure headed toward earth. Be careful what you wish for. Tusing does a masterful job voicing female characters such as Jansen and her youthful astrobiologist. She is equally adept with male characters, including a paranoid Space Force officer and an aged NASA administrator. The result is a nail-biting thrill ride. D.E.M. 2020 Audies Finalist © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine
Pub Date: July 23, 2019
Duration: 12 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9781549175695
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Multiple award winner Card is one of the greatest practitioners of science fiction; here he delivers a history fantasy of the Wabash Valley circa 1800, a world of hexes and folk magic. This is the first book about Alvin Maker, the seventh son of a seventh son, who has remarkable psychic powers. Card is a very good narrator, expressive and well paced. One can hear the excitement of an author as he brings his own well described characters to life. There is one momentary technical glitch, the only slip up in an exemplary presentation. Highly recommended for fiction collections everywhere.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 7 hrs
Publisher: The Literate Ear
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Asimov's sweeping tale of the disintegration and fall of the Galactic Empire has never been more relevant or poignant. In the third book of the original trilogy, Dan Lazar handles the material adequately. He uses his limited range of voices nicely, if sometimes amusingly--he sometimes sounds like a foreigner attempting to mimic American accents. Varying pitch and pacing make for a lively narration, and his reading of a precocious young woman, who is ultimately an important figure, is delightful. Technical and editorial problems plague the title. Hearing Lazar repeatedly mispronounce a word that the text itself explains how to pronounce is very frustrating. Intermittent fade-outs on one channel; inconsistencies when switching sides; and low, rumbling background noise mar the sound quality.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 8 hrs
Publisher: Books on Tape
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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