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  • The Apollo Murders

  • Written by: Chris Hadfield
  • Narrated by: Ray Porter
  • Length: 15 hrs and 13 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (1,023 ratings)

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The Apollo Murders

Written by: Chris Hadfield
Narrated by: Ray Porter
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Publisher's Summary

Number One National Best Seller

The number one best-selling Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield is back with an exceptional Cold War thriller from the dark heart of the Space Race.

“An exciting journey to an alternate past.” (Andy Weir, author of The Martian)

“Nail-biting.” (James Cameron, writer and director of Avatar and Titanic)

“Not to be missed.” (Frederick Forsyth, author of The Day of the Jackal)

“Explosive.” (Gregg Hurwitz, author of Orphan X)

“Exciting, authentic.” (Linwood Barclay, author of Find You First)

1973. A final, top-secret mission to the Moon. Three astronauts in a tiny module, a quarter of a million miles from home. A quarter of a million miles from help.

As Russian and American crews sprint for a secret bounty hidden away on the lunar surface, old rivalries blossom and the political stakes are stretched to breaking point back on Earth. Houston flight controller Kazimieras "Kaz" Zemeckis must do all he can to keep the NASA crew together, while staying one step ahead of his Soviet rivals. But not everyone on board Apollo 18 is quite who they appear to be.

Full of the fascinating technical detail that fans of The Martian loved, and reminiscent of the thrilling claustrophobia, twists and tension of The Hunt for Red October, The Apollo Murders puts you right there in the moment. Experience the fierce G-forces of launch, the frozen loneliness of Space and the fear of holding on to the outside of a spacecraft orbiting the Earth at 17,000 miles per hour, as told by a former Commander of the International Space Station who has done all of those things in real life.

Strap in and count down for the ride of a lifetime.

©2021 Chris Hadfield (P)2021 Random House Canada

What the critics say

#1 National Bestseller

One of Indigo's Best Books of the Year 2021

"A nail-biting Cold War thriller set against a desperate Apollo mission that never really happened...or did it? It’s a very rare book that combines so many things I love, from taut suspense and highly realistic action, to the golden age of space exploration. I couldn't put it down.” (James Cameron, writer and director of Avatar and Titanic)

“An explosive thriller from a writer who has actually been to space and back.... Strap in for the ride.” (Gregg Hurwitz, New York Times best-selling author of the Orphan X novels)

“There’s maybe one person on Earth with the writing chops and the expertise to write a to-the-moon thriller this exciting, this authentic. Chris Hadfield is that guy.” (Linwood Barclay, New York Times best-selling author of Find You First)

What listeners say about The Apollo Murders

Average Customer Ratings
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Exciting space thriller - can’t wait for the next one!

Chris Hadfield is an incredible human, teacher, musician, pilot, scientist, astronaut and now, author. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I pre-ordered this book, but did so based on his likability and CV. As an avid mystery and thriller audiobook reader, I was very satisfied to realize that I was completely immersed in the story, as I would be with a Daniel Silva, Candice Fox or James Patterson story. What I really appreciated was the skilful way Hadfield enlightened his audience in the finer points of space travel, as he’s experienced firsthand. I cannot wait for his next novel!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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a MUST read for any fellow Space Nerd 🤓

absolutely gripping, couldn't put it down (stop listening). Thank you very much, Chris. Well done!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Hanging on to every word!

Absolutely LOVED this book!
From start to finish, it was entertaining, suspenseful, and at times, hilarious.
The narrator has the best voice for audiobooks - easy to listen to and really entertaining.
Such an excellent book!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Loved it — couldn’t stop listening!

The story is tremendous; you are drawn in immediately and it is hard to turn off. The author weaves the fictional and historical elements into a seamless narrative rich with technical details. A highly worthwhile listen.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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EXCELLENT

This was a great story. None stop action from start to finish with a lot of details and plenty of action.

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this was really good!!

I enjoyed this book far more than I thought I would. As murder mysteries go, it's quite different. It's really more of a space adventure, spy story murder mystery. well worth the time.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Impressive foray into fiction by Chris Hadfield

Chris Hadfield has become somewhat of a celebrity, being both an astronaut and a charismatic, unofficial spokesperson for space exploration. The Apollo Murders is his first foray into fiction writing but also in an interesting way, where real science and many real historical figures in NASA are woven into the narrative, one that is fictional but which I could totally believe happening if it was real.

The story takes place in the height of the Cold War space race, where the US and Russia were fighting for not only dominance in space exploration, but exploiting space as a means to spy on and potentially, attack each other. There's a lot of wind-up to the principal story beats but it lays an extensive background for the main characters, which does well at connecting you to them. It's hard to say much else without spoiling but the narrative definitely keeps you intrigued and becomes quite the "page turner" as it were. I do with that the major twists were a little more impactful and that he went into greater detail about the motivations of those involved. It felt to me like this core pillar of the story didn't end up getting nearly fleshed out enough, despite all the character development in the first third.

The narrator does a good overall job though as is typical, the reading of female characters just comes across as cringey because well, it's a guy trying to impersonate women. I get that this is just a limitation of the medium when it's a book that isn't fully cast but it can nonetheless be a bit immersion breaking.

I really enjoyed my time listening to this book and think Chris Hadfield has once again shown how multi-talented he is and that he has a bright future in fiction writing.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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Is there anything this guy can’t do?

Once you get past the technical jargon it’s a great story. Is there anything this guy can’t do?

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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  • C8y
  • 2023-11-20

Out of this world

I highly recommend.

Hatfield wrote a story with the perfect balance of character and plot development with unpredictable twists are encountered throughout the story.

Ray Porter - phenomenal performance as always, one of the best in the business.

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Be prepared to forget life around you…..

I thoroughly enjoyed leaving earth for a couple days on an adventure that grips you only a couple minutes in and doesn’t let go. Great narration by Ray Porter. Thank you Mr. Hadfield for a great story!

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2 people found this helpful