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Sign up todayBorne
The Borne Series: Book #1
Narrator
Bahni Turpin
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Length
12 hours 10 minutes
Language
English
In Borne, a young woman named Rachel survives as a scavenger in a ruined city half destroyed by drought and conflict. The city is dangerous, littered with discarded experiments from the Company―a biotech firm now derelict―and punished by the unpredictable predations of a giant bear. Rachel ekes out an existence in the shelter of a run-down sanctuary she shares with her partner, Wick, who deals his own homegrown psychoactive biotech.
One day, Rachel finds Borne during a scavenging mission and takes him home. Borne as salvage is little more than a green lump―plant or animal?―but exudes a strange charisma. Borne reminds Rachel of the marine life from the island nation of her birth, now lost to rising seas. There is an attachment she resents: in this world any weakness can kill you. Yet, against her instincts―and definitely against Wick’s wishes―Rachel keeps Borne. She cannot help herself. Borne, learning to speak, learning about the world, is fun to be with, and in a world so broken that innocence is a precious thing. For Borne makes Rachel see beauty in the desolation around her. She begins to feel a protectiveness she can ill afford.
But as Borne grows, he begins to threaten the balance of power in the city and to put the security of her sanctuary with Wick at risk. For the Company, it seems, may not be truly dead, and new enemies are creeping in. What Borne will lay bare to Rachel as he changes is how precarious her existence has been, and how dependent on subterfuge and secrets. In the aftermath, nothing may ever be the same.
Jeff VanderMeer is an award-winning novelist and editor. His fiction has appeared in the Library of America’s American Fantastic Tales and in multiple anthologies. His recent books have made the year’s best books lists of Publishers Weekly, San Francisco Chronicle, and Amazon.com.
Bahni Turpin has guest starred in many television series, including NYPD Blue, Law & Order, Six Feet Under, and Cold Case. Her film credits include Brokedown Palace and Crossroads. She has won numerous AudioFile Earphones Awards and three prestigious Audie Awards.
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Reviews
“Creepy and fascinating.”
“A thorough marvel.”
“Borne is VanderMeer’s trans-species rumination on the theme of parenting.”
“A story of loving self-sacrifice, hallucinatory beauty, and poisonous trust…[with] engrossing richness.”
“VanderMeer’s apocalyptic vision, with its mix of absurdity, horror, and grace, can’t be mistaken for that of anyone else. Inventive, engrossing, and heartbreaking.”
“May be the most beautifully written, and believable, post-apocalyptic tale in recent memory…VanderMeer…outdoes himself in this visionary novel.”
"Borne…represents a high-water mark in an ascendant strand of science fiction, one that looks with a sharp eye toward a near future of ecological calamity, chaos, and monumental ethical battles.”
“Turpin’s memorable performance highlights the outstanding world building, lyrical prose, authentic characters, and richly layered story line. Turpin’s clear and thoughtful reading guides listeners through the book’s complexities, clarifying language and ideas and revealing its heartfelt center: What does it mean to be human?”
“Narrator Bahni Turpin brings a haunting melancholy to VanderMeer’s enormous weird world, transforming what initially seems an outlandish dystopian tale into a deeply personal journey…Turpin…build[s] a palpable and audible bond between Rachel and Borne that makes this story gripping, unsettling, and thoroughly memorable.”
“Reading like a dispatch from a world lodged somewhere between science fiction, myth, and a video game…Something more than just weird fiction: weird literature.”
“VanderMeer marries bildungsroman, domestic drama, love story, and survival thriller into one compelling, intelligent story.”
“Superb: a protagonist and a tale sure to please fans of smart, literate fantasy and science fiction.”
“VanderMeer is at the top of his game here, offering readers lavish and smart world-building full of wondrous and creepy ideas.”
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