The Tempest

This audiobook sneaks up on you. On the surface, it’s another ‘colony ship goes wrong’ tale, but Cawdron’s twist is that the disaster isn’t mechanical—it’s human. The first act drags slightly as we’re introduced to the colony’s byzantine social hierarchy, but once the power games start, the pacing tightens like a noose. Griffith and Davies avoid the trap of over-dramatizing, which makes the moments of real violence feel even more jarring. Their chemistry is the secret weapon here: Davies’s icy precision contrasts perfectly with Griffith’s gritted-teeth intensity, especially in scenes where two characters weaponize silence against each other. If I have one complaint, it’s that some of the later revelations feel a bit too tidy—like the story wants to have its cake and eat it too when it comes to ‘the ends justify the means’ morality. And Kaleo’s voice, while perfect for tension, occasionally slips into a monotone that makes it hard to distinguish between characters in ensemble scenes. But these are minor quibbles. The audiobook’s real triumph is making you care about whether a group of self-interested elites deserve to survive. By the final act, you’ll be questioning whether *you* would make the same choices. That’s the mark of great sci-fi—and this audiobook delivers.