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)

interesting story

It is interesting to imagine how everyday people may have acted in the middle of a war. I wasn't planning on reading another series so the ending took me by surprise.

A 23-Hour Second Book? Are You Kidding Me?

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Only if that person had a huge interest in time travel and London during the Blitz and had 40-plus hours of listening time to spare.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I probably liked Eileen the best, but the character development is not that rich. The backbone of the book is the three historians struggling to overcome some kind of glitch that in various ways threatens their survival.

Have you listened to any of Katherine Kellgren and Connie Willis ’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

First book.

Did Blackout inspire you to do anything?

Scream out loud when I figured out the first 18 hours ultimately meandered to nowhere.

Any additional comments?

I was really liking this book for its detailed -- and I presume accurate -- portrayal of London during the Blitz. The author is expert at painting the landscape, mannerisms and everyday life. The book unfolds very, very slowly, but the richness causes you to hang in there. At about hour 16 it looks like it is winding toward one of a few possible conclusions, then at hour 18 the author yanks the rug out from under you by saying go to the second book. My bad for not knowing up front that two books were involved. I am not averse to series. But frankly, this one reads like the author just didn't want to bring it to an end. She may have have more to tell you about World War II London, so needs these characters to convey the message, but I just can't go there. I'm a bit exhausted and feeling cheated.

Not as good as the second book

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

It was OK just as I didn't think Dog as good as Doomsday. Blackout was a step down from Dog.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The Blitz of London. I am not looking for audio books on the Blitz as I am writing.

Which character – as performed by Katherine Kellgren and Connie Willis – was your favorite?

None again they all where quite whiny. I missed not having Doneworthy in it.

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

It has one. I will listen to it because I am this deep into the stories I can hope it gets better.

Any additional comments?

I really liked the time travelers universe she has created. I would love to see a story backing in 2064 where a divergence did happen and the repair/alteration to the time line dealt with.

Enjoyable listen

Overall I enjoyed the story. There were a few storylines that seemed somewhat extraneous, however perhaps there will be more about them in the following book. I am looking forward to listening to the conclusion in All Clear.

historical fiction

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

i have a hard time believing that this book won any kind of science fiction award. it is entirely a novel of historical fiction (WWII specifically) with only the thinnest veneer of a time travel premise. In the last part of the sequel, the time travel premise becomes a much more central aspect, but until then it simply isn't a science fiction book at all (that, plus, the bewildering premise that time-travel has been invented and for some inexplicable reason only historians have access to it). The book is obviously well researched, but it reads too much like its trying to show off all that historical research and too little like...well...a novel.

Historic Fiction-good story but....

The story of three people in England during the blitz. They are all in different parts of the country. All very well written. I gave this 3 stars because after 18 hours just as the story was reaching its peak, it stops. It just stops with a plug for the next book to find out what happened to the three main characters. It was like getting stuck at the top of a roller coaster.

Blackout

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

pretty high,I really like the series

Any additional comments?

I really like this series!I finished this book this morning and already started the next one in the series.The characters are all very interesting as is the storyline.The only complaint is the repetition of their predicament every so many chapters.We know what is going on,no need for the reminders.I have enjoyed Katherine Kellgreens reading of this story.Her character voices are smooth and familiar throughout.

super annoyed

The ending was so bad. I can’t believe I spent all the time Listening without a more rewarding ending. Very shoddy trick

Buyer Beware

After spending upteen hors listening you learn that you have to buy her next book to learn the ending (maybe). I think this is dishonest to the reader. Also found the author works to hard to build drama, sometimes making the characters sound like whimpy crybabies.

ranking to be seen in context

The context is that this series is exceptional. Well, this particular book is not as good as the first two in the series but it is still quite good by any standards. I will explain also what I did not like. In the other books one of the things I liked was the humanity of the characters, how they take decisions which are obviously wrong, how they forget important information just like any normal person would. Well, here I think it went too far. The choices they make are so obviously misguided sometimes that it is not believable. It happened in "To say nothing of the dog" but there was a clear reason there. Anyway, overall a very good, enjoyable book, just not as good as the first two. Certainly much better than many books I have rated with 5 stars. But the expectations are bigger here.