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The Prefect

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The Prefect

By: Alastair Reynolds
Narrated by: John Lee
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About this listen

Tom Dreyfus is a Prefect, a law enforcement officer with the Panoply. His beat is the multifaceted utopian society of the Glitter Band, that vast swirl of space habitats orbiting the planet Yellowstone, the teeming hub of a human interstellar empire spanning many worlds. His current case: investigating a murderous attack against one of the habitats that left 900 people dead, a crime that appalls even a hardened cop like Dreyfus. But then his investigation uncovers something far more serious than mass slaughter---a covert plot by an enigmatic entity who seeks nothing less than total control of the Glitter Band. Before long, the Panoply detectives are fighting against something worse than tyranny, in a struggle that will lead to more devastation and more death. And Dreyfus will discover that to save what is precious, you may have to destroy it.

©2008 Alastair Reynolds (P)2011 Tantor Adventure Hard Science Fiction Science Fiction Space Opera

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Critic reviews

"A fascinating hybrid of space opera, police procedural and character study.... This is solid British SF adventure, evoking echoes of le Carre and Sayers with a liberal dash of Doctor Who." ( Publishers Weekly)
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I was reticent at first but Mr Reynolds conjures up a good story in a familiar universe.

a versatile universe

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Great story, plot and characters. narrated wondefully. A believable and fantastic universe of complex characters and technology.

superb

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Enjoyable well performed. Some interesting accents for this interstellar community but this adds to the story and helps identify the protagonists well.
I recommend it for fans of the author.

Stand alone story in Revelation Space.

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Curiously placed within Revelation Space series. But the story itself is a good one, albeit more person oriented.

A more personal approach than Revelation Space

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apart from some of the senior perfects making 101 errors, and Lee slightly limited in his range, it was great and I listened with increasing obsession.
Lee's narration is near perfect for this type of book and his inability to do a range of female voices doesn't matter too much. with this type of storyline very few other sound right. Dreyfus is a great character and the basic detective story really engaging. going straight on to the next one in the series. if you like space opera Sci-Fi then I'm sure you'll love this.

I found it compelling but not perfect

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