Good read for a relatively unknown period
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I read the reviews here, mostly negative before I purchased the book, but decided to give it a try anyway, as the premise is so intriguing. To my pleasant surprise, I found the story very enjoyable and quite readable, and I soon got caught up in the time period. To me, alternative history is a bit like time travel, where we get to see into the lives and times of past peoples. The fact that we can learn a little about our history is a plus.
As an author, I know just how difficult it is to bring characters alive, and for a period piece, I think it's another plus that the author was able to bring in so many actual historical figures and give them realistic portrayals, and not always the ones we would expect based on our present knowledge.
The strategy and battle scenes were well done, and again, very realistic. Even today, the military tends to want to fight the next war the same way they fought the last one, with the usual predictable results. 1901 brings out the mindset of the times in an unusal but very entertaining and enlightening way.
Sam Barone, author 'Dawn of Empire' & 'Empire Rising'
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deutschland uber alles
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An intriguing idea for a novel of alternate history, with some factual background. What if germany had invaded america in 1901? Some interesting notes at the front of the book go into further detail on the actual history.
This reads like a book by harry turtledove, who has written a lot of alternate history novels, in that it has many different viewpoint characters whom the narrative jumps between, and the prose isn't great writing but is certainly readable. Although this isn't quite as well written as a turtledove novel, in that the characterisation can feel a bit stiff at times. The prose is certainly readable if nothing else.
Story wise things do slow down too much midway through when the time of year and other things force the german army to dig in, thus the third quarter of the book seems to pass without much happening. It picks up for a satisfying battle finale, which also like a turtledove novel doesn't show us the big picture, just the reaction of those caught in the middle of it.
And once everything is said and done, there is an interesting little sting in the tale in regards to what germany will do next.
Not a bad book, just a little rough round the edges. Not quite as good as the writer's second novel, 1862. But I will be giving his forthcoming novel 1945 a go.
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Good plot, poor execution
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One of the great problems with alternative history is the lack of imagination. All too often, the novels of the genre begin with a divergence, usually involving the Civil War or World War II, and lead to a result that is not unfamiliar to a student of our history. In this respect, Robert Conroy's book is a refreshing change of pace with its intriguing premise: what if the German kaiser had decided to attack the United States in an effort to take over its recently acquired colonies? As ideas go, it is imaginative enough to be refreshing, yet plausible enough to work. Conroy follows this up with a believable plot that details the consequences of this decision on the world and on the cast of characters he assembles. Nevertheless, this is the limit of Conroy's achievement, as having avoided one pitfall he ends up stumbling into others. Though the plot is engaging the writing is not, as Conroy's insertion of details often gives passages the feel of a textbook. A similar problem exists with the characters; while his main hero and heroine are well fleshed out, the rest often come across as underdeveloped and stereotypical. The greatest problem with Conroy's novel, though, is its lack of respect for the historical background. Though this might seem counter-intuitive in a novel of alternative history, it is one of the keys to a successful alternative history novel. Yet Conroy seems uninterested in this. As other reviewers have noted, he infuses his characters with more modern sensibilities (such as attitudes towards blacks and immigrant Germans) which no event could have created back then. Doing so robs them of their distinctive voice, and strong historical personalities such as Theodore Roosevelt seem to be little more than two-dimensional mouthpieces used to offer expositions on the plot. He also falls victim to name-dropping, introducing famous figures like Winston Churchill no matter how implausible their participation in events might have been, apparently for no reason other than to give him an excuse to crowd his narrative with a 'who's-who' of historical characters. As a consequence, the novel fails to live up to the promise of the plot. Readers drawn to the genre by the works of authors like Harry Turtledove will find Conroy's novel a pale imitation of their best efforts. Though entertaining in some respects, it lacks the vivid evocation of an alternate past that makes such books compelling reading. I only hope that other, better writers of the field will be inspired to make similar bold leaps of the imagination when defining 'what might have been.'
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Nice concept, shame about the writing
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When I heard about this book I was fascinated, I'd never really known about any (potential) conflict between the USA and Germany of this period so I was very curious as to what could be made of it.
What a shame then that the author spoilt it. Terrible writing, terrible character construction and an awful juddering nature to the plot.
While grateful the author largely avoided the “evil British” lunacy that Harry Harrison seems to have been infected with, this time it’s the Germans who are, largely, painted as rapists and monsters. As to the depiction of the Kaiser - oh dear, oh dear!
I wonder whether the author got confused and painted Hitler’s demonic nature into the wrong era. Historical evidence from all reasonable sources show that the man was incredibly ambitious but not stark staring mad.
However, I accept this is an alternative history, so maybe in this world he was!
Altogether a very dissappointing book leaving too many open questions and light weight plot lines to be satisfying.
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An entertaining read
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First off, the bad- The Kaiser is portrayed as a complete nut through a large part of this book. Although Im no expert I have never come across any history book that has indicated the kaiser was as mentally unstable in the real war a decade later. There is also the implication that half the german army and population is looking to go AWOL and live in wonderful ol' USA.(again Im not sure this is totally acurate or plausible) Roosevelt also talks about the British Empire as a dying entity in 1901. This seems to be written in hindsight. I dont believe any leader of any nation thought this in real life. That said, these are minor 'problems' with the novel. Overall, the story flows well and is a refreshing change for an alternative history text. The writing style is very similar to turtledove's work. Any fans of turtledove will probably find this enjoyable. The author is understandably not an equal to turtledove, whose longer novels allow for more character development but the potential is there.
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