Rating: 
Summary: Mediocre history and poor fantasy
Review: "Into the Darkness" presents an intriguing concept. After a generation of peace, the world of Derlavai is on the brink of yet another global war. In this world Magic takes the place of technology and magical beasts functions as weapons of war. Airplanes are replaced by dragons, submarines by leviathans and tanks by behemoths. Mr. Turtledove is basically present World War II in a fantasy context. Unfortunately the result is far less than the promise of the concept.Mr. Turtledove tells his story from no less than sixteen different viewpoint characters and dozens of secondary characters. With such a cast no one character stays center stage for any length of time and as a result there is little or no character development. There is very little to distinguish one character from another and one setting from another. The result is that every few page the POV changes and one has to stop reading and try to figure out just who the character is and where they are before one can continue reading. The characters and the landscape would have been easier to follow if M. Turtledove has used a real world map and historic characters plugged into a world where magic substitutes for technology. Instead we are left to figure out that Algarve is a stand in for Germany and Valmiera is there in place of France and so on. "Into the Darkness" is the first novel of a projected six-book series but I cannot see how any sort of interest could be maintained for five more books like this one.
Rating: 
Summary: Fantasy and World War II
Review: Alternative history author Harry Turtledove turns his considerable powers of story-telling toward a fantasy world where magic allows people to have more "modern" type weapons (ie. - guns and bombs)and more complex national relations. In a story that roughly paralells the events of World War II, Turtledove's magical world is plunged into war after the death of a duke allows one of the major powers to take back land that was taken from them after the last war. It is certainly entertaining trying to discern which of Turtledove's countries are meant to parrallel the acutal countries involved. Turtledove does a decent job of making the events of WWII work within a magical setting. As always, his storytelling is up to par. Turtledove's story does suffer from too many characters. Each country involved is represented by a host of characters that soon leaves the reader bewildered and flipping back to the beginning of the book to see who is who. The number of characters portrayed as soldiers also bogs down the book with mulitple points of view on the same event. Turtledove also never offers any kind of explination behind the magic involved - he offers a partial explanation at some points but never enough to truly understand how these magical weapons work and more importantly how their scientific laws operate with each other (I have a feeling this is going to be more important in later books). Further Turtledove doesn't bother to discuss how an entire mobile armies are supplied with the magic they need to operate. While it is certainly interesting to see the events of WWII from a fantasy perspective, I was left with a so-what feeling? Besides having creative ways to parallel the events of WWII into a fantasy setting what difference is there between this book and any other detailing the events of WWII. Truly, there isn't. It would have made for a more interesting read if the events in Turtledove's fantasy world mirrored the events of our own - perhaps the nations involved in Turtledove's war don't make the mistakes of our own. What would have happened if Turtledove's "Germany" decided not to attack "Russia" before it had finished off "England?" This would have taken the story beyond merely another WWII story. In the end, I would still recommend Turtledove's fantasy WWII. While certain changes would have certainly made the book more enjoyable, it still has a lively, readable story line and some of the usual engaging Turtledove characters. It just could have been so much better.
Rating: 
Summary: WWII in a world of magic.
Review: As a general rule I Read the Amazon reviews starting with the lowest rating before making a purchase. Somehow I glean a lot more out of people advising me against reading a book. Into the Darkness had plenty 1 and 2 stars reviews but it had intrigued me so much I've decided to give it a shot anyway. I'm glad I did and I'll use this stage to answer some of the bad reviewers main points.
The main argument against this book and series was weak predictable characters with no development. Another common complaint was about the sheer number of them (about 15 viewpoint characters) which was confusing and didn't allow any of them to arise as a major character. I think anyone using this argument is missing the point entirely. This book focus is on EVENTS not on people. Turtledove is telling his version of imagined history. Read the rise and the fall of the third Reich (Shirer) or Stalingrad (Beevor) for comparison of historical text. Turtledove uses his characters eyes to describe events, for that matter he could have used a hundred different characters. The story would have been as good as his story telling is excellent. If you want character development during wartime read one of the masters (War and peace, Doctor Zhivago), this book style and pace is entirely different. Another point raised was that the similarity with the 2nd world war made it too predictable and boring. That is like saying that "every novel based on historical events is boring due to predetermined ending". A book doesn't have to be entirely fictional to be good. Another common complaint dismissed the feasibility of the magical and the social system. Hey guys, this is after all a Fantasy genre. I bet none of you said anything when Gandalf used his tricks.
So why only three stars?
* Turtledove sees the Soviet Union through western eyes. Stalin was in no way the idiot buffoon bent on whimsical decisions as depicted in the story. Cruel, Shrewd and paranoid, yes, but not an idiot.
* Turtledove somewhat removed the sting and humanized the Algarvians (The parallels to the WWII Nazis). As a Jew that is always hard for me to accept.
* The teeth breaking names Turtledove chose for his countries and characters were tough to remember which caused me a lot of annoying browsing to the legend pages.
Summery: Great military fantasy, I recommend reading it.
Rating: 
Summary: New best book
Review: As the first of a siries i have to try to stress the inportance of this book. for staters i can't say this book is for light readers. Harry takes on the impresive chalange of switching the viwpoint character every 3 pages. beacuse of this character devolepment is limeted but you should not fear as the characters are further esxplained in latter books. the delervani war is parellel to ww2 but conufuseing. some countrys like germany and russia are simple but some like france are hard to point out. (P.S. i think forthweg is france but don't take my word for it.) the dramatic battles and relationships bettwen characters make this book a dramatic retelling of the second worldwar and the horor that came with it.
Rating:
Summary: New best book
Review: As the first of a siries i have to try to stress the inportance of this book. for staters i can't say this book is for light readers. Harry takes on the impresive chalange of switching the viwpoint character every 3 pages. beacuse of this character devolepment is limeted but you should not fear as the characters are further esxplained in latter books. the delervani war is parellel to ww2 but conufuseing. some countrys like germany and russia are simple but some like france are hard to point out. (P.S. i think forthweg is france but don't take my word for it.) the dramatic battles and relationships bettwen characters make this book a dramatic retelling of the second worldwar and the horor that came with it.
Rating:
Summary: A failed attempt at epic fantasy
Review: Harry Turtledove has attempted to create a fantasy world roughly equalling our own. A world in which a world-spanning war creates incredible devastation, and magic begins to spin out of control. Unfortunately, he should have read "Lord of the Rings" or "Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn" at least one more time. His technique is so flawed that what could be a promising idea descends into tedium. The first problems arise as the war begins in full force by page 18. Rather than develop his world so that the reader understands what is going on, he dashes right into the war, leaving the reader wondering why these events are occurring. He states that Algarve is a hated nation, but it isn't until the book is half over that one can even begin to understand why. Had he taken a couple of hundred pages and developed the world and characters, it would have worked. More difficulties arise with his construction of magic in warfare. He has not actually come up with anything new; absolutely every piece of magic has a World War II equivilant (magic staffs for rifles, dragons for bombers, etc.). Turtledove hasn't done anything here that Tom Clancy hasn't done at least twice. Had he actually researched Medieval warfare, or at least invented something without a WW2 equal, the combat would have been much more interesting. Then, finally, he has so many point-of-view characters that the narrative is hopelessly scattered. Sixty or seventy pages can go by before a character appears again, and absolutely none of them arise as a major character. Although the characters are well constructed, they simply do not have enough room to shine. Unfortunately, the scattered narrative sends the book into a tedium that it cannot recover from, and the reader quickly stops caring about the characters or the plot. The only redeeming aspect of the book is its skill. Turtledove is a skillful author, and he is able to write intense and beautiful prose. If only that skill had been applied to the overall structure, the book would have been worthwhile.
Rating:
Summary: The start of war
Review: Harry Turtledove's "Into the Darkness" begins the series of a world at war, almost identical to World War Two, except this war is fought with magic, where dragons and unicorns collide for supremacy. Turtledove offers his usual blend of characters, from all walks of life, thrown together with circumstances beyond their own control. Initially, the large number of viewpoint characters is distracting and confusing, but the readers quickly adapt. Some of the problems with the book are its parallels with what happened in the real world, and the reader tries to visualize what happens next. This is clear with the Algarvian/ German, Forthweg/ Poland, Underkant/ Russia analogies. However, you get no idea why the Kaunians are so hated, or the history of the world. Also, some of the characters too closely resemble characters of other books. The Krasta/ Anne Colleton parallel were strong for me. And we still get too many of the redundant phrases and descriptions.
Rating:
Summary: War Is the Game of Kings and the Hell of Peasants
Review: Into the Darkness is the first novel in the World At War fantasy series. This storyline can be considered an allegory of World War II, but with magical instead of technological weapons. As one result of this difference, there is much less variation in weapons and equipment, for everybody mostly uses the same magical repertory. Also, the animal equivalent of vehicles has much less variety. Thus, strategy and tactics are much more significant than the hardware per se. During the Six Year war, Algarve lost the Duchy of Bari and highly resented the loss. However, other neighboring nations are determined to keep Algarve from recovering the Duchy. One of the background factors in international relations is the Kaunian Empire, long fallen, its descendants often despised, yet still influencing the culture of many of the belligerents. In this novel, a generation later, the Duke has died and King Mezentio sends his troops into Bari. Valmieri, Jelgava, Forthweg and Sibiu then declare war against Algrave. Unkerlanter and Gyongyos are fighting in the Elsung Mountains. Gyongyos and Kuusamo are fighting over Obuda Island. Zuwayza is playing off Unkerlanter against Algrave, but is mainly focused on her border with Unkerlanter. Lagoas is presently remaining neutral in this war. All this fighting and diplomacy is told in terms of the participants. Although the Kings and high ministers have their say, so do the farmers and scholars and other people of little import in the war, but of great significance to their families and friends. There is the Fortwegian lad and Kaunian lass who are lovers, the Jelgavan marchioness, the Lagoan mage, the Unterkanter peasant, the Algarvian constable, and fighting men of every nationality. As with his other war novels, the author dwells more upon the results of war than its causes: the death and suffering, the injustices and sacrifices, the rhetoric and consequences. The changes in names and geography help conceal the nationality of the participants, so that the reader can look at the situation with clearer vision. Highly recommended for Turtledove fans and anyone else who enjoys tales of human characters trying to just carry on their lives despite great hardship and tragedy.
Rating:
Summary: Turtledove at his consistent best
Review: This book furthers Harry Turtledove's reputation as an historically knowledgeable and consistent writer. Where his previous well known works have focused on alternate history, this novel takes a different spin on World War II by insinuating magic in place of technology. An engrossing and entertaining read with intersting characters and intrigue.
Rating:
Summary: Turtledove at his consistent best
Review: This book furthers Harry Turtledove's reputation as an historically knowledgeable and consistent writer. Where his previous well known works have focused on alternate history, this novel takes a different spin on World War II by insinuating magic in place of technology. An engrossing and entertaining read with intersting characters and intrigue.
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