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The Original
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan
- Length: 3 hrs and 25 mins
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The Original
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Summary
Hugo Award-winning authors Brandon Sanderson and Mary Robinette Kowal team up in this exclusive audio-first production of The Original, a sci-fi thriller set in a world where one woman fights to know her true identity and survive the forces that threaten her very existence.
In the near future, humans choose life - for a price. Injectable nanite technology is the lifeblood that flows through every individual wishing to experience the world through the lens of their own theme. While death from mortal wounds is still possible, life is made easier in a socially liberated society where automation and income equality allow passion pursuits to flourish over traditional work. Renewal stations are provided to every law-abiding citizen for weekly check-ins, which issue life-sustaining repairs in exchange for personal privacy. But what becomes of those who check out, of those who dare to resist immortality and risk being edited under the gaze of an identity-extracting government surveillance system?
When Holly Winseed wakes up in a hospital room, her memory compromised and a new identity imposed on her, a team of government agents wastes no time stating their objective. With intent to infiltrate and defeat the terrorist group ICON, the agents tell Holly that she is now a Provisional Replica and has one week to hunt down and kill her Original for the murder of her husband, Jonathan. If she succeeds, she’ll assume her Original’s place in society. If she fails, her life will end. Holly’s progress is monitored by an assigned contact that feeds her information as she confronts the blank, robotic world around her, discovering that others view life through the theme of their own choosing.
With her newly implanted combat and deduction skills, Holly fends off both attacks by terrorists and doubts about her own trustworthiness as clues lead her to her Original - and to the truth about Jonathan. In the end, one body remains and one walks away. Although questions persist, one thing is certain: Life will never be the same.
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What listeners say about The Original
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
- Wiktoria Agnieszka Kaczorowska
- 03-11-20
Great short audiobook
It grabs you right away and since it's only 3 hrs long you can finish it in one go. The music can be a bit annoying, but the narration and story are awesome and make up for it.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Neil Ellis
- 27-03-23
Please offer a none musically “enhanced” version
A good story. Thought provoking. But the additional music throughout the entire story is not needed and at times jarring.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 28-04-23
Short but sweet sci-fi mystery
The exploration of sci-fi tech and its effects on people and society reminded me a lot of Black Mirror. But it has more mystery stuff and (gun) action.
Not the type of book I usually listen to, but I found it a very refreshing well-written change of pace, with great audio production.
The ending is left a bit open, which may frustrate people who don't like open endings. For me it didn't matter, because I enjoyed the ride a lot, and I didn't need it to also end in a splash or with everything fully resolved.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Gosia Furmanik
- 18-07-21
Really good!
I really enjoyed this story, it raised so many interesting questions. But I hated the background music, it was distracting and I felt like it was trying to force certain moods which didn't necessarily align with how I read the story.
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1 person found this helpful
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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
- Amazon Customer
- 23-02-22
Brilliant, thought provoking!!
This is a fabulous listen, highly recommended. Great ending!!
The narration is really good, a very enjoyable purchase.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Martin Grisman
- 14-09-20
Excellent Audiobook production
I'll let you decide whether to pursue the audiobook itself or not - it's solid and a good length to finish in a quiet afternoon, so I do recommend it.
This review is more how it performed *as* an audiobook - and I have to say, I loved the production.
As well as the narrator, in many places there were quiet, ambient sounds - the beating of a heart during a tense scene, the music in the background of a club. Oh, and I loved the voice change effects for recordings.
These sounds and little touches really pulled me into the scene and helped bring the production to life!
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Stefanie Dierdorp
- 17-05-21
Perfect apart from the ending
Really loved everything about this book aside from the ending. The supporting audio is brilliant (like a beat in the background when they're in a club). And the story raises a lot of philosophical issues without dwelling on them for too long. The ending felt a bit sudden though, and I understand why it had to end this way, but I don't like it ;)
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1 person found this helpful
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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
- Samantha Attaway
- 08-03-24
clone lives matter
no spoilers, obviously, but far more direct story with much fewer red herrings than I usually expect from brando sando. I LOVED the descriptions of things and the details included, like I could almost taste they food they were eating. I reckon that's part of Kowal's skillset.
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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
- Kindle Customer
- 02-05-21
Loved it!
For such a short story it was so well executed. I loved the world. It really made me think and have discussions about ethics. The narration was nice although at times the extra sounds/music were annoying.
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1 person found this helpful
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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
- Charlotte
- 29-09-20
5 stars!
This was excellent! I loved every minute of it. I hope there's more audiobooks in this world.
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1 person found this helpful