Rating: 
Summary: What if Royalty didn't die
Review: This is one of the first HT books I've read. Saying that I live in the new england area and have enough Euro blood to be a poster boy for the EU!(Scot, Irish, French, Itaian etc) While the premace is still a long ways off consider this. There is still royalty in Britian, as well as some in Japan, France, Monaco, Sweden and Italy. The UK still hold and even to this day defends some of what it has. Remember the Falklands war in 1982? Anyway technologically things are different but airships are making a comback using helium. Some of the characters are interesting to see: Richard Nixon as a used car salesman, Ted Kennedy etc. The only thing I missed is that you don't really see the painting they were talking about in the book. HT told me in a chat room awhile back that this might be made into a movie. I forgot which studio bought the rights
Rating: 
Summary: Not for me.
Review: I usually enjoy Alternative History, but most of this book was not good in my opinion. The very idea of still being a British subject (even though I am an American expatriate) leaves a very bad taste in my mouth. I have heard Brits brag that America would be better off if we were still a colony, but that talk is just blusster. Also the idea that blacks would still be second class citizens (which this book advocates) does not bode well for a British controlled America.
Rating: 
Summary: Not a bad book, not a good book. . .
Review: Perhaps an unfortunate book. It would make a great movie though -- which most of Turtledove's really great books would not -- and I suppose that is the point of Dreyfus' presence.Insofar as this book does Alternate History, the AH is very interesting, but the spin the book takes on it never seems *necessary* and therefore one wonders just how plausible it is (even though, once again, none of it is unbelievable and all of it is, again, interesting). Perhaps this could have been remedied had the book really been an alternate history book. But alas, it is not. Insofar as this book is a detective novel, it is a fine one, well done. But no one read this book to find a good detective story, and the detective story, while a good mechanism to take us all over North America and see how life has differently evolved, overwhelms the Alternate History so that you spend a great deal of the time you're reading wishing that it would simply go away. Again, it would have been a good detective book; but alas, it is not. In short, this book isn't quite anything it seeks to be, except perhaps a screenplay. If it is meant to be just that, it will be a great one. But it is by no means up to Turtledove's normal quality, and unless you are just extremely interested in the topic or have unlimited time, I would urge you to find his many, greatly superior books instead.
Rating: 
Summary: Brillant combo of alternate history and noir
Review: Just as the title of this review states, Turtledove and Dryfuss have created a brillant alternate history that instead of focusing on the actual differences between timelines, uses them as a wonderfully atmospheric mystery that reminds one of the Thin Man series or Marlowe. When the painting goes missing, our authors keep us guessing on whodunit and makes us feel for our hero. If this had been a film back when noir had been popular, we'd have seen Hollywood's finest casts assembled, with the likes of Cary Grant or perhaps even Bogart in our lead. Frankly, I'd love to see this done as a film today. Simply wonderful, fans of Turtledove may not rank it as high as some of his other works but newcomers, and mystery fans, will find this a masterpiece. I think Dryfuss should consider writing more.
Rating:
Summary: Spare us!
Review: This is a what if scenario based on the idea that America never got out from under the thumb of the British and the British Empire still exists. It's set in America and the authors would have us believe everyone is still bowing and scraping before the British King-Emporer (!) Charles III. It's every character's dream to put Sir in front of his name, including the main man and his sidekick. We have people like this in Britain. We despise them. The underlying story is of a murder but this gets lost in the depiction of a seriously unpleasant society where no one questions the authority of a political system based on class and privilege, or the right of an unelected monarch to political power. On top of that, it's overlong, badly written and boring.
Rating:
Summary: The World Without Yankee Engineering
Review: I bought this book months before and set it aside. During a rainy afternoon, I finally broke down and read this delightful alternate history of the world without the power of the United States. I appreciate the authors not hitting the reader over the head with the changes that occured in the world without the Yankee genius. It's not my favorite Turtledove, but I is a very interesting and moving story about the world without a revolutionary spirit. I recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Good story; mediocre writing...
Review: I only started on the Two Georges because of Turtledove's name. I've read three of his other novels and pretty much enjoyed them all to a degree. I was expecting a more military story, but the cop thing was refreshing. I'm not really clear on why this world without the American Revolution would be so technologically inept. Perhaps the U.S. really did have a lot to do with the machines of today across the globe. This Tom Bushell guy was certainly not likable-- a big drunk, jackass was what he was. It would have been better had honorable Sam Stanley been the focus. The investigation flowed smoothly, however, with all the right twists and turns. I was not expecting the traitor at first, but eventually it became clear and it was really exciting when they nab the scumbag. Usually, in other Turtledove novels, the historic figures are used well, but not in the Two Georges. The governor of the NAU could easily have been Bill Gates and the Steamer King could have been Jerry Lewis-- Martin Luther King and Richard Nixon (come on, we all knew it was!) really held no significance. The writing wasn't great, though, with too many refrences to tea, whiskey, tobacco, and food (WAY too much food!). And the British spelling of certain things was disconcerting for a Yankee like me. Nevertheless, The Two Georges wasn't bad, but, of course, it could have been better-- A lot better.
Rating:
Summary: Unreadable!
Review: I was very excited to read this book when I first heard about it. The scenerio sounded very interesting. However, the book is so bad it is unreadable. I gave this book about 75 pages and got nowhere with it. For me the author is very hit or miss. Guns of the South and How Few Remain I felt were very good books. The authors WWII vs. Aliens from outerspace book I also found unreadable. I had the same problem with his Great War saga. But as for this mess, please do not waste your time or money.
Rating:
Summary: Fine, but not as good as Pavane...
Review: This is perhaps one of the more ambitious AH works. The idea of a world without the American Revolution was commendable, interestingly the subsequent French Revolution failed because of it. As a result, Napoleon Bonaparte sided with the royalists; there was no Napoleonic Era, although the imperialistic countries of Great Britain, France, Russia, German States, Austria, etc, continue to bicker. Guns are up to WW2 standards, while the fastest mode of trasport are airships. There are no petroleum cars, but steam transports are abundant, which was interesting to note. Monoplanes are coming into existence. I marvelled at the city names - New Liverpool, for example - and that Alaska was still owned by Russia. The detective story itself was gripping, and cleverly written, and the characters were first class. I believe Steamer King Tricky Dick was somebody famous in our own timeline? One of the Presidents? My only complaint was the print itself, far too small, I needed a magnifying glass to read it!
Rating:
Summary: Interesting Theory
Review: Harry Turtledove and Richard Dreyfuss are about as likely a duo as Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky (wait, forget I said that). It is indeed a strange pairing, but the manage to get the job done. I found this to be an enjoyable fantasy novel. And that is my point-this book is fantasy. We didn't lose the war, of course, so all that has happened since then in this book are merely ideas of two men. And I for one dug into it. I was VERY impressed on how they had the entire history of the world mapped out since the surrender of Washington to King George, and even more so regarding the story. Let's be honest-the idea of a man risking his professional name and rank on retrieving a painting of an event over 200 years ago smacks of Hollywood, but that can be forgiven when you bear in mind who wrote it. I did predict the end about five chapters before I approached it, but even then I found this to be an entertaining read. My suggestion is to not read this novel with the intent to anaylize and theorize...it's a moot point. I belive we should read this novel the way the author's intended...as a delightful piece of fiction, and an enjoyable read. This book won't change to world, but it didn't harm it, either.
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