Starfall
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Starfall
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Narrated by:
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John Pirhalla
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By:
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Drew Harrison
About this listen
Fantasy. Sci-fi. The world was brought back from the brink of annihilation, but its still-new institutions are rattled once again as heroes and criminals clash in a neon-drenched cyberpunk metropolis.
©2020 Drew Harrison Kurzman (P)2022 Drew Harrison KurzmanListeners also enjoyed...
What listeners say about Starfall
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- elsafenix
- 19-06-22
Cyberpunk moralism at its finest.
If you liked season one of altered carbon (all I watched) you’ll love this.
Starfall has a futuristic yet believable setting where ai and tech has improved to have so much potential to make everyone’s lives better. But of course the rich use it to keep classes separated so they can remain all powerful in contrast to those who must suffer just because they were born in a different situation.
This book has interesting characters, a twisting plot and a well written ending that ties everything together in a way that resolves the story but makes you question the world. Immediately felt like I wanted to go back and read it again.
The narration was also very well done with the exception of reading out the computer punctuation which broke the immersion. I don’t know if there would be a better way to handle this however.
Can’t wait to read more by the author.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Antonia Delgado
- 24-04-22
Incredible First Novel
I see and spoke briefly to the author a while back on reddit offering codes but decided to buy instead.
This was one of the most exciting Cyberpunk books i have read since Snowcrash, the book is very long could and could of been a little shorter and more concentrated, but this was a wow listen at work. Everything about the book made me feel immersed into a fully fleshed out cyberpunk High Tech, Low Life world with some deep characters at work and an excited twisting plot.
I truly hope this author carrys on the Cyberpunk genre because he obviously gets it. Some praise also to the production and narrator it was 1st class reading, voice acting and sound effects here and there.
Thank you for reading
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Ellis
- 31-03-24
Hidden Gem
I do not know how I even found this book. I first listened to it over a year ago, just finished it again today. Holds up.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Kindle Customer
- 27-02-22
Read if you are into cyberpunk.
Suprisingly high quality narration. The book explores some intersting concepts and ideas. Great setting. It can be a bit heavy sometimes, so if you are into that, then this is a book for you.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- R
- 13-04-22
An alright first novel
I have received a code to review this book.
Starfall seems to take a lot of inspiration from other sources, yet still brings enough to the table to stand on its own. As the title of the review says it is a decent first novel, though there are certainly points of improvement. I will list them below in no particular order.
The book is about the struggle of the common man against a corporation that controls nearly every aspect of life in one of the last cities on Earth. The reader discovers more and more about the mysterious Lightbenders along with the protagonists of the book, as well as through the eyes of the antagonists. However, rarely did a new snippet of information or plottwist feel unexpected. The metaphors also felt very heavy handed.
Starfall truely shines in the interactions between Bev and M, they give a great insight into the futuristic world that the writer has created, as well as the daily life of those living inside it. The narrator does a fantastic job during these scenes, and I would have loved to have heard more about Michelangelo. The antagonists on the other hand are uninteresting and one-dimentional. They are evil for the sake of being evil, their only motivation being greed and sense of superiority.
I would have enjoyed the book more if it had been shorter and/or leaner. Throughout the book there seems to be a lot of repetition:
- Braxton does the same monologue about change (almost verbatim) and the ship of Theseus every time there is a chapter dedicated to him.
- A lot of sentences start with "Then", or "And then" , which drove me absolutely crazy towards the end of the book. Same goes for the repetition of the phrase "By the sickness" in scenes surrounding Click-Stick Jack's storyline.
- Characters explain Blockchain theory to eachother a couple of times, and the role of the Truthspaces in the city (even though both characters are born and raised in said city, and would probably already know this information).
This is especially a shame since the writer proves in one of the first chapters that he can explain a concept in a way that doesn't feel like it is aimed at the reader through Drew teaching a school class about AI reward functions, one of my favourite scenes in the whole book.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Alan P
- 07-03-22
Intriguing, gripping, thoughtful Sci-fi thriller
Intriguing, gripping, thoughtful Sci-fi thriller
I fell in love with the relationship between Beverly and Michelangelo almost straight away as a possible future of how A.I. may progress is explored. But this dynamic is just one of the threads to the story of New Phoenix; a futuristic city risen from the ashes of the old world. Among the threads of a corporate sponsored police force, powerful corporations, criminal gangs, and a grass roots campaign for change come rumours and stories of people who can bend and yield light.
The story entertains and intrigues while bringing to light new angles to questions of our nature, our comforts, our truths, and our ability to change them. Questions that kept me awake a few nights and excited for what happens in the next chapters. I loved the nature of A.I. in this and one of the best interpretations of this future tech that I’ve read.
I was a little apprehensive with the light bending aspect at first, worried I was getting myself into another Superhero and villains like story when the world Drew had already painted in his words was interesting and gripping enough without it. I was pleasantly surprised though on how this played out and my apprehension was entirely unfounded.
All the main characters, good, bad and somewhere in between, human or not, were interesting to read about, learn and see how their arcs progressed. Was hooked until the end.
Looking forward to hearing more from this author.
I should also note that John Pirhalla did a fantastic job on the narration and brought the story and world of New Phoenix to life.
I was given a free copy at my request and have voluntarily left this review which has not been influenced by the party that provided it.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Oliver James Atkinson
- 04-05-22
Good first novel but a bit too long
I received a code to review this audiobook.
The story starts off well and I actually enjoyed the feel of the novel and I really enjoyed how the author seems to have taken inspiration from some sci-fi / cyberpunk giants. They do this well and it never feels more than inspiration.
I should note my following criticisms were not helped by not particularly liking the narrator. He's by no means a bad narrator but just wasn't my cup of tea.
I found some of the dialogue lacking brevity in certain places and felt somewhat spoon fed when some of the world building was being explained.
That said, if you're a sci-fi fan then please give this a go because it'll tick a lot of boxes for you, despite it being slightly too long.
3.5/5
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- WG
- 14-04-22
Fantastic writing, if a bit bloated.
I was given this title by the author with the expectation of an impartial review.
Pros:
The world building is expertly done and characters are relatable throughout. You get to know their hopes, fears and root for them in their respective arcs. It’s remarkable to have such a wide ranging cast and at the same time for all the main characters to be uniquely brought to life.
Additionally, the ending is intentionally bittersweet and the way this challenges the reader’s sense of morality really cements this book as a profound listen.
At it’s best, the writing is so good that it would be an injustice to rate it less than a 4/5 in spite of the book’s glaring flaws (see below).
Cons:
The chronology is unclear at times, which confused me. There are multiple flashback sequences that weren't made clear and this may take you out of the story.
There’s also a lot of filler in here. The book is almost 23 hrs long, and while an argument can be made that this helps bring the world to life, a good number of chapters could have been cut without really affecting the story. I got the sense that the author really enjoyed writing this and that may have left him too sentimental and not ruthless enough at the editing stage.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Audible User
- 01-05-22
Definitely worth your time!
If Drew Harrison continues to work hard and hone their craft, I feel like they've got the potential for a great future.
I was enticed into listening to this story after coming across it on Reddit. I thought the premise was interesting and found the author's interactions genuine and engaging. I am happy to say that this is reflected in the storyline. I think Drew did an exceptionally good job creating something that felt original in a genre where it could easily been lost.
The writing is a generally good quality. Drew creates a detailed world, with some well-sculpted characters. I would say my only real criticism is that the experience could have been more concise and I don't feel like it necessarily need the full 22+ hour length to effectively tell the story and build the environment.
The quality of the audio is very good. I was not the biggest fan of the narrator, but I put that down to personal preference rather than ability.
All in all, I'm glad I gave this book a try. If (and hopefully when) I see the next novel by Drew I'll have no hesitation in picking it up.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Peter
- 15-05-22
Cyberpunk with hints of the stormlight archives
For a first outing, this is an excellent debut. the world building was on point, characters were well fleshed out, though the narrator's style of reading did lead me to occasionally mix up two of the female leads. the pacing is a little front heavy, but it does help in your understanding of the world at large, which always helps with cyberpunk settings.
I think a bit of trimming to bring down the length, or splitting it into two volumes would have helped with the pacing. it did feel like it had run a bit long by the end. As a Sanderson fan I don't mind long stories, but this ran a little longer than it needed to. That said, it is a first foray for the author, and one thing I did like was that chapter length was spot on. Too often longer books end up with 1hr+ chapters but Drew keeps everything nice and tight on that front.
The narration I think may have contributed to the fatigue towards the end, it's quite a dry reading. Not a bad reading, just dry.
I would absolutely recommend it as a listen, and I'm looking forward to what comes next.
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