The Great War: Breakthroughs

Rating:
Summary: The "Great War" winds down...or does it?
Review: I usually look forward to Harry Turtledove's "next book" in several of the series that he has running. I particularly like to keep up with various characters that he has developed rather nicely,such as Jake Featherston and Cinncinnatus. At times this book moves along rather well and some of the writing is paticularly inspired,but for the greater part of the book we are simply plodding along from one telegraphed situation to another. Not very satisfying;therefore--2 stars. I thought that the situation in which the CSA found itself in regards to armaments to be a bit odd,considering that their major ally, Great Britain, was one of the World's leading industrial powers...and a naval power! My conclusion regarding this particular "installment" in the neverending saga ,is that it is really a setup for a real doozer of a "Second World War". The parallel of the CSA being disarmed and occupied,as was Germany at the end of "real-time" W.W.I,is a good teaser for history buffs.Of course the anger, resentment, and the loser's desire for revenge sets up the next war. I suspect that the next book in the series will really make this one an important cornerstone for future developments. The generally flat tone of this book was not very satisfying,but it did leave me wanting more. Overall,this book was a necessary evil in order to further bring Dr. Turtledove's alternate history timeline to completion. I look forward to the next volume with enthusiasm.

Rating:
Summary: Satisfying conclusion to Turtledove's alternative Great War
Review: This book represents the final volume in Harry Turtledove's trilogy-within-a-tetralogy alternative history series about a world where the United States and Confederate States of America continue to face off against one another decades after the Civil War. After updating readers with the status of all the characters from where they were left at the end of the second volume, Turtledove proceeds to take readers through the final year of the war as seen through their experiences. Their geographical and occupational diversity - from a former steelworker fighting in Texas to a young Socialist congresswoman from New York - gives the reader a good sampling of the war from a variety of perspectives, yet at the same time stressing many of the common experiences of war.

While entertaining, however, Turtledove's narrative has lost much of its freshness. While the characters are familiar, as some other reviewers have noted there is a repetition to their accounts that often gives the appearance of treading narrative water. The conclusion of the war helps to break much of this monotony, yet it ends in a way that is clearly a set-up for the subsequent novels, as the characters are being too obviously positioned for the postwar roles that Turtledove expects them to serve. Fans of the earlier novels, though, will find much to enjoy in the familiarity of characters to which they've become attached, as well as the satisfaction of reaching the end of his conceptualization of an alternative "Great War."

Rating:
Summary: The costs of war
Review: In "How Few Remain", Harry Turtledove proposed an alternative history in which the South prevailed in the Civil War. In the "Great War" trilogy, the USA, now allied with Imperial Germany, is looking for revenge against the Confederate States of America and their Canadian and British allies. When war breaks out in Europe, the two American rivals join their allies and open an American theater to the war. Here, in the final book of the trilogy, the war draws to its bloody conclusion, as new tactics based on evolving technology break the brutal stalemate that has defined the years of trench warfare. These breakthroughs rapidly lead to victory, and the victors, bent on revenge, intend to punish their opponents, thus planting the seeds for future hostilities.

Turtledove uses more than a dozen characters to tell this story, representing almost every point of view. We have the stories of civilians, soldiers, and sailors; elisted men and officers; white and black; North, South, and Canadian. We see the sweeping scope of the war on the homefront, as well as on both fronts: In Canada, from Quebec to Ontario to Manitoba; and in the South, from Virginia, to Kentucky and Tenessee, to west of the Mississippi. What most impresses me is that the characters here are real rather than stereotypes. There are characters on both sides that are sympathetic, and just as many on both sides that are despicable. Its hard to decide which side is more right or wrong--they each have virtues and faults. In this, Turtledove's alternate history mirror's reality: There are seldom any easy answers, and most issues are shrouded in layers of grey.

I found this series to be a highly entertaining speculative exercise. His extrapolations seem at least passibly plausible, and it is interesting to see how he fits authentic historical figures into his alternate reality. I look forward to reading his next series, and seeing how he deals with the aftermath of the war.

Rating:
Summary: General Custer ends up the hero!
Review: Breakthroughs wraps up the story of WWI as fought on American soil and at risk of giving away the ending: the US wins. Turtledove brings closure to most of the stories he has woven into the war. Some end well, others in tragedy. There were some very interesting twists and turns, not the least of which is that General Custer turns out to be the hero of the war. He also sets many of the cast up for their part in the American Empire series which follows. The main complaint I have about Breakthroughs (and the entire series in general) is Turtledove's need to rehash the core point of each story as he switches back and forth between them. In theory one could read any of the books independently, but I don't think he should have wasted the space rehashing every little thing that happened in the first two novels over and over again.

Rating:
Summary: Good plot and characters, bad storytelling
Review: I would say that this entire series is perfect, and that this was one of the best ending books in an entire series that I have read since the DUNE series. The evolution of the characters was exquisetly written, and the reaction of every nation in subterfuge and open warfare was extremely interesting, and very logically assumed after the changes in history. All in all I would say that this was an extremely good boook and one I couldn't put down. I would recomend this entire series and book to anyone, and cannot wait until the succeeding series arrive.