Infected by Scott Sigler
Are you ready for some more gore? I did a little arm-twisting on Scott Sigler and managed to convince him to give Podiobooks.com the exclusive release of Infected, his re-worked and re-edited serialized free audiobook. Well… exclusive for three days. Then it’s also available on his site.
Across America a mysterious disease is turning ordinary people into raving, paranoid murderers who inflict brutal horrors on strangers, themselves, and even their own families.
Working under the government’s shroud of secrecy, CIA operative Dew Phillips crisscrosses the country trying in vain to capture a live victim. With only decomposing corpses for clues, CDC epidemiologist Margaret Montoya races to analyze the science behind this deadly contagion. She discovers that these killers all have one thing in common – they’ve been contaminated by a bioengineered parasite, shaped by a complexity far beyond the limits of known science.
Meanwhile Perry Dawsey – a hulking former football star now resigned to life as a cubicle-bound desk jockey – awakens one morning to find several mysterious welts growing on his body. Soon Perry finds himself acting and thinking strangely, hearing voices . . . he is infected.
The fate of the human race may well depend on the bloody war Perry must wage with his own body, because the parasites want something from him, something that goes beyond mere murder.
This book is a Very Big Deal to not only Scott and Podiobooks.com, but all of the authors who have chosen to give away a serialized audiobook version of their work in the hopes of forwarding their career. The hardcover of Infected hits the bookstores on April 1st. If you are a bookstore-browser, mark the date on your calendar to pickup a copy or twelve. If you are an online book buyer, buy through this link right now to show Crown Publishing (and the rest of the publishing industry) what sort of sales Podiobooks.com and efforts like these can drive.
March 25th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
The book hasn’t finished loading onto the website yet, i just wanted to be the first one to make a comment.
March 25th, 2008 at 8:21 pm
I just wanted to be the first one to make a comment, even though all the book has not yet been added.
Coooooooool
April 11th, 2008 at 7:40 pm
Tina
Why?
April 14th, 2008 at 6:58 pm
Soooo good i enjoyed the first two chpters so much i bought the book:-P Hope you all enjoy.
April 15th, 2008 at 7:47 am
I downloaded this for a flight to San Jose and I’m totally into it now. I will am now waiting impatiently for new episodes! Mr Sigler, so far, has set up an exciting foundation for the story in the first 10 chapters and you are now into the heads of the main characters. He also does a good job of the voices with perhaps Ms Montoya being an exception
.
May 25th, 2008 at 10:12 am
For the most part this podiobook is absolutely stellar. Excellent storyline and premise, interesting characters, and really solid writing. Infected is probably the best podiobook I’ve come across on this site. I give it my highest recommendation.
Now, that said, the voice acting for Margaret drives me absolutely, out of my mind, nuts. A 42 year old hispanic woman, born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, SHOULD NOT HAVE AN ACCENT. The voice Sigler uses for her sounds like a Pablo Fransisco stereotype impression. It’s absurd. “Hey! Wat ah you doing, mang?” I can’t stand it! A 42 year old Hispanic woman born and raised in America with a top level American-English education should not sound like she just walked off the set of a low budget Mexican soap show. I have students that have only been in this country for three years that have less of an accent than Margaret does. It’s friggin’ ridiculous, and it really makes me wonder if the author has ever even met a Hispanic American.
Other than that, Infected gets tops marks in every other area from me. The rest of the voice acting is awesome, the writing and story is excellent, and the characters are intriguing.
May 31st, 2008 at 8:06 pm
This book is fantastic! It reads like a young Stephen King, an episode of CSI, and some kind of gory, sci-fi Twilight Zone all rolled into one. The pacing is great, speeding along relentlessly with plenty of action and drama to keep you interested.
I will definitely buy honest to god old school paper books by this author in the future.
June 11th, 2008 at 7:36 am
I read this when it was offered as a free e-book, then downloaded an episode and listened to it to get a feel for the narration.
Sorry if I come off as a book snob, but I am totally baffled by the good press and stellar reviews this book is getting. The premise is absurd and explained at the last moment with a twist that is so ridiculous you only won’t see if coming if you already thought of it and decided it was too stupid to be what was going on. The voice is inconsistent to a point where the first time you really hear a character come through in the narration it’s shockingly offensive. The characters are all ludicrous stereotypes, particularly Margaret; Mat wonders if Sigler ever met a real Hispanic woman, I wonder if he ever met ANY woman. You’ve got all the usual suspects here; the grizzled detective avenging his partner, the witty gay man, the perfect star athlete, the hyper-capable (and hyper-sexual) woman, the gruff military man, the wise-cracking best friend… you’ll know everything you’ll need to about every character within a page of their introduction.
What’s left is a non-sensical story with shallow characters. Basically, a summer movie in text form. For the most part the writing is solid even if the content is not, though there are occasional slip-ups that make me wonder if the book was proof-read. For instance, the exact same metaphor, phrased exactly the same way, can be found three times in one short paragraph. Like a fly stuck between the window and the screen, OK, I got it the first time.
Sigler notes that he’s been trying to get published for years and has had hundreds of rejections. To the casual reader this is an admirable trait. His perseverance and determination paid off and he refused to give up his dream. But the fact of the matter is, it’s really not all that hard to get published and the fact that it’s taken him so long is as much a testament to his mediocre writing as his moxie.
If you’re looking for a popcorn book to listen to during your commute or while you wait for a plane you could do a lot worse than Infected but if you’re looking for a good horror story this won’t scratch that itch.
June 11th, 2008 at 10:15 pm
almost a month since the last post. What happened?
July 8th, 2008 at 6:50 pm
I am enjoying this book, can’t wait until more episodes. As far as people complaining about the voice of the hispanic woman , that is nit-picking. He writes and narrates, produces,his book. No one is perfect in everything. Especially a guy trying to do a woman’s voice, come on!
I think if the people complaining were trying to do write,produce, and narrate an audiobook, they probably wouldn’t come out with anything close.
No one is perfect but this is a great book!
July 8th, 2008 at 7:51 pm
Man, this book rocks. I got wrapped up in it, bought the deadtree version so I could read the ending. Instant gratification baby. The concept, explanation, and elaboration of the viral infection’s mechanics and growth stages is brilliant. A cool twist on a concept. There’s a reason this thing is popular, it’s a good story.
August 12th, 2008 at 4:51 pm
What a fantastic story! You know you have a great story on your IPOD when you can’t wait for any and every chance you can get to hear more of it. As for the few complaints, perhaps if your definition of HORROR is something that scares on a junenile level and makes you jump and scream, the perhaps it should be in a different category. I personally think it works well under a horror category. I am puzzled by the complaints over the female Hispanic voice. I know many Hispanic females who speak like that. Accents are cultural for the most part, not regional. If the premise that a well educated person does not speak with a funny accent is true, then how do we explain Ted Kennedy?
September 4th, 2008 at 10:15 am
This is a fun book. The research you’ve done makes it quite believable. The friends that I hear, keep saying “Columbo not writing fast enough. Write more, more, more, faster, faster faster.”
September 13th, 2008 at 6:03 pm
dang you gona keep us wighting for the rest all year? dang neer forgot what the book was about. hurry up darn you!!
September 17th, 2008 at 6:25 pm
I listened to this book at work today. I just loved it. Scott is a very talented writer. I was very impressed! I thought that it was better than anything that I have heard by either James Patterson or Stephen King. Scott keep up the great work. Can’t wait to hear the rest of your stuff!
October 1st, 2008 at 10:21 am
So how much bribery (or massive carnage) is it going to take to get the rest of the chapters released on podiobooks? Scott has released chapters 73-88 on his personal site already… why not here???
ARGH!!! I need my fix!
October 2nd, 2008 at 7:44 am
Steve,
Go ahead and hit that Donations to the Staff page and toss as much our way as you feel comfortable with.
However, it won’t help. You see we don’t dictate the release schedule of books. That’s all up to the author or producer of the work. It’s rare when more than 24 hours passes when they give us a file and we make it available to you.
And last I heard, he completely forgot all the chapters save the final in that release. So really, you didn’t miss much. I assume it’s being fixed or maybe *is* fixed, but we may have to wait until Scott returns from the family medical emergency. Please be patient, as this is a trying time for his family. Hang tight. We’ll get it to you as soon as we can.
October 30th, 2008 at 1:42 am
Well, Scott posted the final chapter to his website on October 24. Yet fans waiting on the Podiobooks feed are still at the end of Chapter 55. When will chapters 56 to 88 be made available through Podiobooks?
Will Scott’s new podcast book (Contagion) be made available through Podiobooks?
October 30th, 2008 at 7:59 am
Remember that we rely on the author or producer to deliver us content. We process the files given to us almost every day, though I was remiss last night. Soon to be rectified.
If the Infected episode is there, great. I’ll get it posted. If not… then we’re waiting.
As for Contagion, all of Scott’s other books are available here, so I would assume that Contagion will be as well.
January 25th, 2009 at 4:14 pm
Just downloaded the entire book. Is it a coincidence that the total size is 666 MB?
March 11th, 2009 at 8:25 pm
WOW!!! Truly incredible – Sigler does it again. I loved this so much I had to run out and buy the print version. Keep up the fantastic work!!
April 28th, 2009 at 12:29 pm
I’ve just finished this book – I have to run for my train home (from work), but just wanted to say quickly that it was nailbitingly good, and absolutely excellent “read” – not good for reading on the train while trying to remain impassive. Thanks.
May 2nd, 2009 at 10:29 pm
It is because of this book that I have decided to get an account so I could rate it. This is an AMAZING story that holds you. The best books in the world are those that at no point do you want to put them down, AND THIS IS IT. Scott Sigler has written a masterpiece that I have found to rival none.
I know that none of you know me, but please please please give this story a try if you havnt already. You know how there are always those reviews that say you will like it if you give it a chance and that you should? Well focus, because i am going to say it myself, READ THIS BOOK.
Ok, you may not believe me. All I ask is that you download the first episode. Really, thats all. Just download that single one, listen for a while. I will guarantee you it is awesome. No really, read it now! The story is amazing, the characters are unforgettable, and the pace is relentless. But what really makes this story impossible to put down is the stupendous voice acting Scott does.
I have listened to literally over 60 books on PodioBooks. Scott’s is THE BEST. There are no faults, and no problems. He has never published a story on here that hasn’t had unbelievably good quality in everything, including audio.
Please please please give it a chance. I am not asking you to download them all (even though I know you will), just the first one. Please.
-Trenton Stahl
June 8th, 2009 at 12:56 pm
is 88 realy is the last chapter??
it dosen looks like the end of the book at all!
?????????????
July 18th, 2009 at 4:47 pm
simply amazing. i was led to this book after j.c. hutchin’s 7th son trilogy due to a clever series of connections and “easter eggs” from those books. and i must say, sorry hutch, scott sigler is the master of this genre. somehow he has managed to take a story almost completely confined to one character in his tiny apartment, and make it absolutely engaging. there is a reason that this book is a prequel which led to sigler’s breaking out as a new york times best selling author with the follow up. definately listen!
July 30th, 2009 at 12:09 pm
Excellent story! I was really hooked after the first episode. You have a unique voice for audio books, I hope you will continue reading even if it is not your book. I’m now on chapter 12 and unfortunately it will be my last. The blast of very loud music at the end of each episode shocks the hell out of me and invariably, I tear off the ear buds. The music is so loud, you have to yell to be hear over it (that can’t be good for your voice). Also, I understand that these are “donations accepted” audio books but do you have to use the first one and one-half minutes of each episode with commercials? Every other would be much more acceptable and the loud music here is also disturbing. I can fast forward to the end of an episode so I don’t have to listen to the commercials at the end. I use an app to combine the episodes into one file so I listen to the them in continuous succession. Maybe I’m too old to be listening to books. You are not alone in this feature (it’s surely not a benefit) many other authors presented in Podiobooks do the same annoying thing. Since I can only voice my opinion here, I will vote with my feet and leave. Good day.
September 6th, 2009 at 10:20 am
absolutely the best author and voice/voices on podiobooks. i loved this book and contagious. i listen to podiobooks on my commute to and from work and i find myself wishing the ride wouldn’t be over so i could just keep on a’listenin’.
i understand the commercials are probably a necessary evil, but i get so very tired of them after a gazillion episodes.
at least you aren’t hawking another author’s book – time after time after episode.
BUT, back to the kudos. GREAT WORK!
lara
September 24th, 2010 at 6:30 pm
first: for those who are complaining about the “adverts” at the beginnings of each episode – i would image this is a feature on the free podiobook and [correct me if I am wrong] I would imagine that this is not on the “paid-for” version. I feel that the little annoyances are worth every second of getting to listen to these books for free.
I’d gladly pay for Infected a few times over if I had more than $8 in my bank account. I appreciate the author’s use of true science. I enjoy his take on an infectious “monster,” and all the gruesome details of this [and many of his other books.]
October 5th, 2010 at 4:29 pm
Even though the first few chapters felt a little slow to me, I got more and more invested into the story as it moved forward. Perry Dawsey’s struggle with his inner demons as well as his fight with the gradually diminishing “magnificent seven” had me at the edge of my seat every morning, wishing I could listen to just one more chapter before work, because this is a very addicting story.
The episodes were very well produced, the audio has good quality, the voices are excellent (how much did Mr. Sigler rehearse each voice, and how did he decide which one was good for each character?) and the story is freaking awesome!
This podiobook is definitely worth listening to, commercial adds not withstanding, they are a small price to pay for such an interesting story.
Congratulations to you, Mr. Sigler for doing an excellent job on all levels!
May 23rd, 2011 at 1:33 am
Been a while since I listened to this, but Infected is, well…infectiously terrific. One person commented that it started slow, but that was one of the things I liked. Too many so-called horror books start with a bang and have nowhere left to go. Scott Sigler builds the tension, paranoia and gross out factor beautifully. Not to mention having great characters, snappy dialogue and a great style. I will NEVER look at a triangle the same way again.