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The Downloaded

Written by: Robert J. Sawyer
Narrated by: Brendan Fraser, Luke Kirby, Vanessa Sears, Colm Feore, Andrew Phung, full cast
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Publisher's Summary

In 2059, two vastly different groups of people portrayed by the compelling trio of Brendan Fraser (Academy Award winner), Luke Kirby (Emmy Award winner), and Vanessa Sears (Dora Award winner) undergo cryonic suspension. While their bodies are frozen, their minds, still active and awake, are uploaded into a massive quantum computer. The first group are all astronauts, about to leave Earth on a one-way interstellar colonization mission. The second group consists of convicted murderers and volunteers who elect to serve their sentences in a virtual-reality prison. But while both groups are suspended, a global cataclysm devastates most of the Earth, and their cryosleep is extended by more than 500 years.

Now available in Dolby Atmos on Audible.
©2023 Robert J. Sawyer (P)2023 Audible Originals, LLC.
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Post-Apocalyptic
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Trailer

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About the creator

Robert J. Sawyer is one of only eight writers ever to win all three of the world’s top awards for best science-fiction novel of the year: the Hugo, the Nebula, and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award. He has also won the Robert A. Heinlein Award, the Edward E. Smith Memorial Award, and the Hal Clement Memorial Award; the top SF awards in China, Japan, France, and Spain; and a record-setting sixteen Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Awards (''Auroras''). Rob’s novel FlashForward was the basis for the ABC TV series of the same name, and he was a scriptwriter for that program. He also scripted the two-part finale for the popular web series Star Trek Continues. He is a member of the Order of Canada, the highest honour bestowed by the Canadian government, as well as the Order of Ontario, the highest honour given by his home province; he was also one of the initial inductees into the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame. Rob lives just outside Toronto. His website and blog are at sfwriter.com, and on Facebook, X, and Patreon he’s RobertJSawyer.

Brendan Fraser
Luke Kirby
Vanessa Sears

About Brendan Fraser

Brendan Fraser is an Academy Award®-winning actor whose inspired performances and eye for thought-provoking material continue to garner critical acclaim. Fraser can most recently be seen as the lead role in Darren Aronofsky’s The Whale, for which he received several award nominations including his first Academy Award win & nomination for Best Lead Actor. Upcoming this year for Brendan includes starring as the lead in Legendary Pictures’ Brothers alongside Glenn Close, Josh Brolin and Peter Dinklage. He’s also a supporting role in Martin Scorsese’s new epic Western, Killers Of The Flower Moon. Other notable works include Universal’s Mummy franchise; Crash, directed by Paul Haggis; Phillip Noyce’s The Quiet American, based on Graham Greene’s 1955 thriller of the same name; and Bill Condon’s Gods and Monsters, opposite Sir Ian McKellen, and Lynn Redgrave. He received a BFA in acting from the Actor’s Conservatory, Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle.

About Luke Kirby

Luke Kirby is an Emmy® Award-winning theatre, film, and television actor who has performed on stages in Toronto and NYC over the years, including productions of Troilus and Cressida, Jump/Cut, Defender of the Faith, and Judgement Day. Luke starred opposite Michelle Williams in Sarah Polley’s film Take This Waltz, and opposite Samuel L. Jackson in The Samaritan. More recently, Luke starred as Ted Bundy opposite Elijah Wood in No Man of God. In television, one of Luke’s favourite roles was in the critically acclaimed mini-series, Slings and Arrows, opposite Rachel McAdams. He has also had regular roles on HBO’s Tell Me You Love Me, The Sundance Channel’s Rectify, and Amazon’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel in the role of Lenny Bruce.

About Vanessa Sears

Raised in Deep River, Ontario, Vanessa Sears is a Dora® Award, Toronto Theatre Critics, BroadwayWorld and Critic’s Pick Award-winning artist. She has starred on stages across Canada including the Stratford Festival, Shaw Festival, the historic Winter Garden Theatre and many more. Vanessa has also appeared in numerous films and television programs, including Suits, CBC’s Tallboyz, Lifetime’s Too Close for Christmas, Sex/Life (Netflix), and more. Up next, you can see Vanessa starring in Fourteen Love Letters, as well as Royally Wrapped for Christmas.

Behind the Scenes

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What listeners say about The Downloaded

Average Customer Ratings
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Bingable and reflective

This is sci fi I can get into. It felt similar to Orwell's martian chronicles, and an Arthur C Clarke piece. Would love to see a film adaptation if it hasn't happened already.

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RJS hits it out of the park

A really great story, as usual. I do think it would have benefitted from a few hours more storytelling. Perhaps the forthcoming text version will be a bit more fleshed out as some parts felt a bit rushed, particularly at the end. But that's a minor nitpick.

Engaging characters, engaging plot, and best of all, plausible science extrapolation.

The VA talent is top notch as well, so kudos to audible there.

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best true SciFi I have enjoyed in decades

I used to be a SciFi junkie. Asimov, Clarke, Bradbury were the tales I read as a teen. Innovative concepts, followed to conclusion. it's been ages since I was inspired by a tale like I am by this one.
Thank you, Audible, for giving me a chance to spend a sleepless night, listening to this and getting mindless projects done. it's been great!

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Excellent!

This was such a great listen. I finished it in one night, once I started I couldn’t put it down. Fraser & Sears were excellent! Another great story by Sawyer!

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Really enjoyed

I wish it would have been a bit longer, I really liked this book. The acting was so good. I wanted to know more about all the characters and their stories.

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Thoroughly enjoyable!

It’s a great post-apocalyptic story and the performances were outstanding. I would definitely recommend it to everyone who enjoys sci-fi.

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awesome narration cast

I listened to the story in one sitting. Well done
It was a nice change of pace from the 20+ hour books I typically listen to.

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Performance carries the book

Preachy for the sake of preachy. The voice performance and production was what kept me invested until the end. Book has a number of politically divisive 'gotcha's', which I felt only degraded what coherent story there was.

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Profile Image for Carol Brandon

Thought provoking


This story is set at a time when cryogenics works; astronauts were to be sent to colonize the stars, while prisoners were offered a reduced sentence and rehabilitation if they underwent carotenoids. What could go wrong? The astronauts wake up, after 500 years, to find they never left earth, and the prisoners also wake up - 500 years in the future. They must navigate their strange, new world. Has humanity really changed in the intervening years? This tale explores what humans are really like … I loved that it was set in Canada. The narration is terrific. And I enjoyed the references to classic sci fi books and movies. Note that there is a fair bit of swearing, and a trans character. I listened to this in the Audible app.

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Clever integration of social issues

Without being smarmy or preachy, Sawyer incorporated valuable sociological and political/moral messages into the plot. Not easy to do but her pulled it off.

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