Publication
New York : Ace Hardcover, 2014.
Description
"With a gift for visionary fiction that "would make Robert A. Heinlein proud" (Entertainment Weekly), three-time Hugo Award-winning author Allen Steele now imagines an alternate history rooted in an actual historical possibility: What if the race to space had occurred in the early days of World War II? It's 1941, and Wernher von Braun is ordered by his fuhrer to abandon the V-2 rocket and turn German resources in a daring new direction: construction of a manned orbital spacecraft capable of attacking the United States. Work on the rocket--called Silvervogel--begins at Peenemunde. Though the plan is top secret, British intelligence discovers it and brings word to Franklin Roosevelt. The American president determines that there is only one logical response: The United States must build a spacecraft with the ability to intercept Silvervogel and destroy it. Robert Goddard, inventor of the liquid-fuel rocket, agrees to head the classified project. So begins a race against time between two secret military programs and two brilliant scientists whose high-stakes competition will spiral into a deadly game of political intrigue and unforeseen catastrophes played to the death in the brutal skies above America"--… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member stefferoo
V-S Day is a bit of a departure from my usual reads, but I've made made a resolution this year to tackle more books that are outside my comfort zone. And while I may not be a World War II buff, I do love novels of alternate history and have seen authors come up with some terrific ideas when it
To tell the truth, I almost balked and ran after the first chapter. I would say my knowledge of WWII is sufficient, but like I said I have no specific attraction to or interest in the topic, but that wasn't what made me hesitate. In fact, it was the rocket science that intimidated me. To be fair, it doesnt take much to make me feel out of my depth; a few mentions of things like insulated hoses, radar arrays, and liquid oxygen and nitrogen tank pressurization and you'll find me starting to sweat. I can't help it, I just start to feel my attention waning whenever the descriptions get the least bit technical.
And then, things turned around completely. The book opens on the scene of a hectic space-plane launch in 1943, but suddenly with the next chapter we are looking in on a gathering of family and friends in the present day. As it turns out, this is a reunion party for a group of pretty important people, made up of the brilliant scientists who worked to thwart a Nazi plot to attack New York City during the war in the 40s. Of course, due to its highly classified nature, no one knew about it.
But now, journalist Douglas Walker is here to find the truth, interviewing the men about their time with Robert Goddard, inventor of the liquid-fuel rocket, and their project that changed the world. To counter the Nazi's development of a manned orbital spacecraft capable of traversing long distances to drop a bomb on the United States, Goddard and his team had to figure out a way to build their own spacecraft to take down the enemy's rocket. Thus, a race between two secret military projects was born.
But before I go further into what I thought about this book, I have to say it was the espionage angle that finally got me on board. When rocket science fails to hook me, I can always count on the plot elements that have to do with spies and intelligence gathering to get me excited. And once that got me into the story, I just ate it right up and blew through the pages.
In the end, I actually came to enjoy following the progress of the American program, and in a way the rocketship project itself became a central character, my fascination with it eventually overshadowing my interest in the human players. This was a rather new experience for me, where the scientists became almost the supporting cast while the development of the spacecraft Lucky Linda took center stage. For someone who typically places a lot of emphasis on characters in a novel, I was surprisingly okay with this.
It wasn't until I read the author's afterword that I found out that, at one point, the story of V-S Day existed in the form of a screenplay. That actually made a lot of sense. Reading this book did uncannily make me feel like I was watching a movie or a series on TV, thanks in particular to the flashback style and the way the events were told through the eyes of multiple major and minor characters. If anything though, I thought the chapters that gave us a glimpse into von Braun's program in Germany were the weakest, though I saw the need for them, since the reader has to know the progress of each side to get a sense of the urgency and what's at risk.
At its heart, V-S Day is a book about a very different space race in a time where rockets only existed in science fiction magazines or in the minds of those who dared to dream. I ended up enjoying this book quite a bit, and was glad I didn't let myself put this one down. The final revelation at the end was a nice touch. However, it was the climax that made it all worth it, with the tension culminating into a conclusion that made me understand the reason for all the build up.
Show More
comes to this era and genre. The premise of this book looked intriguing, so I decided to check it out.To tell the truth, I almost balked and ran after the first chapter. I would say my knowledge of WWII is sufficient, but like I said I have no specific attraction to or interest in the topic, but that wasn't what made me hesitate. In fact, it was the rocket science that intimidated me. To be fair, it doesnt take much to make me feel out of my depth; a few mentions of things like insulated hoses, radar arrays, and liquid oxygen and nitrogen tank pressurization and you'll find me starting to sweat. I can't help it, I just start to feel my attention waning whenever the descriptions get the least bit technical.
And then, things turned around completely. The book opens on the scene of a hectic space-plane launch in 1943, but suddenly with the next chapter we are looking in on a gathering of family and friends in the present day. As it turns out, this is a reunion party for a group of pretty important people, made up of the brilliant scientists who worked to thwart a Nazi plot to attack New York City during the war in the 40s. Of course, due to its highly classified nature, no one knew about it.
But now, journalist Douglas Walker is here to find the truth, interviewing the men about their time with Robert Goddard, inventor of the liquid-fuel rocket, and their project that changed the world. To counter the Nazi's development of a manned orbital spacecraft capable of traversing long distances to drop a bomb on the United States, Goddard and his team had to figure out a way to build their own spacecraft to take down the enemy's rocket. Thus, a race between two secret military projects was born.
But before I go further into what I thought about this book, I have to say it was the espionage angle that finally got me on board. When rocket science fails to hook me, I can always count on the plot elements that have to do with spies and intelligence gathering to get me excited. And once that got me into the story, I just ate it right up and blew through the pages.
In the end, I actually came to enjoy following the progress of the American program, and in a way the rocketship project itself became a central character, my fascination with it eventually overshadowing my interest in the human players. This was a rather new experience for me, where the scientists became almost the supporting cast while the development of the spacecraft Lucky Linda took center stage. For someone who typically places a lot of emphasis on characters in a novel, I was surprisingly okay with this.
It wasn't until I read the author's afterword that I found out that, at one point, the story of V-S Day existed in the form of a screenplay. That actually made a lot of sense. Reading this book did uncannily make me feel like I was watching a movie or a series on TV, thanks in particular to the flashback style and the way the events were told through the eyes of multiple major and minor characters. If anything though, I thought the chapters that gave us a glimpse into von Braun's program in Germany were the weakest, though I saw the need for them, since the reader has to know the progress of each side to get a sense of the urgency and what's at risk.
At its heart, V-S Day is a book about a very different space race in a time where rockets only existed in science fiction magazines or in the minds of those who dared to dream. I ended up enjoying this book quite a bit, and was glad I didn't let myself put this one down. The final revelation at the end was a nice touch. However, it was the climax that made it all worth it, with the tension culminating into a conclusion that made me understand the reason for all the build up.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Shrike58
So, I'm going to have to admit that I found this homage to Campbellian science fiction and the dawn of manned spaceflight in the form of a German-American space race a little marginal. For one thing, Steele admits in his afterwords that this is something of a trunk novel in that it was originally
Two, in regards to the American side of the story, I don't find Steele's vision of a small band of men building a viable space interceptor all that convincing in World War II. If FDR wanted this done, it would have been a much bigger deal; not to mention that this is just the sort of thing Hap Arnold, commander of the Army Air Force would have found fascinating. It's also a missed opportunity to have a neat alternate riff on real history by having Bell Aircraft be the prime contractor.
Three, on the German side of things, I'm also not buying Steele's portrayal of Werner von Braun. Steele gives you a Von Braun with more doubts then I suspect the real man had; an individual who strikes me as being simply another of the ultra ambitious men with little concern for the consequences of their actions that the Nazi movement attracted. Any doubts were conveniently found later, perhaps after the war had started turning futile for Germany and Himmler started putting the screws to the man.
That said, the book does have an appropriately gripping finale and redeems your time invested on that basis.
Show More
meant to be a screenplay. Frankly, it probably should have remained a screenplay, however much Steele tries to convince himself otherwise.Two, in regards to the American side of the story, I don't find Steele's vision of a small band of men building a viable space interceptor all that convincing in World War II. If FDR wanted this done, it would have been a much bigger deal; not to mention that this is just the sort of thing Hap Arnold, commander of the Army Air Force would have found fascinating. It's also a missed opportunity to have a neat alternate riff on real history by having Bell Aircraft be the prime contractor.
Three, on the German side of things, I'm also not buying Steele's portrayal of Werner von Braun. Steele gives you a Von Braun with more doubts then I suspect the real man had; an individual who strikes me as being simply another of the ultra ambitious men with little concern for the consequences of their actions that the Nazi movement attracted. Any doubts were conveniently found later, perhaps after the war had started turning futile for Germany and Himmler started putting the screws to the man.
That said, the book does have an appropriately gripping finale and redeems your time invested on that basis.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Cataloger623
V-S Day a novel of alternative history by Allen Steele. This is great book by a good author. V-S Day stands for victory in space day. This is a take off of V-E day , Victory in Europe, and V-J Day, Victory over Japan. The book asks the question what if the Germans during WWII had put their efforts
Show More
into building a manned orbital bomber capable of destroying New York instead of making the Vengeance weapons the V-1 buzz bomb and the V-2 ballistic missile? Steele takes this simple premise and writes an engaging and thought provoking novel.Steele takes historical figures such as Robert Goddard,the American who invented the first liquid fueled rocket and launched space age, and Wernher Von Braun the German scientist who designed Hitler’s Vengeance weapons and our Apollo Program, and fashions a believable alternative history. This is a novel about engineers doing what they do best, solving seeming impossible problems using their unique set of skills. I have not read many alternate history stories. The ones I have read changed so many things that the story became impossible to relate to our world. Steele on the other hand changes only one key event. He then created a novel showed how the single change would have affected our world. This was a fun book to read. I like this authors books. I hope he continues writing. Show Less
LibraryThing member texascheeseman
V-S Day
Author: Allen Steele
Publisher: Berkely - Penguin - Ace Books
Published In: New York City, NY
Date: 2014
Pgs: 308
________________________________________________
REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS
Summary:
Robert Goddard and Wernher Von Braun, America and Nazi Germany in a race to the sky. Von Braun has
A race against time; competition, intrigue, politics, catastrophe. A brutal awakening to the stars as a World War reaches beyond the gravity well.
_________________________________________________
Genre:
Alternate History
Fiction
Military
Science fiction
War
Why this book:
Space. Nazis. War.
_________________________________________________
Favorite Character:
No single character jumps off the page. There are character beats given to Jack Cube, Werner Von Braun, Esther Goddard, and Henry Morse, and his future wife Doris. Most remain ciphers wrapped in cliches.
Least Favorite Character:
Could use the same missive about characters from the Favorite Character category.
The Feel:
Making Lt. Jack Cube, almost Tuskegee airman, rocket engineer, share lodgings with Gerry Mander, redneck, teenage, ex-con, rocket savant seems a bit forced and cliched.
Favorite Scene / Quote:
When Henry breaks security to run away from the hunting lodge to meet Doris, and gets busted by Esther.
The dogfight between Silbervogel and Lucky Linda at the edge of space over the Great Lakes as the Nazi space plane carried her bomb load toward 1943 New York City.
Pacing:
The pace is okay.
Hmm Moments:
The X-1/Lucky Linda and Silbervogel being weaponized space shuttle vehicles didn’t really resonate with me until I was most of the way through the book. In fairness, they are more in a gray area between the Concorde, the space shuttle, and the U-2. Much more in common with those Chuck Yeager piloted experimental aircraft.
WTF Moments:
Lt. Jackson Jackson Jackson’s parents sucked, unforgettable name, yes, still sucked. Among scientists, he is immediately nicknamed Jack Cube.
Meh / PFFT Moments:
The separation of the development team from the test range and launch complex is classic hamburger steak and military intelligence thinking. Rings false from modern sensibility, but in context, it makes historical sense.
_________________________________________________
Last Page Sound:
Glad I finished it.
Author Assessment:
Not Steele’s best, but it was alright.
Editorial Assessment:
Could have been more.
Knee Jerk Reaction:
it’s alright
Disposition of Book:
Half Price Books stack.
Would recommend to:
genre fans
_________________________________________________
Author: Allen Steele
Publisher: Berkely - Penguin - Ace Books
Published In: New York City, NY
Date: 2014
Pgs: 308
________________________________________________
REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS
Summary:
Robert Goddard and Wernher Von Braun, America and Nazi Germany in a race to the sky. Von Braun has
Show More
been ordered to abandon the V2 program and concentrate on a manned orbital spacecraft capable of attacking the U.S. British intelligence discovers the plan and forwards the particulars to America. The response is to build their own spacecraft capable of destroying the German Silbervogel before it can attack America.A race against time; competition, intrigue, politics, catastrophe. A brutal awakening to the stars as a World War reaches beyond the gravity well.
_________________________________________________
Genre:
Alternate History
Fiction
Military
Science fiction
War
Why this book:
Space. Nazis. War.
_________________________________________________
Favorite Character:
No single character jumps off the page. There are character beats given to Jack Cube, Werner Von Braun, Esther Goddard, and Henry Morse, and his future wife Doris. Most remain ciphers wrapped in cliches.
Least Favorite Character:
Could use the same missive about characters from the Favorite Character category.
The Feel:
Making Lt. Jack Cube, almost Tuskegee airman, rocket engineer, share lodgings with Gerry Mander, redneck, teenage, ex-con, rocket savant seems a bit forced and cliched.
Favorite Scene / Quote:
When Henry breaks security to run away from the hunting lodge to meet Doris, and gets busted by Esther.
The dogfight between Silbervogel and Lucky Linda at the edge of space over the Great Lakes as the Nazi space plane carried her bomb load toward 1943 New York City.
Pacing:
The pace is okay.
Hmm Moments:
The X-1/Lucky Linda and Silbervogel being weaponized space shuttle vehicles didn’t really resonate with me until I was most of the way through the book. In fairness, they are more in a gray area between the Concorde, the space shuttle, and the U-2. Much more in common with those Chuck Yeager piloted experimental aircraft.
WTF Moments:
Lt. Jackson Jackson Jackson’s parents sucked, unforgettable name, yes, still sucked. Among scientists, he is immediately nicknamed Jack Cube.
Meh / PFFT Moments:
The separation of the development team from the test range and launch complex is classic hamburger steak and military intelligence thinking. Rings false from modern sensibility, but in context, it makes historical sense.
_________________________________________________
Last Page Sound:
Glad I finished it.
Author Assessment:
Not Steele’s best, but it was alright.
Editorial Assessment:
Could have been more.
Knee Jerk Reaction:
it’s alright
Disposition of Book:
Half Price Books stack.
Would recommend to:
genre fans
_________________________________________________
Show Less
LibraryThing member buffalogr
V-S Day is a pretty good book. the plot is that the WWII Germans are developing a space weapon that will apply a kinetic weapon to New York City; the USA must respond. It's tauted as alternate history. It's really just fiction. There are many holes in the author's logic; primary one is the split
Show More
second targeting that would be required to intercept another space ship in orbit. The impact of earlier manned space flight is really not explored. The hypothesis dragged me in, but the book did not deliver. Show Less
Awards
Sidewise Award (Finalist — 2014)
Language
ISBN
9780425259740