Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Preview

£0.00 for first 30 days

Thousands of incredible audiobooks and podcasts to take wherever you go.
Immerse yourself in a world of storytelling with the Plus Catalogue - unlimited listening to thousands of select audiobooks, podcasts and Audible Originals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Time's Eye

By: Stephen Baxter, Arthur C. Clarke
Narrated by: John Lee
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

Buy Now for £13.99

Buy Now for £13.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

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.
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

World Engines cover art
The War of the Worlds cover art
The Thousand Earths cover art
Fragments of Grace cover art
Last Plane to Heaven cover art
House of Suns cover art
Terminal World cover art
3zekiel cover art
Revelation Space cover art
Hyperion cover art
Mortal Engines cover art
Old Venus cover art
Dante cover art
Red Mars cover art
The Very Best of the Best cover art
The Many-Colored Land cover art

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)

What listeners say about Time's Eye

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    362
  • 4 Stars
    212
  • 3 Stars
    98
  • 2 Stars
    27
  • 1 Stars
    15
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    353
  • 4 Stars
    156
  • 3 Stars
    51
  • 2 Stars
    14
  • 1 Stars
    9
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    288
  • 4 Stars
    173
  • 3 Stars
    82
  • 2 Stars
    22
  • 1 Stars
    16

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

history and science fiction in one book

this book has so many elements that mash so well together. it has history, science fiction, romance , war, politics and above all humanity.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Insufferable accents

Good story, relatively well read but the accents are mostly awful and difficult to listen to.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

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.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

17 people found this helpful

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

Second time reading

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

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

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

really worth a listen

A strange story of a new found mixed up world from the multiverse set with the greatest comitters to genocide the world have ever seen
as usual your not seeing the big picture from Arthur C Clarke like why did it happen and is is God? But a good listen and a nice story well read

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

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.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

6 people found this helpful

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

Absurd but fun.

Absurd at times, but great imaginative fun. If you want a book where the monument builders from 2001 decide to troll humans by fracturing time on earth and have a Alexander the Great face Genghis Khan at Babylon, this is the book for you.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Great sci-fi escapism

I was drawn into this story with its colourful characters and their dilemmas. Loved Alexander the great and his advisor. The narrator was great to listen to. I look forward to listening to the others in the series with relish.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

A silly bit of fun.

I’m a huge Clarke fan but this book just feels a bit silly. It’s an alright story but the whole thing falls apart after a while. Just an easy listen while going to sleep. Worst part though, the (English) narrator’s American accent is the worst I’ve ever heard and it pulls me right out of the story whenever he does it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

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.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful