Rating: 
Summary: Ragin' Raj
Review: I liked this book. Yes, as other reviewers have noted, there are many unexplained historical notes in the alternate universe Stirling's created. But, that said, it would have required another 200 pages to have filled us in on everything, and then what would Stirling do with the additional bits he could give us in (I hope) several sequels. There's a bit of Kipling, true, and a Gunga Din quality to several of the minor characters, but that's what made it work for me. In addition, the Great Game theme of the Russian/British posturing throughout most of the 19th century is continued into this 21st century with a good deal of style.I did not think that there was as much of a caste issue as some reviewers apparently perceived. Quite the contrary. The sense was that ethnic and religious intermixing was fairly common - or at least not uncommon - and not much thought of. It may have been an extension of some of the British 19th and 20th century attitudes, but it came across to me as more of a riot of cultures, the major characteristics of which were recognized withough being deprecated. Plus, given the names of various parties, even within the Royal Family (look at John II's other kids' names in the appendix), it appeared as if Stirling was making a conscious effort to assure that in 'his' universe, these things were less of an issue than they would be/are in our own. The dialect and the linguistic melange were very much on and it was easy for me to become immersed in the culture the book portrayed. Yes, King was a bit stiff, like something out of a novel that G. A. Henty might have written 100 years ago, but it seemed appropriate to his own 'caste' as well - precisely what would be expected of a British gentleman who's an officer in an elite fighting regiment. The nice thing about stereotypes in this context is that it makes it easy to place things in their proper box and get on with the story. One tiny nit that Sterling can fix in the next book: the appendix of the Royal Family shows Edward VII being succeeded by his son George IV. Sorry, George IV was Victoria I's uncle, preceding William IV. He means to say George V. This has to be so because the alternate universe didn't occur until 1887 and Prince George had been born by then. Irrespective of that, there already had been a George IV. Delightful read, all in all! Bill Boswell
Rating: 
Summary: Great book, though a few disagreements
Review: As a fan of alternate history, I really enjoyed this book! I thought it created an excellent background and future and left me wishing for more. There were many parts that at first I questioned, then, as I got further into Victorian history, some of those doubts then disappeared (for instance, I first questioned the cannabalism, the complete collapse of Europe, etc, even in the wake of such a disaster....)
I hope the author expands his series to examine other parts of this alternative world. (I especially like the tie-ins to our world through the Russian mystic).
However, one thing I do continue to argue with, is how Hinduism seemed to swallow up Christianity, while the other major world religions continue in a revived and even thriving fashion (ie. Islam, Judaism, Sihks etc). While the book featured at least one living example of each of these world religions (and an anti-christianity devil worshiping religion), it had not one representative of an orthodox christian. I felt this lack did not do justice to the religious fervor of the Victorians, of whom these English were descendants.
I realize that modern post-empire British are not the world's best examples of church goers today, but that is more closely tied to their experiences during the 20th century than to the 19th century British. In this respect anyway, I felt the author sold his history making short.
How would a greater influx of Christians have delt with the untouchables? After all, the Victorians did create the Salvation Army, the only church based on the British Royal Army Manual! As well as create the methodist offshoot of the Anglican church in the 18th-19th centuries....
Rating: 
Summary: The setting is the best character in this novel
Review: The Peshawar Lancers is yet another alternate reality science fiction novel set in a world where a meteor shower or comets or asteroids rained down on earth and wiped out half the world's population in the late 19th century. This leads to millions of British, French, and Russians fleeing south to forge new empires or simply continuing their imperialism as active participants rather than distant rulers. It's an interesting idea as the story is set in a British India that not only never died at the hands of Gandhi and Indian nationalism, but is actually bigger because millions of Britons have come to physically reside in the British raj and they seem the most at home in the far northern province of Kashmir (quite timely what with the active conflict between Indian and Pakistan over that predominantly Muslim region) with its European climate. The technology is only slightly more advanced than the late 19th century and some of the Europeans who remained in the north have become cannibals for some reason that is not fully explained. The British have merely entrenched themselves as the upper caste called the sahib log (or ruling people). We get hints at how the French have established themselves in North Africa and I kind of wish we could have seen more of the Casbahs, but perhaps in another novel. What seems a bit strange is the depiction of the Russians as devil-worshipping cannibals who flee to their empire's southern territories in Central Asia and apparently they now eat the natives and sometimes each other I guess. It's never really explained (at least to my satisfaction) why the Russians worship Satan or are cannibals still. It's as if they are simply all barbarians (along with the Arabs who now rule an empire stretching from Hungary to Iran) and the British and French are the good imperialists. The noble English are represented best by Athelstane King, a good soldier who follows orders and yet seems to have a great deal of empathy with the natives. He has his Sikh subordinate who comes from a long line of Sikh subordinates (ah, the wonderous caste system which allows one to always know one's proper place) and then gets an Afghan tribesman to pledge allegiance to his cause in exchange for gold (now that I can understand). In addition, Mr. King has a remarkable sister who is something of a feminist and a scientist and she is perhaps the most well rounded character in the story because her brother is so one dimensional it's maddening sometimes. This is true of nearly all the characters. There is no depth of emotion or range. Everybody is one way or another. The Sikh is loyal yet proud, the Russian seeress is fragile yet alluring, the Afghan is stubborn and also proud, and the assortment of Englishmen and women are all walking stereotypes. The royal family is wayyyy too understanding and good-natured and perhaps is the least dysfunctional royal family in history! The French emissary is mysterious and yet seems to have all the skills of a soldier rather than a diplomat. And then the Russian villain who is possibly the most one-sided of all. He is pure evil and would probably eat his own mother if he felt that Satan wanted him to dine that night. At first the simplicity of the characters seems appropriate since we are first introduced to them, but they never really evolve. This is perhaps part of the homage that Stirling pays to the stories of Rudyard Kipling and films like the Bengal Lancers, but I wanted to see some changes. The story is predictable even if some of the events are not. With all of that said, the setting is still intriguing and I would be interested to read about other parts of the world as long as it isn't another long novel. A short story or novella about French North Africa or Australia or the Americas I could see myself looking forward to. I wanted the story to break more of the conventions and be daring. Why do the English curse by revering Krishna for example? Why would Christians pay homage to Indian deities when neither Muslims or Christians in India do the same? I can see them adopting the native dress simply so that the population won't feel totally alienated and resentful though. And one would think that there would multitudes of mixed Anglo-Indians walking around and perhaps adding even more character to the story, but we never meet one. Even Indians mix the castes I would imagine. Nonetheless, I would recommend reading this book if you are looking for an easy read and have time to kill and can find it at your local library or a used bookstore. If you like Kipling and want to read something that pays homage to his work then this book will also interest you. If Stirling writes a sequel (and I imagine he would in such a vast and interesting setting) I hope moves away from one-dimensional characters and perhaps shaves his cast down to a smaller group that could be more well rounded next time out.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting, but frustrating
Review: I picked up this book in anticipation of a Kiplingesque-romp through a modern-day British raj. However, Stirling is no Kipling, and Athelstane King, his main protagonist is no Kim. In storytelling, a hero needs to have a flaw to overcome - but King is just a little too perfect to identify with. The story itself is entertaining enough, a pastiche of Russian-versus-British enmity lifted from 19th century India.
But oddly, what frustrated me most was the cannibalism. Yes, after the asteroids hit the earth in the late 19th century, and civilization is reduced to rubble, Europeans everywhere become cannibals for about a generation or more. Some persist at it for two centuries.
Cannibalism as a way of life, men as prey - for very good reason, like incest, no culture makes man the main course. There's almost always something better - and healthier to eat. Just as incest can engender genetic monstrosity, cannibalism can make you sick. A variant of mad cow disease has been found among the cannibals of New Guinea, for example. Eating your own kind can kill you. Besides, carnivores just don't taste so good!
Stirling should have done a little more research into this; since otherwise the impact of the asteroid hit was fascinating, and as others have said in their reviews, some of the best part of this book.
Rating:
Summary: A good old-fashioned rip-snorter
Review: A comet shower strikes the earth in 1878, rendering Europe and North America largely uninhabitable and forcing the British Empire to move to India. In 2025, dark deeds are afoot and Captain King of the Peshawar Lancers must take steps. The plot of this book is not very important--it's sort of a cross between "Lives of a Bengal Lancer" and "Beau Geste" (there's even a mention of Fort Zinderneuf) It's best summed up by the book's chief character who says, "After all, if a story has vile villains, daring exploits and supernatural mysteries, tradition demands a beautiful princess, too." The real magic is the beautifully drawn Anglo-India of 2025, the details of which seem just right and the five appendices which spell out the way the background was developed.
Rating:
Summary: Worth reading, but not up to Stirling's previous work
Review: No need for me to rehash the book's outline, enough of that is already posted here. Stirling is a master of alternate history, and both his "Draka" and "Nantucket-thrown-back-in-time" series are marvellous. In my opinion, this one could also have been, had he but refrained from introducing the fantasy element of timeline-prescient ESP, and had instead simply stuck with his basic alternate history theme and its consequential developments. So even while I recommend this as an engrossing read, I don't think it merits more than 3 stars.
Rating:
Summary: Good Alternate History
Review: A good book in the recent trend in alternate history works. How anyone could get enough into a complex society like the Indian caste system to project a plausible extension from an early history catastrphe plotline is beyond me. It comes out as a great story, though.
Rating: 
Summary: An intentional G.M. Fraser derivative?
Review: Certainly not up to the standard of Fraser's excellent Flashman series! I can't help but think it must be intentionally paying homage to its superior, and to other Northwest Frontier fiction and nonfiction. The "native" detail which impresses some reviewers could have been lifted straight from Fraser and from John Masters' autobiographical "Bugles and a Tiger". But where Stirling seems to be winking at us is in naming the Pathan who eventually accompanies the Anglo-Indian protagonist and his Sikh brother-in-arms: Ilderim Khan. As any Flashman fan knows, this is the name of Flashman's alter ego when in disguise as a Pathan. After encountering this character, it's rather hard to think the rest is anything but a bit silly.
Rating:
Summary: King of the Peshawar Lancers
Review: The Peshawar Lancers is not part of a series at this time, but leaves enough unexplained aspects of the culture to support other novels. It is much more upbeat than the dysutopian Draka series, but does contain a small echo of that society in the Cape Viceroyalty. It also echoes somewhat both the General and Islander series. Unlike the Flashman stories, all the cowards in this novel are villains or dupes. In the mid-1870s, a "violent spray of comets" has rendered the European climate unsuitable for agriculture. England has moved much of her population to India to take advantage of the remaining croplands. Technology has not advanced much beyond the prior level and has even regressed in many areas. Air travel exists by means of dirigibles and rail travel by steam locomotive. The navy is still using steam powered ironclads and the army still has lancers. Vehicle engines have advanced only as far as the Sterling cycle. Biology and analytic engines, however, have advanced significantly. The social climate is somewhat more flexible than the Victorian era, although there are still many who think women should remain in the home, and King John II does not think it odd that women are working scientists. One woman, Cassandra King, is an astronomer working on a project to detect possible colliding objects. She has accompanied a 34 inch mirror back to Oxford, the university city, where armed men attack her associates and attempt to destroy the reflector. Her brother Athelstane, a Captain of the Peshawar Lancers, has just returned from a punitive raid over the Khyber Pass and is asked to meet with a Political Officer, Sir Manfred Warburton, who introduces him to Colonel Henri de Vascogne of the Empire of Algiers and France. Warburton also conducts a fairly thorough examination of his knowledge and attitudes. Returning from his meeting, Athelstane is attacked by a Thug. Later, Cassandra and Athelstane meet Warburton in Delhi. Thus starts an adventure story in the tradition of Kim, but with modern overtones. This story is densely twined within the culture of the Indian subcontinent; it portrays the people, customs, and language in a realistic and culturally consistent manner. Even the British Imperium is true to Victorian society intermingled with the British Raj, with some advances both social and technological. Although the British Empire is less sophisticated in many ways than contemporary society, it is much richer in the traditions of the Indian and neighboring peoples. Like the India of Kipling's time, this society is rampant with violence and intrigue, but with even higher stakes. Stirling makes this story come alive with a people faced with disaster, but carrying on as best they can, while also trying to improve their society. He draws his heroes and heroines from many ethnic and social backgrounds and uses them to introduce the many facets of this culture; his villains are also well developed even if not treated sympathetically. Recommended for those who like exotic locales, intelligent and courageous characters, and high adventure.
Rating:
Summary: Feels like Rudyard Kipling
Review: Another ingenious alternate history novel from Steve Stirling. He throws in a fascinating amalgam of 19th century Britain and India. Along the way, you get to learn a bunch of Indian words and, at least I did, salivate over the food descriptions. The basic premise is that of a comet almost destroying the world, via many years of dust being thrown into the upper atmosphere, and inducing harsh winters. Plus of course the massive tidal waves from the comet's impact. He draws on recent scientific work on mass extinctions of the dinosaurs, and the nuclear winter hypothesis that arose in the last years of the Cold
War. Patriotic American readers may not be thrilled by Stirling's scenario. What is left of the United States is populated by howling savages. And the British Raj lays nominal claim to North America. Though it barely bothers to enforce it, so irrelevant is the region. As if the American Revolution never happened. Europeans may not feel any better. There are cannibals on the Rhine, and what is left of French culture huddles along North Africa. The British Empire has decamped to India, with the aristocrats merging into the Indian upper castes. The bad fellas are cannibalistic Russians, worshipping the demon god Chernobog. This is the only unfortunate aspect of the novel. The evil doers are totally cardboard. The crux of the actions happen in Afghanistan and the North-West Frontier of our Pakistan. The battle scenes are written with Stirling's usual flair in such matters. Plus, of course, his signature description of the rural landscape. Those of you who have read his General or Nantucket series will recognise this. He has clearly positioned this as the start of a new series, given the amount of careful research he has done. Comparable, perhaps, to that which he put into the Bronze Age for the Nantucket series. We have much to look forward to.
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