Euclid's Wall

by Michael McCollum

A World Asunder

A century after civilization fell in a day and night of tectonic cataclysm, scattered communities have regained a fraction of what humanity lost on that Day of Destruction. One such is the Duchy of Hampshire on the southern tip of England.

Hampshire is at war with the Califat de Normandie. It is a war that has been profitable for merchant sea captain Ethan Scott of the Sailing Barque Hellespont. Despite the money to be made, Scott prays for the war to end. Each time he puts to sea, he risks his ship and the lives of his crew on his ability to evade the Norman raiders in the Channel and the Eirish Sea. It is a gamble he will inevitably lose if he keeps at it too long.

The Duke of Hampshire has problems of his own. War is expensive. If her doesn't find additional resources soon, he will be defeated. The Duke plans to send an expedition to North America to discover weather the fabled wealth of old still exists there. For that, he needs a ship.

Scott's chance meeting with a beautiful woman presents both men with the solution to their respective problems. Soon Hellespont sets sail for America and the mysterious Wall that scholars believe precipitated the fall of civilization, and may yet destroy the world.

Genres: Science Fiction, Adult Fiction

Hardcover

First published October 22, 2012

About the author

Michael McCollum was born in Phoenix, Arizona, in 1946, and is a graduate of Arizona State University, where he majored in aerospace propulsion and minored in nuclear engineering. He is employed at Honeywell in Tempe, Arizona, where he is Chief Engineer in the valve product line. In his career, Mr. McCollum has worked on the precursor to the Space Shuttle Main Engine, a nuclear valve to replace the one that failed at Three Mile Island, several guided missiles, Space Station Freedom, and virtually every aircraft in production today. He is currently involved in an effort to create a joint venture company with a major Russian aerospace engine manufacturer and has traveled extensively to Russia in the last several years. In addition to his engineering, Mr. McCollum is a successful professional writer in the field of science fiction. He is the author of a dozen pieces of short fiction and has appeared in magazines such as Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact, Amazing, and Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine. Mr. McCollum is married to a lovely lady named Catherine, and has three children: Robert, Michael, and Elizabeth.

Reviews

[Tammie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book started out ok enough. It was a bit slow, but I really was intrigued by the very beginning with the scientists. Little did I know, the book wouldn't get back to that and what really happened until close to the end.

I didn't particularly buy into the premise that the world is still set back to 1800s type technology 100 years after a catastrophic event that destroys much of the world. I found it inconsistent that scientific knowledge was all destroyed, but yet there was plenty of historical knowledge still floating around. I just think it more realistic that some scientists would have survived, that knowledge would have been passed on, and people would have started working to get things going again a lot sooner. I definitely don't think it would have taken 100 years for these people to go and discover what gets discovered near the end of this book.

There is a bit of adventure in this book and I did like that, but unfortunately the romance overwhelmed the story to the point that it was not very enjoyable. The awkward, oddly detailed sex scenes were cringe worthy, and to be honest I've never read a SF book written by a man before this one, that focused this much of romance and sex.

Overall, I just didn't care for this book as a whole and I doubt I will read anything else written by this author.

Review also posted at Writings of a Reader.

[Derrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

ok book but not great. science fiction part was good but the writer foray into the romance left tons to be desired. The fact that the writer is an engineer is plain to see. All in all ok but towards the end i was thinking to myself, "could you just wrap this up please."

[KayDee · Rating 2 out of 5]

That was it!?!? So glad I skimmed half this book.

The writing is meh. It’s choppy, too much details on non important situations and awkward; especially the love scenes.

I like Ethan Scott. He is a dependable character who never makes a wrong decision which a unrealistic. His wife is smart and she drives me bonkers. She doesn’t have much depth and she is too predictable.

Their lives scenes are very uncomfortable. “She washes each testicles”, 🤢 “she grabs for his hardness” 🤮

The story has some interesting aspects but is very anticlimactic…snooze fest. How they solve the program was very original and boring…😴

[Ryan Rauber · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excellent idea for a story, though it kind of petered out at the end. This takes place 100 years after the fall of civilization, when society is back to sailing on ships from the 18th century. An expedition from England takes off for America on a journey of discovery to see what has happened since society fell. I enjoyed this part of the book most, finding out what happened in America, rather than the main storyline. There is also a romantic subplot that was painful to read. The ending was a little forced, too. Fans of post-apocalyptic fiction might enjoy this more than an average reader.

[Fred · Rating 4 out of 5]

What would have happened if CERN created a black hole that nearly destroyed the planet? If you guessed that it would recreate conditions of the 18th century Age of Discovery, then this swashbuckling novel would be better categorized as non-fiction.

There aren't enough gluons in the universe to hold together this mix of Jules Verne era, sci-fi, naval adventures with bits of romance novel. That's ok. It's a fun read with a good plot and enough sci-fi to keep it heady. Bonus points for lack of vampires and zombies.

[Adie Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great premise. As the others commented, the romance sounds a bit awkward. The author would profit from reading Neal Stephenson's work. I actually wish there were more to the story - the Epilogue leaves me wishing there were a part 2 - maybe about Christa & Scott's grandchildren - a revisiting of the Wall, maybe a visit to Memphis - more hair-raising action that they capably escape. Recolonization of North America by the Duchy of Hampshire, etc., etc..
It could be a great franchise!

[Clyde · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three and a half stars rounded up to four. Euclid's Wall is a good after-the-fall story, with a really unique cause of the fall. It is also a high-seas, tall-ships adventure story with some solid science and a bit of romance thrown in. I enjoyed it.

[Paul Doyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the premise of this book interesting. A cataclysm has created a near extinction event, and the world is back to sailing ships. The event that nearly caused the end of the world is not over, and may in fact be getting worse. So a mission is sent to find the source, and if at all possible shut it down.

The adventure is enjoyable, and it was an entertaining use of my time.

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of those rare and imaginative books that was a pleasure to read and hard to put down. The catastrophe that McCollum imagines and its aftermath to the planet is one that I never would have conceived of.

[Andrew Garfield · Rating 4 out of 5]

I definitely enjoyed the book but felt it was much longer than it needed to be. Sometimes it lacked the action that I was hoping for.

The plot of the book I thought was pretty well thought out. Overall I would recommend.

[Paladin1420 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book a lot, as I did McCollum's other books. Not too deep, not too serious but a quick, enjoyable story that moves along without too much friction. A little bit empty at the end, would have liked more details to wrap up, but I don't think he left too much room for a sequel.

[Ashley Furrow · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great plot and concept... but I was so annoyed by the writing style, especially when it came to the "romance". Still a good book, but not worth the time!

[Ben Cardinal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clever premise and a fun quick read. The romance scenes were ... awkward. Also it seemed a bit anticlimactic in the end but still a good book.

[Idigchili · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great concepts
Gripping storyline
Soft ending :-/