American Empire: The Center Cannot Hold

I won't rehash the novel, but I'll tell you that if you have ANY interest in alternate history, read Harry Turtledove's books. Dr. Turtledove has never disappointed me, and if you have reading tastes anything like mine, I am certain that he won't disappoint you, either.This novel is no different. Turtledove tells a fine story. Read the first books in the series, and then read "The Center Cannot Hold". You'll be glad you did.

Another wonderful saga of alternate history that started with How Few Remain. Again Turtlecove continues the story of the divided continent and the buildup of tension in the Confederate States of America, Occupied Canada, and the United States of America. All our favorite characters are back - some are older and wiser, some just older. The plot really ticks along compared to some of the earlier books, but is interesting nonetheless. Any alternate history fan should be reading this - I feel like this could really have happened . Go Canada!A suggestion Harry: for the next book, don't just put in a map of North America, but a world map with all the different countries and empires and also the alliances. From the tone of this book, I feel the alliances will come into play in the next one. Also, I think I know who that Jew-hating German sergeant with the General was ;).

Harry Turtledove has again proven to us all that he is the Mastor of alternate history. This book compliments a series that i have been engaged with ever since reading How Few Remain. The only other series of books i have enjoyed more is probably the Lord of the Rings. But anyway, back to Harry, he has again managed to weave important facts and details that explain the world in which he writes about, into the lives of the individual characters, all without detracting from the narrative flow. Sure, some might say that he repeats some things too often, but that is an extremely minor flaw in his writing. The only major problem i see is that he has a few too many characters, but in this book he does weed out some, however i think he weeds out the wrong ones. It is probably just my personal preference that makes me think that, but i hope the ones he left in will play an important role in his next book, which i cant wait to read!

Harry Turtledove's American Empire series, of which The Center Cannot Hold is the second volume, is faster paced and better focused than his Great War series. This volume covers most of the 1920s and the early 1930s. The USA is a proud, confident nation, now ruling most of Canada (Quebec is a semi-independent satellite republic) and parts of the Confederacy. President Upton Sinclair has successfully introduced democratic socialism, and the stock market is booming. Then, shortly after the inauguration of Hosea Blackford, (husband of Flora Hamburger, one of the more appealing characters) world wide economic crisis brings on the Great Depression. The US, with its economy sinking and struggling to defend itself after a Japanese surprise attack, returns to laissez-faire capitalism and begins to rearm.In the CSA bad keeps going to worse. The South limps through the 1920s until the Great Depression deals it a body blow. In such times the traditional political parties have no answers, and more and more Confederates turn to the charismatic Jake Featherston, who promises to rebuild the CSA, avenge its defeats, and punish the blacks who stabbed it in the back. The book ends with a chilling inaugural parade as Featherston is sworn in in Richmond.I'm glad to see that Turtledove has let us know more about what's going on in the rest of his world. Britain and France have strong Fascist/Featherston style movements. Imperial Germany and the USA dominate the world, but are beginning to eye each other uneasily. Japan has swallowed the former French and Dutch empires and is salivating over British and American possessions.There appear to be at least two more volumes to come in this series. Many intriguing possibilities are hinted at. Will the USA recover fromt he Depression and meet an emerging Confederate military threat? Will Flora Hamburger Blackford restart her political career and rise to the top? What will Featherston do to the blacks he so hates? Will there be a realignment of alliances? The stage is set for some fascinating twists and turns.

It is a great book, can't wait to finish it. I already am waiting for the next book in this series. This is the second book in the American empire series there first Blood and Iron, it is a continuation to the World War series, but the series really starts with the book How Few Remain. I love this series, you see a different world develop, I suggest you start reading it from the first book (How Few Remain) and go from there, though you could start reading from any book and Mr. Turtledove did a great job filling in the important details need to understand the important background.