Blackout

By: Connie Willis

Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren, Connie Willis

Length: 18 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

In her first novel since 2002, Nebula and Hugo award-winning author Connie Willis returns with a stunning, enormously entertaining novel of time travel, war, and the deeds - great and small - of ordinary people who shape history.

Oxford in 2060 is a chaotic place. Scores of time-traveling historians are being sent into the past, to destinations including the American Civil War and the attack on the World Trade Center. Michael Davies is prepping to go to Pearl Harbor. Merope Ward is coping with a bunch of bratty 1940 evacuees and trying to talk her thesis adviser, Mr. Dunworthy, into letting her go to VE Day. Polly Churchill's next assignment will be as a shopgirl in the middle of London's Blitz. And 17-year-old Colin Templer, who has a major crush on Polly, is determined to go to the Crusades so that he can catch up to her in age. But now the time-travel lab is suddenly canceling assignments for no apparent reason and switching around everyones schedules. And when Michael, Merope, and Polly finally get to World War II, things just get worse. For there they face air raids, blackouts, unexploded bombs, dive-bombing Stukas, rationing, shrapnel, V-1s, and two of the most incorrigible children in all of history to say nothing of a growing feeling that not only their assignments but the war and history itself are spiraling out of control. Because suddenly the once-reliable mechanisms of time travel are showing significant glitches, and our heroes are beginning to question their most firmly held belief: that no historian can possibly change the past.

BONUS AUDIO: In an exclusive introduction, author Connie Willis discusses her fascination with WWII and the historic context of Blackout.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Blackout is the first volume of a two-part novel. To find out what happens to the time-traveling historians from Oxford, we invite you to download the concluding volume, All Clear.

Listen to Connie Willis and Carrie Vaughn: A Conversation. And listen to All Clear.

©2010 Connie Willis (P)2010 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

• Nebula Award, Best Novel, 2010
• Hugo Award, Best Novel, 2011
• Best SF and Fantasy Books of 2010: Readers' Choice (SF Site)

“If you're a science-fiction fan, you'll want to read this book by one of the most honored writers in the field; if you're interested in World War II, you should pick up Blackout for its you-are-there authenticity; and if you just like to read, you'll find here a novelist who can plot like Agatha Christie and whose books possess a bounce and stylishness that Preston Sturges might envy.” ( The Washington Post)

I felt cheated at the end

That was a dirty trick to play on the listener. To take us thru an 18 hour mystery but then to leave us hanging, required to buy the following book to find out what happened. I considered for a while to protest by refusing to get the next book, but then decided it was better to write the review and move on. This is the first time I've run across a story line that doesn't come to some conclusion at the end.

Seriously?

I had no idea the story wasn't going to end with this book. I just grudgingly spent this month's credit to get the next book so I can hear the end of the story.

A bit frustrating

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I enjoyed the first 2 books, Doomsday Book and To Say Nothing of the Dog. But I found myself becoming increasingly frustrated with the way the story dragged along in Blackout while the characters hunted each other down. I thought I would scream if I heard one more character worry about the "slippage", find one of their fellow historians, and then run away from each other. I am going to move onto All Clear and give the last book a chance.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

Frustrated.

What does Katherine Kellgren and Connie Willis bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Good character voices.

Do you think Blackout needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Obviously.

A four star book if it had an ending.

I purchased this book 4 years ago and could not remember how it ended. I re-listened to this book in order to write a review and see if I wanted to purchase another book in the series. As I listened I could remember almost everything that was happening but the story ran on and on at times. Then it just ended, so you have to purchase the next book to see what happened. No wonder I could not remember. The premise is great so by cutting some unnecessary dialogue it would have 5 star potential, but overall it only deserves 3 stars.

Quite a book

Wow! Lots of different feelings about this one. Overall, I loved it. Katherine Kellgren is one of my favorite narrators so that's a plus. The story is very interesting. Another plus. The angst experienced by "the historians" while waiting for a recovery team was a bit stressful but maybe that was intended. If I hadn't known that nothing was resolved in this book I would have been big-time upset. But I was aware that the sequel is necessary for the rest of the story so I was prepared for the ending.

The everyday lives of Londoners during the Blitz are portrayed quite well. I'm not a big a sci-fi fan but the time travel aspect of this had me interested. Who knows what will have been accomplished by 2060?

Now for the next book.

The Author owes the Reader on this one.

if Katherine Kellgren hadn't done her usual excellent job never would have stuck with it. Good start but becomes very repetitive and things get very drawn out after you hit the half way mark.

Great Observational Standpoint of WWII

An amazing account of what the average citizen went through during WWII, even though it is through time travelers’ eyes. Having things described from an observational standpoint of the time travelers while they experience WWII rather than a first person narrative makes the story more tangible me because I would just be an observer, as well. Four stars because the characters spend a tremendous amount of time worrying about their actions, which made certain sections plod along. But this was very entertaining.

Wonderful - totally enjoyed it!

Let me say from the beginning that I already knew that this was the first of a two-part story, and that I am a HUGE Connie Willis fan. I love her stuff, and this book was no exception. According to an interview that she did, she wanted to do a book that, among other things, portrayed the ordinary British people during WWII, and that is what she has done, and done well. Also, Katherine Kellgren is a great reader! Her characterizations were interesting, and distinct from each other. I am looking forward to October, and the second half of the story.

Living The History ... Wonderful!

Where does Blackout rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It's up there in the top ten ... and I read virtually all the time. I've recommended this and the second part, "All Clea"r to many people and no one has been disappointed.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Blackout?

There's no "moment" ... It is a continuity, an experience very much like really being dropped into another time and place and living in that time.

What does Katherine Kellgren and Connie Willis bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I read very fast, so audio books slow me down to the pace of human speech. The narrator is very good and brings the characters alive. It's like a very absorbing movie, but I am the casting director, the cinematographer, the costume designer ... and sometimes, one of the main players.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I would have if it were possible! I could barely bring myself to stop listening and get something to eat or remember that I had to sleep.

Any additional comments?

Wonderfully complete characters, richly drawn. Beautiful writing, superb research. And this was a period in which I had never had any particular interest before reading this book and its sequel (they are really one book divided into two pieces).

Don't waste your time...

What did you like best about Blackout? What did you like least?

The narrator was the best part, followed by it being an interesting premise. However, it went on and on wtih nothing happening. Plus it was extraordinarily repeptitive.

What could Connie Willis have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Get to the point. This story did not need to be 18 hours long...let alone carried over to another book; whcih, I may add, I will not be downloading!

Was Blackout worth the listening time?

Absolutely not.

Any additional comments?

The book was awful. Long, boring, and never comes to any climax. Interminable is the best description I have.