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From: William Hyde <wthyde1953@gmail.com>
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Subject: Re: RI October 2024
Date: Thu, 21 Nov 2024 14:54:29 -0500
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Robert Woodward wrote:
> In article <vhlsha$akbr$1@dont-email.me>,
>   Lynn McGuire <lynnmcguire5@gmail.com> wrote:
> 
>> On 11/19/2024 1:21 PM, William Hyde wrote:
>>> Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:
>>>> In article <vhgg0u$1f9mv$1@dont-email.me>,
>>>> William Hyde  <wthyde1953@gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>> Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:
>>>>>> Here we are again, possibly less late than usual with books from
>>>>>> October.
>>>>>> As is traditional (and possibly required): The links below are Amazon
>>>>>> affiliate ones which could potentially earn me something should you
>>>>>> choose to buy through one.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> ====
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Acts of War: A World War II Alternative History
>>>>>> (The Usurper's War Book 1)
>>>>>> by James Young
>>>>>> https://amzn.to/3UAZsmc
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Collisions of the Damned: The Defense of the Dutch East Indies
>>>>>> (The Usurper's War Book 2)
>>>>>> by James Young
>>>>>> https://amzn.to/3AryUx3
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Here's the first two books of what I believe is to be an alt-hist
>>>>>> WWII trilogy.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> The jumping off point for this universe is that the British take
>>>>>> out Hitler in a bombing raid on Berlin.  They had no idea where he
>>>>>> was -- it was just one of those lucky accidents of war.  Or, in
>>>>>> this case unlucky accidents of war.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Unlucky because taking out Hitler proved a very good thing for the
>>>>>> Germans.  Himmler came in after sidelining Goering (possibly fatally,
>>>>>> I don't quite recall),
>>>>>
>>>>> Plausible enough, but I suspect that "Der Treue Heinrich" would have
>>>>> been dead in the same ditch as Goering and the generals would have taken
>>>>> over, in effect at least.  Perhaps with a nonentity like Hess as titular
>>>>> leader.
>>>>>
>>>>> Of the leaders only Goebbels had any talent for backstabbing, but I
>>>>> don't think the army would put up with him.
>>>>>
>>>>> Besides, if the author wants a German leader who is keen on peace
>>>>> Goering is the ideal choice.  Having looted to his heart's content, he
>>>>> was happy to enjoy his wealth and status (and morphine) without the
>>>>> risks of war.
>>>>>
>>>>>   and said to the Brits basically: Look Hitler
>>>>>> was really a loose cannon and things got out of hand.  What's done
>>>>>> is done, and we're not giving back anything our boys died for, but
>>>>>> is there really any reason we still need to be at war?
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Churchill said 'yes', but was eventually turfed out in favor of
>>>>>> Eden
>>>>>
>>>>> Let me guess, the author looked up a list of UK cabinet members and
>>>>> threw a dart?  Eden was well down the list of possible PMs at this
>>>>> point, with only the war having restored him to the leading circle from
>>>>> the pariah status he was consigned to in the late 1930s.
>>>>>
>>>>> And if peace broke out certainly an appeaser like Halifax would have
>>>>> been handed the job.  Might as well say they gave the PM position to
>>>>> Brendan Bracken.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>   who turned out to be what some people have always suspected
>>>>>> and made peace.
>>>>>
>>>>> And some people think that Washington was George III's illegitimate son.
>>>>>
>>>>> Or at least I could convince some of that.
>>>>>
>>>>> Sounds like an author to avoid.
>>>>>
>>>>> William Hyde
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> No, this is entirely my fault.  Rather than going back to the book
>>>> while I was writing the review, I was going on my memory which was
>>>> entirely wrong on at least two issues: battle cruiser vs battleship
>>>> and Halifax vs Eden.  I don't know why I had Eden on the brain when
>>>> I was definitely familiar with Halifax, but it was Halifax who was
>>>> the accommodationist PM in this setting, not Eden.
>>>
>>> Makes sense then.
>>>
>>> An author not to be avoided.
>>>
>>> I'm still going to run with the George III thing as soon as I can find a
>>> likely victim.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> William Hyde
>>
>> Seeing as George III was born in 1738 and George Washington was born in
>> 1732, that did not happen.
>>      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_III
>> and
>>      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Washington
>>
>> Now if you want to talk about George II, ...
>>
> 
> I must point out that he was the grandfather of George III. It doesn't
> appear that Frederick Louis (he died at age 44), son of George II and
> father of George III, ever left Europe.

A scholarly work by noted historian Avram Davidson claims otherwise.

Davidson himself, of course, won the Hugo Award, named after noted 
historian Hugo Gernsback, handed out by the American Historical society.

William Hyde