Wonderful books

Would you consider the audio edition of The Atrocity Archives to be better than the print version?

As good as the print edition, (read print first)

What other book might you compare The Atrocity Archives to, and why?

Lovecraftian, leaky establishment type novel

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

Made me laugh, cringe and bounce with excitement in equal measure, some of the beaurocracy is closer to reality than is entirely comfortable.

Any additional comments?

Please make the other stories available audible.com has all of them including the sci-fi novels, don't force us to suffer with this void in our life

9 people found this helpful

Something special

If you could sum up The Atrocity Archives in three words, what would they be?

Cold-war, love, bureaucracy

Who was your favorite character and why?

It has to be the protagonist. His journey is that of the classic fairy-story hero, and he is likeable!

Which character – as performed by Jack Hawkins – was your favourite?

As above

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

The revelation of the relationship between the protagonist's two male room mates.

Any additional comments?

It is a well crafted, intelligent appraisal of how the British Secret Service would deal with the supernatural. It has a Fifties, Cold War feel, layered with the twenty-first century's real-world worries.
It is very gripping - a dynamic writing style, with real characterisation that grounds the very strange events into our recognisable real world. Only quibble is Stross's failure to fully characterise the female characters - a not uncommon problem with male authors, and Stross's women tend to fall into stereotypes; sex object(albeit with brains), bimbo or ball-breaker.
Charles Stross channels Ben Aaronovitch and Terry Pratchett in his younger period, and achieves somnething that is uniquely his own voice. He doesn't stray too far into the horror/torture/gross genre, but keeps it grounded with comedy, current references and the human drivers of love, loss and learning.This book is in two distinct parts - I believe they were originally published separately, but the repetition of setting back story isn't too cumbersome, and it all hangs together well.I'm definitely looking for more of his work.

9 people found this helpful

good if you don't mind 2 dimensional females

I really enjoyed the concept but found myself unbelievably frustrated with very flat female characters who were either inexplicably waspish or unrealistically damsel-ly. There's definitely a bit of a masculine fantasy thing going one where an unsuspecting normal guy becomes the true hero and saves the gorgeous, capable redhead who suddenly is in desperate need of help. I also found the pacing quite confusing as it wasn't always clear how much time had passed and often this meant that a significant development in a relationship had occurred without any hint of when or how. I could have looked past it as the concept of a supernatural gchq is really very brilliant if it's women were just a little less stereotyped and had some genuine capabilities rather than googly eyes or bitter stupidity.

5 people found this helpful

I always knew maths was slightly evil

Fantastic! Great performance, amazing story. Len Deighton meets HP Lovecraft and a sense of humour.

5 people found this helpful

Lots of geek-speak and acronyms.

I enjoyed this book, despite, or maybe because of the geek-speak! Very 2015. It almost made the reader part of the Laundry. It took me a while to engage with Bob, but once I did I was cheering him along, admiring his quick wit, intelligence and reluctant bravery.
An original and entertaining book which could almost happen. On a par, though very different to Phillip Pullman's Dark Materials books (recommended to young and old), not quite up to Jim Butcher's Dresden series or Ben Aaronovitch's Peter Grant books, a hard ask, admittedly.

5 people found this helpful

Brilliant take on a lovecraftian universe

Would you consider the audio edition of The Atrocity Archives to be better than the print version?

I've not got/read the book so I wouldn't be able to tell you. There is a lot of dense tech-speak, however, and I think it would be nice to have a printed version, in order to see what was said with more clarity.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Atrocity Archives?

It's difficult to fill this in without giving any of the plot away. One thing that's not too spoilery stands out, however. The moment our valiant hero is besieged by beaurocracy, only to be able to take it to a department head and foil there attempts at harassing him.

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

I first heard Jack reading Scott Mariani's books and I think he brings the same here. They are confidently and compidently read, with enough characterisation to add to the narrative without going over the top, and making it sound like a children's book.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

It was tricky to get in to at first but, once I had, I couldn't put it down. If I had a (very) long car journey, I can see myself putting this on again.

Any additional comments?

Really great book which is a little confusing at first but becomes more understandable as the plot unwinds. There is enough humour in here to offset some of the scarier elements and the use of mythic elements is particularly well achieved. Looking forward to listening to book 2, which I have just purchased.

4 people found this helpful

great experience and incredible book!

loved the story and characters, narrator was perfect. wish all four in the series were on Audible.

3 people found this helpful

Great

Great story and performance. One quibble is the opening bit about Charlie Stross and how great he is, I already bought the book, I did not need it sold to me again.

2 people found this helpful

Amazing

What did you like most about The Atrocity Archives?

The refreshing take on both spy and supernatural fiction. Some great world building too.

Who was your favorite character and why?

"Bob Howard" is a great perspective to explore the Laundry universe at turns humorous (appropriately dark) and knowledgeable but most importantly he is satisfyingly human and avoids a lot of the boring macho tropes that the genre still has difficulty with.

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

Yes. All of them have been have been uniformly impressive. I hope that He continues to narrate the series.

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

The finale had me on the edge of my seat.

Any additional comments?

I really hope that Audible makes the rest of the series available with this narrator.

2 people found this helpful

Enjoyable 'read'

Good story and lively narration. Will certainly download more.
Need to concentrate as fair few twists and turns.

2 people found this helpful