Showing results by narrator "Ralph Lister" in All Categories

In this imaginative debut, the tale of Noah’s Ark is brilliantly recast as a story of fate and family, set in a near-future London. Over the course of a single night in 2052, a homeless man named Cuthbert Handley sets out on an astonishing quest: to release the animals of the London Zoo. When...

"Loophole" was first published in the April 1946 issue of Astounding Science-Fiction. Sir Arthur C. Clarke (1917-2008) is regarded as one of the most-influential science fiction writers of all time. He was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, and was inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame.

This is not a book about trains but about the variety of Spain. The best-selling author Christopher Howse makes 10 great railway journeys that explore the interior of the peninsula, its astonishing landscapes and ancient buildings. The focus is the way the Spanish live now: their habits, streets, characters, stories - and quite a bit about their eating and drinking.

Five knights tell stories of ancient lands, madness, and terrifying monsters...but no one can top Knight Elric's tale of the Land of Hershel, a monstrous swamp filled with horrifying creatures and an ever-present threat. If you stop moving, you drown. "In the Land of Hershel" is a short story set in the thrilling world of SunRider.

In this mesmerizing memoir, Skidelsky ponders what it is about the Swiss star that transfixes him and countless others. Skidelsky dissects the wonders of Federer's forehand, reflects on his rivalry with Nadal, revels in his victories, and relives his most crushing defeats. But in charting his obsession, Skidelsky also weaves his own past into a captivating story that explores the evolution of modern tennis, the role of beauty in sports, and the psychology of fandom.

"The Parasite" was first published in 1953 in The Avon SF & F Reader. Sir Arthur C. Clarke (1917-2008) is regarded as one of the most-influential science fiction writers of all time. He was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, and was inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame.

Yazid Valerion is alone with the truth, but his warnings fall on deaf ears. Eons ago, the Dead God promised a world of ash, and the time of that prophecy is now at hand. His only hope is to cross the sea with his few followers in search of ancient enemies, the Meites, and pray he can sway them to his cause. But the Meites are no mere mortals; they are powerful sorcerers prone to outbursts of destructive terror. Even if he can find them, there's no guarantee they won't slaughter him and his men upon first sight.

Magic pieces of armor rain from Lenova's skies, granting men God-like powers. Mountains move, lightning bends to command, and a man's future can be written in a book before it's even happened. In this emerging chaos, teenage Finn SunRider cares only for escaping the burning desert of the Crust and exploring the world he lives in. Yet that will prove quite difficult with monsters and tyrants roaming the land, conquering cities and killing the innocent.

Shale is dying. A vast, chaotic, monster-bearing storm known only as the Roil is expanding, consuming the land. The last humans are fighting back with ever more bizarre new machines, but the Roil seems unstoppable. Whole cities have been consumed – where once there were twelve, now only four remain. It’s up to a decadent wastrel, a four thousand year-old man, and a young woman bent on revenge, to try to save their city – and the world.

Science is in trouble. Real questions in desperate need of answers—especially those surrounding ethnicity, gender, climate change, and almost anything related to “health and safety”—are swiftly buckling to the fiery societal demands of what ought to be rather than what is. Can true, fact-based discovery be redeemed? In Science in an Age of Unreason, legendary professor of psychology and biology, John Staddon, unveils the identity crisis afflicting today’s scientific community, and provides an actionable path to recovery.

Basil the mouse detective is called to Paris when the organizers of the Great Cheese Cook-off (an international culinary competition) start receiving threats against the event. Who could want to deprive all of mousedom of one of its tastiest nights? Basil immediately suspects Ratigan, who has escaped yet again and was seen lurking around Paris, and sets off on his investigation at the event’s location, the Parisian College of Cooking. But Basil is baffled when circumstantial evidence shows that it couldn’t have been his old enemy after all.

The rebellion in the Northlands has been defeated. Elias marches south at the head of an army of men, elves, and dwarves. With new allies and driving purpose, he travels into his homeland of Lonwick to battle with the great Felle Army. Orcs, ogres, trolls, and more await him at the end of his journey in the fertile Lonwick Valley. However, unbeknownst to Elias and his companions, there are greater forces at work. What is it that Darius Tessermyre truly wants? Why have the Felle chosen to attack Lonwick? And what forces guide the mysterious Council of Mages?

"Retreat from Earth" was first published in the March 1938 issue of Amateur Science Fiction Stories. Sir Arthur C. Clarke (1917-2008) is regarded as one of the most-influential science fiction writers of all time. He was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, and was inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame.

Brimming with life and unforgettable voices, the stories in Austin Bunn's dazzling collection explore the existential question: what happens at the end, and what lies beyond it? In the wry but affecting "How to Win an Unwinnable War", a summer class on nuclear war for gifted teenagers turns a struggling family upside down. A young couple's idyllic beach honeymoon is interrupted by terrorism in the lush, haunting "Getting There and Away".

In August 1963, a Royal Mail train traveling between Glasgow and London was forced to make an unscheduled stop. Led by a charismatic jewel thief, a gang of fifteen unarmed men boarded the train, incapacitated the driver, and made off with more than 2 million. Divided equally, it was more than enough money for them to disappear forever—if they could all keep quiet. Incensed by the brazenness of the crime, Scotland Yard investigators employed every means they could think of to get the thieves to turn on one another.

In a world ravaged by a deadly pandemic, former rock star Chris Price leaves New York and sets out on a long journey home to England. It’s been six years of devastation since the plague killed his wife and daughter, and Chris is determined to find out if any of his family has survived. His passage leaves him scarred, in body and mind, by exposure to humankind at its most desperate and dangerous. But the greatest ordeal awaits him beyond the urban ruins, in an idyllic country refuge where Chris meets a woman, Pauline, who is largely untouched by the world’s horrors.

The automa Pinocchio has always been duty-bound to serve in the floating palace of Venice's emperor. So when Pinocchio finds himself locked in a trunk and delivered to a new master - a wanted criminal and alchemist named Geppetto - he is curious about everything around him. But most curious is the way Pinocchio seems to be changing from a wooden servant into a living, human boy.

"How We Went to Mars" was first published in the March 1938 issue of Amateur Science Fiction Stories. In 2014, it was awarded a "Retro Hugo Award" at the World Science Fiction Convention in London. Sir Arthur C. Clarke (1917-2008) is regarded as one of the most-influential science fiction writers of all time. He was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, and was inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame.

"Big Game Hunt" was first published in the October 1956 issue of Adventure. Sir Arthur C. Clarke (1917-2008) is regarded as one of the most-influential science fiction writers of all time. He was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, and was inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame.

Invisibility has fascinated people since time immemorial, but only a decade ago did invisibility become a serious subject of scientific investigation. This lively novel, authored by an expert in the field, takes the listener on a journey to fascinating places and - en passant - on an intellectual adventure involving some of the most fascinating subjects of optics. While enjoying the fun and action of a travel story, listeners will gain an accurate notion of the real science of invisibility, of the light and shade of the business of science, as well as glimpses into different cultures.