1901

Rating:
Summary: 1901 revisited
Review: This novel can best be described as a tall, cold glass of Harry Turtledove Light. All the elements are there, but a lack of historical research keeps this work from being truly great. That being said, the Alternate Reality genre will always welcome a great first effort novel like 1901. I have been a fan of this genre since I read a barbershop copy of the Man in the High Castle almost 30 years ago, and at times it was almost impossible to find any projects in this category. Mr. Conroy is certainly no Harry Turtledove, but he has put together a good read and managed to tap into a previously unexplored hiccup in American history, namely our turn-of-the-20th-century stumbling onto the world stage of politics and diplomacy. I would like to see more from Mr. Conroy, possible a second novel set in his "1901 universe". Ignore negative criticsm of this work, if you are a fan of the genre it's definitely worth reading.

Rating:
Summary: Wow! An alternate history that _isn't_ WWII or the Civil War
Review: This was a nicely thought out AH. At times, however, the characters seem a bit wooden - though this may be intentional on Conroy's part as an attempt to portray the times. Unlike the many WWII-ish "Germany Invades the U.S." stories, this one is actually believable. Germany isn't trying to conquer the place, just force some concessions. It's small navy can handle the U.S.'s even smaller one (split up in two oceans), and the fact that most of the U.S. Army is away in those newly held colonies makes the invasion's possibility much more believable. Definitely worth a read.