When Avram became King of Detina, he announced his intention to liberate the blond serfs from their ties to the land. This noble assertion immediately plunged the kingdom into a civil war that would prove long and bloody, and set brother against brother. The northern provinces, dependent on the labour of their serfs, seceded, choosing Avram's cousin, Grand Duke Geoffrey, as their king. To save the kingdom, Avram sent armies clad in grey against the north, battling Geoffrey's army, arrayed in blue. Though King Avram held more land and wealth than Geoffrey, Geoffrey's men were better soldiers and the north had better and more powerful wizards. Still, as the war raged on, the tide turned against the north. Even so, the war is far from over. Earlier, the north had held an almost impregnable position - but was overrun when an overconfident sorcerer's spell went awry. Use of sorcery was often unpredictable, and in the more mundane aspects of the war, battle plans could also go awry. The south seemed to be winning, but the outcome was far from certain...
From Publishers Weekly
Turning the American Civil War literally upside-down, this winning fantasy brings to life a war to free the blond serfs of the North and raise them to equality beside their swarthy masters. Turtledove not only swaps South for North but replaces rifles with crossbows, horses with unicorns and railways with magic carpets. The book opens in the fourth year of the war, when it's clear that the gray-clad armies of King Avram of Detina have the advantage over the followers of the traitorous Grand Duke Geoffrey, who has proclaimed himself king of the seceded North. Many Northern infantrymen have been reduced to robbing Southern bodies for shoes and warm clothing; and while the North has the best wizards, the Southern engineers have invented a rapid-firing crossbow that gives their soldiers a tremendous advantage in battle. The course of this war closely parallels the real one, which makes for a somewhat predictable story but clears the way for a focus on the various entertaining and well-drawn characters, including numerous homages to-or parodies of-various historical figures. Charm and humor balance out the grimly realistic depictions of battlefields and occupied towns, flavor the beautifully subtle treatment of racism and help to mask the occasional lack of descriptive detail. While perhaps best suited to Civil War buffs, this tale proves quite enjoyable for the less tactically inclined, and it's a must-have for any fan of alternate histories.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Description:
When Avram became King of Detina, he announced his intention to liberate the blond serfs from their ties to the land. This noble assertion immediately plunged the kingdom into a civil war that would prove long and bloody, and set brother against brother. The northern provinces, dependent on the labour of their serfs, seceded, choosing Avram's cousin, Grand Duke Geoffrey, as their king. To save the kingdom, Avram sent armies clad in grey against the north, battling Geoffrey's army, arrayed in blue. Though King Avram held more land and wealth than Geoffrey, Geoffrey's men were better soldiers and the north had better and more powerful wizards. Still, as the war raged on, the tide turned against the north. Even so, the war is far from over. Earlier, the north had held an almost impregnable position - but was overrun when an overconfident sorcerer's spell went awry. Use of sorcery was often unpredictable, and in the more mundane aspects of the war, battle plans could also go awry. The south seemed to be winning, but the outcome was far from certain...
From Publishers Weekly
Turning the American Civil War literally upside-down, this winning fantasy brings to life a war to free the blond serfs of the North and raise them to equality beside their swarthy masters. Turtledove not only swaps South for North but replaces rifles with crossbows, horses with unicorns and railways with magic carpets. The book opens in the fourth year of the war, when it's clear that the gray-clad armies of King Avram of Detina have the advantage over the followers of the traitorous Grand Duke Geoffrey, who has proclaimed himself king of the seceded North. Many Northern infantrymen have been reduced to robbing Southern bodies for shoes and warm clothing; and while the North has the best wizards, the Southern engineers have invented a rapid-firing crossbow that gives their soldiers a tremendous advantage in battle. The course of this war closely parallels the real one, which makes for a somewhat predictable story but clears the way for a focus on the various entertaining and well-drawn characters, including numerous homages to-or parodies of-various historical figures. Charm and humor balance out the grimly realistic depictions of battlefields and occupied towns, flavor the beautifully subtle treatment of racism and help to mask the occasional lack of descriptive detail. While perhaps best suited to Civil War buffs, this tale proves quite enjoyable for the less tactically inclined, and it's a must-have for any fan of alternate histories.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Turtledove borrows the title from the memoirs of Confederate general John Bell Hood, who here, as in history (magical aid notwithstanding), brings about the Gotterdammerung of his own cause, despite high courage, in a misguided campaign of inadequate strength. Turtledove focuses on the duel between Bell (i.e., Hood) and Doubting George (i.e., Union general George Thomas), though Ned of the Forrest (Nathan Bedford Forrest) and John the Lister (John Schofield) are also prominent. After the duel's high points--the battles of Poor Richard (Franklin, Tennessee) and Ramblerton (Nashville)--both analogous and completely invented characters lose luster as blue-clad Northerners (the rebels in Turtledove's alternate history) slide to defeat, like the gray-clad Southerners of our history. The book captures the fearful grimness of the two great battles; Rollant, the ex-serf, continues to offer insights on the path from slavery to freedom; and Turtledove has no compunctions about naming the counterpart of the famous Willard Hotel in Washington the House of the Rat. Light but not lite Turtledove, full of intellectual calories for his faithful followers. Roland Green
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved