Narrator

By: Landon Beach

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 14 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

By the time playwright and actor Shawn Frost had won two Tony Awards by his late 20s, he was seen as a theater prodigy—a meteoric rise that the performing arts community had not witnessed in almost a hundred years. His work? Shakespearean in scope, character, and popularity—boundless and beautiful. His own character? Flawed.

And in a place like New York City, where failings get magnified, Shawn Frost finds that, even from the heights of artistic sublimity, no one is insulated from the demons that have caused the best of entertainers to fall from grace.

After surviving an accident that almost costs him his life, Shawn leaves NYC and the theater for the quiet, picturesque Pacific cliffs of Carmel-by-the-Sea and starts a new life as an audiobook narrator. As he rises through the ranks, narrating bestseller after bestseller, Shawn Frost once again flirts with artistic immortality.

But. As his limitless skills emerge in the exploding arena of voice arts, so do his flaws.

Then, he experiences every audiobook narrator’s worst fear: He is kidnapped by two obsessed fans, determined to make Shawn perform their novel….
Or was he?

Don’t miss this one-of-a-kind psychological thriller from number one bestselling author Landon Beach.

©2022 Landon Beach (P)2022 Landon Beach

Critic reviews

“In my career, having reviewed over 1,200 novels, I can honestly say . . . I have never read anything quite like this. Think Misery meets Gone Girl. Landon Beach delivers a special, unforgettable, jaw-dropping reading experience that readers won't soon forget. Narrator is a masterpiece.” (The Real Book Spy)

Keeps you listening

I really enjoyed this listen. I also heard of it through Jack Care’s podcast and I’m so glad I listened. It was an original plot twist for sure. I love Scott Brick and enjoyed all the insight into the narrating world. It was so interesting to be a part of their world for a while. Jim Dale was the OG for me and have hardly read a book since. I prefer to listen and am so thankful for their art. I will be listening to more “Beach reads” for sure.

Eye Opening

I learned to understand the talent needed to be a “narrator “. Scott Brick made it interesting. He is my favorite narrator. Well worth the credit

Over the top great delicious wicked fun.

So implausible but so riveting and fun. The writing was terrific and no one could have done this like Scott Brick. His performance oozes drama and theater and suspense.

Thrilling meta-suspense

Look, as a narrator this was a shoo-in, and Mr. Brick's narration was impeccable as always. The denouement didn't quite work for me, but I was still rapt the whole time.

Just ok

I found this to be just an ok story. There were times when it was just too wordy for me. I did enjoy learning some of the processes of narrating.

Narrator Narrated

Narrator is a fantastic story about an audio book narrator getting captured. Or is it? This thriller will have you questioning things all the way through, never quite certain what really happened. I loved the performance and story both, and honestly my only criticisms are the little factoids about narration inserted into the story to sate interested readers' curiosity. In almost all cases, they don't feel natural. They feel like the direct answers to interview questions. Email responses or something. Even when these factoids are given out by the story's characters, it breaks the flow a little. Nevertheless, I really did love this story. It's 3 AM as I write this review, and that's because I just had to see it through to the end. You'll want to listen to Narrator narrated, as Scott Brick pruides a few little touches of his own. Enjoy!

Found this by the Jack Carr podcast

I am recent to liking the thriller genre (2+ years) and mostly from Jack Carr’s series. Since then I’ve gone deep on a few other series. That said, I am really impressed by the integration of the narrative with the means of delivery. The narrator lives up to its task, putting the listener in his shoes better than I’ve felt, kind of ever. Well done.

REALLY GREAT READ!!!

While this is a work of fiction, or is it? LOL! Shawn Frost opens our eyes to a world I never even thought about; Audible Narrators Awards, aka the Audies. I certainly have my favorites, but I never thought more into what their lives were like with regards to how they obtain their contracts, the measures they go through to prepare for the next read, how they're recognized for their works, or that they could be victims of obsessed fans. This was a fun ride with so many twists. Do not pass this gem of a read up!

A New Protagonist

If you listen to your books on Audible, this story might resonate with you like it did with me. Very clever plot and premise and the protagonist is a believable book narrator. And this book is narrated by Scott Brick; one of the best narrators ever. The several twists at the end are, well twists. When a book is hard to put down, we call it a "page turner". What do you call a book on Audible that you cannot turn off "_________"?

Great match of book and narrator!

Scott Brick, whom I’ve interviewed, is the perfect choice for Narrator, which posits a Misery situation Stephen King (an audiobook lover) would love. You learn the intricacies of voice acting while being told a suspense story similar to the viewpoint of Richard Chizmar in Chasing the Boogeyman. Using abrupt scene changes in a way that is adept and convey tension, combined with excellent writing of dialogue makes it a must-listen. It’s a long book, but you never feel that it was too long, especially if you are interested in the subject. The ways in which narrators prepare for reads is worked into the thriller plot in such a way that you would listen, even if you weren’t interested. Bravo to Landon for his idea and choice! I wish I knew how much Scott and other narrators contributed to the project.

The was an Audible plan purchase, and not something Scott knows about. The references to being in a dark place running out of food resonated with me because of my first novel, and the killers name was Calvin Beach to boot! I look forward to the author’s new series, read by Scott, and his follow up. Interviews by others about this book and more are on YouTube.