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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the best Alternate History novels ever written., January 15, 2007
Eric Flint covers a period of time that is very often ignored by others in the field of alternate history. His first book in this series, 1814: The Rivers of War and now this one, 1824: The Arkansas War is a period that has often been forgotten with there being a greater emphasis on the American Revolution, the Civil War and World Wars One and Two. It is a rich period with some of the most fascinating characters from the pages of our American History Books and Eric Flint has done his research. This series surpasses his excellent 1632 plus novels and he has proven himself a true master in this genre.
Unlikely as the idea may seem to some, there is a second republic in North America thanks to the efforts of Sam Houston and Patrick Driscol as described in the first book. Arkansas is a confederacy made up of pioneers like Houston, Native American tribes and African Americans. The latter group makes up the majority and includes both freedmen and escaped slaves. The big issue is slavery and how a slave free republic with black leaders would influence the United States. It is ultimately what leads to war.
While the author spends ample time on ordinary citizens it is the leading figures of the day that will attract the reader and how the author uses excellent insights to explore the character of each. Especially strong are the portrayals of John Quincy Adams, John Brown, William Cullen Bryant, Henry Clay, William Henry Harrison, Sam Houston, Andrew Jackson, James Monroe, Winfield Scott and Zackary Taylor. The political interaction among these great names is as fascinating as the reader would desire and makes the military campaigns described almost an after thought. Don't worry, there is plenty of miliary action and strategy if that is your cup of tea. There is also attention paid to social issues outside of slavery with religion being given fair coverage.
The l632 series established Eric Flint as the new master of alternate world history and this series will solidify it for generations to come. It makes me wish I was still teaching history full time as these books would be required reading.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Makes one wonder about this mostly overlooked period..., December 29, 2006
Flint blew apart most of my vague assumptions about this period that generally gets a hurried treatment on most histories that focus on wartimes. The characters are richly drawn and fit what I've read of the actual ones while brought to life as funny, passionate, puzzled, and struggling folks. The storylines are reasonable, but surprising, so racing to see how they unfold is a severe temptation with a book that deserves to be savored. There's a lot here, even more than I found in rereading the first book "Rivers of War" and it shows you what could have been just as Houston's defense of the capitol and other choices did. It's a superb book full of fun, struggle, surprises, reluctant heroes and few villains (other than John C. Calhoun of S.Carolina who comes off badly so many times in 19th Century history he's one of the great "wreckers", precipitating the Civil War probably more than any one other person...Calhoun's a natural pivot point for any alternative history and Henry Clay's ambiguities with great skill make an even better one. Well worth the hardcover price (always a pain for fiction) and as the other reviewers comment, this might be Flint's best book yet and he's consistently very,very good.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
This sequel isn't as good, but isn't bad. (3.5 stars), May 4, 2007
Set about 10 years after the events portrayed in Flint's book, 1812, this alternative history picks up with Nation of Arkansas, a nation that has been carved out of the Arkansas and Oklahoma territories and offers a new life for freed slaves and many Native American tribes being pushed out of the Eastern United States. It has a large, well-trained army, which, when Arkansas Post is attacked, defends it well. This event kicks off turmoil in the US as the newspapers and politicians rant about the `aggressive blacks' across the river and how they must be taught a lesson. Will there be a war? Will the US eradicate the young nation?
Notes:
This book does not stand alone. You need to read 1812 first.
Sam Houston, the focus of the first book doesn't play as large of a role in this one. There was not as much character development in this story.
There is more exposition in this book and less action.
In the first book, 1812, Flint spends some time presenting the plight of the Native Americans in the face of a relentless push by the United States to claim the entire continent. The social emphasis of this sequel, however, is the plight of the African slaves, their lack of human rights, property and respect as fellow humans. I found it to be a good reminder of the horrors of slavery and the status of Africans (I'm not sure one can call them African-AMERICANS at that time, since they weren't granted citizenship or any other rights. They were slaves without a country ... but I digress.) The author isn't preachy, he weaves the information into the story quite well.
All in all, I did not feel that this sequel matched the first volume in pace, plot or character development, but it was worth the time to read it.
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