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  • Upgrade

  • A Novel
  • Written by: Blake Crouch
  • Narrated by: Henry Levya
  • Length: 9 hrs and 47 mins
  • 4.3 out of 5 stars (211 ratings)

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Upgrade cover art

Upgrade

Written by: Blake Crouch
Narrated by: Henry Levya
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Publisher's Summary

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “If Michael Crichton had written a superhero novel, it would look a lot like Upgrade.”—The New York Times Book Review

“You don’t so much sympathize with the main character as live inside his skin.”—DIANA GABALDON, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Outlander series

“Mysterious, fascinating, and deeply moving—exploring the very nature of what it means to be human.”—ALEX MICHAELIDES, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Silent Patient and The Maiden

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: Time, She Reads

The mind-blowing new thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of Dark Matter and Recursion—currently in development as a motion picture at Steven Spielberg's Amblin Partners

“You are the next step in human evolution.”

At first, Logan Ramsay isn’t sure if anything’s different. He just feels a little . . . sharper. Better able to concentrate. Better at multitasking. Reading a bit faster, memorizing better, needing less sleep.

But before long, he can’t deny it: Something’s happening to his brain. To his body. He’s starting to see the world, and those around him—even those he loves most—in whole new ways.

The truth is, Logan’s genome has been hacked. And there’s a reason he’s been targeted for this upgrade. A reason that goes back decades to the darkest part of his past, and a horrific family legacy.

Worse still, what’s happening to him is just the first step in a much larger plan, one that will inflict the same changes on humanity at large—at a terrifying cost.

Because of his new abilities, Logan’s the one person in the world capable of stopping what’s been set in motion. But to have a chance at winning this war, he’ll have to become something other than himself. Maybe even something other than human.

And even as he’s fighting, he can’t help wondering: what if humanity’s only hope for a future really does lie in engineering our own evolution?

Intimate in scale yet epic in scope, Upgrade is an intricately plotted, lightning-fast tale that charts one man’s thrilling transformation, even as it asks us to ponder the limits of our humanity—and our boundless potential.

©2022 Blake Crouch (P)2022 Random House Audio

What the critics say

“If Michael Crichton had written a superhero novel, it would look a lot like Upgrade. . . . Sleek and propulsive, a page-turner with unexpectedly beautiful passages that give you pause amid the thrills.”—Amal El-Mohtar, The New York Times Book Review

“A lot of fun . . . Crouch knows how to do a chase, when to blow stuff up and when to bring the house lights down. . . . But what makes Upgrade special is that his path is unique. He takes turns that are unexpected [and] explores some stunning vistas along the way.”—NPR

“From the first page, it’s clear you’re in the hands of a master storyteller; Upgrade is by turns mysterious, fascinating, and deeply moving—exploring the very nature of what it means to be human. Spellbinding.”—Alex Michaelides, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Silent Patient and The Maidens

What listeners say about Upgrade

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

Another Hit

I become obsessed with anything Blake Crouch writes. This book appealed to me especially because of its theme of genetic engineering. The concept are well-researched and reasoned and allow you to truly believe in the world.

The narration is brilliant. 10/10 all around

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Meh.

First off, I love Blake Crouch and will read pretty much anything he writes. Unfortunately this one does not rival his best. You get the usual interesting science with crouch’s laudable focus on the emotional journey of his main characters; it’s just the story is a little flat: there’s not a ton to work with. The epilogue ties it together nicely, but the rest of the book is a bit of a slog. I didn’t hate the narrator like some others did, but he was pretty mediocre as well.

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2 people found this helpful

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    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Not up to snuff

I've read a number of the author's other titles and this one really wasn't as good in comparison. I found myself bored to tears with the continuous minutia of attempting to describe hyper intelligence that just bogged down any efforts to give this story momentum. I finished it (barely) but it was pretty forgettable.

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1 person found this helpful

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

Amazing read!!

i read and enjoyed Dark matter n Recursion but this book is imo his best and 100% will be made into a movie.

This story is so smart, endless imagination but keeps it real, solid characters, reads like a thriller with a soul. It has depth and some descriptions are poetics, it is brillant!

Unexpectedly, i feel i learned a lot about human nature and where we might be headed. Underneath the entertaining read there are important messages.

Also, the narrator was great and did the story justice.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Fun bio- punk story

Interesting concepts and fast paced adventure makes this book a great vacation read. Quick and entertaining.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
  • K C
  • 2024-01-17

Decent, but could do without the pandemic themes

Just finished.
Decent, but nowhere near as good as the other Blake Crouch books I've read.
Definitely kept me interested throughout, but didn't hook me as deeply.
You can also totally tell it was written during the pandemic, a lot of pandemic-like themes coming up throughout and a pandemic inspired "message" at the end. It was fine, not cheesy, but it might be more interesting in 10 or 20 years when covid isn't so fresh on the mind

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Good story line, but the drawn out over explaining and technical ruined it

The story line was decent, but later on it the story there waa way too much over-explaining and throwing technical terms out as though it was a high school essay that needed to reach a minimum letter count.

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

perfectly Human

brilliant, highly recommended read. strikes that golden ratio of hard sci fi technical and theoretical talk while still keeping the pacing of the moment up. book kept me engaged through it'd entirety.

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

chicken soup for my sci-fi soul

Loved this book and the performance. I hated when I had to turn it off. I am also SO SO happy for the epilog.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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  • JB
  • 2023-03-16

Amazing !

Love this author! I cannot believe how hooked I get to the words all through the book. Amazing

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