New Releases 10/2/12

New hardcover

1635: Papal Stakes by Eric Flint and Charles E. Gannon

Description from Amazon.

#15 in the multiple bestselling Ring of Fire Series.

It’s springtime in the Eternal City, 1635. But it’s no Roman holiday for uptimer Frank Stone and his pregnant downtime wife, Giovanna. They’re in the clutches of would-be Pope Cardinal Borgia, with the real Pope–Urban VII –on the run with the renegade embassy of uptime Ambassador Sharon Nichols and her swashbuckling downtime husband, Ruy Sanchez de Casador y Ortiz. Up to their necks in papal assassins, power politics, murder, and mayhem, the uptimers and their spouses need help and they need it quickly.

Special rescue teams–including Harry Lefferts and his infamous Wrecking Crew–converge on Rome to extract Frank and Gia. And an uptime airplane is on its way to spirit the Pope to safety before Borja’s assassins can find him. It seems that everything is going to work out just fine in sunny Italy.

Until, that is, everything goes wrong. Now, whether they are prisoners in Rome or renegades protecting a pope on the run, it’s up to the rough and ready can-do attitude of Grantville natives to once again escape the clutches of aristocratic skullduggery and ring in freedom for a war-torn land.

New paperback

Firestorm by Taylor Anderson

Description from Amazon.

Designated Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces, Matt Reddy must now contend with a new threat; the Dominion—humans whose lust for power matches the Grik. But even though the Grand Alliance recognizes the danger of the Dominion, it must deal with the land-based Grik first, leaving the Imperial navy—and USS Walker—with little assistance.

As war rages, more Japanese ships come through the time-space maelstrom that the Americans call The Squall. One is a “Hell Ship,” carrying prisoners of an Imperial Japan that is growing ever more ruthless in the face of looming defeat. Escorting it is a new, state-of-the-art destroyer, whose officers recognize no rules of war.

Fighting on two fronts, Reddy is plunged into a firestorm of loyalty, betrayal, and sacrifice. But nothing can prepare him for a devastating new Grik weapon—a weapon that could wipe out all who oppose them…

The Mechanical Messiah and Other Marvels of the Modern Age by Robert Rankin

Description from Amazon.

Colonel Katterfelto has returned to London, having departed America under something of a cloud—of smoke, issuing from his Spiritual Laboratory, which the townsfolk of Wormcast, Arizona, marched upon with their flaming torches. This catastrophic conflagration caused considerable concern to the pious colonel, who had been engaged in the creation of "Heaven's last and best gift to Mankind," The Mechanical Messiah—he was, after all, being guided in this Great Work by holy angels, communicating to him through his monkey butler, Darwin. It is 1897, the British Empire encompasses Mars, and an uneasy peace exists between the peoples of Venus, Jupiter, and Earth. In London the marvels of the modern age to be experienced include the Electric Alhambra Music Hall, where crowds thrill to the Earl Grey Whistle Test—a musical extravaganza featuring such top turns as Hayward's Acrobatic Kiwis, the Travelling Formbys, and the newly arrived Colonel Katterfelto's Clockwork Minstrels. But all is far from well in old Whitechapel, where a monster is once more abroad in the night-time streets, committing hideous acts of murder. Can this be the return of Jack the Ripper, or has something altogether unearthly and hellishly evil materialized? Famed consulting detective Cameron Bell is already on the case, but it may take nothing less than the new Messiah himself to save London, the Empire, and all of the solar system from the impending apocalypse!

New e-books

The British Alien by John Lewis

Description from Amazon.

An alternative history of the British Empire in the dark days of the Second World War. Be astonished by this first hand account of how the British Secret Service attempted to make deals with otherworldly demonic entities in order to counter a similar deal made by the Nazis.

A mysterious package is dropped from an RAF bomber over the Atlantic. Nazi secret societies conspire against the British Empire and a small team is created to investigate the situation. Dark secrets are revealed that lie at the heart of the British establishment.

The Hundred Years Farce by Scott Skipper

Description from Amazon.

Most people don't recall—if they ever knew—that the United States Army invaded México in 1846. A year later they entered México City and received an unconditional surrender. Then they walked away with Texas, New México and California. What would have happened if they hadn't walked away?

History is full of crossroads. Alexander conquered Egypt, Persia and Afghanistan then he went to India and died of fever at twenty-three. How would he have redrawn the world map if he had lived to a ripe old age?

Arab enemies very nearly killed Mohamed before he wrote the Koran. How would the world look today if there were no such thing as Islam?

Washington was pressured to crown himself king. What would have come of the United States if he hadn't been quite so altruistic?

The sum of all events that led us to where we are could have turned quite differently had small things been tweaked. This quirky and irreverent 'what if' story starts with the truth then looks at plausible, bizarre and absurd alternatives to what came later. Do we have here a simple alternative history or could it be an allegorical reflection of modern times? Will the end always look the same no matter how many parallel universes we examine? Is our fate hard wired or are we at the mercy of some cosmic coin toss?

The Lady Astronomer by Katy O'Dowd

Description from Amazon.

Lucretia's quiet life as an astronomer and hat-maker is quickly turned on its head by her brother. He is commanded by the king to build the grandest telescope in the land. Unfortunately for Lucretia, she is introduced to his majesty as her brother's assistant. Her nights spent on rooftops gazing at the stars are replaced by adventure and danger. In a race to build the Forty-foot telescope on time for the king, her misfortunes take their toll. When Lucretia finds herself held hostage at the Clockwork Court, the innocent country girl doesn't know who to trust. The lady astronomer finds court life to be more dangerous than she could have ever imagined. Even if her brothers manage to build the telescope on time, she might not live to earn her freedom.

With the help of her brothers, Freddie and Al, and her constant companions Leibniz the Lemur and Orion the Eagle Owl, Lucretia embarks on a journey that could change her life forever. Can she find the strength inside to balance her new life and overcome the obstacles threatening her destiny? Only the stars will tell.

To fans, authors and publishers...

Do you want to see your work given a shout out on our New Releases segment? Contact Mitro at ahwupdate at gmail dot com.  We are looking for works of alternate history, counterfactual history, steampunk, historical fantasy, time travel or anything that warps history beyond our understanding.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update, a volunteer editor for Alt Hist and a contributor to Just Below the Law. His fiction can be found at Echelon Press, Jake's Monthly and his own writing blog. When not writing he works as an attorney and enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana.