14

By: Peter Clines

Narrated by: Ray Porter

Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's summary

Audie Award Nominee, Science Fiction, 2013

Padlocked doors. Strange light fixtures. Mutant cockroaches.

There are some odd things about Nate’s new apartment. Of course, he has other things on his mind. He hates his job. He has no money in the bank. No girlfriend. No plans for the future. So while his new home isn’t perfect, it’s livable. The rent is low, the property managers are friendly, and the odd little mysteries don’t nag at him too much. At least, not until he meets Mandy, his neighbor across the hall, and notices something unusual about her apartment. And Xela’s apartment. And Tim’s. And Veek’s. Because every room in this old Los Angeles brownstone has a mystery or two. Mysteries that stretch back over a hundred years. Some of them are in plain sight. Some are behind locked doors. And all together these mysteries could mean the end of Nate and his friends. Or the end of everything....

©2012 Peter Clines and Permuted Press (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"A riveting apocalyptic mystery in the style of LOST." (Craig DiLouie, author of The Infection and The Killing Floor)

"A wholly original story that weaves together mystery and the apocalypse like a finely tuned band." (Evan Roy, Bricks of the Dead)

Don't Get Killed By This Place

I won't he promised. Smart women are so damn sexy.

There has been a lot of ranting and raving about this book and the narrator Ray Porter.

The reason is because it is a great book. It starts out really good and you think it is a scary house book, but it is so much more. The book just gets better and better as it goes along. Toward the end of the first downloaded part, I was thinking they are about to solve, this, what are they going to do for the next six hours. Well, they did plenty.

I also like how well the author knows what it is like to be a working stiff. Most of these people are in this apartment because it is cheap and Cline seems to have some real experience on what it is like to live around the poverty level. He understands the dreams and struggles of the working man and woman. There is some good character development in this book.

Ray Porter is excellent.

Check this book out, you will like it.

Sci-Fi Scooby and Friends

Mysterious apartment building with low rent in Los Angeles raises healthy curiousity for young tennants. Sharing freaky details about lights and green cockroaches, the gang and slowly comes together in the shape of the Mystery Bunch, complete with Fred, Daphne, Shaggy and Velma investigating the oddities of their dwelling.

Each character was interesting and relatable with Nate as the reluctant leader trading barbs with Veek, the oober-intelligent hacker. The guys and nudie sunbather, Zela meet on the roof to watch sunsets and share a few frosty beverages. Found myself enjoying the eccentricities of the gang. Narrators did an excellent job for each voice. Fresh take on a Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys caper, searching for answers leading them into an other worldly caper.

The mystery unravels into a science fiction (not psychological) thriller. Enjoy.

Suspend Disbelief and Critical Thinking Then Enjoy

Well written, highly imaginative, apocalyptic thriller, ably narrated by Ray Porter. Listen, and you can expect several hours of entertaining diversion ... IF ...

You suspend disbelief in the fantastic. This plot moves from engaging mystery to wild apocalyptic fantasy. Let me repeat: WILD apocalyptic fantasy. You have to drink the Kool-Aid for this plot to work. AND

You also suspend logic and critical thinking. Here is the greatest flaw in this novel. Fantasy is not an excuse for sloppy plot development. And as well written as this novel is, it is bloated with illogical or unexplained plot elements, and not a few distracting contrivances.

If you think me overly harsh, consider just a few examples (minor spoilers follow):

~ Do we really believe that a government so concerned about a particular building that it would track public inquiries would not have more capable agents on site?

~ Do we really believe the same government would go to such extraordinary lengths to screen tenants and NOT track or arrest the cult whose actions it fears most?

~ And don't we find the explanation from the mysterious "owner" at the end to be a little too contrived, relying a bit too much on the "if I tell you, I'll have to kill you" contrivance.

Nonetheless, if you can, you should accept the world of 14, turn off that part of your brain that demands logic and internal consistency, and take this ride. It is a wild one.

YES 5 Stars all around- A WINNER!!!!!

I am thrilled to rate this book with 5 stars. What this book has.....
terrific character development, I got to know and cared about each and every character; story/plot, I just couldn't put this book down (what is the audio equivalent of a page turner?); intrigue and suspense, the tenants of the building have a mystery to solve that is a matter of life and death;
romance that is hip and cool and relevant, with plenty of references to current culture;
and equal to the wonderfulness of the book overall is the expert narration, I am thinking that Mr. Porter is perhaps one of the best narrators ever, he did everything right, accents, pace, tone, and inflection.
I wholeheartedly recommend this book, oh I agree ......happy dance!!!!

Fresh, intriguing, and full of mystery

What did you love best about 14?

I think there are three things that work very well together
1. The book is full of great character development and chemistry between the residents of the building. You want them to succeed and believe they are friends.
2. The mystery unfolds at a satisfying pace and doesn't disappoint. I had a very hard time putting it down. I found myself looking for moments I could steal way to listen.
3. The writing is witty and clever.

Who was your favorite character and why?

That is very hard. They all work so well together. If I had to make a choice I would say Tim. Mainly for his patience, wisdom, and things that unfold in the book.

Have you listened to any of Ray Porter’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not. I was very impressed with this narrator and even looked up his other books to see if there was anything I might like. I really liked his performance!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Definitely!!

Any additional comments?

I listen to a lot of books and a lot of those are mysteries. There comes a time when you see the same patterns being used over and over. I was getting a little tired of what was out there. This was an incredibly fresh book. I will caution people that it does have a sci-fi feel similar to the television show, "Lost". If you prefer linear police detective books over unexpected thrillers, then you may not like the content. You can't argue, however, with the superb writing and the excellent narration.

Meh.

No regrets about finishing it, but I won’t recommend it to anyone. Interesting concept. Respectable performance.

Too far fetched

Any additional comments?

I was seduced by so many positive reviews and the intrigue of the unknown. Without giving away anything, there are some big twists in this story, but for me, it turned too far into the realm of sci-fi. I was expecting more of a mystery--there is that element--but when the twists start to come to light, it was too big of a stretch for my imagination.

Mundane

What did you like best about 14? What did you like least?

Character descriptions was best. Least was the ho-hum story.

What was most disappointing about Peter Clines’s story?

Sucked into a vacuum of outer space and able to hold onto a doorknob? The most unique (to me) feature was the warping of distance perspective, but it wasn't treated thoroughly. The "Swales" were comic-book level.

Have you listened to any of Ray Porter’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

This is my first. He did an excellent job.

Do you think 14 needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

No. I wouldn't buy one.

Too Weird

This is truly a very weird book!! I usually don’t read things like “14,” but it appealed to me after I had listened to more than 40 hours of “Far From the Tree” which was pretty serious and often sad. By contrast this book is a fantasy/science fiction type, something I occasionally enjoy as a change. It certainly WAS a break from my norm, and I’m now more than ready to return to reality again, even in my choice of fiction--at least until George R.R. Martin manages to finish his sixth book in the “Song of Ice and Fire” series.

There are a number summaries and analyses of the plot of “14” so won’t add another. It’s enough to say that I rather enjoyed the first three-quarters of the novel, but I only endured the ending. It just got too strange for me, and I couldn’t relate to either the characters or the story by then. It is like the TV series “Lost” in some ways. I found both compelling long enough that I stuck with them all the way, including their rather disappointing endings.

In order for me to give a book more than three stars, I have to feel that I learned something proportional to the time I invested in it. Unfortunately this was not the case with “14”. However, unless I really dislike a book or hate it enough to not finish it, I rarely give less than three stars. So three stars it is for a fairly entertaining first three-quarters but a rather numbing last section and ending.

Not worth it

Where does 14 rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

The worst; if I had been physically reading this book, I would've stopped.

Would you be willing to try another book from Peter Clines? Why or why not?

No. The ending of this book didn't answer most of the questions brought up and it was super cheesy.

Any additional comments?

This book started as a decent mystery but ended as a hokey sci-fi.