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  • The Abyss Beyond Dreams

  • Chronicle of the Fallers, Book 1
  • By: Peter F. Hamilton
  • Narrated by: John Lee
  • Length: 22 hrs and 28 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (1,314 ratings)
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The Abyss Beyond Dreams cover art

The Abyss Beyond Dreams

By: Peter F. Hamilton
Narrated by: John Lee
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Summary

The first volume in the Chronicles of the Fallers, The Abyss Beyond Dreams is an incredible adventure, exploring the mystery at the heart of the Peter F. Hamilton's sprawling Commonwealth Universe. For fans of Iain M. Banks and Alaistair Reynolds.

To save their civilization, he must destroy it.

When a so-called prophet sees visions of a lost civilization, Nigel Sheldon is asked to investigate. Especially as these dreams seem to be coming from the Void – a mysterious area of space with hugely destructive capabilities. Then Nigel crash-lands inside the Void, and finds so much more than he expected. Bienvenido: a planet populated by survivors from long-vanished Commonwealth ships.

For centuries their descendants have been fighting a desperate battle against the Fallers, space-born predators that have evolved to conquer worlds. And Nigel soon realizes that the Fallers hold the key to the destruction of the Void itself. If he can survive long enough to find it . . .

Continue the adventure with the second in the duology, Night Without Stars.

©2014 Peter F. Hamilton (P)2014 Pan Macmillan Publishers Ltd.

Critic reviews

'Huge cast, enormous canvas, big ideas – mega in every way' – Daily Mail

What listeners say about The Abyss Beyond Dreams

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Immersed in the void.

I love this series of books and have listened to all the others available and was delighted to see another arrive. This one is slightly different in that almost all of the story is within the void - no trips out to the commonwealth really aside from the start. The start of the story we see some of the familiar faces from the series, then this story introduces a whole new set of characters to get to know, aside from one, a favourite of mine - who plays a key role in the void. Personally I would be distraught to hear anyone but John Lee read these books now having invested so many hours with him I find him very easy to listen to. I can imagine at least another book in the series after this one. If you haven't listened to or read the others I would strongly advise you do, really needs all the background to make sense and it is a superb series of books. The story in general did bear a passing resemblance to the story of Edeard - which is not a problem for me, was just delighted to be back in the Void :)

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18 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

An excellent story spolied by John Lee

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Wow. I was captivated by The Great North Road. and here we are with another excellent Peter Hamilton story. For those who have heard the narrator Toby Longworth from all the other audible Hamilton stories you are in for a great disappointment. You know how your grandmothers dentures make a clicking sound every time she opens her mouth. John Lee has this awful affectation of always adding the T sound to the end of every word with a T at the end. Some words need a stressed T at the end like Adult but an awful lot dont or as John would say it "an awful lo..T don..T." I have heard John before and he has equally upset the listening with his forced sibilant on the T.
Why oh Why didn't you use Toby?

What other book might you compare The Abyss Beyond Dreams to, and why?

You have to hear all of Peter's stories, they will blow your mind. In particular Great North Road, i have listened to this 3 times and gone on to read the book.

Would you be willing to try another one of John Lee’s performances?

I have no choice, he is the story teller for some of my favorite stories, but he ruins them. What I don't understand is, that if he is speaking as a character, he drops the T and speaks like a normal person. When he narrates out come the Bl...dy T's.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Spoiled by the reader.

Any additional comments?

You have to hear this story, if you like scifi.

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15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

More of the same, but who cares?!

Another story from the Void with many similarities to the last Void series, but who cares, it's great stuff. Hamilton is hitting his peak as a story-teller with more character development, more plotting and less pure technical detail (but plenty enough for those that love it). The only problem is after devouring it in the week since its release I now have to wait ages for the next one to get some resolution.

The usual excellent narration from John Lee, with my only minor gripe being the slightly arbitrary use of regional accents to discern different characters leads to me wondering why an ANA droid would sound like Sean Connery, and two people from the same city would sound respectively Scottish and Cornish.

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13 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars
  • M
  • 06-11-14

Ever wonder how Marx would have dealt with aliens?

PFH's writing and storytelling just keep getting better as the decades pass, and with this novel he's being more adventurous with the construction of the narrative too. It's a wonderful mix of hard SF and political fantasy, with a dollop of Ankh Morpork and Marxist revolution in too. Thoroughly enjoyed, as expected, and brilliantly narrated.

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

John lee...aghhh!

Maybe it's just me, but I find John Lee's narrations to be so flat, monotone and lifeless. I think I'd prefer to listen to Stephen Hawkins narrate this book. Having said this, if you're a sci-fi fan, the book is worth sticking with. After 12 hours I managed to ignore the voice and enjoyed the listen!

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Don't bother. Get it on Kindle.

If you could sum up The Abyss Beyond Dreams in three words, what would they be?

Story excellent, Narration awful.

Who was your favorite character and why?

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Weird delivery, unlistenable.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Every time John Lee spoke it moved me to want to get the ebook. After 2 hours I stumped up for the kindle edition. The awful narration was sapping every piece of enjoyment that I normally get from Mr Hamilton's writing.

Any additional comments?

Stop using John Lee. There are lots of good narrators around, but this guy keeps getting jobs from top authors and ruining the experience for me at least.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Return to the Void with a fresh twist

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I enjoyed the Void Trilogy and was worried that this book would feel second rate, as if often the case with prequels. I was wrong as this book is a stand alone great addition to the Void Trilogy. I am only disappointed that I will have to wait for the next one to be released.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Best book of the series

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Extremely well read and a very involving storyline

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Abyss Beyond Dreams?

The story has many memorable sections, very well combined.

What does John Lee bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

John Lee has a great repertoire of accents and intonations bringing characters to life, just wouldn't be the same without him.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Oh yes...i am fulfilled.....read the series then you will understand.

Any additional comments?

I need more Mr Hamilton...please :)

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A welcome return to the void

Having really enjoyed the Void and Commonwealth books i was really excited to see another trip in to the void was on the cards and honestly i wasn't disappointed. John Lees delivery was as flawless as ever and he is the voice of the commonwealth.

If you enjoy Peter F Hamiltons work you will really like this one, thanks and lets have part two soon !

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Captivating

What did you like most about The Abyss Beyond Dreams?

It is another excellently structure and read story. It kept me wanting more right upto the last sentence, disappointed that it came to an end,

What did you like best about this story?

Complex but easily followed plots with excellent detail

Which scene did you most enjoy?

The whole book was enjoyable.

Any additional comments?

I hope Peter has another in the series lined up.

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4 people found this helpful