Book Shot #1: The Peshawar Lancers

The Peshawar Lancers, S.M. Stirling

At the start of 2010, I made a resolution to try and clear some of the backlog of books that has accumulated on my bookshelves over the years- and this is my opening salvo of that quest. I've been more or less successful so far, but having lost my copy of The Peshawar Lancers, I had to go out and get a new one, especially since my Civilizations of South Asia gave me a hankering for all things South Asia. (Be warned, both fiction and non-fiction with a South Asian flavor is coming down the pipe.)

The Peshawar Lancers is a rip-roaring, swashbuckling tale of Alternate History rooted firmly in the tradition of Rudyard Kipling and other 19th Century 'adventure' writers such as H. Rider Haggard and Edgar Rice Burroughs. Set in a world where the planet was devastated by a spray of comets in the mid-1870s, the world of The Peshawar Lancers is a far different one from ours today. Empires still rule the world, with the British Empire, now centered in Delhi being the major power. Our hero, Captain Athelstane King is drawn into a far-reaching conspiracy that threatens the survival of his family, his country and the very planet itself. Against him, are the agents of the now Satan worshipping, human eating Czar of All the Russias and our protagonists and antagonists collide in an adventure that echoes back to the spy-games and derring-do that characterized the rivalry between Britain and Russia at the end of the 19th Century, a period known as 'The Great Game.'

As a genre, alternate history can be pretty tricky to master. Everyone always mentions the guru of alternate history, the man himself, Harry Turtledove- and for sure, Turtledove has pulled off some brilliant speculative fiction in his time. He's also disappointed me greatly as he's transplanted contemporary history and changed some times, places and names in other cases, which to me, smacks of laziness. Phillip K. Dick of 'Blade Runner' and 'Total Recall' fame probably owns the title of best around with his masterpiece 'The Man in High Castle' which depicts a truly creep-tastic vision of a history where the Axis won World War II.

So how does Stirling measure up? Extremely well, as a matter of fact. It's obvious that he's done his research on the colonial and imperial periods of British history and his scenario of civilization desperately trying to piece itself back together after a catastrophe is plausible enough. The British Empire and French Empires would have had the resources to evacuate themselves and their governments to their overseas possessions and with civilization collapsing all around humanity, it's hard not to imagine that some crazy, Satan worshiping cannibalism could spring up.

Even more impressive is that the political structure of this new British Empire is plausible as well. Surviving a Second Mutiny after the comets impact throughout the Northern Hemisphere, the ruling British elites survive by relying on the loyalty of the aristocracy already in place and out of necessity, surrendering a lot of imperial arrogance and recognizing whom exactly they were now ruling. This 'partnership' instead of 'overlordship' hearkens back to the very earliest days of the East India Company, where British officers and soldiers won the respect of indigenous allies and soldiers by leading from the front and not directing from the back.

Overall: Stirling has produced a fascinating vision of what might have been that is plausible, interesting and easy for the reader to buy into. Taking that vision and adding an adventure worthy of the very best of Rudyard Kipling or H. Rider Haggard produces a readable, exciting book that's the perfect beach book for science fiction fans heading out for their summer vacation.