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The Gamekeeper's Night Dog
The year is 1891 and the British Empire is balanced on a precipice. If the last English Bulldog dies, the empire will begin to crumble and the Boer War will be fought as a Vietnam type quagmire. But if imperial soldiers ride across the African plain with huge packs of fierce Bulldogs at their side, then British martial prowess will be magnified. Armed with this knowledge, David Banner unleashes a lethal combination of war dogs, machineguns, and chemical artillery shells into the killing fields of South Africa. Under this onslaught, history takes a dramatic and violent turn. Through force of arms, he will either extend the Pax Britannica for a thousand years or the world will sink into centuries of meaningless war and destruction.
- GenresAlternate History
490 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2002
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 19, 2012
I fear that the reviews, and ratings have been so far too kind to this novel, quite honestly I felt that it wasn't really so much a work that didn't meet my expectations as it was just a really terrible book.
I'll start out with the basics: Dave Putnam can't write. The dialogue is awful-Putnam clearly believes that there are merely two accents in England: Cockney, and everyone else, the book is itself too long, and I found myself being able to skip great swathes of pages missing nothing of importance. The romantic subplot is horrendously bad even by sci-fi standards, and Putnam also seems to have a pretty poor idea on top of it all of both the political situation of the late 19th century, and the status of race and sex in the 19th century. But, lest these do not deter let us keep in mind that the whole plot of this book comes down to English bulldogs, which are apparently God's favorite dog. God also is engaged in an ongoing war with Satan who acts using proxy nations such as China to bring about the end of the world. But in any case Putnam has us believe that had bulldogs been introduced into the Boer War, that that war would have been quickly won because of them, Britain is thus able to declare war against the Germans, and Russians to create a more just world based around dog fighting, and global capitalism.
Now onto specifics: Zululand never would have become a commonwealth realm, especially not one so quickly. Technological innovation is portrayed as occurring far too rapidly, Winston Churchill did not wield as much influence as he is shown as having, there was such a thing as racism and sexism in the 19th century, and no such thing as "wooden bullets" which are used all the time in the novel to prove how untouchable bulldogs would be in battle.
Ultimately this book is only what I can refer to in the most honest way possible: a gigantic piece of dog shit. English Bulldog shit if you must.
I'll start out with the basics: Dave Putnam can't write. The dialogue is awful-Putnam clearly believes that there are merely two accents in England: Cockney, and everyone else, the book is itself too long, and I found myself being able to skip great swathes of pages missing nothing of importance. The romantic subplot is horrendously bad even by sci-fi standards, and Putnam also seems to have a pretty poor idea on top of it all of both the political situation of the late 19th century, and the status of race and sex in the 19th century. But, lest these do not deter let us keep in mind that the whole plot of this book comes down to English bulldogs, which are apparently God's favorite dog. God also is engaged in an ongoing war with Satan who acts using proxy nations such as China to bring about the end of the world. But in any case Putnam has us believe that had bulldogs been introduced into the Boer War, that that war would have been quickly won because of them, Britain is thus able to declare war against the Germans, and Russians to create a more just world based around dog fighting, and global capitalism.
Now onto specifics: Zululand never would have become a commonwealth realm, especially not one so quickly. Technological innovation is portrayed as occurring far too rapidly, Winston Churchill did not wield as much influence as he is shown as having, there was such a thing as racism and sexism in the 19th century, and no such thing as "wooden bullets" which are used all the time in the novel to prove how untouchable bulldogs would be in battle.
Ultimately this book is only what I can refer to in the most honest way possible: a gigantic piece of dog shit. English Bulldog shit if you must.
April 10, 2012
Actually finished this one a little awhile ago, but never got around to adding it to my 'read' list. Highly recommend if you like alternate history type sagas. There are two more books in the series that I am going to add to my 'to read' list.
November 25, 2012
I tried, i really did. but i just couldn't choke it down. If I had to sum up this train wreck in one word it would be Fart-tarded. If a book that can only be described as Fart-tarded sounds appealing to you, then i wonder what is wrong with you?...SERIOUSLY, WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!?
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews