Blackout

I love Connie Willis's books on time traveling, and in this one the historians travel to WWII London. The characters and plot drew me in, and the details brought this time to life. My comprehension of WWII history had been a collection of facts; Connie Willis puts a very human face on the war's impact on daily life in Britain. I think that this book, and its sequel "All Clear," could be used as part of teaching WWII history, because it gives a story context to the facts - and it is very entertaining! The narrator's voice and delivery occasionally annoyed me. She had a habit of raising the pitch and increasing volume at the end of sentences - a minor annoyance.

I love Connie Willis books, and this one and its sequel "All Clear" are two of my favourites. They put you smack in the middle of the action in WWII, and treat the experience with expertise and sensitivity, while maintaining a fantastic time-travel storyline.

Time travel and the revisiting of a few characters we've met in some of Connie Willis's other books are the initial hook. But that is sidelined by the absorbing story of how the British coped with World War 2. One of the best narrators I've listened to polish off both this and its continuation (the book All Clear).

I imagine that if you don't know Connie Willis Historians and their particular form of time travel you may have something of a hard time with this book and it's second part "All Clear". I enjoy CW's time travel books as historical novels just as much as I enjoy them as science fiction books. Her portrayals of whichever periods her Historians are visiting are magnificent. But if you want to really enjoy her time-travel books I'd say read "To Say Nothing of the Dog" first because that one will help you better understand her whole time travel concept --it is also a great book, of course and laugh-out-loud funny-- I don't think she explains time travel much in "Blackout" and "All Clear". I read a review where someone is puzzled by Polly's desperate search for a black skirt and someone else wonders about the frequent mention of the drop and I can see how those things don't quite seem important if you don't know CW's approach to time travel and history. But if you do, oh if you do, how very much sense it all makes, how very important those things are and how well you enjoy it all. When you are done with "All Clear", make sure to read "Firewatch" a short story where we meet Mr. Bartholomew in the flesh! and we re-encounter Kivrin! She's doing well. I love this woman's work, she's given me many hours of happiness. I am sure there is a special place reserved for her in Cori Celesti.

Well researched period piece, but I have to say the book went nowhere. Every review mentions the abrupt end, and even though I was prepared I had to say "Huh?" when the book ended. I don't have the interest or patience to endure the second book. Both books should be edited down to a combined 4-5 hour story. This story is so repetitious about "the drop" and a complete lack of tension or insight of what really may be happening back at the home office, that I feel I wasted my time with this one. I did finish the book out of stubbornness, but I will not bother to get the sequel. I have a couple of hundred of Audible books, I love Audible, and this is one of only two books I'm sorry I purchased. (No fault of Audible).

Cool concept and it seems like it was well researched but I kept waiting to get to know the characters. The only thing the time travelers ever thought about was how to get back home. No matter what was going on around them or how much people tried to connect with them, they were like robots. Perhaps this author should collaborate with another author who is better at developing characters. There is so much potential. I also couldn't believe how the book ended without an ending at all. I will not buy the second book for two reasons. First, I can't take another book of flat characters. Second I feel like I was manipulated. Its like one book was split in half so I would have to pay twice as much to get a story with an ending. Most books that have sequels, still have their own ending (i.e. resolution). This was very strange.

I usually like the time travel theme, but this one has not been able to get me interested. Rarely do I not finish listening to a book, but this will probably be one.

This is a well written book, with interesting characters and a rich story. The narration is very good. At times it is a bit plodding, but this is not often. The worst part is the ending, which is entirely unintelligible, unsatisfying, and a device for purchasing the next volume. It should be advertised on Audible as the first part of a novel, rather than as a novel in and of itself.

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.

Great stuff, until I got to the end; it just sort of stops and leaves you wondering what happens next… After a quick bit of research I found out that it is part of a two book series. Had I known, I might have waited until the second book comes out so I could have listened to them one after the other. I enjoyed it and can’t wait for “All Clear” which is due late 2010.