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The Quiet
James Benton might be the last man on earth. Racing to get to work, he finds random abandoned cars, smoldering pile-ups, and something even stranger. Everywhere he goes there's no grass, no people, not even a bird in the sky. Alone in a barren world, James travels west in search of someone, anyone who might have survived The Quiet.
60 pages, Paperback
First published July 26, 2011
10 people are currently reading
1383 people want to read
About the author
Robert S. Wilson
45 books167 followersRobert S. Wilson was an author once. Now he spends every day trying to swim out of an unending slush pile and back into the dark moneyless void of being a writer. He continues to fail. He’s also the editor of Nox Pareidolia and Ashes and Entropy.
Robert's short fiction has appeared in numerous publications including Vastarien: A Literary Journal, Nature Futures, Daily Science Fiction, Factor Four Magazine, Dark Moon Digest, Test Patterns: Creature Features, 32 White Horses on a Vermillion Hill: Volume One, Cosmic Scream, Darkfuse Magazine, Gothic Lovecraft, and more.
Robert's short fiction has appeared in numerous publications including Vastarien: A Literary Journal, Nature Futures, Daily Science Fiction, Factor Four Magazine, Dark Moon Digest, Test Patterns: Creature Features, 32 White Horses on a Vermillion Hill: Volume One, Cosmic Scream, Darkfuse Magazine, Gothic Lovecraft, and more.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
August 24, 2011
Another end of the world novella. Fortunately there are no zombies but there is something just as bad. James Benton wakes up to find he may be the last human on earth. In fact, considering birds, trees, and even grass has disappeared, he may be the last living thing on earth.
End of the world tales are a dime a dozen any more. This one starts out differently and holds the promise of adding something new to the genre. Unfortunately that is not to be the case. The plot becomes fairly predictable quickly and the author's somewhat awkward writing style doesn't help. The result is a story that feels more like a movie treatment, or at best, a preview of a book series. Not something I can recommend, even at the low Kindle price.
End of the world tales are a dime a dozen any more. This one starts out differently and holds the promise of adding something new to the genre. Unfortunately that is not to be the case. The plot becomes fairly predictable quickly and the author's somewhat awkward writing style doesn't help. The result is a story that feels more like a movie treatment, or at best, a preview of a book series. Not something I can recommend, even at the low Kindle price.
January 2, 2013
The Quiet is a short novella (about sixty pages) about a man named James who wakes up one morning to find that he's the only living thing left on the planet. The story follows him as he searches for his brother, or for anyone that might still be alive, while being stalked by something black in the sky, twisted dreams, and the inexplicable knowledge that something bad has happened and that he might just be next.
Overall, this seemed like such an interesting concept. I heard good things about it, and it seemed to have positive reviews, so I ordered it on a whim. As it turns out, I'm glad that the company refunded my money, because I was pretty disappointed with this book. Maybe it was my lack of empathy for or connection with James. Maybe it was the spelling and grammar errors. Maybe it was how shallow and one-dimensional the characters were. Maybe it was the fact that Wilson spent way too much time writing about things that weren't relevant and paid very little attention to the main plot points, which was a silly decision, considering the short amount of space that he had to work with.
Basically, this could have been a good story, but I felt it was poorly written and annoyingly vague.
Overall, this seemed like such an interesting concept. I heard good things about it, and it seemed to have positive reviews, so I ordered it on a whim. As it turns out, I'm glad that the company refunded my money, because I was pretty disappointed with this book. Maybe it was my lack of empathy for or connection with James. Maybe it was the spelling and grammar errors. Maybe it was how shallow and one-dimensional the characters were. Maybe it was the fact that Wilson spent way too much time writing about things that weren't relevant and paid very little attention to the main plot points, which was a silly decision, considering the short amount of space that he had to work with.
Basically, this could have been a good story, but I felt it was poorly written and annoyingly vague.
September 12, 2011
I'm not exactly 100% sure how I feel about this book, so for the time being I'm going to give it a 3/5.
The story, itself, was interesting; a man struggling to perceive what happened to his world and trying to discover if he is or is not alone among living things. I think the problem for me is simply a problem I have with a lot of short fiction--something about it feels superficial or incomplete. I have a hard time truly enjoying short works because I'm used to reading large novels by authors who take the time to paint a scene before me. That, however, is very tricky to do in a novella format unless you limit the story to only one or two scenes and keep it very simple.
The ending of the book was interesting and it raised a few thoughts in my mind, but I won't give anything away. I liked the idea behind it and I liked where it went, I just can't help feeling that I would have gotten more out of it if I had known the characters better and if I had been giving some extra pages of description to really FEEL what was happening instead of being something of an outside witness which is what I get from most short fictions.
All in all a good story. Just short.
The story, itself, was interesting; a man struggling to perceive what happened to his world and trying to discover if he is or is not alone among living things. I think the problem for me is simply a problem I have with a lot of short fiction--something about it feels superficial or incomplete. I have a hard time truly enjoying short works because I'm used to reading large novels by authors who take the time to paint a scene before me. That, however, is very tricky to do in a novella format unless you limit the story to only one or two scenes and keep it very simple.
The ending of the book was interesting and it raised a few thoughts in my mind, but I won't give anything away. I liked the idea behind it and I liked where it went, I just can't help feeling that I would have gotten more out of it if I had known the characters better and if I had been giving some extra pages of description to really FEEL what was happening instead of being something of an outside witness which is what I get from most short fictions.
All in all a good story. Just short.
July 30, 2013
Great novella! Wilson's beginning does draw the reader in and, as others have observed, is evocative of the old Twilight Zone pilot episode. So it was, for me, sweetly nostalgic in a way. Other reviewers have also offered up the opinion that THE QUIET stalled about 3/4 of the way in but I disagree. I would counter that it does not stall but leaves the reader wanting more. When the conflict was resolved, the end came about quickly and was very open to further possibilities. I found myself wondering what the protagonist was going to do next.
I wonder if this wasn't written specifically to be expanded upon at some later time. I wonder if we may see this again one day as the first part of a larger novel bearing the same name.
Robert S. Wilson, if you're listening, that would be me dropping you a request / suggestion.
I wonder if this wasn't written specifically to be expanded upon at some later time. I wonder if we may see this again one day as the first part of a larger novel bearing the same name.
Robert S. Wilson, if you're listening, that would be me dropping you a request / suggestion.
February 3, 2013
There are lots of ways you can spend a dollar. However, one of the best ways you can do it is by purchasing this Novella. The Quiet is a great story that could easily sell for far more. Wilson tells the tale of an ordinary man who wakes up in a world where seemingly all life as vanished literally over night.
This is a well written story with great voice, gritty detail, and raw emotions. Purchase this story for a great read for a great price.
This is a well written story with great voice, gritty detail, and raw emotions. Purchase this story for a great read for a great price.
January 26, 2013
An interesting little novella, felt just like a Twilight Zone episode. It does a good job of ramping up quickly and giving you what you need to get into the story. It left me wondering how the hell everyone died; I mean not even a drop of blood or speck of dust?? I don't think I liked the ending; the end of humanity was certain, it was just a matter how long it would take. It doesn't leave you with a warm and fuzzy, just like the Twilight Zone.
December 9, 2013
Although this is categorized as a Novella, it felt more like a short story with no actual plot. As for being titled THE QUIET, I don't feel that the quiet actually lasted all that long in the story. It wasn't a terrible story to read and if you're looking for something dark and strange but quick reading, this would be a good pick. It's not plagued with spelling or grammatical errors but in all honesty, it's certainly not one of the best I've ever read either.
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April 24, 2017The Kindle version of The Quiet: A Novella is free from today on through December 28th on Amazon.com! Be sure and snag a copy before it goes back to the regular price! http://www.amazon.com/The-Quiet-A-Nov...
April 7, 2013
This was a decent novella. The idea was interesting but I never felt completely absorbed in the story. I feel like there needed to be something else that really helps the reader connect with the main character (but I'm not sure what that something else is necessarily).
August 2, 2011
This is an interesting story that poses the question of, "What would happen if you woke up one morning and virtually everyone else on the face of the planet was gone?" definitely worth the read!!
August 17, 2012
perhaps a 1 is unfair.. I liked the concept, liked the story, but found the writing to be terribly inadequate... to the point that it spoiled my enjoyment of the story.
May 14, 2017
Pretty good.
August 27, 2012
A fun little tale, although it seems to be just starting when it ends.
September 1, 2012
Creepy short that was really enjoyable
January 27, 2013
A quick read that gives you the "Twilight Zone" feeling....
April 6, 2013
Interesting story.
December 13, 2017
A very short story. The beginning had such potential. It was ominous, gritty, dark and quite creepy. The author had a fantastic building block which spiraled down so fast into a deranged blood, guts and gore dystopian type story. To say much more would give away the tale. I've never so quickly been wrapped into a story that had the hairs on my neck cringe only to fall flat with a sense of "meh".
September 5, 2015
As with Life After: The Arising there are two covers to this book-the one shown here and a PDF version with a black cover. The black cover is more fitting in the context of the audiobook, but as for the cover itself...it's okay, but a tad spoilerish as to what was behind the disappearance to almost every single person on Earth. It was perhaps a small mercy (and much to my embarrassment) that I was listening on a tiny enough mobile device that I didn't have a chance to really look at the cover until now. Professional reviewer at work I know....
Since this is an audiobook there will be no analysis on any technical details of the writing itself, although the narrator does outline the book without any clear errors and there is no stilted writing at all that I could hear-in fact there is a great amount of detail and character development packed into this novella. Admittedly I did like the second half better than the first half, which was James exploring the city and trying to find out what happened. Since I didn't take a good look at the cover, I was genuinely worried that this would be a rapture-type book, but thankfully that turned out to be not the case and the author also leaves a few subtle clues in the beginning to keep the reader guessing.
The second half, when James actually runs into more characters, was a tad more interesting for me and I was able to immerse myself in the audiobook quite a bit at that point. That being said, the ending seems a bit rushed and comes out of nowhere. Without spoiling things, having a second point-of-view from Barber's perspective would have helped considerably, as the character will do something that will leaving the readers going 'wait, what?'. As this is the expanded version, I have to wonder what was lost in the original.
Overall, I found this to be an enjoyable expectation which left me guessing in the first half, and entertained in the second. The narrator's voice was also fitting for the audiobook and didn't grate on the ears in the slightest.
-Natasha Smith
http://www.blackhavenreviews.com.
Since this is an audiobook there will be no analysis on any technical details of the writing itself, although the narrator does outline the book without any clear errors and there is no stilted writing at all that I could hear-in fact there is a great amount of detail and character development packed into this novella. Admittedly I did like the second half better than the first half, which was James exploring the city and trying to find out what happened. Since I didn't take a good look at the cover, I was genuinely worried that this would be a rapture-type book, but thankfully that turned out to be not the case and the author also leaves a few subtle clues in the beginning to keep the reader guessing.
The second half, when James actually runs into more characters, was a tad more interesting for me and I was able to immerse myself in the audiobook quite a bit at that point. That being said, the ending seems a bit rushed and comes out of nowhere. Without spoiling things, having a second point-of-view from Barber's perspective would have helped considerably, as the character will do something that will leaving the readers going 'wait, what?'. As this is the expanded version, I have to wonder what was lost in the original.
Overall, I found this to be an enjoyable expectation which left me guessing in the first half, and entertained in the second. The narrator's voice was also fitting for the audiobook and didn't grate on the ears in the slightest.
-Natasha Smith
http://www.blackhavenreviews.com.
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December 15, 2012All of my titles are on sale for the holidays:
In Dark Reaches: Kindle $.99 Smashwords: $.99 1-year subscription: $5.99 on my website
Shining in Crimson: Kindle: $2.99 Trade Paperback: $9.99
The Quiet: A Novella: Kindle: $.99 Trade Paperback: $5.99
Forcipules: FREE on Smashwords!
Born to Kill: FREE on Smashwords!
In Dark Reaches: Kindle $.99 Smashwords: $.99 1-year subscription: $5.99 on my website
Shining in Crimson: Kindle: $2.99 Trade Paperback: $9.99
The Quiet: A Novella: Kindle: $.99 Trade Paperback: $5.99
Forcipules: FREE on Smashwords!
Born to Kill: FREE on Smashwords!
December 7, 2011
I enjoyed the beginning of The Quiet and was fondly reminded of Rod Serling's pilot for The Twilight Zone called "Where is Everybody?" I was hopeful that this might go somewhere as unique and interesting. Once I learned what happened, however, my interest in the story waned.
Formatting? There was an extra space between paragraphs on the Kindle that threw me out of the story a few times. I kept thinking this was a scene break. I got used to the format as time went on, but this is different than many other Kindle formatted books I've read.
The writer did a good job painting the setting and creating a creepy atmosphere. Characterization? Benson seemed somewhat one-dimensional to me throughout most of the story. I didn't care enough about what happened to him to get fully invested in the action that happens later in the story. I was more interested in what happened to the world.
Overall an OK read. Rounded from 2.5 to 3 stars for the first 30% of the story that, again, I thought was very well done.
Formatting? There was an extra space between paragraphs on the Kindle that threw me out of the story a few times. I kept thinking this was a scene break. I got used to the format as time went on, but this is different than many other Kindle formatted books I've read.
The writer did a good job painting the setting and creating a creepy atmosphere. Characterization? Benson seemed somewhat one-dimensional to me throughout most of the story. I didn't care enough about what happened to him to get fully invested in the action that happens later in the story. I was more interested in what happened to the world.
Overall an OK read. Rounded from 2.5 to 3 stars for the first 30% of the story that, again, I thought was very well done.
January 8, 2012
I would've probably actually gone with a 3.5 out of 5 if given the opportunity.
I did enjoy the story. It started out with a little bit of the feel of King's Langoliers, but as it progressed, the author certainly made it his own. I like how he jumped right into the action with the main character waking up in a changed world (and I like that it took him a little bit to figure out that things had changed, something the reader suspects from page one), and while many might complain at the lack of an in-depth explanation, I was okay with this. Like zombie stories (although this isn't a zombie story) The Quiet is definitely more about James' survival in this new world, not necessarily how the world came to be this way. And after all, this is a novella. And for the brevity of the piece, I believe the author handled the material well.
I did enjoy the story. It started out with a little bit of the feel of King's Langoliers, but as it progressed, the author certainly made it his own. I like how he jumped right into the action with the main character waking up in a changed world (and I like that it took him a little bit to figure out that things had changed, something the reader suspects from page one), and while many might complain at the lack of an in-depth explanation, I was okay with this. Like zombie stories (although this isn't a zombie story) The Quiet is definitely more about James' survival in this new world, not necessarily how the world came to be this way. And after all, this is a novella. And for the brevity of the piece, I believe the author handled the material well.
February 3, 2013
The Quiet by Robert S. Wilson has one of those opening scenes that draws you in and has you reading so fast that your eyes get whiplash. It had me on the edge of my seat and anxious. The mood was set and well maintained. I cared about the central character and felt his anxiety and trepidation. You are just as confused as the narrator (in a good way) as he tries to understand.
Unfortunately, I felt that the intensity waned and it just seemed to fade into a so-so offering. Perhaps the author was married to the "novella" idea and simply wanted to reach the end (which was predictably open ended). I wanted the intensity to be maintained. The author certainly showed that ability early on.
It is an okay book. It has the promise of something fantastic, but for me, it fell short.
Unfortunately, I felt that the intensity waned and it just seemed to fade into a so-so offering. Perhaps the author was married to the "novella" idea and simply wanted to reach the end (which was predictably open ended). I wanted the intensity to be maintained. The author certainly showed that ability early on.
It is an okay book. It has the promise of something fantastic, but for me, it fell short.
July 29, 2015
An enjoyable read/ listen. I won a free audio book of The Quiet in an online promotion. That being said, I would have been happy to pay for it. It's a well-written, creepy novella that follows a lone man in a desolate world where all life has seemingly vanished. Right down to the trees. I'll admit, I was concerned when I realized early on that the entire plot would be carried by one character. Those types of stories tend to get too narrative and lose me... but Wilson did it right. He kept the plot moving by taking our main character from setting to setting, then mixing in some action and dialogue with the other survivors. I was immersed in the story from start to finish. Nicely done.
September 9, 2013
A quick story about waking up one day and the world is totally different. I enjoyed this book. I gave it three stars. I cannot give a novella a higher rating because of length of the story. Not enough time to be totally invested so this one received my highest rating for a novella. I thought the author did a good job with the character not knowing what was happening. I could feel the tension of the character. If you want a quick read that will keep your interest, I would give this one a try.
October 27, 2012
This started off as a great book. I fell in love with his apocolyptic premise right away. He got sloppy about half way through and lost me from there. A small community of people that figured everything out in a few short hours and knew instantly how to tell real from false. The beginning was great. The end needed lots of work.
March 20, 2013
The premise of this novella was really great! The first 2/3rds of the story were interesting and had me wanting to read more. But the end was fairly lackluster and had me thinking to myself, "the author decided to do that...?" The setting, premise, and action were all well done, but the execution at the end left me wondering. It's short, so I'd say try it!
April 27, 2012
I could not warm up to this story no matter how hard I tried. I frequently found my mind wandering. It just couldn't keep my interest.I agree with the reviewer who stated that this book was most like the Twilight Zone.
September 20, 2013
Simply disappointing. Among the end of the world-stories, which these day are a dime for ten dozen, this one has nothing new to offer, is not exactly well-written and when it comes to logic/credibility (albeit in a fictional environment) the holes in the story are very big.
January 12, 2012
Quick read. Smooth simple writing. Creepy story. Welcome to the end of the world.
December 31, 2011
It's an interesting idea that is incomplete feeling and the characters are one dimentional. But it was worth reading.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews