October 2012 – Page 3

Stephen King’s The Mist in 3D Sound

SFFaudio News

The Mist, a legendary audio dramatization based on a 1980 Stephen King novella, is available from Simon & Schuster Audio. It’s actually been available since the mid 1980s. It started on LP, being released by it’s producers at ZBS Foundation, then was acquired by Simon & Schuster to be released on cassette and later CD. Today it’s still available on CD, as well as a Audible.com download. Every time it has been re-released I’ve been reminded of how astoundingly great an audio drama it really is.

Here’s the official description:

After a mysterious mist envelops a small New England town, a group of locals trapped in a supermarket must battle a siege of otherworldly creatures . . . and the fears that threaten to tear them apart.

Stephen King's The Mist in 3D Sound - various releases
And here’s the text from the back of the first CD edition:

Sound so visual you’re literally engulfed by its bonechilling terror! Stephen King’s sinister imagination and the miracle of 3-D sound transport you to a sleepy all-American town. It’s a hot, lazy day, perfect for a cookout, until you see those strange dark clouds. Suddenly a violent storm sweeps across the lake and ends as abruptly and unexpectedly as it had begun. Then comes the mist…creeping slowly, inexorably into town, where it settles and waits, trapping you in the supermarket with dozens of others, cut off from your families and the world. The mist is alive, seething with unearthly sounds and movements. What unleashed this terror? Was it the Arrowhead Project—the top secret government operation that everyone has noticed but no one quite understands? And what happens when the provisions have run out and you’re forced to make your escape, edging blindly through the dim light? The Mist has you in it grip, and this masterpiece of 3-D sound engineering surrounds you with horror so real that you’ll be grabbing your own arm for reassurance. To one side—and whipping around your chair, a slither of tentacles. Swooping down upon you, a rush grotesque, prehistoric wings. In the impenetrable mist, hearing is seeing—and believing. And what you’re about to hear, you’ll never forget.

The Mist in 3-D Sound (BACK)

ZBS Stephen King's The Mist

The YouTube version, below, is NOT in stereo. Stereo is ESSENTIAL to the experience, but if you want to get a sense of the story and how it plays out, have a look:

Here are two illustrations from the Dark Forces: The 25th Anniversary Special Edition , which came out 25 years after the original publication of the original Dark Forces anthology that included The Mist:

The Mist - illustrations from Dark Forces 25th Anniversary

And of course there was a film adaptation which was, surprisingly, great too:

Posted by Jesse Willis

Time And Time Again by H. Beam Piper

SFFaudio Online Audio

Time And Time Again by H. Beam Piper - illustrated by Vincent Napoli

Time and Time Again was H. Beam Piper’s first published story. It first appeared in the April 1947 issue of Astounding Science Fiction. Time and Time Again features many of the themes of Piper’s later writing, including time travel, evidence of his electric reading habits, and a love of firearms.

Set in part during both WWII and WWIII Time and Time Again features time travel of the type made famous in both Back To The Future and Quantum Leap.

Time And Time Again
By H. Beam Piper; Read by Bellona Times
1 |MP3| – Approx. 45 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: August 09, 2010
To upset the stable, mighty stream of time would probably take an enormous concentration of energy. And it’s not to be expected that a man would get a second chance at life. But an atomic might accomplish both— First published in Astounding, April 1947.

For some reason the ending to the X-Minus One version has been changed – to it’s determent in my view.

X-Minus One – Time And Time Again
Adapted from the story by H. Beam Piper; Performed by a full cast
1 |MP3| – Approx. 30 Minutes [RADIO DRAMA]
Broadcaster: NBC
Broadcast: January 11, 1956
A soldier is wounded in a future war and is transported back to 1945 when he was thirteen years-old with his future memory and past memory intact.

Here’s a |PDF| made from its appearance in Astounding.

Time And Time Again by H. Beam Piper - illustrated by Vincent Napoli

One other interesting bit from the original story is the mention of a B-25 bomber crash into the Empire State Building, here’s a contemporary newsreel about that:

Posted by Jesse Willis

Protecting Project Pulp 14: The Way Down the Hill by Tim Powers

SFFaudio Online Audio

The latest episode of Protecting Project Pulp contains and interview of Tim Powers, and a story! “The Way Down the Hill” by Tim Powers, read by Fred Himebaugh.

The rich, leathery smell of Latakia tobacco told me that old Bill was there, and I soon identified him by the long, blackened meerschaum pipe he somehow found again every time. The little girl puffing at it gave me a raised eyebrow.

“Saul, Laddie!” piped the little girl’s voice. “Excuse the nonrecognition. You were a gawky youth when I saw you last. Been doing anything worthwhile?

I didn’t even bother to give the standard negative reply. “I’ll talk to you later,” I said. “Got to find something for this beer to chase.”

Bill chuckled merrily. “They laid in a dozen bottles of Laphroaig Scotch in case you came.” He waved his pipe toward the dining room that traditionally served as the bar. “You know your way down the hill.”

Posted by Scott D. Danielson

The Roads Must Roll by Robert A. Heinlein

SFFaudio Online Audio

The Roads Must Roll by Robert A. Heinlein - illustrated by Charles Schneeman

Robert A. Heinlein’s short story The Roads Must Roll features a future in which a small union of engineers seize control of the nation’s vital infrastructure. This replacement for the highway and railroad systems is a series of massive conveyor belts allowing for the flow of goods and people around the country.

Here’s the synopsis from ISFDB:

Set in a future where the automobile has been replaced by The Roads, a gigantic set of parallel conveyor belts. The belts run at different speeds allowing a pedestrian to enter the Road at slow speed, and make his way to the center, where speeds are in excess of 100 MPH. Follows the exploits of Gaines, the Transport Commissioner, as he tries to put down a strike by the Rolling Roads Guild.

Dimension X – The Roads Must Roll
Adapted from the novelette by Robert A. Heinlein; Script by Ernest Kinoy; Performed by a full cast
1 |MP3| – Approx. 30 Minutes [RADIO DRAMA]
Broadcaster: NBC
Broadcast: September 1, 1950
The more complex, the more integrated a civilization is, the more fragile it becomes to – sabotage! First published in Astounding, June 1940.

X-Minus One – The Roads Must Roll
Adapted from the novelette by Robert A. Heinleinl; Script by Ernest Kinoy; Performed by a full cast
1 |MP3| – Approx. 30 Minutes [RADIO DRAMA]
Broadcaster: NBC
Broadcast: January 4, 1956
The more complex, the more integrated a civilization is, the more fragile it becomes to – sabotage! First published in Astounding, June 1940.

Posted by Jesse Willis

Review of The Sum of All Men by David Farland

SFFaudio Review

The Sum of All Men: Runelords, Book 1
By David Farland; Read by Ray Porter
17 CDs – 20.4 hours – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: 2008
Themes: / Fantasy / Epic Fantasy / Attributes / Magic / War /

I’ve read other works by this author, written under a different name, and I knew coming into this one that he was an excellent writer and storyteller. Indeed, I’ve heard him speak at conventions and workshops and have nothing but praise for him as a person and a writer.

That being said, I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book. Reading the dust cover is not always enough to know if you’ll end up satisfied at the end of the book or if you want to throw it across the room. (Okay, I’ve only thrown ONE book across the room. It was a paperback. I was so displeased with the denouement that I threw it away. I didn’t want to inflict that book upon anyone else.)

So, with a little trepidation I began to listen to the book. Could it live up to my high expectations? Would I be satisfied with the resolution? Would I want to read the next book? The answer was a resounding yes!

The book centers on Prince Gaborn Val Orden, son of Mendellas Draken Orden, king of Mystarria. He travels to Herredon to ask King Jas Laren Sylvarresta of Herredon for the hand of his daughter, Iome Sylvarresta. While en route he learns that Raj Ahten, king of Indhopal, who is also referred to as “The Wolf Lord” plans an attack on Castle Sylvarresta. Raj Ahten has taken over a number of minor kingdoms and is intent of conquering all of Rofehaven, taking endowments from as many people as he can so that he may become “The Sum of All Men,” a man who is invincible and immortal. As such, he wants to live forever and rule the world.

It is up to Gaborn, with the help and support of Iome, the Earth Warden Binnesman, Gaborn’s bodyguard Borenson and as many soldiers as he can gather, to stop Raj Ahten from achieving his goal.

Is the book good? Definitely. The characters are well developed. They have depth and personality. They are flawed. The world is rich in legends, heroes and chronicles of past events.

From time to time there will be an insert of a story from this history. It is a teaching moment, so the reader understands who the person is and why they are mentioned, or why an event is important, but it does so in a way that adds to the richness of the story. It builds on it, making the world live and breathe as much as the characters do.

The magic system is also impressive. Those who have the ability and training for magic can use the power of the elements to create magic. Runes are used to give endowments. A king or lord can take endowments from his subjects. Strength, stamina, wit, brawn, metabolism. In so doing they themselves have greater abilities, but the subject that gives an endowment must be cared for the rest of their life, or the life of their king. Such rulers are called “Runelords.” But the cost of such power is great and the reader gets a very real idea of what it costs the people who give such endowments.

There are few books that take the time to create a world that feels as real as this one does. Farland is so good at it that it feels effortless. He doesn’t beat you over the head with his world. Instead, it simply IS. You learn only what is necessary for the story, but you are left with the belief that there is so much more to the world if you had the time to explore it. He also uses herbs and herb lore to great effect. This is a world of magic, but it is also a world unique to itself.

I highly recommend this book. It’s a rich experience that will leave you both contented and wanting more. Which is a very good way to end the book. The book is not quite perfect, but on a scale of one to ten, I definitely give it a near-ten. Although I honestly don’t know if it could be improved upon.

Get the audiobook, get the book, and experience the magic of David Farland for yourself.

Posted by Charlene Harmon

Review of Unholy Night by Seth Grahame-Smith

SFFaudio Review

Unholy Night
By Seth Grahame-Smith; Read by Peter Nerkot
10 Hours – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Published: 2012
Themes: / Fantasy / Mythology / Occult / Christianity / Bible /

“Joseph? Mary? My name is Balthazar. This is Gaspar . . . this is Melchyor. We don’t want to hurt you . . . we’re just looking for a place to rest. But, Joseph? if you don’t put that pitchfork down, I’m going to take it from you and stab you to death in front of your wife and child. Do you understand?”

Wanted thieves Balthazar, Melchyor, and Gaspar, disguised as wise men, show up at a little manger in Bethlehem with a huge star blazing overhead, looking for a hideout from the law. But when Herod’s soldiers begin slaughtering the babies in Bethlehem, Balthazar takes the safety of the Holy Family into his own hands. As fugitives on the run to Egypt, they must escape not only Roman soldiers but creatures of mythology and the occult. Everyone’s either gunning for the Antioch Ghost with a price on his head or the innocent newborn who has such an unearthly effect on those around him.

Seth Grahame-Smith (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) finally stops inserting his words into other people’s writing and writes a book in his own words. And a fine job he does of it too. For a violent, gore-filled, action-thriller there are a surprising number of very human characters, many of whom we are meant to recognize.

Pontius Pilate appears as an ambitious young officer ambivalent about truth. Mary and Joseph struggle with how to reconcile the truth of Jesus as God with the reality of a baby who must be fed, loved, and parented. Above all, this is Balthazar’s story, who has a complex story-line driving his actions and attitudes. We learn how he became the cynical Antioch Ghost and we wonder if he will find a more worthy goal than vengeance.

Above all, I was surprised to find myself eventually thinking of Unholy Night as modern midrash. Midrash is a traditional Jewish way of trying to understand the underlying spirit of scripture, sometimes connecting it to modern life, by creating parables. This allows for some imaginative storytelling as rabbis look for interpretations with are not immediately obvious but are nevertheless held within the original text.

Grahame-Smith lives up to the midrash ideal by both being respectful to his source material and also using his vivid imagination on a Biblical event that is wide-open to interpretation, Mary and Joseph’s flight to Egypt with the Christ child. Among other things, the author is very good at opening new views on familiar subjects, such as just how horrible King Herod was. It brings to life the terrible things he did very much as I have read them in history books. One also gets a deeper understanding of the locals’ simmering, resentful hatred of the Roman empire.

Narrator Peter Berkrot is a reader I haven’t come across before but will be seeking out in the future. He conveys just the right amount of cynicism as Balthazar, menace and insanity as Herod, and innocence as Mary. I am not sure how this book comes across in print but I’d listen to it again in a heartbeat thanks to Berkrot’s narration.

Grahame-Smith has delivered a story of Biblical proportions in Unholy Night: zombies, swarms of locusts, epic sword fights, outlaws, obsessed rulers, vengeance, redemption, and more are in this entertaining action tale. That he did it all while staying true to original material that can be unpopular reading these days makes him a writer I am going to seek out in the future. Highly recommended.

Posted by Julie D.