William R. Forstchen

A Union regiment marches aboard a transport ship only to be buffeted through space and time and shipwrecked in an alien land, where these Civil War soldiers introduce unheard-of ideas of freedom, equality, and democracy

Rally Cry

Bryan Alexander

I read Rally Cry because my son Owain insisted. He's a history major and sf lover, so you can see his affection for this book.

Forstchen's novel is a kind of alternate history with stronger science fiction elements than normal. A regiment from the American army in the Civil War suddenly finds itself on an alien world and has to fight for its survival. This is actually a fairly popular subgenre within sf these days, with military units hurled into different worlds and our own's past.

The alien world is one largely populated by humans who all seem to have been shipped there over millennia and from different Early nations. Our regiment lands next to a medieval Russian city. We learn about Carthaginians nearby and there are hints of other travelers (I think 17th-century French at one point). But the planet is dominated by fierce, monstrous aliens, nomads who ride around the world, taking turns to feast on the flesh of their subjects. Very bad guys.

The book's plot concerns the US regiment's learning this world, grappling with cultural differences as they connect with the lost Rus, then battling the terrible aliens.

Our characters center on the regiment's leader, Andrew Keane, giving us a strategic perspective as he navigates a bizarre situation. We also see the alien leadership and a host of Rus.

So, on the plus side Rally Cry is an epic adventure. Hard-pressed good guys, colorful medieval folk, and awful baddies struggle through ever-escalating battles, climaxing with a splendid and very destructive final campaign. There's also the time travel/alt.history pleasure of seeing people from the 1860s build a proto-industrial society from a medieval setting. I also appreciated the love of Maine showed by the author. And there is a distinctly military historical/gamer fascination with seeing forces from different time periods collide.

On the down side... if you don't like military fiction, this will appall you. You might find the sheer evilness of the Tugars too cartoonish (although I say the same thing about Sauron in Lord of the Rings). It's also a thoroughly male story. We only see a few women, and they are only in roles that 2020 would find stereotypical, if very plausible for the novel's setting: wife, mother, nurse. I also tend to be skeptical of fictional characters learning foreign languages, which happens very quickly here. Said characters are not too deep, and we are more told about their mental states than shown.

Yet I was also struck - favorably - by the radically democratic message of the book. Yes, it's mostly about organizing steel mills and exquisite detail of battlefield tactics, but at the same time it's also concerned with infecting pre-modern societies with the kind of republicanism Lincoln grew into by his truncated second term. Without getting too much into spoiler territory, the regiment represents a mental virus and political revolution to the alien world. It's not a Marxist revolution, but still a shocking and inspiring intrusion from modernity.

Thanks to Owain for this ride. On to #2!

Rally Cry

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