The Great War of the Worlds
What happened after the Martian Attack chronicled in War of the Worlds ended?
The aliens succumbed to Earth's microbes, but left their weapons and war machines scattered across the globe.
Governments worked hard to assert control over these deadly technologies, so they could keep it out of the hands of the wrong people, while taking advantage of it for themselves.
Sometimes they failed.
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It's 1915, twenty years after the Martian invasion chronicled in H.G. Wells War of the Worlds failed. The aliens left behind advanced technology and weapons, and now humanity is on the brink of a catastrophic war. Caught in the middle of the chaos are two unlikely heroes: Emil Zimmerman, a young German soldier, and James Brogan, an introverted radio engineer.
Shadows of the Past is a science fiction, alternate history, survival adventure. Do you love War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells? Then this thrilling journey of humanity grappling with the legacy of Martian technology is the thrilling ride you're looking for.
It’s Friday! Not an incredibly productive week, so I’ll be spending it terying to catch up and prioritize the weekend. How about you?
On Deck: Wrapping up the week with a guest post and some edits.
Inbox: 1 unread
Listening: Back to the Buddha Machine Boxed Set
Reading: I’ll be reading Babel for a long time. More than 500 pages.
Last Watched: German dub of a very strange Spanish telenovella.
Condition: Sore shoulder from a bad roll in Aikido last night. Part of the game.
February 2, 2024
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Strange morning. Need to get to work!
On Deck: Morning tutorial work.
Inbox: 25! Ack.
Listening: Silence.
Reading: Babel
Last Watched: Percy Jackson and the Olympians season (series?) finale.
Condition: Meh.
February 1, 2024
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Wednesday, January 31st 2024, 7:30:47 am
Up early. Getting ready for a bike ride.
On Deck: Finish up Kubernetes tutorial. More revisions on reader magnet short story.
Inbox: 5 unread.
Listening: Buddha Machine Boxed Set
Reading: Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution
Last Watched: First two episode of Criminal Record on Apple TV+. Peter Capaldi!
Condition: Much better, thanks.
January 31, 2024
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On Deck: Writer’s group call in the A.M., with a chance to work on the Tesla Fire short story, More planning and coding for client tutorial. Review a community post headed to a client blog.
Inbox: 2 unread.
Listening: Listened to a little Sleep Token last night, but Radio Paradise is spinning some kickass morning tracks on the Sonos this morning.
Reading: Babel by R.F. Kuang.
Last Watched: Nothing.
Condition: Creeping back toward something resembling healthy. 7.5 hours of sleep. HRV is back over 30.
January 30, 2024
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Shadows of the Past is set in the aftermath of H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds.
James Brogan is an engineer working for Edison Laboratories, one of the companies that works with technology based on the hardware left behind by the invasion. Brogan’s father, a NYC policeman, was killed in a fire that started when Nikola Tesla experimented with contraband martian equipment: a power supplies from an infamous Martian “tripod.”
Edison Labs took Officer Brogan’s family under their wing, and James ended up working for the company.
I’m currently working on the story of the Tesla Fire as a free giveway for readers of my email newsletter.
January 29, 2024
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One of the blurbs I saw for this book called it visceral and it fits. In this book’s world magic is a physical power, and you’re treated to a first person viewpoint of what that feels like.
Walker, the book’s protagonist, is an antihero with a mysterious and checkered past he ran from nearly a decade ago. But the murder of his best friend drags him back in. That reads like the standard plot for many books, but Johnston’s well, visceral storytelling sets it apart, as do a few fun twists and turns.
Recommended for fantasy fans, especially if you like grim and gritty.
January 29, 2024
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