Listen free for 30 days
-
The Ghost Brigades
- Old Man's War, Book 2
- Narrated by: William Dufris
- Series: Old Man's War, Book 2
- Length: 10 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Science Fiction & Fantasy, Fantasy
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Listen with a free trial
Buy Now for £11.99
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
The Last Colony
- Old Man's War, Book 3
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: William Dufris
- Length: 9 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
John Perry was living peacefully on one of humanity's colonies - until he and his wife were offered an opportunity these ex-supersoldiers couldn't resist. To come out of retirement and lead a new frontier world. However, once on the planet, they discover they've been betrayed. For this colony is a pawn in an interstellar game of war and diplomacy. Humanity's Colonial Union has pitched itself against a new, seemingly unstoppable alien alliance dedicated to ending all human colonization.
-
-
A fantastic follow up
- By MG on 21-09-18
-
The Collapsing Empire
- The Interdependency, Book 1
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 9 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Our universe is ruled by physics, and faster-than-light travel is not possible - until the discovery of The Flow, an extradimensional field we can access at certain points in space-time that transports us to other worlds, around other stars. Humanity flows away from Earth, into space, and in time forgets our home world and creates a new empire, the Interdependency, whose ethos requires that no one human outpost can survive without the others. It's a hedge against interstellar war - and a system of control for the rulers of the empire.
-
-
Juvenile
- By Sal on 14-04-17
-
Agent to the Stars
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 8 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The space-faring Yherajk have come to Earth to meet us and to begin humanity's first interstellar friendship. There's just one problem: They're hideously ugly and they smell like rotting fish. So getting humanity's trust is a challenge. The Yherajk need someone who can help them close the deal. Enter Thomas Stein, who knows something about closing deals. He's one of Hollywood's hottest young agents.
-
-
One of the most unusual stories you will ever read
- By Laura on 17-11-13
-
The Kaiju Preservation Society
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 8 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When COVID-19 sweeps through New York City, Jamie Gray is stuck as a dead-end driver for food-delivery apps. That is, until Jamie makes a delivery to an old acquaintance, Tom, who works at what he calls “an animal rights organization”. Tom’s team needs a last-minute grunt to handle things on their next field visit. Jamie, eager to do anything, immediately signs on. What Tom doesn't tell Jamie is that the animals his team cares for are not here on Earth. Not our Earth, at at least. In an alternate dimension, dinosaur-like creatures named Kaiju roam a warm and human-free world.
-
-
Not for me...
- By Sarah Eaglesfield on 24-04-22
-
Columbus Day
- Expeditionary Force, Book 1
- By: Craig Alanson
- Narrated by: R.C. Bray
- Length: 16 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
We were fighting on the wrong side of a war we couldn't win. And that was the good news. The Ruhar hit us on Columbus Day. There we were, innocently drifting along the cosmos on our little blue marble, like the native Americans in 1492. Over the horizon come ships of a technologically advanced, aggressive culture, and BAM! There go the good old days, when humans only got killed by each other. So, Columbus Day. It fits. When the morning sky twinkled again, this time with Kristang starships jumping in to hammer the Ruhar, we thought we were saved.
-
-
Hampsters, Beer Cans & Cheese Burgers
- By S. Morris on 05-03-17
-
Head On (Narrated by Wil Wheaton)
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 7 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hilketa is a frenetic and violent pastime where players attack each other with swords and hammers. The main goal of the game: obtain your opponent's head and carry it through the goalposts. With flesh and bone bodies, a sport like this would be impossible. But all the players are "threeps", robot-like bodies controlled by people with Haden's Syndrome, so anything goes. No one gets hurt, but the brutality is real, and the crowds love it. Until a star athlete drops dead on the playing field.
-
-
Heading in Anotner Direction
- By Simon on 18-04-18
-
The Last Colony
- Old Man's War, Book 3
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: William Dufris
- Length: 9 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
John Perry was living peacefully on one of humanity's colonies - until he and his wife were offered an opportunity these ex-supersoldiers couldn't resist. To come out of retirement and lead a new frontier world. However, once on the planet, they discover they've been betrayed. For this colony is a pawn in an interstellar game of war and diplomacy. Humanity's Colonial Union has pitched itself against a new, seemingly unstoppable alien alliance dedicated to ending all human colonization.
-
-
A fantastic follow up
- By MG on 21-09-18
-
The Collapsing Empire
- The Interdependency, Book 1
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 9 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Our universe is ruled by physics, and faster-than-light travel is not possible - until the discovery of The Flow, an extradimensional field we can access at certain points in space-time that transports us to other worlds, around other stars. Humanity flows away from Earth, into space, and in time forgets our home world and creates a new empire, the Interdependency, whose ethos requires that no one human outpost can survive without the others. It's a hedge against interstellar war - and a system of control for the rulers of the empire.
-
-
Juvenile
- By Sal on 14-04-17
-
Agent to the Stars
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 8 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The space-faring Yherajk have come to Earth to meet us and to begin humanity's first interstellar friendship. There's just one problem: They're hideously ugly and they smell like rotting fish. So getting humanity's trust is a challenge. The Yherajk need someone who can help them close the deal. Enter Thomas Stein, who knows something about closing deals. He's one of Hollywood's hottest young agents.
-
-
One of the most unusual stories you will ever read
- By Laura on 17-11-13
-
The Kaiju Preservation Society
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 8 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When COVID-19 sweeps through New York City, Jamie Gray is stuck as a dead-end driver for food-delivery apps. That is, until Jamie makes a delivery to an old acquaintance, Tom, who works at what he calls “an animal rights organization”. Tom’s team needs a last-minute grunt to handle things on their next field visit. Jamie, eager to do anything, immediately signs on. What Tom doesn't tell Jamie is that the animals his team cares for are not here on Earth. Not our Earth, at at least. In an alternate dimension, dinosaur-like creatures named Kaiju roam a warm and human-free world.
-
-
Not for me...
- By Sarah Eaglesfield on 24-04-22
-
Columbus Day
- Expeditionary Force, Book 1
- By: Craig Alanson
- Narrated by: R.C. Bray
- Length: 16 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
We were fighting on the wrong side of a war we couldn't win. And that was the good news. The Ruhar hit us on Columbus Day. There we were, innocently drifting along the cosmos on our little blue marble, like the native Americans in 1492. Over the horizon come ships of a technologically advanced, aggressive culture, and BAM! There go the good old days, when humans only got killed by each other. So, Columbus Day. It fits. When the morning sky twinkled again, this time with Kristang starships jumping in to hammer the Ruhar, we thought we were saved.
-
-
Hampsters, Beer Cans & Cheese Burgers
- By S. Morris on 05-03-17
-
Head On (Narrated by Wil Wheaton)
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 7 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hilketa is a frenetic and violent pastime where players attack each other with swords and hammers. The main goal of the game: obtain your opponent's head and carry it through the goalposts. With flesh and bone bodies, a sport like this would be impossible. But all the players are "threeps", robot-like bodies controlled by people with Haden's Syndrome, so anything goes. No one gets hurt, but the brutality is real, and the crowds love it. Until a star athlete drops dead on the playing field.
-
-
Heading in Anotner Direction
- By Simon on 18-04-18
-
Redshirts
- A Novel with Three Codas
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ensign Andrew Dahl has just been assigned to the Universal Union Capital Ship Intrepid, flagship of the Universal Union since the year 2456. Life couldn’t be better…until Andrew begins to pick up on the facts that (1) every Away Mission involves some kind of lethal confrontation with alien forces; (2) the ship’s captain, its chief science officer, and the handsome Lieutenant Kerensky always survive these confrontations; and (3) at least one low-ranked crew member is, sadly, always killed.
-
-
Interesting concept ruined
- By Mr. G. Mitchell on 12-10-17
-
The B-Team
- The Human Division, Episode 1
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: William Dufris
- Length: 2 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Colonial Union Ambassador Ode Abumwe and her team are used to life on the lower end of the diplomatic ladder. But when a high-profile diplomat goes missing, Abumwe and her team are last minute replacements on a mission critical to the Colonial Union’s future. As the team works to pull off their task, CDF Lieutenant Harry Wilson discovers there’s more to the story of the missing diplomats than anyone expected... a secret that could spell war for humanity.
-
-
Short But Sweet!
- By Lauren on 02-02-13
-
The Android's Dream
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 10 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A human diplomat creates an interstellar incident when he kills an alien diplomat in a most unusual way. To avoid war, Earth's government must find an equally unusual object: A type of sheep ("The Android's Dream"), used in the alien race's coronation ceremony. To find the sheep, the government turns to Harry Creek, ex-cop, war hero and hacker extraordinaire.
-
-
A fun romp, with some room for improvement
- By SystemState on 03-12-19
-
Fuzzy Nation
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton, John Scalzi - introduction
- Length: 7 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In John Scalzi's re-imagining of H. Beam Piper's 1962 sci-fi classic Little Fuzzy, written with the full cooperation of the Piper Estate, Jack Holloway works alone for reasons he doesnt care to talk about. Hundreds of miles from ZaraCorps headquarters on planet, 178 light-years from the corporations headquarters on Earth, Jack is content as an independent contractor, prospecting and surveying at his own pace. As for his past, thats not up for discussion.
-
-
Lovely retelling of a classic.
- By Simon P. on 05-10-15
-
The Dispatcher
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Zachary Quinto
- Length: 2 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Zachary Quinto - best known for his role as the Nimoy-approved Spock in the recent Star Trek reboot and the menacing, power-stealing serial killer, Sylar, in Heroes - brings his well-earned sci-fi credentials and simmering intensity to this audio-exclusive novella from master storyteller John Scalzi. One day, not long from now, it becomes almost impossible to murder anyone - 999 times out of a thousand, anyone who is intentionally killed comes back. How? We don't know.
-
-
Great plot
- By Kindle Customer on 09-10-16
-
Vesta Burning
- An AI Assault Mission (Legends of the Sentience Wars, Book 2)
- By: M. D. Cooper, James S. Aaron
- Narrated by: Laura Jennings
- Length: 8 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Follow the continuing adventure of the Lyssa and the Sykes family while the Psion AIs set their sights on Vesta.
-
Tracking the Trailblazer
- Colony Ship Trailblazer, Book 1
- By: John Thornton
- Narrated by: Sylvia St. James
- Length: 7 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Janae and Ken are part of the remnant of humanity which lives in Dome 17, surrounded by the radioactive, toxic wasteland of a dead Earth. The leadership of the dome has sent out adventurers to explore the other domes, but all they have found are failed domes, and deadly ruins. Some of those adventurers have self-terminated upon return from those grueling missions. Only Dome 17 survives, but now, Dome 17 is facing its own failure. Looking to history, they come up with a plan to try to find the seven lost generational colony ships which left Earth a century before.
-
-
They deserve the truth.
- By Norma Miles on 12-11-17
-
Miniatures
- The Very Short Fiction of John Scalzi
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Khristine Hvam, Peter Ganim, Luke Daniels, and others
- Length: 2 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The ex-planet Pluto has a few choice words about being thrown out of the solar system. A listing of alternate histories tells you all the various ways Hitler has died. A lawyer sues an interplanetary union for dangerous working conditions. And four artificial intelligences explain, in increasingly worrying detail, how they plan not to destroy humanity. Welcome to Miniatures: The Very Short Fiction of John Scalzi.
-
-
More a selection of lists than short stories
- By Shez on 30-11-18
-
Barbarians at the Gates
- The Decline and Fall of the Galactic Empire, Book 1
- By: Christopher G. Nuttall
- Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds
- Length: 16 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Federation has endured for hundreds of years, but now it is dying, killed by the corruption and decadence of the Senate and the rising power of military warlords. The shipping lanes are coming apart, the colonists are revolting, and outside forces are pressing against undefended borders. Now, as one warlord makes a bid for supreme power, the entire edifice is on the verge of falling apart.
-
Roadkill
- By: Dennis E. Taylor
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 8 hrs and 58 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Jack Kernigan is having a bad day...a bad year...a bad life. After being booted out of MIT, he’s back in his Ohio hometown, working for the family business, facing a life of mediocrity. Then one day, out on a delivery, his truck hits...something. Something big...something furry...something invisible. And, it turns out, something not of this Earth. Fate can play funny tricks. Which is why Jack suddenly finds himself the planet’s best hope to unravel a conspiracy of galactic proportions that could spell the end of the human race.
-
-
Utter Drivel
- By Trex on 08-08-22
-
Guardian of Night
- By: Tony Daniel
- Narrated by: Victor Bevine
- Length: 12 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For alien Commander Arid Ricimer, there was no going home. His species was winning the war with Earth, but the civilization he had fought for was gone, destroyed from within by ideologues and bureaucrats. So he does the only thing that makes sense to a person of integrity—he attempts to defect to Earth with his officers and an entire spaceship, a vessel that mounts a superweapon of almost unimaginable power.
-
-
Sadly.disappointed
- By Elisabeth on 23-12-12
-
We Are Legion (We Are Bob)
- Bobiverse, Book 1
- By: Dennis E. Taylor
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There's a reason We Are Legion was named Audible's Best Science Fiction Book of 2016: Its irresistibly irreverent wit! Bob Johansson has just sold his software company for a small fortune and is looking forward to a life of leisure. The first item on his to-do list: Spending his newfound windfall. On an urge to splurge, he signs up to have his head cryogenically preserved in case of death. Then he gets himself killed crossing the street. Waking up 117 years later, Bob discovers his mind has been uploaded into a sentient space probe with the ability to replicate itself.
-
-
An unexpected gem
- By Andrew on 29-01-17
Summary
Three hostile alien races have united against humanity, determined to halt our expansion into space. The mastermind behind this lethal alliance is a traitor - Charles Boutin. He was a Colonial Defence Force scientist with access to their biggest military secrets. Now the CDF's only hope is to discover Boutin's plan. Trouble is, Boutin's dead.
As a supersoldier created from Boutin's own DNA, Jared Dirac may have answers. However, when Dirac fails to access the scientist's memories, he's transferred to the Ghost Brigades for training. These elite troops are also cloned from the dead, so he might fit in. But will Dirac's memory return as the enemy plots the fate of humankind? And whose side is Dirac really on?
Critic reviews
"Scalzi's prose harkens back to the Golden Age of science fiction while still remaining fresh and vibrant ( Strange Horizons)
"Like Old Man's War, The Ghost Brigades is thinking fans' space opera.... The Ghost Brigades maintains Scalzi's standing as one of SF's most rewarding purveyors of thrilling, gut-wrenching, and thoughtful space opera." ( SF Reviews)
"If anyone stands at the core of the American science fiction tradition at the moment, it is Scalzi." ( The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction)
More from the same
What listeners say about The Ghost Brigades
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 13-09-18
Awful performance conversations
I'm rating this before I've finished listening because of the performance: conversations are "'...' he said. '...' she said. '...' he said. '...' she said." It's incredibly annoying that the performances of the characters is not enough to eliminate the need for the qualification of the phrase "they said".
6 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Kika
- 16-09-18
It was fine
... But nothing like the first book so maybe expectations were too high. Great author in general.
5 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Craigy Gerrard
- 15-05-20
An ok sequel....
I SAID she SAID he SAID I SAID he SAID they SAID I SAID he SAID they SAID and ....
.....THEY ALL SAID TOGETHER ...
Gets really annoying frk. the narrator but the story is good and not too complicated...
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- rasmus
- 01-03-18
Terribly bland
Just military "special forces" porn and the question "what is a soul" over and over again.
After having read the first book I knew everything about the ghost brigade and the tech they use. But this book just started from scratch and explained everything to me again and added almost nothing new.
For being a sci-fi, it had very little imagination when I came to gadgets and such. They constantly talk about the ghost brigades as being "so advanced they aren't human" but the only real difference is that they are faster.
8 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Vanessa H.
- 16-01-20
Disappointed
The first book was seriously amazing so I had high hopes for this one.
It was very hard to get into and by the end I was so disappointed that I won’t be carrying on the series
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Onetwoseventeen
- 06-10-18
another great addition to the series
follows on from the previous book in a way that's not obvious from the outset.
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- MG
- 15-09-18
Excellent
Ghost Brigades, is not as good as Old Mans War. It is still an excellent book, occasionally let down by a few moments of heavy exposition (subjects that were already touched on in the previous book). Over all its a very good story, and the narration is once again, awesome
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Smithy2011
- 16-05-18
Great
Always a pleasure listening and residing scalzi work 5 stars are not enough for this series
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- TAHIR KHAN
- 06-01-21
book 2 of Old mans war
it got me interested in this series from the 1st book. but unfortunately it wasn't as good as the first. was quite boring if i give you the short version.
it had a lot of repeated info from the first book, like how a solider gets used to his new body.
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- david
- 19-12-19
different view
it was good to see things from a different perspective. Not sure we're they will go from here
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Javier Perez Cardenas
- 14-04-22
AWEFUL
I was really looking forward to a classic sci fi story, so I gave this series a shot, since so many people talk about it. It’s terrible. Characters range from cartoonish to utterly irrational. There’s so much exposition, most without any payoff. And overall, it’s just sooo boring.
It’s a specially hard read if you are not american. Because in the future, all “foreigners” are dumb brown idiots who can’t defend themselves and the army has go save them.