Rating: 
Summary: Interesting how different are the views of the Victor
Review: amcdona2 gave a very thorough review of the intriguing
readability of this book. But, I thought I point out
something that continued to plague me while reading it.
I found it interesting the way Harris portrayed the Nazis in
the way we today would common view the Soviets, yet the
USSR was portrayed the way we see the Nazis. Each is guilty
of its crimes, some quite heinous, but we view the Nazis
crimes as evil and unthinkable. Harris, in this alternate
history, views the Soviets with the same contempt we Americans
are raised to view Nazism with contempt and everything evil.
Rating:
Summary: Surprisingly well worth reading
Review: This is a new way to look at an old topic. The author
draws a compelling picture of the way things might have
been, and it's surprising how believable he makes it.
Rating: 
Summary: Bleak but fascinating vision of a successful Third Reich
Review: In this book Robert Harris creates a very bleak "what may have been" world if the Nazis had defeated the Western Allies in WWII.
Whilst the crux of the story is the search by SS investigator Xavier March for the truth behind the murder of a retired middle-ranking
Nazi official, the compelling aspect of the book is the manner in which Harris has created his vision of the Third Reich in 1963.
From SS cadets studying at Oxford, to an EU dominated by the imperial state of Germania, to the grandiose ugliness of the Berlin architecture
of Albert Speer and the continual dangers posed by the 20 year war in the Soviet Union, Harris paints a picture that forces the reader to
contemplate the possible end result of the National Socialist experience in Germany. A great read.
Rating: 
Summary: Credit where credit is due
Review: Not a bad read at all. "Fatherland", at first, reminded me of Orwell's "1984", Winston Smith and Xavier March are men who seem similar in attitude. Both are hard working, intelligent fellows who have a nagging sense of doubt in their minds about the society in which they live. "Fatherland" is all about a conspiracy which is slowly uncovered by March after he discovers a body on what appears to be a usual case. He later goes on to discover that it is the body of a, once, leading Nazi official, one who attended the mysterious Wannsee Conference in January 1942. It is a little predictable in style and reminds me of 1984, i.e. divorced man in his forty's who wins the women he initially suspected of being his enemy, whilst slowly uncovering the truth of the society in which he lives. Whilst this book may seem a little predictable, I do recommend Harris's work, what I found impressive about "Fatherland" is that Harris uses actual figures from Nazi history, such as Artur Nebe, and Reinhard Heydrich, even though they died in the war. This appealed to me as it incorporated historical people and documents as well. I recommend "Fatherland" and believe that both this and "1984" will fit together well on your bookshelf.
Rating:
Summary: Fatherland
Review: I tend to go for books with exotic settings. Books such as "Brick Lane" or "The Bark of the Dogwood." So it was only natural that I would find Robert Harris's "Fatherland" appealing, for not only is the setting exotic, but the premise is also. What would have happened if Nazi Germany had won WWII? Harris explores this, and a few othe things. My hat's off to Harris, who seems to have tried very hard to avoid cliches and name dropping for effect. He instead creates a psychological thriller equal to any Dan Brown novel. Kudos.
Rating:
Summary: Great idea- decent execution
Review: I like studying WWII. It's a bit of a hobby, I suppose. I also like the rhetorical. What if..... Engaging fisction? Obviously a huge hobby. Well, all three of those presented themselves in one package on the cover of this book.
While I did read this expecting to be enthralled, I knew that sometimes expectations are not met. This was the case with 'Fatherland.' The reviews here were all quite favorable. I expected to much, is all.
As for the book itself, taking away my expectations, it's not terribl, by any means. It's quite good, as a matter of fact. The character development is okay. I never really cared for any of the characters. The plot is pretty good. The pace is pretty good too. I wasn't too happy, however, how things were left at the end of this.
It's difficult to really recommend this to anyone who likes gripping fiction. It's probably easier to recommend this to someone who instead, reads a lot of history.
Rating:
Summary: Another one-of-the-best books ever written
Review: This is a clkassic, a novel so rich in characters, thrills, mystery that it simply marks as one of the best books ever written. Germany wins WWII, controls all of Europe, but Hitler has a secret which he has been guarding with his special units from the rest of the world and the new German generation. One man slowly starts to uncover it and must face the truth, all that he believed in as all of his life and faith becomes a nazi nightmare. Incredible achievement.
Rating:
Summary: Great story, cop-out ending?
Review: As a history major, I looked forward to reading "Fatherland" based on the comments in Amazon's customer reviews. And the reviews are accurate--it's a terrific story that investigates the many possibilities that might have happened had the Axis won WW 2. However, the ending builds and builds--but only to a conclusion which is generously described as anti-climatic. I like an effective open ending as much as the next reader, but it just doesn't fit this particular novel.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining and informative too
Review: I tend to either read and enjoy very strong fiction or else I read non-fiction in subjects that interest me. Because one of the categories of fiction I enjoy is the mystery/thriller I thought that because this book was set in an historically based alternate reality and it was a mystery thriller I might really love it.
I did enjoy the read and it is an entertaining book, however, it's written by a journalist and it's his first novel, so, because I'm so used to superior fiction, I found it a bit flat. However, I'm not saying it's bad or that I didn't stay up late to finish it, because it is a good read and I did learn some stuff, and I did stay up late to finish it off.
I'll say the ending sort of disappointed me, I ended up feeling like I'd been taking down a long path to view a sight and then wasn't allowed to look. I think some authors believe that they can leave the reader with an ambiguous ending and it'll sell as "artistic" or something. I disagree. I read your book, give me a payoff, please.
Rating:
Summary: Very Intriguing
Review: A compelling thriller, said amid the "alternative history" of a Hitler victory in World War II. Quite fascinating. My only disappointment is that the other did not fully develop the historical aspects, which might have been quite interesting.
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