Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: American Empire: The Victorious Opposition by HARRY TURTLEDOVE ISBN: 0-345-44423-X Publisher: Del Rey Pub. Date: 29 July, 2003 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $27.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.95 (42 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Great Book, but slow
Comment: I have loved the Turtledove books ever since I picked up the first one, How Few Remain, last year. I flew threw the Great War Saga and read the American Empire series. I was eagerly awaiting this book, but I was slightly disappointed. Some of the characters in the book, like Scipio, Sylvia Enos, Mary "McGregor" Pomeroy, and Sam Carsten seemed repetitive. Although, there is the occasional plot twist that changed the character, it was rather repeative. I greatly look forward to where some of the characters are going, such as Jefferson Pinkard, Jake Featherston, Flora Blackford, and Clarence Potter are going. I eagerly a wait where Mr. Turtledove will take all of our beloved characters next.
As someone who greatly enjoys history, I can't say enough for this book and all of the rest of Mr. Turtledove's books. I love looking at what happened just because one thing changed in one battle of the Civil War. I look at this book, and I see all the little things that really happened in say Germany after World War Two, and I see some of those things happen to the Confederate States of America. From the Olympics in Richmond, to rounding up Blacks and putting them in camps, to riots against blacks much like riots against Jews in Germany, I can't say enough about how some events run along side of events in Nazi Germany in our real life.
Rating: 4
Summary: Still a Worthwhile Series After Seven Books
Comment: This book, Turtledove's seventh in this particular universe, is hardly the place to jump into this series. But, if you've read the whole series up to now, you'll want to stick with it.
Yes, some of Turtledove's characteristic flaws are here, notably replaying events from our history in a different geopolitical context rather than inventing a whole new sequence of events. Thus, we get European history between the World Wars reset in a variant North America of the same time rather than postulating, say, no wars or of more limited extent. I suspect Turtledove wanted WWI and WWII taking place in North America and built his alternate timeline to justify that. Another flaw is frequent repetition, as if they were Homeric epithets, of characters' descriptions. And, in this book, he's taken to parenthetically highlighting the moral blindness of some of his characters as if we wouldn't notice otherwise.
Yet, this series continues to hold my interest as the Confederate States of America stand-in for an aggreived Germany and Jake Featherston for Adolf Hitler. Watching several characters being co-opted into supporting the evil, "victorious opposition" of Featherston's regime is the main interest here.
The moral corruption of several of the viewpoint characters as they are co-opted by Jake Featherston is disturbingly plausible. Others, far from the South, clash violently. Some die to be replaced in their viewpoint duties by family members. There are a couple of unnamed historical cameos, and a suicidal Ernie aka Ernest Hemingway shows up again.
One story line seems a bit contrived just to get its character into trouble, and Lucien Galtier and his familial bantering still seem to have little function beyond showing us a man who has largely benefited from the Great War.
But the plight of Scipio, a black man trapped in Featherston's CSA, doesn't seem at all contrived, and his story is the most frightening as his past, his race, and his country threaten his life and his family's
As you would expect, the novel ends with the beginning of war and, no doubt, some unpleasant times ahead for all ... in the next book.
Rating: 3
Summary: Awfully repetitive!
Comment: I have read all of the "Great War" and all of the "American Empire" AH novels by Harry Turtledove , and I have just about had enough! From the novel "Breakthroughs" until this book , we have only had awfully repetitive cameo glimpses into the mundane lives of many characters who seem to have no redeeming qualities whatever.
In the present work , we finally wind up losing some non-essential personae: Nellie Semphroch(Jacobs) , Lucien Galtier , Laura Secord(Moss) , and Sylvia Enos. Some of these characters hung around waaay to long for my taste! We see Colonel Abner Dowling promoted to General officer rank and finally manages to get out of Utah.
Jake Featherston tightens his grip on the Confederacy and emulates real world Germany by the construction of concentration camps, and sets the stage for the upcoming World War II in AH time.
What I liked about the book:
(1) Gets rid of Nelly Jacobs.
(2) Starts to move towards some action in the next volume.
What I disliked about the book:
(1) Many of the statements made by the more essential players were not-so-instant replays of other scenes in earlier books.
(2) The dreadfully slow pace getting there!
Overall I liked this installment better than "The Center Cannot Hold". I suppose I will continue the series , since I am "hooked" on the essential thread. Unfortunatly Turtledove seems to have trouble finishing what he starts , as in the Worldwar/Colonization series. I rated this volume 3 stars , but doesn't come close to 4. Still , not a bad read. Certainly beats watching paint dry , anyhow.
 |
Title: American Empire: The Center Cannot Hold by Harry Turtledove ISBN: 0345444221 Publisher: Del Rey Pub. Date: 01 July, 2003 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
 |
Title: In the Presence of Mine Enemies by Harry Turtledove ISBN: 0451529022 Publisher: New American Library Pub. Date: 04 November, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
 |
Title: American Empire: Blood and Iron by Harry Turtledove ISBN: 0345405668 Publisher: Del Rey Pub. Date: 25 June, 2002 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
 |
Title: 1901 by ROBERT CONROY ISBN: 0891418431 Publisher: Presidio Press Pub. Date: 30 December, 2003 List Price(USD): $7.50 |
 |
Title: Gunpowder Empire (Crosstime Traffic, Book 1) by Harry Turtledove ISBN: 076530693X Publisher: Tor Books Pub. Date: 05 December, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
