Time's Eye

A Time Odyssey, Book 1

By: Stephen Baxter, Arthur C. Clarke

Narrated by: John Lee

Length: 11 hrs and 37 mins

Publisher's summary

For eons, Earth has been under observation by the Firstborn, beings almost as old as the universe itself. The Firstborn are unknown to humankind - until they act. In an instant, Earth is carved up and reassembled like a huge jigsaw puzzle. Suddenly the planet and every living thing on it no longer exist in a single timeline. Instead, the world becomes a patchwork of eras, from prehistory to 2037, each with its own indigenous inhabitants.

Scattered across the planet are floating silver orbs impervious to all weapons and impossible to communicate with. Are these technologically advanced devices responsible for creating and sustaining the rifts in time? Are they cameras through which inscrutable alien eyes are watching? Or are they something stranger and more terrifying still?

The answer may lie in the ancient city of Babylon, where two groups of refugees from 2037 - three cosmonauts returning to Earth from the International Space Station, and three United Nations peacekeepers on a mission in Afghanistan - have detected radio signals: the only such signals on the planet, apart from their own. The peacekeepers find allies in nineteenth-century British troops and in the armies of Alexander the Great. The astronauts, crash-landed in the steppes of Asia, join forces with the Mongol horde led by Genghis Khan. The two sides set out for Babylon, each determined to win the race for knowledge...and the power that lies within.

Yet the real power is beyond human control, perhaps even human understanding. As two great armies face off before the gates of Babylon, it watches, waiting.

©2005 Arthur C. Clarke and Stephen Baxter (P)2008 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"An exciting tale full of high-tech physics, military tactics and larger-than-life characters in the first of two novels related to the bestselling senior author's Space Odyssey series." ( Publishers Weekly)

I expected better from these two

This is my first exposure to a novel by Stephen Baxter. I've read a number of his short stories and love them. While the book wasn't awful, while listening to it, I got the unshakable feeling that Baxter only wrote it to pay the bills.

This book is not science fiction. It is fantasy. Few attempts are made at explaining the "science" behind the storyline. Of those few attempts, most of them are laughably broken. Baxter is no slouch when it comes to scientific knowledge, so I can only assume it wasn't a priority for him.

The book is a flimsy premise for creating anachronistic confrontations. The plot runs on rails. By the one hour mark, you will know exactly where the plot is going. There is some enjoyment to be had from listening to it unfold. However, the ending seems a bit hurried, and relies heavily upon deus ex machina.

What really bugged me about the book was the characters. They are all one-dimensional cliches. Every character is built with cartoonish exaggeration, and an unwavering path through the story. Making this even worse, it becomes clear that each of the characters is a ham-handed attempt at modern social or political commentary. The arrogant, ambitious character from the modern American South is a transparent George W. Bush knock-off. There's an uptight, 19th century Yankee and an even more uptight 19th century Anglo-Indian. Every character who is not an American is even tempered and smarter than the Americans. I appreciate social commentary, and I'm not especially nationalistic myself, but I found the hyperbole with which the characters were drawn to be tantamount to a bunch of straw man arguments. Social commentary in novels is best when subtle. Listening to long winded, heavy handed social commentary for 11 hours is a bit of a drag on the experience.

The reader is pretty good. He mispronounced a few words here and there, but spoke clearly and with reasonably good inflection.

On the whole, it's interesting but forgettable.

A nice road to nowhere

This is really a review of the series of three books. The premise is interesting - an earth suddenly reassembled from fragments of deferent epochs - and the writing reasonably good, but the resolution is at best unsatisfying. I'm not convinced that the central premise (the actions of the firstborn) is even that sound.

Two quibbles. First, as many have noted the contrived accents are horrible in the first book, particularly those of the Americans. Second, anti-American prejudice underscores the series. American characters are at best chauvanistic cowboys and at worst mass murderers, while the non-Americans are sensitive and enlightened. The authors matter-of-factly trumpet some questionable philosophy as an easy panacea for all the worlds ills. This sort of thing can usually be shrugged off, or may in fact appeal to many readers.

The idea of an earth reassembled in time has been explored before, notably in the excellant "October the First is Too Late" by Fred Hoyle (1966, no audio that I am aware of).

Disjointed

I was very disappointed with this. Found it disjointed, hard to follow. Concept had potential but did not flow well.

Took a chance, and loved it!

I wasn't sure about this book when I saw it, but I needed something to listen to on my desktop so I got it.

I love it!

It is well written, the naration is very good, and its a fun what if book. It requires you to suspend reality abit but go ahead and just enjoy, remember its fiction.

Save Yourself!

I found this book to be a meaningless and puerile soap opera, bereft of the original and rich concepts of Clarke's earlier work. The narration is very good overall, but unable to redeem a plotless, pandering cash cow.

Fun read!

It is fun to imagine the interaction of characters from vastly different time periods and societies. How do they react to being pulled from what is familiar? How do they deal with a culture that has different values from their own? One reviewer mentioned they felt the story was disjointed. I didn't feel that but part of the point is how do people react when their world becomes disjointed.

Alexander vs. Genghis Khan

This is probably something a lot of people have wondered about, two great historical figures facing each other in a jumbled world. I really enjoyed the mixture of people from the various time periods but some things were strange.

When a cell phone battery went dead no one used solar cells or tried to make a Baghdad battery. Batteries can be made from various items that were on hand in any century. When they were trying to think of a weapon to make no one thought of the trebuchet, which could also be made in any time period.

Despite these and other things I could not put my audio player down. I went to sleep listening to this. It was very enjoyable.

Good... Buuuuuuuut

I enjoyed the story and a excellent job was done on the reading. It is my understanding that this is going to be a series. book one started things off good. Buuuut! The sex and the act of bestiality really detracted from the listen. That kind of stuff should be left out. Listener be warned.

I wanted to like it

I have always enjoyed Clarke's thoughtful commentaries on life and perception as told through his fiction, but this book just book just didn't deliver. The characters were flat and the juxtaposition of historical threads just didn't sound believable.

I'd give it a listen if you want to catch the entire series, but this will be the end of the series for me.

I was dubious

A time travel story about characters not technology
An unexpected set of characters and cultures

Could not put down for a moment.

This is the first audio book I've listened to and I am so happy I did. From the moment it began I didn't want to stop listening. The story its self is amazing and it is read perfectly. As soon as it finished I downloaded part two of this series and I am about to get the third. If you enjoy science fiction or just a plot that will leave you wanting for more this is definitely an ideal listen.

Didn't quite make it

This book operates at two levels. One is the concept of an Earth divided up and reassembled from pieces from different times. What manner of advanced beings could have such control over the very fabric of space-time and what could be their motive? The second explores the potential clash caused by a sudden juxtaposition of cultures from different times in man's history (and future, the book is set in 2037). The problem is that the book switches rather unconvincingly from one to another. Its starts promisingly enough and progresses to explore what might happen if people from the 21st and 19th century encounter the armies of Alexander the Great and Genghis Khan before returning rather abruptly to the the science fiction element at the end. Each aspect is well enough written and the whole is competently read, but neither achieves the potential that you feel it could have.

Well written & performed just not science fiction

I stuck with it till half way through when new historical scenes and locations were still being introduced. It looked like the initial science; that the world had been sliced through time and reassembled, which had been reveal on the jacket, was going to be the only science in the story. I don't know if the how or why concepts were introduced before the end as I'd lost interest after nearly 6 hours.

Great Sci FI Story ,well read

If you could sum up Time's Eye in three words, what would they be?

Epic Time Travel

What did you like best about this story?

The story really captures the size of the Universe and the possible way in which a distant civilisation eons older than humans can set events in motion to stop mankind.

What does John Lee bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

John Lees narration is superb and he really brings the characters to life.

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

The moment when the two characters (I'll not say which two) are separated by time and space.

Any additional comments?

Excellent story. I can't wait to read the next installments.

Classic

I've read many AC Clarke books, and this is amongst the most riveting. I like the subtle connection to 2001. I am really looking forward to the next two books.

Really engaging.

Makes you want to read a bit more, and a great bringing together of different times.

Engrossing

Much simpler than some modern sci-fi, and more enjoyable for it, this is nevertheless a thoroughly absorbing tale, cleverly imagined and beautifully read.

Stunning

Mind blowing, written with imaginations as boundless as any two humans possess. What a partnership. I can't wait to see how the story evolves.

Second time reading

And I think it's better, great idea, great premis I'd find it hard to pick fault

Great book. But please fire the narrator

Who might you have cast as narrator instead of John Lee?

Dr.Frasier Crane

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Laughed when I shouldn't have due to 'Daphne Moon' starring in the main role

Any additional comments?

minor spoilers.

First of all, don't read on if you haven't listened to the book, NO big spoilers.... but it might spoil the experience.

I only wanted to review this book due to the problems I had with the reader. HE WAS AWFUL.
A male voice actor doing 'female voices' is never going to sound right, fine, I accept that. My problem - this book has a lead female role but the narrator gave her such a bad accent! (Manchester/Mancunian I think) imagine trying to listen to the main character explain some pretty big science theories with deep intellectual meaning.... but with a DAPHNE MOON (from Fraiser TV show) accent! That's all I could hear! It ruined the whole experience for me and I couldn't take it seriously at all! ended up laughing the whole time!

TL;DR - Loved the book - But the narrator ruined the book for me with awful accents. Please fire him