
A Half-Built Garden
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Narrated by:
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Kate Handford
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By:
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Ruthanna Emrys
About this listen
A literary descendent of Ursula K. Le Guin, Ruthanna Emrys crafts a novel of extraterrestrial diplomacy and urgent climate repair bursting with quiet, tenuous hope and an underlying warmth. A Half-Built Garden depicts a world worth building towards, a humanity worth saving from itself, and an alien community worth entering with open arms. It's not the easiest future to build, but it's one that just might be in reach.
On a warm March night in 2083, Judy Wallach-Stevens wakes to a warning of unknown pollutants in the Chesapeake Bay. She heads out to check what she expects to be a false alarm—and stumbles upon the first alien visitors to Earth. These aliens have crossed the galaxy to save humanity, convinced that the people of Earth must leave their ecologically-ravaged planet behind and join them among the stars. And if humanity doesn't agree, they may need to be saved by force.
But the watershed networks that rose up to save the planet from corporate devastation aren't ready to give up on Earth. Decades ago, they reorganized humanity around the hope of keeping the world livable. By sharing the burden of decision-making, they've started to heal our wounded planet.
Now corporations, nation-states, and networks all vie to represent humanity to these powerful new beings, and if anyone accepts the aliens' offer, Earth may be lost. With everyone’s eyes turned skyward, the future hinges on Judy's effort to create understanding, both within and beyond her own species.
A Macmillan Audio production from Tor Books.
©2022 Ruthanna Emrys (P)2022 Macmillan AudioListeners also enjoyed...
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Critic reviews
“This complex, complicated, gorgeous musing on the future of humanity and the power of connection, the things we owe to each other and the essential strength of consensus, deserves to be the first contact novel that defines a generation.”—Seanan McGuire
“A fascinatingly rich and original vision of our future world, explored at a moment of crisis; a vitally important exploration of the meaning of family and community; and a refraction of today's conundrums through a fresh interpretation of first contact.”—Malka Older
“Emrys’ fast-paced and fun story paints a picture of a future that’s imaginable within our lifetimes. Hers is a unique and ultimately hopeful vision of the world we might bequeath to our grandchildren.”—Karl Schroeder
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Story
Maya Hoshimoto was once the best art thief in the galaxy. For ten years, she returned stolen artifacts to alien civilizations—until a disastrous job forced her into hiding. Now she just wants to enjoy a quiet life as a graduate student of anthropology, but she’s haunted by persistent and disturbing visions of the future. Then an old friend comes to her with a job she can’t refuse: find a powerful object that could save an alien species from extinction. Except no one has seen it in living memory, and they aren’t the only ones hunting for it.
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Pronouns are out of control
- By C P on 09-11-24
By: Yume Kitasei
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The Spellbook of Katrina Van Tassel
- A Story of Sleepy Hollow
- By: Alyssa Palombo
- Narrated by: Barrie Kreinik
- Length: 13 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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When Ichabod Crane arrives in the spooky little village of Sleepy Hollow as the new schoolmaster, Katrina Van Tassel is instantly drawn to him. Through their shared love of books and music, they form a friendship that quickly develops into romance. When romance gives way to passion, Ichabod and Katrina embark on a secret love affair, sneaking away into the woods after dark to be together - all while praying they do not catch sight of Sleepy Hollow’s legendary Headless Horseman. That is until Ichabod suddenly disappears, leaving Katrina alone and in a perilous position.
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boring, terrible bodice-ripping drivel
- By BooksAndTrouble on 10-04-18
By: Alyssa Palombo
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A God in the Shed
- A God in the Shed, Book 1
- By: J-F. Dubeau
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 12 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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The village of Saint-Ferdinand has all the trappings of a quiet life. Though if an out-of-towner stopped in, they would notice one unusual thing - a cemetery far too large and much too full for such a small town, lined with the victims of the Saint-Ferdinand Killer, who has eluded police for nearly two decades. It's not until after Inspector Stephen Crowley finally catches the killer that the town discovers even darker forces are at play.
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So Disappointing
- By NNN on 03-11-18
By: J-F. Dubeau
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Mordew
- By: Alex Pheby
- Narrated by: Kobna Holdbrook-Smith
- Length: 18 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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In the slums of the sea-battered city, a young boy called Nathan Treeves lives with his parents, eking out a meagre existence by picking treasures from the Living Mud and the half-formed, short-lived creatures it spawns. Until one day his desperate mother sells him to the mysterious Master of Mordew.
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Next level creepy fantasy with spectacular narration!
- By Casey on 10-29-22
By: Alex Pheby
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Deadmen Walking
- A Deadman's Cross Novel
- By: Sherrilyn Kenyon
- Narrated by: Holter Graham
- Length: 10 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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To catch evil, it takes evil. Enter Devyl Bane—an ancient dark warlord returned to the human realm as one of the most notorious pirates in the New World. A man of many secrets, Bane makes a pact with Thorn—an immortal charged with securing the worst creations the ancient gods ever released into our world. Those powers have been imprisoned for eons behind enchanted gates . . . gates that are beginning to buckle. At Thorn’s behest, Bane takes command of a crew of Deadmen and, together, they are humanity’s last hope to restore the gates and return the damned to their hell realms.
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Overall good
- By 1safelady on 05-24-17
By: Sherrilyn Kenyon
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Ultra 85
- By: Logic
- Narrated by: Steve Blum, Logic
- Length: 8 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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In the year 2115, when the Earth is no longer inhabitable, the remainder of humanity lives in Babel, a giant space station. Two pilots, Quentin and Kai, must find the planet Paradise, where only the most promising citizens are allowed to live. On their journey, Quentin and Kai encounter Quentin’s estranged father, who left Babel for Paradise when Quentin was a child, and they discover just how different Paradise is from what they imagined—and how they must change it for the better.
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Steven Blum is the only reason to listen to this.
- By Vash Kimura on 01-08-25
By: Logic
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The Cautious Traveller's Guide to the Wastelands
- A Novel
- By: Sarah Brooks
- Narrated by: Katie Leung, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith
- Length: 9 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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There is only one way to travel across the Wastelands: on the Trans-Siberian Express, a train as famous for its luxury as for its danger. The train is never short of passengers, eager to catch sight of Wastelands creatures more miraculous and terrifying than anything they could imagine. But on the train's last journey, something went horribly wrong, though no one seems to remember what exactly happened. Not even Zhang Weiwei, who has spent her life onboard and thought she knew all of the train’s secrets.
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Narration cadence too clipped
- By ulan25 on 08-03-24
By: Sarah Brooks
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The Sapling Cage
- Daughters of the Empty Throne, Book 1
- By: Margaret Killjoy
- Narrated by: Jackie Meloche
- Length: 9 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Lorel has always dreamed of becoming a witch—learning magic, fighting monsters, and exploring the world beyond the small town where she and her mother run the stables. Even though a strange plague is killing the trees in the Kingdom of Cekon and witches are being blamed for it, Lorel wants nothing more than to join them. There’s only one problem: all witches are women, and she was born a boy. When the coven comes to claim her best friend, Lorel disguises herself in a dress and joins in her friend’s place, leaving home and her old self behind.
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Hits all the genre tropes with flair and originality
- By Jannik Mennen on 01-12-25
By: Margaret Killjoy
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Borrowed Time
- By: John Nolte
- Narrated by: Jim Seybert
- Length: 13 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Joshua Mason has been alive for thousands of years. He doesn't know how or why it happened, only that he can die like any man, but will always return. When you live forever, everything you love will die, so he decided long ago to not become attached. That all changed when he met Doreen. With her, he found something more than the woman he loves, after thousands of years of wandering, he found his place in the world. Now she's dying of old age. Distraught, Joshua promises to look after Charlie, Doreen's grandson, who is thirty-six, but forever a child due to a terrible brain injury.
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Great story, compelling characters
- By Amazon Customer on 10-23-23
By: John Nolte
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A View from the Stars
- Stories and Essays
- By: Cixin Liu
- Narrated by: Brian Nishii
- Length: 6 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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A VIEW FROM THE STARS features a range of short works from the past three decades of New York Times bestselling author Cixin Liu's prolific career, putting his nonfiction essays and short stories side-by-side for the first time. This collection includes essays and interviews that shed light on Liu's experiences as a reader, writer, and lover of science fiction throughout his life, as well as short fiction that gives glimpses into the evolution of his imaginative voice over the years.
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Heard it in the Morning is epic!
- By eR on 11-25-24
By: Cixin Liu
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Magic for Liars
- By: Sarah Gailey
- Narrated by: Xe Sands
- Length: 9 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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When a gruesome murder is discovered at the Osthorne Academy of Young Mages, where her estranged twin sister teaches theoretical magic, reluctant detective Ivy Gamble is pulled into the world of untold power and dangerous secrets. She will have to find a murderer and reclaim her sister - without losing herself.
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Meh.
- By Page on 03-25-20
By: Sarah Gailey
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Blackheart Man
- By: Nalo Hopkinson
- Narrated by: Ron Butler
- Length: 12 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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Veycosi, in training as a griot (an historian and musician), hopes to sail off to examine the rare Alamat Book of Light and thus secure a spot for himself on Chynchin’s Colloquium of scholars. However, unexpected events prevent that from happening. Fifteen Ymisen galleons arrive in the harbor to force a trade agreement on Chynchin. Veycosi tries to help, hoping to prove himself with a bold move, but quickly finds himself in way over his head.
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magical!!
- By samar on 01-29-25
By: Nalo Hopkinson
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Winter's Orbit
- By: Everina Maxwell
- Narrated by: Raphael Corkhill
- Length: 15 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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A famously disappointing minor royal and the emperor's least favorite grandchild, Prince Kiem is summoned before the emperor and commanded to renew the empire's bonds with its newest vassal planet. The prince must marry Count Jainan, the recent widower of another royal prince of the empire. But Jainan suspects his late husband’s death was no accident. And Prince Kiem discovers Jainan is a suspect himself.
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Great Sci-Fi Mystery
- By April Reads and Listens on 05-06-21
By: Everina Maxwell
What listeners say about A Half-Built Garden
Highly rated for:
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- Jason
- 09-18-24
Truly Fantastic
I loved this book so much. It did everything that I could want from a sci-fi: it had a compelling character-driven story, it presented fascinating new ideas, it helped me to see our world in a new light. I simply cannot recommend this book strongly enough!
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- Heidi Garvin
- 11-28-22
delightful
A bit repetitive at times, but a delightful fantasy. I kept anticipating big plot twists that didn't come in the ways I expected. It's a straightforward story but still very enjoyable.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Jasper
- 10-23-23
Wonderfully reimagined first contact
Ruthanna Emrys doesn't turn away from the hard things. This book is beautiful and hopeful, and highlights fears of what we are doing to each other and the planet right now. I would be so thrilled with this version of first contact.
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- Michael Moore
- 06-24-23
it is about the search for connection
This book deserves better than whatever I can write about it. it is apocalyptic and hopeful and despairing often at the same time and I loved every moment of it. This is the most important book I've read in a long time and I cannot emphasize that enough.
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- Treena
- 10-27-23
Extraordinary speculative fiction
Like nothing else I’ve ever read. A space opera set on earth. A future that is both dystopian and full of hope and wonder. A fantastic vision of where we could be headed societally and universally. Even the areas where suspension of disbelief are required are done artistically. Super interesting futuristic imagination.
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- Kimball Malone Scott
- 09-01-24
A much needed dose of optimism!
If we are going to address the future’s challenges we need to imagine success. That is the role of utopian science fiction.
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- Sebastian
- 07-09-23
Really interesting and engaging story
This was one of the best surprises of the year. Both with the challenges presented in the storyline and the comfort with which the author moved on from current social issues. Extrapolating what happens as society and humanity develop…there is some really fascinating ideas. And a really nice take on first contact.
A warning - this is just about the purest set of triggers for political conservatives and zealots I can imagine (at this time). Surprised there aren’t more of them leaving reviews describing how much they suffer from books like this. Ignore that if it happens. It’s science fiction and speculative future and it’s good.
I also want to give deep appreciation for addressing characters on the spectrum in a reasonable way. And the fluidity and individuality of gender is also nicely done. Any issues with either would be on individual experience, rather than the overall idea…which is how any good idea should be.
I think it’s intentional within the story, but the pronouns, especially corporate, was frustrating. Took me out of the narrative a few times. Will probably listen again to consider that point.
And that’s probably a great point of feedback. I’m going to listen again, and I’m not done considering what the book has to say :)
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3 people found this helpful
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- Bill Quirk
- 09-19-23
Naive Politics
Did did listen to the whole book and enjoyed most of it. What did bother me was how naive the politics was. The alien crew that landed did not seem to know how to make friends and influence people. Surely a race as advanced as these would know how to communicate and convince people of their views. They just blundered along. They showed no understanding that a different species would have different customs. I can’t believe a sophisticated space faring race would be so naive.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Dansonofdirm
- 08-03-22
A Better World is Possible
The best type of Science Fiction, a vision of the future both compelling and corporeal
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3 people found this helpful
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- Jgall
- 02-21-24
Got boring, plot disappeared quickly
I wanted to like this book because I like kind sci-fi, but a few chapters in, it became more about gender dynamics than about the encounter/rescue plot. Eventually got bored trying to hold the plot thread with so many characters and not much happening, and I gave up. I’m all for gender progressive books but I need an exciting plot to be the priority.
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2 people found this helpful