- Mass Market Paperback: 512 pages
- Publisher: Baen; Reprint edition (Jun 26 2001)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0671319981
- ISBN-13: 978-0671319984
- Product Dimensions: 17 x 10.2 x 2.5 cm
- Shipping Weight: 272 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,281,395 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon
Getting to follow big, bad Byzantine Belisarius around the alt-history battlefield--courtesy of Eric Flint and David Drake--comes in a close second to having your own personal unit of cataphracts. (Although, of course, those cataphracts would be nice to have in traffic.) Following on the heels of Destiny's Shield, the fourth installment in this popular series follows the superhuman general as he harries Malwa troops in the mountains leading into Mesopotamia. He's still got the across-time assistance of the crystal Aide to help him deal with the threat, augmenting his senses and keeping him briefed on the tactics of everyone from Wellington to Turenne. But Link, the Supreme Commander of the Universe, still calls the shots for the evil empire, and Belisarius has to double-time to keep up (especially facing such shrewd field commanders as Damodara).
Fortune's Stroke downshifts the series a notch in terms of sheer Belisarius-meted carnage, because Damodara's Ye-tai barbarians and Rajput cavalry aren't the only show in town. Flint and Drake spend a good deal of time with other characters in the series in other locales, like Kungas and Irene in south India and Antonina in Axum (for a start). But this investment will surely pay off as the series continues, as Belisarius and his cohort close in on the Malwa for good. (And if you're new to the battle, start with An Oblique Approach, the first title in the series.) --Paul Hughes --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From Publishers Weekly
This exuberant romp of an alternate-history novel is the fourth volume of a series (Destiny's Shield, etc.) in which two contending super-beings from the far future try to determine humanity's fate through changing the 6th century A.D. The villain, Link, uses the Indian Malwa Empire as his tool; the benefactor, Aide, chooses the Byzantine Empire and particularly the famous Count Belisarius, its most formidable general. Belisarius's formidable wife, Antonina, plays matchmaker for the emperor of Ethiopia, thus giving the forces of good a fighting navy in the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean. The delightful diplomatic noblewoman Irene Macrembolitissa also plays matchmaker, securing the marriage of the Maratha leader Ragunath Rao to his beloved Princess Shakuntala (a South Asian Princess Leia figure). Finally, Belisarius himself brings the Malwans' invasion of Persia to an end. However, Link has managed to find another human host and is as ruthless as ever, while Aide has developed a raunchy sense of humor from too much association with biological humans. Readers shouldn't take all this too seriously (and those new to the series would do well to read the earlier volumes before tackling this one), but should sit back and chortle while admiring the authors' alternate-technological ingenuity. (June)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fourth in a Great Series !,
By
This review is from: Fortune's Stroke (Mass Market Paperback)
Great, great, great book. I especially enjoy a great series since I sometimes read 2 to 3 books a week. Very engaging, the characters are real and well developed, the plot is very interesting. I generally do not go in for alternate history but this one draws me in for some reason.
3.0 out of 5 stars
Belisarius and the musketeers--Byzantine alt. history,
By booksforabuck "BooksForABuck" (Long Beach, CA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: FORTUNE'S STROKE (Hardcover)
Belisarius has pushed back the Malwa (Indian) invasion of Persia, but the threat remains. While the main Malwa army regroups in southern Persia, their main cavalry force is crossing the Zacros Mountains and threatening northern Mesopotamia. Even the smaller army is large enough to do great damage--and to force the defending Persians and Romans to divide their forces, allowing the main army to attack once more. Somehow, Belisarius must slow the best army the Malwa can bring--yet can even slowing that army do more than delay the inevitable conquest of the entire world by Malwa armies guided by a future intelligence--and equipped with future technology? FORTUNE'S STROKE continues the BELISARIUS Series. Historically, Belisarius was the greatest general of the late ancient world--the man Byzantine Emperor Justinian relied upon in his reconquest of the Roman Mediterranian. In this alternative history, Belisarius is warned by a crystal intelligence of the destruction sought by the future entity Link, and Link's human servants. Using Roman technology and modern knowledge, Belisarius is able to build a small force of musketeers and develop combined arm tactics that combine the best of Robert E. Lee, and Wellington. Although the series continues to be interesting, with engaging characters and vivid battle scenes, FORTUNE'S STROKE is not the strongest novel in the series. Although Belisarius and his allies repeatedly note that the first law of battle is that things get messed up (in stronger language), in fact, Belisarius's plans never actually get messed up (except a minor problem at the very beginning). He seems to have just the right future technology at just the right time to do maximum damage to his enemies. Worse, the most dangerous enemies he faces are clearly being set up to become future allies. I also felt disappointed by the 'clever' Belisarius plan at the end. The entire book led up to this--it seems to me that Flint and Drake could have come up with something a little more, uh, oblique. Authors Eric Flint and David Drake deliver vivid characters along with detailed battle scenes. Although the interaction between Belisarius and Antonia is sometimes a little too precious, most characters become real--even the Malwa and their allies. Fans of this series will definitely want to read FORTUNE'S STROKE as it details a critical period in the war between Rome and the Malwa, continues character development, and even--brutally but realistically--ends the lives of some characters. This book should not be read first--but fortunately, Flint and Drake offer the first three novels in the series for free from the Baen.com Library so this isn't a problem.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another Installment in a Great Series!,
By
This review is from: Fortune's Stroke (Mass Market Paperback)
This book carries on the tradition of a fine series. It has strong character development and good continuity with the previous books in the series. Belisarius continues to vex the Malwa with the assistance of his loyal supporters and Aide(his crystalline guide from the future). It also expands the role of those supporters considerably, making Belisarius seem more human.
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