Award-winning author Connie Willis returns with a stunning, enormously entertaining novel of time travel, war, and the deeds - great and small - of ordinary people who shape history.
All Clear
and over 1.5 million other books are available for Amazon Kindle . Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. Learn more. |
Book Description
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, and more.
Product Description
Review
"Enthralling . . . a story so packed with thrills, comedy, drama and a bit of red herring that the result is apt to satisfy the most discriminating, and hungry, reader."--"The Denver Post"
"[Connie] Willis can tell a story like no other. . . . One of her specialties is sparkling, rapid-fire dialogue; another, suspenseful plotting; and yet another, dramatic scenes so fierce that they burn like after-images in the reader's memory."--"The Village Voice
"
"Ambitious, and moving . . . with a lovely twist at the end."--"The San Diego Union-Tribune"
"[Willis's] re-creation of wartime England is meticulous, energetic and exhaustive."--"The Wall Street Journal
"
"[A] tour de force."--"The Charlotte Observer"
Book Description
The thrilling sequel to BLACKOUT, and a superb World War II novel.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Browse and search another edition of this book.
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
By Tinhead
VINE™ VOICE
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is the second and final part of the time travel story set in WWII started in Black Out. You can't really read All Clear without reading Black Out, so don't start with this part if you haven't already read the first.
The story of our three students from 2060 stuck in WWII continues and it suffers from the problems that Black Out had, namely that it takes another 641 pages to resolve everything. When you add that to Black Out's page tally we are talking a total of over 1100 pages, which is just far too long. As I also said in my Black Out review I am a big fan of Willis, but with her time travel stories there is just too much spinning out of the story. Things almost - but not quite - happen again and again and again. It's really frustrating.
Not to say that the scope, ideas and detail are not good - they are, especially the detail. There is lots of good stuff in here about how the Allies tried to fool the Germans into thinking the Normandy landings would happen elsewhere, and this is at least partially based on fact. And really interesting. But the number of times Michael, Merope and Polly almost get rescued/work everything out but don't quite manage it this time starts to frustrate.
I think the book is somewhat saved by the details mentioned above and also some plot twists that I didn't see coming - but they just take far to long to happen.
I wish Willis would put her books on diets - if she did they would be small masterpieces of wit and intelligence. For an example of this see Bellwether.
The story of our three students from 2060 stuck in WWII continues and it suffers from the problems that Black Out had, namely that it takes another 641 pages to resolve everything. When you add that to Black Out's page tally we are talking a total of over 1100 pages, which is just far too long. As I also said in my Black Out review I am a big fan of Willis, but with her time travel stories there is just too much spinning out of the story. Things almost - but not quite - happen again and again and again. It's really frustrating.
Not to say that the scope, ideas and detail are not good - they are, especially the detail. There is lots of good stuff in here about how the Allies tried to fool the Germans into thinking the Normandy landings would happen elsewhere, and this is at least partially based on fact. And really interesting. But the number of times Michael, Merope and Polly almost get rescued/work everything out but don't quite manage it this time starts to frustrate.
I think the book is somewhat saved by the details mentioned above and also some plot twists that I didn't see coming - but they just take far to long to happen.
I wish Willis would put her books on diets - if she did they would be small masterpieces of wit and intelligence. For an example of this see Bellwether.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By Mark Klobas
TOP 1000 REVIEWER
Format:Hardcover
Connie Willis's latest novel picks up exactly where the last one, Blackout, left off, with the young 21st century historians Polly Churchill, Merope Ward, and Michael Ward trapped in England during the Blitz. Having finally located each other, the three struggle to survive in war-ravaged London, desperately attempting to locate other time travelers and trying to contact the future to alert them to their plight. Adding to their urgency is a deadline Polly faces, when she must depart before her presence on an earlier trip jeopardizes her existence. And preying upon all of them is the growing fear that their actions may have changed the past and undone the future to which there are trying to return.
As she does in her previous novel, Willis interweaves the narratives of multiple characters amidst a vivid portrait of wartime England and the perils her characters face. This often can be confusing, but her richly detailed plot rewards the reader, gradually revealing its secrets as developments unfold. In this respect, it is unfortunate that the two volumes were published separately, as both are required to fully appreciate her success in developing a carefully layered narrative. Together they combine to create a suspenseful work of the first caliber, one in which many of the themes characteristic of her work - single-minded characters whose agendas interfere with the plans of the protagonists, the impact of technology on personal lives, the effort to cope with tragedy and loss - are on full display. Fans of well-written science fiction or historical works will enjoy her gripping and intricate novel, one that is sure to become one of the classics of the genre.
As she does in her previous novel, Willis interweaves the narratives of multiple characters amidst a vivid portrait of wartime England and the perils her characters face. This often can be confusing, but her richly detailed plot rewards the reader, gradually revealing its secrets as developments unfold. In this respect, it is unfortunate that the two volumes were published separately, as both are required to fully appreciate her success in developing a carefully layered narrative. Together they combine to create a suspenseful work of the first caliber, one in which many of the themes characteristic of her work - single-minded characters whose agendas interfere with the plans of the protagonists, the impact of technology on personal lives, the effort to cope with tragedy and loss - are on full display. Fans of well-written science fiction or historical works will enjoy her gripping and intricate novel, one that is sure to become one of the classics of the genre.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By StarPlayer
Format:Paperback
PART A: BLACKOUT 4 stars
PART B: ALL CLEAR 3 stars (NOT A STANDALONE - YOU HAVE TO READ BLACKOUT FIRST).
Oxford in 2060 is a chaotic place, with scores of time-traveling historians being sent into the past. Michael Davies is prepping to go to Pearl Harbor. Merope Ward is coping with a bunch of bratty 1940 evacuees and trying to talk her thesis adviser into letting her go to VE-Day. Polly Churchill's next assignment will be as a shopgirl in the middle of London's Blitz.
But now the time-travel lab is suddenly canceling assignments and switching around everyone's schedules. And when Michael, Merope, and Polly finally get to World War II, things just get worse. For there they face air raids, blackouts, and dive-bombing Stukas--to say nothing of a growing feeling that not only their assignments but the war and history itself are spiraling out of control.
Because suddenly the once-reliable mechanisms of time travel are showing significant glitches, and our heroes are beginning to question their most firmly held belief: that no historian can possibly change the past.
Overall I enjoyed the story. The problems came when there was a time lapse between me reading book 1A and book 1b (this is one book spit into two parts). I had a bit of difficulty trying to remember what had gone on in Blackout. Then Polly really frustrated me when she withheld information from Mike and Eileen.
Really, this book needed to be trimmed down, and I'm blaming her editor for that.
I also got frustrated with the inner monologues/thoughts of the individuals which just seemed to go on and on.
Finally, sorry to be dim, but what did the ending mean? Was Colin Merope's great grandchild? I was puzzled by the ending and read it three times, but I still can't tell. Someone PLEASE leave and comment and clue me in.
I enjoyed it, but I wouldn't read it again.
PART B: ALL CLEAR 3 stars (NOT A STANDALONE - YOU HAVE TO READ BLACKOUT FIRST).
Oxford in 2060 is a chaotic place, with scores of time-traveling historians being sent into the past. Michael Davies is prepping to go to Pearl Harbor. Merope Ward is coping with a bunch of bratty 1940 evacuees and trying to talk her thesis adviser into letting her go to VE-Day. Polly Churchill's next assignment will be as a shopgirl in the middle of London's Blitz.
But now the time-travel lab is suddenly canceling assignments and switching around everyone's schedules. And when Michael, Merope, and Polly finally get to World War II, things just get worse. For there they face air raids, blackouts, and dive-bombing Stukas--to say nothing of a growing feeling that not only their assignments but the war and history itself are spiraling out of control.
Because suddenly the once-reliable mechanisms of time travel are showing significant glitches, and our heroes are beginning to question their most firmly held belief: that no historian can possibly change the past.
Overall I enjoyed the story. The problems came when there was a time lapse between me reading book 1A and book 1b (this is one book spit into two parts). I had a bit of difficulty trying to remember what had gone on in Blackout. Then Polly really frustrated me when she withheld information from Mike and Eileen.
Really, this book needed to be trimmed down, and I'm blaming her editor for that.
I also got frustrated with the inner monologues/thoughts of the individuals which just seemed to go on and on.
Finally, sorry to be dim, but what did the ending mean? Was Colin Merope's great grandchild? I was puzzled by the ending and read it three times, but I still can't tell. Someone PLEASE leave and comment and clue me in.
I enjoyed it, but I wouldn't read it again.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
›
Go to Amazon.com to see all 171 reviews
3.7 out of 5 stars
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
atmospheric
Although Connie Willis is from Colorado, she has managed to evoke the atmosphere of Eng;and durng the second world war very well.
Published 2 months ago by Liz H-L
2.0 out of 5 stars
.... and on and on ... after "Blackout"
After a promising "plot" in "Doolmsday" I found both "Blackout" and "All Clear" sadly lacking in actual "Time Travel" although - to give... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Bob, Fareham.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gets Better Each Reading
I agree with most of the reviews here -- EXCEPT -- I just found myself picking up these books again, a few years after first reading them. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Jennie Lyn
4.0 out of 5 stars
Complicated but good!
This is a sequel to a previous book 'Blackout' so I would recommend reading that first.It was brilliant to be able to download this book on to my kindle having read 'Blackout'... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Mrs. H. F. Charles
3.0 out of 5 stars
Return From World War II
In "All Clear", Connie Willis finishes the story she started in "Blackout". "All Clear" was published on October 19th, 2010. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Dave_42
3.0 out of 5 stars
Infuriating!
The good news is that "All Clear" is an improvement on "Blackout", the first part of this novel that turned out so long that it only seems to go by the name of its two parts,... Read more
Published 16 months ago by Brian J. Cox
4.0 out of 5 stars
This is the payoff that Blackout needed
To me, All Clear, the second volume of this story, is what makes reading the pair worthwhile.
It largely avoids the pacing pitfalls of Blackout, because the momentum has... Read more
It largely avoids the pacing pitfalls of Blackout, because the momentum has... Read more
Published 17 months ago by J. Irish
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great buy
Service was prompt, can't say about the content of the book as it was bought for my husband for Christmas, hopefully it will keep him quiet!
Published 17 months ago by Boots
2.0 out of 5 stars
A frustrating read!
I really enjoyed Connie Willis's Doomsday Book. It was a top story. It was with great optimism I bought this book on the strength of the earlier read. Read more
Published 18 months ago by iain mcbain
4.0 out of 5 stars
Engrossing...
For this reviewer, it's not every day these days that a book arrives that makes you want to jump in the minute it lands at the doorstep. Read more
Published on 24 Dec 2010 by M. Yon
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
- Books > Fantasy > Historical
- Books > Fiction > Historical
- Books > Science Fiction > Classics
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
