Weekly Update #183

Editor's Notes

Phew! Well its been months of research, interviews and writing, but I finally finished my Sideways in Time paper. I still need to create a stripped down version to use as a script for my presentation and get some beta readers opinions of it, but at least the hard part is over now. Everything is still good to go for my trip to London and I am really looking forward to it.

This means I am going to be blogging less than usual in the coming days. Please have patience with me guys because after the end of March I should be back to our regularly scheduled program.

By the way, no Map Monday this week. Sadly I was not impressed enough by last week cartographic offerings to write a piece on any of them, but I did share some links below to few interesting articles in case you are still looking for your weekly map fix.

And now the news...

Coming Soon: Clash of Eagles by Alan Smale

Much like Turtledove's Joe Steele, the upcoming novel by Alan Smale, Clash of Eagles, was originally a short story. For those who don't know, here is the description from Amazon:

Perfect for fans of action-adventure and historical fiction—including novels by such authors as Bernard Cornwell, Steve Berry, Naomi Novik, and Harry Turtledove—this stunning work of alternate history imagines a world in which the Roman Empire has not fallen and the North American continent has just been discovered. In the year 1218 AD, transported by Norse longboats, a Roman legion crosses the great ocean, enters an endless wilderness, and faces a cataclysmic clash of worlds, cultures, and warriors.

Ever hungry for land and gold, the Emperor has sent Praetor Gaius Marcellinus and the 33rd Roman Legion into the newly discovered lands of North America. Marcellinus and his men expect easy victory over the native inhabitants, but on the shores of a vast river the Legion clashes with a unique civilization armed with weapons and strategies no Roman has ever imagined.

Forced to watch his vaunted force massacred by a surprisingly tenacious enemy, Marcellinus is spared by his captors and kept alive for his military knowledge. As he recovers and learns more about these proud people, he can’t help but be drawn into their society, forming an uneasy friendship with the denizens of the city-state of Cahokia. But threats—both Roman and Native—promise to assail his newfound kin, and Marcellinus will struggle to keep the peace while the rest of the continent surges toward certain conflict.

Although the story sounds cliche, the setting is something that still interests me, especially since the historical Cahokia is not far from my hometown. Clash of Eagles is even getting some advance praise with Scott Strawn of the Savannah Morning News saying the novel will "challenge the reader’s perception of history."

If you would like to learn more, check out this extract over at Pat's Fantasy Hotlist.

Coming Soon: The Mechanical by Ian Tregillis

Out tomorrow is book one of Ian Tregillis' The Alchemy Wars series, The Mechanical. Here is the description from Amazon:

My name is Jax.

That is the name granted to me by my human masters.

I am a slave.

But I shall be free.

Set in a world that might have been, of mechanical men and alchemical dreams, the new novel from Ian Tregillis confirms his place as one of the most original new voices in speculative fiction.

Kind of bare to be honest, but it certainly has a steampunk/historical fantasy flavor to it and Uchronia says the alternate history focuses on a timeline where Christiaan Huygens combined alchemy with clockwork to create mechanical men. Nevertheless, the critics seem excited about the novel. John DeNardo (of SF Signal fame) at Kirkus called it one of the best SF reads for March and Diana Miller at B&N's blog called the story "promising".

If you would like to learn more about the story, check out this extract at Orbit.

Links to the Multiverse

Books & Short Fiction

Coming Soon! LOVECRAFT COUNTRY by Matt Ruff at SF Signal.
Cover reveal: Clockwork Lives by Kevin J. Anderson and Neil Peart at Kevin J Anderson Blog.
Elementary Novel Giveaway! at The Baker Street Babes.
An Exclusive Glimpse Of Jim Butcher's Next Book, Aeronaut's Windlass! at io9.
First Review of Alt Hist Issue 7 at Edi’s Book Lighthouse at Alt Hist.
The Independence Day by Pavel Nikiforovitch – Free Extract at Alt Hist.
Radio reading of The Daedalus Incident on The Author’s Corner by Michael J. Martinez.
Read a sample from PRUDENCE by Gail Carriger at Orbit.
Review: 11/22/63 by Stephen King at The Brock Press.
Review: A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Scwhab at io9.
Review: The Mammoth Book of Steampunk Adventures edited by Sean Wallace.
Review: A Place Called Armageddon by C.C. Humphreys at Fantasy Literature.
Review: Sherlock Holmes: The Spirit Box by George Mann at Falcata Times.
Review: Tyrant: Force of Kings by Christian Cameron at Falcata Times.
Short SF Marathon Day 29: Turtledove, Valentine, Walters at Martin's Booklog.
Table of Contents: THE TIME IT HAPPENED Edited by Juliana Rew at SF Signal.

Counterfactuals, History & News

1970, The Year We Accidentally Bombed Mexico (Again) by Esther Inglis-Arkell at io9.
Cars From Another Universe: Bizarre Motor Vehicles That Never Caught On at io9.
Ed Miliband Refuses to Debate with Cameron in Election Campaign by Iain Dale.
The Time That Charles Babbage Tried To Summon The Devil by Lauren Davis at io9.
What If Hitler Had Been Assassinated in 1939? at The Counterfactual History Review.
What If? Writing Alternate Histories in Pop Culture at Nuskool.
‘Women On 20s’ wants female hero to replace Andrew Jackson on currency at Yahoo!

Film & Television

12 Monkeys 1.8: Intelligent Vaccine vs. Time Travel at Paul Levinson's Infinite Regress.
In Deleted 'Back To The Future' Scene, Marty McFly Worries He'll End Up Gay at Huff Post.
James Franco heading to Toronto to star in Stephen King miniseries ’11/22/63′ at Global News.
Review: Agent Carter at Ramblings of the Easily Distracted.
What if Wes Anderson directed an X-Men movie? at CBR.

Games

Gamers invited to try scenario based on the Iranian Revolution at The Sydney Morning Herald.
Polished, anachronistic sci-fi action in ‘The Order: 1886’ at The Oswegonian.

Graphic Novels & Comics

A History Of Time Travel In The DC Universe by James Whitbrook at io9.

Interviews

Adam Christopher at Author Gail Carriger.
Jeffrey S. Gurock at Foreword.
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell's Bertie Carvel, Eddie Marsan & Nick Hirschkorn at TVDrama.
Cherie Priest at Lytherus.

Maps

25 maps that explain the English language by Libby Nelson at Vox.
The Saracen and the Cross by Sam McDonald at Knowledge, Adventure and Wonder.

Podcasts

Dissecting Worlds Series 9,Ep 5: Spy Trek! at Geek Syndicate.
EP 27: Alternate History Class at Almost Educational.
How to Create a WordPress Site for Podcasting by Jordan Harbour at History Podcasters.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update and a blogger on Amazing Stories. Check out his short fiction. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.