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Game/Book Reviews / Accidental ####
« Last post by Steve Walmsley on January 04, 2025, 07:27:15 AM »A quick book recommendation. I seem to be addicted to a series of books by Ward Wagher called the Parallel "N a z i" (apparently I can't write that word - represented by hashmarks) series. Book 1 is called the Accidental ####. I am on book 3, having read the first two in a couple of days 
The premise is completely ridiculous. A German history professor from West Berlin in 1982 accidentally gets transported into the body of Herman Schloss in early July 1941. Schloss is a fictional character in a universe very similar to our own, but not identical. He is the leader of the #### Party (not the Fuhrer), having previously assassinated Martin Bormann, the previous holder of the post. The transfer takes place just as Hitler is killed in a place crash, two weeks before Barbarossa, putting the German government into crisis. This is all covered in the first few pages.
The professor, who is also called Herman Schloss in his own timeline (probably ours) has excellent historical knowledge of that timeline, but doesn't know about 1941 Schloss. So he is thrust into confrontations with Himmler, Hess, Goering, Goebbels, etc. without knowing anything about the immediate people around him (his own staff, children, sister, etc,). He tries to do the right things from his perspective (save Germany from the ####s, avoid the Holocaust, etc.), but within the constraints of the situation and his own position of #### party leader.
The writing isn't fantastic, but its good enough. The research is excellent, with only a couple of very minor errors so far, and the world-building - which is the main thrust of the story - is the addictive part. It leads to some very fun anti-historical outcomes. The story is mainly told from the political perspective, with some grand strategy elements and occasional tactical combat. There are a couple of obvious contrivances, but in general the writer makes it plausible enough to maintain disbelief.
Anyway - back to book 3
The premise is completely ridiculous. A German history professor from West Berlin in 1982 accidentally gets transported into the body of Herman Schloss in early July 1941. Schloss is a fictional character in a universe very similar to our own, but not identical. He is the leader of the #### Party (not the Fuhrer), having previously assassinated Martin Bormann, the previous holder of the post. The transfer takes place just as Hitler is killed in a place crash, two weeks before Barbarossa, putting the German government into crisis. This is all covered in the first few pages.
The professor, who is also called Herman Schloss in his own timeline (probably ours) has excellent historical knowledge of that timeline, but doesn't know about 1941 Schloss. So he is thrust into confrontations with Himmler, Hess, Goering, Goebbels, etc. without knowing anything about the immediate people around him (his own staff, children, sister, etc,). He tries to do the right things from his perspective (save Germany from the ####s, avoid the Holocaust, etc.), but within the constraints of the situation and his own position of #### party leader.
The writing isn't fantastic, but its good enough. The research is excellent, with only a couple of very minor errors so far, and the world-building - which is the main thrust of the story - is the addictive part. It leads to some very fun anti-historical outcomes. The story is mainly told from the political perspective, with some grand strategy elements and occasional tactical combat. There are a couple of obvious contrivances, but in general the writer makes it plausible enough to maintain disbelief.
Anyway - back to book 3
