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    Foundation and Empire: Stories
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    Foundation and Empire: Stories
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    Foundation and Empire: Stories
    Audiobook9 hours

    Foundation and Empire: Stories

    Written by Isaac Asimov

    Narrated by Scott Brick

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    The Foundation novels of Isaac Asimov are one of the great masterworks of science fiction. Unsurpassed for their unique blend of nonstop action, daring ideas, and extensive world-building, they chronicle the struggle of a courageous group of men and women to preserve humanity's light against an inexorable tide of darkness and violence.

    Led by its founding father, the great psychohistorian Hari Seldon, and taking advantage of its superior science and technology, the Foundation has survived the greed and barbarism of its neighboring warrior-planets. Yet now it must face the Empire-still the mightiest force in the Galaxy even in its death throes. When an ambitious general determined to restore the Empire's glory turns the vast Imperial fleet toward the Foundation, the only hope for the small planet of scholars and scientists lies in the prophecies of Hari Seldon.

    But not even Hari Seldon could have predicted the birth of the extraordinary creature called The Mule-a mutant intelligence with a power greater than a dozen battle fleets…a power that can turn the strongest-willed human into an obedient slave.


    From the Paperback edition.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateApr 20, 2010
    ISBN9780307749727
    Unavailable
    Foundation and Empire: Stories
    Author

    Isaac Asimov

    Isaac Asimov was the Grand Master of the Science Fiction Writers of America, the founder of robot ethics, the world’s most prolific author of fiction and non-fiction. The Good Doctor’s fiction has been enjoyed by millions for more than half a century.

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    Reviews for Foundation and Empire

    4/5

    3,165 ratings68 reviews

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    • 3/5
      I didn't like this one as much as "Foundation." I felt it was more convoluted, and although the payoff was pretty good, it took me a long time to like Asimov's one female character, Bayta. There are too many portrayals of her being the happy homemaker and too many examples of cultures being shocked by her seeming equality for my taste. I know that Asimov was writing for a different time period, and I am willing to accept that dated aspect. It just didn't sit well with me. (I have a hard time with authors who portray characters of their opposite gender and fail.)

      Overall, I like the book, but I had a hard time getting into it.

    • 3/5
      Part I of Foundation and Empire focuses on General Bel Riose and his attempt to take over the empire. He needs to be able to make metals (tungsten out of aluminum and iridium out of iron). When Riose launches a plan to attack the Foundation a trader by the name of Lathan intercepts the plot. Lathan runs to the Emporor of Trantor to squeal on Riose. Part II of Foundation and Empire takes place 100 years later. A strange mutant called "the Mule" is terrorizing the land with his ability to manipulate the emotions of those around him. He changes the course of the empire in a myriad of ways.Confessional: I hate it when I get confused by details. On page 120 Bayta sends the clown out of the room (...and the clown left without a sound"). Yet, a few paragraphs later the Captain turns to the clown to ask him a question ("The captain faced the trembling Magnifico, who obviously distrusted this huge, hard man who faced him" p 22). What the what? The clown would have to have left the room and then immediately come right back in according to the narrative but nowhere does it indicate Magnifico does that. Maybe I missed something somewhere?
    • 5/5
      This books is the middle of the original Foundation trilogy. The book is divided into two distinct parts.In the first half of the book, the Foundation confronts the remmnants of the Galactic Empire, whose forces are commanded by the brilliant general Bel Riose. While in decline, the Empire is still a match for the Foundation, requiring some subtrefuge to deflect. The Foundation manages to drive a wedge between Bel Riose and his emperor Cleon II, resulting in Bel Riose's execution, averting the threat. Everything seems to be following Seldon's plan.The second part of the book titled "The Mule" is where the rubber hits the road so to speak. The Foundation itself has become corrupt, leading to dissatisfaction and potential revolt. However, a new force appears led by the Mule, a mutant telepath who conquers the Foundation. The Foundation's emmebrs complacently assume that Seldon has a solution for the Mule. When Seldons hologram appears, he mentions nothing of the Mule, or the political situation, and instead talks about the aborted revolt. In other words, the plan has gone awry. Psychohistory is the sience of predicting the behaviour of large groups of people, and the Mule is only one man, and his special powers allow him to drive the political agenda in unpredicted ways. This is a huge shock to the members of the Foundation, and a significant change in the direction of the books - instead of confidently following a predetermined path to success, now the plan is no longer a useful guide.Meanwhile, the Mule, disguised as a circus clown, travels with two Foundation citizens Toran and Bayta and a psychologist named Ebling trying to locate the hidden (and possibly imaginary) Second Foundation, that was supposedly set up at the opposite end of the galaxy from Terminus. With the Mule's assistance, Ebling discovers the location of the Second Foundation, but is killed by Batya before he can reveal it, leaving the Mule to run his newly conquered Empire, but the Second Foundation as yet undiscovered to plan a counterattack.The predictability of Foundation and the first half of Foundation and Empire which was in danger of becoming stale, is disrupted by The Mule, which introduces uncertainty into what would have otherwise been a boring march of inevitability to the restoration of the second Galactic Empire. While the first half of Foundation and Empire is a good story, without The Mule and the final book of the trilogy, the Foundation series would not have been nearly as compelling a story. However, without establishing the validity of Seldon's predictions through the first portion of the trilogy, the about face brought on in The Mule would not have been particularly interesting. By combining the two sides of the story, Asimov created a powerful story that is rightly regarded as one of the best works of science fiction.
    • 4/5
      As I continue my progression through Asimov's Robots/Empire/Foundation series, I am STILL impressed by the quality of writing, the grandness of the adventures, the big picture thinking, the characters, the space swashbuckling, the narrative jumps and almost everything else. The last two chapters were absolutely terrific and reminded me of Asimov's more mature writing in the Robots series. The fact that he wrote these books, or rather this one in particular, when he was 31 years old is just insane. He always seems like he's one step ahead of me and it's a pleasure knowing that I have 5 more in this series. What a terrific character/antagonist the Mule is, though I'll likely forget most of the other characters, unlike Elijah Baley, Daneel or Giskard from the Robots books.
    • 5/5
      This is the second of Asimov's original Foundation trilogy, which I am re-reading now that they have at last been released in Kindle format in the UK. This is very much a book of two parts - the first third concerns the attempt by the last great Imperial general to conquer the Foundation and is competently told but fairly unmemorable. The bulk of the book is the much more gripping story centred around the rise from nowhere of the mysterious being known as The Mule, who sweeps all before him, including the Foundation itself. It is also noteworthy for being the story of the first proper female character in the series as originally written, Bayta Darrell, whose role turns out to be crucial. This part of the book is really the first section of the series written in a more modern thriller/quest narrative and echoing the later books of the series penned by the author in the 1980s and early 1990s. Brilliant stuff.
    • 3/5
      This book took me a while to get through, until I finally pushed myself to read through the last 100ish pages in one sitting. I can't say I overly liked the book, the premise was interesting but I just couldn't get into the book. I think mainly because the characters didn't stand out for me at all. Much of the time I was wondering who a written character was and it seemed to be all over the place instead of written in a easy to follow flow. After forcing myself to finish this book I don't think I'll be continuing the series.
    • 5/5
      Love it!

      Classic. I love the pacing and the story. Not deep character development, but the story keeps moving and I find I want to pick up the book again and again to see how things are going to work out!
    • 3/5
      Even when I was young and reading this for the first time more than 35 years ago, something didn't sit well with me. Now, a much older me knows that Asimov's characters are too thin and caricatured, but that same older me also realizes he was writing short stories for a pulp mag. The character of Ebling Mis is especially troubling with his pejoratives - not in keeping with my image of a professional...but things might have been different in the early 1950s.

      Marching on toward the end of his Foundation universe...
    • 4/5
      This is another science fiction book that I first read decades ago. Even remembering the "reveal," I thoroughly enjoyed the story. I particularly liked Bayta, a very strong female character. Magnifico is one of those characters you will never forget.However, the book is uneven. The first part was mostly of interest because it set up the last half. That part was worth the ride.If you like science fiction and have read Foundation, I think you'll love this book. If you like SF but haven't read Foundation, start there.
    • 4/5
      I have, for the most part, always found the second book in a trilogy weak, and this was no exception. Yet, in order to re-read all of the [Foundation] and [Robot] novels of [Isaac Asimov], I had to read it!The notion (oh dear, spoiler alert?) that something needed to threaten Seldon's plan, was a good literary plan, but it just seemed to drag on too long. I would have liked to have learned more about the resistance of the Independent Traders, for instance.So, onward to the next volume...but not for a while....
    • 5/5
      Last read this trilogy as a teenager, it has aged well both in terms of the passage of time and, hopefully, slightly more mature tastes on my part. Although I don't find it a particularly profound meditation on free well, the law of large numbers, and the great man theory of history. Not sure if is intended to be, but it is a great story.The trilogy really picks up with the introduction of the Mule in the second half of this book. It runs at a fast pace through the end of Second Foundation. At some point it has a slightly Scooby-Doo feel as successive masks are pulled off characters/plots. And ultimately it is a bit dehumanizing. Except for social psychologists (who seem a lot like economists) who end up in charge of the galaxy. Only fair.
    • 4/5
      An easy and sometimes colorful read. Asimov's galaxy has come together in this 3rd of the Foundation series. He handles the large jumps in time (and space) well. I read these in between drier more complex reads. I always look forward to them.
    • 3/5
      After falling completely in love with the first book of the trilogy, I was excited to dive into the next chapter and was rewarded with not only an interesting and threatening beginning but a few unexpected asides concerning previous characters. Based on how casually their fates were mentioned and the repetition of emphasis on the field of psychohistory, it is plain to see that individual characters do not drive this story--we're following humanity's story. Time moves ever forward and we close in on Hari Seldon's prediction of the Fall of the Empire.What was originally published as The General seemed much like a continuation of the first book. Politics and military might clashing and cooperating on all sides emphasized the messiness that occurs during war. A general with ambition and a plan, one empire teetering on civil war, another staving off extinction by consolidating power. These are the players in this first half. The reader can be comfortable here if he were comfortable in the first book. It's more of the same, and more exciting as we anticipate the predicted final breaths of the Empire that exiled Seldon and his followers.The Mule is played differently and unfortunately did not hold my attention as well as the previous works. I just couldn't being myself to care about this mysterious boogie-man that no one encountered yet to whom all capitulated. Add on the fact that until this point, Asimov wrote in a world of science and technology and now veered off into comic book style biological mutations and I felt as though he were losing me. At the time of my reading, I was unaware of the publication history and hoped that we'd leave this boring newlywed couple's story and focus on more political intrigue. Their story ended, of course, but not until the end of the book with nothing else to cleanse my palette, leaving a sour note with me. I am unable to really put my finger on why this story did not resonate with me. The best I can offer is that I dislike stories in which the author holds things back from the reader and then springs them unforeseen and unexpectedly in an "a-HA!" moment, as though he pulls one over on the unsuspecting masses. So clever, he is! But I dislike that technique even more when it is not expected (yes, I am fully aware of that irony, tyvm) or associated with that genre.I suppose I may be able to better verbalize that last statement with more thought, but I'd rather move onto the next work and just leave it be. I enjoyed Foundation and Empire overall, just not nearly as much as I enjoyed Foundation. The failure of The Mule to resonate with me hasn't left me disconsolate, rather I'm eager to see whether Second Empire can redeem the story and return me to a narrative I loved.
    • 5/5
      The trilogy of books of which this is the middle novel are among the best Asimov ever wrote among his science-fiction works and among his most influential. The trilogy begins in Foundation, where Hari Seldon, a "psychohistorian" predicts the fall of a galaxy-spanning empire within a few centuries and establishes the "Foundation" to manipulate history to shorten the dark ages to follow. That novel was episodic, and just not as strong. Foundation and Empire is a more unified novel and features one of Asimov's most complex and compelling characters, "the Mule," as well as a strong female character, Bayta, and a clever twist. I think this is a novel that just gets stronger as it goes along. Asimov was an author I found more notable for mind-bending ideas than rich characterizations--so I found the poignancy with which he imbued the Mule striking.
    • 4/5
      Riose indicated the smooth black bench under the fragrant tree-fern whose large spatulate leaves lifted flatly against the white sun. "See that, sir? It is a relic of the Imperium. The ornamental benches, built for lovers, linger on fresh and useful while the factories and the palaces collapse into unremembered ruin."The fourth Seldon Crisis occurs when Foundation is attacked by what remains of the decaying Galactic Empire. The Empire's technicians no longer remember how to maintain their fleet and the spaceships built in the last fifty years are mere shadows of the older ships.A hundred years later, the rise of the strange and powerful mutant who calls himself the Mule threatens to upset Hari Seldon's plan, and a Foundation psychologist realises that it may only be the mysterious Second Foundation that can defeat the Mule.
    • 5/5
      The first three Foundation novels (in order of writing) are excellent, dramatic, vast masterpieces of science fiction story telling - and scenario building. Asimov's psycohistory, and the influence of Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire, create a canvass large enough for him to tackle politics on a stellar scale. Where many of his novels show poor characterisation, the Foundation (the first three at least) novels are of such a scale that this is not important, and he can focus on the big picture.
    • 4/5
      Excellent continuation of the series. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It jumps about but it's clear to understand what's going on and the descriptions and technology are timeless. Looking forward to reading the other!
    • 5/5
      Foundation and Empire is the second book in the Foundation trilogy. Essentially, the Foundation series is a retelling of the fall of the Roman Empire and the rise of the modern world, in a futuristic sci-fi setting. It is an ambitious trilogy and widely regarded as Asimov's best work. The reality for me has been a little different. Foundation was a fine novel, but wasn't the bastion of science fiction I expected it to be. Foundation and Empire, the second novel, is where Asimov hits his stride. I can tell exactly where I began to buy the Foundation books as among the finest examples of science fiction. At the end of Part 1, Asimov switches the story from an almost academic writing style, to a real story with a plot, and characters we come to care about. And it's a superior plot, with a lot of unexpected moments. Asimov is still telling his story, but he found a way during this novel to tell it through plot. In Foundation and Empire, the trilogy truly becomes the great work of science fiction.If you've read Foundation and have considered abandoning the series, don't. Foundation and Empire is a rare example of a sequel surpassing the original. I hope Second Foundation can bring the trilogy to a satisfying conclusion.
    • 4/5
      The second in the trilogy and the story gets better.
    • 3/5
      The Foundation is challenged from several directions in this book. Asimov describes the predicted fall of the Empire and the rising influence of the Foundation. However, Seldon's psychohistoric predictions can't account for everything, thus enters the Mule. The story cause one to consider the role of charismatic leaders throughout history and how they, as individuals, have been able to affect the masses.
    • 5/5
      Book 2 of the trilogy that is the best science fiction of all time.
    • 5/5
      Better than the first, as after the first section there is a cohesive story throughout. Looking forward to the next one.
    • 2/5

      Seven out of ten.

      The Foundation survived the greed and barbarism of its neighboring warrior-planets. Yet now it must face the Empire, still the mightiest force in the Galaxy, even in its death throes. When an ambitious general determined to restore the Empire's glory turns the vast Imperial fleet toward the Foundation, the only hope for the small planet of scholars and scientists lies in the prophecies of Hari Seldon.

    • 3/5
      Things get hairy for the Foundation as it clashes first with remnants of the Empire then with the psychic mutant known only as the Mule. But the plot of the book itself seems very detached from the actual going ons.
    • 5/5
      I have already written about Asimov in the review of the first book of this series. The second book is based on other interesting ideas from the realm of science, and in particular complexity theory.I found this book broke up the simple "calculability" suggested by the first book by throwing a curveball that history tends to, in the form of unique, history-changing characters. And, again in Asimov fashion, the story is resolved in style.
    • 4/5
      Like the first Foundation book, I like it a lot but have no idea why. The endings of the stories are anticlimactic, and in the case of the second, longer story (of two), predictable. But rather than being disappointing, it left me wanting more. Whatever the failings of the individual stories, it's what they have to say about the history of this universe that really matters.
    • 2/5
      Much better than the first...or perhaps I just got used to the writing style. I liked the fact that we got a strong female protagonist, even if I knew how it was going to end about 30 pages out.
    • 4/5
      The premise of the Foundation series is that even if the behavior of individuals isn't predictable that of large groups of people is. The great Psychohistorian Harri Seldon uses this to to create a Foundation that will tighten the gap between peaceful eras in mankind's history and provide a second Empire after the first has inevitably fallen.The only problem is that the first Empire hasn't quite fallen quite yet, and Empires are not in the habit of welcoming their replacement with open arms. Luckily for the Foundation, Seldon's predictions remain true, and they survive against a complete bombardment by one of the Empire's brightest generals.Fast forward a few generations. The Empire has finally died and the Foundation is on the verge of Civil War. This has all been predicted by Seldon. But then something strange happens. The war never happens, and into the picture comes a mutant capable of twisting one of the fundamental assumptions of Psychohistorical analysis, that the psychological makeup of mankind will remain relatively the same. Much of the book is spent on the struggle against this new threat.Compared to some of Asimov's stuff I find the writing in the Foundation series to be a little dry. There are some good turns of phrases, and the characters are always fun to read, but I was not blown away as I have been by some of Asimov's shorts. The identity of the Mule was obvious from the beginning, though I forgot I had known all along by the end and was surprised when it was revealed for a moment. I didn't expect the -method- Asimov used to reveal this secret.Part one and Part two of Foundation and Empire were initially published separately. They're lackluster alone, but work very well together. The assumptions that Asimov builds up in the first half are all torn down in the second. I am certainly eager to see if Seldon's science prevails in Second Foundation, or if the Mule is the one thing that can destroy it.
    • 2/5
      Much better than the first...or perhaps I just got used to the writing style. I liked the fact that we got a strong female protagonist, even if I knew how it was going to end about 30 pages out.
    • 2/5
      I love Bayta and the Mule, and their interactions are probably my favourite parts of all the Foundation books. I think I can get such satisfying re-reads out of this series because it's so damn convoluted I don't remember all the ins and outs so easily.