The Michael Crichton Collection: Airframe / The Lost World / Timeline

by Michael Crichton, Stephen Lang (Read by), Anthony Heald (Read by)

Airframe
Three passengers are dead. Fifty-six are injured. The interior cabin is virtually destroyed but the pilot manages to land the plane… Airframe combines a realistic situation with heart-pounding suspense to keep the listener captivated until the very last word.

The Lost World
It is now six years since the secret disaster at Jurassic Park, six years since the extraordinary dream of science and imagination came to a crashing end–the dinosaurs destroyed, the park dismantled, the island indefinitely closed to the public.
There are rumors that something has survived. . . .

Timeline
In a world of unforeseen technological advances, a group of historians finds its way to the medieval past. The journey, while ground-breaking, carries the listener also into a realm of unexpected suspense and terror, twisting our most basic ideas of reality.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery

Audio CD

First published July 5, 2000

About the author

John Michael Crichton was an American author, screenwriter, and filmmaker whose prolific career left an indelible mark on popular culture and speculative fiction. Raised on Long Island, he displayed a precocious talent for writing, publishing an article in The New York Times at sixteen. Initially enrolling at Harvard as an English major, he switched to biological anthropology after discovering a preference for scientific study over literature. He graduated summa cum laude and received a fellowship to lecture in anthropology at Cambridge. Later attending Harvard Medical School, he earned his MD but chose not to practice, dedicating himself to writing instead. His medical background profoundly influenced his novels, providing authentic scientific and technical underpinnings that became a hallmark of his work. Crichton began writing under pseudonyms, producing suspenseful thrillers as John Lange, including Odds On, Scratch One, and Easy Go, and as Jeffrey Hudson with A Case of Need, earning him an Edgar Award. His first major success under his own name, The Andromeda Strain, established his signature blend of scientific authenticity, tension, and exploration of technological hazards, leading to its film adaptation. Over his career, he wrote 25 novels, including The Terminal Man, The Great Train Robbery, Congo, Sphere, Jurassic Park, Rising Sun, Disclosure, The Lost World, Airframe, Timeline, Prey, State of Fear, and Next, several adapted into major films, with four additional works published posthumously. Crichton also made significant contributions to film and television. He wrote and directed Westworld, pioneering the use of 2D computer-generated imagery, and later directed Coma, The First Great Train Robbery, Looker, and Runaway. He created the influential medical drama ER, which he executive produced and developed with Steven Spielberg, achieving critical and commercial success. Many of his novels, most famously Jurassic Park and its sequel The Lost World, became cultural phenomena, combining imaginative adventure with grounded scientific speculation, often exploring humanity’s overreach in genetics, biotechnology, and complex systems. His literary style was notable for integrating meticulous scientific detail, suspense, and moral cautionary themes. His works frequently addressed the failure of complex systems—biological, technological, or organizational—demonstrating the unpredictable consequences of human hubris. Employing techniques such as first-person narratives, false documents, fictionalized scientific reports, and assembling expert teams to tackle crises, Crichton created immersive stories appealing to both popular and scholarly audiences. His exploration of genetics, paleontology, nanotechnology, and artificial intelligence revealed both fascination and caution about humanity’s technological ambitions, while his early non-fiction, such as Five Patients and Electronic Life, reflected his scientific insight and forward-thinking approach to computers and programming. Standing 6 feet 9 inches tall, Crichton experienced social isolation in adolescence and later pursued meditation and consultations with psychics, cultivating a lifelong interest in human consciousness and alternative experiences. A workaholic, he approached writing with disciplined ritualistic methodology, often retreating entirely to complete a novel in six or seven weeks. He was married five times, fathered two children, and maintained a wide-ranging collection of 20th-century American art. Crichton engaged in political and scientific discourse, particularly regarding global warming, where he was an outspoken skeptic and testified before the U.S. Senate. He contributed significantly to the discussion of intellectual property, technology, and environmental policy, coining concepts such as the Gell-Mann amnesia effect. Throughout his life, he received numerous awards, including Edgar Awards, a Peabody Award for ER, an Aca

Reviews

[LambchoP · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I have not yet read Airframe, I have read both The Lost World and Timeline and very much enjoyed both of those. Each of those two novels are in my top 5 Crichton novels, right up there with Jurassic park and Congo. I have heard a lot of negative things about Airframe, but being Crichton is one of my top 3 authors, I will eventually give it a go. But if you, like me, are also a fan of his, then you could do so much worse than The Lost World or Timeline. Because I haven't read Airframe yet, I'll give this a 4/5 rating. If it was just the other two novels it would be an easy perfect 5 stars.

[Deanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun collection, easy listen. The books were all fast-paced and although the characters weren't that exciting, the events were interesting and the topics were vast. This is a great starter collection for Michael Crichton.

[Lexxi Kitty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Consolidating:
Airframe: 3.00
Lost World: 2.50
Timeline: 3.00
---------- 2.833

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

So this Audio CD has three of Michael Chrichton's books Abridged on it.

Airframe: 1 Star : I'm glad this book was abridged and only three CD's. I had a hard time getting through this part. Wont be reading the full book anytime soon.

The Lost World: 5 Stars : Loved this book when I read it years ago. Will probably re-read it soon.

Timeline: 5+ Stars : Fantastic book, one of my favorites. Worth reading the whole thing again and again!

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Better than average from Crichton. Reviewers ding it as a poor imitation of Twain, but this trip to the medieval past has a fun mix of weird quantum physics and history."

[Debbie]

Timeline by Michael Crichton (2003)

[Russ Carr · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting in its detail but got a bit bored at times.

[Nicole]

just read timeline.