Rating: 
Summary: This book was so much fun!
Review: I bought this book for an escape from football over the holiday weekend and I wasn't disappointed! It was exciting and I couldn't put it down. Michael Crichton obviously put a lot of time and research into this book. Good science fiction always starts with the science of today, and then adds a dream for tomorrow. If you are looking for a good plot, and pure entertainment you will enjoy Timeline. And yes, it will make a great action movie.Thanks, Michael - for writing a great story! I loved it!
Rating: 
Summary: Couldn't put it down
Review: Maybe I'm a sucker for time travel books but I couldn't put this one down. Sure, Crichton telegraphs every move and the characters continue to escape from seemingly hopeless situations but for pleasure reading...I wish it were twice as long. I didn't buy the book to learn about quantum physics but rather to get my mind off work and into a more creative frame. Crighton did a good job at this with his description of life in the late middle ages. He also set the tone so we didn't obsess over the "smashed butterfly changing the future we live in" scenario. Not the best, but darn entertaining!
Rating: 
Summary: Very disappointing
Review: It begins well but develops into a dumbed-down Jurassic Park loaded with inconsistencies and every action/adventure cliche possible. Did Crichton really write this? This book, after its promising opening, reveals no more original thought than the worst B-movie you've ever seen. The only redeeming quality is the (I imagine) accurate description of medieval villages and castles. Most of Crichton's characters, if you can call them that, are barely one-dimensional, especially the medieval folk, who are all ugly, stinking, bloodthirsty knights, with the exception of one enigmatic and indecisive lady who suffers from multiple personality disoder. It's a quick read, but quicker if you skip it. Or whatever.
Rating:
Summary: What are you expecting? Shakespeare?
Review: Hey, this is a fun book. Is it gonna expand your intellect? Nope. Does he kinda cross the bounds of familiarity he originally wrote in Jurassic Park? A little. Is it still worth reading? OF COURSE! Just plain fun. I am completely puzzled at those who tore it to pieces and one who even threw out the idea that it was written by several DIFFERENT people. I am totally at a loss as to WHAT in the WORLD they were expecting. Some people just OVER-Analyze things to the point that pretty soon they forget to just sit back and enjoy what they have paid their hard-earned money on. I personally think Crichton has given me MY money's worth, and for that, I am VERY thankful--especially since 'Airframe' was a less than stellar novel of adventure like his others. It's a FUN book, pure and simple. Sure there are parts that are hard to believe, but hey! He's talking about TIME TRAVEL here, if you can suspend your belief to swallow THAT, then the LEAST you can do is the premise that the characters can suddenly 'make it' out of near-impossible situations on every other page. Doesn't James Bond, or Indiana Jones do the SAME thing? Of COURSE they do, but since Crichton has written some novels that are easier to swallow because of the subject matter, I guess we are to COMPLETELY believe EVERYTHING he writes IS in fact a scientific Probability. No WAY! He even writes at the end of the book that Time Travel is purely in the realm of fantasy. Let us remember that in our quest to enjoy a book that can be spendy these days...Lighten up! This ISN'T Y2K...it's a GREAT BOOK. Let me know if you agree with my opinion...e-mail me at: rmgomske@lightcom.net Thanks and have a GREAT New Year!
Rating: 
Summary: Another disappointing effort from Crichton
Review: For an author with the "hype machine" (read favorablepress) and fairly successful background of Michael Crichton, anyreader should have expected far more out of this book. Unfortunately, "Timeline" reads like the work of an author who put very little effort into the story. This book was another example of one that surely had plenty of promise as far as plot. It also got off to a great start that read very quickly. But, the story started to break up not even 100 pages in, and soon fizzled into a highly mediocre tale. I'll be the first to admit that I'm not very big or educated on science, but it really seemed like Mr. Crichton was lamely groping to make up the rationale for his "time travel" concept. He seemed to have very little factual basis for it (despite his numerous scientific references listed in the book), and he wrote as if he was trying to gloss over the tenuous thread he was on by speeding along the descriptions or breaking it up with other dialogue. The story, once it got to medieval France, was also very l@#e. There was so much that could have been done with the setting and the plot to that point. I would propose that it felt like reading one of the old Bugs Bunny cartoons (when Bugs fought the Black Knight). Also, the time pressure built into the story made things even worse. Mr. Crichton already seemed to be hurrying along as thinly developed as the tale was; he didn't need any extra incentive with the 37-hour deadline the plot revolved around. In my opinion, Mr. Crichton has had a very checkered literary career. I really enjoyed "Andromeda Strain", "Rising Sun", and especially "Eaters Of The Dead". Others I've read have been so-so to poor. "Timeline", I think, will rank as one of his worst efforts. I will be very hesitant to read any future offerings because of this book...I certainly hope he'll put some more effort into his writing.
Rating:
Summary: A must Read!
Review: Michael Crichton spins a wonderful tale. When reading you become engaged in the story..Surprise, oh I cant even go through all the great attributes of this book. It made me feel alive..only the way a good book can excite your mind, challenge it..then entertain and totally delight you. Believe me it was a joy reading it. I bet you will enjoy it immensely..you wont regret getting this book.sincerely.
Rating: 
Summary: Where's the real book?
Review: I rushed out to buy this new Crichton book because he always produces a good, yet thought provoking read. I have to say that I was very disappointed. It was like reading a rough draft or maybe a rough draft of a movie script. The idea was wonderful and clever but that is all it was: an idea. I depend on Mr. Crichton to do my research for me and then explain it to me in an entertaining manner but he failed this time, I'm afraid. I won't give up though I'll rush out and buy the next one
Rating:
Summary: Terrible Storytelling, Worse Dialog
Review: The writing in this book is awful. I agree with the others that there are WAY too many close calls - to the point of be laughable. And the dialog is no better: After Kate is saved by Chris (for the 12th time), she rubs his shoulders and says "My hero". I laughed out loud! In addition, Timeline is a complete rip-off on Jurrasic Park, as far the basis for the story goes. Evil company wants to provide realistic theme parks for public and make billions - sound familiar?
Rating:
Summary: Ultimately Disatisfying
Review: I also, like other readers, became engrossed in the book, and had a hard time putting it down, but I must agree with others who complain that the book, which started so well, ended so badly. One reviewer called it "cartoonish," and I must agree. An interesting idea, but it turned into something a good deal less.
Rating:
Summary: use your lifeline......
Review: i have to wonder is michael crichton is trying to write books or if he's simply writing the screenplay ahead of time. While his research was good and it added to the theory of time travel, the story was predictable as all hell. It was just a little too conveniant for me, the way that everyones talents magically became important in the other world, and the way it climaxed. Crichton should take a lesson from Tom Harris and at least try to throw a little unpredictability into the book. While it was adventurous, it was basically Jurassic Park with a different set of scientists (historians) being the heroes, and a different kind of technology (quantum physics) being the evil. Entertaining: yes, to a 6th grader. Thought-provoking: hardly.
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