Tales from the Gas Station: Volume One

By: Jack Townsend

Narrated by: Jon Grilz

Drunk customers. Shoplifting raccoons. Otherworldly visitors. As night-shift clerk at the 24-hour gas station at the edge of town, Jack has pretty much seen it all.

That is, until his best friend reveals the body of a local politician hidden in the trunk of a car, setting off a chain of events with apocalyptic potential. Soon, Jack finds himself entangled in a supernatural conspiracy involving monster hunters, sociopaths, doomsday cultists, and...garden gnomes?

Armed with nothing but his wits, sarcasm, and alarming amounts of coffee, can Jack stay alive long enough to see another morning shift? Or will he, too, fall victim to the dark, ancient force infecting the dreams of everyone around him?

One thing’s for sure. He’s not getting paid enough for this.

©2023 Jack Townsend (P)2024 Jack Townsend

Trippy! Well Worth A Listen.

This was like some strange amalgamation of Clerks and the Twilight Zone. The narrator’s matter-of-fact delivery as though all the strangeness was normal just added to the story. I couldn’t not listen, totally engrossed in finding out what happens next. Great story, great narration. I’m definitely adding this author to my ‘must have’ list and looking forward to the next several installments.

Welcome to the Freak Show….and Loving Every Minute of It

Imagine stepping into a realm where the bizarre meets the mundane, where every shadow hides a secret, and the ordinary is anything but. “Tales from the Gas Station: Volume One” in its theatrical audiobook form offers just that—a rollercoaster ride through the uncanny, reminiscent of a visit to a vintage freak show or an eccentric circus of oddities.

Set in a seemingly nondescript gas station at the edge of town, the story plunges listeners into a world teeming with peculiar events and enigmatic characters. Jack, the night-shift clerk and our guide through this labyrinth of the absurd, confronts everything from prophetic radios and shapeshifters to mysterious lawn gnomes that appear without warning. His deadpan humor and unflappable demeanor serve as the perfect counterbalance to the chaos unfolding around him.

The theatrical audiobook elevates this experience by incorporating a full cast of voice actors and immersive sound effects, transforming the narrative into a vivid auditory spectacle. Listeners are not merely passive recipients but are drawn into the eerie ambiance of the gas station, feeling the palpable tension and unexpected hilarity of each encounter.

One can’t help but draw parallels to the allure of a classic freak show, where curiosity and trepidation intertwine. Much like the eclectic performers of yesteryears, the inhabitants of this gas station defy conventional norms, inviting audiences to question the boundaries of reality and fiction. The narrative oscillates between spine-chilling moments and whimsical absurdity, creating a tapestry that’s as unsettling as it is entertaining.

In essence, “Tales from the Gas Station: Volume One” theatrical audiobook is a masterful fusion of the eerie and the whimsical. It beckons listeners to step beyond the veil of the ordinary and immerse themselves in a world where the fantastical feels familiar, and the familiar becomes fantastical. It’s an experience that promises to linger in the mind, much like the most memorable visits to the circus of the strange.

The next books change the narrator

I loved this book and the narrator. I was tricked into buying the next book thinking it would be more of the same quality. I was wrong.

New Take

I will always give this book 5 stars! It is my favorite book series.

Light horror, not heavy; GREAT narrator match.

First - we some to audible often times hoping for a great narrator match to story, characters, environment. This match up delivers. Jon Grilz captures the essance of Gas Station Jack.
Second - The book delivers well on myst points of the summary (the racoons were a little light), so you are getting what you think you are getting. Entertaining but light on the horror side (which is great, I don't think I'd like this if it went any deeper in that space than it did).

TTFN,
happy reader