The Fantasy of War

As you probably haven’t noticed, my book list in the lower part of the left hand column has changed slightly. That is correct. I have finished Sentry Peak by Harry Turtledove. If you want to see the review, then ramble along with me.

On the top of the back of the novel is the most apt description of the book; The Strangest Civil War Novel You Ever Read. For those of you that don’t know, Turtledove is described as one of the masters of alternate history.

Lets see if I can give a brief rundown of the story. The dark haired invaders came to the western shore of the new continent centuries ago. Their superior weapons, magecraft, and, from their own account, gods allowed them to conquer the blond haired inhabitants of the new land. The dark hairs broke free of their origins in the old world and started a new kingdom called Detina where they bound the blond serfs to the land of liege lords. The northern, warmer provinces grew to include lord owned large farms growing indigo for trade. The cooler south never saw such growth of serfs bound to the land. The southrons concentrated on shipping, business, and eventually manufactories. Over time the provinces spread east to the great river, while colonizers continued to explore east fighting the blonds all the way.

The war has been going on for about 3 years. The kingdom is broken in two. King Avram, charismatic if not handsome, took the crown, and in doing so promised to free the serfs from their ties to the land. The northern provinces, dependent on serfs for their crops, declared provincial prerogative and broke away naming Grand Duke Geoffrey, the handsome but cold and calculating, king of their realm. The southrons couldn’t sit by and let Detina be torn asunder, so they sought resolution through war.

The book is staged at the border between Franklin and Peachtree provinces. There are clashes of armies and officers. There is strategizing and maneuvering. There is exploration of the difference between commanding well, poorly, and second guessing. The most fun is figuring out what is based on actual events and people. As an examply it’s pretty easy to figure out what real life city is represented by the great port of Karlesburg in the Palmetto province where the first southron fort fell at the start of the war. The north has the better soldiers, some generals, and magecraft, but the southrons have more soldiers, mages, and manufactories.

I really liked this book. I have to say that if all of Turtledove’s books are this well written, researched, and characterized then I’m going to be an addict. I was a little afraid it was going to take me a while to get through this much book, but I flew through it pretty fast. The action is fast paced and the characters develop quite well. Now it’s probably easier since it’s based actual people, but it does an excellent job of making the characters realistic.

I recommend this book to anyone who likes history, fantasy, combat strategy, or a well executed commentary on commanding and leadership. Personally, I’m going to have to read some more of Turtledove’s work.

And now I’m off to Founding Brothers.