Like it or not, the people of Nantucket are going to change the past no matter what they do. Will they choose to create a better world; one free from the mistakes of the old? Or will a hostile flag of conquest fly across the Bronze Age world?
I'd known about this book for a while. It's kind of hard not to if you're into alternate history. The online alternate history has its own slang and acronyms for various tropes. One of these is named ISOT, which, of course, is short for Island in the Sea of Time. It refers to any land or individuals, from as small as a single person to as large as a whole country, getting transported to a different time, usually somewhere in the past. You then try to imagine what happens from there, much as this book series does.
I'm glad I finally got around to checking this series out. It was as excellent as I thought it would be, and it quite well researched as well. Obviously, with all the competing theorizes about life in the Bronze Age, there's no way that Stirling could possibly be faithful to them all. That having been said, the ones that he does decide to go with are extremely well researched. Moreover, Stirling had to, in essence, create many of the cultures feature in this series completely out of whole cloth. This is by necessity due to lack of surviving written records. For example, we know that Tartessos probably existed, that it was located in Southern Spain, and some people think it inspired Plato's account of Atlantis...and that's pretty much it. Stirling had to create basically everything about Tartessos and its culture from scratch. Oh, but don't worry, he succeeded with flying colors.
I briefly became obsessed with all thing Bronze Age after reading the Island in the Sea of Time trilogy. I fully blame that on Stirling excellent writing skills. I also wish to visit Nantucket someday. Many of the places mentioned in the series are indeed real places that you can visit. Stirling has posted pictures of several trips he took to Nantucket on Facebook, and it looks absolutely gorgeous. Nantucket has some of the best preserved pre-Civil War architecture in America.
A brief side note on terminology. The series as a whole is often referred to as Island in the Sea of Time, after the first book. This is how I prefer to refer to it. However, you will sometimes see it referred to as the Nantucket trilogy or the Islander trilogy. Just thought I should let you know.
A significant chunk of the novel is dedicated to the Islanders working to make Nantucket self-sufficient and laying the foundations of their new nation. I was worried that this might drag on too long, and we wouldn't get very much alternate history goodness. Fortunately, I'm pleased to report that this is not the case. In fact, I found these segments to be quite engrossing and entertaining. I suppose that is a testament to Stirling's talent as a writer.
I also liked that there was conflict some conflict, of varying scale, because not everyone was on-board with the new state of affairs. There's one scene where an accountant flips-out because he's been assigned to help clear land for farm plots. He rails at how unfair it is that he's being force to perform manual labor. It's understandable why he'd feel that way; I'd probably feel similar. Still, Nantucket needs manpower and laborers, not accountants. Especially since they're also having to rebuild the economy from scratch. At this point, they're using work chits as a currency of sorts. Basically, you work a job for a set among of time, and get a certain number of chits to spend on whatever you wish. Money from the old universe is considered worthless. It is a basic economic truth that money has no intrinsic value beyond that which we imbue upon it. Of course, after a year or so, once things get settled, Nantucket transitions to an actual official currency of its own.
I also liked how the characters have to deal with the loss of stupid incidental stuff you probably wouldn't think about. You have various characters think on how much they'd give for something as simple as hamburger or a club sandwich. The loss of coffee is another big blow to everyone's collective moral. Sure, there are some coffee plants on the island, but they're bred to look pretty, not for their flavor. Wild coffee plants were mostly confined to the Ethiopian highlands in 1250 BC. For me, I think the biggest blow would be the loss of seamless socks. I have very sensitive skin, and socks with seams drive me completely insane. The lack, or least rationing, of air conditioning would also be a major downer. Not having any tea would also be unfortunate.
It's also mentioned that Internet addicts are taking it rough, but at least they're getting involved in community theatre and music groups. This book was written in 1998, when the Internet was still in its infancy. If the book had been written today, pretty much everyone on Nantucket would be dealing with major Internet withdrawal. Think about it; streaming services, YouTube, online video games, all the various information websites, Amazon, and search engines all just went poof. Oh, and your favorite review blog, by which I mean this one, would also be gone. Social media would also be gone, but that might not be such a bad thing...I say despite how much I use it to promote this blog. Relatedly, it's mentioned that of the teachers on the island took to living together; because living alone gets lonely when you don't have entertainment at your fingertips.
Now I think we should discuss the characters. I should mention that it wasn't just Nantucket that was sent back in time, but also the surrounding waters. This is important because the Eagle, and her crew, came along for the ride. It's a Coast Guard training ship that is made out of metal, but also uses sails. It has engines and motors, but it is capable of running purely on sail power. It was originally built by Nazi Germany, but was capture by America during World War II and converted into a Coast Guard ship. Oh, and did I mention that the Eagle is a real ship that actually exists? The crew are all fictional, but the ship itself is very real. In fact, I've actually heard that they keep a copy of the Island in the Sea of Time trilogy aboard the Eagle.
The Eagle is captained by Marion Alston. She's a no-nonsense woman of action and a master sailor. She had wanted to be a sailor her entire life, but the Navy didn't allow women to join. So, she joined the Coast Guard, because they actually allow women to join. She also previously trained in sword fighting with katanas, which comes in handy when she needs to train the Coast Guard in hand-to-hand combat. She one of the few prominent black people on Nantucket, but that doesn't stop her from rising to position of considerable authority within the new government of Nantucket. She's also a lesbian, but while some of the more conservative residents of Nantucket grumble about this, most people don't care, especially after all she's done for Nantucket.
One of the first things Nantucket realizes is that they need food for the winter. Corn was really only being grown by the Olmec in 1250 BC, so that rules out trading with Native Americans. So, the Eagle is sent on an expedition to England to trade for grain and livestock. At this point, the native people of England are in the process being displaced by the proto-Celtic Indo-European tribes. The ingenious people are England are known as the Fiernan Bohulugi, which roughly translates to People of the Soil, or Earth Folk. They're the ones who built Stonehenge. They don't have a written language, but they have extremely advanced knowledge of astronomy, and the movements of the stars and planets. Oh, and no written language means they have to do the calculations entirely in their heads, so they're pretty good at advanced math as well.
They're a matriarchal society, and their religion is based around the worship of a goddess named Moon Woman, who is said to be the mother of the stars. From what snippets we hear, their religion is vaguely similar to Buddhism, if a bit fatalistic at times, and is mostly peaceful.
The people attacking the Earth Folk are known as the Iraiina, which means Noble Ones, but the Earth Folk called them the Sun People, because they worship a sun god as their primary deity. In contrast to the Earth Folk, the Sun People are patriarchal, highly aggressive, and expansionist. Most of their other deities seem to be based upon various Celtic gods, which makes sense, given that the Iraiina are presented as the forerunners of the Celtic peoples.
As I've previously stated, we know basically nothing about Bronze Age England and its peoples. As such, Stirling had to invent pretty much everything about the Earth Folk and Sun People all on his own. Despite this, they both felt like fully fleshed out and vibrant cultures. In fact, on time I took a linguistics class, and we talked about the history of the English Language. The professor mentioned that we know basically nothing about the first inhabitants of England. I thought about the Earth Folk, and then I felt sad when I remembered that the Earth Folk were merely figments of SM Stirling's imagination. It is the mark of a truly great author when you feel sad that the people they invented aren't real.
Also, as I've stated, with all the competing theories about life in the Bronze Age, Island in the Sea of Time can't stay accurate forever. In fact, on Facebook, SM Stirling recently shared a link to a study suggesting the way he portrayed Bronze Age England got things backwards. However, he was not distraught by this. Quite the opposite, he was actually very excited about it, because it means we are learning more about the ancient past. That's a really good attitude to have with these sorts of things.
So, when the Eagle arrives to trade with the Sun People, Marion is gifted an enslaved Earth Folk woman named Swindapa Kurlelo. Understandably, Marion immediately grants Swindapa her freedom, and Swindapa accompanies Marion back to Nantucket. Once Swindapa adjusts to life in Nantucket she develops a romantic relationship with Marion. They couldn't be more different. Swindapa is barely nineteen, is almost always cheerful, likes to do cartwheels down the street just because, and obviously, is a white girl from Bronze Age England. Marion is stoic, in her late thirties/early forties, and is a black American woman from the modern day. Despite all of this, the two become a genuinely loving and devoted couple. An interracial, inter-temporal, lesbian couple with an age gap; they're breaking all sort of barriers.
Of course, there's a dark implication here. Swindapa's life as a prisoner of the Sun People was completely abysmal. There were times when she hoped that death would claim her and put an end to it all. The implication is, in the original timeline, this is exactly what happened. If nothing else, Nantucket can be assured that Swindapa and her people are better off because of them.
Marion is in charge of Nantucket's military, but the civic affairs run by former police chief Jared Cofflin. He likes to lead by example and out his money where his mouth is. During the early days after the Event, he took part in fishing and whaling expeditions. He's the leader of Nantucket, but he's subject to the laws like everyone else. While not opposed to using force where necessary, he tends to prefer to seek peaceful solutions for Nantucket's problems. He isn't college educated, but he isn't dumb, and can be rather thoughtful and insightful at times.
Both of these points are demonstrated during Nantucket's first major crisis. One of the pastors on the island is convinced, and convinces his parishioners, that Satan sent Nantucket back in time to prevent the birth of Jesus. As such, they try to burn everything on the island down. Thankfully, the crazed parishioners are quickly stopped, though the fire does burn down the arsenal. Many people want the arsonists hanged, but Jared suggest they instead be sent in temporary exile to the island of Inagua to collect salt. They will be watched over by Nantucket's resident priest Father Gomez, who will hopefully rehabilitate them. Cooler heads prevail, and everyone votes for Jared's proposal. He reasons, in his internal monologue, that their beliefs were wrong, because God exists outside of space and time. He also reasons that Nantucket is changing things simply by being in the past.
Interestingly, several of the other Christians on Nantucket share this thinking. They reason that God will know if/when to send Jesus to the new world Nantucket has found itself in. As such, missionary trips are organized to proselytize to the Sun People. The hope is that converting to Christianity will make them less violent. Yeah, I'm not so sure about that. Considering how much violence Christianity has inspired over the years, I can see many ways converting the Sun People could backfire. If anything, it might make them more violent, because now they can declare holy wars on the Earth Folk. Or they can justify attacking the Earth Folk by claiming them to be godless blasphemers. Still, I will say that the concept of spreading a religion before the birth of its founding is interesting from a storytelling perspective. Granted, this is never a major focus of the series, but it is still interesting.
Nantucket probably would have had a much harder time making allies in the Bronze Age if not for Ian Arnstein and Doreen Rosenthal. Ian is a professor of Classical Greek History and Culture. He is a native of California, loves puns, and was visiting Nantucket when it got transported to the Bronze Age. Sharp-eyed readers will note that he bares more than a passing resemblance to fellow alternate history writer, and good friend of S.M. Stirling, Harry Turtledove. Stirling has confirmed that this is indeed deliberate.
Doreen is an astronomer who was doing research at Nantucket's observatory. She determined that Nantucket had been sent to the Bronze Age by examining the positions of the stars. She also accompanied one of the first expeditions to the mainland. Unfortunately, she had the sniffles, and accidentally gave it to the local Native American population. The Native Americans, having no immunity to such things, were completely decimated by this common cold. This is very similar to what happened in our world when Europeans made contact with the Native Americans. I'm not sure it could have really been avoided. Still, it is rather odd that Doreen, and Nantucket in general, never seem to dwell on this for very long. Granted, they have more pressing issue at the moment, but it is odd that it doesn't even get a passing consideration later on.
Doreen and Ian joke that, being two of the limited number of Jews on Nantucket, they're the only option each other has. Of course, they do actually fall in love in get married. Hmm, we've got Marion and Swindapa, Ian and Doreen, and Jared marries town librarian Martha. Stirling sure seems to enjoy pairing up characters into odd couples that still work.
Of course, what is a series like Island in the Sea of Time without a villain? William Walker is the primary antagonist of the series. He starts off as a member of the Coast Guard, but soon develops ambitions of carving out his own empire in England. Walker is a cold, calculating sociopath. He shares his name with a 19th Century historical figure who was famous for filibustering. In those days, the term meant invading other countries and setting yourself up as dictator. Stirling has confirmed that William Walker from Island in the Sea of Time was indeed modeled on the historical William Walker. Well get into this in the later books, but if you know about the life of the historical Walker, then you can guess about how things will go for the ISOT Walker.
Walker finds several allies for his cause, including a merchant from Tartessos named Isketerol. He was part of a trading expedition that was in England when the Eagle arrived. The Tartessians are master sailors, and the best shipwrights in the Mediterranean. In fact, they actually figured out that the Earth is round by studying the way that the horizon works. Though, that particular fact is mostly known amongst ship captains and their crews. Nantucket initially hoped that they could court Tartessos as a potential trading partner using Isketerol. Once on Nantucket, however, Isketerol perused some encyclopedias at the Atheneum. It is the main library on Nantucket and is built in the style of an Ancient Greek temple. From this, Isketerol realizes that the Nantucketers really are from the future by seeing pictures of the Great Pyramid and the Gates of Mycenae in ruins.
As you can imagine, he is horrified to discover that almost no information about Tartessos survived in the future. He is determined to prevent Tartessos from meeting the same fate. He concludes that Nantucket will be the biggest threat to Tartessos, and allies with Walker to get his hands on future technology and knowledge. Though, he really only views Walker as a means to an end. Amusingly, Walker pretty much views Isketerol the same way. Hmm, so Isketerol betrayed Nantucket. His name sounds a bit like Iscariot, as in Judas Iscariot, the disciple who betrayed Jesus. Also, I think that's supposed to be Isketerol on the cover of the book.
Rounding out the main antagonists, at least for this book, is Pamela Lisketter. The term social justice warrior hadn't been invented yet when Island in the Sea of Time was written, but Lisketter fits the stereotype to a T. She is an outspoken bleeding-heart progressive, very pushy with her views, gets offended at the drop of a hat, and isn't nearly as knowledgeable as she claims. For example, when Nantucket is considering starting whaling expeditions to supplement the food supply, she objects on the grounds that whales are endangered. This ignores that fact that whales were most certainly not endangered during the Bronze Age. You can practically hear the other characters rolling their eyes. It is somewhat fitting that Nantucket returned to whaling. Whaling was Nantucket's primary industry during the 19th Century.
Lisketter also criticizes Nantucket for trading with the Sun People. This ignores how desperately Nantucket needed the food, and how they allied with the Earth Folk as soon as they understood the political situation in England better. On an unrelated note, I loved the scene where the inhabitants of Nantucket see a flock of passenger pigeons for the first time. Their flocks were truly a sight to behold back before they went extinct. And there were be also sort of other amazing animals, that were driven extinct in our world, still alive during the Bronze Age. To name just a few, there were moas in New Zealand, thylacines in Australia, quaggas in South Africa, dodos in Mauritius, and Falkland Wolves in... well, the Falkland Islands.
Lisketter and her followers decide they need to save the Olmec, lest they be subject to colonialism. They enlist help from the great humanitarian himself, William Walker. You know, that white dude who is subjecting ingenious people to his colonial rule? Really, he just need a distraction for one of his plans, and Lisketter was just the useful idiot for the job. Oh, but it gets better. Turns out the Olmec didn't want to be saved. Most of Lisketter's followers are either eaten or used as human sacrifice. I'm rather reminded of those stories of missionaries who went to islands in the South Pacific, ran afoul of local customs, and wound up as the main course for dinner.
Oh, but Lisketter got the worst punishment of all. Well, the Olmec probably considered it an honor. She had green eyes, almost the exact color of jaguar eyes. The Olmec apparently have a creation myth about a woman having sex with a jaguar, and giving birth to a god. I should mention that this appears to be Stirling's own invention, in reference to the half-man half-jaguar often featured in Olmec art. So, Lisketter is forced to reenact the myth with a live jaguar, which somehow doesn't maul her. Then, she has to do it again with the village chief, who is wearing a jaguar skin robe. Needless to say, she practically begs for the sweet release of death by the time all is said and done.
Oh, and someone in her expedition spread mumps to the Olmec. One of the side effects of mumps is sterility, so congratulations Lisketter, you just whipped out the Olmec, along with all the Mesoamerican civilizations descended from them! Though, was that all Olmec, or just that settlement? In the next book we see Olmec merchants in Nantucket, suggesting that the other Olmec settlements are doing just fine. Now, the portrayal of the Olmec fell into several stereotypes about Mesoamerican civilizations. Normally, I'd be very annoyed by that. On the other hand, seeing Lisketter's followers get ripped limb-from-limb was incredibly cathartic, not to mention absolutely hilarious. I think I'll let it slide just this once.
A significant chunk of the novel is dedicated to the Islanders working to make Nantucket self-sufficient and laying the foundations of their new nation. I was worried that this might drag on too long, and we wouldn't get very much alternate history goodness. Fortunately, I'm pleased to report that this is not the case. In fact, I found these segments to be quite engrossing and entertaining. I suppose that is a testament to Stirling's talent as a writer.
I also liked that there was conflict some conflict, of varying scale, because not everyone was on-board with the new state of affairs. There's one scene where an accountant flips-out because he's been assigned to help clear land for farm plots. He rails at how unfair it is that he's being force to perform manual labor. It's understandable why he'd feel that way; I'd probably feel similar. Still, Nantucket needs manpower and laborers, not accountants. Especially since they're also having to rebuild the economy from scratch. At this point, they're using work chits as a currency of sorts. Basically, you work a job for a set among of time, and get a certain number of chits to spend on whatever you wish. Money from the old universe is considered worthless. It is a basic economic truth that money has no intrinsic value beyond that which we imbue upon it. Of course, after a year or so, once things get settled, Nantucket transitions to an actual official currency of its own.
I also liked how the characters have to deal with the loss of stupid incidental stuff you probably wouldn't think about. You have various characters think on how much they'd give for something as simple as hamburger or a club sandwich. The loss of coffee is another big blow to everyone's collective moral. Sure, there are some coffee plants on the island, but they're bred to look pretty, not for their flavor. Wild coffee plants were mostly confined to the Ethiopian highlands in 1250 BC. For me, I think the biggest blow would be the loss of seamless socks. I have very sensitive skin, and socks with seams drive me completely insane. The lack, or least rationing, of air conditioning would also be a major downer. Not having any tea would also be unfortunate.
It's also mentioned that Internet addicts are taking it rough, but at least they're getting involved in community theatre and music groups. This book was written in 1998, when the Internet was still in its infancy. If the book had been written today, pretty much everyone on Nantucket would be dealing with major Internet withdrawal. Think about it; streaming services, YouTube, online video games, all the various information websites, Amazon, and search engines all just went poof. Oh, and your favorite review blog, by which I mean this one, would also be gone. Social media would also be gone, but that might not be such a bad thing...I say despite how much I use it to promote this blog. Relatedly, it's mentioned that of the teachers on the island took to living together; because living alone gets lonely when you don't have entertainment at your fingertips.
Now I think we should discuss the characters. I should mention that it wasn't just Nantucket that was sent back in time, but also the surrounding waters. This is important because the Eagle, and her crew, came along for the ride. It's a Coast Guard training ship that is made out of metal, but also uses sails. It has engines and motors, but it is capable of running purely on sail power. It was originally built by Nazi Germany, but was capture by America during World War II and converted into a Coast Guard ship. Oh, and did I mention that the Eagle is a real ship that actually exists? The crew are all fictional, but the ship itself is very real. In fact, I've actually heard that they keep a copy of the Island in the Sea of Time trilogy aboard the Eagle.
The Eagle is captained by Marion Alston. She's a no-nonsense woman of action and a master sailor. She had wanted to be a sailor her entire life, but the Navy didn't allow women to join. So, she joined the Coast Guard, because they actually allow women to join. She also previously trained in sword fighting with katanas, which comes in handy when she needs to train the Coast Guard in hand-to-hand combat. She one of the few prominent black people on Nantucket, but that doesn't stop her from rising to position of considerable authority within the new government of Nantucket. She's also a lesbian, but while some of the more conservative residents of Nantucket grumble about this, most people don't care, especially after all she's done for Nantucket.
One of the first things Nantucket realizes is that they need food for the winter. Corn was really only being grown by the Olmec in 1250 BC, so that rules out trading with Native Americans. So, the Eagle is sent on an expedition to England to trade for grain and livestock. At this point, the native people of England are in the process being displaced by the proto-Celtic Indo-European tribes. The ingenious people are England are known as the Fiernan Bohulugi, which roughly translates to People of the Soil, or Earth Folk. They're the ones who built Stonehenge. They don't have a written language, but they have extremely advanced knowledge of astronomy, and the movements of the stars and planets. Oh, and no written language means they have to do the calculations entirely in their heads, so they're pretty good at advanced math as well.
They're a matriarchal society, and their religion is based around the worship of a goddess named Moon Woman, who is said to be the mother of the stars. From what snippets we hear, their religion is vaguely similar to Buddhism, if a bit fatalistic at times, and is mostly peaceful.
The people attacking the Earth Folk are known as the Iraiina, which means Noble Ones, but the Earth Folk called them the Sun People, because they worship a sun god as their primary deity. In contrast to the Earth Folk, the Sun People are patriarchal, highly aggressive, and expansionist. Most of their other deities seem to be based upon various Celtic gods, which makes sense, given that the Iraiina are presented as the forerunners of the Celtic peoples.
As I've previously stated, we know basically nothing about Bronze Age England and its peoples. As such, Stirling had to invent pretty much everything about the Earth Folk and Sun People all on his own. Despite this, they both felt like fully fleshed out and vibrant cultures. In fact, on time I took a linguistics class, and we talked about the history of the English Language. The professor mentioned that we know basically nothing about the first inhabitants of England. I thought about the Earth Folk, and then I felt sad when I remembered that the Earth Folk were merely figments of SM Stirling's imagination. It is the mark of a truly great author when you feel sad that the people they invented aren't real.
Also, as I've stated, with all the competing theories about life in the Bronze Age, Island in the Sea of Time can't stay accurate forever. In fact, on Facebook, SM Stirling recently shared a link to a study suggesting the way he portrayed Bronze Age England got things backwards. However, he was not distraught by this. Quite the opposite, he was actually very excited about it, because it means we are learning more about the ancient past. That's a really good attitude to have with these sorts of things.
So, when the Eagle arrives to trade with the Sun People, Marion is gifted an enslaved Earth Folk woman named Swindapa Kurlelo. Understandably, Marion immediately grants Swindapa her freedom, and Swindapa accompanies Marion back to Nantucket. Once Swindapa adjusts to life in Nantucket she develops a romantic relationship with Marion. They couldn't be more different. Swindapa is barely nineteen, is almost always cheerful, likes to do cartwheels down the street just because, and obviously, is a white girl from Bronze Age England. Marion is stoic, in her late thirties/early forties, and is a black American woman from the modern day. Despite all of this, the two become a genuinely loving and devoted couple. An interracial, inter-temporal, lesbian couple with an age gap; they're breaking all sort of barriers.
Of course, there's a dark implication here. Swindapa's life as a prisoner of the Sun People was completely abysmal. There were times when she hoped that death would claim her and put an end to it all. The implication is, in the original timeline, this is exactly what happened. If nothing else, Nantucket can be assured that Swindapa and her people are better off because of them.
Marion is in charge of Nantucket's military, but the civic affairs run by former police chief Jared Cofflin. He likes to lead by example and out his money where his mouth is. During the early days after the Event, he took part in fishing and whaling expeditions. He's the leader of Nantucket, but he's subject to the laws like everyone else. While not opposed to using force where necessary, he tends to prefer to seek peaceful solutions for Nantucket's problems. He isn't college educated, but he isn't dumb, and can be rather thoughtful and insightful at times.
Both of these points are demonstrated during Nantucket's first major crisis. One of the pastors on the island is convinced, and convinces his parishioners, that Satan sent Nantucket back in time to prevent the birth of Jesus. As such, they try to burn everything on the island down. Thankfully, the crazed parishioners are quickly stopped, though the fire does burn down the arsenal. Many people want the arsonists hanged, but Jared suggest they instead be sent in temporary exile to the island of Inagua to collect salt. They will be watched over by Nantucket's resident priest Father Gomez, who will hopefully rehabilitate them. Cooler heads prevail, and everyone votes for Jared's proposal. He reasons, in his internal monologue, that their beliefs were wrong, because God exists outside of space and time. He also reasons that Nantucket is changing things simply by being in the past.
Interestingly, several of the other Christians on Nantucket share this thinking. They reason that God will know if/when to send Jesus to the new world Nantucket has found itself in. As such, missionary trips are organized to proselytize to the Sun People. The hope is that converting to Christianity will make them less violent. Yeah, I'm not so sure about that. Considering how much violence Christianity has inspired over the years, I can see many ways converting the Sun People could backfire. If anything, it might make them more violent, because now they can declare holy wars on the Earth Folk. Or they can justify attacking the Earth Folk by claiming them to be godless blasphemers. Still, I will say that the concept of spreading a religion before the birth of its founding is interesting from a storytelling perspective. Granted, this is never a major focus of the series, but it is still interesting.
Nantucket probably would have had a much harder time making allies in the Bronze Age if not for Ian Arnstein and Doreen Rosenthal. Ian is a professor of Classical Greek History and Culture. He is a native of California, loves puns, and was visiting Nantucket when it got transported to the Bronze Age. Sharp-eyed readers will note that he bares more than a passing resemblance to fellow alternate history writer, and good friend of S.M. Stirling, Harry Turtledove. Stirling has confirmed that this is indeed deliberate.
Doreen is an astronomer who was doing research at Nantucket's observatory. She determined that Nantucket had been sent to the Bronze Age by examining the positions of the stars. She also accompanied one of the first expeditions to the mainland. Unfortunately, she had the sniffles, and accidentally gave it to the local Native American population. The Native Americans, having no immunity to such things, were completely decimated by this common cold. This is very similar to what happened in our world when Europeans made contact with the Native Americans. I'm not sure it could have really been avoided. Still, it is rather odd that Doreen, and Nantucket in general, never seem to dwell on this for very long. Granted, they have more pressing issue at the moment, but it is odd that it doesn't even get a passing consideration later on.
Doreen and Ian joke that, being two of the limited number of Jews on Nantucket, they're the only option each other has. Of course, they do actually fall in love in get married. Hmm, we've got Marion and Swindapa, Ian and Doreen, and Jared marries town librarian Martha. Stirling sure seems to enjoy pairing up characters into odd couples that still work.
Of course, what is a series like Island in the Sea of Time without a villain? William Walker is the primary antagonist of the series. He starts off as a member of the Coast Guard, but soon develops ambitions of carving out his own empire in England. Walker is a cold, calculating sociopath. He shares his name with a 19th Century historical figure who was famous for filibustering. In those days, the term meant invading other countries and setting yourself up as dictator. Stirling has confirmed that William Walker from Island in the Sea of Time was indeed modeled on the historical William Walker. Well get into this in the later books, but if you know about the life of the historical Walker, then you can guess about how things will go for the ISOT Walker.
Walker finds several allies for his cause, including a merchant from Tartessos named Isketerol. He was part of a trading expedition that was in England when the Eagle arrived. The Tartessians are master sailors, and the best shipwrights in the Mediterranean. In fact, they actually figured out that the Earth is round by studying the way that the horizon works. Though, that particular fact is mostly known amongst ship captains and their crews. Nantucket initially hoped that they could court Tartessos as a potential trading partner using Isketerol. Once on Nantucket, however, Isketerol perused some encyclopedias at the Atheneum. It is the main library on Nantucket and is built in the style of an Ancient Greek temple. From this, Isketerol realizes that the Nantucketers really are from the future by seeing pictures of the Great Pyramid and the Gates of Mycenae in ruins.
As you can imagine, he is horrified to discover that almost no information about Tartessos survived in the future. He is determined to prevent Tartessos from meeting the same fate. He concludes that Nantucket will be the biggest threat to Tartessos, and allies with Walker to get his hands on future technology and knowledge. Though, he really only views Walker as a means to an end. Amusingly, Walker pretty much views Isketerol the same way. Hmm, so Isketerol betrayed Nantucket. His name sounds a bit like Iscariot, as in Judas Iscariot, the disciple who betrayed Jesus. Also, I think that's supposed to be Isketerol on the cover of the book.
Rounding out the main antagonists, at least for this book, is Pamela Lisketter. The term social justice warrior hadn't been invented yet when Island in the Sea of Time was written, but Lisketter fits the stereotype to a T. She is an outspoken bleeding-heart progressive, very pushy with her views, gets offended at the drop of a hat, and isn't nearly as knowledgeable as she claims. For example, when Nantucket is considering starting whaling expeditions to supplement the food supply, she objects on the grounds that whales are endangered. This ignores that fact that whales were most certainly not endangered during the Bronze Age. You can practically hear the other characters rolling their eyes. It is somewhat fitting that Nantucket returned to whaling. Whaling was Nantucket's primary industry during the 19th Century.
Lisketter also criticizes Nantucket for trading with the Sun People. This ignores how desperately Nantucket needed the food, and how they allied with the Earth Folk as soon as they understood the political situation in England better. On an unrelated note, I loved the scene where the inhabitants of Nantucket see a flock of passenger pigeons for the first time. Their flocks were truly a sight to behold back before they went extinct. And there were be also sort of other amazing animals, that were driven extinct in our world, still alive during the Bronze Age. To name just a few, there were moas in New Zealand, thylacines in Australia, quaggas in South Africa, dodos in Mauritius, and Falkland Wolves in... well, the Falkland Islands.
Lisketter and her followers decide they need to save the Olmec, lest they be subject to colonialism. They enlist help from the great humanitarian himself, William Walker. You know, that white dude who is subjecting ingenious people to his colonial rule? Really, he just need a distraction for one of his plans, and Lisketter was just the useful idiot for the job. Oh, but it gets better. Turns out the Olmec didn't want to be saved. Most of Lisketter's followers are either eaten or used as human sacrifice. I'm rather reminded of those stories of missionaries who went to islands in the South Pacific, ran afoul of local customs, and wound up as the main course for dinner.
Oh, but Lisketter got the worst punishment of all. Well, the Olmec probably considered it an honor. She had green eyes, almost the exact color of jaguar eyes. The Olmec apparently have a creation myth about a woman having sex with a jaguar, and giving birth to a god. I should mention that this appears to be Stirling's own invention, in reference to the half-man half-jaguar often featured in Olmec art. So, Lisketter is forced to reenact the myth with a live jaguar, which somehow doesn't maul her. Then, she has to do it again with the village chief, who is wearing a jaguar skin robe. Needless to say, she practically begs for the sweet release of death by the time all is said and done.
Oh, and someone in her expedition spread mumps to the Olmec. One of the side effects of mumps is sterility, so congratulations Lisketter, you just whipped out the Olmec, along with all the Mesoamerican civilizations descended from them! Though, was that all Olmec, or just that settlement? In the next book we see Olmec merchants in Nantucket, suggesting that the other Olmec settlements are doing just fine. Now, the portrayal of the Olmec fell into several stereotypes about Mesoamerican civilizations. Normally, I'd be very annoyed by that. On the other hand, seeing Lisketter's followers get ripped limb-from-limb was incredibly cathartic, not to mention absolutely hilarious. I think I'll let it slide just this once.
Okay, this review has dragged on for long than I intended, and I think we need to wrap things up. There are a few other things I could add, but I'll save them for next time. Before we go, I will say there is an audiobook version. It is narrated by Todd McLaren. He's narrated a few audiobooks for both S.M. Stirling and Harry Turtledove, and he is always excellent to have as narrator.
Well, I think we'll call it a wrap for now. Island in the Sea of Time is an excellent first novel in an amazing time travel alternate history trilogy. I can't believe I waited so long to give it a try. Don't make my mistake, read/listen today. You will be glad that you did. And don't worry, my reviews of Against the Tide of Years and On the Oceans of Eternity will be here before you know it. Think I might review 1632 by Eric Flint as a compare and contrast as well.
Well, that should do it from me for now. I will see you guys next time.
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