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Titan: A Tale of Cataclysmic Discovery Audiobook
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(3.01) - 694 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Master storyteller Ben Bova continues his multi-volume "Grand Tour" saga chronicling humanity's exploration of near space with TITAN, a fast-paced thriller focused on the first manned mission to the Solar System's most intriguing world. Skillfully blending high drama, passionate characters and daring speculation with the latest discoveries from the current Cassini/Huygens probe of Saturn's moon, Bova has crafted a heart-stopping tale of epic adventure on mankind's next frontier. The gigantic colony ship Goddard has at last made orbit around the ringed planet Saturn, carrying a volatile population of more than 10,000 dissidents, rebels, extremists and visionaries seeking a new life among the stars. Chief scientist Edouard Urbain's avowed mission is to study the enigmatic moon called Titan, which offers the tantalizing possibility that life may exist amid its windswept islands and chill black seas. But when the exploration vessel Titan Alpha mysteriously fails after reaching the moon's surface, long buried tensions surface among the colonists. Torn by political intrigue, suspicious accidents, and an awesome discovery that could threaten human space exploration, a handful of courageous men and women must fight for the survival of their colony, and the destiny of the human race.
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"the follow up to Saturn, a little bit slow in comparison to some of his other books, such as Jupiter but altogether very entertaining, i enjoyed it, another piece of the world of the conquest and settling of the solar system"
— Rokamasch (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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Veteran sci-fi scribe Bova nails our current society on the head with this futuristic fable. Wisely cast with a skilled group of readers…. Well acted, grippingly and wittily written, Saturn runs rings around most Sci-Fi.
— AudioFile magazine on SATURN
Awards
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Winner of the 2007 John W. Campbell Memorial Award
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Winner of John W. Campbell Memorial Award - Winner, 2007
Titan Listener Reviews
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" What can I say? I've been a fan of Mr. Bova for years and always have a good fun with his books of The Grand Tour. "
— Dado, 2/13/2014 -
" Titan is a nice addition to Ben Bova's Grand Tour of the Solar System series. It stands well on its own and its plot grows out of what came before it. Bova's prose is good but not great and his plot and characters are a bit flat. But as near-future sci-fi it is compelling, barely 90 years into the future. Our own solar system is envisioned as a very rich and fertile place and the science isn't too far our of reach making it beleivable and compelling. Also making it even more belivable and compelling is the social and historical setting that could be growing out of our own present; ultra-powerful multinational corporations versus globally organized religious fundamentalists versus reactionary scientists. Unfortunately it takes reading more than one of his books from the grand tour to really grasp the socio-political dynamic. It is all pretty good fun. "
— Brian, 12/28/2013 -
" A bit of a soap opera, but it all came together nicely in the end. "
— Athos, 12/28/2013 -
" There might not really be anything less enjoyable about this book than others in Bova's planets series, but... the same characters again... It just wears thin for me, with some unbelievable drama going on in space too. I also found the AI situation of the robotic craft unbelievable. The most intriguing aspect of the book is only a teaser: the dark life forms which evidently live in Titan's oceans, yet which we never really find out about in this text. Had that part of the plot been developed then the book might have been worth a lot more. I suspect, however, that with Bova's emphasis on "hard science" that he just couldn't find it worthwhile to develop an alien life form concretely enough to satisfy readers' fantasies. If you want alien life, read Clarke or one of the others. Here, it's like Nessie in Loch Ness - it might be there, it might not, but we don't really ever find out what's down there. For an earlier and better book involving Titan's seas try R.A. Lupoff's Galaxy's End. "
— Mark, 12/11/2013 -
" Ben Bova is one of the best scifi writers and this book is excellent reading "
— Philip, 12/7/2013 -
" Saturn continues, to land a stunt man on Titan "
— Drew, 11/16/2013 -
" Solid Bova, probably better read as part of the 'ghrand Tour' cycle. I enjoyed it as I have many other books by the same author, but nothing new here. "
— Caer, 9/18/2013 -
" Good read. The story reminded me of a somewhat realistic twist to B5. The maligned look at faith and morals was disagreeable but I understand the narrow field of vision that most scientist hold. Claiming to regard only the facts they often choose which of those facts to believe and which to dismiss. "
— Martin, 8/23/2013 -
" Great ideas and a generally decent story, but sunk a little by some routine characterisations. The good outweighs the bad (and the cliched). Makes an interesting comparison read with Stephen Baxter's book of the same name. "
— Peter, 9/4/2011 -
" Another road trip audio. Lots of characters for one reader made it tricky but fun. Light but thought provoking scifi. I enjoyed listening. "
— Billie, 7/27/2011 -
" i really liked this one, if i told you how much i liked it id end up giving spoilers away "
— Christopher, 8/10/2009 -
" another of the grand tour of the universe series. "
— Randy, 2/10/2007 -
" 10,000 people living in a spaceship orbiting Saturn. A good, solid SF book. "
— Kate, 11/13/2006 -
" I'm officially off Titan. What a slow and agonizing book. "
— Ryan, 8/25/2006 -
" Another great sci-fi book that makes you feel like you are there. I love that there is always drama and a mystery going on too. "
— Heidi, 8/15/2006
About Ben Bova
Ben Bova (1932–2020), American author of more than one hundred books of science fact and fiction, was awarded posthumously the Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award. His work earned six Hugo Awards. He received the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Arthur C. Clarke Foundation in 2005, and his novel Titan won the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for the best science fiction novel of 2006. In his early career, he was a technical editor for Project Vanguard, the United States’s first effort to launch a satellite into space in 1958. He then was a science writer for Avco Everett Research Laboratory, which built the heat shields for the Apollo 11 module. He held the position of president emeritus of the National Space Society and served as president of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.
About the Narrators
Stefan Rudnicki first became involved with audiobooks in 1994. Now a Grammy-winning audiobook producer, he has worked on more than five thousand audiobooks as a narrator, writer, producer, or director. He has narrated more than nine hundred audiobooks. A recipient of multiple AudioFile Earphones Awards, he was presented the coveted Audie Award for solo narration in 2005, 2007, and 2014, and was named one of AudioFile’s Golden Voices in 2012.
Stephen Hoye has worked as a professional actor in London and Los Angeles for more than thirty years. Trained at Boston University and the Guildhall in London, he has acted in television series and six feature films and has appeared in London’s West End. His audiobook narration has won him fifteen AudioFile Earphones Awards.
Gabrielle de Cuir, award-winning narrator, has narrated over three hundred titles and specializes in fantasy, humor, and titles requiring extensive foreign language and accent skills. She was a cowinner of the Audie Award for best narration in 2011 and a three-time finalist for the Audie and has garnered six AudioFile Earphones Awards. Her “velvet touch” as an actor’s director has earned her a special place in the audiobook world as the foremost producer for bestselling authors and celebrities.