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The Luminous Dead cover art

The Luminous Dead

By: Caitlin Starling
Narrated by: Adenrele Ojo
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Publisher's Summary

"This claustrophobic, horror-leaning tour de force is highly recommended for fans of Jeff VanderMeer’s Annihilation and Andy Weir’s The Martian." (Publishers Weekly)

A thrilling, atmospheric debut with the intensive drive of The Martian and Gravity and the creeping dread of Annihilation, in which a caver on a foreign planet finds herself on a terrifying psychological and emotional journey for survival.

When Gyre Price lied her way into this expedition, she thought she’d be mapping mineral deposits and that her biggest problems would be cave collapses and gear malfunctions. She also thought that the fat paycheck - enough to get her off-planet and on the trail of her mother - meant she’d get a skilled surface team, monitoring her suit and environment, keeping her safe. Keeping her sane.

Instead, she got Em.

Em sees nothing wrong with controlling Gyre’s body with drugs or withholding critical information to “ensure the smooth operation” of her expedition. Em knows all about Gyre’s falsified credentials and has no qualms using them as a leash - and a lash. And Em has secrets, too....

As Gyre descends, little inconsistencies - missing supplies, unexpected changes in the route, and worst of all, shifts in Em’s motivations - drive her out of her depths. Lost and disoriented, Gyre finds her sense of control giving way to paranoia and anger. On her own in this mysterious, deadly place, surrounded by darkness and the unknown, Gyre must overcome more than just the dangerous terrain and the Tunneler that calls underground its home if she wants to make it out alive - she must confront the ghosts in her own head.

But how come she can’t shake the feeling she’s being followed?

©2019 Caitlin Starling (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers

What listeners say about The Luminous Dead

Average Customer Ratings
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  • Overall
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    5 out of 5 stars

Utterly enthralling

I could hardly stop listening to this one. It was superb, and I genuinely felt every ounce of terror and confusion that Gyre felt when she was cut off from Em. Fantastic writing from Ms Starling, and wonderful performance by Ms Ojo.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

not my type of book

very repetitive... sometimes boring... sometime annoying...definitely not my type of book. Extremely descriptive!!! Gyre is emotionally dysregulated and has some kind of reactive attachment.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Great concepts weighed down by doughy writing.

Ojo has a beautiful voice, but like many narrators, falls into a distracting singsong rhythm.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Best Thriller/Horror Story

I loved the overall story. The details of the sci-fi world made it so interesting to listen to. The voice actor realllly bring this story to life. I don’t think I would of enjoyed it as much if I just read the book myself. She does an amazing job of voice all the characters and puts so much emotion into it. Absolutely fantastic story and dramatic reading.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Different but good

Was not what I expected, I was expecting more about the cave creatures, saying that I really enjoyed it. You could really feel the connections made between the characters. Great portrayal of feelings/emotions. Great narration. Would recommend the book

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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5 stars

Think gothic in space. Think a haunted house in another planet's unexplored caves. It's character-driven and psychologically paced. It's not for everyone but, damn, it works for me!

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
  • Ben
  • 22-09-2023

Not for me

Slow, very repetitive, and both characters motivations seem very far-fetched.
You'd think in a novel with only 2 characters, The narrator could do a different voice for each, but no. Also she puts emphasis on odd words.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Loved the plot of this

In some bits it got boring but the plot was amazing and I would love a second book

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
  • Rob
  • 27-08-2020

Not for guys

I thought I was getting a sci fi thriller, what I got was hours of 'I love you, I hate you'. I hope I never meet anyone as messed up as these two characters.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Absolutely tedious

I love horror sci-fi. But this was like teenage therapy session meets black caving out in a distant planet with main characters with all the resilience of a sun dried tomatoe. Bloody aweful.

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