The Last Conversation

Forward collection

De: Paul Tremblay

Narrado por: Steven Strait

Duración: 1 h y 45 m

Resumen del Editor

Audible narration by Steven Strait (The Expanse)

What’s more frightening: Not knowing who you are? Or finding out? A Bram Stoker Award-winning author explores the answer in a chilling story about identity and human consciousness.

Imagine you’ve woken up in an unfamiliar room with no memory of who you are, how you got there, or where you were before. All you have is the disconnected voice of an attentive caretaker. Dr. Kuhn is there to help you - physically, emotionally, and psychologically. She’ll help you remember everything. She’ll make sure you reclaim your lost identity. Now answer one question: Are you sure you want to?

Paul Tremblay’s The Last Conversation is part of Forward, a collection of six stories of the near and far future from out-of-this-world authors. Each piece can be read or listened to in a single thought-provoking sitting.

©2019 Paul Tremblay (P)2019 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Steven Strait’s dreamlike and at times mournful voice fully captures the protagonist’s disorientation, sadness, and increasingly desperate need for answers." --AudioFile magazine

"…A sensational project...." --Spine Magazine

“This is exactly how I like my techno-anxiety.... Happy bingeing!” --Audible, an October Editors Pick

Dystopia Beyond Pandemic! 4.25***** Spoiler Alert!

We met X being reawaken consciously, physically, and mentally for the umpteenth time, unbeknownst to us and him, and I had thoughts of ‘The Matrix’ initially. But instead I heard how man’s( woman’s) hubris through ignorance, pompous, and genetic manipulations, destroyed humans, which recently seems like a good thing in saving this planet for the other life forms that co-habitat with ‘us’. Was left with more questions than answers as I listened to this captivating, very short, Audible read! Hmmm!!
12/17/21- 12/17/21

hello Twilight zone!

Hello Twilight Zone! Author Paul Tremblay penned a short story that Rod Serling would be chasing. In the words of Rod “Imagine if you can, waking up and not knowing who you are or how you got where you are? Imagine not being able to see, to fade in and out of conscious. Furthermore, imagine being called “X” and being robotically cared for by a female who tells you to trust her, and she’ll help you remember everything. But something about that voice….

Tremblay is an excellent horror author, and he can write short stories as well. This is less than 2 hours and its solid creep. It was written prior to the global pandemic, making this even more creepy. I highly recommend it if you are a Twilight Zone fan!

interesting premise

There's a lot here that reminds me of an early work by John Varney. A quick entertaining story.

Tremblay never disappoints me

I loved it! The narrator was "near perfect" :) I am going to listen to most of the rest of the Forward stories now but Tremblay had to be first for me.

Interesting Ethical Quandary

The Last Conversation is the third of the six short stories in the Forward Collection assembled by Blake Crouch I've listened to. It is also the first time I've experienced Paul Tremblay as a science fiction author, and the experience was an interesting one.
I'm sure he's written other stories or books that have crossed into the science fiction territory, or at least I'd be surprised if he hasn't, but I've only been familiar with him as a horror author and occasionally as a dark fantasy author. This brief tale showcases his talent for wearing a variety of hats with efficacy.
It's a solid second-person narrative detailing the awakening of the protagonist in isolation to protect him from a global pandemic, while the only other person--seemingly still alive--coaxes them through restoring memories and physical capabilities. The story was ultimately predictable, but no less satisfying for the very predictability of it. It wasn't about telling us a new tale so much as providing a platform for the discussion of morality, humanity, the devastating combination of solitude and grief, and the ethics involved in cloning. In that sense, Tremblay packs a big punch into a small number of words. He utilizes and capitalizes on the elements of science fiction that have always been used by authors, the capacity to frame thought experiments in a fictional narrative that makes the philosophical subject matter more palatable and digestible for the readers (and sometimes the author).
The narration, performed by Steven Strait, is superb. Strait captures the stubborn resistance of the protagonist to being held captive--even if it is for his own good--as well as the sadness and pity that mingles with that oppositional nature as the truth of everything is revealed in the end.

Italian Cuisine, Anyone?

Stanley is not a great writer by any means but he sure does enjoy his food!

Not bad...

A man stuck in a nightmarish terror loop attempting to make sense of what he is experiencing and determining whether or not it is even reality. Add to that fear since he has no freedom and isn't sure if he's a prisoner or not, yet unable to do things, ask questions, or leave.

This was definitely an interesting book considering all the various epidemics we've been seeing over the last couple of decades and how quickly the variants change and infections spread. Throw in the advancement of scientific knowledge and technology... who knows what people may do in a given situation. 🤷‍♀️

This was a free download. If so, I would recommend it. 👍
📚📚📚

Not bad as a audiobook

I guessed the situation fairly early in the book. However, I still very much enjoyed getting there.

Listening on 1.25x makes this much better

Many reviewers seems to have an issue with the slogging pace of the narration and the fact that he doesn’t seem to differentiate character voices. After listening for a little under an hour I switched to 1.25x speed and was surprised to find that the pacing is much more natural and doesn’t really have a ‘speed-up’ quality. It also tends to create a very subtle differentiation between the two characters voices.

So sad

This one definitely touched on what someone might do if they could have the chance to recreate their loved one. It's scary at times what people do in the name of love. Enjoy the ride and reveal by the end.