Podcast Review #92: Ancestor (Remastered)
originally published August 1, 2011
Title: Ancestor
Author: Scott Sigler
Genre: Science Fiction
Released: 7 June 2010 – 22 February 2011
Located: iTunes, Podiobooks
Formats Available: dead tree, podcast, ebook, audiobook
One of the first author’s I found when I started listening to podio fiction was Scott Sigler. And the very first story I heard was Ancestor. Due to that, I’ve heard the large majority of his stories and purchased the ones that I’ve enjoyed the most.
So, on to the review.
Synopsis: Every five minutes, a transplant candidate dies while waiting for a heart, a liver, or a kidney. Imagine a technology that could provide those life saving organs for a nominal fee…..and imagine what a company would do to monopolize that technology.
On a remote island in the Canadian Arctic, P.J. Colding leads a team of scientists who have discovered this holy grail of medicine. By reverse engineering the genomes of thousands of mammals, Colding’s team has dialed back the evolutionary clock to re-create their common ancestor. The method? Illegal. The result? A computer engineered living creature — an animal whose organs can be permanently transplanted into anyone with zero chance of rejection.
There’s just one problem: these ancestors turn out not to be the docile herd animals Colding’s team envisioned. Instead, Colding’s work has given birth to something big, something evil.
……AND IT’S VERY, VERY HUNGRY! (stolen from podiobooks.com)
Production: The production of the remastered version of Ancestor is very good. Even the production in the original version gave me very little to complain about. I liked the original production and I liked the remastered even more. Sigler’s A-Team of A. Kovacs and Arioc Morningstar do an amazing job of providing crisp, clean audio that allows the listener to simply sit back and enjoy.
Cast: Mr. Sigler is always a cast of 1000’s all on his own. He’s often given much crap for female voices, but it is always in good fun because he does a female voice as well as any man can.
Grade A
Story: Ancestor is still one of my top favorite of Mr. Sigler’s works. It is a truly spooky creature feature where science has created the creature and the small group of scientists and staff must now play roulette with their lives.
Grade A
Verdict: Ancestor is still my favorite of Mr. Sigler’s science fiction/horror stories. I love the characters and the creatures are truly scary. If you are a fan of the creature feature, of movies like Alien and enjoy a good scare on a dark snowy night, go ahead and download Ancestor now.
Disclaimer: I do follow Mr. Sigler on Twitter (@scottsigler), and I did purchase a signed hardback copy of Ancestor (with help from Thomas Reed, thank you sir). Yes, the read is even scarier. I mean, then you have Sigler in your head. How much creepier does it get?