New Release: No Exit by Larry Niven and Jean Marie Stine

New Releases

This is apparently one of the hardest to find of Larry Niven stories. Prior to this dramatized reading it has only been reprinted once since it’s first paper publication in 1971.

REB Audio - No Exit by Larry Niven and Jean Marie StineNo Exit
By Larry Niven and Jean Marie Stine; Read by Bill Mills
1 MP3 Download – Approx. 22 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: REB Audio
Published: 2009
Also includes a historical introduction written with the assistance of Jean Marie Stine. First published in the June 1971 issue of Fantastic Stories Of The Imagination.
Listen to a sample |MP3|

REB Audiobooks cost just $2.00 each and are DRM free!

Posted by Jesse Willis

The Disembodied Man by Larry Maddock FREE @ REB Audio

SFFaudio Online Audio

REB Audio Books, for a limited time, is giving away its MP3 audio dramatization of Larry Maddock’s “romantic SF puzzler” The Disembodied Man. REB’s director of audio production, Bill Mills, sez this is all a part of an “utterly transparent scheme to entice audio book buyers to check out the other titles” from their catlaogue.

To get The Disembodied Man just click |HERE| and add it to your cart. It’ll show up as $0.00. There are some forms to fill out (be sure not to use any special characters like “#” in the address). You’ll also need to create a password, but you won’t be asked for a credit card. If all goes smoothly you’ll be given a user name and a password for this one transaction. Enter them in the space provided and poof – you’ve got your choice of three different bit-rate versions of The Disembodied Man. It’s a fast DRM-free download.

REB Audio - The Disembodied Man by Larry MaddockThe Disembodied Man
By Larry Maddock; Performed by Bill Mills and Roxanne Mills
1 MP3 Download – Approx. 31 Minutes [DRAMATIZED READING]
Publisher: REB Audio Books
Published: April 2009
Listen to a sample |MP3|
Unique SF Romance and Puzzler! From the creator of time traveling secret agent Hannibal Fortune and his sardonic, shape-changing colleague, Webley, comes one of the rarest stories in science fiction history, in an all new audio dramatization. “The Disembodied Man” was published only once, in the legendary sf pulp zine “Imagination” in the early 1950s. Off-beat and humorous like much of Maddock’s work, it is at once a unique tale of an unconventional romance and an intricate puzzler with two O’Henry-like twists, resulting in a delightfully human and touching short story. Who was the disembodied man? How had he gotten that way? Who was the mysterious woman that seemed to watch over him day and night? And could a woman, could any woman, fall in love with “the man who wasn’t there?”

Thanks Bill!

Posted by Jesse Willis

Review of The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe

SFFaudio Review

The Raven by Edgar Allan PoeThe Raven
By Edgar Allan Poe, Read by Bill Mills
MP3 file – 19 min. [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: REB Audio books
Published: 2005
Themes: / Horror / Poetry / Mourning / Depression

“Once upon a midnight dreary,
While I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore…”
— A.E. Poe, The Raven

That’s how the poem begins, drawing a pall of melancholy over us with its first syllables. This audio book, however, takes a little more time getting there. As if reflecting the distance from this mood we might be starting, the first tones are of bouncy pop music as the company and title are introduced. Then comes Bill Mills’ voice, warm, and rich as hickory smoke, leading us down into darkness with a brief, stylish bio of the author.

When the first line finally arrives, I have to admit, I cringe for just a second. The slow, broken delivery—scattering audible periods where the text shows, at most, commas—has just a whiff of Shatner-reading-Lucy-in-Sky-with-Diamonds over-interpretation. But that passes in an instant, and I find myself discovering new wonders in nearly every spoken line of a poem I’ve read probably a hundred times. I have a tendency to dismiss rhymed poetry as lightweight, as my brain usually prefers humming the tune to learning the meaning behind the words, but Mills’ reading is a perfect foil for that. He treads a careful path between chanting the regular meter and disregarding it entirely, cleverly emphasizing the story the words tell while still respecting their poetry. What he presents is a tale of a man just tumbling off the edge of hope into a free fall of depression, a man who speaks the name of his lost love into the darkness outside his soul only to have the darkness reply with morbid hopelessness.

The one thing marring this production is the background track. Behind the serious lead vocals vamps a cartoon ghoul-band of horror excess: Howling wind, howling wolves, crackling thunder, soaring choirs, and crashing orchestras. It isn’t destructive, but it is ridiculous. That said, this is still an excellent recording. I highly recommend following Mr. Mills down this twilit path, no matter how many times you think you’ve seen it before.

Posted by Kurt Dietz

Review of The Statement of Randolph Carter by H.P. Lovecraft

Horror Audiobooks - The Statement of Randolph CarterThe Statement Of Randolph Carter
By H.P. Lovecraft; Read by Bill Mills
1 MP3 File – Approx. 26 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Renaissance E Books / REB Audio
Published: 2005
Themes: / Fantasy / Horror /

“Carter! for the love of God, put back the slab and get out of this if you can! Quick!–leave everything else and make for the outside–it’s your only chance! Do as I say, and don’t ask me to explain!”

An excellent introductory mini-biography of Lovecraft precedes the reading of this infamous short story of lurking horror. Written in 1919 and first published in 1920 The Statement Of Randolph Carter is one of the best ways to step into the terrible beauty of the Lovecraftian mythos. Told as a statement in monologue by the title character – Carter recalls to the gentlemen assembled around his hospital bed the singular incident that brought him there – an event so horrific it would likely blast the mind of the sanest man should it be witnessed first hand. Following the clues they found in the text of an ancient book from India two men discover a nameless horror entombed in the Earth. Bill Mills’ reading is truly eerie. There is a constant musical background during the reading – it doesn’t too badly hurt the production but I myself would have preferred a music-free reading. The Statement Of Randolph Carter is available now as a high quality MP3 through Fictionwise.com just in time for Halloween!

Posted by Jesse Willis

Review of Inside Man by H.L. Gold

Science Fiction - Inside Man by H.L. GoldInside Man
By H.L. Gold; Read by William Mills, Sam Gartner and
Roxanne Mills
1 MP3 File – Approx. 32 Minutes [ABRIDGED]
Publisher: Renaissance E Books / REB Audio
Published: 2005
Themes: / Science Fiction / Humor / Empathy / Telepathy / Psychology / Domesticity /

Why would Lester Shay need anything new to occupy his mind? He is a newlywed of just 3 months! But, when you can’t shut out the pained emotions and feelings of the machines with which you live, even a passionate young bride isn’t quite enough!

First published in the October 1965 issue of Galaxy magazine, the 15th Anniversary issue, Inside Man garner a Nebula nomination for best science fiction short story of the year. But despite the nomination this is, by no means, a classic of the genre. Horace Gold was a far better editor than he was a writer. Despite the caveats this is a well produced multiple voice reading of the exact sort of story that appeared in Galaxy magazine under Gold’s editorial reign. Funny and original. And though hearing the mid-twentieth century values voiced today seem at best rather quaint, this short story still yields an interesting twist. The readers’ voices are clear and this a relatively straightforward and professional production. The highlight for me though is actually the three minute biographical and historical introduction to the story written by Jean Marie Stine. It is always a good idea to place an older story in its context. But I must say the spacey music that accompanies the introduction doesn’t actually improve it. Inside Man is available now as a high quality MP3 through Fictionwise.com.

Posted by Jesse Willis