1636

Seas of Fortune

De: Iver P. Cooper

Narrado por: George Guidall

A new addition to the multiple New York Times best-selling Ring of Fire series. After carving a place for itself in war-torn 17th-century Europe, citizens of the modern town of Grantville, West Virginia, the up-timers, and their allies take on continental America and Japan!

A cosmic catastrophe, the Ring of Fire, strands the West Virginia town of Grantville in the middle of Europe during the Thirty Years War. The repercussions of that event transform Europe and, in a few years, begin spreading across the world. By 1636, the Ring of Fire's impact is felt across two great oceans, the Atlantic and Pacific.

Stretching Out: The United States of Europe seeks out resources - oil, rubber, and even aluminum ore - to help it wage war against the foes of freedom. Daring pioneers cross the Atlantic and found a new colony on the Wild Coast of South America. The colonists hope that with the up-timers' support and knowledge they can prosper in the tropics without resort to Indian and African slavery. Then a slave ship visits the colony, seeking water...and the colonists must make a fateful choice.

Rising Sun: In 1633, the wave of change emanating from the Ring of Fire reaches Japan. The Shogun is intrigued by samples of up-time technology, but it's a peek at what fate had in store for Japan in the old time line that has the greatest impact - setting events in motion whose tremors are felt thousands of miles away and for years to come, as Japan pulls back from a policy of isolation and stakes out its own claim in the brave new world created by the Ring.

©2014 Iver P. Cooper (P)2019 Recorded Books

Fragmented

Each volume of stories contains a great number of characters, plots and facts. I wish that transitions had been less abrupt and frequent and that the character development had been deeper. The end of the first book felt unresolved.

A fun side story

1636 Seas of Fortune is a sound, worth your time side story to the long and ever growing Ring of Fire series that has been continuing since the first ( and was originally suppose to be a single stand alone novel ) 1632.
Iver P. Cooper easily draws you in and introduces you to the other side of the world in this alternate history. You don't need read this story to follow the main story arc but you would be missing an interesting tale if you pass it by.
George Guidall again gives his steady voice to the narration as he has done from the start.

The second half of the book was an unexpected and excellent surprise!

I don’t know if it was in the description so spoiler warning
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The second half of the book is from Japan’s perspective and is a pleasant change from the predominantly German then European politics the series is known for.
I’m going through the whole series and highly recommend it!

major retcon

storyline is a major retcon of the ring of fire series timeline. the stories themselves barely develop and seems amateurish. i listened to the whole thing despite it giving me no joy in the doing.