Conrad's Time Machine: A Prequel to the Adventures of Conrad Stargard

Conrad Stargard #0.5

by Leo Frankowski

Just out of the Air Force, Tom Kolczyskrenski joins two old friends--mechanical engineer Ian McTavish and behavioral scientist Jim Hasenpfeffer--who hit the road on their motorcycles, but their plans change when they stumble upon a mysterious machine that takes the three of them on a bizarre odyssey through time. Reprint.

Genres: Science Fiction, Time Travel, Fiction, Alternate History, Fantasy

424 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published August 27, 2002

Reviews

[Bryan457 · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not really like this one. In spite of the title, it is not about Conrad, but about his cousin Tom and their time machine.
This is probably one of the most obvious and perfect examples of the much maligned "deus ex machina," "god from the machine," plot device, whereby a seemingly inextricable problem is suddenly and abruptly solved with the unexpected intervention of some new character, ability, or object.
"Aliens gave it to me."

[Jeff Stephani · Rating 5 out of 5]

Surprise ending...

[Brentman99 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been a big fan of the Cross Time Engineer series since the beginning. However, this novel was a bit of a let down. I guess the biggest thing that it did was fill in some of the blanks with regards to how things came to be. However, the writing was a bit wonky as I knew where they were going with the story line, but I wasn't entertained nearly as much as I thought I could have been.

I did like some of the technical stuff, but overall, it was a lot of gobbledegook that didn't really add a lot to the story. In some ways, I thought I was reading an episode of Star Trek where the warp drive's di-lithium crystals were about to destabilize (again) and blow up the ship. There was a lot of technical stuff that may have been fun for the engineer to write, but not always fun for the non-engineer to read.

I did like the interactions between the characters, particularly in the beginning. But I have to say again that if I was female, I wouldn't be very impressed with some of what the author wrote and how he tended to portray women. This was written much later, so the atmosphere of the 1980s didn't really fit.

Overall, I liked this prequel because we got to know more about Tom and his partners that we only had brief snapshots on before. I think it was a worthwhile read, but if you haven't read the previous books, I would wait until after you have.

[Frederick Heimbach · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can't remember who recommended this, but they need a good punch in the nose. Yes, there's an enormous amount of thought that went into exploring all the implications of time machines. The author is aware that, in most implementations, time travel includes space travel--if you jump into the future, the spot on earth you were standing has moved. So, given that multi-dimensional manipulation of a successful time jump, what other things can you do? Well, one of them is to fix a showerhead to a random tree which will then work without running plumbing to the forest because you're transporting the water through time and space into the showerhead.

So, okay, that's mildly clever.

My, by gosh, this book is offensive. The sheer number of words devoted to the horny wish-fulfillment of the author is ... well, calling it impressive is one way to put it. It's tedious and stupid and an embarrassment. Beyond that, the ending is a letdown, since questions are raised and expectations are set for some kind of strong twist at the end ... that never really happens.

A bad book. Avoid.

[Senor Sock · Rating 1 out of 5]

I found this difficult to get through right from the jump. I didn't like the characters, the story was slow to play out and while I had been looking forward to reading this book, I quickly lost interest.

[Arthur · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun romp, but it would have felt more realistic without the unrealistic women. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for free love and all that, but I just can't imagine women being that plastic and un-opinionated in real-life. How boring. However, all of the rest of the book was interesting and I enjoyed the rest of the characters, so I could pretty much ignore the gratuitous barbie doll women.

The other major problem I had was that this really felt like 2 books, and the transition between them was abrupt and jarring. In the end, it's all explained (mostly...sort of), but even then it still felt very disjointed.

[Epennies · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of those series that you pick up on a whim and love wholeheartedly.

I had never heard of Leo Frankowski, but the concept was interesting, and I was a fan of Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, so I gave it a try.

I am so glad I did. This quickly became a favorite of mine and my husband's.

Synopsis: An Engineer just out of college accidentally gets shot back in time in Poland. He starts climbing the social ladder and making a few changes to Poland's place in history.

[Theophilus (Theo) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really far out. Three buddies cruising on their motorcycles discover the remnants of a time travel experiment. They are all extremely intelligent guys, who just haven't found their niche in life yet. They do recognize the significance of their discovery and set out perfect a method of traveling through time. Lots of sex, booze, and scientific discovery. Not a children's story; definitely a good adult (guy or gal) page turner. It's a prequel to a series by the author. Worth checking out.

[Steven · Rating 2 out of 5]

First, I had no idea this was part of a larger universe, even if it isn't strictly speaking a direct part of the series.

Second, I was super uncomfortable with all the sex. I mean, sex is fine in context, but this was just a harem for no apparent purpose. Someone please let me know if it pays off in the larger overall series.

[Geldar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty great. Conrad wasn't mentioned at all besides in the title, but this turns out to be no major bummer. It's too bad the next book in the series isn't real. I wish Leo F. and I were buds. I really do.

[Eduardo · Rating 3 out of 5]

it is a book that you would want to read if you like adventorous books

[Lynn Calvin]

baen ebook

[Margaret]

While this was entertaining, it is not quite my style of sci-fi and I didn't like the ending.

[Douglas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Weird story. Interesting but at times confusing.