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The Vault
- Audible Original
- Narrated by: Atilla Akinci, Laila Alj Philip Arditti, Kieran Brown, Ben Cartwright, Stephen Critchlow, Vera Filatova, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Gerran Howell, David Menkin, Colin Morgan, Harry Myers, Erich Redman, Mac Keith Roach, Lizzie-Aaryn Stanton, David Thorpe
- Length: 5 hrs and 4 mins
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The Vault
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Publisher's Summary
West Berlin, 1986.
The Cold War has not yet thawed, political tensions inspire bloody retribution and trust is a rare commodity - even amongst allies.
Harry Mackintosh is the head of MI6’s Berlin Station. When four of his best field agents are murdered by the Stasi during a failed defection operation, he has no choice but to respond. East German intelligence has become increasingly ruthless. MI6 has been overrun. Mackintosh knows that he won’t be able to fight back, unless he’s provided with a new kind of operative.
London.
Belfast-born Jimmy Walker is a career criminal, desperate to leave the world of organised crime behind. He’s made just enough money to think about going straight. He wants to be a family man. He wants to stay alive for his wife and son. He wants to be the man they deserve.
He reluctantly agrees to one final job with the intention that it will be his last.
Little does Jimmy know that he’s been set-up. The sins of his past are about to catch up with him.
Framed, arrested and imprisoned, Jimmy is about to become a pawn in the politics, corruption and underground conflicts of Europe. Mackintosh appears in Jimmy’s Scotland Yard cell and makes him an offer. Go to Berlin to serve Queen and Country and he will be pardoned. The alternative? A life behind bars. Jimmy has no choice but to accept. He infiltrates East Berlin and, operating under cover as an arms buyer for the IRA, he works his way to the heart of the Stasi machine until he locates the defector. But all is not as it seems. Mackintosh has an ulterior motive. So does Jimmy. Neither man can trust the other and, as their objectives clash, it looks as if only one of them is going to get out alive.
Set in divided Berlin at a pivotal moment in history, and soaked in '80s nostalgia, The Vault is a thrilling adventure set in Mark Dawson’s million-selling Group Fifteen world.
Featuring: Atilla Akinci, Laila Alj Philip Arditti, Kieran Brown, Ben Cartwright, Stephen Critchlow, Vera Filatova, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Gerran Howell, David Menkin, Colin Morgan, Harry Myers, Erich Redman, Mac Keith Roach, Lizzie-Aaryn Stanton and David Thorpe.
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What listeners say about The Vault
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
- AT
- 2022-03-28
Very unpleasant audio experience
I have a relatively high tolerance for the audio quality issues and often don't mind making an effort for a good story, however this one is not the case. The audio production is so bad I had to stop and drop. What they called a 'play production' turned out to be completely unlistenable on my high end Jabra wireless earphones. The narrator's voice was loud and clear, all the actors voice barely recognizable and pretty much incomprehensible. Is there any quality control at all at Audible? I personally consider such a production being thrown at the customers a complete disrespect.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- SoulFood Wanderer
- 2023-07-21
Stars don’t match reviews 😡. Read on.
I see lots of stars on the rating but I read the reviews and all indicate a weak story and tepid performances.
I tried the book based on its rating but after several hours of my time the audiobook disappoints.
Don’t trust the rating to find a decent story.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- ForBaby
- 2022-10-06
Dramatization with actors not for me
Hard pill to swallow. It should work in principle but it turned an audio book into a radio performance. Not for me. I wish it was read by one voice.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Trudy Owens
- 2020-01-17
at least there's narration
The problem with these cast-of-thousands productions is you cannot tell who is speaking. And with the sound effects, you can't tell who is walking, who is knocking, who is sitting. It's like watching a movie but with the screen blacked out. All you get is the audio and no clues as to what is going on. This book is a little better than some because we have the wonderful David Thorpe narrating, which does fill in some of the questions. I listened for less than half an hour but there's no Milton, so that's a drag.
However, there are many people who seem to like this type of program, so maybe it will work for you.
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8 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 2019-11-01
It grabbed my attention and wouldn’t let go!
I only got a few minutes into this audiobook before I was hooked. This story is intriguing and unpredictable, reminding me a bit of “The Man from UNCLE” in that two very different characters form an unlikely partnership (founded on blackmail) to carry out a seemingly impossible mission. Although they work together, neither character really trusts the other. I spent the entire audiobook on the edge of my seat wondering what would happen next! There were a few plot twists towards the end that I didn’t see coming. 🙂
Great performances by all of the actors! As a frequent audiobook listener, I sometimes find audiobooks in which at least one performance is either dull/monotone or overly dramatic in a way that distracts from the storyline. In this audiobook, however, I enjoyed all of the performances! It was an interesting change to have the characters themselves narrating their thoughts instead of having the narrator tell all of those thoughts in third person. I think that this technique kept me more engaged and less reminded of the fact that the story is “not real life.” In summary, I enjoyed this audiobook and hope to find more like it!
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6 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- ZUrlocker
- 2020-02-09
Decent story, terrible adaptation
Unfortunately, this is a decent book spoiled by an awful adaptation. I am fine with a cast performance, or a radio style dramatization. The BBC does this spectacularly well. Unfortunately, this one falls into no man's land. Dawson's writing on his own is quite good. This is an obvious homage to Le Carre's works such as Smiley's People. It's not quite up to the same standard, the plot is a bit thin, the build-up weak. But the writing is still enjoyable. The cast is good when they aren't choking on lines that aren't in the original book. Unfortunately they are too frequently speaking a redundant narrative directly to the reader along the lines of: "Boy, I sure am worried about (the Nazis / this tunnel / my family / getting home) or whatever." You are better off with the ebook version. Or some other adaptation.
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Eileen
- 2021-11-06
Dreadful
The story is grim. I did not care for/about the characters. Primarily, the production was irritating. Long moments of loud music and sound effects are not what I look for when "reading" a book. Multiple narrators may have eliminated "he said" and "she said" but made listening difficult. Some were too soft and difficult to understand. I kept having to backtrack and adjust the volume.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Zanoni Daniele
- 2020-05-12
Compelling
Nice story, excellent narration, interesting characters. The story is placed in the end of the eighties, just before the fall of Berlin's wall and involves Northern Ireland, England, West and East Germany. Colin Morgan is again awesome in the way he reads his character.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Just Chris
- 2019-11-02
Compelling Audio Style
Well done perfectly cast production. Three methods of performance that flow together seamlessly: straight narration to provide background and setting, character dialogue in current setting, and selected character monologue of inner thoughts and struggles of conscience providing description and ambience. And my favorite audio performer, Colin Morgan, who does not disappoint. So there's that. Also my first introduction to Kobna Holdbrook-Smith. I'll be seeking out more of his work.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Grant Hiesterman
- 2023-01-17
Good overall story
For my older ears the dramatically read presentation did not provide consistent volume or clarity of the spoken word. Hence, a strained and painfully listen at time. One good narrator would have been better or you would have mixed it correctly in the studio before your hard, final burn. You ruined the audio trying to be too cute and dramatic because you didn’t mix the finished product correctly. Get some quality QA standards please.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Alan
- 2021-12-28
Good Story, terrible sound editing
Absolutely the worst sound editing in a book I’ve ever heard. EVER. Unfortunate, since it seemed to be a good Group 15 story. Couldn’t hear half the lines because of the sound changes and distracting sound effects.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Kjax
- 2021-11-08
Musical interludes
I didn't care for the musical interludes. The lead character sounded too much like a well known British actor.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- peter taylor
- 2021-06-26
Thrilling
A good listen, loved the voices of the characters and the story was fast moving
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1 person found this helpful