The Rats

The Rats Series, Book 1

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The Rats

By: James Herbert

Narrated by: David Rintoul

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About this listen

Book One in Herbert's classic "rats" series.

The terror begins. London is struck by an invasion. Women, children, old and young, none are safe from the deadly menace. The attacks are swift and sure, escape is impossible. A state of emergency is declared. Evacuation seems the only solution in the face of a growing panic and mounting death toll. War is declared on the public enemy number one. The Rats!

James Herbert was one of Britain's greatest popular novelists and our #1 best-selling writer of chiller fiction. Widely imitated and hugely influential, he wrote 23 novels which have collectively sold over 54 million copies worldwide and been translated into 34 languages.

Born in London in the forties, James Herbert was art director of an advertising agency before turning to writing fiction in 1975. His first novel, The Rats, was an instant bestseller and is now recognised as a classic of popular contemporary fiction.

Herbert went on to publish a new top ten best-seller every year until 1988. He wrote six more bestselling novels in the 1990s and three more since: Once, Nobody True and The Secret of Crickley Hall.

Herbert died in March 2013 at the age of 69.

Horror

Scary

England

Fiction

Classics

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Editor reviews

Veteran actor David Rintoul delivers a superb performance of best-selling British author James Herbert’s The Rats, the first book in the classic The Rats series. His rich voice and charismatic delivery heighten the exciting nature of this audiobook. London comes under attack and a state of emergency is declared. The problem? Rats. Swift, terrifying rodents wreaking havoc in the big city. No one is safe. As the death toll rises, it appears that evacuation may be the only option left - that or war.

Critic reviews

“Herbert was by no means literary, but his work had a raw urgency. His best novels, The Rats and The Fog, had the effect of Mike Tyson in his championship days: no finesse, all crude power. Those books were best sellers because many readers (including me) were too horrified to put them down.” (Stephen King)
"There are few things I would like to do less than lie under a cloudy night sky while someone read aloud the more vivid passages of Moon. In the thriller genre, do recommendations come any higher?" (Andrew Postman, The New York Times Book Review)
"Herbert goes out in a blaze of glory" ( Daily Mail)

Most relevant

What did you like most about The Rats?

An exciting story that grips you from the start.

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

He really builds the tension and breaths life into the characters.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Don't worry, they are only rats!