Crosstalk cover art

Crosstalk

Preview

£0.00 for first 30 days

Try for £0.00
Thousands of incredible audiobooks and podcasts to take wherever you go.
Immerse yourself in a world of storytelling with the Plus Catalogue - unlimited listening to thousands of select audiobooks, podcasts and Audible Originals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Crosstalk

By: Connie Willis
Narrated by: Mia Barron
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

Buy Now for £25.99

Buy Now for £25.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

Part romantic comedy and part social satire, here one of science fiction's most lauded authors examines the consequences of having too much connectivity, and what happens in a world where, suddenly, nothing is private. One of science fiction's premiere humorists turns her eagle eye to the crushing societal implications of telepathy.

In a not-too-distant future, a simple outpatient procedure that has been promised to increase empathy between romantic partners has become all the rage. So when Briddey Flannigan's fiancé proposes that he and Briddey undergo the procedure, she is delighted! Only, the results aren't quite as expected. Instead of gaining an increased empathetic link with her fiancé, Briddey finds herself hearing the actual thoughts of one of the nerdiest techs in her office. And that's the least of her problems.

©2016 Connie Willis (P)2016 Recorded Books
Contemporary Contemporary Romance Fantasy Fiction Genetic Engineering Romance Romantic Comedy Science Fiction Comedy Genetics Witty Wedding
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

Doomsday Book cover art
The Best of Connie Willis cover art
Dream Student cover art
The Delphi Effect cover art
The Spare Man cover art
The Very First Damned Thing cover art
Reckless Magic cover art
Clean Sweep cover art
Ruritanian Rogues: Volumes 1-3 cover art
Fixer cover art
A Cure for Madness cover art
Unhappenings cover art
Timebound cover art
The Name of the Star cover art
Parasite cover art
Safe with Me cover art

Critic reviews

"An engaging and satirical look at relationships, technology, and connectivity in the digital age is expertly narrated by Mia Barron.... Barron does an outstanding job of distinguishing between the conversations in Briddey's head and those happening in real life as well as adding authenticity to each of the characters Briddey interacts with." ( AudioFile)

What listeners say about Crosstalk

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    24
  • 4 Stars
    13
  • 3 Stars
    9
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    5
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    25
  • 4 Stars
    12
  • 3 Stars
    6
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    3
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    23
  • 4 Stars
    6
  • 3 Stars
    8
  • 2 Stars
    6
  • 1 Stars
    4

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

2.5

loved the whole idea, would have loved more sci-fi and a bit more of the romance at the end

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Great fun, but a bit slow at times!

This isn't a super serious book - it feels girlish, lighthearted and silly at times. Its also FULL of miscommunication and drama that can get really drawn out. The main character feels like a bit of an airhead at various points, but she does have a lot going on so I GUESS I can forgive it.
I enjoyed it, I've read the physical book before and this made great before-bed listening. If you don't mind tropes and are looking for something fun then I would recommend.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Glad I stayed with it.

I absolutely loved Domesday by Connie Willis so this book was a total surprise. And totally out of my usual reading style. I'm glad I stuck with it as at the beginning I really didn't like the style, the characters or, actually, even the narration. But over time I'm it grew on me to the extent that I began to walk faster and longer so just so that I could listen to it. It would make an excellent film.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Long winded

I enjoyed aspects of the story and the general idea of telepathy but the story dragged and was often repetitive. I constantantly found myself baffled by the characters choices and illogical thinking. It was this, rather than the Sci fi element, that made it so implausible.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Great story, well read.

I love Conny Willis's approach to sci fi. Always so thoughtful and engaging. Great to see her explore telepathy.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Overly long

This one dragged on a bit. Strange pronounciation of Bridie, unless it’s changed since I was at school.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

It Is a Connie Willis

It is a Connie Willis, which is a hellovalot better than no Connie Willis. It ain't "Doomsday" or "To Say Nothing...", but it certainly addresses issue of our time.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fun romp

Not to be taken seriously- it’s a pleasant story full of familiar sci-fi and rom-com tropes. Good material for poolside or couch potato reading.

On the negative side, the Irish family were stereotypes. Irritating at times though the writing didn’t fall into the trap of racist cliches. I would have been happier if Mia Barron had been better at producing brogue and vernacular (e.g. chyleDEEN not Chill-deen). Her American-Irish accent was not good.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Not the best Connie Willis

I’ve really enjoyed the other Connie Willis books that I’ve read and love the conceit of this story, but am halfway through and finding it quite repetitive and slow. The protagonist is frustrating and I feel as if I’m just listening to the same conversation on repeat, seems like an overly padded shorter story. Still nicely written and I’d still always pick up another of her books.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Sad choice in reader

I love this book. Despite it driving me crazy with sci-fi neuroscience and occasional paradoxes/things that just don't make sense when you think about them, I read this book twice and listened to it once within a week and a half. No spoilers, but I found the romance really engaging and fun. Willis' settings are vivid, and as always, all the little details are there if the reader wants to do some detective work to figure out what's happened before the main character gets there.

That said, I was really disappointed in the reader. I felt her interpretation of my favourite character was quite counter to his behaviour in the book - where he's meant to be kind, he sounds quite gruff. But more than anything, her tone lacked the excitement that propels Willis' books forward - that edge-of-the-seat feeling that kept me up until three AM when I first read it just wasn't there.

Buy the book instead! It's definitely a good read.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful