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siria's review against another edition
3.0
I'm not sure if early 2017 is the best or worst time to read a work of counter-factual historical fiction like this: set in a 1950s England where the forces of appeasement won out, Winston Churchill is the fugitive head of the British Resistance, and an ageing Hitler is about to celebrate two decades in power.
Overall, this is a bit of a mixed bag. Sansom does a good job of sketching out a grey and gloomy London, suffocating under a coal-fuelled smog and fascism in equal measure; what atmosphere his pen can't supply, the reader's imagination can easily substitute in nowadays. What does the destruction of civilisation and democracy need but spineless self-interest and ignorance and apathy?
However, Dominion's characterisation is thin, the tension never quite ratchets up as much as the reader might want thanks to a weak central plot McGuffin and a failure to fillet out flabby back stories, and Sansom's insistence on the dangers of particularly Scottish nationalism is a bit ironic in light of the Brexit referendum (you were looking at the wrong side of the border for evidence of the really toxic stuff, buddy). Still, this is a step above the usual airport thriller, and provides an added dose of moral discomfort for the reader for good measure. If the worst happened, what kind of coward would you be?
Overall, this is a bit of a mixed bag. Sansom does a good job of sketching out a grey and gloomy London, suffocating under a coal-fuelled smog and fascism in equal measure; what atmosphere his pen can't supply, the reader's imagination can easily substitute in nowadays. What does the destruction of civilisation and democracy need but spineless self-interest and ignorance and apathy?
However, Dominion's characterisation is thin, the tension never quite ratchets up as much as the reader might want thanks to a weak central plot McGuffin and a failure to fillet out flabby back stories, and Sansom's insistence on the dangers of particularly Scottish nationalism is a bit ironic in light of the Brexit referendum (you were looking at the wrong side of the border for evidence of the really toxic stuff, buddy). Still, this is a step above the usual airport thriller, and provides an added dose of moral discomfort for the reader for good measure. If the worst happened, what kind of coward would you be?
kurwaczytaj's review against another edition
5.0
Z pochopitelných důvodů je to dosti pochmurná a depresivní kniha ale je napsaná výtečně a vzhledem k tomu, že se si Evropa opět zahrává s appeasementem, tak i velice aktuální.
Výtečný je i závěrečný doslov, který shrnuje situaci v Evropě a Británii v době nástupu německých nacistů k moci.
Výtečný je i závěrečný doslov, který shrnuje situaci v Evropě a Británii v době nástupu německých nacistů k moci.
piratequeen's review
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
nruth's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.25
halfcentreader's review against another edition
3.0
3.5
disturbing and depressing alternative history if Britain hadn't stood its ground in 1939 and instead had capitulated to Nazi Germany's demands. Lots of great parallels to what is going on today with nationalism all over the world... great but again, depressing.
disturbing and depressing alternative history if Britain hadn't stood its ground in 1939 and instead had capitulated to Nazi Germany's demands. Lots of great parallels to what is going on today with nationalism all over the world... great but again, depressing.
lian_tanner's review against another edition
4.0
Alternative history is one of my favourite genres, and the possibilities of what might have eventuated if the Nazis had won are one of my favourite versions of alt history, e.g. Jo Walton's 'Farthing', Robert Harris's 'Fatherland'. 'Dominion' is another excellent foray into this territory. In a lot of ways it is as much about relationships as it is about politics, but its view of a corrupt world is frighteningly effective.
bjt1977's review against another edition
2.0
I wanted to like it because I like the idea of the book, but I couldn't bring myself to pick it up again. I got about half way through, but it took me 6 weeks. It was just too slow unwinding and I has zero attachment to the characters.
fictionfan's review against another edition
4.0
What if?
In a departure from his Shardlake series, Sansom has created here an alternative recent history - what if Britain had surrendered to Germany after Dunkirk? What if Nazi sympathisers were running the government? What if Churchill had never become Prime Minister and instead was leading a resistance movement? Sansom creates a world that is so similar to the real world and yet so different that I eventually found I was having to make an effort to remember what was reality and what was fiction.
The plot follows a group of members of the resistance as they try to protect a man who holds a secret that mustn't fall into the hands of the Germans. We get to know each of the main characters well - Sansom gives us enough of their backstories to let us understand their motivations and each is, in his or her own way, easy to empathise with. Although he doesn't shy away from describing the atrocities against the Jews and Russians, even the German characters come across as understandable and oddly sympathetic, however horrifying their thoughts and actions.
As always, Sansom's excellent descriptive writing creates a completely believable world and this is both a strength and a weakness of the book. I felt that sometimes he got so wrapped up in expanding on the world of his creation that he slowed the plot down to a level that prevented the tension from building quite as much as it should in what is fundamentally a thriller. I was also left a bit uncomfortable about the way he made some real-life right-wing politicians into Nazi sympathisers for the purposes of his plot, particularly some who in real life had served either in the forces or in Churchill's government. Overall, though, I found this to be an interesting, cleverly constructed and well-written book that indeed left me wondering 'what if?'. Recommended.
In a departure from his Shardlake series, Sansom has created here an alternative recent history - what if Britain had surrendered to Germany after Dunkirk? What if Nazi sympathisers were running the government? What if Churchill had never become Prime Minister and instead was leading a resistance movement? Sansom creates a world that is so similar to the real world and yet so different that I eventually found I was having to make an effort to remember what was reality and what was fiction.
The plot follows a group of members of the resistance as they try to protect a man who holds a secret that mustn't fall into the hands of the Germans. We get to know each of the main characters well - Sansom gives us enough of their backstories to let us understand their motivations and each is, in his or her own way, easy to empathise with. Although he doesn't shy away from describing the atrocities against the Jews and Russians, even the German characters come across as understandable and oddly sympathetic, however horrifying their thoughts and actions.
As always, Sansom's excellent descriptive writing creates a completely believable world and this is both a strength and a weakness of the book. I felt that sometimes he got so wrapped up in expanding on the world of his creation that he slowed the plot down to a level that prevented the tension from building quite as much as it should in what is fundamentally a thriller. I was also left a bit uncomfortable about the way he made some real-life right-wing politicians into Nazi sympathisers for the purposes of his plot, particularly some who in real life had served either in the forces or in Churchill's government. Overall, though, I found this to be an interesting, cleverly constructed and well-written book that indeed left me wondering 'what if?'. Recommended.
unhallowed90's review against another edition
5.0
Really good book. Enjoyed the alternative history and learned a little about the war as well. Lots of suspense.
dgmalcolm's review against another edition
2.0
Fascinating and at times compelling counter factual history brought down by weak prose, relying on clunky exposition that is so unsubtle it's occasionally comical. And whilst the political message is clearly heartfelt it loses some of its force by being overdone; it could have been much more powerful if there hadn't been so many axes to grind.