Purgatory's Shore
Artillerymen, Book 1
By: Taylor Anderson
Narrated by: PJ Ochlan
Length: 22 hrs and 19 mins
Release date: 09-21-21
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Genre: Alternate History, Military History
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.25; Narration 4.5.
Publisher's Summary
On their way to fight in the Mexican-American War, a group of American soldiers are swept away to a strange and deadly alternate Earth in this thrilling new adventure set in the world of the New York Times best-selling Destroyermen series.
The United States, 1847. A disparate group of young American soldiers are bound to join General Winfield Scott's campaign against Santa Anna at Veracruz during the Mexican-American War. They never arrive.
Or rather...they arrive somewhere else.
The untried, idealistic soldiers are mostly replacements, really; a handful of infantry, artillery, dragoons, and a few mounted riflemen with no unified command. And they've been shipwrecked on a terrible different Earth full of monsters and unimaginable enemies.
Major Lewis Cayce, late of the Third US "Flying" Artillery, must unite these men to face their fears and myriad threats, armed with little more than flintlock muskets, a few pieces of artillery, and a worldview that spiritually and culturally rebels against virtually everything they encounter. It will take extraordinary leadership and a cadre of equally extraordinary men and women to mold frightened troops into an effective force, make friends with other peoples the evil Holy Dominion would eradicate, and reshape their "manifest destiny" into a cause they can all believe in and fight for.
For only together will they have any hope of survival.
©2021 Taylor Anderson (P)2021 Penguin Audio
Review:
I enjoyed the 15 books of the original Destroyermen series. This story picks up in the same alternate world but a century earlier, telling the story of American, and other, artillerymen who find themselves in an unfamiliar world with lots of unexpected people and beasts.
Major Cayce and his troops are expecting to be delivered to Vera Cruz on a battered whaler. Instead the ship and men are swept up in a storm and deposited far from the water in a strange land. The land is similar to the Yucatan Peninsula but not the same. This ‘new world’ is full of dinosaurs (not recognized as such since the word did not come into use until 1942) including avian beasts, raptors and even T-Rex. It is clear that these beasts are able to ravage the societies that live on the land but the military men who land here are able to fight the dinosaurs with their guns which are better than anything anyone else has.
As surprising as the beastly creatures, Major Cayce and his men are alarmed to meet ‘indian’ natives and a leader who looks like an upright cat that speaks English. Some would consider the cat-creatures as demons, until they learn about the horrible blood Dominions who are enslaving the people to either follow their horrible religion and/or die a painful death, which to them is glory.
The story started slowly. I had started it a month or so ago but didn’t get engaged. This week I got passed that slow start and was glad to become engaged in the creative world. Not only does the author provide action encounters with beasts and strange, intelligent races, Anderson also provides interesting details regarding weapons and military tactics. Another element of interest is the dilemma of a female posing as a soldier and learning to work together with the enemy, Mexicans. The characters grew on me and I did care how they survived in the battles. I recommend this to fans of alternate history and military history.
Audio Notes: PJ Ochlan does a good job with the voices and the energy of the story. Ochlan narrated the last book of the Destroyermen series so I had gotten used to his voice. That may have made it easier for me to accept the narration in this series. I enjoyed this audio experience.
Source: 2/5/22 Audible January Credit. This qualifies for 2023TBR, 2023Audiobook, and 2023Location goals.
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