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Publisher's Summary

Never volunteer for active duty...
Bob Howard is a low-level techie working for a super-secret government agency. While his colleagues are out saving the world, Bob's under a desk restoring lost data. His world was dull and safe; but then he went and got Noticed. Now, Bob is up to his neck in spycraft, alternative universes, dimension-hopping terrorists, monstrous elder gods and the end of the world. Only one thing is certain: it will take more than ‘control+alt+delete’ to sort this mess out...
This is the first novel in The Laundry Files. This audiobook includes the short story The Concrete Jungle.
©2004 Charles Stross. Introduction copyright 2004 by Ken Mcleod (P)2013 Hachette Children's Books
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Critic Reviews

"Tremendously good, geeky fun" ( Telegraph)
'A WEIRDLY ALLURING BLEND OF SUPERSPY THRILLER, DEADPAN COMIC FANTASY AND LOVECRAFTIAN HORROR.' ( Kirkus Reviews)
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful
1 out of 5 stars
By Anonymous User on 10-13-17

Rubbish

This was a complete waste of good money. Absolutely awful. I want my monry back!

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0 of 4 people found this review helpful

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful
5 out of 5 stars
By Marie on 01-20-15

Wonderful books

Would you consider the audio edition of The Atrocity Archives to be better than the print version?

As good as the print edition, (read print first)

What other book might you compare The Atrocity Archives to, and why?

Lovecraftian, leaky establishment type novel

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Made me laugh, cringe and bounce with excitement in equal measure, some of the beaurocracy is closer to reality than is entirely comfortable.

Any additional comments?

Please make the other stories available audible.com has all of them including the sci-fi novels, don't force us to suffer with this void in our life

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8 of 8 people found this review helpful

5 out of 5 stars
By Martha on 11-30-14

Something special

If you could sum up The Atrocity Archives in three words, what would they be?

Cold-war, love, bureaucracy

Who was your favorite character and why?

It has to be the protagonist. His journey is that of the classic fairy-story hero, and he is likeable!

Which character – as performed by Jack Hawkins – was your favourite?

As above

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The revelation of the relationship between the protagonist's two male room mates.

Any additional comments?

It is a well crafted, intelligent appraisal of how the British Secret Service would deal with the supernatural. It has a Fifties, Cold War feel, layered with the twenty-first century's real-world worries.
It is very gripping - a dynamic writing style, with real characterisation that grounds the very strange events into our recognisable real world. Only quibble is Stross's failure to fully characterise the female characters - a not uncommon problem with male authors, and Stross's women tend to fall into stereotypes; sex object(albeit with brains), bimbo or ball-breaker.
Charles Stross channels Ben Aaronovitch and Terry Pratchett in his younger period, and achieves somnething that is uniquely his own voice. He doesn't stray too far into the horror/torture/gross genre, but keeps it grounded with comedy, current references and the human drivers of love, loss and learning.This book is in two distinct parts - I believe they were originally published separately, but the repetition of setting back story isn't too cumbersome, and it all hangs together well.I'm definitely looking for more of his work.

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6 of 6 people found this review helpful

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful
5 out of 5 stars
By Suzanna on 06-27-14

Necromancy, Programming- what more could you want?

Behind the scenes, programmers have discovered the way to control gateways to other dimensions.... If you have never read any Charles Stross, then this is a good place to start. Charles Stross is thought-provoking, frightening and entertaining in this first book of his Laundry Files. Those of us who have worked in or for the public service will recognise some of the bureaucracy tangles that our hero has to deal with. Jack Hawkins does an excellent job with the narration. I found this book funny, frightening, gripping and wonderful!

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4 of 4 people found this review helpful

5 out of 5 stars
By Grantley on 08-27-17

Simply Amazing

Any additional comments?

Yes I am a programer, and yes I am a geek, and yes I am a HUGE Dresden Files fan. I honestly thought I wouldn't ever find a book that would be "better" than any Dresden book, but this is it. Simply amazing and highly recommended.

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