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Dislocated to Success #1
Dislocated to Success
Iain Bowen's 'Arose from the Azure Main' is one of the most popular and acclaimed timelines on AlternateHistory.com. Beginning with the dislocation of the United Kingdom from 1980 to 1730, the effects are predictably enormous.
In 'Dislocated to Success', Norman St John-Stevas, Viscount Fawsley, one of the story's best loved characters, looks back on the extraordinary event and what followed it, in 'memoirs' written fifteen years after what has become known as 'the Dislocation'.
In 'Dislocated to Success', Norman St John-Stevas, Viscount Fawsley, one of the story's best loved characters, looks back on the extraordinary event and what followed it, in 'memoirs' written fifteen years after what has become known as 'the Dislocation'.
- GenresAlternate History
234 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 7, 2016
9 people are currently reading
9 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 1, 2023
This's another small-press-published book arising out of the online alternate history community. In this case, it's an adaptation of an online-written "timeline" where 1980 Britain (complete with Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher) appears by an unexplained event in 1730 Europe. Specifically, this trilogy is written in-character as if it were the autobiography of Norman St John-Stevas, who, in the story, becomes Foreign Minister and leads Britain's relations with the "downtime" world.
The device of an in-universe biography works well in many ways, such as showing character and perspective, which Bowen does well. He obviously has some experience with local politics, and it shows - both in his original timeline and here. The story and worldbuilding are also beautiful, and if Bowen had to pick one perspective to tell it from (rather than the many interwoven perspectives of the original timeline) he absolutely picked the right one. I still mourn some of the points that were dropped (like the fragile relations with the American colonies which our in-character author wasn't in the right place to see; or the young Frederick the Great's time in Britain, which would obviously have been dropped for public relations). But, some things obviously had to have been abridged for publication. And having read both, I'm glad to have gotten the narrator's voice and personal observations in exchange.
The device of an in-universe biography works well in many ways, such as showing character and perspective, which Bowen does well. He obviously has some experience with local politics, and it shows - both in his original timeline and here. The story and worldbuilding are also beautiful, and if Bowen had to pick one perspective to tell it from (rather than the many interwoven perspectives of the original timeline) he absolutely picked the right one. I still mourn some of the points that were dropped (like the fragile relations with the American colonies which our in-character author wasn't in the right place to see; or the young Frederick the Great's time in Britain, which would obviously have been dropped for public relations). But, some things obviously had to have been abridged for publication. And having read both, I'm glad to have gotten the narrator's voice and personal observations in exchange.
November 1, 2019
This is a concise summary of a much larger project by Bowen examining the consequences of the United Kingdom from the year 1980 being translated through time to the year 1730. How would Margaret Thatcher's Government cope with the consequences of this - food shortages, dealing with European neighbours run by Enlightenment monarchs, struggling with American troops in the country whose country doesn't exist yet? Many alternate history scenarios have examined this kind of idea, but only Eric Flint's 1632 series can compare in terms of just how detailed and well-researched it is.
This book focuses on a narrative told by Norman St John Stevas, whose expertise in this era means he becomes Foreign Secretary. The result is an interesting and amusing ride in which the reader enjoys the delightful absurdity of Spitting Image-era political heavyweights interacting with figures like Frederick the Great and Bach. But, though the author has a wicked sense of humour, this is always secondary to the depth of research and plausibility on offer here. Highly recommended for those who are either interested in 'In the Sea of Time' scenarios, or who just want to learn more about interesting historical factoids of the 1730s (or, indeed, the 1980s!)
This book focuses on a narrative told by Norman St John Stevas, whose expertise in this era means he becomes Foreign Secretary. The result is an interesting and amusing ride in which the reader enjoys the delightful absurdity of Spitting Image-era political heavyweights interacting with figures like Frederick the Great and Bach. But, though the author has a wicked sense of humour, this is always secondary to the depth of research and plausibility on offer here. Highly recommended for those who are either interested in 'In the Sea of Time' scenarios, or who just want to learn more about interesting historical factoids of the 1730s (or, indeed, the 1980s!)
August 17, 2016
Fascinating concept and I loved the attention to detail that makes the setting work out. However, the political memoir format made it somewhat inevitable that some of the big events are happening "off screen" as it were, which I found disappointing. That said, the narrator's voice is often amusing in a dry, perhaps cat-ish manner and makes for an enjoyable read. Hopefully other books in this setting will come out.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews