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137th out of 290 books
—
435 voters
The Protector's War (Emberverse #2)
It’s been eight years since the Change rendered technology inoperable across the globe. Rising from the ashes of the computer and industrial ages is a brave new world. Survivors have banded together in tribal communities, committed to rebuilding society. In Oregon’s Willamette Valley, former pilot Michael Havel’s Bearkillers are warriors of renown. Their closest ally, the...more
Paperback, 591 pages
Published
September 5th 2006
by Roc
(first published 2005)
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The "Empire Strikes Back" of this series. Our protagonists from "Dies the Fire" are all on Hoth, running the Rebellion...no wait.
Set eight years after the events of the first book, which hinged on the Change, an inexplicable event after which gunpowder, electricity and high explosives don't function, this book continues the adventures of our heroes. Several different societies have sprung up in the Oregon valley where these books are set: a neo-Celtic coven of witches, an Abbey, a former Univer...more
Set eight years after the events of the first book, which hinged on the Change, an inexplicable event after which gunpowder, electricity and high explosives don't function, this book continues the adventures of our heroes. Several different societies have sprung up in the Oregon valley where these books are set: a neo-Celtic coven of witches, an Abbey, a former Univer...more
The charm of the first book wears off a bit. While the basic story is quite good, I think, this novel suffers the same unfortunate problems of most science fiction. The book is simply flabby: there is a lot of unnecessary stuff, and it would be a tighter, better paced, more exciting story if 1/3 of it were cut out. Stirling has no ear for dialogue whatsoever (and I wish I could find all these writers that feel the need to write accents phonetically and punch them in the face), and his characteri...more
6 likes
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Love love love this book. First one I read by this author. Now I have a bunch of his stuff. It takes place several years after the world went to sh*t (see my review of the first book for more details) The people who have survived in the cities are basically warlords who have survived off the hardwork and misery of others. They are expanding as all people with power are prone to do. There are several storylines (characters) that this book follows. Strong real female characters who arent simpering...more
The story picks up roughly ten years after the phenomenon that everyone has come to call "the Change." Things have more or less settled down in western Oregon. Tension continues, however, between the Protectorate and the other groups of the Willamette Valley. While the title suggests a war, the book deals mainly with events and developments leading up to such.
We meet new friends and foes. Some of the old ones die. We see several types of communities rise up out of the ashes of the Digital Age, w...more
We meet new friends and foes. Some of the old ones die. We see several types of communities rise up out of the ashes of the Digital Age, w...more
The title is very misleading. It promises a war between the Protector of Portland and Clan MacKenzie and her allies including the Bearkillers, but it is merely a series of skirmishes leading me to a climactic cliffhanger of a skirmish.
Three new characters are introduced on this book Nigel and his Alleyne and their companion John Hordle fugitives from King Charles's England (yep the real life of Prince of Wales is king). These three men are former SAS and friends of Juniper MacKenzie's first arms...more
Three new characters are introduced on this book Nigel and his Alleyne and their companion John Hordle fugitives from King Charles's England (yep the real life of Prince of Wales is king). These three men are former SAS and friends of Juniper MacKenzie's first arms...more
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I did not enjoy this book as much as the first one. The Protector's War is the second in the series and I highly recommend reading Dies the Fire before moving on to this book. A little background, the world has been through a Change. This Change meant the end of civilization as most know it. Guns, Electricity and other modern implements no longer work and the world has been thrown back in time to where Bow and Arrow, Sword, and Armor have a place in society. Among the survivors, are Juniper McKe...more
The second book in the Dies The Fire trilogy keeps things ticking along. The book takes place six and eight years after the Change of the first book—there are interspersed chapters that flashback to a group of English refugees that give us a picture of what's been going on in the wider world. In Oregon, the chaos of the early years is coalescing into something like small nations, but the Protector of Portland isn't pleased with any competition and gears up for war. Spoiler alert: the title of th...more
Blessed be. All the engines stopped working and Wiccans and Ren Faire people have inherited the earth.
OK. Sounds silly and I am poking some fun at it, but I did like it.
First of all, I purchased both the first and second book in this series and read the second one first by accident. Hey. I never claimed to be the sharpest tool in the shed. Not on this site anyway.
The basic concept is that something happened to the planet and now explosions cannot happen. This includes firearms and combustion eng...more
OK. Sounds silly and I am poking some fun at it, but I did like it.
First of all, I purchased both the first and second book in this series and read the second one first by accident. Hey. I never claimed to be the sharpest tool in the shed. Not on this site anyway.
The basic concept is that something happened to the planet and now explosions cannot happen. This includes firearms and combustion eng...more
Apparently, you have to wait until the next book in the series for the whole war to happen, but honestly, that's fine. Stirling doesn't write action very well. What he does write well is detailed accounts of what life is like after (most) technology stops working. I find that infinitely more interesting than his generic and rushed sword-fights.
He tries to explain the science behind the "Change" in this book, and all I can say is, "why bother?" I've already bought his loose and silly premise, and...more
He tries to explain the science behind the "Change" in this book, and all I can say is, "why bother?" I've already bought his loose and silly premise, and...more
This sequel to Dies The Fire picks up the story about eight years later, in 2006. Actually, in-universe the calendar has been reset so it's now Change Year Eight, but the chapter headings show the dates by our system for clarity's sake.
The story gets a little more complicated - in a good way - for two reasons. One, there's now a sizable group of British and Icelandic military men who manage to find their way to the Willamette Valley (don't ask). Two, there's a more defined villainous presence, i...more
The story gets a little more complicated - in a good way - for two reasons. One, there's now a sizable group of British and Icelandic military men who manage to find their way to the Willamette Valley (don't ask). Two, there's a more defined villainous presence, i...more
The Protector’s war continues the Emberverse series begun with Dies the Fire. Eight years on from the events of the previous book, the world has somewhat settled after the change. The Protector, the Bearkillers and Clan Mackenzie have all consolidated their positions, and past adventures are turning into legend and myth. A showdown with the Protector must come, but not in this book. That is reserved for the final novel, A Meeting at Corvallis.
I enjoyed this installment very much, but it does suf...more
I enjoyed this installment very much, but it does suf...more
Oh dear! I had a definite feeling of 'been there, done that' with this book. I don't know anything about the enigmatically named S.M. Stirling but this had promise for me when I started it but it just became dull, dull ,dull. There was too much description of how the post-change people re-kindled a pseudo-mediaeval society, and an English/Scottish one at that, even in the USA and too much dialogue between characters with Tolkienesque overtones.
There was some action but not enough compared to the...more
There was some action but not enough compared to the...more
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Dec 28, 2011
Ken T
rated it
2 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
People in need of a good night's sleep
Shelves:
sci-fi
I picked up this book not knowing that it was the second book in the trilogy, but that was not the problem that I had with it. The story meanders to such an extent, characters are woven into and out of the narrative at such a blurring pace, and the author jumps around in time so often (with no more than the date on a chapter heading as guide) that it is often hard to keep track of what it happening to whom and in what order. In fact, about three quarters of the way through the book he has many o...more
The author starts up the story in England, nine years after the change. It was lovely to have more characters, but the author's technique of flipping between storylines -- done well in the first book -- was really difficult in this book. Not only did he go between the storylines, but he kept moving the timeline -- it was hard to follow at times. I don't see that this technique furthered the plot or improved the book at all.
I think the book was overall good, but perhaps the author waxed a bit too...more
I think the book was overall good, but perhaps the author waxed a bit too...more
I had seen that most people really didn’t like this series after the first book. Which I get, it was incredible on every level. I also get that if I had to wait for book 2 to come out then was let down and had to wait for book 3. Fortunately I didn’t have too, I have 7 of them ready to go. So for me it’s more/less an overall, huge story. So by cutting out the book 2 section of the series this is how I see it.
I agree with the let down. Overall it’s important but it’s not defining like the first...more
I agree with the let down. Overall it’s important but it’s not defining like the first...more
I liked this book, but some of Stirling's issues as a writer come out here.
S.M. Stirling is a good worldbuilder, but the details can sometimes overwhelm the plot. At times I was thinking "Enough about Wiccan harvest festivals! Get on with the story!"
*SPOILERS*
I could tolerate how lucky the characters were in the first book because only the most fortunate and most skilled people could survive the initial Change anyway. However, as Mike Havel says, you can't roll sixes forever. The Lorings coming...more
S.M. Stirling is a good worldbuilder, but the details can sometimes overwhelm the plot. At times I was thinking "Enough about Wiccan harvest festivals! Get on with the story!"
*SPOILERS*
I could tolerate how lucky the characters were in the first book because only the most fortunate and most skilled people could survive the initial Change anyway. However, as Mike Havel says, you can't roll sixes forever. The Lorings coming...more
The fact that this book started 8 years after the Change described in the previous volume was a major shock, but it worked well once I got past the initial panic. It was neat to see the initial characters settling into their roles and new or formerly minor characters coming to the frontlines, and I'm more interested/invested now in what will follow in the remainder of the series.
I did find the part set in Britain less than compelling due to the significant royal-family events that have happened...more
I did find the part set in Britain less than compelling due to the significant royal-family events that have happened...more
This is "formula" writing. Within the first few pages of "Dies the Fire", the first book (or in my case, minutes, since I was listening to the Audible version), I knew exactly how the story would unwind.
And yet, I read that first book... and also this second volume (The Protector's War).
This may be formula writing... but it is very good formula writing. Stirling paints a vast and detailed fresco. His characters are "formula" but they are well done.
Stirling is equally at ease describing milita...more
And yet, I read that first book... and also this second volume (The Protector's War).
This may be formula writing... but it is very good formula writing. Stirling paints a vast and detailed fresco. His characters are "formula" but they are well done.
Stirling is equally at ease describing milita...more
Stirling's characters are a bit clumsy and often interchangeable, and I still don't buy that so many people would suddenly drop everything and become Wiccans so quickly. Romance is particularly oddly written - if any one character ever shows remote attraction to another, you can guarantee the attraction is mutual.
The title is also misleading - the titular war doesn't begin until the last 20 pages, and I assume the rest will play out in the concluding volume of the trilogy.
Stirling's attitude in...more
The title is also misleading - the titular war doesn't begin until the last 20 pages, and I assume the rest will play out in the concluding volume of the trilogy.
Stirling's attitude in...more
(See my review of Dies the Fire for my thoughts on this series as a whole). This is the weakest in the series, mostly because it jumps between a bunch of new characters in England (with an even more convoluted political system than the US) and our old favorites from the first novel. And the war doesn't even happen in this book, it happens in the third, so poor titling, Stirling. On the other hand, Stirling continues to world-build to good effect, and I like that he jumped 8 years forward so we d...more
Stirling's post-apocalyptic world grows and develops from "Dies the Fire". Another compelling read.
I don't habitually read hundreds of pages at a go, except for books like this. Customarily I read in half hour segments, and take a week to read a book of this length. I read this one in two days, or maybe three, between long work shifts.
There are intrigues, battles, charming protagonists, pathetic wretches,more battles, evil baddies
people on the cusp between, and much treatment of developing s...more
I don't habitually read hundreds of pages at a go, except for books like this. Customarily I read in half hour segments, and take a week to read a book of this length. I read this one in two days, or maybe three, between long work shifts.
There are intrigues, battles, charming protagonists, pathetic wretches,more battles, evil baddies
people on the cusp between, and much treatment of developing s...more
Good, not great. As many other reviewers mention, there is a lot of extraneous fluff. We get five or six pages of one of the characters essentially walking from his sheep herd to his house (sure, it was good for showing a different side of the character, but really?), yet not a single page describing the voyage from England to Oregon of the Tasmanian ship?
Also, I found the timeline style of the second half slightly gimmicky (jumping back and forth as the tale is told over dinner). Sure, it works...more
Also, I found the timeline style of the second half slightly gimmicky (jumping back and forth as the tale is told over dinner). Sure, it works...more
There's much to like about this book, but unfortunately much to annoy too. On one hand, Stirling creates some good characters, with fascinating quirks, but on the other, these characters are too absolutely good or bad to be terribly interesting. There are blessed few conflicts built into the plots within the households of the Mackenzies and the Bearkillers, other than the conflict between Signe and Lord Bear over the paternity of Rudi Mackenzie. This shortage of relationship drama makes the char...more
I really enjoyed the first book of this saga. The premise is interesting, a modern America stripped of technology, forced back into a feudal state, a very interesting post apocalyptic world. The characters are also interesting, but the plot plods. The plot is painfully slow, so slow that the title of this book, The Protector's War, never even happens in this book!!!!!!!!!!! How can you title the book The Protector's War and never even get to the war? I found myself skipping a lot of pages. I giv...more
I love good post-apocalyptic science fiction. What I do not love is a story that is so unbelievable that it would make me stop reading a series after the first two books. I loved the initial premise of the Emberverse series and really enjoyed the first part of the first book, "Dies the Fire". However, when everyone West of Portland ( the McKenzies?) becomes Wiccans, (not a bad thing mind you) wears kilts and speaks with a brogue, I realized that Mr Stirling had lost me. Throwing in the Englishm...more
This is the second book in S.M. Stirling's Change series. I enjoyed it, but I did not like it as much as I did "Dies The Fire" (first book in the series).
Part of the problem was the shifts in date and perspective. Even though they were clearly delineated in chapter sub-heads, it was not until more than halfway through the book that Stirling let the reader know that the incidents were being related during a group conversation. Once that happened, it made much more sense.
This book takes place nine...more
Part of the problem was the shifts in date and perspective. Even though they were clearly delineated in chapter sub-heads, it was not until more than halfway through the book that Stirling let the reader know that the incidents were being related during a group conversation. Once that happened, it made much more sense.
This book takes place nine...more
Started it on a Saturday afternoon, finished it on a Tuesday; that alone should tell you that I tore through this book with even greater haste than the first in the series. Granted, there was five hours on the plane mixed in there, but regardless, I couldn't put this down, sneaking in five minutes here and there as time would allow. Though I began to appreciate it in the series opener, I really felt that descriptions of nature, its sights and smells, reached the level of bucolic bounty that had...more
Jul 22, 2010
Benjamin
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
fiction,
fantasy,
science,
pacific,
northwest,
2006-read,
post-apocalypse,
first-edition,
edition
As the second book in the "Change" series, Stirling continues to deliver in the highly speculative setting set in the Pacific Northwest. I have loved reading this series, mainly because I am familiar with many of the place settings where the adventure unfolds. Furthermore, Stirling scratches the itch in all nerds and geeks that ask themselves "what if present day humanity was thrust back two hundred years, technologically speaking, in the blink of an eye". Not everyone would appreciate this plot...more
It was interesting to read this immediately after "How to Read Novels Like a Professor." I quickly noticed how Stirling violated convention by sharing several of the main characters' thoughts (written in italics). It worked here because so much of the meaning comes from the interactions between people and the cultural dynamics in this post-Change world. All 486 pages pass quickly through non-stop action in 3 different locations. It's mostly an escapist piece, but I do find this series offers tho...more
This book has me a bit torn. I do love the characters and the plot. But both suffered in this book, with the end leaving us...um, about the same place as the beginning. Most of the book seems to just be a showcase for how the world has changed, and all conversations are engineered to give us more information about this. This comes across pretty wooden, as do the love stories, even the bad attempt at a love triangle. Also, the writing is very ham-handed. He never gives you a hint if he can bash y...more
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Stephen Michael Stirling is a French-born Canadian-American science fiction and fantasy author. Stirling is probably best known for his Draka series of alternate history novels and the more recent time travel/alternate history Nantucket series and Emberverse series.
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“You can learn by listening, or by getting whacked between the eyes with a two-by-four. I always found listening easier.”
—
4 people liked it
“Grief is the tribute we pay the dead," she said, matter-of-fact sympathy in her voice. "But they don't ask more than we can afford to give. They've never really gone from us, you know, those we love; they're part of our story, and we of theirs.”
—
3 people liked it
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Dec 01, 2010 09:48pm