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Set in a fascinating alternative world in which ghosts are real, the United States never came into existence and Russia is still ruled by the Romanovs, this sequel to Of Tangible Ghosts and The Ghost of the Revelator continues the adventures of semi-retired spy Dr. Johan Eschbach.
His lovely wife Llysette du Boise, a refugee from the burning remains of France and a world-famous novelist, has been invited to provide a command performance for the Russian Imperial household. Johan accompanies her, allowing him to work on the oil concession in Russian Alaska that Columbia so desperately needs and do some spying on the side. Johan's espionage is carried out against the backdrop of the famous white nights of St. Petersburg, the nearly Arctic midsummer when the sun barely dips below the horizon and the sky seems to dissolve in ivory light. But even the oil shortage will fade to insignificance when Johan discovers what new weapons technology the Russians are developing, a threat even more fearsome than the atomic bombs of Austro-Hungary.
Working in the tradition of Gordon R. Dickson and Poul Anderson for hard-edged adventure with sophisticated social and political dimensions, Modesitt provides a unique blend of speculation and intrigue that brings the trilogy to a rousing end.
ghost of the White Nights
| Customer Rating:   | | A different book from the author. It was on the same level as his other books. It jumped around and followed several story lines until the end when it came together. Very good book if you are looking for something differnt from this author. |
Who cares about the soup? The book's not bad at all.
| Customer Rating: | If you start by reading the Publisher's Weekly review, you might prefer a poke in the eye with a sharp stick to reading Ghost of the White Nights, and that would be a mistake!
The concluding volume of the Columbia-Ghost trilogy is Modesitt's best volume in the series. It is well-paced, start to finish, it has some interesting plot twists, and the hero, Johan Eschbach, is at his finest.
Fans of the series will already understand the basic premise. Columbia, an alternate-world semi-USA faces the twin threats of chronic oil shortages and Austrian Emperor Ferdinand's plots to dominate the world. Eschbach, spy, professor, war hero, and good guy who wipes the dishes and makes a fair salad, must handle both issues.
This time, Eschbach must broker a deal with a creaky Romanov regime, trading technology for oil. There is plenty of intrigue, and Modesitt really has the Russian character-- proud, paranoid, but ultimately somehow likeable--down pat.
It is a shame that Eschbach's ahem--itchy-ahem French wife is still along for the ride, fussing about every bowl of soup, but if you can get past that, White Nights isn't bad at all. Some odd plot twists like having Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel appear in the alternate universe as an insidiously smarmy US Ambassador to Russia, are a lot of fun, too.
White Nights is a significant uptick on the previous volume, Ghost of the Revelator, which had almost nothing in it but the French wife crabbing about the chow! |
Superior alt-hist political thriller. 4.5 stars
| Customer Rating: | _________________________________________
Johan Eschbach, retired from an eventful career as a
naval aviator, Spazi agent, and cabinet minister, now
teaches environmental economics at Vanderbraak State
University in New Bruges (New Hampshire in OTL). He's married
to lyric soprano Llysette Du Boise, whose performance at Deseret's
Salt Palace (in Ghost of the Revelator), and the best-selling CD
recorded then, has made her reputation worldwide. Lysette is
invited to perform for the tzar in Moscow -- oh, and would Johan
undertake a bit of quiet diplomacy for Columbia with the Imperial
government, while he's there?Not surprisingly, this 'quiet' diplomacy ends in violence, but does
lead, as hoped, to an oil concession for Columbian Dutch Petro in
Russian Alaska. The thriller part is well-done & fun, but the real
strength of the book is the continued development of Modesitt's
alternate world, and the closely-observed details of daily life in
Columbia, which shares North America with Quebec, Deseret and
New France -- and the world with Emperor Ferdinand's cruel and
aggressive Austrian (Hapsburg) empire. White Nights is the conclusion of the Ghosts novels, per the dust
jacket, but I rather hope Modesitt decides to continue. I've become
fond of Johan, Lysette, New Bruges, the petty academic politics at
Vanderbraak State, the Stanley steamers, and the slow pace of life in
Columbia. OTOH, Modesitt doesn't do well with long series... |
Eschbach, Johan Eschbach
| Customer Rating: | | The third in Mr. Modesitt's "ghost" series is, as were the first two, set in an alternate universe in which ghosts and zombies are real, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Czars have survived to the late 1990s. And the United States--err, make that Columbia--was settled by the English and the Dutch and its territory consists of much of our universe's United States and Anglophone Canada. The Mormons, however, seem to have settled in their own land called Deseret. Huh? (Alt-hist purists may be upset, more than somewhat, to discover that Mr. Modesitt provides no turning point event to account for the divergence between this time line and our own, but the rest of us won't care all that much.) Eshbach, environmental economist and sometime spy and his diva wife, Llysette, are sent, at government expense, to St. Petersburg where she will perform before the Czar, while Eschbach himself must negotiate some sort of oil deal with the Russians so that the Austro-Hungarians don't corner the world's oil supply, and of course there are plenty of bad guys around that do not wish for Eschbach to succeed. (Naturally, like any secret agent who has to save the world, he comes equipped with a few special gadgets that tilt the odds in his favor--and usually not a moment too soon at that.) The book is smoothly written, urbane, and just plain fun. The few hours you'll spend in Mr. Modesitt's company will surely be worth your while. Try it even if you haven't read the first two in the series. |
Great characterization, intriguing alternative history
| Customer Rating: | | Johan Eschbach is perfectly content with his life as a college Professor of Environmental Economics and the husband of Llysette, a classical singer. When his government calls both of them into service, Johan finds himself returning to a past that he had thought was long behind him--that of a spy and assassin. In this powerful alternative history novel, Austria-Hungary, allied with Prussia/Germany, sits astride a conquered Europe with only Russia, Sweden, and the fading Ottoman Turks remaining to face it. With both conventional weapons and the ability to create zombie armies, Austria-Hungary is content to nibble away at its enemies. In America, Columbia (representing most of what is the United States and the maritime provinces of Canada in our reality) suffers under the energy blockade that Austria-Hungary now imposes. Under the cover of an artistic exchange, Johan is sent to Russia to negotiate oil leases in Russian Alaska. Russia, still ruled by the Tsars, is a challenge to Johan. The rocket branch of the Russian military seems intent on foiling the oil deal despite the obvious benefits to all parties. Johan comes to suspect a threat to the entire world order--one that neither Russia nor Columbia is likely to survive. Yet what can one man do against the intrenched bureaucracy of a centuries-old state? Author L. E. Modesitt, Jr. brings his emotionally compelling writing to a fascinating alternative history--one vaguely reminisent of Jules Verne, with its steam automobiles, dirigible travel, and its still-surviving Imperial heads of state, yet with a supernatural element of ghosts making their presence felt. Despite a few loose ends (what, exactly, was that bombing about), Modesitt delivers an exciting story with fully human characters. Johan, in particular, is wonderfully sympathetic as an aging college professor forced back into a way of life that he had thought behind him, now with the need to protect his wife as well as his country. Fans of Modesitt's pure fantasy as well as alternative history buffs will enjoy GHOST OF THE WHITE NIGHTS. |
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