Monday Book Pick: Theater of Spies
Filed under: Alternate History, Monday Book Pick, Science Fiction
Theater of Spies by S.M. Stirling
This is the second book in his new alterate history series were Theodore Roosevelt wins the 1912 election.
Black Chamber operative Luz O’Malley Arostequi and her partner Ciara Whelan are sent back to Germany to get information into a new German invention that can turn the war in a really bad way for anyone who opposes the Kaiser. Lot of good basic spy craft material in this book. Some really good action sequences, but they come late in the book, when things go really wrong from a spy’s point of view. Stirling includes a nice James Bond reference in which will be more obvious to those who have actually read the books. There are references to actual historical figures, including Ernst Rolm, and nasty Austrian Corporal.
Monday Book Pick: An Oblique Approach
Filed under: Baen Books, Monday Book Pick, Science Fiction
An Oblique Approach by David Drake and Eric Flint
The first in the Belisarious series. Alternate History by by two masters of the genre. Forces of vast power in the distant future locked battle, and decide to “fix the fight” by sending agents back in time to change history. The first wants to lock humanity into their vision of perfection. They send an AI back to days of the Eastern Roman Empire to create a powerful empire in Northern India, using their caste system to their advantage. Here is a hint for those who haven’t read a lot of work by Drake, it involves introducing gunpowder long before it was used for weapons systems in our timeline. The second group sends a crystalline intelligence to contact a Roman General by the name of Belisarius. Conflict on a grand scale follows. A series of good adventure stories.
Monday Book Pick: Red Inferno: 1925
Filed under: Alternate History, Monday Book Pick, Science Fiction
Red Inferno: 1945 by Robert Conroy
Another of the late Robert Conroy’s alternate history novels. This one is set in 1945. WWII in Europe is winding down, Berlin is about to fall. Harry Truman is now the US President. The change is scarily probable viewed from a modern perspective. Stalin decides that he want’s a bigger buffer zone than he was promised by Roosevelt and Churchill, so after taking Berlin, he turns the massive Red Army westward to attack American and British troops. Remember that the Russian army was really, really big at the time. Partially because of the US supplying them with food, clothing, weapons, planes, and oil for years. There are few factors that work in the Allies favor, including Stalin’s management style, and the Manhattan project. An enjoyable and engaging read. Check it out.
Monday Book Pick: Black Chamber
Filed under: Alternate History, Monday Book Pick, Science Fiction
Black Chamber by S.M. Stirling
In this book, he is starting yet another alternate history series. The change in history is that President Taft dies of a heart attack, right before the Republican convention in 1912. This allows Theodore Roosevelt to win the nomination, and then go on to beat Woodrow Wilson like a rented mule in the general election. This puts a progressive the the White House with a history of getting things done! Things like nationalizing the railroads, and then extending that federalized transportation to airships. Creating a Federal Bureau of Security that weeds out those who don’t agree with the course of America as defined by the “Progressive Republican” party. Charges of anti-American activities get you 30 years of hard labor building roads and working on national parks. The problem of Mexican bandits crossing the border and raiding Americans was solved by invading Mexico and turning it into an American protectorate. Any Mexicans who objected to that were tracked down by the Army, the Federal Bureau of Security, and the members of the Black Chamber, Roosevelt’s personal black ops group run as part of the Secret Service. But this story really isn’t about all of that. It’s an adventure story. World War I, or as it was known at the time, “The Great War”, was in full swing, and Roosevelt didn’t’ declare War when the US wasn’t ready to fight it like Wilson did. America is going to fight, but when it is well prepared with trained troops with good equipment. The Germans know this too, and have a plan to stop it. Enter Black Chamber operative Luz O’Malley Arostequi. Daughter of a former Rough Rider and a Cuban aristocrat. She boards a airship bound for Europe under cover as a Mexican resistance fighter. She is to link up with a German agent code named “Imperial Sword”, and find out what the German’s plans are, and how to stop them. A dashing good adventure story, as defined by someone else being in a lot of trouble very far away. A good read both as an adventure story, and for S.M. Stirling’s observations into history. This includes the observation that Theodore Roosevelt was a compassionate moderate compared to his daughter Alice.
Monday Book Pick: Liberty 1784
Liberty 1784 by Robert Conroy
Another excellent alternate history from the late Robert Conroy. In this one, history changed when the British Navy defeated the French convoy sent to support the American in their bid for independence. The British army is reinforced at Yorktown, and Washington’s army is defeated. Things don’t go well for the defeated Americans: George Washington is taken to London, tried for treason, and beheaded at the Tower of London (which how the book starts); many members of Congress, including John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, are captured and sentenced to hard labor as slaves in Caribbean. Members of the American army are branded, and are ill treated by the Tories and the British Troops still in the colonies. Many surviving patriots went west, to towns like Liberty. These included people still wanted by the British, such as John Hancock and Ben Franklin. In order to root out the last bits of rebellion, the British gather a large force to enter the wilderness and destroy Liberty.
Liberty is a hard thing to destroy it turns out.
Monday Book Pick: Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus
Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus by Orson Scott Card
In honor of Columbus Day, today’s pick is an excellent alternate history novel.
Monday Book Pick: The Given Sacrifice
The Given Sacrifice by S.M. Stirling
Once again, S.M. Stirling proves himself to be the current master of the epic trilogy. Set in his Emberverse, he wraps up another historic period of his alternate universe where Powers have denied technology beyond gunpowder. Don’t worry, there will be more epic trilogies set in the Change series. It’s just time for the next generation.
Friday B-Movie Pick: The Flashpoint Paradox
Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox
One of my kids told me about this one. A deliciously dark alternate history story that starts with a good deed. Events ripple out from that change up and down the timestream and the Flash ends up in a rather nasty universe. One of the best parts was the effect on the Wayne family. In this timeline, it’s Bruce who is killed, not his parents. Thomas Wayne becomes a very dark and deadly Batman and the shock turns Martha Wayne into the Joker, his arch nemesis. The Flash works to find the cause of the timeline change and set things right. It’s hard road, but the Speedster is ready to run it.
Monday Book Pick: Blood of Heroes
Filed under: Baen Books, Monday Book Pick, Science Fiction
Blood of Heros by Steve White
A well researched time travel tale. The author lays out the rules for time travel in his future universe up front, which is a plus in time travel stories. Our heroes travel back to bronze age Greece to observe a historical event and then the fun starts. They run into humanoid aliens. Very long lived, technologically advanced aliens. These aliens didn’t reproduce very often, but they had been there long enough produce a second generation. The older ones had names that included Chronos and Theia. The younger ones included Zeus, Hera, and Apollo. You can see were this is going. There is much action and adventure (adventure: bad things happening to other people far away). A fun read with two sequels already.
Monday Book Pick: The Sting of the Scorpion
The Sting of the Scorpion by Warren Stockholm
Delightfully dark pulp. Kurt Reinhardt is the product of Nazi genetic engineering in a world were the Germans won WWII and occupied America for sixty years. He was bred to be super solider but didn’t like the job. After another war which saw American regain its independence, he immigrates to America and works his way to wealth. Of course he has serious issues, which he works out by fighting crime in slums of Pittsburgh It’s dark, gritty, and nasty. Just what you want in Noir Pulp.