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Pax Britannia #7
Anno Frankenstein
In 1998 Magna Britannia remains the undisputed superpower of the world whereas, since the Second Great European War, Hitler’s Nazi party has been reduced to the status of an underground terrorist movement. But fifty-five years ago... The Nazis are at the height of their power. Much of Europe has fallen beneath their inexorable march, but with the automaton armies of Magna Britannia poised to invade and bring about a swift end to the war, Germany finds its resources stretched to the limit. What Hitler’s legions need now is a miracle. And a miracle may be what they are about to receive; a gift from the future, something that should not exist in the year 1943, for one man has stolen fire from heaven. But another has followed him back from the future to ensure that history follows its pre-determined course. Ulysses Quicksilver finds himself in Anno Frankenstein where the bodies of the fallen are reconstructed and resurrected that they might fight again. Behind enemy lines, Ulysses Quicksilver must infiltrate the most heavily-defended fortress on the planet, and there face an age-old enemy one last time. Should he fail, history will be re-written and Ulysses Quicksilver will cease to exist, having never even been born at all.
336 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2011
3 people are currently reading
123 people want to read
About the author
Jonathan Green
269 books159 followersJonathan Green is a writer of speculative fiction, with more than seventy books to his name. Well known for his contributions to the Fighting Fantasy range of adventure gamebooks, he has also written fiction for such diverse properties as Doctor Who, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Warhammer, Warhammer 40,000, Sonic the Hedgehog, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Moshi Monsters, LEGO, Judge Dredd and Robin of Sherwood.
He is the creator of the Pax Britannia series for Abaddon Books and has written eight novels, and numerous short stories, set within this steampunk universe, featuring the debonair dandy adventurer Ulysses Quicksilver. He is also the author of an increasing number of non-fiction titles, including the award-winning YOU ARE THE HERO – A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks.
He has recently taken to editing and compiling short story anthologies, including the critically-acclaimed GAME OVER and SHARKPUNK, published by Snowbooks, and the forthcoming Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu.
To find out more about his current projects visit www.JonathanGreenAuthor.com and follow him on Twitter @jonathangreen.
He is the creator of the Pax Britannia series for Abaddon Books and has written eight novels, and numerous short stories, set within this steampunk universe, featuring the debonair dandy adventurer Ulysses Quicksilver. He is also the author of an increasing number of non-fiction titles, including the award-winning YOU ARE THE HERO – A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks.
He has recently taken to editing and compiling short story anthologies, including the critically-acclaimed GAME OVER and SHARKPUNK, published by Snowbooks, and the forthcoming Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu.
To find out more about his current projects visit www.JonathanGreenAuthor.com and follow him on Twitter @jonathangreen.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
June 6, 2011
Unbelievable what Jonathan Green is doing with his famous main character Ulysses Quicksilver. There is hardly a minute without action. And I have to bit on my tongue in order not to tell you whom you will meet ....
Full review in progress ...
Full review in progress ...
May 20, 2011
Ulysses Quicksilver, agent of the crown, jumps into a time vortex pursuing Daniel Dashwood, a madman bent on sharing modern technology with Hitler’s forces and changing history to suit his evil ends. Rewind several decades, to the time of the Second Great War, to Darmstadt. The Nazis are battling the steampunk empire of Magna Britannia, cooking up necrotic super solider in the gothic towers of Castle Frankenstein.
In the forests outside the castle, other forces are gathering. Ulysses’ father is there, proving that dashing good looks and a talent for swashbuckling adventures run in the family, and wondering why his British masters have partnered him with the weakling scientist Dr. Jekyll. The ladies of the Monstrous Regiment as also there to help, but there may be other gothic monsters in the hills…
Those of you that have been following The Eloquent Page for a while are no doubt already aware that there is much love in this corner of the Internet for the Pax Britannia novels written by Jonathan Green. Each new installment is highly anticipated and has always delivered the very best in steampunk flavoured adventure. I was keen to pick up from the cliffhanger that occurred at the end of the last novel, Dark Side.
I always hope that a Ulysses Quicksilver novel will be a frenetic action packed affair. The good news is that this latest chapter certainly delivers. There are chases and fights galore all wrapped up in the outlandish sights and sounds of the Pax Britannia universe. From the outset we have everything from zeppelin chases, Russian vampires agents, philosophical lab made men to steam-powered robot pachyderms.
In this novel our regular hero takes a bit of a back seat in favour of another member of the Quicksilver clan, his father Hercules. The old adage ‘like father’ like son’ certainly seems to hold true. The story takes place when Hercules is in his prime, and we find that he is just as much the gentleman dandy/adventurer as his son becomes. Ulysses isn’t actually seen in the first half of the book but that makes his arrival all the more memorable when he does finally appear.
The other characters are all great fun. The heroic women of the Monstrous Regiment inject a strong female presence, while Dr Jekyll’s alter ego is an unexpected hero. The villains, a role call of suitably menacing Nazis and Gestapo types, are all larger than life but hey… this is Pax Britannia and I would expect nothing less.
I have to admit that I am always a little wary of the use of time travel in novels as I think there is a potential to lose track of the plot if things get over complicated. Fortunately, in this case everything is kept nice and simple and the events in this novel fit seamlessly into the existing time line created in previous installments.
Green’s enthusiasm for the subject matter is evident on every page, you can tell that he has a blast writing these novels. The cheeky blighter delights in sprinkling his text with geeky science fiction references, and if you are anything like me you’ll spot them. On more than one occasion I found myself doing a double-take, and then checking Google to confirm my suspicions about a chapter name or the description of a item.
As a final thought, I have been pondering the best way to prepare one’s self for reading Anno Frankenstein. I believe there are three key tasks you have to accomplish before you begin the novel.
Listen to the theme to The Dam Busters at a high volume.
Watch Where Eagles Dare, starring Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood.
Play the first person shooter computer game Return to Castle Wolfenstein to completion.
Once you have completed these three tasks you will find yourself far more receptive to the Ulysses Quicksilver’s particular brand of derring-do. I can guarantee that they will enhance your enjoyment of what is already a hugely enjoyable read.
In the forests outside the castle, other forces are gathering. Ulysses’ father is there, proving that dashing good looks and a talent for swashbuckling adventures run in the family, and wondering why his British masters have partnered him with the weakling scientist Dr. Jekyll. The ladies of the Monstrous Regiment as also there to help, but there may be other gothic monsters in the hills…
Those of you that have been following The Eloquent Page for a while are no doubt already aware that there is much love in this corner of the Internet for the Pax Britannia novels written by Jonathan Green. Each new installment is highly anticipated and has always delivered the very best in steampunk flavoured adventure. I was keen to pick up from the cliffhanger that occurred at the end of the last novel, Dark Side.
I always hope that a Ulysses Quicksilver novel will be a frenetic action packed affair. The good news is that this latest chapter certainly delivers. There are chases and fights galore all wrapped up in the outlandish sights and sounds of the Pax Britannia universe. From the outset we have everything from zeppelin chases, Russian vampires agents, philosophical lab made men to steam-powered robot pachyderms.
In this novel our regular hero takes a bit of a back seat in favour of another member of the Quicksilver clan, his father Hercules. The old adage ‘like father’ like son’ certainly seems to hold true. The story takes place when Hercules is in his prime, and we find that he is just as much the gentleman dandy/adventurer as his son becomes. Ulysses isn’t actually seen in the first half of the book but that makes his arrival all the more memorable when he does finally appear.
The other characters are all great fun. The heroic women of the Monstrous Regiment inject a strong female presence, while Dr Jekyll’s alter ego is an unexpected hero. The villains, a role call of suitably menacing Nazis and Gestapo types, are all larger than life but hey… this is Pax Britannia and I would expect nothing less.
I have to admit that I am always a little wary of the use of time travel in novels as I think there is a potential to lose track of the plot if things get over complicated. Fortunately, in this case everything is kept nice and simple and the events in this novel fit seamlessly into the existing time line created in previous installments.
Green’s enthusiasm for the subject matter is evident on every page, you can tell that he has a blast writing these novels. The cheeky blighter delights in sprinkling his text with geeky science fiction references, and if you are anything like me you’ll spot them. On more than one occasion I found myself doing a double-take, and then checking Google to confirm my suspicions about a chapter name or the description of a item.
As a final thought, I have been pondering the best way to prepare one’s self for reading Anno Frankenstein. I believe there are three key tasks you have to accomplish before you begin the novel.
Listen to the theme to The Dam Busters at a high volume.
Watch Where Eagles Dare, starring Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood.
Play the first person shooter computer game Return to Castle Wolfenstein to completion.
Once you have completed these three tasks you will find yourself far more receptive to the Ulysses Quicksilver’s particular brand of derring-do. I can guarantee that they will enhance your enjoyment of what is already a hugely enjoyable read.
August 3, 2017
This Frankenmonster did not play a huge part in the story and was German! What’s more, he was betrayed by the “protagonist”, just as the original one had been.
This one, too, was part of a series, Pax Britannia by Jonathan Green, but I hadn’t read any of the other books.
When it comes to what I thought about the book, oh boy, where do I even begin!
1. Riddled with cliches
2. Female characters scantily dressed, supposed to be spies but so incompetent that only the hero could rally them into a functional team
3. Non-stop action makes you think you’re watching a movie rather than reading a book
4. Predictable storyline
5. Severe need of editing/proofreading
and so on…I mean, imagine what it would take to make a book with monsters, time travel, and steampunk elements fail this miserably for me!
One thing useful that I did come across because of this book:
The Vitruvian Frankenmonster aka My Current Wallpaper
P.S. Visit one of the links mentioned below for more details on Project Frankenstein.
BL
BS
WP
LI
ME
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 23, 2012
This is my third attempt at reading some of Green's Pax Britannia work, perhaps my last. It is the first time I can allow myself to give more than one star to one of his books, and this second star may purely be from the fact that I was amused at how the author tried to cram as many classic adventure book elements into this story as possible. Time travel, Nazis, Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde, werewolves, vampires, spies, mechs., rockets, dirigibles... I'm probably forgetting some. Sometimes less is better... and to concentrate on characterization, and perhaps more unique elements to a plot. The writing style itself has improved a little from previous works, but characterization is still flat... and the names have gotten worse. Riddled with cliches, the book is more predictable than a rerun of a sitcom.
October 7, 2013
It has an interesting premise, so long as you don't think too hard (all the changes enacted upon the Pax Britannia universe and The World Wars still happened the same way more or less? What the funk?). Lots of interesting ideas here (the Frankenstein cyber-corpse corps being the frontrunner), but also a lot of derivatives (for example, Jekyll/Hyde is essentially the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Jekyll/Hyde but by way of the Incredible Hulk). The overall plot isn't all that innovative and doesn't go anywhere new. It melds well with the other Pax Britannia books that have come before it (especially when dealing with the intricacies of time travel), but as a stand-alone novel, it leaves a bit to be desired. Overall, it's readable but it could've been so much more.
March 18, 2012
This is a remarkably sustained piece of writing, maintaining momentum more or less from start to finish as one historical or fictional person or creature in turn bursts on to the page. It's a magnificently mad mixture of every genre you can think of from supernatural to horror to science fiction to steampunk to. . . I enjoyed it immensely!
http://opionator.wordpress.com/2012/0...
http://opionator.wordpress.com/2012/0...
November 27, 2012
The was the first book I read in this series, although it's the seventh and it was what motivated me to purchase the rest of them. Green's style of writing is enthralling and his ability to keep a story rolling through this ginormous plot of a story is simply incredible!
The characters are charming, the time period gripping and the villains make it all worth the wait. READ THIS BOOK!
I will say no more, but this is one hell of a book.
The characters are charming, the time period gripping and the villains make it all worth the wait. READ THIS BOOK!
I will say no more, but this is one hell of a book.
July 20, 2013
It's popcorn for my brain. Sure it won't appeal to everyone and it's full of tropes and genre stereotypes. But to me, each novel reads like an action movie and delivers the "block buster" imagery and FUN that I want--even when it doesn't necessarily surprise me. All the fun of the original Indiana Jones movie with a very different steampunk reality than just the "victoriana" we usually get.
And did I mention FUN!
And did I mention FUN!
October 5, 2011
The best of the series so far. Still over-the-top and this installment includes time travel, Jekyll & Hyde, Frankenstein's monster, evil/bumbling Nazis, and even quick homages to Star Trek and the Incredible Hulk TV show.
April 6, 2016
NAZIS. FRANKENSTEIN. WEREWOLVES. VAMPIRES. AIRSHIPS. GENTLEMAN ADVENTURERS. BURLESQUE GIRLS. MECHA. SPIES. DR. JEKYL. MR HYDE. AND MORE.
Utterly daft, utterly brilliant.
Utterly daft, utterly brilliant.
June 22, 2016
What's not to love about an action packed, steampunk, monster mashup.
I enjoyed every moment.
I enjoyed every moment.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews