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Eifelheim  By  cover art

Eifelheim

By: Michael Flynn
Narrated by: Anthony Heald
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Publisher's summary

In 1349, one small town in Germany disappeared and was never resettled. Tom, a contemporary historian, and his theoretical-physicist girlfriend, Sharon, become interested. By all logic, the town should have survived, but it didn't. Why? What was special about Eifelheim that it utterly disappeared more than 600 years ago?

In 1348, as the Black Death is gathering strength across Europe, Father Deitrich is the priest of the village that will come to be known as Eifelheim. A man educated in science and philosophy, he is astonished to become the first contact between humanity and an alien race from a distant star when their interstellar ship crashes in the nearby forest.

Tom, Sharon, and Father Deitrich have a strange and intertwined destiny of tragedy and triumph in this brilliant novel by the winner of the Robert A. Heinlein Award.

©2006 Michael Flynn (P)2007 Blackstone Audio Inc.

Critic reviews

  • Hugo Award nominee, Best Novel, 2007

"Another meticulously researched, intense, mesmerizing novel...for readers seeking thoughtful science fiction of the highest order." (Kirkus Reviews)
"Flynn masterfully achieves an intricate panorama of medieval life, full of fascinatingly realized human and Krenken characters whose fates interconnect with poignant irony." (Publishers Weekly)
"Compellingly weaves past and present together in a dialog of faith and science....Highly recommended." (Library Journal)

What listeners say about Eifelheim

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    205
  • 4 Stars
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  • 3 Stars
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  • 2 Stars
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  • 1 Stars
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Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    162
  • 4 Stars
    68
  • 3 Stars
    32
  • 2 Stars
    9
  • 1 Stars
    4
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    144
  • 4 Stars
    71
  • 3 Stars
    42
  • 2 Stars
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  • 1 Stars
    2

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Poignant, Profound, Absorbing and deeply moving.

This story set in a 13th century hamlet deep within the Black Forest has been one of my most rewarding Audible experiences. I have been an avid reader of “speculative” and “philosophical” sci-fi since childhood and seldom have I encountered a more beautifully imagined and considered work. The central character is the priest Dietrich, highly intelligent, a thoughtful leader to his small community. When confronted with life changing events, he rises to the challenges and confronts circumstances that would confound lesser men and holds fast his people against threatening chaos. 700 years later a historian and his physicist wife become involved in the mystery that is “Efilhiem”, the thriving village that is suddenly abandoned and never resettled.
The plot is finely drawn, the narration outstanding, the conclusion poignant. Profound, moving, absorbing and informative. Thoroughly recommended, 10 out of 10.

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20 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A tower of a novel!

It took me a little while to get into this one, but then I appreciated all the work put into the research to write this. After restarting it a few times I finally got into the characters and was entranced throughout the last half of the book. This was a very creative idea for a novel and I applaud the writer. The narrator was also excellent, I don't believe a Scott Brick or a George Guidall could've done this one any better. Be patient through the beginning and be rewarded throughout the rest of the book. Listen & enjoy!!

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15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Almost a gem

Those who enjoy Umberto Eco's novels might like this combination of historical novel with science fiction. It's an intriguing idea: what would happen if scientifically advanced space aliens landed in a 14th century German village and encountered there a highly educated priest who tries to convert them to Christianity? How would the superstitious peasants respond? This really is an interesting story. It has depth, intelligence, a nice measure of pathos, and is well researched. The intellectual discussions in the novel are extensive and dense, however. Although they're well done, they won't be to the taste of those looking for escapist fare.

If you speak even an elementary level of German, though, I suggest reading this in print instead of listening to this production. Although the narrator actually is quite good on a general level, he has no concept whatever of how to pronounce German. Worse, he makes no effort to find out until the very last sections of the book, when he marginally, sporadically improves. I don't expect perfect pronunciation of foreign languages in audiobooks, but actors and directors in professional productions at least should find out how the consonants are pronounced. This actor reads every German word as though it were written in American English, including the simple "ja" (which means "yes," and is pronounced "yah," not "jaw.") He does, however, pronounce "Herr," which in this case means "lord," close to correctly. (The "H" in German is pronounced, as in English.) I found the constant, egregious mistakes to be literally eye-rolling. It ruined my enjoyment of the book, which otherwise might have had me turning handsprings.

I may buy a print copy and read it, without the aggravation. The book itself is worth a second look.

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14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Potentially life-changing.

I've read/listened to thousands of books in my life - none better than this gem. Less science-fiction and more a deep insight into the human condition, Eifelheim takes us to some very strange places in order to make us look within our souls and ponder about our place in the universe. When residents of an isolated Medieval village in the Black Forest come into contact with extraterrestrials, the results, as portrayed by the author, are breathtaking. The sci-fi elements, which could have easily detracted from the beautiful, philosophical tone of the narrative, are wonderfully understated. This novel, in the same league with Arthur C. Clarke's "Childhood's End," is enhanced in audio by an expertly-handled narration. Highly recommended.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Great plot badly rendered

I need to be highly annoyed by a book to write a bad review but this book deserves it. The main problem with the book, in my opinion is the authors overwhelming need to prove his intelligence. From his medieval characters using ten dollar words for no apparent reason as a five or two dollar word would have worked just as well, I got the feeling that the writer was running to his thesaurus so he could use the biggest word he could find, to both of his modern characters being unlikable know-it-alls who can't seem to have a conversation without it turning into a dissertation on scientific theory. I got to a point where I would completely zone out when they started talking. Beyond that, his modern male character has a highly irritating habit of sprinkling his speech with German words with no explanation as to why.

As if all of this wasn't enough there is the reader's constant mispronunciation of a variety of words, the most glaring being the pronunciation of the word heir which he pronounced "hair" the correct pronunciation is "air". The first time this happened I was totally lost for a minute...hair? What hair? Whose hair? How someone who makes a living reading books doesn't know the correct pronunciation of a fairly common word is beyond me. Further, how it got through edits and proof...listeners? mystifies me.

This book is a story with fantastic potential in the right hands, unfortunately the author and the reader were not those hands. Spend you money elsewhere.

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Interesting but...

The story line was quite interesting, and I enjoyed the interplay of past and present. At the end I felt questions were unresolved. But I felt the character development was shallow--leaving merely caricatures. I could never quite buy in to the dialog of the mysterious visitors.

Once I got into the story, it was worth the listen, but this is not the story I anticipated.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

compassionate dark ages

I usually do not like science fiction set in the historical past. Invariability the characters end up meeting Abe Lincoln or someone like that. it just seems like a hokey literary device.

This book shows the "dark ages" and its inhabitants with compassion and human depth. This is wrapped around the unknowable question What if aliens did arrive on Earth in our past. These aliens did not build the pyramids or anything so fantastic they were just regular folks and after some time their "humanity" shows.

The present time setting, or a little in our future, was a little clunky but not too
bad; it allowed the reader to find out the truth
of the really interesting characters those of the
dark ages. And as it turns out not so dark after
all.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

good potential, never realized

Award winning novels should be incredible. I am a great fan of the medieval time period and the sci-fi/fantasy genre. Did I miss something? The plot sounded interesting, but that was where the appeal ended.

I never fell in love with, much less cared about any of the characters in this story. Despite all their dialog, I never understood their motivation or true character. Some of their actions were so ridiculous, I laughed out loud! The descriptions of the 1340's scenic areas were lovely, but that just wasn't enough to carry the book.

I was hoping the ending would make tolerating the hours of dialog and detail worth while. As others have said, it was predictably anticlimactic. Sigh... maybe, its just me?

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7 people found this helpful

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

History and the future?

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

Absolutely one of the best audio books I have heard in a very long time. The narration alone is worth the credit ( not surprisingly, as Heald is alway excellent ) but in this absolutely stunning. ( And difficult to do, once you listen you will understand.)

The juxstaposition of the past and present, with many connecting threads that are not always immediately evident, highly compelling charcters, and a story that pulls you in ( and keeps you in ) make this once of the "must listen" books I know of, not just in it's genre, but in general.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Both the philosophers.

Which character – as performed by Anthony Heald – was your favorite?

They all work very very well, but the "visitors" he does especially well.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The passings of the visitors was intense.

Any additional comments?

You must download and listen to this book.Do it for yourself. Do it for pleasure, and learning, but just do it. Now.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Bear this in mind...

For the reviewers who think that the word being said is equivalent to the English word for "he who inherits" - you are mistaken. The German word (this story is taking place in Germany) being used DOES pronounce the "H" and literally means "mister", is often used as an honorific and IS pronounced a bit like the word Hair.

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6 people found this helpful