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hirvox's review against another edition
4.0
I initially got into this book because Charles Stross mentioned it's sequel, the Coldest War, as an inspiration to his Laundry series of books. While the Laundry series has a bit of Dilbertian British office culture mockery in it, the Milkweed Triptych is dead serious.
It's the eve of the Second World War, and the Nazis have a working super-soldier program. Incorporeal assassins, telepathic messengers, telekinetics, pyromancers, even precognition. But they barely got it working via trial and error, let alone understand what kinds of forces that they're messing with.
But the Brits cannot use ignorance as an excuse; Their warlocks know exactly what they're dealing with. But when the Nazi war machine marches from victory to victory, they get desperate and their deals get more and more expensive.
While the spy fiction, alternative history and Lovecraftian horror are all well and good, I really liked the personal touch. Desperation leads to hard decisions, and regret is inevitable. It does not matter whether it's because you didn't do more, or that you did more than you should. Either way, the decisions are final and the consequences vast. It's one thing to read about a desperate, raving madman. It's a whole another thing to sympathize with him.
It's the eve of the Second World War, and the Nazis have a working super-soldier program. Incorporeal assassins, telepathic messengers, telekinetics, pyromancers, even precognition. But they barely got it working via trial and error, let alone understand what kinds of forces that they're messing with.
But the Brits cannot use ignorance as an excuse; Their warlocks know exactly what they're dealing with. But when the Nazi war machine marches from victory to victory, they get desperate and their deals get more and more expensive.
While the spy fiction, alternative history and Lovecraftian horror are all well and good, I really liked the personal touch. Desperation leads to hard decisions, and regret is inevitable. It does not matter whether it's because you didn't do more, or that you did more than you should. Either way, the decisions are final and the consequences vast. It's one thing to read about a desperate, raving madman. It's a whole another thing to sympathize with him.
adamrbrooks's review against another edition
4.0
A fantastic book about the costs of war, the awful/amoral decisions that must be made, even if you're on the just side (which everyone always thinks they are) or even in defense. It was like nothing else I've ever read in the stark, horrifying realities and costs of those decisions, even if set in a somewhat magically tweaked version of our world.
I wonder if it would have been as powerful in a pure fantasy setting. Perhaps, but I think the comparison to World War II strengthens the argument, even if it's easy for a general read to know which side was right and which was wrong in that conflict. Even in a true good v. evil battle, the good guys probably have to do evil to win, or even to survive.
I might have given this book five stars, but I'm just feeling bitter about the sense that ever decent book is actually not a book. Oh, no. It's part one of a series. At least Tregillis got it done in ~400 pages, rather than 800 or 900. Maybe that's how we know this is more sci-fi than fantasy.
Still... I plan to pick up the next edition.
I wonder if it would have been as powerful in a pure fantasy setting. Perhaps, but I think the comparison to World War II strengthens the argument, even if it's easy for a general read to know which side was right and which was wrong in that conflict. Even in a true good v. evil battle, the good guys probably have to do evil to win, or even to survive.
I might have given this book five stars, but I'm just feeling bitter about the sense that ever decent book is actually not a book. Oh, no. It's part one of a series. At least Tregillis got it done in ~400 pages, rather than 800 or 900. Maybe that's how we know this is more sci-fi than fantasy.
Still... I plan to pick up the next edition.
kidgoldenarm's review against another edition
3.0
This one came out of nowhere. A sci-fi/fantasy book set in an alternate history WWII where the Warlocks of England battle the scientifically altered supermen of Nazis Germany.
The premise had me from the get go, the execution was uneven. Still enjoyable, and felt a bit truncated at the end. It felt like Tragelis was trying to wrap things up for the sake of length than actually finding a good spot in the story. Also some of the expositions were a bit annoying and also the glossing over events I wanted fleshed out was also a head scratcher for me.
The second book in the series is out and I am tempted to give it a try. If it's an improvement than this one, then I can say this one works as a good way to jump into this world. As a stand alone read, it's a bit lacking, but not bad. Plus the premise is geek heroine! It's Nazis Doom Patrol vs John Constantine from Hellblazer!
The premise had me from the get go, the execution was uneven. Still enjoyable, and felt a bit truncated at the end. It felt like Tragelis was trying to wrap things up for the sake of length than actually finding a good spot in the story. Also some of the expositions were a bit annoying and also the glossing over events I wanted fleshed out was also a head scratcher for me.
The second book in the series is out and I am tempted to give it a try. If it's an improvement than this one, then I can say this one works as a good way to jump into this world. As a stand alone read, it's a bit lacking, but not bad. Plus the premise is geek heroine! It's Nazis Doom Patrol vs John Constantine from Hellblazer!
rilester's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
git_r_read's review against another edition
4.0
Not much reading of this Nook-book at bedtime, mostly on the treadmill.
Highly disturbing alternate history of how WWII would have gone if the Nazis had been even more truly horrendous in their medical experiments.
There is magic gained by nefarious means by the Brits to fight the medical experimentation of the Nazis. Experimentation that has them developing superhumans to fight the war.
Graphic descriptions of the experiments and the horrific dues paid for the magic to fight the Nazis....not for the faint of heart....but if you like alternate history it's for you.
Highly disturbing alternate history of how WWII would have gone if the Nazis had been even more truly horrendous in their medical experiments.
There is magic gained by nefarious means by the Brits to fight the medical experimentation of the Nazis. Experimentation that has them developing superhumans to fight the war.
Graphic descriptions of the experiments and the horrific dues paid for the magic to fight the Nazis....not for the faint of heart....but if you like alternate history it's for you.
tabone's review against another edition
2.0
One star for the general idea. One star for the fact that Tregillis is a physicist by trade, not a writer - I always found that amazing and admirable. That said, I can't say it was a very good book. It's thin, has major plot gaps, and altogether lacking any real engagement. I might recommend it more strongly in a YA category, but not as a straight-up fiction / fantasy / sci-fi for adults.
tracey_stewart's review against another edition
3.0
I didn't intend to read/listen to yet another alternate WWII fantasy novel this spring… (I didn't know there were that many alternate WWII fantasy novels out there…) But there it was in my Audible library, and as I've been using earphones defensively against the onslaught of noise in the office (why do people have to yell at the top of their lungs? And have multiple radios going?) I've been going through a good many audiobooks this year.
It took quite a bit of getting used to, this alternate timeline. After other books I've read this year, between Connie Willis and Erik Larsen, I've become a bit familiar with the ebb and flow of WWII. So this was odd, with so little context for the warlockly doings. It made it difficult to tell how or if the course of the war was altered – the grafting on of what Richard (Richard Reviles Censorship Always in All Ways) has called Magicque. The fleet of private ships that evacuated Dunkirk failed in this reality – or not? It isn't clear – but the evacuation ship City of Benares was sunk, just as it was in the current reality. (Though the latter was almost made to sound like something resulting from the Eidolon and the OKW.) It was interesting to see the Red Orchestra show up. Even something like the "heil Hitler" salute – it came as a surprise when someone used it, which made me realize that was the first one of the book, as far as I noticed. Which, considering some half the book is set in Germany or amongst the Nazis, is odd. I don't think as much was really done with the branching of events as could have been; apparently the war ended in 1940, and there was little exploration of what that meant in the world at large. I came to very much dislike Jo Walton's Small Change series (which featured a non-magicque alternate timeline), but in some ways exposition of what that world was like was done rather better than in this book.
With half the characters being from London and its surrounds, I wish the narrator had been British. Or perhaps I just wish he had better at accents; main character Raybould Marsh starts out as a street urchin, and faces disdain among politicians because of his origins – but the accent the narrator gives him isn't far off the others' with had much posher backgrounds. Will's was nice, and Lorimer's, but the German accents reminded me alternately of Arnold Schwarzeneggar and Hogan's Heroes. Also, it was distracting and sometimes confusing that characters' internal monologues were in, basically, the narrator's own accent, not at all the characters'.
I keep trying to put my finger on the quality that makes one book perfect for me and another anathema; in a synesthetic sort of way I can almost associate a color with an author's writing. Bitter Seeds felt like a sort of ochre, a little heavy, a little resistant. But there were moments that I loved; one I made a note of was: " The flint in his gaze had been knapped into arrowheads, all aimed at Marsh." That's quite nice, I thought.
Then of course there was the moment it made me smile and think of Firefly: "'Dangerous? That's your question? If you're seeking a new hobby, Pip, you're better off juggling rabid badgers on a street corner. You might even make a few quid.'" Some people juggle geese…
Another flash of amusement came from "Klaus wondered if many great men shuffled around in their dressing gowns and obsessed over their bowel movements." It struck me, based in part on the weird variety of books I've been reading, that … yes, actually, a fair number of great men probably do and have done exactly that. (And not so great men, too.)
All of the senses are attended to in the storytelling. The falling of a syringe makes a distinct sound. Cigarette smoke; the flight of birds; the grip of a handshake; the flavor of chocolate – taste and touch and smell and sight and sound permeate the book, to the point that it stops being a good thing and simply becomes repetitive.
Part of the disconnect I felt with the book was in the fact that despite the attention to detail in description, more information would have been useful in other places, or more specific information. As mentioned above, the alternate WWII timeline could have been made more clear. (Warning: this gets a bit squicky…) One character sacrifices what is specifically described as a fingertip… but the shears "crunched together at the center of [his] finger", and thenceforth he suffers "phantom limb" pain, and there is mention of a "missing finger". In my world, the fingertip is the fleshy bit at the, er, tip of the finger, the bit that will make contact if you bring your finger straight down onto your desk. The end of it. Small area. Tip. Not even necessarily including any nail. My father lost the tip of one finger in an accident long ago, and you'd never have known it. So … Er?
For Will's story alone, this nearly went up to 4 stars, and he would be the only reason I would pursue the series. I became impatient with Marsh, and never could scrape up much interest in the almost dimensionlessly Evil Nazis, but Will was a fantastic character with a compelling arc (though his path might have been too determinedly downhill to form an actual arc). Unfortunately, I don't think he's enough reason to go and seek out Book 2.
It took quite a bit of getting used to, this alternate timeline. After other books I've read this year, between Connie Willis and Erik Larsen, I've become a bit familiar with the ebb and flow of WWII. So this was odd, with so little context for the warlockly doings. It made it difficult to tell how or if the course of the war was altered – the grafting on of what Richard (Richard Reviles Censorship Always in All Ways) has called Magicque. The fleet of private ships that evacuated Dunkirk failed in this reality – or not? It isn't clear – but the evacuation ship City of Benares was sunk, just as it was in the current reality. (Though the latter was almost made to sound like something resulting from the Eidolon and the OKW.) It was interesting to see the Red Orchestra show up. Even something like the "heil Hitler" salute – it came as a surprise when someone used it, which made me realize that was the first one of the book, as far as I noticed. Which, considering some half the book is set in Germany or amongst the Nazis, is odd. I don't think as much was really done with the branching of events as could have been; apparently the war ended in 1940, and there was little exploration of what that meant in the world at large. I came to very much dislike Jo Walton's Small Change series (which featured a non-magicque alternate timeline), but in some ways exposition of what that world was like was done rather better than in this book.
With half the characters being from London and its surrounds, I wish the narrator had been British. Or perhaps I just wish he had better at accents; main character Raybould Marsh starts out as a street urchin, and faces disdain among politicians because of his origins – but the accent the narrator gives him isn't far off the others' with had much posher backgrounds. Will's was nice, and Lorimer's, but the German accents reminded me alternately of Arnold Schwarzeneggar and Hogan's Heroes. Also, it was distracting and sometimes confusing that characters' internal monologues were in, basically, the narrator's own accent, not at all the characters'.
I keep trying to put my finger on the quality that makes one book perfect for me and another anathema; in a synesthetic sort of way I can almost associate a color with an author's writing. Bitter Seeds felt like a sort of ochre, a little heavy, a little resistant. But there were moments that I loved; one I made a note of was: " The flint in his gaze had been knapped into arrowheads, all aimed at Marsh." That's quite nice, I thought.
Then of course there was the moment it made me smile and think of Firefly: "'Dangerous? That's your question? If you're seeking a new hobby, Pip, you're better off juggling rabid badgers on a street corner. You might even make a few quid.'" Some people juggle geese…
Another flash of amusement came from "Klaus wondered if many great men shuffled around in their dressing gowns and obsessed over their bowel movements." It struck me, based in part on the weird variety of books I've been reading, that … yes, actually, a fair number of great men probably do and have done exactly that. (And not so great men, too.)
All of the senses are attended to in the storytelling. The falling of a syringe makes a distinct sound. Cigarette smoke; the flight of birds; the grip of a handshake; the flavor of chocolate – taste and touch and smell and sight and sound permeate the book, to the point that it stops being a good thing and simply becomes repetitive.
Part of the disconnect I felt with the book was in the fact that despite the attention to detail in description, more information would have been useful in other places, or more specific information. As mentioned above, the alternate WWII timeline could have been made more clear. (Warning: this gets a bit squicky…) One character sacrifices what is specifically described as a fingertip… but the shears "crunched together at the center of [his] finger", and thenceforth he suffers "phantom limb" pain, and there is mention of a "missing finger". In my world, the fingertip is the fleshy bit at the, er, tip of the finger, the bit that will make contact if you bring your finger straight down onto your desk. The end of it. Small area. Tip. Not even necessarily including any nail. My father lost the tip of one finger in an accident long ago, and you'd never have known it. So … Er?
For Will's story alone, this nearly went up to 4 stars, and he would be the only reason I would pursue the series. I became impatient with Marsh, and never could scrape up much interest in the almost dimensionlessly Evil Nazis, but Will was a fantastic character with a compelling arc (though his path might have been too determinedly downhill to form an actual arc). Unfortunately, I don't think he's enough reason to go and seek out Book 2.
skybalon's review against another edition
4.0
I'm going to copy the same review into each of the editions. Ultimately while the books each are separate--the whole series needs to be read for any sort of real understanding and closure.
First of all, and I cannot express this more strongly, this is one of the most depressing book series that I could even imagine enjoying. Take the already depressing WWII and make it even more depressing. To be more specific would introduce spoilers, but consistently throughout the story characters have to make choices with no good options. People will kill and die and each one has more of an emotional impact than you'll expect.
Well worth the read, but maybe not if you are already feeling blue.
First of all, and I cannot express this more strongly, this is one of the most depressing book series that I could even imagine enjoying. Take the already depressing WWII and make it even more depressing. To be more specific would introduce spoilers, but consistently throughout the story characters have to make choices with no good options. People will kill and die and each one has more of an emotional impact than you'll expect.
Well worth the read, but maybe not if you are already feeling blue.
bfordham's review against another edition
5.0
Great read, really interesting characters. Highly recommend for folks who enjoy alternative histories.
Love that the Germans use technology while the British are utilizing ancient power.
Love that the Germans use technology while the British are utilizing ancient power.
drakaina16's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
I would normally not have picked up a horror novel about WWII, but it was part of a reading challenge. I was very pleasantly surprised by this book. The mashup of war novel, sci-fi, and cosmic horror really worked for me. So much so that I plan on finishing the trilogy. 3.75 stars, rounded up.