The Time Traveler's Wife

Now a series on HBO starring Rose Leslie and Theo James!

The iconic time travel love story and mega-bestselling first novel from Audrey Niffenegger is "a soaring celebration of the victory of love over time" (Chicago Tribune).

Henry DeTamble is a dashing, adventurous librarian who is at the mercy of his random time time-traveling abilities. Clare Abshire is an artist whose life moves through a natural sequential course. This is the celebrated and timeless tale of their love. Henry and Clare's passionate affair is built and endures across a sea of time and captures them in an impossibly romantic trap that tests the strength of fate and basks in the bonds of love. “Niffenegger’s inventive and poignant writing is well worth a trip” (Entertainment Weekly).

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Published May 6, 2014

Average rating: 7.53

411 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

abookwanderer
Oct 09, 2025
6/10 stars
3.5 stars. So I'd intended to read this one for awhile. Mostly just because of all the hype. And I'm a sucker for romance. But I'd also heard it was sad, which made me hesitant. And while I thought it was beautifully written, the characters were well-developed, and the story was beyond unique, I wasn't blown away. I did find myself always picking it up, wanting to continue the story, so it's hard for me to rate. But there were no tears for me, no feelings of despair when I finished it. Mostly I found myself flipping back through, trying to make sense of the dates and clues early on in the book. Oh well, I can finally cross this one off my list.

#popsugarreadingchallenge2019 (prompt #5)
ErinkBall
Sep 06, 2025
This is still a favorite of mine. A beautiful story of a man who time travels. And the love that grows as a child befriends a time traveler. A reread several times and never disappoints
Zach23Weiss
Jun 24, 2025
10/10 stars
One word: INCREDIBLE!

All questions are answered by the end and this book just leaves you feeling 5000000 emotions all at once. Happy to have had the journey of reading it this week!
last page
Jun 05, 2025
7/10 stars
Moments of happiness, sadness, tragedy, shear comedy, and wonder. Well worth the journey through their lives as time bends back on itself.
Heidi Eckert
Apr 29, 2025
8/10 stars
I really enjoyed this novel. Something pulled me in and kept me reading. I felt quite emotionally invested in the characters, even though they sometimes disappointed me. There is something magical within this book underneath its flaws. Yes, it was too long and some of the more explicit words (The c-word isn't really sexy or appropriate in any case) could have been left out. The time-travel, dates, etc. can get very confusing if thought about too rationally. But overall, something makes me want to like this book so I do. I think it's worth a read. In the end I cried, so that's a sign that even if I can't explain why, I really was into a story.

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