Why am I passionate about this?
I started telling Sea Stories around February 1992, when I reported to the Recruit Training Center, Great Lakes, Illinois. Since then, I’ve been entertaining anyone who would listen with my hyperbolic storytelling, a loose relationship with the facts, and a total disregard for modesty. Writing these stories really showcases my experiences not only in the Navy but as a student of history and international relations. I couldn’t possibly write the whole story without having received my BA in International Relations from the University of California at Riverside and my Law Degree from Southern Methodist University.
Alex's book list on cold war turns hot military thrillers
Why did Alex love this book?
When writing Alternate History, authors are often challenged between world-building and character-building. It is difficult to do both well. Colin Salt’s novel approach (and I don’t know if that pun was intended or not, TBH) pays off well, where he clearly divides his book into a deep character dive, with a sprinkling of world-building, followed by a riveting war thriller.
I found the sub-title a bit dubious, but this book really is about love, mystery, and war, and each aspect is well told. In my experience, that combination is very rare. Most authors who can write a badass battle scene tend to embarrass themselves when they try to incorporate a true love story. But Colin easily slides between the two. The Mystery was fun, and I 100% didn’t see it coming.
1 author picked All Union as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.
The 21st Century has rolled around in a world that took a different path from our own. The USSR survived and either reformed or rebranded (depending on who you ask, of course) as the Union of Soviet Sovereign Republics. It survived, but so did the regime of Nicolae Ceausescu in Romania.
In 1998, the Sovereign Union went to war against the persistent nuisance, crushing the second-largest army in Europe in nine days. The regime fell, but its leader simply disappeared without a trace. Time went on, but Ceausescu became a figure like Harold Holt and Jimmy Hoffa, with not one…
- Coming soon!