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Great North Road cover art

Great North Road

By: Peter F. Hamilton
Narrated by: Toby Longworth
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Summary

A clone has been the victim of a savage killing. The investigation may uncover a threat to humanity's very existence. Great North Road is a standalone adventure from science fiction star Peter F. Hamilton, the author of The Night's Dawn trilogy.

For fans of Philip K. Dick and Kim Stanley Robinson.

In Newcastle, AD 2142, Detective Sidney Hurst attends a brutal murder scene. The victim is one of the wealthy North family’s clones, but the most disturbing aspect is how he died. Twenty years ago, a North clone billionaire and his household were slaughtered in the exact same manner, on the tropical planet of St Libra. The only member of the household left alive, Angela Tramelo, received the blame. Was Angela wrongly convicted back then? She’d never wavered under interrogation – claiming she alone survived an alien attack.

With St Libran bio-fuel now powering Earth's economy, investigating this alien threat becomes top priority. A vast expedition is mounted via the planet’s Newcastle gateway – including Angela Tramelo, grudgingly released from prison. But the expedition is cut off, deep within St Libra's rainforests. Then the bloodshed begins . . .

©2012 Peter F. Hamilton (P)2012 Pan Macmillian Publishers Ltd

Critic reviews

"The most powerful imagination in science fiction." (Ken Follett)

"Novels that combine fantastic speculation with incredible detailed imagining of the lives we will lead." (Guardian)

"This is thrilling stuff; compulsively readable and abundantly full of idea." (The Times)

What listeners say about Great North Road

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • 4 Stars
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  • 3 Stars
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Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    871
  • 4 Stars
    244
  • 3 Stars
    44
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Story
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    12

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Great book, but this is only half the story

This is my first Sci Fi audible in 2 years, I was drawn in to it to see how my native Newcastle fares in the future. There are enough seperate strands to keep it interesting and moving along and it was enjoyable to think that technology may improve but human nature doesnt change much.

Perhaps I mis read the blurb where it is listed as a stand alone book. You have to listen to both parts to get the full plot, they are not self contained. In fact part one ends on a cliff hanger so I have to buy Part 2 right now to get it . ..

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66 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Not all books are 1 credit.

I like Audiable, its a wonderful service but sometimes it makes me laugh. A long time ago some books used to be 2 credits to buy. Then Audiable made a big splash telling every one that all books were 1 credit.

Unless it is a Peter F Hamilton book. This book is a 2 credit book. This is not part one of a two part story. Its the first half of a book. Audiable did not even go to much effort to find a convenient place to split the book. It just stops, suddenly. I would prefer they listened to the book, found a better point to split it so the book doesn't just stop.

The reader is doing his best to make the normal Peter F Hamilton pulp enjoyable. He has enough voices to go around. His regional British and regional American accents are good. He has a good pace and emotes nicely.

The story is absolutely typical Peter F Hamilton. If you have a long repetitive job to do and want a fairly ok Sci-fi book to help pass the time then this is good stuff. Its not new or particularly imaginative but it gets the job done.

Fun while you listen but after a week you'll struggle to remember what happened.

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58 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Excellent story, excellent narration but...

I can't recommend this book enough - its excellent in almost every way. Nothing more about the story - just read it!



The only downside I see with this edition is that, along with another book I have recently 'read' (The Name of the Wind), the audio version has been split into 2 parts.



I fear Audible/Amazon is trending towards maximizing profits by splitting large novels. I understand that audio versions of 1100 page novels will cost more to produce but I would prefer if audible were clearer if they have split a single novel into more than one part.



Will this become commonplace? Will we soon see this size of novel split into 3 or more sections? The Kindle version of the novel is £6.99 - audible "list" price would cost you £43.18 or 2 member credits which is £14.99 on a 2 book/month membership so is at least twice the cost?



Luckily, having not read the physical copy, I was fortunate (?) not to realize that this was a single novel split into 2 parts (credits/charge/costs) and had pre-purchased part 2 before finishing the first so was not left hanging at the end of the first part.



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35 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Caution - this book is split costing more!

Objectively, an excellent audio book. However, the split into various parts was not clear and this is simply a con to extract more money from customers. A real shame.

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21 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

It's long and it's good!

What did you like most about Great North Road?

This was the first sci-fi book I'd read/listened to for a good few years, mostly I do the crime and fantasy stuff, but this one caught my eye because it was a mix of crime and sci-fi.

Some of the sci-fi I read in my youth got lost in the tech descriptions but this one just rolls along and you absorb the finer details so that the technology and terms do not stop you in your tracks. The crime itself is simple enough to follow and the cloning angle keeps you guessing.

The book is over 36 hours long so it's a biggie, but it never flags.

As a result of listening to this story I have read Pandora's Star and have nearly finished Judas Unchained and will read more from this author.

Any additional comments?

If you are someone like me who hasn't read any sci-fi for a while but want a stonking good story with some twists along the way, this is a great one to listen to. Very good performance by the reader (I listened at 1.25 speed) - I hope you enjoy it too!

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

brilliant until................

I really enjoyed this book, especially the future Geordieland, and the developments in technology in every day life. This compared well to the more fanciful ideas on space travel. The characters in Newcastle were really interesting and I loved the details of their lives. Hopefully not spoiling the end, I felt it was unsatisfactory and a bit of a "fairytale" ending. Maybe I just didn't want to let go of the real future world of Newcastle.

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Really good

What did you like most about Great North Road?

This stand alone story was an easier listen than some of Hamilton's 'space operas'. I really enjoyed it all. It held my attention and the characters and storyline were excellent.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Great North Road?

I don't like spoilers so feel I must be vague. Discovering exactly who betrayed who, a bloody massacre, and a good ending. Its a long book and there are many memorable moments.

What about Toby Longworth’s performance did you like?

All his narrations are top quality and this one is no exception.

Any additional comments?

One of Hamilton's best.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

150 years on and Geordies still not wearing coats.

Haven't read any science fiction since I was a teenager but picked this out because of the Newcastle connection - I agree with other reviewers that people who know the city will have an added pleasure in listening to the book. It is long and not the sort of thing I'd read but makes for good company while doing chores and I'll be getting Part 2 in due course.

The 'heroine' is too good to be true in her endless resourcefulness, physical perfection and absolute superiority to anyone else she encounters but the other main characters(especially in the Newcastle police department) are more plausible. I thought the ideas about future inter-planetary life were confidently handled and I liked the way that the basic realities of human life and behaviour haven't changed despite the great technical leaps. Of course people still relish good food, become obsessed with their work and form close bonds in difficult circumstances, even if it is 2143.

All in all, pretty good.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Entertaining Listen

I have a love/ hate relationship with Mr Hamilton. His world building is always amazing though his door-stopping tomes are generally far too bloated and the less said about his adolescent fantasy women and cringe-worthy sex fantasies the better. So why did I pick up Great North Road? Despite my misgivings I enjoy Hamilton's imaginative settings and story telling, and Great North Road delivers both by the bagful.

I loved the depiction of near future Newcastle and the police procedural set within it. Reading what detective work 150 years into the future, using new surveillance and other technologies might look like was fascinating and I enjoyed future Newcastle immensely. There were also hints of economic worries, corruption and political struggles, so not such a near utopia as Hamiltons usual fare. I could have just as easily enjoyed this story if it had remained solely in this setting as a noir thriller, and it probably would have been a very good novel too. However, being a Peter F. Hamilton we also have far flung colonies on exotic worlds, a war with inscrutable aliens, mysterious billionaires seemingly cloned to infinity, an ill-fated expedition set out to find a dangerous alien monster and a kick-ass femme-fatale who holds it all together. This is another very bloated work that would have benefited a lot from tighter editing, though this will be nothing new for P.F. Hamilton fans. It compares to an entertaining but undemanding action flick with great CGI, sit back and enjoy it for what it is. Toby Longworth's narration was well done and he did an admirable job with the Geordie accents. Despite it's flaws Great North Road was still a good yarn and an enjoyable listen.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Great North Road - Part One "Brilliant"

This is without doubt the most enjoyable audio book of SciFi that I have heard so far (and I have heard many) What works so well is the narrative is not too complex (some Hamilton can get a bit confusing) yet very detailed at the same time. Also living in the UK I love the 'Geordie' accents of some of the characters, as gives a nice realism and homely touch. The Police sections are both real and familiar, then swap into the futuristic bit really well. Actually listened to it slowly so it would not end. Now onto part 2 :)

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7 people found this helpful