http://www.susanhatedliterature.net/2... ( )

Wonderfully atmospheric WW2 alternate history. I especially enjoyed the depictions of Winston Churchill and Rudolf Hess, although the two main characters were a little flat. ( )

A writer of oral histories about World War II is fascinated by the mysterious J. L. Sawyer who is listed as an RAF pilot and a conscientious objector. He soon finds out there were two J. L. Sawyers; twin brothers. He receives a journal attributed to J. L. Sawyer that paints a very different picture of the war and its aftermath. Through the historian’s research we learn about the lives of these brothers and how they influenced the outcome of the conflict.

The story is told through journal entries and various government documents. It’s as though we are reading the historians research materials.

There are a number of separations in the story. The first is the physical separation of the main characters, Joe and Jack Sawyer. They are separated by the love they have for the same women and then by their differing ideologies. Jack is an RAF pilot and Joe is a conscientious objector working for the Red Cross. Another separation is the separate peace Britain negotiates with Germany. ( )

The wonderfully confusing parallel stories of twin brothers during WWII. The book is peppered with doubles and is very focused on the shifting of identity and time.

I felt confident that I understood what was going on, right up to about three quarters of the way through this book, but then began to spiral into confusion and found myself flicking back and forth to investigate different interpretations of events.

I won't pretend to understand the true version of events Priest writes about. I'm guessing the point is that there's never a true version, just different interpretations which merge and overlap, but which are ultimately very enjoyable to read. ( )

http://nhw.livejournal.com/24272.html...

excellent stuff, dopplegangers, altered timelines and the second world war, as if Philip K Dick had been English and sober. ( )