Roc, $6.99, 2004, ISBN: 0-451-45868-0, 398 pages, paperback

Imagine crossing a tsar with George Washington (or more precisely, John Adams) and you have the main character of the book: Andrei Mironenko. He’s the owner and governor of the planet Belarus, a human colony on the frontier. He’s trying to merge Imperial Russian history with Yankee democracy.

The setting is somewhat interesting, although the introduction of Baba Yaga’s hut rankles the cohesion. And I enjoyed the idea of an uber-engineer (think Albert Speer in charge of Germany circa 1933 instead of 1943) in charge of world building. And putting ancient derelicts in orbit around one of the other planets in the solar system is a good mystery lead in. And the occasional tech item.

And then…nothing. That’s about all that happens.

Oh, there are some subplots about intelligent bugs that emerge like cicadas, a serial killer, and a galactic civil war. They’re all unfocused, undeveloped, and unimpressive. The first half of the book really grabbed me, but the second half puttered around and fizzled. Imagine, an entire galactic civil war that devastates Belarus and it’s gone in a page and one-quarter. It’s as if deadline came a calling and Hogan had to finish at warp speed.

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