So interesting to have read this just after the last volume of Jo Walton's Small Change series, Half a Crown. Both involve a gay male protagonist living in Fascist Britain around the time of WWII (well, last volume of Small Change is set in 1960, but the earlier volumes are in the 40's). But the Fascism is reached in quite different ways. In Jo Walton's books, Britain has made peace (with honor) with Nazi Germany, and Hitler rules Europe. The makers of that peace gain power in Britain and obviou...

Surprising, wonderful fiction from a stellar, passionate small publishing house. Collector's item, no doubt. Highly recommended.

Very disappointing and not really worth the read.

This is excellent alternate history and deserves better recognition.

Beautiful and sad alternate history.

Rating: As close to five full stars as makes no differenceThe Book Report: England in 1940...shiny happy people, none the worse for wear after their crushing 1916 defeat at the hands of the Hun. All the mod cons in every home! All the freedoms any one man can handle responsibly! Where did the Jews go?Why do you want to know that, faggot?Griffin Brooke fails to heed the social conventions of his fascist state, England, first by being a homosexual, and second by failing to stop asking questions wh...

A melancholy alternate British history novel, which takes place during the time of WWII in our history.It tackles the issues of homosexuality, anti-Semitism, Fascism, nationalism and British complacency, among other topics.My copy is number 148 of 500 autographed limited edition chapbooks.

An intriguing alternative history of a Britain that has lost World War 1.The protagonist is a gay history teacher promoted to Oxford due to his association with the country's supreme leader George Arthur.George Arthur rises from obscurity to lead a semi fascist Britain paralleling in many ways the rise of Hitler.The book does provides a chilling insight into to what a fascist Britain may have looked like, but fails to deliver in the same way that does. Interesting, but disappointing.

Not my style. I am not particularly fond of books that have too much homosexuality in it.I didn't get too far into it but was not impressed whatsoever.

This is as close to mainstream fiction as it can get (and might be ideal for those who are afraid of fantasy & SF, but don't know what they're missing and who need a friend like YOU to supply them with novels like this to introduce them to it) and if it would not be for a different time-line where Germany won WW1, sh/could be classified as mainstream. And, maybe more importantly, as proper (high brow-) 'literature'.It is also a book for those who think that the likes of Dostoyevsky write novels

This novel is so many things, it's almost hard to know where to begin. "The Summer Isles," is an alternate history that somehow manages to feel faithful to reality. It's a story that serves as both a love letter to all things English as well as a cautionary tale. It drips with social and political commentary while miraculously managing to avoid feeling judgmental, or preachy. This is a book about understanding; humanizing the world's monsters rather than vilifying them and shining light on the g...

This ia an alternative history novel about what Great Britain would be like if they had lost WW1. It is thought provoking and quite chilling when you consider the possibilities.

After I reread MacLeod's The Great Wheel I looked to see if he had written more, and The Summer Isles piqued my interest. Set in an alternate history where the Allies lost WW1 and Britain became a fascist state under the rule of a man called John Arthur, the book follows a teacher called Geoffrey Brooke who had a loose connection to Arthur when he was younger.It portrays a vision of what fascism might have looked like in 1930s Britain, and there were many elements that I feel would still ring tr...

The Summer Isles is a stunner parahistory about a post WWI fascist England, but unlike The Man in the High Castle or Jo Walton's superb Half Penny series, Germany is barely part of the equation. Hitler's been removed from power, but Britain's slipped on the jackboots in Germany's stead. Can we say Queen Wallis? This is going on the shelf next to the Handmaid's Tale.

A pleasant surprise. I find alternative history stories usually disappoint, too impressed with their own cleverness to really move the reader. This one is excellent. It is clever and powered by a genuinely surprising reveal halfway through. But it's also very moving and gripping. I can't remember why this found I way onto my shelf but I'm glad that it did and I recommend it.

Wonderful alternate history in which the allies lost WW1, sending England into despair and ultimately fascism. The story is set in this alternate 1940; the main character (who is also the narrator) is a 60-year-old closeted gay man who teaches at Oxford, and he has a history with John Arthur, the fascist populist dictator who arises after the war is lost. I don't want to give any spoilers, because the story is so lovely and the reader should find out what happens as they go along. I found it som...

An alternative history through the eyes of a gay Oxford don. The premise is that the Germans won the First World War, their March 1918 offensive succeeded and the war ended in the August with the defeat of France and Britain. The Peace Treaty strips Britain of a number of colonies and overseas territories in much the same way that the Germans were in our own history. Britain has a violent period in the 1920s and a former corporal, John Arthur, becomes the leader of a Modernist movement. The stor...

Boring as fuuuuuuck for a long time. I was making jerk-off "man problems" motions as I read it until about halfway through and a wild plot arrived. Then it got pretty good and then the reveal happened and it got REALLY good. Like woah, did not see that coming, good job yo. But also suffers from what I'm going to start calling the Wilbur Rule: "I got an amazing blowjob five years ago but have mixed feelings about it now." -most novels by menYUUUUUPPPPPPPPP

This beautifully written book started life as a novella, winning the World Fantasy Award for that category. Expanded to novel length, it was nominated for several awards, including the Gaylactic Spectrum Award. It is an alternate history story where Britain loses the First World War and descends into fascism. Its prose is stunning, though at times, it felt a little too British, with some words and references I didn’t get. Nonetheless, it was a joy to read despite its depressing content.Come visi...

A very scary story about a very scary Britain that lost WWI and became a fascist state. The truly scary thing is how easy it would have been, given the situation and the times. Well written, original, with characters that made you believe in their stories, even the monstrous ones.