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Agent to the Stars
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 8 hrs and 49 mins
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Agent to the Stars
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Summary
The space-faring Yherajk have come to Earth to meet us and to begin humanity's first interstellar friendship. There's just one problem: They're hideously ugly and they smell like rotting fish. So getting humanity's trust is a challenge. The Yherajk need someone who can help them close the deal. Enter Thomas Stein, who knows something about closing deals. He's one of Hollywood's hottest young agents. But although Stein may have just concluded the biggest deal of his career, it's quite another thing to negotiate for an entire alien race. To earn his percentage this time, he's going to need all the smarts, skills, and wits he can muster.
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Editor reviews
Wil Wheaton, a Star Trek: The Next Generation alum, is a canny choice for narrator of this intersection of science fiction and Elmore Leonard-esque Hollywood farce. In addition to being a rather prominent footnote in sci-fi history, Wheaton’s also got a great voice — sonorous, with an inflection similar to a late-night radio DJ who’s bemusedly sharing an anecdote on air between tracks. His voice also carries a hint of that lilt peculiar to many native Angelenos, which comes in handy when he exaggerates it to Valley Girl-proportions to portray starlet Michelle Beck, former cheerleader and current box office draw.
Hollywood agent Tom Stein is the book’s hero, and when the story begins, Michelle is his most important client. That is, until Tom meets Joshua, an extraterrestrial whose alien race hires Tom and his boss, superagent Carl Lupo, to represent them. The Yherajk have decided their best hope for a peaceful first contact between their race and all of humanity is to out themselves via the movies, and they know if they want to make it in Hollywood, they need good representation.
Wheaton’s voicing of Joshua, who has traveled to Earth as the Yherajk’s representative, is another highlight. Joshua, like his kinsmen, looks like a gelatinous blob, gives off a noxious odor, and slithers around amorphously. He’s also incredibly educated when it comes to human pop culture, having logged countless hours watching sitcoms. Wheaton delivers Joshua’s line, “We look like snot. And we smell like dead fish,” in a nasally deadpan that suits a one-liner-delivering alien to a T.
Even when Scalzi veers into semi-philosophical territory — as when he explores why an alien race would choose a Hollywood debut over staging their premiere in Washington — Wheaton keeps the narration moving with his just-right character voices. Look out for the both silly and spot-on sounding Quebecois accent he uses to portray Roland Lanois, an art-house film director with a critical role in the novel, and for his Buddha-like turn as Gwedif, a Yherajk storyteller. —Maggie Frank
Critic reviews
What listeners say about Agent to the Stars
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Sharon Barron
- 21-06-16
Enjoyable comedy fiction
Fast paced, with Scalzi's trademark witty repartee. A Hollywood agent is tasked with representing a new and very important client: an alien. The dialogue reminds me of Buffy for some reason. I guess it's that "say it fast enough and throw in some snarky rejoinders and it'll be funny" thing. Except it is actually funny. I like that stuff, so I don't have to be convinced.
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- A Janson Jones
- 24-03-21
Absolutely Brilliant!
Great story by John Scalzi but also brilliant performance by Wil Wheaton. Pitch perfect on all levels.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Wendy French
- 03-03-22
Enjoyable
Enjoyable book. This is the third Scalzi/Wheaton combo I've listened to in a row! The first 2 being the Lock Ins.
This is more fun, less clever I think, but very easy listening Sci fi.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 22-01-21
Will Wheaton gives a wonderful performance
The difference between the characters is unbelievable. Excellent performance. Great story, laugh out loud moments. I will be buying more from the author and from Will Wheaton.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Graham G.
- 20-11-20
Hugely entertaining.
Light, witty and actually makes you laugh. A week written story very well narrated by Wil Wheaton. Recommended to brighten your day.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Liiiam waaalton
- 06-03-21
Wheaton and scalzi is my fave combination
The story is so light and well written, and WW is such an excellent narrator.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- R. Reed
- 30-07-22
Can I be a talent agent please?
Excellent narration by Will Wheaten - one of those books hugely enhanced in audible format due to the quality of the narrator. A good story well told - makes me want to give up my job, move to Hollywood and become a talent agent! Or maybe just body swap with Tom Stein.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Paul Cudmore
- 04-08-23
Enjoyable fun with “Aliens”
Loved the tone of of the audio book, Wil Wheaton’s narration was spot on. Some laugh out loud moments, in this “sci fi lite” tale.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Rick Lawrence
- 05-03-24
Just a lot of fun
A great concept and entertaining story well read by Will Wheaton, who just seems to ‘get’ Scalzi’s books and deliver brilliantly. Addresses very serious topics without taking itself seriously.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Dave Hoggan
- 09-09-16
Not What I Expected - Pleasantly So.
If you could sum up Agent to the Stars in three words, what would they be?
Unexpected. Grounded. Enjoyable.
Which character – as performed by Wil Wheaton – was your favourite?
The lead, closely followed by Joshua.
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
Yes, and I'm not going to spoil it for anyone else.
Any additional comments?
There's a TV series called Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Watch the first five or six episodes and you'll form an opinion of the show and may dismiss it, which would be a shame as it takes a suddenly side-step down a different path. Agent to the Stars very much reminds me of that.
Starting the book with Will Wheaton's excellent narration I found it an engaging albeit somewhat unremarkable story. Nice idea though and it has left me wondering whether John Scalzi has either close connections to the world of reps or is simply very thorough in his research; in itself a compliment to the book. But the story took a bit of a left turn and disappeared down a somewhat darker and more intriguing path.
Lots of concepts here and now looking to pick up one of his other works, perhaps Red Shirts or Lock in.
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5 people found this helpful