Time and Time Again

De: Ben Elton

Narrado por: Jot Davies

It’s the 1st of June 1914 and Hugh Stanton, ex-soldier and celebrated adventurer is quite literally the loneliest man on earth. No one he has ever known or loved has been born yet. Perhaps now they never will be.

Stanton knows that a great and terrible war is coming. A collective suicidal madness that will destroy European civilization and bring misery to millions in the century to come. He knows this because, for him, that century is already history.

Somehow he must change that history. He must prevent the war. A war that will begin with a single bullet. But can a single bullet truly corrupt an entire century?

And, if so, could another single bullet save it?

©2014 Ben Elton (P)2014 Random House Audiobooks

Wonderful Premise and Payoff

If you could change one moment in time, which would you choose? That's the premise of Time and Time Again. Is there a single moment in time that hurdles the 20th century into unspeakable violence, pollution and vapid consumption? Were we heading for a better future if not for a single event? And if you had the power to change that one event, should you use it?

This novel is a fantastic blend of action, adventure, romance and philosophy. Add a dash of Isaac Newton (because who doesn't yearn for more Isaac Newton). Faultlessly l
paced with twists and turns - some you see coming, and at least one that shakes your foundations to the core.

Beautiful narration be Jot Davies who made even the most wretched of characters wholly human (if not all slightly masculine). The novel's conclusion - perfect to the story but also haunting in such a way that will simply not permit you to easily put this story away.

I am so eager to talk about this book with my frinds, but sadly I will need to wait for them all to finish reading the numerous copies I am purchasing and intend to gift to them all first.

Great concept and ideas marred by moping and romance

The concept is great. The author has a way of transporting you back to 1914 to various historical locations with a flowery prose, but that same descriptive writing also drags and gets sidetracked sometimes in eye roll inducing romance and internal moping. Keep with it, though, and you are rewarded some interesting time travel twists and turns and historical adventure.

Great of course, it's Ben.

What did you love best about Time and Time Again?

I love everything Ben writes* and have every book he's written.
This is totally in keeping with his theme of - choose a topical subject, then write the most well researched, original, witty, intelligent, insightful, razor-sharp, entertaining and detailed book about it. With the most memorable and real characters in it.
With this one, he's also following his recent theme of exploring WWI and II and everything that went on around them, which is obviously a personal interest for him.
His take on time travel and it's repercussions is typically Ben - original, but about as realistic and down to earth as it's possible to get given the subject matter.


*(one exception - Past Mortem, where he decided to leap over the boundaries of gruesomeness, way past what the average person - or at least me - could stomach. Don't get that one).

Have you listened to any of Jot Davies’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Great. He does other Ben Elton books and is always good.

Any additional comments?

If you like Ben, it goes without saying - get this book!
But - don't expect the laughs of his older books, he's gone a bit more serious lately.
If I had to give one negative point - I'd like it to have been a bit longer.

If you don't know Ben but like great writing of the easy to read/listen and always absorbing and entertaining type - get this book.

You don't have to be in to sci-fi or time travel at all - that's quite incidental to the story.

Riveting

I've read some of Ben Eltons other books, and this by far the best.
A story that grabs you in and takes you back and forward in time, never hinting about what's to come.
The plot, although far fetched, is made believable with Bens historic knowledge and the specifics that become as much a lesson in history as a great novel.
Loved it!

intriguing

well written draws you in. A very enjoyable listen, posing possibilities and weaving them into history

Brilliant!

This is such a masterpiece of a time travel novel! It was intelligent, well-narrated, and riveting. I loved it!

Well… It's a Good, Not Great, Listen

When I listened to the first hour or so of the book, I had really, really high hopes. Great descriptive writing and at first, really deep character development. Initially, I found that the primary characters had real foibles and color to their personality. Something to get your teeth into, as far as caring about their lives and relationships. But it seemed the author got tired of furthering that development and let them slip into less depth than the beginning promised. I can't go int the most disappointing aspects of the character plot lines without spoiling several critical plot junctures, so I won't. I'll just say, I didn't like the shallow twist(s) that occur several times with several characters.
I like science fiction type plots and this had promised to take its readers into a time-travel proposal without too much scientific glossing… just enough to suspend disbelief and to get the story moving. Unfortunately, as it moved along, it just felt like the book needed a little more guts to the temporal relationships.
The narrator is pretty good… although his cadence often remained static and could have used a little more interpretation of emotion at times.
Overall, a good listen but not one where you miss the characters at the end, as I was sure that I was going to at the beginning.

Another dimension in space and time

I tried to like this book but it felt so predictable. The main character is written as an idiot because he doesn’t seem to grasp “cause and effect”. Not a superb job at making the character believable. I kept thinking - he’s an idiot!

I have no desire to check to see if there is a book 2. Did I mention that the narrator’s characters all sounded the same? Men and women both have deep voices.

Great story

I enjoyed this book immensely. Thought provoking showing the problem of not accepting our past. Not accurate in some regards but a very good read. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys time travel stories.
I did like the narrator and his reading skills. While not trying to make himself sound female he was able to create the characters in a well read manner.

OMG the best plot ive read in years

great and unpredictable
and with such a great attention to details
Ive actually bought more books of similar subject but this is absolutely the best