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The Last Ship cover art

The Last Ship

By: William Brinkley
Narrated by: Christopher Lane
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Summary

Hailed "an extraordinary novel of men at war" (Washington Post), The Last Ship is the book that inspired the TNT mini series starring Eric Dane, Rhona Mitra, and Adam Baldwin, with Michael Bay as executive producer.

The unimaginable has happened: The world has been plunged into all-out nuclear war. Sailing near the Arctic Circle, the USS Nathan James is relatively unscathed, but the future is grim and Captain Thomas is facing mutiny from the tattered remnants of his crew. With civilization in ruins, he urges those that remain - 152 men and 26 women - to pull together in search of land. Once they reach safety, however, the men and women on board realize that they are the earth's last remaining survivors - and they've all been exposed to radiation. When none of the women seems able to conceive, fear sets in. Will this be the end of humankind?

This thrilling tale of post apocalyptic suspense is perfect for readers of Going Home by A. American, Lights Out by DavidCrawford, The End and The Long Road by G. Michael Hopf, and One Second After by William Forstchen.

©1988 William Brinkley (P)2014 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

What listeners say about The Last Ship

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

Dreary

What would have made The Last Ship better?

Er, a complete rewrite with modern attitudes to the sexes, morality, etc and a big, big prune. The tone of the author as 'God' and his use of this medium to extol his own thoughts, rather than explore different viewpoints (that's what I believe this is more about) wore me down very quickly. Really didn't like this at all

What will your next listen be?

Something less condescending

Would you be willing to try another one of Christopher Lane’s performances?

Maybe, the material was dreary and he lived down to it's dreariness - a different book may raise him but the downbeat time to this and the overly judgemental and moralistic viewpoint had me tearing what little of my hair is left out!

You didn’t love this book--but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Not really, even as a background noise while driving this drove me mad and I couldn't listen beyond the first 2 hours - I gave it a go!

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3 people found this helpful

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

my god this is dull

got this after seeing the TV series. other that the names there is nothing similar about the 2. it is a long winded monologue from the captain set in the 60s with sexist overtones prevalent at the time. every time it seems something is about to happen the captain rambles on about nothing for another hour. couldn't finish.

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2 people found this helpful

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

Tragic. Beautifully written

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

One of the best books I have listened to. Beautifully written with unbelievable use of language. Comparable to Moby Dick or some other classic.
Tragic, frightening, but very relevant story

What other book might you compare The Last Ship to, and why?

The Road. This is much longer but worth every minute. Not for those who are impatient for action.

What about Christopher Lane’s performance did you like?

Voices really suited the characters. The measured manner of speech of the Captain was beautiful to listen to - it really expressed his character

Any additional comments?

A classic dystopian novel.

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2 people found this helpful

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

A book in search of an editor

Gosh this book needs an editor if your goal is to tell a tail using rich indulgent prose , keep the overall structure simple . The clever post modern reveal of the ‘plot’ is too much along with the prose style . If your going to be clever keep it simple. Conrad , Hemingway for example waste of a hard earned credit

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1 person found this helpful

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

Very Disappointed with this Book

The monotonous reading tone of the narrator does nothing to lift the lengthy discourses that the author has written in this book. For example the thoughts of the captain about having woman sailors goes on far to long infact was beyond tedious. This book so far is just a length discourse by the author and I honestly think it could be far shorter. Nine words in ten could be deleted.

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1 person found this helpful

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

unoriginal and slow

Read On The Beach instead. The narration was completely destroyed by the narrator's hiss on the letter "s" which could easily been reduced in post production.

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1 person found this helpful

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

Thoughtful deep contemplation on a possible apocal

Where does The Last Ship rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It's definitely in the top audiobooks I've read.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Last Ship?

The wistful reminiscences of the captain juxtaposing the current scenario and world with that of his memories brings into focus what has been lost.

Which scene did you most enjoy?

The island

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

It would be if not for the fact it's ~30 hours long!

Any additional comments?

It's not a super fast based book but it is so well worth the listen, part of the charm is the seeming peace that punctuates the moments of fear and disaster. The narration is fantastic and Christopher Lane's voice is rich and deep but also versatile enough to cover all required situations. Although the book did reach a satisfying conclusion I could have definitely listened to another 30 hours!

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

Great story and narrator

Really enjoyed this novel and storyline, it was slightly repetitive in places. Great narrator also

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

Bloated and turesome

First let me say I didn't get much past chapter 6. There may be a good story past that but I really wasn't willing to invest anymore time. After 4.5 hrs of listening I wasn't engaged, didn't particularly like any of the characters and was thoroughly bored.

Nothing of note happens in the first 4.5 hours, if the author was describing household chores he was doing it would probably be more gripping.

I also suspect either the author had a word count to meet or he was being paid by the word. Bloated and long winded are the only way to describe it. Why say it in 20 words when you could use 60?

The narrator did the best he could with what he had to work with. It wasn't the greatest narration ever but far from the worst I've heard.

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

Interesting take on a nightmare subject.

Told from the viewpoint of a destroyer captain, the result of a nuclear exchange. Very detailed and incredibly sad in places.

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