Hellhole

By: Brian Herbert, Kevin J Anderson

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Only the most desperate colonists dare to make a new home on Hellhole. Reeling from a recent asteroid impact, tortured with horrific storms, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, and churning volcanic eruptions, the planet is a dumping ground for undesirables, misfits, and charlatans…but also a haven for dreamers and independent pioneers.

Against all odds, an exiled general named Adolphus has turned Hellhole into a place of real opportunity for the desperate colonists who call the planet their home. While the colonists are hard at work developing the planet, General Adolphus secretly builds alliances with the leaders of the other Deep Zone worlds, forming a clandestine coalition against the tyrannical, fossilized government responsible for their exile.

What no one knows is this: the planet Hellhole, though damaged and volatile, hides an amazing secret. Deep beneath its surface lies the remnants of an obliterated alien civilization and the buried memories of its unrecorded past that, when unearthed, could tear the galaxy apart.

©2011 DreamStar, Inc., and WordFire, Inc. (P)2011 Audio Renaissance

Critic reviews

“This new space epic from the best-selling team of Herbert and Anderson is wide and complex…Audie Award winner Scott Brick's performance keeps the suspense elevated. Fear not, these authors will deliver the rest of the story on schedule. Fans of traditional sf fare will keep this, and future volumes, moving off the shelves.” —Library Journal, starred review

“[Scott Brick] manages to capture the fiery determination of exiled General Adolphus and the cold calculating cruelty of Diadem Michella while still allowing the listener's imagination to fill in the gaps. The book's many other viewpoint characters also find unique expression in Brick's capable hands…Hellhole manages to stand out as a science fiction novel that succeeds in all the areas that the genre should. It's cerebrally engaging, spiritually challenging, and yet emotionally powerful as a story in its own right. I'm very excited to find out what the next two volumes have in store.” —Azurescape

“[Brick] has a very versatile voice which is easy to listen to, bringing life to all the characters in his own special way…The dialogue is fast and furious, likewise the action, and it is a page-turner from start to finish. Space opera at its best…this audiobook is certainly recommended not just for its story but for the good quality reproduction of the narration. It's new and exciting and it will surely be well received.” —SFCrowsnest.com

kept falling asleep for ten last chapters.

Loved the story but I always set the timer for 30 minutes. kep falling asleep so had to keep looking for my place, but I finally stayed awake for the last chapters. it was great.

Cliff hanger alert!

They need to be much clearer that this is the first book in a series that is not even going to try and make it so it stands alone.

I personally think this is sloppy… you have to resolve “something” to make it satisfying.

hellhole

Great book but horrible ending. How many years do we need to wait to find out what happens. I hate authors that use this tactic. Give a little closure will you!!!!

great story

If you could sum up Hellhole in three words, what would they be?

Many twists and turns just what you would expect from Herbert and Anderson

What about Scott Brick’s performance did you like?

fantastic as usual

Dark pools

Well there's a lot of areas that need to be spoken about but overall I have to give it a good story even though they have slow in unexciting parts

Act One of Three

Hellhole is a wonderful character driven story that strives to match the imagination of Frank Herbert's Dune series. It many ways it succeeds but it is hampered by the intention to make a Hellhole trilogy with a cliffhanger steeper than any other I've seen in literature. If you're not expecting it you can easily feel cheated but taking the events of this first book as a vignet into a larger, continuous universe you can still come away with an appreciation for Hellhole. It's still a very rich novel and one that has been better contrstructed than some other collaborations between Anderson and the younger Herbert. Enjoy, but do keep in mind what you're getting into.

Yet another great Hellhole story.

A futuristic Napoleon fights to defeat a tyrannical monarchy. Great story with lots of intrigue, plots and schemes. This is a book series that both men and women will like. Scotts wonderful voice is like a perfectly paired wine to this meal of a book. Women's voices are believable and not overmodulated. Character voices are well done without going overboard. I highly recommend this series.

Buy it, great sy-fi book sieries!!

What did you love best about Hellhole?

The great depth to characters and story board. Nice universe they create here.

What other book might you compare Hellhole to and why?

DUNE is definitely has a slight infulnace with the hierarchy and political sides. But well done and totally new. Nice concepts and story telling.

What about Scott Brick’s performance did you like?

Yes, he is a good story teller, better than most.

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

no, I understand this questions intent. NO ABRIDGED BOOKS! Since fiction reads want all the authors details as he or she has laid them out. ONLY MAKE UNABRIDGED AUDIO BOOKS FOR SY-FI! thanks you, ill only purchase unabridged.

Any additional comments?

I have gotten spoiled with the STAR WARS line of books that has edited music and noise. All si-fi books should have edited sound effects.

First of a series

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

I enjoyed the story, but I hate it when the story ends with so many loose ends! I did not realize this was first of a series, but it was only published this year. Still, it would have been nice to know that this was the first installment. Being a long-time & devoted sci-fi/fantasy fan, I've got several story lines in progress & will be fine until the authors publish the next installment of the story. I like Scott Brick as well. Will probably watch for & get the next part, but will have to listen to the first part again to catch up.

Aweful narrator ...

Is there anything you would change about this book?

the narrator ... cruel, just cruel ... and more direct approach to the main story ...

Would you be willing to try another book from Brian Herbert and Kevin J Anderson ? Why or why not?

Yes. For most part I like B.H. an K.J.A. ... K.J.A.s Star Wars Books are awesome or T.S.7.S (Saga of the 7 Suns). The story of this book takes a long time to develop ... (a bit) too long for my taste ... I would say too many sidelines not enough spotlight on the main plot.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Scott Brick?

Yes. Scott Brick was good in Dune for the parts he did there ... but his narration of this book makes me cringe and I have to stop every hour and put up something else to listen to for a while.

Euan Morton, Michael Kramer or Marc Thompson would have done a much better job. Maybe Scott Brick does a better job while mixed with others together.

It could be that I only dislike his voice. But also the style of his narration leaves something to hope for. I can't describe it very well. Also the different personas are very hard to distinguish.

Did Hellhole inspire you to do anything?

Cry and hope for another narrator ...

Any additional comments?

I stopped listening half way through. I could not take it anymore. Sorry for my bad English. My first review. Criticism is more than welcome.