Theater
O Spies by S. M. Stirling brings back US operatives Luz O'Malley
and her love interest Ciara Whelan. They are sent to Germany
to find out about a new weapons system the Germans have developed.
These American secret agents are the only thing between the
Germans winning World War I and the Americans being able to
foil them.
"I
wrote my intelligence operatives going deep-cover inside Germany
to find it. An early, primitive form of radar was discovered
by a German scientist in 1903, who hoped to use it to prevent
ships colliding in darkness and fog; like many inventions
of the time, it had problems getting funding. In my alternate
history, they develop it further, and it's code-named Projekt
Heimdall after the Norse deity who could see through darkness
and cloud: the Germans were terrible at picking code names
that actually concealed things."
This second book in the Black Chamber series has
less action and more intelligence methods as well as the relationship
factor between Luz and Clara. Besides having to infiltrate
a German plant to find secret plans, they must evade the German
agent, Horst, code-named Imperial Sword who is seeking revenge.
In this alternate history, Teddy Roosevelt is President, and
the US has entered the war a lot earlier than in actuality.
"In
my universe, President Taft, who was grossly overweight, has
a heart attack in 1912, and the Republicans rally around TR
and his Progressive agenda, sidelining the conservative Old
Guard faction. TR was much more popular than Woodrow Wilson,
and without a split in the Republican vote would almost certainly
have won an overwhelming victory. The establishment was terrified
of him because of his radical ideas, and they basically stole
the nomination from him by ballot stuffing, crooked delegate
selection and other dirty tricks.] He then formed the Progressive
Party nicknamed the Bull Moose Party, which pushed Taft and
the Old Guard Republicans into third place; Wilson was elected
with 42% of the vote, TR got 37%, and Taft won 25%. The only
time in our history where an Independent won second place.”
This spy thriller has two very engaging women protagonists.
Readers will have fun seeing the game of espionage played
on a very dangerous court.
Reviews
of other titles in this series
Black
Chamber #1
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