Disappearing Act cover art

Disappearing Act

A Host of Other Characters in 16 Short Stories

Preview

£0.00 for first 30 days

Try for £0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Disappearing Act

By: Robert Sheehan
Narrated by: Robert Sheehan
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

Robert Sheehan is one of Ireland’s brightest stars of the screen, both at home and abroad. Best known for his roles in Love/Hate and The Umbrella Academy, Sheehan has received widespread critical acclaim for his acting talent

In his debut collection of short stories, Robert Sheehan disappears into characters, challenging the complacencies of everyday experience, often from entirely unexpected angles.

Informed by the author’s peripatetic life, Disappearing Act reflects on the absurdity of human behaviour. Sheehan delves deep into his characters’ streams of self-talk and self-imposed delusions, exploring the dark impulses that lurk below the shiny surfaces of many outwardly normal lives.

Dark, provocative and often humorous, the collection will stay with the listener long after the audiobook is finished.

©2022 Robert Sheehan (P)2022 W F Howes
Anthologies Literature & Fiction Psychological Short Stories Fiction Comedy Witty
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

Small Bones in a Fist cover art
I'm Glad My Mom Died cover art
Night Goblins cover art
Moon in a Dead Eye cover art
We Are All Constellations cover art
Locks cover art
Extremely Bizarre cover art
Read, Scream, Repeat cover art
How to Find Home cover art
The Accidental Medium cover art
Getting Rid of Mister Kitchen cover art
Twisted 50 cover art
Dark Pines cover art
Red Sauce Brown Sauce cover art
Paper Cup cover art

Critic reviews

“A whacked-out kaleidoscopic miasma of delightful abandon and fun.... Leaves the reader amused, exhilarated and really quite delighted…you’ve seen Sheehan act—now watch him dazzle.” (Patrick McCabe)

“A dazzlingly eclectic collection of short stories.” (Ben Elton)

“Lots of great stories and voices. Reminded me of Irvine Welsh’s short stories.” (Frankie Boyle)

What listeners say about Disappearing Act

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    14
  • 4 Stars
    3
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    3
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    16
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    13
  • 4 Stars
    3
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    2

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Magnificent

Made me cry both tears of laughter and sorrow. Knocked me sideways.
Very original stories where you have no idea where they'll go next, and told in characterful voices.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

a surreal dream

I have to totally admit the audio version of "The Vending Machine " is so far my favourite, was just like some sort of sound therapy I went into a total trance.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

astonishing!!! genius

So creative, magical, funny, disturbing. Narrated by the author who is primarily known as an actor. He brings the characters to life in a great way. I want to be inside his head and work out how he has come up with these stories!! This will stay with me for a long time

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Surprisingly entertaining and engaging!

Really surprised by how good this was, each story brings something new and interesting

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Both thoughtful and soothing

It's good to know that it's not just my mind that goes off on strange tangents although not quite so unusual as some of these stories! Brilliantly written, thought provoking, stirring and even better when read to you by the author. Robert Sheehan had a real talent for voices and such a calming tone to his voice that I could listen to him for hours. I love the idea that Medusa lives in Macclesfield! Really looking forward to his next book if only to have the senses soothed by his voice again.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Seven hours of rambling, frenetic monologues.

Seven hours of rambling, frenetic monologues. The stories are repetitive and overly similar in style if not plot. Most of them feature the same frantic stream of conscious style. The stories are all written in the same “voice” from what is essentially the same character (probably just the author himself) in different “packaging” and rather surreal settings. The commentary on modern life is trite and offers no real insight or even humour. There are frequent and explicit references to bodily functions that verge on toilet humour. The author clearly wants to flaunt his extensive reading but the constant obscure references feel more desperate than erudite. The author, who is an actor, narrates or rather overacts the book himself (accents and all) making the audio version particularly tiresome. In the end I had to listen at twice the normal speed to finish it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!