No one would have believed . . .

A fantastic opening to a genuine classic of the sci-fi genre. Whether you read it in the original or listened to Richard Burton's spine-tingling narration in the Jeff Wayne version it's a line and a story that has probably stayed with you ever since. So you have to wonder quite what was going through the minds of Stephen Baxter and Nathalie Buscombe when they took on the challenge of writing and narrating an officially sanctioned follow-up to H G Wells' "War of the Worlds".

In the case of Baxter he clearly saw it as the serious challenge it really is and he has produced a story that is stylistically and structurally sympathetic to the original. That's not surprising as he previously wrote "The Time Ships" which was also officially endorsed by the Wells estate as the sequel to "The Time Machine". This one reads like a book of its time but it is a very different version of the 1920s to the one that we know of. The Martian War of course altered history meaning that Britain never fought Germany in World War One leaving France to fall alone. The Kaiser has been appeased and it's a very sombre and darker Britain that we are introduced to.

Baxter weaves his story using many of the previous characters into his new reality. I was a little surprised to see a female narrator chosen but it certainly makes perfect sense as Baxter employs Julie Elphinstone from the original book to be his lead. Nathalie Buscombe does a really fine job of relaying the story which has a big cast to breathe life into.

Between them they have produced something that fits organically with the original story and characters. Baxter takes good care of them. This isn't modern sci-fi with huge sophistication, rather this is classic sci-fi and charmingly you still pick up some of the relative naiveté of the period it is set in. I would say that if you would genuinely enjoy reading or re-reading the original you'll also love this. If you are looking for a contemporary version of War of the Worlds it might not quite meet your needs so well.

For me nothing will ever quite match up to that chilling moment in a darkened bedroom when I first heard Burton utter that immortal opening line but this is a genuinely fine attempt to carry this classic story forwards.

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33 people found this helpful

Couldn't get into it

I was struggling to get through this one. I found it very difficult to focus on it and found it a bit heavy going. I was interested in the story and made it to the end to see where it went.

The story itself was interesting, but I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as the Wells classic. That said it was good to see the fighting machines back again.

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A Masterpiece!

A superb sequel to the War of the Worlds...I can't recommend this book highly enough. So much detail and research in to the life and times of the prescribed dateline, truly brings this book alive. Stephen Baxter I salute you!

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but slow

bit slow to start and then some parts were hard to follow what was going on

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Brave attempt. Worthy

Who dares to write a sequel to a Wells masterpiece and pull it off...
Stephen Baxter!
Its a tough gig to follow, but SB does it masterfully.
The original concept is still solidified, yet, with 100 years more experience of technology, science, and consciousness.
Anybody familiar with SB will know his mindset, hard scientific backing and storytelling.
This is so unique, as hes reeled in his trademark method to a degree, and merged it with HGW method to create this masterpiece to finish off (or maybe not) with a contemporay and very detailed "sequel". Fantastic work! Thank you

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Amazing audio book!!!

Amazing and a brilliant ending kept me thinking anything could happen just the like the first book to me ages to finish 😅!!!

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great sequel

In enjoyed the narrative. Worked coming from a womens perspective. There is plenty detail in the events and the style fits well into the time period. I will probably read it again.

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Hit and miss

I preordered this book as I was pretty excited by the concept.

I found the plot to be pretty contrived with large tracks of filler. I never really felt that the main characters were in much peril. This may have been caused by the pretty awful narrator who proved to be a huge distraction.

Whilst voicing the part of the main character the acting was pleasant. As soon as she had to voice a man it was horrific. All of the men ended up sounding like plummy idiots who were indistinguishable from each other. A Liverpudlian character sounded had an inconsistent accent that most of the time sound like a Scots man who'd had a stroke.

Overall a good romp ruined by poor performance.

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Good story, following well on the original.

The story is well crafted, and (as explained at the end) very much in HG Well's style and age. Decent pace, and I liked the heroine's character development. It is well narrated, with good voices - sometimes a bit plummy but that fits the times.
A good mix of plot and character description, and strong enough story to keep the listener engaged.
Recommended.

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Good book badly narrated

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The book is Basically good, but the narrator is completely wrong. In her normal voice she is ok, but....she tries to do the voices of the characters which are her downfall. The combination of the clipped voice, and too fast a speed when doing the accents makes it quite a hard listen. It couldn't be further away from Richard Burton's narration on the war of the worlds.

What didn’t you like about Nathalie Buscombe’s performance?

Unfortunately, most of it. Her normal reading voice is acceptable, but then she tries to do the characters. Fail !

If this book were a film would you go see it?

Yes probably.

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2 people found this helpful