Swan Song cover art

Swan Song

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Swan Song

By: Robert R. McCammon
Narrated by: Tom Stechschulte
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About this listen

"We're about to cross the point of no return. God help us; we're flying in the dark, and we don't know where the hell we're going."

Facing down an unprecedented malevolent enemy, the government responds with a nuclear attack. America as it was is gone forever, and now every citizen - from the president of the United States to the homeless on the streets of New York City - will fight for survival.

Swan Song is Robert McCammon's prescient and shocking vision of a post-apocalyptic nation, a grand epic of terror and, ultimately, renewal.

In a wasteland born of rage and fear, populated by monstrous creatures and marauding armies, earth's last survivors have been drawn into the final battle between good and evil, that will decide the fate of humanity. They include Sister, who discovers a strange and transformative glass artifact in the destroyed Manhattan streets... Joshua Hutchins, the pro wrestler who takes refuge from the nuclear fallout at a Nebraska gas station... and Swan, a young girl possessing special powers, who travels alongside Josh to a Missouri town where healing and recovery can begin with Swan's gifts. But the ancient force behind earth's devastation is scouring the walking wounded for recruits for its relentless army, beginning with Swan herself.

Please note: Two chapters were originally missing from Part 2 of this book. We were alerted to the problem on 11/21/11 and have corrected it. We're very sorry for any inconvenience. If you had already downloaded the book, don’t worry - your library has automatically updated with the corrected version. Simply re-download from your library, at no additional cost, to get the complete book.

©2009 Robert McCammon (P)2011 Audible, Inc.
Epic Epic Fantasy Fantasy Fiction Horror Post-Apocalyptic Science Fiction Supernatural Thriller & Suspense Paranormal Survival Scary New York Nuclear War War

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All stars
Most relevant
Have just read the previous review and had to briefly write my thoughts which are the exact opposite of the last reviewer.
I couldn't wait to finish the book as I was thoroughly enthralled and caught up with the characters, I didn't notice how brutish it was as I expected rage and violence etc as it's an end of the world type of book.
I really enjoyed it and will read it again at some point.
Give it a try.

Thoroughly enjoyable

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Loved the character Sister, a fight between good and evil in the strictest sense, no smudging of lines in-between, very much like the 'Stand' by Steven King, which I must admit nudges into the lead between the two. Easy read and entertaining well as much as the end of the world can be!

End of the World..

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Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

not unless they thought Stephen King's characters were just too subtle and nuanced.

If you like your good and evil laid out very clearly, and sledgehammered home at every opportunity, this is the book for you.

Also, where on earth was the editor?! there are errors in this book, eg one character saying to another they've definitely decided to go somewhere then a few chapters later, claiming not to know where to go and all of a sudden, the distance to said place has shifted by about 5 to 10 miles.

Maybe the editor / proof-reader lost all will to plough on at that stage. I don't really blame them.

Has Swan Song put you off other books in this genre?

Apocalyptic novels are not really my chosen genre, I only bought this one as I'd liked McGammon's Matthew Corbett novel (1st one), so I'm not sure I can be put off something I never really went for in the first place

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

Quite a good performance but sometimes he voiced the characters with a very low voice that was difficult to pick up on headphones

Was Swan Song worth the listening time?

If you want hours and hours of mindless, meandering, vaguely interesting chat, then by all means. It's not brilliant, kind of the literary equivalent of chewing gum...starts off fine then is very same-y then very bland then you keep chewing (not knowing why) and in the end, you don't mind if you spit it out and never think about it again.

overlong, overwraught...just over it

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Any additional comments?

The story although long could easily have been longer which may have held it together, instead the writer decided to just skip 7 years. For the most part well written, but it leans heavily on The Stand. The ending seemed rushed, as if the author tired of his own story.

The Stand, want-a-be

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I began quite enjoying the book as something King-esque for my long commute but soon realised it couldn't keep me interested. The characters are all so laughably 1 sided and the author can't put a convincing metaphor together at all. I ultimately ended up rolling my eyes every 5 minutes and being glad when it ended! Have to say though that the narrator does an excellent job with what is essentially bad material.

Terrible writing. Good performance.

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I thoroughly enjoyed this great story with it's excellent characters and it was narrated brilliantly.

Excellent

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I loved this book, I listened to it at every opportunity and totally engaged with the characters, I found it easy to place myself inside the story. The characters captured all that is good and bad in our race, with good triumping over evil. The authors description and story telling worked increditbly well and I was sorry that the book came to an end.

Swan Song

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A really good book with a great performance to go a long side it. Just bear in mind it takes a while to get going and is a very long listen.

Great but long

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I loved this. Very similar in many ways to King's "The Stand" as it is an apocalyptic, good vs evil story but I think this is superior in many ways. I enjoyed the writing and the character development and was sorry when it was over. The setting is wholly believable with graphic descriptions of the scorched earth following a nuclear winter. Not for the faint-hearted as it is very vivid in terms of human suffering but it is also incredibly uplifting in many ways. Highly recommended.

Gripping apocalyptic tale

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

Definitely especially for a long journey. This is a great story unwinds and twists and turns so that the final solution cannot be guessed. I really enjoyed this book even though the subject matter is somewhat dark. The characters were well-defined and different enough that you could follow them. I was kept guessing how they would all be put together throughout the story. The background to the story and the different environments were well described so that you felt you were actually in each different town or scenario. Although the subject matter is sometimes troubling it was never so horrific that you could not listen. I felt that it was accurate description of what the world after nuclear holocaust would be. Cold, troubled, definitely scary and challenging. Recommended very highly!

What other book might you compare Swan Song to, and why?

This book is singularly different different but the closest I could find to compare it with is 2016.

Have you listened to any of Tom Stechschulte’s other performances? How does this one compare?

I have not will fully intend to.

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

The final battle for life as we know it was heartwarming and totally not foreseeable within the writing. I really thought that the end was nigh but the author Paul something out this hat at the last moment. Tears streaming and surprised.

Any additional comments?

I came across this book by accident not having heard of the author but will definitely be searching for other books by the same author. The narrator was also very good he had a cast of players that he was able to give different voices to and this enabled me to follow the story much more easily it also gave a good sense of being involved with the storyline.

One of the best audio books I have heard

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