The Romanov Rescue

As a setting for alternate history, WWI is criminally underutilized. This was The Great War, the fall of empires, and the molding of an entirely new world! There are heaps of unexplored changes which could be explored! So I was quite excited to jump into what counts as a technothriller from the early 20th century set in the waning days of the Great War in 1918. Could the formation of the Soviet Union have been prevented, even at such a late stage? The Romanov Rescue, seeks to tell that tale!

Written by three authors, Tom Kratman, Justin Watson, and Kacey Ezell, it was very much a group effort piece. It shows though, that each of the authors has a solid expertise and has rigorously investigated the material and skills available to soldiers of the time period. I can't quite say where each author took over - a bonus to the book - but a few sections did have distinct voices. Overall though, it blended quite seamlessly together and for a three person effort, that's no mean feat!

From  my Kindle

Set in early 1918, in the midst of the work for the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, we follow the musings of one Max Hoffman, who is effectively running the show as Hindenburg and Ludendorff prepare their great offensive of 1918 (another overlooked point in alternate history) and he stumbles upon a rapacious band of Latvian Riflemen. Musing on how awful the communists are, he wonders if anything can be done to stop them. Enter captured Russian Imperial Guardsman Daniil Kostyshakov. Fresh from an escape attempt, he is approached with an intriguing mission, how would be like to rescue the imprisoned royal family from the clutches of the Bolsheviks?

If that sounds like a mad plan, or the setting of a crazy thriller, you're right! From here its a plan on how to carry out the mission, how to recruit troops for it, and where on Earth they can get what they need when the war is still raging!

We follow many fun Russian characters. In truth the Imperial Guards made the best of the book, from Daniil, to Kaledin to Turgeney, they all had their quirks and fun ideas which hooked me on them. The story then largely follows their attempts at reconstituting an Imperial Guard unit for the rescue, training for the rescue, and covering the minutia of details on how to actually accomplish these goals. Otherwise we follow a strategic recon team who scout the way, and the stories of two guards at where the Royal Family is being held, Chekov and Dostovalov. These two add an excellent depth and personal touch to the events on the ground, and gets into some pretty fun intrigue which has far reaching effects on the outcome.

I enjoyed the German crew of the L5 Afrika Schiff so much. It added a very clever element to the whole drama. The equipment seems odd for even buffs of WWI, but when compared between 1914 and 1918 the world was a very different place and the things which could be learned very different! The authors definitely put a lot of thought into the technology, tactics, and how to make that realistically work, which educated me quite a bit on many of the fascinating details of airship launches, flight, and what interesting uses they might have had.

Then the story takes us across much of Russia, and through many various halls of power. The long recon led by Turgeney has some signature fun moments, from piracy to a train robbery. However, it also contains many of the more lagging sections of the novel. For instance, the entire section which took place in the smuggling vessel might have been better excised, if simply for tying up a lot of narrative time which might have been better spent elsewhere, and from there it used far too much 'rape as drama' for my taste. This did though, include many worthwhile action scenes.

My only other critique might be that the story attempts to humanize the Romanov's a bit too much. Certainly it is to be remembered that they were people, but the former tsar and tsarina were relentless autocrats who were actively undemocratic and engaged in bloody reprisals against their own people all in the name of autocracy. Telling the story through their children's eyes was a far better choice both stylistically and when it came to arriving at a much more thrilling finale.

I was impressed that the authors managed to end up pulling together such a large cast of characters to - eventually - a single location. There are many clever plot points, twists, and overall revelations that I was kept in rapt attention to details until the very end.

The story rapidly reaches a very action packed crescendo, with all the action and maddening complications despite meticulous planning one could hope for. In fact the final act doesn't pull its punches and I was caught off guard by just how insane the situation became. Despite the best laid plans and all the training in the world, there truly are some things you just can't prepare for! A very unique and ultimately satisfying read which does leave me wondering how the world might have turned out otherwise.

The Heroes

Three men, one battle, no heroes. Thus is the tagline to another epic story from Joe Abercrombie. In truth, this is about the fourth time I have read my well loved, and much worn, copy of the book. It was in fact the first I ever picked up of his. I effectively went into the world of the First Law blind and came out star struck. As such, there were some contexts I missed the first time, but when I first read (and then reread) the amazing trilogy, I fell in love with this book all over again. Allow me then, to introduce you to the epic three days in the Valley of Orsung as we see The Heroes. 

From goodreads

Picking up roughly nine years after the events of The Last Argument of Kings we see that, once again, the Union and the North are at loggerheads. A disagreement between the southern clans of the North and the new Protector have exploded into open war and so the King of the Union has backed them in their fight. Now for interminable months the two armies have snapped at one another but not yet come to battle. It's time to change all that.

Fighting for the North we have Crunden Craw and his dozen, working in and behind the lines to support the main army's four war chiefs. Slithering among them is the former Prince Calder who claims the North in the name of his slaughtered father Bethod, but so must act like a hostage while dodging assassins. A young lad named Beck decides he wants to see a real battle like his father and leaves home to take part in the war.

For the Union we have the hulking warrior Bremer dan Gorst, formerly the king's First Guard and a warrior without equal in the whole of the Union. Then we have the infamous Corporal Tunney, the longest serving junior officer in His Majesty's army, a lazy standard bearer who does his best to stay out of the way despite his officers meddling. Finally, on the sidelines, Finree dan Brock, now married to the son of the most infamous traitor in the Union, schemes to raise her husband in society and hopefully become a power to be reckoned with in society.

Behind them all though, Bayaz schemes and plots, while the leaders in the North may have some secret agenda of their own.

One thing I have to mention is that the battlefield is just as much a part of the story as the characters. Laid out in loving detail with a map that changes with the battle, you can track the action and see where everyone is in relation to everyone else. A fantastic use of visual work to help the story and I really think it needs to be commended.

The story, as usual for Abercrombie, is a brutal affair. The folly and misery of war is well on display. Men drowning in mud, bad rations, the misery of the wounded, and the stupidity of men and officers can be seen everywhere. That doesn't drown out individual moments of heroism and mercy of course, but they're far outnumbered by the butchery.

It is a well put together story which takes place over a few days on a single field of battle, with intrigues, betrayals and numerous pitfalls for each side. It shows that any great event can make for an engaging story and have plenty of room for betrayal! It is also where he started on his wonderful little vignettes of characters experiencing the events of the battle, from officers on horseback to soldiers going toe to toe with their counterparts, and many of them meet grisly fates indeed! It's a wonderful piece of writing which brings the scope of the battle to life!

Our strong female character in Finree is a wonderful foil to the men, having to scheme and politic rather than stab and batter her way to the top. There's also Calder, a well know coward who will do anything to avoid fighting! They set themselves against seasoned warriors and commanders whose perspectives really livened up the story. My personal favorite was Beck, a lad who has only heard about war in songs. He goes to earn his manhood and finds war much more than he expected. I won't spoil it, but the end of his story is perhaps one of the most tear jerking things I've read, an amazing piece of writing.

As a stand alone in the greater First Law world, its one of Abercrombie's best books in my opinion. He does some phenomenal work with this one little piece of land and makes you feel the blood and mud spilled for it. It is an amazing war story and an altogether phenomenal work of grim fantasy fiction. It sits proudly on my shelves as one of my favorite novels! Definitely pick this one up!

Storming the Capitol (1/6) A Year On

It is hard to believe that the terrible events of January 6th are now only a year old. In fact it seems almost like yesterday, even though so much has happened since then. While hundreds have been arrested and tried for the act, it appears as though they are going down as martyrs rather than treasonous criminals. Indeed, there is a frightening divide in the United States now where a purely partisan reality is entrenching itself. On one side is the old liberal order which trusts the rule of law to see them through, and on the other is a new, reactionary far right ideology which sees itself as persecuted by a corrupt system. The outright lie that the 2020 election was stolen seems to be, rather than weakened for the farce that it is, strengthened by commentators and politicians on the right pandering to a myth.

It does not bode well for the future.

I've seen the pernicious effects of this myself. Whether from online commentators calling the events 'staged' or 'mischaracterized' despite them happening on live television and hundreds live streaming their ideology and actions to the world. Or you have sitting politicians willingly and maliciously downplaying or outright fabricating events. One of the few people killed is now being hailed as a martyr by the right wing, while the GOP has been doing everything it can to hamper the investigation into events by the government.

Meanwhile the Democrats, ostensibly the party in power, have been reacting to the GOP outright enabling and allowing this treasonous talk with what one could call suicidal faith in the rule of law. Rather than treating the situation as unprecedented in modern US history, they seem to act as though as this were something that might be brushed under the rug. That it will be decided in the courts and in the ballot boxes. The GOP, whether through embracing the violent rhetoric or attempting to control the courts, treats this as a fight to the death.

Whether it is because an aging Democratic leadership in Washington is out of touch with most of the country - or reality - or simply an abundance of faith in the system (or adversity to changing it) they seem to be setting the stage for defeat in 2022. That could lead to worse, a defeat in 2024. The GOP seems to let no rules or boundaries constrain them. While recently the Democrats felt bound by the Senate Parliamentarian, the GOP in a similar situation fired and replaced them. This is nothing new, in the past decade the GOP flouted norms as it suited them, and the Democratic politicians have done almost nothing to stop them, or challenge them at their own game.

I'm not saying a game of political brinkmanship is the solution to the US's ills, but showing more backbone to authoritarians has never really been a problem. Rather than tackling the GOP head on, they target the foot soldiers and not the enablers. Only time will tell if their ongoing investigation into events bears fruit or even tilts the political headwinds slightly.

So far though, the divide between left and right is entrenching. I wrote last year that there are still chances for Americans to come together, if they can merely stop demonizing each other and understand their own common ground. But to do that one has to peer beyond a wall of rhetoric, hate, and fear. Many fears are sadly not rational. The ones propelling those who stormed the Capitol a year ago least of all. In the end, all we can really hope is that a nation's leadership can stand firm before an oncoming storm. It ain't over yet.

Saving Proxima

In 2072, the Lunar Farside Radio Observatory on the Moon intercepts signals that are far too clean to be mere background interstellar noise. Working through the noise it becomes distinct, chatter, music and conversation. Mankind may not be alone in the universe! A society has evolved around our closest stellar neighbor, Proxima Centauri!

So begins the 2021 book by Travis S. Taylor and Les Johnson called Saving Proxima. It was a pretty inspired read for me at the end of 2021, a year that had begun in so much madness and chaos. So a story of interstellar humanitarianism was something I could really get behind!

From goodreads

The story is told in a roughly three decade span, first from the discovery of alien life around Proxima to the decision to send a ship to visit. There are, of course, reasons to do so. Information from the civilization around that star indicates they face a very real risk of a complete and total demographic collapse which only the more advanced civilization of Earth may be able to help. That isn't to say that everyone is onboard with offering such help, and there's some pretty rich machinations and intrigue behind all that we get to explore, and beneath that there are a few deeper mysteries I simply can't spoil! One thing I will say I appreciated is that the story very nicely stomps on the concept of the Fermi Paradox which I also tend to find annoying.

The various viewpoint characters serve to drive the plot. The three mains are the astronomer Lorraine "Rain" Gilster who initially discovers the signal, eccentric engineer and inventor Enrico Vulpetti who is extremely interested in the Proxima mission and the test engineer Roy Burbank, who sinks a lot of his life and expertise into humanity's first interstellar starship the Samaritan. There are numerous supporting characters and villains, but this would be what I consider the main cast whose stories we follow.

Our story really shines in the journey to Proxima as we examine a ship travelling at .85c towards our closest stellar neighbor with some clever (and plausible) technology to do the boosting. Life onboard the ship, how the ship functions, and some really clever technical work to keep it all together really hooked me in. The authors were very knowledgeable in how much of this future tech might work, what might mess it up, and all the ways to fix it. I was quite hooked by some really Star Trek style problems, but no technobabble fixes! No reversing the polarity here, just old fashioned elbow grease and technical know how!

It all comes together at arrival, with both a lot of human tragedy on the way there and some real hopeful moments with first contact. I'm happy to say that one of the few criticisms of the book I can make is that it simply felt like it needed to be longer in order to really maximize the impact the story could tell, and to explore some of the simply fascinating mysteries it set up early on and near the end. Thankfully, the book does seem to set us up for a sequel which will hopefully address more of these issues.

A short and compelling read for the end of 2021 or the early 2022 reader! Definitely worth your time!