The Gabble and Other Stories [Paperback]

Neal Asher (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 12, 2009

'What has six arms, a large beak, looks like a pyramid, has more eyes than you'd expect and talks nonsense? If you don't know the answer to that, then you should and you haven't been reading Neal Asher (see point 1)' - Jon Courtenay Grimwood. In the eight years since his first full-length novel, "Gridlinked" was published by Pan Macmillan, Neal Asher has firmly established himself as one of the leading British writers of Science Fiction, and his novels are now translated in many languages. Most of his stories are set in a galactic future-scape called 'The Polity', and with this collection of marvellously inventive and action-packed short stories, he takes us further into the manifold diversities of that amazing universe. No one does monsters better than Neal Asher, so be prepared to revisit the lives and lifestyles of such favourites as the gabbleduck and the hooder, to savour alien poisons, the walking dead, the Sea of Death, and the putrefactor symbiont.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Neal Asher was born and bred and on the Essex coast, and still lives there. His most recent novels include: Cowl, Gridlinked, The Line of Polity, Brass Man, Polity Agent, Line War, The Skinner, The Voyage of Sable Keech, Orbus (forthcoming September 2009), Prador Moon, Hilldiggers.

Product Details

• Paperback: 371 pages
• Publisher: Pan Macmillan; paperback / softback edition (December 12, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0330457594
• ISBN-13: 978-0330457590
• Product Dimensions: 1 x 4.5 x 7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #755,256 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great set of stories from Asher's Polity Universe, August 3, 2009

By 

Tek2000 (Phoenix, AZ USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Gabble and Other Stories (Hardcover)

Reviewer Blue Tyson gives short and sweet recaps and ratings for each story; this list identifies their sub-series of the Polity Universe. The book is available new from amazon.co.uk for the right shipping price.

Softly Spoke the Gabbleduck (Cormac/Gabbleduck)
Putrefactors (Spatterjay)
Garp and Geronamid (Spatterjay)
The Sea of Death (n/a)
Alien Archaeology (Cormac/Gabbleduck - 5 out of 5 for this one)
Acephalous Dreams (Polity)
Snow in the Desert (n/a)
Choudapt (n/a)
Adaptogenic (Spatterjay)
The Gabble (Cormac/Gabbleduck)

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not bad for a series of short stories, February 1, 2010

By 

Adrian - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Gabble and Other Stories (Paperback)

I'm not a fan of short stories. I like to get into a juicy thick book which pulls me into the world the author has created. Having said that, this one was better than I expected, because they are all written by Neal Asher and all set in the Polity universe. All the short stories are linked in some way to the books Asher has written beforehand, so there is something to bind things together. In fact, many of the stories could have been expanded to become full novels in their own right.

The short stories are also interesting for showing a side of The Polity we rarely see- normal citizens. The last story in particular focuses on two humans and their adventure on understanding the creatures they are studying. The eventually prevail, and it's an ending I did not expect. I love it when there's a conclusion which makes sense, yet is still unexpected :)


So if you are a fan of Neal Asher and his Polity universe, dont worry about the short stories. You'll enjoy this. :)

5.0 out of 5 stars Another winner, January 17, 2012

By 

T - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Gabble - and Other Stories (Kindle Edition)

Mr. Asher never ceases to entertain me, and this book is no different. I really never cared for short stories, but after having become so familiar and engrossed in the polity universe, it's very cool to have these collections that help flush out different species and locales from within the larger stories.

Thanks Neal, keep 'em coming.