Deadlands: Ghostwalkers by Jonathan Maberry Narrator: Ray Porter
Published by Macmillan Audio on 22 September 2015
Length: 13 hrs and 52 mins
Genres: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Western, Zombie Apocalypse
Format: Audiobook
Source: Purchased
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Buy from Audible Buy from Amazon.comAdd to GoodreadsFrom New York Times best-selling author Jonathan Maberry, the first in a thrilling series of novels based on Deadlands, a hugely successful role-playing game (RPG) set in the Weird, Weird West.
Welcome to the Deadlands, where steely eyed gunfighters rub shoulders with mad scientists and dark, unnatural forces. Where the Great Quake of 1868 has shattered California into a labyrinth of sea-flooded caverns...and a mysterious substance called "ghost rock" fuels exotic steampunk inventions as well as plenty of bloodshed and flying bullets. In Ghostwalkers, a gun for hire, literally haunted by his bloody past, comes to the struggling town of Paradise Falls, where he becomes embroiled in a deadly conflict between the besieged community and a diabolically brilliant alchemist who is building terrible new weapons of mass destruction...and an army of the living dead! Deadlands is one of the most popular RPGs in history, with over a million Deadlands gaming books sold.
©2015 Visionary Comics, LLC (P)2015 Macmillan Audio
Ghostwalkers is book one in a planned three book tie-in to the Deadlands RPG games. And did they pick a great author to start if off. Jonathan Maberry is an exceptional storyteller, multiple Bram Stoker award winner, and a perfect fit for this world. Best known for his award winning Pine Deep Trilogy, as well as his Joe Ledger series and his YA zombie series, Rot & Ruin. I’ve listened to all of them and they’re all great. It wasn’t a question of if I would read this, but when. Especially when you consider Ray Porter is narrating.
Welcome to the Wild Weird West, “a country made for dying.” After The Great Quake in 1868; California has been shattered and released veins of a new, mysterious metal called Ghost Rock. Which is used in various steampunk weapons and gadgets, as well as some more devious uses that I will leave the reader to discover on their own.
Grey Torrance is running from ghosts as he sees a man being chased by six others. Torrance doesn’t like the odds and goes to help. He quickly discovers there’s more to the chase than meets the eye. As he’s – let’s say talking – with a couple from the group doing the chasing, he sees a blinding flash of blue light and quickly loses consciousness. When he comes to, he sees a man standing over him. This man, Thomas Looks Away, explains why he was being chased and what he’s trying to accomplish. After some entertaining dialogue, which Maberry is always good at writing, Looks Away hires Grey to help him save the people of a little town called Paradise Falls. After helping them reclaim their very own town well, Grey discovers what Ghost Rock can really do and it terrifies him. Looks Away and Torrance set out to stop the man responsible for this new hell, each obstacle more terrible and horrific than the last.
This was performed by Ray Porter, “‘Nuff said” as far as I’m concerned. However, the man deserves more than that. He is an exceptional narrator, and is at the top of his field. He has read everything from horror and thriller to fantasy and non-fiction, always delivering a great performance. This was no exception. Jonathan Maberry and Ray Porter’s chemistry is astounding, as if Porter can crawl into Jonathan’s mind and understand exactly how Maberry is hearing the words as he writes them. Listen to anything read by Ray Porter, the man is a force.
This has everything I wanted from it. It’s a Western, Fantasy-Horror weaved in such a way that it would be enjoyable for anyone who isn’t interested in any of those genres. It’s a story about a man who is haunted by guilt and grief trying to right past wrongs, and a group of people who just want their lives back. It’s filled with horror, heartache, determination, and love. Written by a man who understands the art of storytelling better than most, and performed by a man who’s voice talent is one of the top reasons I fell in love with audio books.
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About Ray Porter
I grew up in a small town in Indiana, got my B.F.A. in acting from CalArts and in 1990 went to work for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, Oregon.
I told my L.A. friends I’d be back in six months after I did “this theatre job”. I moved back to L.A. in 2008.
In the off seasons at OSF I would come to L.A. to do TV and Films. I started narrating at Blackstone Audio in 2007/2008. Since then I have been narrating for various audiobook publishers and love it.
My amazing wife is a costume designer for movies (I can’t tell you anything about her current project as assistant designer but Batman and Superman look great)and a six year old son who is brilliant (he’s doing his tutoring homework here at the table next to me and I needed to say that).
About Jonathan Maberry
JONATHAN MABERRY is a New York Times best-selling and multiple Bram Stoker Award-winning horror and thriller author, magazine feature writer, playwright, content creator and writing teacher/lecturer. His books have been sold to more than a dozen countries.
His novels include the Pine Deep Trilogy: GHOST ROAD BLUES (Pinnacle books; winner of the Bram Stoker Award for Best First Novel in 2006), DEAD MAN’S SONG (2007) and BAD MOON RISING (2008); the Joe Ledger series of action thrillers from St. Martin’s Griffin: PATIENT ZERO (2009, winner of the Black Quill and a Bram Stoker Award finalist for Best Novel), THE DRAGON FACTORY (2010; now available), THE KING OF PLAGUES (March 2011), ASSASSIN’S CODE (March 2012), EXTINCTION MACHINE (2013); THE WOLFMAN (NY Times bestseller from Tor, based on the Universal Pictures film starring Benecio Del Toro, Emily Blunt and Sir Anthony Hopkins; winner of the Scribe Award for Best Adaptation); the forthcoming standalone zombie thriller DEAD OF NIGHT (Oct 25 2011); and the Benny Imura series of Young Adult dystopian zombie thrillers from Simon & Schuster: ROT & RUIN (2011; named in Booklist’s Ten Best Horror Novels for Young Adults, a Bram Stoker and Pennsylvania Young Readers’ Choice Award finalist; winner of the Cybils Award, the Eva Perry Mock Printz medal, Dead Letter Best Novel Award, and four Melinda Awards), DUST & DECAY (Aug 30 2011), FLESH & BONE (2012) and FIRE & ASH (21013).
Jonathan was an expert on the History Channel documentary on zombies scheduled to air October 26.
His nonfiction works include: VAMPIRE UNIVERSE (Citadel Press, 2006), THE CRYPTOPEDIA (Citadel, 2007 –winner of the Bram Stoker Award for Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction; co-authored by David F. Kramer), ZOMBIE CSU: The Forensics of the Living Dead (Winner of the Hinzman and Black Quill Awards and nominated for a Stoker Award; 2008), THEY BITE! (2009 co-authored by David F. Kramer), WANTED UNDEAD OR ALIVE (2010; Bram Stoker nominee; co-authored by Janice Gable Bashman), and THE VAMPIRE SLAYERS FIELD GUIDE TO THE UNDEAD (2001, written under the pen name of Shane MacDougall).
He writes a variety of projects for Marvel Comics involving CAPTAIN AMERICA, BLACK PANTHER, DOOMWAR, WOLVERINE, DEADPOOL, THE X-MEN, FANTASTIC FOUR, the NY Times bestselling MARVEL ZOMBIES RETURN, MARVEL UNIVERSE vs THE PUNISHER and MARVEL UNIVERSE vs WOLVERINE. All of Jonathan’s comic book collections are released as Graphic Novel collections within a month or two of individual comic publication.
Recent short stories include “Pegleg and Paddy Save the World” (HISTORY IS DEAD, Permuted Press 2007), “Doctor Nine” (KILLERS, Swimming Kangaroo Press, 2008; and reprinted in THE STORIES (in) BETWEEN Edited by Greg Schauer, Jeanne B. Benzel, and W.H. Horner. Fantasist Enterprises, 2009), “Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Greenbrier Ghost” (LEGENDS OF THE MOUNTAIN STATE 2, Bloodletting Books, 2008), “Clean Sweeps” (AND SO IT BEGINS, Dark Quest Books, 2008), “Family Business” (THE NEW DEAD, St. Martin’s Press, 2010), “Like Part of the Family” (NEW BLOOD edited by Patrick Thomas and Diane Raetz, Padwolf Press, 2010), “Zero Tolerance” (THE LIVING DEAD 2, Night Shade Books), “Flint and Steel” (GI JOE: COBRA WARS, 2011), “Saint John”(THE MONSTER’S CORNER, 2011, St. Martin’s), “The Death Song of Dwar Guntha” (Under the Moons of Mars: New Adventures on Barsoom, 2012, Simon & Schuster), and “The Wind Through the Fence” (an original e-story available for all e-readers). His essay, “Take Me To Your Leader” will be included in the nonfiction book, TRIUMPH OF THE LIVING DEAD: Robert Kirkman’s Zombie Epic on Page and Screen edited by James Lowder (BenBella Books/Smart Pop, 2011).
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Twitter: BookLoversLife
OK, I’m sold!! This sounds epic. I must check out some of his other books as well. His Rot & Ruin series has been on my list for a while.
Twitter: LarryGraves51
Thanks for the well written review. I had this one in my “check out later” list but now I am about to go find it on Audible.
Awesome! Glad we could help.