I just finished reading The Protector’s War by S.M. Stirling. It’s the sequel to Dies the Fire, where the entire world’s technology is rendered useless, along with all explosives. As a result the world is tumbled into chaos as governments fall, leaving a handful to rise out of the ashes of civilization to build new tribes to fight for survival.
It’s a very interesting concept, that some sort of extraterrestrial technology – for reasons of their own – would take away the technology of our world, leaving humans to fall back to the days of bows and swords where living every day is a struggle for survival. I stumbled upon _Dies the Fire_ a couple of years ago and was pleasantly surprised it discover its sequel not too long after that. And then today, just a handful of pages from the end of _The Protector’s War_, I discover again that there yet another sequel, A Meeting at Corvallis. For some reason, I was under the impression that this was a two-book series, but I’m both pleasantly surprised and annoyed to find that this is not so. I’m pleased to be able to follow some of my favorite characters yet a little further but annoyed by the fact that I thought resolution was at hand.
And purusing Amazon.com a bit further, I see that there is yet another upcoming novel called _The Sunrise Lands_, set in the same universe but starting a new series, where survivors of the Change (the thing that caused the loss of technology) send out a mission to try to determine the cause and find Those responsible for it. This is a fascinating series, and while some folks may find it a bit dry and slow at times, I think anyone who likes both fantasy and alternative history will enjoy this series a great deal.
I just finished “Dies the Fire” and enjoyed it. I now plan to read the read of the series. I had read Sterlings “Marching Through Georgia” several years ago and it still remains in my personal library to this day. I actually compare the Emberverse series somewhat to the Camulod Chronicles by Jack Whyte, and I see that we are heading to some what of a retelling of the Arthurian Legend (maybe).
Some times it was difficult to get past the Wiccan material, however, I can understand how people would grasp at a belief system to help them cope with their circumstances.
It truely makes one wonder just how accurate Sterling’s assessment is.
Very Well Written!
Clay Shackelford » I had a little trouble getting through the Wiccan material in _Dies the Fire_, too. It really becomes part of the atmosphere and story, though, by the time you get into _The Protector’s War_. You expect it, you know it’s there, and it’s part of the way things are in this new world. I’ve got the next two books in the Emberverse series on my Amazon Wish List, so hopefully I’ll be able to nab those sometime soon.
Well the Emberverse Series is directly tied into the Island in the Sea of Time
I just finished reading both “Dies the Fire” and “The Protector’s War.” Both were very well written and I enjoyed them thoroughly. I do agree with the Wiccan material as well, it was a little hard to get past at first but I began to enjoy the McKenzie portion of the story over the Bearkillers. I plan to read the rest of the Embervese series and I hope it is as interesting as the first two books.