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30,000 B.C. Chronicles #1
Bordeaux
Shipwrecked in the wild Paleolithic with their modern tools and weapons turning to dust, time travelers from the year 2233 go native to survive. With stirring imagination and an eye for colorful detail, award-winner Matthew Thayer transports readers back to a European continent that is a sea of green, a sensory overload of natural beauty. Home to woolly mammoth, hairy rhino, wolf pack and forests without end, it is a land unspoiled.There is also danger and adventure at every turn. The book series 30,000 B.C. Chronicles begins with Bordeaux. Strong women, brave men and despicable villains, the characters rise to meet the many challenges of the ancient world. The memories they share of home and the scarred Earth they left behind paint an intriguing picture of mankind’s future.
- GenresFantasyTime Travel
311 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 25, 2012
547 people are currently reading
140 people want to read
About the author
Matthew Thayer
12 books12 followersMatthew Thayer has won more than 75 state and national awards for his writing and photography. He lives on the Hawaiian island of Maui, where he is a staff photojournalist for the local newspaper. Matthew was born in Erie, PA and graduated from Kent State University. Along with writing and photography, his interests include ocean kayaking, coaching soccer, public speaking, traveling the world with wife Kelly and enjoying the great outdoors with their adult children.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
April 20, 2012
This is a great book!
Treasure Island, Robinson Crusoe, Lord of the Flies, Huckleberry Finn sautéed with the Old and New Testament and a dash of Clan of the Cave Bear and then simmered in a reduction sauce of Jules Verne.
The plot cycles back and forth between two groups of characters who find themselves shipwrecked in a primitive land with no way of getting home. The groups get separated and finds themselves on opposite sides of the moral divide.
The good guys’ tale is told through the voices of Paul Kaikane and Maria Duarte. I personally wanted to hear more of the story from their point of view but then most people root for the good guys automatically so perhaps the character development can be stretched out a bit. I also sense a larger role for the native called Greybeard, but first language barriers need to be overcome. Maybe in the next installment.
The bad guys’ story is told through the voice of Salvatore Bolzano and is primarily about the wicked doings of Lorenzo Martinelli. Lorenzo is deliciously evil and reminds me of Kurtz in Heart of Darkness combined with the twisted and misguided religious zeal of Bernardo Gui from the Name of the Rose.
I couldn’t wait to get back to this book and didn’t want to put it down.
The next installment is due out in the fall of this year. I am hoping for an early release
Treasure Island, Robinson Crusoe, Lord of the Flies, Huckleberry Finn sautéed with the Old and New Testament and a dash of Clan of the Cave Bear and then simmered in a reduction sauce of Jules Verne.
The plot cycles back and forth between two groups of characters who find themselves shipwrecked in a primitive land with no way of getting home. The groups get separated and finds themselves on opposite sides of the moral divide.
The good guys’ tale is told through the voices of Paul Kaikane and Maria Duarte. I personally wanted to hear more of the story from their point of view but then most people root for the good guys automatically so perhaps the character development can be stretched out a bit. I also sense a larger role for the native called Greybeard, but first language barriers need to be overcome. Maybe in the next installment.
The bad guys’ story is told through the voice of Salvatore Bolzano and is primarily about the wicked doings of Lorenzo Martinelli. Lorenzo is deliciously evil and reminds me of Kurtz in Heart of Darkness combined with the twisted and misguided religious zeal of Bernardo Gui from the Name of the Rose.
I couldn’t wait to get back to this book and didn’t want to put it down.
The next installment is due out in the fall of this year. I am hoping for an early release
June 5, 2012
I found this book online at http://30000bc.com and downloaded on Amazon to my Kindle. Wow, what a surprise! This book has everything, adventure, fantasy, history, romance...list goes on.
A fun and playful read that is full of deep thoughts and ideas. I especially like the idea of living in the year 2233.
A fun and playful read that is full of deep thoughts and ideas. I especially like the idea of living in the year 2233.
April 22, 2012
Not just sci-fi, this book has action, adventure and a love story. It's a fun read with one of the best villains ever! Looking forward to the continuation of the love story! I keep coming up with my own continuations in my head, because I can't stop thinking about this book.
November 13, 2019
This is a good book, and so far I like it much more than Clan of the Cave Bear from so many years ago. As with any book, this has a couple different plots going on (the 'good' guys vs the 'bad' guys) and I much more enjoy the plot that focuses on the paleo life; the caveman, the culture, survival of these humans from the 23d century. Trying to document how life was in the days of the Neanderthal and Woolly Mammoth. Much less do I like the plot about the insane religious freak. So I find myself flipping through a lot of that portion of the dialogue and plot.
This is just me - many readers may thoroughly enjoy all angles of the book. I gave this book 4 stars because the bulk of it was hugely interesting to me. I have several books of this 5 book series, and I will not be shy about downgrading future books if the plot turns uninteresting and/or less and less about what I bought them for - an exciting if fictional look at life with Cro-Magnon and Neanderthal as well as the ancient animals of that period..
This is just me - many readers may thoroughly enjoy all angles of the book. I gave this book 4 stars because the bulk of it was hugely interesting to me. I have several books of this 5 book series, and I will not be shy about downgrading future books if the plot turns uninteresting and/or less and less about what I bought them for - an exciting if fictional look at life with Cro-Magnon and Neanderthal as well as the ancient animals of that period..
January 8, 2020
The story is a 3 star (liked it), but I'm tempted to lower the rating as it's incomplete. It just drops off and has to be picked up in the next book.
The descriptions of the Pleistocene... hmm. Some of it seems rather far fetched. Such as "every step you take has a 50-50 chance of landing on a snake, rodent, plover nest, salamander or pile of shit." Basically, we're told over and over that there is life everywhere (including megafauna & predators) to the point of covering every square foot of land & water. Nope. Don't buy it. Nothing could survive in that population density. Although later in the book, it seems that this may have been talking about during a migration, at which point it is more plausible (thinking like African herd migration or the historical American bison herds) - although that doesn't explain the ocean life described in early parts of the book.
And, I have to question whether ivory would do this: "pair of mammoth tusks straightened by the fire into twin ivory stilettos seven meters long. The tusks belonged to a massive beast which boiled to death while halfway submerged in a muddy bog. The heat of the simmering water evidently relaxed the tusks’ sweeping curves." Wait, what?
I wasn't overly bothered by the complete lack of detail in how the time travel was achieved. And I am even willing to suspend disbelief when it comes to the suits the time travelers are wearing (as well as some of their other tech).
I've grabbed the next book and will continue. Although I almost feel like I'm doing it just because I'm stubborn and want to know if there's a conclusion.
The descriptions of the Pleistocene... hmm. Some of it seems rather far fetched. Such as "every step you take has a 50-50 chance of landing on a snake, rodent, plover nest, salamander or pile of shit." Basically, we're told over and over that there is life everywhere (including megafauna & predators) to the point of covering every square foot of land & water. Nope. Don't buy it. Nothing could survive in that population density. Although later in the book, it seems that this may have been talking about during a migration, at which point it is more plausible (thinking like African herd migration or the historical American bison herds) - although that doesn't explain the ocean life described in early parts of the book.
And, I have to question whether ivory would do this: "pair of mammoth tusks straightened by the fire into twin ivory stilettos seven meters long. The tusks belonged to a massive beast which boiled to death while halfway submerged in a muddy bog. The heat of the simmering water evidently relaxed the tusks’ sweeping curves." Wait, what?
I wasn't overly bothered by the complete lack of detail in how the time travel was achieved. And I am even willing to suspend disbelief when it comes to the suits the time travelers are wearing (as well as some of their other tech).
I've grabbed the next book and will continue. Although I almost feel like I'm doing it just because I'm stubborn and want to know if there's a conclusion.
June 25, 2017
It's a saga that defies categorization--and I liked it very much. Some readers might find the lengthy descriptions of the botany, zoology, prehistoric peoples and ecology tedious, but I enjoyed the author's attention to detail and feel like his meticulous research helped make this book extraordinary. The author's ability to create strong visual imagery from words is outstanding and this is what you will find memorable months or even years after you have read this book. (The botanist on that trip was doing her job!) This book has adventure, danger, heroic actions, emotion and complex believable characters. Unfortunately, the "the bad guys" and their motives were not as credible or complex. At this point in my life, I have grown very weary of stories with people behaving badly. The future (2233) seems no better than the past! Won't people ever learn?
January 16, 2017
I wanted to like this book more than I did like it. It seemed like an interesting time travel story. I do love a good time travel story. However, I never really thought of any part of the book as "plausible", and it is important to me in fantasy stories that I suspend reality and "buy in". It felt forced and incomplete. In addition, the narrative sometimes read like a lecture with endless description of the Pleistocene era. It was green. It was lush. And it was described over and over. The premise was interesting, and the format (diaries and transcripts of audio snippets), but something did not ring true. I definitely did not like the abrupt ending and I am not even curious about book 2.
December 29, 2020
It was interesting enough to keep reading and I like the details creating a picture in my mind of the time period.
The first part of the book was very confusing. I don't think the opening was established to understand what was going on when the tsunami happened. The opening needed to lay the characters out better so we could follow the river seen better.
Lastly, I don't find it much of a "love story" as a story that two people are compatible enough to have sex............and.................the villain is too big of a bad guy. Add some humanity back to him to make the story better.
The first part of the book was very confusing. I don't think the opening was established to understand what was going on when the tsunami happened. The opening needed to lay the characters out better so we could follow the river seen better.
Lastly, I don't find it much of a "love story" as a story that two people are compatible enough to have sex............and.................the villain is too big of a bad guy. Add some humanity back to him to make the story better.
July 29, 2015
?The worste
Good God I never thought I would drag my eyes a other step. Did Thayer do any research at all? I was very disappointed. I even re-read. . Because Hope springs eternal. What a brain drainer.
Good God I never thought I would drag my eyes a other step. Did Thayer do any research at all? I was very disappointed. I even re-read. . Because Hope springs eternal. What a brain drainer.
December 22, 2015
Pretty good
It is told from the perspective of several different characters diary entries. That not my favorite format to read a story but I did find myself engaged and plan to read the second book. The storyline is an interesting mix of time travel and prehistoric life
It is told from the perspective of several different characters diary entries. That not my favorite format to read a story but I did find myself engaged and plan to read the second book. The storyline is an interesting mix of time travel and prehistoric life
August 24, 2018
I thought this would be an interesting depiction of the Pleistocene. And maybe it gets to that point. But at least the first third is primarily a detailed depiction of the venality and ignorance of the human species. I get enough of that on CNN. I gave up.
October 26, 2018
Fair, but Not Great Book
There are few explanations of the future world, including whatever evil had crept into it. The era from 32,000 years ago is extensively described, but the explorers and their time-travel capabilities are hardly touched upon.
There are few explanations of the future world, including whatever evil had crept into it. The era from 32,000 years ago is extensively described, but the explorers and their time-travel capabilities are hardly touched upon.
January 16, 2014
Time travelers in prehistoric Europe go native to survive. Good start to a three book series.
November 1, 2016
Moves way too slow, not very interesting at all, characters are very thin.
March 31, 2020
Awesome book
I enjoyed the book a lot. Everything in this story appealed to me. Action, adventure, time travel, romance... The different characters are well defined and have very distinct voices to let you imagine how they are and look like. Some are great, some are conflicted, some are bad and we can really picture this group of modern people being thrown into a prehistoric world. I love the way the author describe the fauna and flora, you can imagine the abondance and diversity. In short a little gem that I highly recommended to be transported in another time of this world we live in.
I enjoyed the book a lot. Everything in this story appealed to me. Action, adventure, time travel, romance... The different characters are well defined and have very distinct voices to let you imagine how they are and look like. Some are great, some are conflicted, some are bad and we can really picture this group of modern people being thrown into a prehistoric world. I love the way the author describe the fauna and flora, you can imagine the abondance and diversity. In short a little gem that I highly recommended to be transported in another time of this world we live in.
September 8, 2021
So much potential left in the dirt
Very creative plot line and descriptions. However the horrible violence and depravity that went on for extended passages over and over again grew so tiresome. I had to skip over large sections of the book, because I just had no interest in being dragged into that thoughtless mire. The atheistic moralizing toward the end was simply a vanity exercise and didn’t move the plot forward or improve the story. Very disappointed in how this project turned out.
Very creative plot line and descriptions. However the horrible violence and depravity that went on for extended passages over and over again grew so tiresome. I had to skip over large sections of the book, because I just had no interest in being dragged into that thoughtless mire. The atheistic moralizing toward the end was simply a vanity exercise and didn’t move the plot forward or improve the story. Very disappointed in how this project turned out.
October 1, 2020
I gave this story a 4. I'd say the writing, story line, characters, and plot were closer to a 5, but the setting accuracy was a 3 at best. Now had the story setting been another world, then just about anything is on the table. It's obvious the author researched the time period. And it is a time period about which absolute knowledge is limited, still the number and variety of Cro-Magnon's seemed unrealistic. Same with the fauna.
October 9, 2021
Unique
Both in story telling style and plot. Very refreshing. Most of the characters have a wicked or sly sense of humor and it made the reading fun and kept me coming back for more. This is not a do-gooder story - lots of things happen to the years 32,000 ago that make you wonder who the barbarians were in the story. But it wouldn't be a story with out conflict. It was a real pleasure to read.
Both in story telling style and plot. Very refreshing. Most of the characters have a wicked or sly sense of humor and it made the reading fun and kept me coming back for more. This is not a do-gooder story - lots of things happen to the years 32,000 ago that make you wonder who the barbarians were in the story. But it wouldn't be a story with out conflict. It was a real pleasure to read.
January 14, 2025
Surprised me
Admittedly, I was hoping this was going to be closer to Valley of The Cave Bear. Instead, it was more of a pastwatchers. Which isn't to say it's bad that's one of the few books I like by that particular person. So, to this book. After my initial disappointment of realizing that the book mostly focuses on out "modern" transplants into the caveman times, I did become very interested in their stories and their survival and now I have to read book 2.
Admittedly, I was hoping this was going to be closer to Valley of The Cave Bear. Instead, it was more of a pastwatchers. Which isn't to say it's bad that's one of the few books I like by that particular person. So, to this book. After my initial disappointment of realizing that the book mostly focuses on out "modern" transplants into the caveman times, I did become very interested in their stories and their survival and now I have to read book 2.
October 18, 2017
Tedious, repetitious, and unbelievable fantasy/time travel. I don't like to abandon a book, so I kept reading but thought it would never end; did a lot of skimming. There are many more interesting time travel books, including Steven King's "11/22/63", and for pre-history try Jean Auel's Earth's Children series, especially "Clan of the Cave Bear".
May 5, 2019
Humanat
This series is a interest holding. I couldn't put them down until the end Then immediately started the next one
This series is a interest holding. I couldn't put them down until the end Then immediately started the next one
February 2, 2020
Not so good
Decent time travel stories are difficult to write. This plot was exceptionally poor. Rapidly dissolving modern things? What's up with that?
Decent time travel stories are difficult to write. This plot was exceptionally poor. Rapidly dissolving modern things? What's up with that?
February 14, 2020
Words in a row, not to bad.
Good action,good characters. The action scenes are good . I don't believe I'll read the next one, there are too many better books.
Good action,good characters. The action scenes are good . I don't believe I'll read the next one, there are too many better books.
October 14, 2020
Wow
Blown away. What a fun and well-edited romp through time. Interesting to see how sociopaths might have been born. Ugh.
Blown away. What a fun and well-edited romp through time. Interesting to see how sociopaths might have been born. Ugh.
November 9, 2020
Easy Read
I don't know how accurate this book is when it comes to describing the timeline but it does make a very interesting read.
I don't know how accurate this book is when it comes to describing the timeline but it does make a very interesting read.
December 29, 2020
One star is over rated
I struggled thru about 30 percent of this book and just could not take any more. The storyline is so disjointed it is annoying. I would have given no stars if that were an option
I struggled thru about 30 percent of this book and just could not take any more. The storyline is so disjointed it is annoying. I would have given no stars if that were an option
April 6, 2021
Loved it, not at all what I expected (not like Jean Auel AT ALL:-)
April 23, 2021
These books an underrated treasure.
June 20, 2021
So much fun to read! Great series
August 26, 2021
Easy reading
Once you ignore the time jump itself the story runs smoothly. The walking phase is a bit much for the distance of each day. Am ready to start book#2
Once you ignore the time jump itself the story runs smoothly. The walking phase is a bit much for the distance of each day. Am ready to start book#2
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews