Wow, like everyone said its good

Got it for $1.95 during a deal, if its still on, get it. At its regular price I'd still get it, now that I know how good it is.

As others have said, the stories cross paths, and because of that, it felt line a real book. So you feel like its a real book until the end when it, well, just ends when you thought it should go back to one of the other stories. Except they played music so you knew it wasn't coming.

I wish all books had both male and female narrators!

The zombies are more of the infected kind, not completely dumb and at least try to run.

Perked my interest in Peters other books, Ex-Heroes series which I have previously thought completely "no".

11 people found this helpful

An awesome set of vignettes

Just finished The Junkie Quatrain - didn't finish the laundry (thanks Peter!) because I was so engaged by these stories - and I am sitting here a bit awe struck. I'm not a huge monster fan especially the zombie type monsters with no individuality. But I picked up The Junkie Quatrain on sale because I enjoyed 14 so much and I am so glad I did. Nothing special about these monsters but there is something pretty special about 4 tightly written monster stories that could each stand alone but each connects to the others in such clever ways. In quick strokes, Peter Clines defines each of the central characters so that you invest in them immediately and each of these shorts then delivers a lot of punch. Mr. Clines can certainly write and Christian Rummel and Therese Plummer each do nice narrator turns with the material. It's not that the stories themselves are too short - each is a perfect length and locks in with the others almost with a "snap". It's just that the "snap" each time is such a "AHA" payoff in the brain you want it to go on and on. It's like watching a great dancer do a few quick amazing moves on the dance floor and then walk away before you can quite grasp what you saw. I totally loved this set of interlocking vignettes!

50 people found this helpful

a sneeze that never comes

Any additional comments?

wish there was more! the 4 short stories are great. they weave together seamlessly. my disappoint is the clines could've made a full-blown book out of this material. the stories are great, but they just end. there's no resolution. the stories end just as the characters begin to reveal themselves. i was left frustrated, wondering what happens next. it's like clines wrote 1/3 of a book then just quit. i really hope clines publishes more, continuing the stories he started. i kind of feel cheated that it just ended! however, i sure did enjoy the ride while it lasted! it's like a rollercoaster- i was thrilled listening to the audiobook, but when it was over, i wanted to keep riding.

Each story has an interesting character. Each story reveals part of the overall plot- what has happened, how it has affected the world, and how different types of people have survived. Clines builds an interesting world that longs to be explored. We get just enough to start salivating, but he leaves us wanting more. Lots of potential.

so if you've got a few hours to burn, listen to these short stories. they're better than everything in the movie theaters and on the tube right now.

24 people found this helpful

Get down in junkie town

It is four stories about post apocalyptic California. At some point each story intersects.I love the way the story unfolds. You get information from different points of view so you learn more in each story Very entertaining. It was short so I listened to it twice so I could pick up on more things. I enjoy Peter. Clines. The narration was very good too.I bought it on sale I thought it was fabulous.

22 people found this helpful

Dear Peter Clines,

Any additional comments?

Write faster!!! I've listened to all your books so far. This one might be my favorite. So please, WRITE FASTER!!!
Sincerely,
Sara

27 people found this helpful

Great book. Don't pass it by.

I truly enjoyed this book. Clines is a master storyteller and this book does exactly what a book should. It grabbed my attention from the first paragraph and held it until the last. It entertained me, surprised me and pulled me in completely. Some parts were scary, some tense, and all gripping. I wish Clines would continue with this storyline because there is still much left to build upon. I would love to find out what happens to the major characters. The narrators are excellent and if there is ever a sequel, I hope they would continue to narrate.

The book is made up of four stories, which are complete yet all connect with one another. About the stories: It is six months after the virus struck. Billions of the world population are dead or infected. The infected are contagious, aggressive and dangerous. They have been reduced to hungry, shaking, gibbering junkies. The four stories tie together with characters from one story fitting into other stories. The main characters are Holly, a bad ass survivor; the Outsiders, who go out into the streets to obtain goods; Bradbury, who runs a secure sanctuary and is overseeing medical experiments looking for a cure; Dr. Sam Clemons, who is hired by Bradbury to help with the medical research; and a professional and extremely skilled assassin who also has a tiny little bit of humanity left.

2 people found this helpful

I'm okay. The rest of the world? Not so much.

I love Clines Ex-Heroes and Ex-Patriot novels (both awesome reads/listens), and decided to give the Junkie Quatrain a listen.

I'm glad I did! This is an apocalypse novel that has all the right elements to keep me listening. Good concept and delivery. Characters in whom I want to invest. Descriptive settings and direction. Good action sequences. Solid writing. And my favorite - engaging. Once you've engaged a listener, and KEEP them engaged, you've won.

Most apocalypse novels far short on all these, but Clines did this in the Quatrain superbly. One of the simple but brilliant concepts was to have these stories connect, so we see difference perspectives on the shared event. That's thinking out of the box as a novelist. Simply put, this is good writing for the genre' and I highly recommend it.

This apocalypse is based on a virus that reduces the infected carrier to a muttering, sometimes screaming, violent and animalistic maniac. Scientifically more believable than reanimated flesh, I'd say. So, it adequately suspends dis-belief. Only the sane survive, but barely, as the world becomes one large sanitarium for the utterly mad and canniballistic. Hey, it could happen!

This is escapism at its purest level. No big lessons here. Just gold old-fashioned adventuring. At times we NEED an adventure, and Clines definitely delivers in the Junkie Quatrain, as well as his other works, to which I've re-listened, catching nuances I missed in earlier listens.

I have only one complaint - Why, oh why, can't this be a full length novel?

Clines, get busy, and give us more!

16 people found this helpful

Great story !!!

Great story.
I just want to point out 1 fact.
How can russia report 300 million dead, while it's population as of 2011 is 141.5 million.
Everything else is great.

27 people found this helpful

a story worth your time.

I think this is a very cleverly written book. The the title is definitely reflected within the stories. I love how all the stories were actually intertwined and that they also made sense from the different points of view. I have never really had a story approach the same basic premise from so many different angles as this one does.

Congratulations mr. Clines a very well-written story thank you very much for doing so.

1 person found this helpful

Great story, too short

I really enjoyed this book. The only problem was that it's too short. It left me wanting more. It's four short interesting stories, all told from different perspectives. I really love those type of stories, but this one needed to be expanded upon.
Other than that, it's great! This is the third Peter Clines book I've read/listened to, and I'm steadily becoming a Peter Clines fan. I really hope he decides to pick this universe back up at some point.

1 person found this helpful