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Title: Fox on the Rhine by Douglas Niles, Michael Dobson ISBN: 0-8125-7466-4 Publisher: Forge Pub. Date: 17 June, 2002 Format: Mass Market Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
Average Customer Rating: 4 (44 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: "Fox on the Rhine" entertains well.
Comment: The authors of this Alternate History have done a pretty fair job of tilling some virgin ground--World War II has not been explored or exploited as the basis of very many books in the AH genre thus far.
Overall the plot seems pretty plausible;the assassination of Adolf Hitler by Claus von Stauffenberg and his co-conspirators ends in chaos,leading to Heinrich Himmler becoming the new Fuehrer. At the time (1944) all seems to be lost for Germany;the Allies are bombing the Reich to rubble and both fronts are on the verge of collapse. Heinrich Himmler scores a diplomatic coup by concluding a peace treaty with the Soviet Union,and an injured Field Marshall Rommel is recalled to duty as the commander in the West. Rommel subsequently conducts a brilliant fighting retreat to the "Westwall" or Siegfried line while Adolf Galland,the brilliant General of Fighters, conducts his long planned "grosse schlag" or big blow against the American 8th Air Force with the revolutionary Me 262 jet fighters. The book title "Fox on the Rhine" is the code name for the alternate history version of the Battle of the Bulge led in this instance by Rommel.
Many fictional characters are introduced in the course of action, some of whom are not very believable. Oberst (Colonel) Krueger seems to be a pretty vile individual to be selected by General Galland as a wing commander. Krueger's behavior towards his crew chief borders on idiotic , since the mechanics are what kept the pilots alive in the air through thorough and careful maintenence of the aircraft. On the other hand Feldwebel (sergeant) Karl-Heinz Claussen was a thoroughly likeable sort of fellow.
My overall impression of the book was very favorable,although I was somewhat let down by the ending. It seemed to me that the failure of the great Ardennes offensive was based on an somewhat improbable scenario in Dinant, and based on all the previous actions taken by Rommel this ending would not have occurred.
On the negative side , the book needed a lot more thorough job of proofreading. Several small nitpicking errors were carried through the entire book; i.e. there is no "d" in Messerschmitt! Captains in the S.S. are not "Hauptmann" but "Obersturmfuehrer";and tanks are not steered by steering wheels,although half tracks are.
A better knowledge of German and German forms of address to superiors (not "Feldmarshall" , but "Herr General Feldmarshall") would have helped smooth out a few of the rough spots and upgraded this book to "5 stars".In the realization that this was the first AH book attempted by these authors, I look forward to even better efforts in the future.
Rating: 4
Summary: Very Well written Alternate History
Comment: The story is set up with what is likely the most used premise in alternate history, the premature death of Adolph Hitler. However, this book had Hitler staying alive until 1944 when the failed attempt on his life succeeded. With Hitler dead, the war unfolds. Hitler's inept meddling of the military is ended. For example, Hitler wanted to use the jet powered ME-262 plane as a bomber, when he desperately needed fighter planes to counteract the massive Allied air superiority. Rommell, instead of being forced to commit suicide is given the task to defeat the western allies. I would prefer not to give away the ending of this book, but I will say that this is a real page turner, I couldn't wait to find out how the war would play out. (There are a number of twists and turns to history as the story unfolds). The only reason that this book did not get 5 stars is that at the very end of the book, it was "tie up the loose ends" time. Usually I feel that most books could be written more tightly, however at the end the authors raced to finish it up. It was almost like "Hey we only have 5 pages to wrap this up". This book begs for a sequel. I only hope that it does well enough for the authors to attempt it. I for one will be eagerly waiting!
Rating: 4
Summary: An Engaging and Interesting Read
Comment: As a coauthor of counterfactual history, I am equally interested in both the idea and the writing. Niles and Dobson come through on both counts.
At its premise, this book takes that the effort to kill Hitler in July 1944 succeeds but leads Himmler to take power and gamble on making peace with the Soviet Union. His temptation for Stalin is knowledge of the vengeance weapons and the technology to make the Soviet Union potentially dominant against the Western Allies.
That truce (and both sides know it is a truce not a peace) allows Germany to focus on defeating the Anglo-American armies.
They then posit that Himmler would have relied on competent military leaders like Rommel, Guderian and Galland and amassed German military power more intelligently than Hitler allowed.
The book evolves in a very engaging and satisfying way and I recommend it highly for anyone interested in how a military campaign could unfold and how strategic change could lead to different developments.
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Title: Fox at the Front by Douglas Niles, Michael Dobson ISBN: 0765304791 Publisher: Forge Pub. Date: 01 November, 2003 List Price(USD): $27.95 |
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Title: 1901 by ROBERT CONROY ISBN: 0891418431 Publisher: Presidio Press Pub. Date: 30 December, 2003 List Price(USD): $7.50 |
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Title: 1634 : The Galileo Affair by Andrew Dennis, Eric Flint ISBN: 0743488156 Publisher: Baen Books Pub. Date: 01 April, 2004 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
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Title: American Empire: The Victorious Opposition by HARRY TURTLEDOVE ISBN: 034544423X Publisher: Del Rey Pub. Date: 29 July, 2003 List Price(USD): $27.95 |
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Title: In the Presence of Mine Enemies by Harry Turtledove ISBN: 0451529022 Publisher: New American Library Pub. Date: 04 November, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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