Once again, Harry Turtledove has turned history on its ear. Alien invasion in the midst of World War II? Harry’s been there and done that. Automatic weapons for the Confederacy? Read The Guns of the South and you will see that. A Southern victory in the Civil War through a slight change of history? How Few Remain showed us just how that could have occurred, and Turtledove takes that idea a step further with Great War: American Front.

The time is 1914, and the world is a far different one from the one we know. The United States have been beaten not once but twice at war with the Confederate States of America, thanks to assistance to the latter by Britain and France. The United States, in search of a European ally of their own, have aligned with Imperial Germany in the series of entangling ententes that existed at the outbreak of the First World War.

In Europe, history is little altered at the outset. Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife are still assassinated. Matters between Austria and Serbia, the country where assassin Gavrilo Princip was trained by the terrorist Black Hand Society. Serbia refuses Austria’s ultimatum, Austria declares war, Germany backs her ally Austria; Russia stands behind the Serbs, France and Britain back Russia. There will be a difference, however. Unlike the reality we know, there will be no Yanks coming “over there”. They’ll be too busy fighting over here, at home.

Just as the fighting bogged down in the trenches in Europe that became graves for so many Frenchmen, Germans, and Englishmen, so it will too in America between North and South. Machine guns, armored cars, aeroplanes, and gas warfare are all introduced with horrifying results, though here on completely new fronts.

In the Confederacy, Turtledove also introduces the beginnings of Communist revolution fomented by the black population. Emancipated in name only decades ago by the Confederates to appease their British and French allies, southern blacks are still third-class citizens trapped in plantation labor with few rights and fewer opportunities. As more and more Southern whites are called to the front, Southern blacks begin to realize that this is their chance to turn the tables on their white masters.

As he usually does, Turtledove gives us a feel for the time that is downright uncanny. The reader gets a sense that he is right in the middle of every scene, be it an offensive on the Canadian Front to a Socialist riot in New York to a gas attack in the trenches. His writing is amazingly detailed, right down to local dialects and technology of the day. I was surprised to read some local slang I’ve heard only since moving to the south.

In one respect, American Front differs from other Turtledove novels in its use of historical characters. There are really only three here that I recognized: US President Theodore Roosevelt, Confederate President Woodrow Wilson, and US Army General George Armstrong Custer. Only Custer is really an active character to any degree.

Instead of historical figures, Turtledove has created an array of fictional characters that show us through their own eyes the horrors of war, the plight of southern blacks, and the struggles of workers in what otherwise would have been the post-progressive era. The reader develops a true affinity for the characters, but watch out. Turtledove is never afraid to kill them off, frequently in a manner that will have you staring at the page and reading the words before you over and over again.

One caveat: if your teen or pre-teen is interested in science fiction novels, be forewarned that Turtledove has a habit of including explicit sex scenes between his characters. I’m not sure why he always does this. In some instances, they add to the atmosphere and interactions of the characters, but in others they seem like padding.

And padding there is at times. Some of the scenes are definitely elongated, others seem unnecessary to the story. One gets the idea that Turtledove is eking out the storyline to last through four books (he has already published the first book in a sequel series as well).

Overall, though, I recommend this book and the series it is a part of. For optimum enjoyment, read How Few Remain before American Front. Have fun reading!

Recommended: Yes