Michael Jacobi

Another great volume in the Carrara story

Revisado: 04-12-22

We see the tensions gradually build as the various players are developed. One of the things I like about this series is the authors development of the various people involved in the story. Their interplay against the backdrop of looming warfare is what makes this series so outstanding. Well worth the time and credit these books cost. Highly recommend

However, I can't understand why the last book, the one following "A Pillar of Fire In The Night" is not available. Its the cximax of the series end and ties up all of the hanging threads. As a vision challenged reader, I depend on Audible for my pleasure reading. Please, let's finish the series with "Days of Burning Days of Wrath".

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Not what I hoped for

Revisado: 09-01-20

This title is mostly concerned with emphasizing that the Luftwaffe pilots were not part of the holocaust and were simply fighting for their country as any patriotic citizen should. However they took up almost an hour explaining how honorable they were. And when they finally got to the actual interview part, most of it was about the politics of the Luftwaffe and how various pilots managed to gain various awards. I expected this book to be much like Martin Caiden's book on Saburo Saki the great Japanese ace. It is not. Almost no actual combat recounting. Just page after page of this one getting the Iron Cross from Hitler and that one arguing with Goering. I wanted to get the German take on their battles against the various American and Allied fighters and bombers, not a review of the political climate within the Luftwaffe. Since I kept on to the end in hoping it would get better, I wont return it. But be warned,. Hold on to your credit.

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Couldn't stop listening

Revisado: 09-25-19

Wow, I don't understand how one author could pen such totally different quality books. Odd Billy Todd ranks with some of the best end of the world selections I''ve encountered, right there with Alas Babylon and a few others. Narration was great, the characters three dimensional and the story moved right along. In contrast the same author gave us Fire In The Sky which I couldn't listen to for more than an hour before I gave up. It sounds like a product of a teen aged tenth grade writing assignment. In the author's defense, I have to say the narration of Fire In The Sky was terrible. I loved Lee Allen as a local DJ in the 60s. He had a great don't miss radio rock n roll program. As a book narrator however he is terrible. His narration is overly dramatic, constantly over emphasizing sentences that don't need it. My recommendation is to skip the Fire In The Sky books but rush and buy Odd Billy Todd just as soon as you can. Billy Todd is the kind of story that you can't put down but when the last chapter is finished you wish you had more.

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Not Harry's Best

Revisado: 01-16-19

Having read several of Turtledoves other works, I looked forward to this one. I should have saved my credit. The characters were, frankly, not very likeable. I got into the story about three hours and couldn't figure who was the protagonist. The history is fascinating. Roman Legions march away into the German forest and never seen again. But this novel makes it all kind of boring and I just could not get interested enough to finish it. Turtledove's other books are terrific, so I suppose everyone is entitled to an off day.

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If I Had More Stars I'd Award Em to Col. Kratman

Revisado: 12-12-18

We're getting close to the final hoorah here as Carrara and company respond to the Tauran and Ghong forces. After their bloody repulse from Balboa in the last volume, the author ties up various loose ends and cliff hangers in this one. We still have at least one more to go, and I can't wait to read it. I've been where the bullets fly, but only as an N.C.O., so I have little criticism about the ideas of logistics and tactics. However, this is a rousing good military science fiction story and that's plenty.
Of course, the entire series presents political ideas that many may not be comfortable with. The character development is really good and the story makes good sense. However its vital that you start with book one and go through them in order.

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Excellent is too pale a compliment

Revisado: 07-26-18

I have seldom read a better series of books than those that make up this saga. The situation is fascinating. A modern man from earth, a chemist by trade is suddenly sent to a distant world set in the 18th century. How he brings modern inventions to this new culture and how he teaches historic military tactics from earth sets up a wonderfully well thought out situation. Added to the really thought provoking story are the well crafted three dimensional characters. I felt they were almost real people. The hero is a likable guy and the supporting characters are believable. The conversations are also believable, Now for the narration, Its among the best I have heard. I can't heap enough praise on this series of books. Many of the series I read give me a sense of satisfaction at the end. This one made me sad there were no more stories, no new visits to a wonderful world with great characters narrated by a top rank author. If I could, Id award ten or a dozen stars in every category. I urge you to start with this one then follow the other volumes to their conclusion.

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Not the W.E.B. Griffin We Love

Revisado: 07-02-18

If I hadn't had such a high expectation of this series I would perhaps have stuck it out. But having just rerun the "Corps" series and the "Brotherhood of War" series I just had to go on with this series. Boy was I mistaken! I got through the first one, and tried the second hoping it'd get better. It got worse! The main character was just unlikable. He was mostly annoying and was certainly not someone who would be in a position of trust in an intelligence operation. Every time he got some highly secret information it seems like he couldn't wait to share it with......anyone! And even after having an operation compromised by his dalliance with someone's wife, he just couldn't resist climbing into the sack with another one. And his runaway mouth was constantly cited, seemingly every other page. The plot was difficult to follow, the characters were shallow, the voices were odd and the personae kept changing from good guy to prick without any sense of why. Save your money and skip this series.

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Great Concept Poorly Realized

Revisado: 10-25-17

Save your money or credit. This one is not worth either. The story is a chopped up mess and the characters are really two dimensional and not very likeable. The cast harks back to the painfully hokey (by today's standards) of the old SciFi movies in which we have a learned scientist, a "happy go lucky idiot" and a foil. It really didn't work well then and doesn't work here at all. Add to this that the author is apparently ignorant about aircraft. The flying boat sent to rescue the five lost flyers is given as a "PBY"(produced by Consolidated) when in fact the aircraft was a Marlin, (produced by Martin). And, according to the author the plane had big loading doors in the rear, (perhaps confusing it with a C-130). Couldn't stand to finish it.

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An Old Friend Now Audible

Revisado: 10-02-17

This is great for two reasons. First, Kenneth Roberts wonderful novels about the years leading up to and through the American Revolution are still alive and available. Second, because this old time radio adaptation of his work "Rabble in Arms" combines the color and grit of the original Kenneth Roberts work with the genius presentation by Orson Wells. Certainly it is an adaptation and loses much of the detail that makes the original novel so wonderful but for what it is, a gateway to listeners to become interested in the original body of work from which it comes, it is terrific. Invest a credit. The presentation is fun because it evokes those days before TV when you listened spellbound to radio drama. Then go find the complete novel and read it. You will not regret it!

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Cultures Clash In Interstellar War

Revisado: 10-02-17

This book is an old friend that I first read many years ago. This iteration does not disappoint. It offers good character development, lots of action and some pretty profound cultural observati0ons./ At once a great action sci-Fi romp in the old school tradition, with invaders versus heroic earthmen. But on a deeper level, it presents some questions about what qualities our culture offers that bind it together and hold it firm under stress. We also get a look at the invaders and the way they see our planet and the things that bind them together and which can split them apart. This is a good investment of one of your credits and it comes highly recommended.

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