1632 is a well known novel by historian and novelist Eric Flint.
It is unusual in that I have listed it in more than one series; but the series seems to have taken on a life of its own and is being ‘written’ by more than one author, similar to Niven’s Man-Kzin War series.
The premise: a West Virginian mining town suffers a mysterious event that pushes them back to Central Europe in 1632 (hence the title) – smack dab in the middle of the Thirty Years War, which would not have been a nice time of history to trip into.
The Americans promptly set to rebuilding a democratic community, no matter what change they have to make in existing European establishments.
I enjoyed this book, but it was very much a ‘leave your sensibilities at the door and just enjoy the ride’ experience, because it is so cringingly American.
I mean, yes, it is handy that every person seems to have a cellar full of guns and ammunition, because they are going to have to defend themselves, but… the ethics involved don’t seem to occur to the characters. For example, they take over one town by sending in a young woman armed with a 9mm so she won’t be raped, so that when she shoots dead an assailant in cold blood they have an excuse. Her actions in killing him aren’t in question – those of the people who sent her in specifically to do that must be.
But those are minor quibbles; if you like alternate history, you will enjoy this book.
A little more research has shown that the volumes published so far are:
- 1632, 2000
- 1633, 2002
- 1634: The Galileo Affair, 2004
- 1635: The Cannon Law, 2006
- 1634: The Ram Rebellion, 2007
- 1634: The Baltic War, 2007
- 1634: The Bavarian Crisis, 2007
- 1635: The Dreeson Incident, 2008
- 1635: The Eastern Front, 2010
- 1636: The Saxon Uprising, 2011
There are also a series of books called “The Grantville Gazette” which are essentially fanfic; short stories by fans.
