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The Electric

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The Electric

By: Andrew David Barker
Narrated by: Nigel Peever
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About this listen

In the summer of 1985, 15-year-old Sam Crowhurst discovers an old, abandoned cinema that screens movies made by ghosts, for ghosts.

Sam and his friends Emma and David find themselves drawn into a world where the likes of Humphrey Bogart, Lon Chaney, and Theda Bara are still making pictures, where Harold Lloyd and John Belushi team up for roustabout comedies, and Karloff and Lugosi appear in films scripted by Edgar Allan Poe. Sam comes to learn the mysteries of the Electric cinema and his part to play in its long and strange history.

The Electric is about movies, ghosts, and that ephemeral moment in all of our lives: childhood.

©2013 Andrew David Barker (P)2019 Andrew David Barker Historical Fiction Fiction Haunted Heartfelt Scary Ghost

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I totally loved this book. I'm a film buff and I loved all of the references to old and 'not so old' films. The idea behind the book is interesting and original and kept my attention all the way through.There is lots of variety with the developing relationships between the main protagonists and I thought they were sensitively and realistically portrayed.

The narrator,Nigel Peever, is an actor and it really shows.His narration is superb. The sound effects/music really added to the overall effect.

Miss this one and you'll miss out on a real treat!

What a performance!

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What can I say apart from I recommend this book to anybody who wants to get fully engrossed in a story. It has been different to many books I have listened to because of the sound effects that make the tale so immersive . The whole book feels very nostalgic and takes you back to another time . Once I started listening I just didnt want to stop . it is definitely a page Turner and a beautiful story . You can just tell that the author has a genuine love of cinematic film and the narrator did the story justice in a magical way . I was given this book by the narrator,author or publisher free upon request for an honest review.

so atmospheric and nostalgic

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Listener received this title free

Far from frightening but certainly ethereal and yet tangible in equal measures. The dreamlike quality of the prose will transport you back to 1985 and earlier. Nigel Peever's marvelous narration keeps you captivated so don't be surprised if a few hours have passed without you noticing. This is certainly one I will listen to again

A truly nostalgic and evocative tale

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I was very kindly given a free copy of this book. Initially it appealed to me because I love a good ghost story. It turned out to be much more then that. It’s about growing up and dealing with loss. I won’t say anymore as I don’t want to spoil it for others! The writing was great and I would be interested to read/listen to more books by this author.
For me the performance itself was fantastic. I’ve never listened to anything quite like this before. Usually I listen to books that are simply read. This one was definitely more of a performance with sound effects. I didn’t think that it would be to my taste so I was pleasantly surprised to find that they helped me immerse myself in the story even more. One of the best narrators I have listened to!

Highly recommend

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Edge of the seat all the way through. I look forward to more from Andrew David Barker. At first, I was a little uncertain about the narration but that quickly passed and was hooked by the speakers different styling for each of the many characters.

Edge of the seat

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This was a really good ghost story!Kids find an abandoned theter in the woods.Creepy goodness. Nigel Peever was the perfect guy to narrate this.The extra sounds lead to the effect of you being there. I was given this book by the narrator,author or publisher free for an honest review.

The Electric

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The Electric by Andrew David Barker

I must admit I am partial to a well written Ghost Story but this one really was a cut above the rest. It is ingenious and fresh with a premise that draws you in almost immediately. A teenage boy finds an abandoned cinema in the wasteland near his home, where long dead stars create films and an audience of the deceased congregate to experience films from the grave.
Like Sam I am a particular fan of old films and was more likely to be watching Audrey Hepburn, Cary Grant and James Stewart than the brat-pack as a teenager. I too had a little gang who would hide in the undergrowth and play too close to the river.

The central dynamic between Emma, David and our narrator Sam through whose point of view we experience The Electric is reminiscent of those in Stephen King’s Short Story The Body (which later became cult Classic Stand By Me) or the early storyline of IT or Dreamcatcher. Tens brought together and irrevocably changed by a shared experience and whilst this is a deeply atmospheric tale, a spine tingle festival, it is actually a much more nuanced and tender tale about the callowness of youth, about grief and loss and the acceptance of those emotions and of final goodbyes.

Where stars of a Bygone age cannot let go of their need to be in Movies, and buffs just want one more thrill in those velveteen seats, where love, betrayal romance and high adventure are reflected from the screen into the lives of the viewer. Here two young souls find each other as they seek to go on after the loss of a parent.

I was profoundly moved by the story (so if you were in Waltham Abbey today and you saw a woman crying as she trudged through the wind, sorry that was The Electric Effect) and yet deeply uplifted by Story’s End. The best story allows the reader to carry on the tale and here is one where we really can do it…
Where the stars we have loved and lost are collaborating together to star again in great Dramaand other lost souls are sitting in the dark letting that story unfold before their very eyes.

A word about the Narration by Nigel Peever: This is one of the most immersive tellings of a tale I have listened to in a long time. Nigel has a knack for creating true emotion in his characterisation , anger and sarcasm and deep loss are felt as well as heard and his general narration voice is so strongly enunciated with such warmth and timbre that you cannot help but be drawn further and further into the story. Definitely added to my favourite Narrators list!!

Gloriously Creepy, but heartfelt story

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Listener received this title free

I found the story slow to start, but persevered and ended up really enjoying the book - although it does seem to come to rather an abrupt conclusion. Nigel Peever’s narration is excellent and is almost like having a full cast participating in the performance.

A story of peaks and troughs supported by outstanding narrative

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Listener received this title free

I loved every minute of this book, brilliant characters and superb storyline. Growing up in the 1960's we had an Electric Cinema in the village and I spent many hours there, this book brought it all back. I felt I wanted to go and see the films being shown by the ghosts. Not at all scarey you find yourself willing the ghostly characters on. The whole production was superb with top notch sound effects and Nigel Peevers narration was brilliant as always, he really sounded to be enjoying narrating the book. Topt Ten listen for 2023.
I was kindly given a copy of the book by the narrator and leave this honest/voluntary review.

Tot Ten Listen

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Listener received this title free

great story that is so easy to listen to as Nigel Peever brings the characters to life, I usually just listen to books whilst I am working but this book got me listening at any opportunity. I highly recommend this it's not called the Electric for no reason

really enjoyable

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