Podiobooks.com requires users to register before they
use the site. Though you no longer have to register to
download from Podiobooks.com, as a user since late 2005, I will attest that
Podiobooks.com does not use your information for anything other than
registration. There are two underlying reasons behind this extra step.
One is that Podiobooks.com can determine more precise audience figures.
The second is so users can create a
customized download schedule.
I am still working my through a huge backlog of music, podcasts, and audiobooks which are being sorted, renamed, and classified appropriately before they are placed on my iPod. To keep myself sane, I have removed all links to podiobooks I have yet to listen to as I clean up my website’s structure.
The podcasts listed below are in alphabetical order. Only those which I have started will be listed below, complete with album art, title and author (both of which link to the book), notes regarding my subscription, synopsis, probable and minimum time involvement, and genre. To see what order I subscribed to these and all Podiobooks.com podcasts, go here.
7th Son: Book One: Descent by J. C. Hutchins
The forth Podiobooks.com (and fifth
overall) podiobook that I have finished. I began 7th Son: Book
One: Descent at roughly the same time as Singularity and The
Immortals, and it is the first one of these three to be completed.
Anyways, 7th Son is a trilogy about how seven human clones are
brought together to defeat the evil plot of the man who has cloned
them. It begins with the assassination of the U.S. President by a
4-year old boy and takes place “in a present day gone
wrong.” This “present day gone wrong” went from bad
to worse when J.C. Hutchins’s 7th Son: Book One: Descent and Scott
Sigler’s Infection merged universes to some extent in the “Share The Pain” contest. I was sufficiently far into Infection
to notice and enjoy the crossovers into 7th Son. 7th Son: Book One: Descent does not pull any punches when
it comes to violence, bloodshed, and mature content. A must listen
for any sci-fi fan.
Probable time involvement: 2 weeks.
Minimum time involvement: 14:16:32.
Genre: Podiobook.
7th Son: Book Two: Deceit by J. C. Hutchins
Again, no clue where this fits in my
personal listing, though I finished it a few months September 2007.
The 7th Son trilogy continues as John Alpha takes control of
Russian nuclear missiles. I’ll not spoil why. Meanwhile, the
surviving clones manage to figure some of John Alpha’s plot out, though
more die along the way.
Probable time involvement: 2 weeks.
Genre: Podiobook.
7th Son: Book Three: Destruction by J. C. Hutchins
Began Monday, July 21, 2008. Finished
Wednesday, July 24, 2008. I was house-sitting and had nothing better
to do.
The 7th Son trilogy concludes as the clones manage to deduce and
disrupt John Alpha’s plans. But is Alpha the one really behind it
all? Meanwhile, the Blackout begins (see 7th
Son: OBSIDIAN for more on this). With four clones left at
the beginning of this book, who will survive to see its end?
Probable time involvement: 2 weeks.
Minimum time involvement: 12:20:57.
Genre: Podiobook.
Aliens and Satanic Creatures Wanted: Humans Need Not Apply by Tony Ruggiero
Currently in progress/queue.
An anthology of short stories which feature non-human entities (for the most part) interacting with each other or with humans. Unfortunately, the plots of these stories tend to be incredibly predictable such that it may not even be worth listening to beyond the first few moments.
Genre: Podthology.
AmerIndian 2192 by J. Scott Garibay
Currently in queue.
To be perfectly honest, I have tried thrice so far to listen to this podiobook. The farthest in I have made it is about half an hour into episode 1. I just cannot seem to get into it.
Minimum time involvement: 12:34:42.
Genre: Podiobook
Badge
of Infamy by Lester del Rey
Read by Steven Wilson
Began Wednesday, February 20, 2008.
Finished Thursday, February 21, 2008. To the best of my knowledge,
this is the second Lester del Rey book I’ve “read” after Marooned
on Mars.
After a genetically engineered disease wipes out over half the world’s
population, American lobbies take control by finding the cure. Dr.
Daniel Feldman became a Pariah for performing a life-saving operation
outside of a Medical Lobby-controlled hospital. Taking advantage of
a dead man’s work ticket, he boards a rocket to Mars where he is
discovered and left to fend for himself. Welcomed by Martian
colonists for his medical skill, Feldman stumbles upon a virulent plague
which threatens mankind with extinction.
Probable time involvement: 4 days.
Minimum time involvement: 3:25:12.
Genre: Podiobook.
Began Tuesday, February 19, 2008.
Finished late June/early July 2008.
Though this book has some audio problems in that it has higher production
values than Sigler's novels but still only a couple of voice actors (and
thus not a podioplay), it is still an decent listen. Black Shadow,
the eponymous protagonist, seems to be a cross between Daredevil and
Batman, with a dash of Angel (or some other Buffyverse character) thrown
in for good measure. (I'm not a big comic reader, so forgive my
broad generalizations.) Partially blinded as a child, Black Shadow
dons a high-tech suit and becomes a one-man crime fighter until some
demons decide to open up a gateway to Hell. Forced to fight
demonically-possessed supervillians, Black Shadow must save the city, save
his friends, stop the Apocalypse, come to terms with his childhood and
father, and deal with the fact that he works for Angels.
Probable time involvement: 1 week.
Genre: Podiobook.
BloodCast, Season 1 by Scott Sigler
In progress.
Minimum time involvement: 4:31:21.
Genre: Podthology.
Come, Let Me Whisper by Russell L. Burt
Excellent span of “dark fantasy” genres. Recommended listening for anyone. I even managed to convince my mom and brother to listen to the first episode (“Work Ethic”) which they found to be quite amusing, though the did not quite understand the concept of podthology and podcasted short stories.
Probable time involvement: 4 days.
Minimum time involvement: 5:15:25.
Genre: Podthology.
Deep Thoughts by Michael R. Mennenga
As this isn’t a podiobook in a true sense, it has not
been counted in the running podiobooks total.
Comprised of short, but incredible funny, commentaries, Michael R.
Mennenga keeps you entertained throughout with his dead-pan delivery and “insights.” A must listen to for anyone.
Probable time involvement: 1 day.
Minimum time involvement: 38:15.
A Different Point of View by TD-0013
As this isn’t a podiobook in a true sense, it has not
been counted in the running podiobooks total. I listened to this
after I finished Heaven: Season Three: Earth.
Taking the form of in-universe commentary, A Different Point of View
provides a number of insights into the happenings of the Star Wars
universe from the perspective of an Imperial Storm Trooper. These
insights often provide an outlet for what [presumably] parts of the Star
Wars fandom thinks. A must listen to for anyone with any experience
with the Star Wars universe.
Probable time involvement: 1 day.
Minimum time involvement: 51:51.
Genre: Poditorial.
Doctor Janeway’s Plague by John Farrell
I finished this podiobook sometime in the
spring of 2008 (I think), mostly while walking the mile-and-something (uphill) to and
(downhill) from the University of Cincinnati.
The tale begins as different characters stumble upon small
mysteries. As the book progresses, they realize that these mysteries
are all linked. Unfortunately, as there is only one reader, the
myriad characters all tend to run together, making it difficult to figure
out who is speaking to whom at time. Besides for this failing, I
would recommend this to anyone who has spent any time in the Northeastern
US and is interested in sci-fi/fantasy. I say fantasy because the
science as depicted herein is not entirely accurate.
Probable time involvement: 2 weeks.
Minimum time involvement: 6:58:35.
Genre: Podiobook
Duel of the Fates by Jack Mangan
As this isn’t a podiobook in a true sense, it has not
been counted in the running podiobooks total.
Funny, but not for those who have only a passing
acquaintance with science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Those with
strong opinions about characters will probably feel as if they have been
dealt a personal injury.
Probable time involvement: 1 day.
Minimum time involvement: 53:07.
Duel of the Fates, Tournament 2 by Jack Mangan
As this isn’t a podiobook in a true sense, it has not
been counted in the running podiobooks total.
Funny, but not for those who have only a passing
acquaintance with science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Those with
strong opinions about characters will probably feel as if they have been
dealt a personal injury.
Probable time involvement: 1 day.
Minimum time involvement: 45:02.
The first podcasted material I listened to. It
remains my favorite Sigler novel as of the release of Nocturnal.
I strongly recommend this podiobook to anyone who enjoys more mature
science fiction. However, only those of strong constitution should
listen to this (i.e. those of you who are squeamish, find something else
to listen to (the bloody blade on the cover should be taken as a literal
hint)). Though it is fun at the time, do not listen to the last half
of this podiobook alone in the dark/at night. Warning, “EarthCrack”
is highly addictive.
The largest platinum deposit known to man lays under a mountain in
Utah. EarthCore is the only corporation willing to risk investing in
an unprecedented 3-mile deep mine to get to it. All is not as it
seems when they discover that there are things living under the mountain,
things willing to protect the secrets they’ve guarded for centuries.
Probable time involvement: 2 weeks.
Minimum time involvement: 15:49:11.
Genre: Podiobook.
I finished this podiobook sometime in the
spring of 2008, though after Doctor Janeway’s Plague (I think).
The story begins with a seemingly conventional murder and a conventional
murder investigation in Atlanta and D.C. As the detective discovers,
nothing is conventional when he discovers that a secret government agency
has been training ghosts to work for them.
Probable time involvement: 1 week.
Minimum time involvement: 3:20:43.
Genre: Podiobook.
The Failed Cities Monologues by Matt Wallace
This version is currently in queue. For my comments on the Variant Frequencies feed version, go here.
Great Moments in History by John G. Stockmyer
Currently in progress/queue.
Episodes 1-3, 5 finished.
Heaven: Season One by Mur Lafferty
The fifth Podiobooks.com (and sixth overall) podiobook
that I have finished. I began Singularity and The
Immortals before Heaven: Season One, but they were still in
progress when this podiobook was released.
Described as “magical realism,” Heaven follows two
friends from their life on Earth to their afterlives in Heaven.
However, all is not as it seems when Kate realizes that her personal
Heaven is populated by idealized persons and things. Daniel,
meanwhile, is given “Traveler” status and a mission. In
full exploration of the “no good deed goes unpunished” axiom,
Mur Lafferty has created a work that just begs for a second season.
Not for those religious fanatics who cannot accept the existence of other
heavens, but again a must listen for anyone looking for a fun time and a
tour of the afterlife.
Probable time involvement: 2 days.
Minimum time involvement: 3:07:03.
Genre: Podiobook.
Heaven: Season Two: Hell by Mur Lafferty
In all honesty, trying to figure out where I stand in
what I am listening too has suddenly gotten more difficult in the wake of
almost two months without a computer and almost three months without the
ability to update the content on my MP3 player.
Described as “magical realism,” Heaven: Season Two: Hell
continues to follow two friends as they venture into the various levels of
Hell in order to rescue souls taken from the various Heavens. Of
course, the reality of Kate and Daniel’s mission is something quite
different than what it appears to be. As a side note, J. C. Hutchins’ 7th Son clones make cameo appearances. Again, this
is not for those religious fanatics who cannot accept the existence of
other heavens, but again a must listen for anyone looking for a fun time
and a tour of the afterlife.
Probable time involvement: 2 days.
Minimum time involvement: 3:38:41.
Genre: Podiobook.
Heaven: Season Three: Earth by Mur Lafferty
Again, I haven’t a clue as to when I listened to this,
though it was sometime during 2007. Includes a
“soundtrack” in the form of after-episode songs.
With Kate and Daniel nominally in control of Heaven and Hell,
respectively, they discover that there is more to do that simply
administrate. Kate finds out that the destruction of Earth has
created a Void which must be filled. Daniel finds out that stepping
in and taking control of Hell hasn’t gone down well with some of his
underlings. The battle for Heaven begins.
Probable time involvement: 2 days.
Minimum time involvement: 3:42:58.
Genre: Podiobook.
Heaven: Season Four: Wasteland by Mur Lafferty
Read sometime during late March,
probably. While only 10 episodes (not the 12 of the prior
installments), the total number of words is greater (see here
for details).
Daniel finds himself in the Wasteland with Kate’s body. She
resurrects and they find a society of humans living in the Wasteland,
apparently created in as artificial a way as Earth Mark 2 was created in a
natural way. Dealing with the perversions of those who worship them,
Kate and Daniel travel to the northern border of this world, Earth Mark 3,
and discover what happened to Earth Mark 2.
Probable time involvement: 2 days.
Minimum time involvement: 2:49:28.
Genre: Podiobook.
Heaven: Season Five: War by Mur Lafferty
Began Sunday, June 21, 2009.
The story continues with Kate and Daniel in the Wasteland with a few other
gods in tow.
In progress.
Genre: Podiobook.
How to Succeed in Evil by Patrick McLean
The third Podiobooks.com (and fourth
overall) podiobook that I have finished. I began 7th Son: Book
One: Descent, Singularity, and The Immortals
before How to Succeed in Evil, but they were all in progress when
this podiobook was released.
How to Succeed in Evil is one of the recent superhero universes
which has come into the various media spheres as of late and probably thfunniest. Following the exploits of Edwin Windsor, Evil Efficiency
Consultant, HTSIE shows what might happen when supervillains who
are are all idiots, superheroes who just like to grandstand, and law
enforcement organizations who would just like to be rid of them both end
up facing something much worse than a death ray and better than a boy
scout with superpowers: a lawyer. Patrick McLean’s HTSIE
series also includes (first on succeedinevil.com
and now in the Podiobooks.com feed)
the prequel “Cheap Labor” and two final episodes after those in
this podiobook. All in all, a must listen to anyone who enjoys a
more cynical look at a world with superheroes.
Probable time involvement: 2 days.
Genre: Podioplay.
How to Succeed in Evil: The Novel by Patrick McLean
Began March 2009. Finished August 2009.
An expansion of the original HTSIE (see adjacent
entry), HTSIE:TN delves more deeply into the events surrounding
Edwin Windsor’s rise to the top of his field as well as more background
on other characters from the original version and a few new characters.
Genre: Podiobook.
Began Tuesday, February 26, 2008.
Another book that seem promising until I stalled some number of episodes into it. In this particular case, the narration is why I stopped listening. I can put up with a lot, but since discovering podioplays and other higher-production podcasts, I have grown accustomed to a decent audio experience. I am not even sure I could have made it through Tannis Island anymore.
Genre: Podiobook.
The Immortals by Tracy Hickman
After a listening to this book for almost
year between May 2006 and April 2007, I haven’t the faintest idea as to
the exact position in my list. I admit that I first subscribed to
the feed based on the assumption that the disease would turn out to make
people immortal or something like that.
Set in 2020, The Immortals is a tale of a father’s quest for his
son. AIDS has been eradicated, but the cure has created a much
deadlier disease: V-CIDS. Governments around the world have
quarantined their territories and have interned the infected. In the
US, martial law has been declared, allowing the military to round up the
infected with deadly force. Following his son to the camps in the
deserts of Utah, Michael Barris finds that redemption for his sins and the
sins of society comes at a high price.
Probable time involvement: 3 weeks.
Minimum time involvement: 15:23:54.
Genre: Podiobook.
More Sonic Fiction by Jeffery Kafer (Editor)
Currently in queue.
Minimum time involvement: 10:03:51.
Genre: Podthology.
Murder, A Random Act by Rocky Dorcy
Currently in progress/queue.
Additional episodes are probably not forthcoming as has been several years
since the last release. Podiobooks.com has actually removed this
book from their site. Though a search does not direct you to this
book, the links I use here reveal the message:
We’re sorry, but this book has been taken off the shelf either by the
request of the author, or because of an unacceptable time between updates.
Playing for Keeps by Mur Lafferty
Began Saturday, February 16, 2008. Finished
Sunday, February 17, 2008. This was the first podiobook I ran
through in my mid-February 2008 I’m-tired-of-TV phase.
Set in the same universe as “Barry Koleman, Hero” from Voices:
New Media Fiction. Playing for Keeps tells the story of
Keepsie Branson and her friends as they use their superpowers to battle
corrupt superheroes and insane supervillians for the future of Seventh
City.
Probable time involvement: 1 week.
Minimum time involvement: 9:04:51.
Genre: Podiobook.
Revelations by Russell L. Burt
Again, I haven’t the slightest idea where this stands in
my running list of completions, though I did finish it sometime during the
last months of 2006.
Revelations, despite the name, has nothing to do with the biblical
Book of Revelations, so you can get that thought out of your head
now. It begins when a young boy falls into a trance and writes out a
mysterious text that falls into obscurity (read: it gets lost in a filling
cabinent) for around a decade. When a psychologist comes across it,
she begins a journey that can only end with death. Like his
podthology (Come,
Let Me Whisper), Burt delivers a “dark fantasy” work
that is not afraid to go into, well, sexual issues.
Probable time involvement: 1 week.
Minimum time involvement: 5:11:24.
Genre: Podiobook.
Though I meant to listen to this over vacation with my
Dad, I didn’t get around to it until January 2008.
Of the several Scott Sigler works I’ve gone through, The Rookie is
my second favorite (after Earthcore). As I am not the biggest
sports fan in the universe, I am quite thankful that Sigler provided his
Junkies with a couple of episodes dedicated to explaining American
football. Anyway, The Rookie follows a 19-year old
quarterback (Quentin Barnes) as he works through his speciesism while
trying to win a football championship. (Yeah, that’s a poor
description, so sue me.)
Probable time involvement: 2 weeks.
Minimum time involvement: 17:05:48.
Genre: Podiobook.
Shadow Falls: Season 1 by Mark Yoshimoto Nemcoff
Began ?. Finished ?. I devoured this
podioplay in a little over a day. Truth be told, I had read a
negative review at some point in the past which compared Shadow Falls
unfavorably to Claybourne, which I enjoyed. As such, I only
recently bothered to listen to it, which saved me the trouble of waiting
for Season 2, Shadow Falls: Badlands.
A full-cast podioplay, Shadow Falls is the tale of a small town
with dark secrets. Our narrator/guide, a teenage girl, makes it
quite clear that no secret can stay buried in a town where the real-estate
agent is a dominatrix, the sheriff is her submissive, the town priest is
blind, half-crazy, and cursed, and where two ancient evils battle for
control over death. While that synopsis may make it seem like Shadow
Falls is like Claybourne or Virgin Falls, it is its own
dark and mysterious world.
Probable time involvement: 2 days.
Genre: Podioplay.
Shadow Falls: Badlands by Mark Yoshimoto Nemcoff
Began ?. Finished ?. Like Shadow Falls:
Season 1, I devoured this novel in a scant few days and then spent
more time trying to find Season 3, which should have been out in the
summer of 2008.
The second season of Shadow Falls starts off with the origin of
Shadow Falls, including the tragedies that befell the first
residents. Jumping ahead a century and a half, our story follows a
stranger, awaiting execution for horse robbery in a Texas town. He
awakens on the day of his execution to find the townspeople slaughtered
and his jail cell open. He flees, rediscovering his past and memory
as it becomes obvious he is not human any more. I would say what
happens to the Stranger (as he is known for the first part of the book),
but then that would spoil the revelation of his identity. I will
say, however, that we know him from season 1 and that he was quite wrong
about who he was...
Probable time involvement: 2 weeks.
Minimum time involvement: 10:28:55.
Genre: Podiobook.
The sixth Podiobooks.com (seventh overall) podiobook to
be completed (I think). After seven months of listening and waiting,
Singularity is finally complete. On a completely egocentric
note, the question I submitted to “The Great Singularity Podcast”
of episode 48 can be heard 52 minutes into the final episode.
Singularity begins with the Jackson-Ryan hypothesis, an explanation
of the Tunguska explosion (in 1908). What if the cause of the
explosion was a primordial black hole? What if it never left?
Going from there, Singularity follows an agent of a secret
government organization (Marianna Bonaventure) and a consultant (Jonathan
Knox) as they struggle to figure out what a Russian billionaire (Arkady
Grishin) wants with physicists and astrophysicists in the middle of the
Atlantic Ocean. A trailer is available here.
Probable time involvement: 3 weeks.
Minimum time involvement: 20:21:54.
Genre: Podiobook.
Sonic Fiction by Jeffery Kafer (Editor)
Currently in progress.
Minimum time involvement: 4:15:19.
Genre: Podthology.
Star
Surgeon by Alan E. Nourse
Read by Scott D. Farquhar
Began Sunday, February 17, 2008. Finished Monday,
February 18, 2008. Set in the Hospital Earth universe I previously
encountered in Rx for Tomorrow (a physical anthology given to me by
my middle school librarian).
Hospital Earth remains a probationary member of the Galactic
Confederation, despite meeting all stated requirements: a self-developed
star drive, usefulness to the Confederation, and an end to intraspecies
strife. Dal Timgar is Garvian and the first non-human to study on
Hospital Earth. Before he can become a 1-star Red Doctor of Surgery
(known as a Star Surgeon), he must face the bigotry of a powerful 4-star
Black Doctor of Pathology and his own weaknesses.
Probable time involvement: 1 week.
Minimum time involvement: 5:36:40.
Genre: Podiobook.
Taken Liberty: A Tale from the Arbiter Chronicles by Steven H. Wilson
Began Thursday, February 21, 2008 after
listening to Steven H. Wilson read Badge of Infamy. (I’m a
believer in author- or in this case narrator-, hopping.) Finished
Friday, February 22, 2008. I must say that I am somewhat ashamed at
having subscribed to this book at least a year ago, but dismissed it for
some reason. I quite liked the universe and characters and look
forward to additional works (which can be found here).
Take Liberty is also the first podiobook (excluding podthologies) I’ve listened to twice, beginning it on Friday, March 14, 2008 and
finishing on Saturday, March 15, 2008. I will admit I listened to it
on the Prometheus Radio Theatre feed.
Humanity has spread to the stars, though only natural-born Terrans could
truly be called human in an age of widespread genetic engineering. Aer’La is a result of such engineering: a Varthan sex slave.
Managing to escape, Aer’La stumbles onto a Confederate naval ship and
becomes a member of the crew. After being reassigned to the
flagship, CNV Titan, Aer’La’s past comes calling to drag her back into
slavery. Ultimately, it will take the efforts of her fellow
midshipmen, her Captain, and friends to ensure that Aer’La remains free.
Probable time involvement: 10 days.
Minimum time involvement: 8:05:42.
Genre: Podiobook.
Tannis Island by Gavin L. Lowe
The second Podiobooks.com podiobook that I actually
finished. The story is involved, but becomes tad predictable when a
certain name occurs. Unlike most other material on Podiobooks.com,
it is a [monotone] read podiobook, not a voice-acted podiobook. In
the course of my February 2008 updates, I have discovered that this book
has also been removed from the site, apparently at the author’s request.
A mysterious artifact is discovered in an ancient tomb in Sudan. It
turns out to be map which leads to a previously undiscovered island.
The discovery, unfortunately, may mean the extinction of
humanity.
Probable time involvement: 2 weeks.
Minimum time involvement: 9:45:17.
Genre: Podiobook.
Time
Crime by H. Beam Piper
Read by Nathan Lowell
Began Monday, April 14, or Tuesday, April
15, 2008. Finished
Friday, May 2, 2008. There are two problems with this title.
First is that it is only the first half of a novella originally published in
“Astounding Science Fiction Magazine” in February and March of
1955. Second is that there are audio problems in episodes 3 and 5
which clip off the ends of the episode. The text can be found here
so you can fill in the blanks.
The human race comes from Mars and in one timeline, humanity discovers a way
to travel between different timelines (i.e. multiverses). The Paratime
Police are in charge of enforcing law and order throughout exploited
timelines, but when an illegal slaving operation is discovered, they are
forced to confront corruption at the highest levels of government.
Probable time involvement: 5 days.
Minimum time involvement: Not applicable until correct versions of
episodes 3 and 5 are released.
Genre: Podiobook.
Voices: New Media Fiction by Mur Lafferty (editor)
The first Podiobooks.com podthology. As this is a podthology, it is an excellent jumping off point to the works of other authors. A must-listen.
Probable time
involvement: 5 days.
Minimum time involvement: 9:23:29.
Genre: Podthology.