Listen free for 30 days

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo + applicable taxes after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
Congo cover art

Congo

Written by: Michael Crichton
Narrated by: Julia Whelan
Try for $0.00

$14.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $32.00

Buy Now for $32.00

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Tax where applicable.

Publisher's Summary

Deep in the African rain forest, near the legendary ruins of the Lost City of Zinj, an expedition of eight American geologists are mysteriously and brutally killed in a matter of minutes.

Ten thousand miles away, Karen Ross, the Congo Project Supervisor, watches a gruesome video transmission of the aftermath: a camp destroyed, tents crushed and torn, equipment scattered in the mud alongside dead bodies - all motionless except for one moving image - a grainy, dark, man-shaped blur.

In San Francisco, primatologist Peter Elliot works with Amy, a gorilla with an extraordinary vocabulary of 620 "signs," the most ever learned by a primate, and she likes to finger paint. But recently her behavior has been erratic and her drawings match, with stunning accuracy, the brittle pages of a Portuguese print dating back to 1642…a drawing of an ancient lost city. A new expedition - along with Amy - is sent into the Congo, where they enter a secret world, and the only way out may be through a horrifying death.....

Congo was adapted to the screen and directed by Frank Marshall.

©1980 CrichtonSun LLC (P)2015 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

What listeners say about Congo

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    151
  • 4 Stars
    84
  • 3 Stars
    26
  • 2 Stars
    7
  • 1 Stars
    4
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    165
  • 4 Stars
    55
  • 3 Stars
    17
  • 2 Stars
    7
  • 1 Stars
    3
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    138
  • 4 Stars
    67
  • 3 Stars
    28
  • 2 Stars
    7
  • 1 Stars
    6

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

good read

Michael Crighton always knows how to implement facts into his novels, I love that I feel like I'm learning while I listen to it. The Narrator did a great job too.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Not bad, not great

I enjoyed it. Maybe a little too much history lessons for me. The story itself was exciting and interesting though.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

yup, it's a Michael Crichton classic

A fast paced adventure, 1/2 2d characters 1/2 technical info dumps. Yum! If you liked his other stuff, you'll like this Golden Oldie.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Good ideas that don’t always blend well

I loved the setup and as usual the writing style and trivia mixed in with fiction and embellishments make a potent mix. But there are one or two too many things going on here. It all becomes too much once the team reaches their destination and the individual hooks all seem a bit flat on their own and are thematically unconnected. It’s hard to explain what I mean without spoilers, but let’s just say this one needed a little more time in the oven.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Well done

#Audible1
Good performance. Was very pleasant to listen to, spoke clearly and crisply. Wish that there was a second performer for the male voices as it was a little distracting. Great pick up on the “daily deal”

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Tj
  • 2022-10-27

loved it

Narration was amazing, good plot with a pace that doesn't drag. rip Michael Crichton

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Joe
  • 2020-12-11

Surprisingly the movie was better

It took me two attempts to push through this book. It could have been edited down to half of the length. Probably why it made a better movie than novel.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

WOW

I actually enjoyed this novel more than Jurassic Park! What an exciting and well written book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fun story

A fun story with interesting characters. Lots of excitement and suspense. Performance was good, characters were easily distinguishable without being over the top.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Gripping

Any book by Michael Crichton commands my attention. Having read several of the reviews I nearly did not get Congo. However the Sample I heard intrigued me enough to ignore the reviews and get the book. Thank goodness. The way each major element was unfolded provided a context for the unfolding story. The geopolitical situation of the Congo, the historical background, the science, technology and geology were mesmerizing. The story was a rich blend of adventure and learning. If I was disappointed in anything, it was the abrupt ending although I liked knowing how the main characters ended up. I'd highly recommend this book for anyone who loves to learn as well as be entertained, possibly with the emphasis on learning.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful