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  • Out of the Dark

  • Written by: David Weber
  • Narrated by: Charles Keating
  • Length: 16 hrs and 47 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (26 ratings)

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Out of the Dark cover art

Out of the Dark

Written by: David Weber
Narrated by: Charles Keating
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Publisher's Summary

The launch of a new science-fiction adventure series - by the New York Times best-selling author of the Safehold series and the Honor Harrington series.

The Galactic Hegemony has been around a long time, and it likes stability - the kind of stability that member species like the aggressive, carnivorous Shongairi tend to disturb. So when the Hegemony Survey Force encountered a world whose so-called "sentients" - "humans", they called themselves - were almost as bad as the Shongairi themselves, it seemed reasonable to use the Shongairi to neutralize them before they could become a second threat to galactic peace. And if the Shongairi took a few knocks in the process, all the better.

Now, Earth is conquered. The Shongairi have arrived in force, and humanity’s cities lie in radioactive ruins. In mere minutes, more than half the human race has died.

Master Sergeant Stephen Buchevsky, who thought he was being rotated home from his latest tour in Afghanistan, finds himself instead prowling the back country of the Balkans, dodging alien patrols and trying to organize scattered survivors without getting killed. And in the Southeastern US, firearms instructor and former Marine Dave Dvorak finds himself at the center of a growing network of resistance - putting his extended family at lethal risk, but what else can you do?

On the face of it, Buchevsky's and Dvorak's chances look bleak, as do prospects for the rest of the surviving human race. But it may well be that Shongairi and the Hegemony alike have underestimated the inhabitants of that strange planet called Earth...in David Weber's Out of the Dark.

©2010 David Weber (P)2010 Macmillan Audio

What the critics say

"Weber pulls off this conceit in audacious style with a focus on military-powered action that will thrill fans of his Honor Harrington series, and he keeps the pedal to the metal right up to the almost unbelievable conclusion." ( Publishers Weekly)

What listeners say about Out of the Dark

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Great listen

I originally read this book when it was first released. Now that the sequel has been released I enjoyed it again in audio format. I disagree with other reviewers who call the ending rushed. There were enough hints given earlier to make the twist integral to the story, not just an easy ending. Characters were well developed and the lack of detailed description of the final battles were necessary to preserve the surprise of the “twist”. Looking forward to the next parts!

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Not just another military sci if

When I started listening to this it seemed like a well produced more or less standard military science fiction ,well done but not unusual. Then half way in all bets are off as a completely unseen force emerges to triumph and bring the humans along..
Very amusing

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Halloween horror meets sci-fi

If you go into this book with the mind set of a Halloween horror blended with a military sci-fi you’ll enjoy the twists and turns.

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Are You Kidding Me? “Out of the Dark,” Indeed!

I cannot believe I actually listened to this entire recording. In my defence, the narrator, Charles Keating, is one of the best I’ve heard on Audible. It was a pleasure to listen to him. But 20 hours of plowing through what might more appropriately have been titled, “Boys and Their Toys,” is more than any fan of Science Fiction should have to endure.

The author is David Weber and he has apparently written a sequel to this as well as another series. He seems fixated on military hardware and particularly enamoured of various handguns and the relative stopping power of their ammunition. At a guess, I would say that at least 30% of the book consists of these descriptions.

Having abandoned any advice to “show, don't tell, ” Weber delivers most of the rest of the book in interminable passages of narrative.

Other reviewers have spoiled the Deus ex machina ending, but it's sufficient to say that it is unjustified and absurd. Any foreshadoeing is virtually nonexistent. I suspect Weber got tired of writing and used the last chapters simply to set up the premise for the sequel.

The advice of this listener? Don't bother.

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2 people found this helpful