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In At The Death
Well, I finished it.
Wow. Honestly, there was no ending that could have completely satisfied me, since history doesn't simply end. But Turtledove did a good enough job tying up most of the plot lines.
Jake Featherston's death was perfect. And having Cassius be the one to get him? Excellent revenge for the death of my favorite character in the book. Scipio, you are avenged!
I was surprised to see the CSA get the bomb first. But the US had more of them. That made the difference. Dropping an atomic bomb to get Featherston was a questionable point, in my opinion. My first bomb is going to hit a vital military target.
He blindsided me with the Republic of Texas bit. Makes sense, but I didn't see it coming.
The trial of Brigade Leader Jefferson Pinkard managed to make a genocidal goon a sympathetic figure. He really was one of the more interesting figures of the Freedom Party. Not overly smart, but good at getting things done. Despite having been friendly with black workers at a steel foundry before his service in the Great War, he had no trouble killing millions of them. His final thoughts on the gallows - "they have no right!" - was telling.
While I enjoyed the book, it lacked something. I wanted a glimpse twenty or thirty years ahead, to see the world after the fall of the CSA. Lacking that, some sort of epilogue that gave us a hint of what the final resolution of things was going to be. We end with the former CSA states still simmering with rebellion. Additionally, we get no resolution of the Mormon plot line or the Canadian revolt. Hell, a map of North America c. 1970 would have answered many questions.
One last complaint: I would have liked the final scene to be George Enos, Jr. on a fishing boat. That's where the series started (if your don't count How Few Remain - but it would be hard to go back to that book for a character) and it would be a nice ending to have the Enos family open and close the story of the divided 20th Century.
Since Turtledove didn't do it, I will. A few ideas on where our favorite characters end up.
Cassius Madison goes to college, gets into politics, and becomes a long-serving Senator from Georgia.
Armstrong Grimes does remain in the Army, and retires as a fat Sergeant Major.
Jonathon Moss becomes a Federal Judge. He is well-known for his strong position on civil rights and individual liberty.
Irving Morrell retires from the Army after overseeing the reintegration of the former CSA territories. He runs for, and wins the Presidency in 1952. Under his administration, the government moves back to Washington, D.C.
Clarence Potter writes the definitive history of the Freedom Party, The Rise and Fall of the Confederacy and becomes a professor of history at Clemson. In 1968, he is shot and killed by a black student.
Michael Pound opens a garage. He becomes one of the first people in the nation to "chop" motorcycles and cars.
Flora Blackford remains in Congress, becoming Speaker in 1948. She retires shortly thereafter, learning that her exposure to the Philadelphia bomb has resulted in cancer.
Cincinnatus Driver lives long enough to see his eldest grandchild graduate from college.
Wow. Honestly, there was no ending that could have completely satisfied me, since history doesn't simply end. But Turtledove did a good enough job tying up most of the plot lines.
Jake Featherston's death was perfect. And having Cassius be the one to get him? Excellent revenge for the death of my favorite character in the book. Scipio, you are avenged!
I was surprised to see the CSA get the bomb first. But the US had more of them. That made the difference. Dropping an atomic bomb to get Featherston was a questionable point, in my opinion. My first bomb is going to hit a vital military target.
He blindsided me with the Republic of Texas bit. Makes sense, but I didn't see it coming.
The trial of Brigade Leader Jefferson Pinkard managed to make a genocidal goon a sympathetic figure. He really was one of the more interesting figures of the Freedom Party. Not overly smart, but good at getting things done. Despite having been friendly with black workers at a steel foundry before his service in the Great War, he had no trouble killing millions of them. His final thoughts on the gallows - "they have no right!" - was telling.
While I enjoyed the book, it lacked something. I wanted a glimpse twenty or thirty years ahead, to see the world after the fall of the CSA. Lacking that, some sort of epilogue that gave us a hint of what the final resolution of things was going to be. We end with the former CSA states still simmering with rebellion. Additionally, we get no resolution of the Mormon plot line or the Canadian revolt. Hell, a map of North America c. 1970 would have answered many questions.
One last complaint: I would have liked the final scene to be George Enos, Jr. on a fishing boat. That's where the series started (if your don't count How Few Remain - but it would be hard to go back to that book for a character) and it would be a nice ending to have the Enos family open and close the story of the divided 20th Century.
Since Turtledove didn't do it, I will. A few ideas on where our favorite characters end up.
Cassius Madison goes to college, gets into politics, and becomes a long-serving Senator from Georgia.
Armstrong Grimes does remain in the Army, and retires as a fat Sergeant Major.
Jonathon Moss becomes a Federal Judge. He is well-known for his strong position on civil rights and individual liberty.
Irving Morrell retires from the Army after overseeing the reintegration of the former CSA territories. He runs for, and wins the Presidency in 1952. Under his administration, the government moves back to Washington, D.C.
Clarence Potter writes the definitive history of the Freedom Party, The Rise and Fall of the Confederacy and becomes a professor of history at Clemson. In 1968, he is shot and killed by a black student.
Michael Pound opens a garage. He becomes one of the first people in the nation to "chop" motorcycles and cars.
Flora Blackford remains in Congress, becoming Speaker in 1948. She retires shortly thereafter, learning that her exposure to the Philadelphia bomb has resulted in cancer.
Cincinnatus Driver lives long enough to see his eldest grandchild graduate from college.
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