Science Fiction and Fantasy 3
Talking Books
The titles in this booklist are just a selection of the titles available for loan from the RNIB National Library Talking Book Service.
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Science Fiction
The mammoth book of vintage science fiction. 1990. Read by Multiple narrators, 23 hours 4 minutes. TB 10306.
In the 1970s science fiction finally took centre stage in the culture of both Britain and America. This kaleidoscope of the very best science fiction comes from a brilliant decade for the genre. TB 10306.
Abnett, Dan
The story of Martha. 2009. Read by Freema Agyeman, 5 hours 13 minutes. TB 17124.
Doctor Who. For a year, while the Master ruled over the Earth, Martha Jones travelled the world telling people stories about the Doctor. She told people of how the Doctor has saved them before, and how he will save them again. This story tells of Martha's travels from her arrival on Earth as the Toclafane attacked and decimated the population through to her return to Britain to face the Master. TB 17124.
Adams, Douglas
Mostly harmless. 1992. Read by Stephen Thorne, 6 hours 23 minutes. TB 9766.
Hitch-hikers guide to the galaxy series; book 5. Sequel to: So long, and thanks for all the fish, TB 5483. Much as Arthur would love to stay in his rural sandwich- making idyll, he is forced to set off on his travels again, this time on the back of a mysterious Perfectly Normal Beast. Can he save the Earth from total destruction, and the Guide from a hostile alien takeover? Can he save the Grebulons from completely myopic junked-up idiocy? Can he save his daughter Random from herself? Of course not! He never even works out what is going on exactly. Will you? TB 9766.
Alcock, Vivien
The monster garden. 1988. Read by Brigit Forsyth, 3 hours 1 minutes. TB 7930.
The day Frances Stein, (nicknamed Frankie), acquired some living tissue from the genetic engineering laboratory, was the day her life changed. Her experiment was a great success, but she would have to keep it a secret to protect her monster, which would not be easy if Monnie continued to grow so rapidly. Age 13+. TB 7930.
Anderson, Kevin J
Hellhole. 2010. Read by Michael FitzPatrick, 19 hours 39 minutes.TB 18635.
Only the most desperate would ever dare to make a new home on Hellhole, a planet ravaged by natural disasters. Persistent volcanic eruptions, destructive storms and recent damage inflicted by asteroid impact make the planet a dumping ground for undesirables, misfits and charlatans. But its location out on the wild frontiers of the Constellation, among the Deep Zone worlds, makes it the final refuge for those fleeing from the rule of Diadem Michella Duchenet - a tyrant with a sweet face, but a dark and heardened heart. General Adolphus, the military leader exiled to the planet when he was defeated in the first revolution against the Diadem, is determined to transform Hellhole into a place of opportunity. While the colonists are diligently working to develop the planet, the General is forging secret alliances with the leaders of the other Deep Zone worlds. He dreams of turning his prison into the centre of a new coalition of planets free from the Diadem's iron grip. Back on the decadent capital planet of Sonjeera, surrounded by corruption and consumed by the plots and feuds of the old guard nobles, Diadem Michella is confident that the General has been neutralized. She has no idea of the revolt growing in the Deep Zone or does she? TB 18635.
Anghelides, Peter
Pest control; and The forever trap. 2010. Read by David Tennant and Katherine Tate, 4 hours 48 minutes. TB 18281.
Doctor Who. In Pest Control the Doctor and Donna find themselves in the thick of trouble on a distant planet, where soldiers transform into monstrous beetles, and everyone falls under the threat of a huge, mechanical exterminator. In The Forever Trap the Doctor and Donna find themselves trapped on the Edifice, a purpose-built complex of luxury apartments in space. Who or what lies at the heart of the complex, and what is eating away the Edifice itself? TB 18281.
Asimov, Isaac
Foundation and earth. 1994. Read by Jon Cartwright, 15 hours 37 minutes. TB 16064.
Foundation series; book 5. Sequel to: Foundation's edge. TB 10247. All records of Earth have been removed systematically from the libraries of Foundation worlds. Now Councilman Golan Trevize and Professor Janov Pelorat traverse the galaxy in search of humanity's ancestral planet. The space travellers find allies - and Pelorat finds a lover named Bliss. As they near their destination, Bliss picks up thought waves of intelligent beings. What she cannot tell is whether or not those beings are human. TB 16064.
Atwood, Margaret
The year of the flood. 2009. Read by Lorelei King, 12 hours 49 minutes. TB 17128.
Adam One, the kindly leader of the God's Gardeners - a religion devoted to the melding of science and religion, the preservation of all species, the tending of the Earth, and the cultivation of bees and organic crops on flat rooftops - has long predicted the Waterless Flood. Now it has occurred, obliterating most human life. Two women have avoided it: the young trapeze-dancer, Ren and former SecretBurgers meat-slinger turned Gardener, Toby, barricaded into the luxurious AnooYoo Spa, where many of the treatments are edible. Meanwhile, in the natural world, gene-spliced life forms are proliferating: the lion/lamb blends, the Mo'hair sheep with human hair, the pigs with human brain tissue. As Adam One and his intrepid hemp-clad band make their way through a ruined world, singing their devotional hymns and faithful to their creed, what odds for Ren and Toby, and for the human race? TB 17128.
Banks, Iain M
The use of weapons. 1992. Read by Jonathan Hackett, 16 hours 48 minutes. TB 16143.
The culture series; book 3. Sequel to: The player of games, TB 15592. The man known as Cheradenine Zakalwe was one of Special Circumstances' foremost agents, changing the destiny of planets to suit the Culture through intrigue, dirty tricks or military action. The woman known as Diziet Sma had plucked him from obscurity and pushed him towards his present eminence, but despite all their dealings she did not know him as well as she thought. The drone known as Skaffen-Amtiskaw knew both of these people. It had once saved the woman's life by massacring her attackers in a particularly bloody manner. It believed the man to be a burnt-out case. But not even its machine intelligence could see the horrors in his past. Contains strong language and passages of a sexual nature. TB 16143.
Banks, Iain M
The state of the art. 1993. Read by Jonathan Hackett, Read by Jeff Harding, Read by Carolyn Bonnyman, 7 hours 16 minutes. TB 17420.
The culture series; book 4. A collection of short stories by Iain Banks, ranging from science fiction to horror, dark-coated fantasy to morality tale and includes the science fiction novella - The State of the Art. Contains strong language. TB 17420.
Banks, Iain M
Excession. 1997. Read by Matt Williamson, 17 hours 30 minutes. TB 18349.
The culture series; book 5. More than two millennia ago the appearance -- and disappearance -- of a star older than the universe caused quite a stir. Now the mystery is back, and the key to solving it lies in the mind of the person who witnessed the first disturbance 2,500 years ago. But she's dead, and getting her to cooperate may not be altogether easy. Contains strong language. TB 18349. Also available: books 6, 7 and 8 in the series.
Bear, Greg
Hull zero three. 2011. Read by John Chancer, 9 hours 49 minutes. TB 18560.
A starship hurtles through the emptiness of space. Its destination - unknown. Its purpose? A mystery. Its history? Lost. Now, one man wakes up. Ripped from a dream of a new home, a new planet and the woman he was meant to love in his arms, he finds himself wet, naked, and freezing to death. The dark halls are full of monsters but trusting other survivors he meets might be the greater danger. All he has are questions: Who is he? Where are they going? What happened to the dream of a new life? What happened to the woman he loved? What happened to Hull 03? All will be answered, if he can survive. Uncover the mystery. Fix the ship. Find a way home. Contains strong language. TB 18560.
Bidmead, Christopher H
Doctor Who, Frontios.1985. Read by Beth Chalmers, 4 hours 33 minutes. TB 16967.
Doctor Who. The Tardis has drifted far into the future and comes to rest hovering over Frontios, refuge of one group of survivors from Earth who have escaped the disintegration of their home planet. The Tardis is forced down by what appears to be a meteorite storm, and crash-lands, leaving the Doctor and his companions marooned on the hope-forsaken planet. TB 16967.
Bidmead, Christopher H
Castrovalva. 2010. Read by Peter Davison, 3 hours 56 minutes. TB 19062.
Doctor Who. Still weak and confused after his fourth regeneration, the Doctor retreats to Castrovalva to recuperate. But Castrovalva is not the haven of peace and tranquility the Doctor and his companions are seeking. Far from being able to rest quietly, the unsuspecting time-travellers are caught up once again in the evil machinations of the Master. Only an act of supreme self-sacrifice will enable them to escape the maniacal lunacy of the renegade Time Lord. TB 19062.
Bidmead, Christopher H
Logopolis. 2010. Read by Christopher H Bidmead, 4 hours 18 minutes. TB 19061.
Doctor Who. On a trip to the normally quiet little planet, Logopolis, brings the Doctor up against his arch-enemy, The Master, whose meddling presence ensures the disruption of normality. TB 19061.
Chabon, Michael
The Yiddish Policemen's Union. 2008. Read by William Roberts, 14:52. TB 16237.
For sixty years Jewish refugees and their descendants have prospered in the Federal District of Sitka. Now, after sixty years of federal neglect, the District is set to revert to Alaskan control, and their dream is coming to an end. But homicide detective Meyer Landsman has enough problems without worrying about the upcoming Reversion. And then someone's got the nerve to commit a murder in the flophouse Landsman calls home and he has to investigate. Contains strong language. TB 16237.
Chilton, Charles
Journey into space. 2008. Read by William Hope, 7 hours 5 minutes. TB 16419.
This is an unabridged reading of Charles Chilton's successful radio series. Jet Morgan, ace pilot, is captain of the rocket-ship Luna. No adventurers have faced greater hazards than Jet and his crew as they head for the moon. TB 16419.
Colfer, Eoin
And another thing-- . 2009. Read by Keith Hill, 10 hours 53 minutes. TB 17183.
Hitch-hikers guide to the galaxy series; book 6. Sequel to: Mostly harmless, TB 9766. Arthur Dent's accidental association with that wholly remarkable book The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy has not been entirely without incident. Arthur has travelled the length, breadth and depth of known, and unknown, space. He has stumbled forwards and backwards through time. Arthur has, though, finally made it home to Earth. But that does not mean he has escaped his fate. For Arthur's chances of getting his hands on a decent cuppa are evaporating along with the world's oceans. Because no sooner has he arrived than he finds out that Earth is about to be blown up again. TB 17183.
Collins, Suzanne
The Hunger Games. 2009. Read by Julie Rogers, 10 hours 30 minutes. TB 17745.
Hunger Games trilogy; book 1. In a future North America, where the rulers of Panem maintain control through an annual televised survival competition pitting young people from each of the twelve districts against one another, sixteen-year-old Katniss's skills are put to the test when she voluntarily takes her younger sister's place. Age 15+. TB 17745.
Cotton, Donald
Doctor Who, the myth makers. 2008. Read by Stephen Thorne, 4 hours 3 minutes. TB 17517.
Doctor Who. Long, long ago on the great plains of Asia Minor, two mighty armies faced each other in mortal combat. The armies were the Greeks and the Trojans, and the prize they were fighting for was Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world. To the Greeks, it seemed that the city of Troy was impregnable and only a miracle could bring them success. And then help comes to them in a most mysterious way, as a strange blue box materialises close to their camp, bringing with it the Doctor, Steven and Vicki, who soon find themselves caught up in the irreversible tide of history and legend. TB 17517.
Crispin, A C
Sarek. 2010. Read by Nick Sullivan, 14 hours 43 minutes. TB 18719.
Star trek. Spock's mother is dying and Spock returns to the planet Vulcan where he and his father Sarek enjoy a rare moment of rapprochement. But as his wife's illness grows worse, duty calls Sarek away, once again sowing the seeds of conflict between father and son. TB 18719.
Daly, Wally K
The ultimate evil. 1989. Read by Wally K Daly, 4 hours 28 minutes. TB 17077.
Doctor Who. One of the missing episodes from BBC series. With the Tardis working perfectly the Doctor and Peri find themselves at something of a loose end. A holiday in Tranquela, a peace-loving country where there has been no war for over fifty years, seems the ideal solution. Unfortunately their visit coincides with that of an unscrupulous arms dealer - the Machiavellian Dwarf Mordant. TB 17077.
Dickinson, Peter
The weathermonger. 1968. Read by David Rider, 4 hours 15 minutes. TB 4845.
Changes trilogy; book 1. A story set in the near future: England has reverted to the ideas of the Middle Ages. People are afraid of machines and those who still use them are pursued as witches. Age 13+. TB 4845.
Dickinson, Peter
Heartsease. 1969. Read by David Strong, 6 hours 1 minute. TB 2577.
Changes trilogy; book 2. In an England where all machines are thought to be wicked, Lucy, Margaret and Jonathon manage to escape from the farm where they live with the help of their American friend. TB 2577.
Dickinson, Peter
The Devil's Children. 1972. Read by Chetan Pathak, 4 hours 24 minutes. TB 19193.
Changes trilogy; book 3. "The Devil's Children" is about the very beginning of the Changes. In the panicky flight from London, a twelve-year-old girl, Nicky Gore, has become separated from her London family. Lonely, frightened and desperate, she attaches herself to a band of Sikh immigrants, who are somehow unaffected by the Changes. At first they are reluctant to take her with them, but they soon discover that she is as essential to them as they are to her. TB 19193.
Dicks, Terrance
Doctor Who and the terror of the Autons. 2011. Read by Geoffrey Beevers, 3 hours 54 minutes. TB 18627.
Doctor Who. The evil Master leered at the Doctor, and triumphantly pointed out of the cabin window. The many-tentacled Nestene monster - spearhead of the second Auton invasion of Earth - crouched beside the radio tower! Part crab, part spider, part octopus, its single huge eye blazed with alien intelligence and deadly hatred. Can the Doctor outwit his rival Time Lord, the Master, and save the Earth from the Nestene horror? TB 18627.
Dicks, Terrance
Doctor Who and the face of evil. 1978. Read by Louise Jameson, 3 hours 22 minutes. TB 18135.
Setting the controls for earth, the Doctor is surprised when the Tardis lands in a primeval forest. He meets Leela, a warrior banished from her tribe, and must do battle with the all-powerful computer Xoanon, which assumes the voice and form of the Doctor. He must also escape the savagery of the Sevateem tribe, and the mind-controlling, destructive impulses of the Tesh. TB 18135.
Dicks, Terrance
Doctor Who and the Brain of Morbius. 2008. Read by Tom Baker, 3 hours 57 minutes. TB 18410.
Why do so many spaceships crashland on Karn, a bleak, lonely and seemingly deserted planet? Are they doomed by the mysterious powers of the strange, black-robed Sisterhood? Can the Doctor find out? TB 18410.
Dicks, Terrance
Doctor Who and the Giant Robot. 2008. Read by Tom Baker, 3 hours 43 minutes. TB 18499.
Doctor Who. 'Look, Brigadier! It's growing!' screamed Sarah. The Brigadier stared in amazement as the Robot began to grow and grow swelling to the size of a giant! Slowly the metal colossus, casting its enormous shadow upon the surrounding trees and buildings, began to stride towards the Brigadier. A giant metal hand reached down to grasp him. Can Doctor Who defeat the evil forces controlling the Robot before they execute their plans to blackmail - or destroy - the world? TB 18499.