The Long War by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter

Harper, 2013

War has come to the Long Earth….

Humankind has spread across the new worlds opened up by stepping, which Joshua and Lobsang explored a mere decade ago. Now “civilization” flourishes, and fleets of airships link the multiple Earths through exploration, trade, and culture.

Humankind is shaping the Long Earth, but in turn the Long Earth is shaping humankind. A new America that has christened itself “Valhalla” has emerged more than a million steps from the original Datum Earth. And like the American revolutionaries of old, the Valhallans resent being controlled from afar by the Datum government.

In the intervening years, the song of the trolls—graceful, hive-mind humanoids—has suffused the Long Earth. But in the face of humankind’s inexorable advance, they are beginning to fall silent . . . and gradually disappear.

Joshua, now married and a father, is summoned by Lobsang. It seems that he alone can confront the perfect storm of crises that threatens to plunge all of the Long Earth into war.

As a long-standing Terry Pratchett fan I jumped at the chance to review the latest offering from him and Stephen Baxter. The book continues the story of the Long Earth, a seemingly endless chain of parallel Earths which can be reached by “stepping”, and the lives of Joshua and his family, friends and manipulators. Some new characters and even a new species or two  are introduced and expertly woven into the ongoing storyline.
In my opinion, the book took a while to really get going and feels like the second part of a trilogy, setting the stage for further adventures. However it never failed to draw me onwards through the pages and I consequently read the whole thing in a little over a day. I enjoy reading SciFi and Fantasy, two genres which often get confused, and The Long War reads like SciFi tempered by hints of Fantasy, helping to shape the authors’ world into a believable reality which will have you looking into the corners of the room and wondering if anyone could just “step” in.

All in all a thumping good read.

by

Chris Parish