Book Information
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This podiobook is complete
Playing for Keeps by Mur Lafferty
Science Fiction
Click the arrow below to listen to the first episode of this free audio book:
Playing for Keeps tells the story of Keepsie Branson, a bar owner in the shining metropolis of Seventh City: birthplace of super powers. Keepsie and her friends live among egotistical heroes and manipulative villains, and manage to fall directly in the middle as people with powers, but who just aren't strong enough to make a difference. Or that's what they've been told. As the city begins to melt down, it's hard to tell who are the good guys and who are the bad.

This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works- 3.0 United States License.
Audio Quality:
Out of 107 ratings
Narration Quality:
Out of 108 ratings
Writing Quality:
Out of 108 ratings
Overall Rating:
Out of 108 ratings
By: Tim
Yes, very well done, and interesting concept that was thought out and executed well. Kind of had me thinking of other odd powers that people might have (I always wanted the power to instantly boil a pot of water from a distance.) Hopefully we'll there will be another so some of the loose ends will be tied up. Personally I'd love to see a book focused more on Peter, of all the characters (even Keepsie) I found him the most interesting.By: Ian Douglas
I found the book pretty entertaining until the last chapter. It felt extremely rushed, like Mur was on a deadline or something, and preferred to simply narrate the ending instead of getting the characters' voices more involved. I felt the story itself ended too abruptly, left some loose ends to tie up (unless there's going to be a sequel?), and Mur's voice made it a little difficult at times to discern which voice was which in a handful of female characters (notably Keepsie and Palace at the end). Overall, I give the book huge thumbs up. It's always great to hear an original superhero story, and hearing something from a "third waver" perspective was really terrific. Keep up the excellent work!By: Ron
This is the third audio book that I?ve listened to, the other two being Brave Men Run by Matthew Wayne Selznick and How to Succeed in Evil by Patrick McLean, that dealt with superheroes and super villains in some aspect. My feelings for Playing for Keeps is the same those other stories, I loved it!!! Since I work from home, I try to pass the time by listening to audio books, (because the TV is to distracting for me). Some of the characters in this story are hilarious, not to mention their super abilities. There were parts of this story that had me wondering what would happen next. I like that, I?m not a fan of foretelling what will happen next before the story is even over. Another thing I admire about this story is the light heartedness of it. Some of the other stories I?ve listened to have been great, but they?re a little hardcore and too serious at times. This story is fun to listen to. I sincerely hope there?s a sequel to it. Along with Christiana Ellis and Phillipa Ballantine, the women of the podcast world are contributing great material.
Chapters
| Title | Description | Date Created |
| Episode 1 (25.89 MB) | Keepsie has an annoying walk to work; getting captured by the super villain doesn't bother her nearly as much as being rescued by the superhero. That night in the bar, heroes come visiting, asking for something they never have before: Keepsie's help. | Oct 31, 2007 |
| Episode 2 (37.81 MB) | Keepsie gets hammered and her friends have to decide what to do when Keepsie's passive power has a surprising effect on an unexpected visitor. | Nov 7, 2007 |
| Episode 3 (42.84 MB) | Keepsie and her friends get breakfast and learn more about the truth of the Academy and the heroes, then get another visit from Clever Jack. Keepsie makes her decision. | Nov 14, 2007 |
| Episode 4 (31.17 MB) | Keepsie, Michelle and Peter form a plan to make a deal with the villains, and enlist some help in the process. | Nov 22, 2007 |
| Episode 5 (40 MB) | Peter endures interrogation within the bowels of the Academy, and we discover Keepsie's fate. | Nov 29, 2007 |
| Episode 6 (58.54 MB) | Keepsie reunites with her friends, makes a decision, and immediately regrets it. Ian also makes a regrettable decision. And there are robots. | Dec 6, 2007 |
| Episode 7 (41.27 MB) | Peter, Alex and Michelle go on one quest as Keepsie returns from another. We meet the cook, Colette, who gets promised a new car suspension. | Dec 12, 2007 |
| Episode 8 (53.01 MB) | Keepsie and friends launch a rescue attempt. We learn something new about the new villain, and about Michelle's power. | Dec 20, 2007 |
| Episode 9 (44.14 MB) | The fate of Peter is determined and one of our Third Wave Heroes leaves us forever. | Jan 5, 2008 |
| Episode 10 (41.44 MB) | Keepsie and the Librarian discover something about Zupra Ex, and about Dr. Timson. Peter, Ian and Michelle launch another rescue attempt. | Jan 10, 2008 |
| Episode 11 (36.85 MB) | We discover what Zupra Ex does to Keepsie, what happened to Peter, and just how twisted Dr. Timson is. | Jan 17, 2008 |
| Episode 12 (48.6 MB) | Timson discovers she's not the only one who's super-charged by the new drug, and the Third Wavers have some fun with the heroes. | Jan 24, 2008 |
| Episode 13 (34.27 MB) | Keepsie makes a new friend and Clever Jack makes a new army. | Feb 1, 2008 |
| Episode 14 (36.47 MB) | Our characters meet the last remaining real hero: Pallas, and convince her to at least hear them out. Hostages are released, and Clever Jack finds a new ally. | Feb 7, 2008 |
| Episode 15 (25.71 MB) | The big fight. The aftermath. | Feb 13, 2008 |


