The Long Sunset

By: Jack McDevitt

Narrated by: Alyssa Bresnahan

From Nebula Award winner Jack McDevitt comes the eighth installment in the popular The Academy series

Priscilla “Hutch” Hutchins discovers an interstellar message from a highly advanced race that could be her last chance for a mission before the program is shut down for good. Hutch has been the academy’s best pilot for decades. She’s had numerous first contact encounters and even became a minor celebrity. But world politics have shifted from exploration to a growing fear that the program will run into an extraterrestrial race more advanced than humanity and war.

Despite taking part in the recent scientific breakthrough that rejuvenates the human body and expands one’s life span, Hutch finds herself as a famous interstellar pilot with little to do, until a message from an alien race arrives. The message is a piece of music from an unexplored area. Despite the fact that this alien race could pose a great danger and that this message could have taken several thousand years to travel, the program prepares the last interstellar ship for the journey. As the paranoia grows, Hutch and her crew make an early escape - but what they find at the other end of the galaxy is completely unexpected.

©2018 Cryptic, Inc. (P)2018 Recorded Books

Why the long pause

I enjoyed the story. The reader’s vocals where strong and great at creating individual voices for the characters. But the long dramatic pause between thoughts, transpired time and chapters was frustrating. Maybe it was an editing issue maybe it was done intentionally I don’t know. But was was distracting and took away from the overall performance.

The Joy of Discovery

As with many of McDevitt’s novels, you feel like you’re there with the characters, solving mysteries and making discoveries.

This novel is a bit slower paced than some and the narrator isn’t quite as good as the one who did the early Hutch novels. However, if you enjoyed the previous books in the series, you’ll enjoy this one too. You’ll feel transported to far off alien worlds.

Entertaining, but predictable

This book is much like the previous entries in this series. Having said that, fans of Priscilla Hutchins will be pleased. The ending is very predictable for anyone that's familiar with politics and politicians. I wonder if maybe the author was expressing his frustration with same.

Pretty good story, frustrating characters

I love the Hutchins series but in this one, more than any other, I got frustrated with the main character and others. It's really frustrating to listen to Priscilla Hutchins, hero of mankind, just let herself get berated by people like she's still some rookie.

Good production but unimaginative story

Very little suspense or excitement. Science is especially weak. the central message is that the universe is a pretty cruel place. Characters are uncompelling.