Rating: 
Summary: Good continuation of the World War series
Review: This book is for those who read Turtledove's World War series, liked the idea of an Alien invasion during WWII, and wanted to know what happened next. I'd say it is unlikely that we would have progressed so quickly with captured technology but on the whole this book is an entertaining way to spend time.
Rating: 
Summary: Where was MLK?
Review: The cover has pictures of Ayatollah Khomeini, some Nazi guy, and then Martin Luther King, Jr. The Ayatollah was an off-stage player, referred to a number of times. The Nazis were all through the book (the storyline about Johannes Drucker and his family was pretty good). But I did not see Martin a single time. It's possible that I missed him as I became less interested in a couple of the storylines, but I don't think so. I think Martin just was not in the book. Now would nonviolence have worked against the Lizards? I don't know, but it would have been a hell of a ride.
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Summary: Oh my, how the mighty have fallen...
Review: I read this a month ago, so all the characters names but Straha have left my memory, so bear with me. In Worldwar, much of the interest for me was that since a massive global conflict was going on there was a sense of urgency..who will win, man or lizard? Nuclear bombs upped the stakes, will the world be a nuclear wasteland in order to get rid of lizard domination? And most of the characters were at least interesting. Here in Colonization there is an armistice, and so there's 600 pages of...nothing really happening. Lizards grumble about "oh, how did they advance in technology so fast?" about 5000 times, colonists moan on how the humans haven't been tamed, and all the humans just react to what the lizards are doing for the most part. The whole "Lewis and Clark" subplot was interesting, but doesn't resolve. And that girl-raised-as-a-lizard character got on my nerves really really fast. The French woman's subplot was boring. Like Worldwar, the tale is told by the common man - there is a meeting with President Earl Warren and Molotov is a major character, but for the most part the average joe tells his tale. This could be a good or bad point depending on your pov. Don't get me wrong, it did have its moments. I liked the scramble to bring down the French woman's brother, which stretched across the Atlantic. Straha as always is a great character. I think I'm in the minority, but I like the Molotov subplot. The Chinese woman's story was even more interesting than in Worldwar, since Mao and the Communists are still guerilla fighters 20 years later. Basically, I waited until the paperback came out for Second Contact and I'm waiting for the paperback for Down to Earth. I heartily recommend you to do the same.
Rating:
Summary: Which book is he writing?
Review: Second Contact suffers far too much from being the first book in a series. Rather than come up with a linear plot structure, Turtledove picks up some of the old characters and plot threads from _Worldwar_ and adds some new ones. His choices are sound. The plot is interesting. But it doesn't develop. At the end of the book there are more questions than there were at the start. If I picked this book up without having read _Worldwar_, I'd feel gipped. As it is, I can live with it, but I wish he'd tried to pack at least a mini-conclusion into volume one.
Rating:
Summary: When will you make an end?
Review: I first discovered alternative histories with Turtledove's "Guns of the South," which was, I hasten to add, self-contained in a single volume. That just goes to prove it _CAN_ be done.Lately, the best of the AH authors seem to be vying with each other to see how many volumes they can stretch their stories over. One is reminded of the Star Wars "trilogy of trilogies" master plan. Even that would be fine with me if (a) the series moved along at the pace of Star Wars and (b) the author, like George Lucas, told us in advance what the master plan _IS_. Even granting that real history never stops, can we make some rule that says alternate histories should? Can we at least say "This is the first volume of a trilogy, so don't be surprised when you reach the end with issues still unresolved"? As it is, I feel as though I've subscribed to one of those Time-Life book series, where they send you a book every month, but never tell you whether you're even close to finishing the series. My Time-Life WWII series ran for some 40 volumes. Here's hoping Turtledove runs out of plot sooner than that. Piers Anthony can write books in his Xanth series, seemingly forever. Ditto for Philip Jose Farmer and his Riverworld series. That's OK because, although the setting is the same for each book, each is pretty much self-contained, and the story being told has a resolution at the end. Continuing history series are a different thing altogether, and deserve to have a resolution somewhere along the line. Here's hoping that Turtledove decides to make an end before I'm either too old to read, or have lost interest altogether. Consider this my vote for Truth in Authorship. Before selling the first book, tell us how many more we can expect to buy.
Rating:
Summary: Goodbye, normal bedtimes.
Review: I don't know what it is about Turtledove's alternate history series; they just grab me and pull me in. Admittedly, the Colonization and Worldwar series are better than most--his Great War series doesn't quite do it for me. But this? This book left me red-eyed and sleepy for a week as I stayed up hours past my normal bedtime to read it. It's addictive. It's been pointed out that he doesn't have much of a flair for characterization--probably true; but in this case, the story unfolds like a character itself. The very thought of taking a great idea like Worldwar--and then showing the results of it! Ah! Would that more authors thought to do the same. In this installment, the ever-bellicose Germans rumble closer to renewed War with the Race over Poland, while the rest of the free powers jockey for diplomatic position. The usual cast of characters is back--several representative POVs from the Race, as well as one in each of the major areas of the world's conflict--The Russies in Palestine, Liu Mei and the Communists in China, Yeager and his family in the U.S.A., Goldfarb and company in the U.K., and the new replacement German rocket-jockey. Each has interesting viewpoints and comments to make upon the state of their societies with respect to one another and to the Race--who are really a metaphor for our present-day humans looking back on history and judging it to be as insane as it really was; the race's cultural standards are fairly close to modern-day America (are considerably more 'moral' in many respects, to be honest). It's a lesson in pseudo-history, but one that's valuable. I recommend to anyone even remotely interested in history.
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Summary: Colonization: Turtledove's Follow Up to 'WorldWar'
Review: Harry Turtledove's 'WorldWar' series was one of the great novels of science-fiction alternate history. Sadly, the first novel in the follow-up to that series doesn't quite measure up. Taking place twenty years after the events in 'WorldWar,' 'Colonization' tells the story of a world shaped by the Lizard invasion during the Second World War. The peace made after the war left four super-powers that continued to butt heads into the 1960's- The United States, Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, and the territories held by the alien Lizards. The story is far too long and at times it really bogs down. Also, like many of Turtledove's novels there are too many characters to really find anyone to root for. Most of them are far too one-sided and don't seem to contribute anyting to plot. However, this novel does do it's author justice in many of the ideas expressed and his handling of many historical characters. Himmler is the Fuhrer of the German Reich who still ruthlessly continues the programs of racial purity, Molotov, now the leader of the Soviet Union, must battle with hostile forces within his own government, and in the United States a project with galactic reprecussions is in progress, all this under the unfriedly eyes of the Lizard aggressors. Not one of Turtledove's great novels, 'Colonization: Second Contact,' is a lot of fun for history buffs and has enough wonder for mainstream science-fiction fans.
Rating:
Summary: A bit different from his usual work
Review: This isn't exactly a dissapointment but rather a different book from Turtledove. Obviously 20 years can take quite a difference. Notibly I found myself asking why Japan was not really involved. Also why didn't the Germans do anything about Spain. I figure if they helped Franco that they would have helped him again. All in all it is a good book. If you are into space aviation you might like it as well. The only thing he should put in this new series however is a Dramatics Persona of all the characters like the last one. Can't wait to see some sort of merchandising on this stuff!
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing, tedious, and dull
Review: This book was a major disappointment. There is not much action. The few plot points are repeated over and over. The later third of the book starts to build to a climax, and then fails to deliver. There is no plot resolution. None. Perhaps the next book in the series may resolve the storylines started here, but I don't have the patience or interest to find out.
Rating:
Summary: Keeps to the same rules as the WorldWar series!
Review: Colonization: Second Contact is a good book to read and leaves off where the original WorldWar series leaves off. But, this time in the 60`s, with three superpowers: the United States, the Greater German Reich and the Soviet Union. All three of which are overshadowed by the Hyperpower that is the half of Earth held by the Lizards, or The Race. As in the previous WorldWar series we are given the stories of a dozen different characters: ranging from ordinary Lizards and their Fleetlord in Lizard-occupied Earth; to human characters all over the globe, including the leaders of the three superpowers. Needless to say we come across a good number of familiar faces from the previous series. All of which makes this book a captivating tale, which even if your not a sci-fi fan, you will enjoy reading this. All you need is a little imagination, something the author of these works, certainly has a very large dose of!
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