Erebus

Sleeping Gods Series #2

By: Ralph Kern

Narrated by: Shaun Grindell

Length: 11 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

The sparsely populated moon, Io, is destroyed in a terrorist attack. Hundreds are dead in the cataclysmic explosion. Thousands become refugees as the shattered remnants of the moon threaten the Jupiter Alliance. Billions throughout the solar system are wondering, "Where next?"

Those responsible must be found and brought to justice. The explorer ship Erebus is reassigned from its mission and sent to Jupiter to investigate this atrocity with Trent's international team onboard. And what Trent discovers among the relics of the alien Sleeping Gods will change humanity's place in the universe forever.

©2016 Ralph Kern (P)2016 Tantor

Great great story but horrible narration

I enjoyed the previous novel and this one also did not disappoint. It started out remarkably slow with a detective story and I was about to turn this off and just wait for the next one, but I knew how well the previous tale turned out so I stayed the course. Glad I did not give up on it because it really has a great story with a shocking ending.
( Possible Spoiler, but not really )
I do like were the story is going, I am just not sure on the believable part about it because the things that are coming in the next novel look very impossible. I don't like writing that sets up a seemingly unbeatable enemy only to have it Duex Ex Machina and some miracle saves them at the end. I almost see that this is where that is going and I really hope not. I like it more when a monster/enemy appears, then humans and their ingenuity figure out a path to victory. Not some ominous secret artifact that suddenly solves all their problems. I really hope its not that because I will be disappointed.
I like the setup, the world and setting that they are put in, and the commitment to actual scientific reality.

Now that I have said that I do enjoy the book and story, let me say that the narration in this book was outright terrible. Shaun seemed like he was trying... too ... imitate... william shatner and...his............. broken speech. His transition between voices made it difficult to distinguish between male and female characters. So much wrong with his performance that I can't write it all here. They need to go back to Michael Kramer.

However, and regardless of that, this was a very good story and I have to say I enjoyed it and want more.

Among the worst narrations I've ever heard.

I cant even tell if the story is any good. I really enjoyed the first in this series, so i assume the second itirration in the series is just as good, but i just can't get past the .....over ..... dramatic..... narrator. half the time he reminds me of Shatner, the other half like hes trying to seduce the story into bed. I managed to get through 2 chapters and began to feel physically ill. I quit when he whipped out his "French" impersonation. Nope Nope Nope.

Here is a note to the people responsible for this abrasive assault on storytelling. KEEP THE SAME NARRATOR FOR THE ENTIRE SERIES! Even if that means a delay of a year or more until the voice actor has time to do the story. A long wait is much preferred to no story at all. Because at this point, this book is dead. The series is dead. This narrator has effectively KILLED what would otherwise have been a great story. It probably would have made the author, his publishing company, his agent and Audable some good money. But not anymore. Dead as a door nail. Please consider rerecording this with the original narrator. If that is not possible, then rerecord with a different voice actor.

it be good book

a berryberry goooood story. words words stuff and hgui ookpl huo goop ybh there

Space opera meets police procedural

Engaging sci fi from an interesting new perspective. Potential for an expansive series. Highly recommended.

OK I'm hooked

I finished the first two and cannot wait for the third book hopefully it comes out soon

classic classic Sci-fi its best!

the story is well done and conveys the emotion the author intended. I highly recommend the book for a good read.

Almost a Stand Alone

It's a good read, but quite different from the 1st novel in the series... W/ relatively few exceptions this can be read as a solo novel and you won't miss much by not having read the predecessor... The exception being the ending where this novel ties in w/ the previous... The story is a good one, if a bit slow in the beginning... Once it gets going it moves well w/ some deft plotting and action... In essence this is a mystery/crime work w/ SF flavoring... The characters are not integral to enjoymen... Which is good since there is only one or two of significance, and those two are intriguing... Trent is the main character pretty throughout, and this book could have easily been called Trent's Tale... The other, less interwoven, character is Xander Frane, the bad guy, or is he?? Won't spoil, but it's a tricky question... The science is well considered, and the police procedural style to the mystery and its investigation is top notch... Great climax, and an entirely unexpected ending setting up what looks to be a fantastic 3rd book... The narration is good, if a bit uninspired... Should have stuck w/ Michael Kramer from the 1st book... Overall a very satisfying read w/ tantalizing speculation... Even the seeming opacity works well in hooking you into the story arc... Worth the credit...

Hardly a sequel to Endeavor

If you expect a sequel to the epic Endeavor this simply isn't it. The tone, scope and style are as distant from the first book as possible. Instead of the ambitious hard sci-fi exploration in space and time, you get a tedious detective/action story that happens to be based in the same universe Endeavor introduced.

Slow to start and good in hindsight

What did you like best about Erebus? What did you like least?

First, the positive. I greatly enjoyed the direction of the story and how it will come to play in the third book in this series. The story added good background and detail to help flesh out this particular universe.

Now, the negative. I'm not typically a fan of a series that begins with one set of characters, which are then replaced in the sequel by an entirely different set of characters with a plotline that seems unrelated until near the end of the sequel. After finishing Erebus I can appreciate why this book was written in this manner (see the positive), but I must admit that I had to resist putting the story down on numerous occasions. It didn’t help that the narrator changed between Endeavour (Book 1 – Michael Kramer narrating) and Erebus (Book 2 – Shaun Grindell narrating) and in my view, Shaun Grindell simply didn’t deliver. Not that he is not a good narrator, but that Michael Kramer operates in an entirely different league.

Would you be willing to try another one of Shaun Grindell’s performances?

Only if he narrates that entire series.

Did Erebus inspire you to do anything?

It did! I built my own anti-matter torch and I'm currently accelerating towards C while writing this review from the future.

Interesting expansion of world; mediocre narrator

I liked the way that the story expanded and I'm looking forward to the next book. I wish they'd kept Michael Kramer as the narrator, but it wasn't as bad as some reviewers stated. I almost didn't listen to it based on those reviews. The narrator wasn't terrible, but Kramer is a master, so it feels like a major downgrade.