Eon

By: Greg Bear

Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki

Perhaps it wasn't from our time, perhaps it wasn't even from our universe, but the arrival of the 300-kilometer long stone was the answer to humanity's desperate plea to end the threat of nuclear war. Inside the deep recesses of the stone lies Thistledown: the remnants of a human society, versed in English, Russian and Chinese. The artifacts of this familiar people foretell a great Death caused by the ravages of war, but the government and scientists are unable to decide how to use this knowledge. Deeper still within the stone is the Way. For some the Way means salvation from death, for others it is a parallel world where loved ones live again. But, unlike Thistledown, the Way is not entirely dead, and the inhabitants hold the knowledge of a present war, over a million miles away, using weapons far more deadly than any that mankind has ever conceived.

©1985 Greg Bear (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

definitely one of the greatest SciFi books.

explores the idea of some of the most alluring ideas in science with detailed characters. Keeping a firm hand on scope and depth,yet remaining anchored in actual theory

fun sci Fi space opera rooted in the real world

I liked and didn't love this one. masterful performance and very strong sci fi premise & delivery. the world building and characters were strong and I highly recommend this to anyone seeking a fun mature fantasy adventure, even though I was never sure if I was listening for thought provoking ideas or disbelief-numbing techno magic

Lost stream after a good start

When I first started listening, I was immediately drawn in. The early chapters felt fresh and exciting - I was fascinated by the mysterious Stone and all its impossible chambers. The way Bear set up the scientific puzzles and mathematical mysteries really hooked me. I found myself genuinely intrigued by what secrets the seventh chamber might hold.

But then something shifted in the second half. What started as a tightly crafted narrative began to feel disjointed. I couldn't help feeling that Bear had lost his grip on the story. It's like he had all these complex ideas but couldn't quite wrangle them into a satisfying conclusion. The narrative that had me so engaged early on started to meander, becoming more complicated without really going anywhere meaningful.

Stefan Rudnicki's narration was excellent throughout - his strong performance and engaging delivery helped me stay with the story even when the plot became more challenging to follow. His skill as a narrator really brought the characters and world to life.

This being my first experience with Bear's writing, I have to say I'm a bit disappointed. While there were definitely promising elements - especially in that first half - the way it all unraveled has made me hesitant about picking up his other books.

dated and sophomoric

Playboy style misogyny but interesting prescience viz. Russia / USA relations. Curious Science in the years immediately prior to the birth of the internet.

Gets more confusing (read outlandish) near the end

Starts out interesting, but as story progresses the complex variety of species (?) gets more confusing. Did I entirely miss a description of the "Jarts"? Maybe I didn't have time to focus sufficiently... Good luck!

Heavy on theory

difficult read if you do not have a goods grasp of math or theoretical physics but also deals with the essentials of humanity.

A very long story

Full of possible futures, multiple worlds, battles(too many for my taste). Many characters to keep track of. Nerdy science and time/space travels in true sci fi style. Highly imaginative.

Droning narration

Largely uninteresting story and the narration was monotone and uninspired. I rarely don’t finish a book, marked this as complete with an hour left.

A classic written in '85

It's a pretty good book. I really liked the first half of the book, maybe the first 3rd, but after that, it just kind of got weird.

Very unique

The 1st half of the book is really some of the best and most unique science fiction I have read in a really long time. The 2nd half of the book gets a little confusing and I found myself a little lost. 5 starts for the 1st half and 3.5 stars for the second half. Outstanding performance.