Fox at the Front

Fox on the Rhine #2

by Douglas Niles, Michael Dobson

The Third Reich has been routed...

But the war is far from over. A new adversary is poised to attack on the eastern front.

Former opponents George S. Patton and Erwin Rommel must join forces to neutralize the remnants of SS forces bent on carrying out the Reich's "Final Solution" in Eastern Europe. They are unaware of an intended Soviet land grab that could lead to the Stalinist occupation of postwar Europe and an ongoing Cold War that might destroy any chance for a lasting peace in our time.

Genres: Alternate History, Fiction, Military Fiction, War, Action, World War II

661 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published November 1, 2003

About the author

Douglas Niles is a fantasy author and game designer. Niles was one of the creators of the Dragonlance world and the author of the first three Forgotten Realms novels, and the Top Secret S/I espionage role-playing game. He currently resides in Delavan, Wisconsin with his wife, Christine, and two Bouviets, Reggie and Stella. He enjoys playing his guitar, cooking, and visiting with family.

Reviews

[Neil · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was delighted to find this book after looking for it locally off-and-on for over 10 years. While it was a fun book to read, I do wish I had reread the first book (considering how long it has been since I read Fox on the Rhine); i think I would have enjoyed this book more. In any case, it was a fun read. It moved at a good pace, and it kept me interested from start-to-finish. I assumed the Allies "would win" in the end, but I was not 100% certain especially when the Russians began their offensive against the Germans after their betrayal in signing the pact to stop fighting with the Germans in the original book - I had forgotten about that, but I was never 100% certain they would succeed. As I am not 100% familiar with the major historical characters in the novel (I tended to read more about the Pacific Theater of War and the Battle for the Atlantic than I did what happened in Europe during WWII when I was younger), it seemed like the authors did a good job keeping the characters in line with their historical counterparts while developing their characters further in the book, so that was cool.

It was really funny to me how "familiar" the Soviets were with their "the didactic proclaims this - that we will win in the end because the Capitalists are so corrupt!" throughout this book. I say it is "funny" because they sound so much like the Communists in Harry Turtledove's four-book series Worldwar where an alien species invades Earth in the early stages of WWII. I swear, these authors lifted lines straight from Turtledove's books, they sounded so familiar! Hahahah

I was glad that Communist political prick got his in the end. I guess being killed in the nuclear explosion or burned to death from the intense heat or cooked by the radiation was too good for him. But he still got his in the end. While I was glad he got his just desserts, one can only wonder who many "good people" lost their lives because of political officers like him.

The Russian photographer with whom he fell in love - I found myself wondering if she were based on . . . a Soviet sniper who survived Stalingrad and had numerous kills to her name. I think her name was . . . Ludmilla, maybe? In any case, the woman in the book was pretty cool and hard-core; I liked her character.

Part of me was surprised at how huge the Russian military was at the end of the war in Europe. Intellectually, I "knew" it was huge, but I truly did not realize how huge it was. This book really helped set the tone on how powerful the Russians were and what they could have accomplished if they really had wished to continue pushing West to the Atlantic Ocean. I think the Allies would have been hard-pressed to stop them. I could be wrong, but I never fully realized how powerful their forces were until reading this book. So that was pretty cool to discover and learn something knew.

The ending was something else. The atomic bomb going off like it did and wiping put the Russian forces was pretty awesome. It was written in such a way it felt like the Russians were getting their comeuppance for the way they behaved (signing the secret pact, then re-entering the War and surrounding Berlin while killing Allied troops in the process).

At the same time, I was somewhat disappointed with it. I really wish the authors had taken a different route with it. I wish they had written the Americans as being further along with the atomic bomb and having had more success than "we" had in real life. I would have loved to have seen the second Russian army group get destroyed by a second bomb and Stalin be humiliated even further after his arrogance and stubbornness in abiding by the agreement(s) laid out to end the War in Europe. The Americans (Allied) forces seem to always be written in such a way as having these huge obstacles to overcome and then they (usually) win in the end, but at great cost and the skin of their teeth.

Also, how does this affect the fight with Japan? The book just "ends" with a blurb about how the face of Europe had changed. There are mentions before the bomb is used about how the B-29s and their special bombs were intended for Japan. But nothing is mentioned of how much longer the war in the Pacific lasted because the two atomic bombs were not used to shock the Japanese into surrendering. It was such an odd ending for the book; one would think the "historical blurbs" would have mentioned how the B-29s and their payload being used in Europe would have impacted the war in the Pacific, if it made that theater of the war last longer or not.

Also, the "Berlin Airlift" is enacted in the latter part of the mid-40s instead of after the War. Why wouldn't this movement of supplies and ammunition have also adversely impacted the War against Japan? One would think this movement while the war was being raged in the Pacific probably would have had some kind of detrimental impact upon the outcome of that Theater of Operations (even if it meant extending the War in the Pacific for a longer period of time). I was both satisfied and dissatisfied with the ending (more dissatisfied than satisfied), but it was still a fairly strong ending.

I did enjoy most of the character interactions throughout the book. I thought they were well-written and believable. I don't know how believable it would be for Rommel to behave the way he does, though, when he stops leading the German Army and starts "serving" (his penance) in the concentration camp that is liberated by German and American forces. That was a little too unbelievable for me, no matter how "honorable" Rommel might have been or perceived himself as being. As I said above, it moved at a fast pace and held my attention from start-to-finish; I had a hard time putting it down. I am glad that I found a copy of the book and was finally able to read it.

[Johnny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Was Erwin Rommel really described as a "fingerspitzengefuhl?" I don't know if "finger-spitting fool" was ever applied to the Desert Fox in real history, but I suspect from knowing the kind of work that Doug Niles puts into his novels (we're in the same writing group)that Rommel was given this slang appellation describing having "one's intuition at one's fingertips."

Of course, it's hard to tell where the authentic history and the alternate history separates in the marvelous alternate history novels by Niles and Dobson (the Japanese one was just as well crafted as these two on the western front). I always thought I would hate alternate history, but when my brother (David) gave me Harry Turtledove's terrific novel (Ruled Britannia) where Shakespeare writes a play to incite rebellion against occupying Spanish forces (after the Armada defeated Sir Francis Drake) and I received a review copy of one of Harry Harrison's books where the glorious South won the War of Northern Aggression (or War Between the States--certainly not a Civil War since that would validate the imperialistic actions of the abolitionist states and Lincoln's false motive of holding the "Union" together). Harrison's view was so bizarre that Upton Sinclair (yes, he of The Jungle and Oil) had become a populist president.

Having enjoyed those books, I am much more open to alternate history. And now, I commend to all readers Fox on the Front, the novel where Roosevelt lives until he gets to see the results of the Manhattan Project, where Rommel lives to fight side-by-side against Patton, and where Himmler lives to become a somewhat more stable fuhrer than the one all the furor was about. I love the fact that Niles and Dobson understand that there is tragedy in war. As a result, there are several characters that we care about that actually die and there are some we despise that keep rising Rasputin-like from the page. I enjoy the fact that the "bad guys" really believe in their causes (at least, initially) and that some of the villains acknowledge the tragic flaw in themselves that brings them to the brink of or over the edge of disaster.

Unlike most reviews, I've probably already given too much away in this short description. So, since I have spoilers, let me keep going. This is the great "what if" that considers the likelihood of Patton succeeding in his dream of reaching Berlin ahead of everyone else and being set free to go toe-to-toe with the Soviets. This is the great "what if" that considers alternate avenues of diplomacy, espionage, and double-cross. W. Averrell Harriman is depicted as a savvy diplomat and superspy Kim Philby plays a fascinating role (as he did in real life--a dangerously fascinating role). And my favorite general of WWII, the one of which I'd write Leadership Secrets of Marshal V. Zhukov, manages to be at the center of one of the most interesting historical twists in the book.

In addition to great battle scenes and interesting characters, there were some thought-provoking lines such as the following paraphrase of Goethe, made on p. 404 of the paperback: "The moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it now." There are several such paraphrases or quotations sprinkled through intense situations.

Finally, to those who are skeptical of the value of alternate history, consider this thought about history, in general.
"All those with understanding of how the process of history works know that muddiness at the detail level is the common experience of all history, and that minor discrepancies in the historical record are not in themselves sufficient to disprove the larger picture." Indeed, even by considering the "what if"s of a history that never actually was, we may gain a greater understanding of what really DID happen...and more importantly--why!

[Jota Houses · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una buena continuación para Fox on the Rhine, tras la rendición de la Wehrmacht de Rommel, comienza la carrera para llegar a Berlín entre americanos y soviéticos. Solo las Waffen-SS defienden la capital alemana atacada por dos frentes pero la divergencia con la historia real se acumula y el avance soviético amenaza con desencadenar una 3ª guerra mundial sobre las cenizas de la anterior. Con la aparición estelar de Kim Philby y el proyecto Manhattan la historia cambia para siempre (aunque tampoco tanto).

[Marijan Šiško · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dostojan nastavak prethodne knjige, vojnopolitički triler koji se čita u jednom dahu. Ocjena je niža samim tim što je knjiga nastavak, pa gubi ponešto na originalnosti. također, mnoge su situacije razriješene već u prvoj knjizi, pa je i faktor iznenađenja manji.

[Direwolfgavin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very detailed A/U and has some very interesting insights on these two men. Rommel hated Nazi Germany and never officially joined the Nazi party. Patton hated everyone, Nazis and Russians included!

[Not HG · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow.
Just wow. I thought the first book was incredible as it was, but this one blew it out of the water. Damn. I really can't say much about this book that I didn't say on the review of the first one. The battles are still awesome, the characters still great, and the descriptions are even better in this book. The hopelessness of the Germans as they fight even though they know they can't win it's so vivid, you feel like you're next to them.
Amazing book, even better than the incredible first. The only reason I didn't give them five stars (subject to change) is that I'm still reeling from the perfection of the Gettysburg Trilogy and I know it's clouding my judgment.

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great conclusion to the alternate history duology that began with the assassination of Adolf Hitler. The book actually left me wanting more and wished the authors would go a Harry Turtledove route and continue to go through history to examine how the world would be different with what happened in this and the previous novel, Fox on the Rhine. But a superb book and a great ending to a solid pair of "what-if" books.

[Keira F. Adams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Continuation of Fox on the Rhine, this time Rommel and the Germans duking it out on the Eastern front. Same as before, love the premise (I'm a sucker for good alternate history) but again there was something 'off' about the writing style that just rubbed me the wrong way.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed the first book a lot and this one carries on where the first one left off. An interesting look at a "might have been". Very much recommended to fans of alt-history.

[Zork]

In the tradition of the bestselling novels Fatherland and SS-GB, Fox on the Rhine was the heart-stopping novel of military suspense that showed what might have happened behind the scenes and on the battlefield had a single incident of WWII been different. Now, that alternate war continues in Fox at the Front.

July 20, 1944.

A group of disillusioned officers of Hitler's high command plant a bomb that successfully kills the Führer. For a moment, there is an opportunity for surrender, peace, and survival for all of Germany ... but Himmler has other plans.

An armistice is signed with Stalin's Soviet Union. New battle lines result in a very different Battle of the Bulge, where the legendary Desert Fox, Erwin Rommel, meets Blood 'n' Guts George Patton.

These two masters of modern cavalry tactics must join forces and push to the East, where the hungry bear of Stalin's army is readying a land grab of all of Eastern Europe, claiming war spoils they ill deserve.

From battlefields to board rooms, Niles and Dobson spin an action-filled military thriller, so rich in detail you believe that it could have occurred.

**