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Inferno Audiobook
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(3.01) - 2,577 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
An unearthly voice hisses unholy welcome, and the late, great Allen Carpentier begins his one-way journey into the dim nether regions where flame-colored demons wield diabolically sharp pitchforks and tormented vixens reign forever in a pond of sheet ice. Here, in this land of torment and terror, he discovers the amazing truth of the ultimate adventure that lies beyond the grave.
After being thrown out of the window of his luxury apartment, science fiction writer Allen Carpentier wakes to find himself at the gates of Hell. Feeling he’s landed in a great opportunity for a book, he attempts to follow Dante’s road map. Determined to meet Satan himself, Carpentier treks through the nine circles of Hell, led by Benito Mussolini, and encounters countless mental and physical tortures. As he struggles to escape, he’s taken through new, puzzling, and outlandish versions of sin recast for the present day.
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"A retelling of Dante's Inferno from a deceased science fiction writers perspective with updated sins and punishments. What's not to like. Probably not the greatest book, but having read it decades ago, some of the scenes in this book still flash back to me occasionally."
— Jeffrey (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“Tom Weiner adopts a gruff, cocky, and impatient manner for Carpentier. His strong pace is effective in depicting Carpentier’s arrogance and the extent to which that arrogance is modulated as he moves through his journey and develops a fondness for Mussolini. The residents of hell whom Carpentier encounters illustrate various sins relevant to the twentieth century. Weiner relies on a range of expressive accents in portraying them.”
— AudioFile -
“A dazzling tour de force.”
— Poul Anderson, Hugo and Nebula Award–winning author -
“A fast, amusing, and vivid book, by a writing team noted for intelligence and imagination.”
— Roger Zelazny, Hugo and Nebula Awardwinning author -
“Inferno is quite literally a cake walk through hell…Pournelle and Niven have had the chutzpah to re-write Dante’s Inferno…You are right there in the nether-reaches of the ultimate Sam Peckinpah movie with all the matter-of-fact solidity of a Hal Clement novel. It gets to you, it really does. This being lunacy of a transcendent order.”
— Norman Spinrad, Prix Apollo–winning science fiction writer
Awards
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Finalist for the 1976 Hugo Award for Best Novel
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Nominated for the 1977 Nebula Award for Best Novel
Inferno Listener Reviews
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" I must say that I loved this book. This is was a great modern version of Dante's Inferno. It was a little slow to start, but all in all a good read. This book appeals to all kinds of readers and definitely appealed to this one. Read it, the book deserves a shot. "
— Edan, 1/18/2014 -
" Not to be confused with the classic, this is a book that is in fact a total ripoff of the aforementioned story with the added bonus of a dash of bigotry and homophobia. Awesome! "
— Amanda, 1/16/2014 -
" This book was a very Catholic approach to Hell. The author used Dante's book as a bible to get the main character out of Hell. There was no repentance. There was no sacrifice, just a man looking over his life, comparing himself to other people and traveling deeper into Hell to find the way out. Not a very biblical understanding at all. "
— Stephen, 1/11/2014 -
" 3 stars. A solid modern journey through Dante's Inferno. I recently read its sequel, "Escape from Hell" and comparing the two works - I believe several improvements were made between the two. "Escape from Hell" is more of a philosophical work, exploring the role of morals, motives, religion, and consequence as applicable to modernity. "
— Scott, 1/9/2014 -
" ONe of my favourites, no good reason really, impressionable age when I read it, great concept "
— John, 12/24/2013 -
" Awesome. Cynical, sardonic and sharp and a great tale. "
— carl, 12/24/2013 -
" Amusing light read. A science fiction writer trying to rationalize his journey through Dante's Inferno. "
— Luke, 12/20/2013 -
" I returned to this (having read it serialized in Galaxy magazine when it first came out back in the 70's) after reading Dante. It was fun, as I remembered, and a little corny/dated, and surprising Universalist! I'll be reading the sequel coming up (Escape from Hell) in February 2009. "
— Rod, 12/12/2013 -
" I thought it was a pretty interesting quick read. I liked the ideas and made me really interested in reading Dante's Infereno. "
— Krista, 12/10/2013 -
" An interesting "adaptation" of Dante's Inferno. I actually enjoyed it much more than its namesake. "
— Mark, 12/9/2013 -
" A modern retelling of Dante's Inferno: a scifi writer is accompanied by an Italian guide; as they visit the circles of Hell and see how the sins and corresponding tortures have been updated. Reasonably entertaining, but not their (Niven/Pournelle) best work. "
— Tracey, 12/7/2013 -
" A strange combination of amusing and harrowing. Carpentier's attachment to his Infernoland amusement park theory got a little old, but I can kind of understand why you would cling to something with rules you understood. "
— Sarah, 12/6/2013 -
" This book is funny! Very entertaining! "
— Foxtower, 11/30/2013 -
" Niven gives such detailed accounts combined with pockets of humor and action that I was lost in this book for long periods of time. Great adventure! "
— Chuck, 11/30/2013 -
" Re-read this at least once a year. "
— Matt, 5/13/2013 -
" Just AWESOME!!!!! "
— Jay, 4/27/2013 -
" Very interesting twist on Dante's Inferno. Really enjoyed it! "
— Vicky, 12/21/2012 -
" This is one of the most inspirational books that I have ever read. I loved it, and I would read it again. "
— Matthew, 9/24/2012 -
" One of my all-time favorite books. Have read it often through the years. "
— Timwarp, 8/7/2012 -
" Pretty good parody of Dante. I enjoyed it. "
— Jerry, 7/14/2012 -
" Very entertaining revision of Dante's classic. Written in 1976, this apparently caused quite a stir back then, but many of Niven's fresh ideas have dulled since. Still very creative and imaginative and leaves the reader wondering who is better: Benito Mussolini or a science fiction writer? "
— Lyn, 12/27/2011 -
" This was a somewhat fun book. It's the typical buddy road trip plot, but through hell. "
— Marcus, 2/22/2011 -
" Very interesting twist on Dante's Inferno. Really enjoyed it! "
— Vicky, 11/29/2010 -
" Well written twist using enough of Dante and enough modern religion. I think I would have liked it more if I had not been sick when reading part of it. "
— Chris, 11/11/2010 -
" This is one of the most inspirational books that I have ever read. I loved it, and I would read it again. "
— Matthew, 11/11/2010 -
" One of the books that "The Towering Inferno" movie was based. During the early 1970s there were a lot of disaster movies. None of them were worthy contenders for Oscars, to say the least. "
— Dave, 10/21/2010 -
" Nothing mindblowing, but a good reinterpretation of Dante's Inferno (1976), with Benito Mussolini as guide. Does make you stop and think as the characters journey, and is a decent adventure. Worth a read. "
— Nick, 10/2/2010 -
" I loved this in 1987 when I read it in my Dante elective with Tom Hungerford. It didn't really hold up when I read it later but really I don't care. I just have the memory of my teenage delight. "
— Andrea, 9/8/2010 -
" Amusing light read. A science fiction writer trying to rationalize his journey through Dante's Inferno. "
— Luke, 8/22/2010 -
" Interesting spin on the classic tale, but nothing magical. "
— Justin, 6/23/2010 -
" Writing is hell, but going there is worth it when you can tell a story like this. "
— Matt, 5/29/2010
About the Authors
Larry Niven is the multiple Hugo, Locus, and Nebula Award–winning author of science fiction short stories and novels, including the Ringworld series, as well as many other science fiction masterpieces. His Footfall, coauthored with Jerry Pournelle, was a New York Times bestseller.
Jerry Pournelle (1933–2017) was an American science fiction writer, essayist, and journalist who contributed for many years to the computer magazine Byte. He wrote the popular Janissaries and CoDominium series and was the coauthor of several bestselling science fiction novels, including Lucifer’s Hammer, The Mote in God’s Eye, and the New York Times bestseller Footfall. He had advanced degrees in engineering, political science, statistics, and psychology and, in addition to his career as a fiction writer, had for many years written columns on both politics and technology.
About Tom Weiner
Tom Weiner, a dialogue director and voice artist best known for his roles in video games and television shows such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Transformers, is the winner of eight Earphones Awards and is an Audie Award finalist. He is a former member of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.