1636: The Kremlin Games

Ring of Fire

By: Eric Flint, Gorg Huff, Paula Goodlett

Narrated by: George Guidall

Acclaimed as "a technothriller set in the age of the Medicis" by Publishers Weekly, Eric Flint's best-selling Ring of Fire series has redefined the alternate-history genre.

In this 10th novel, auto mechanic Bernie Zeppi heads to Moscow to bring Russia into the Industrial Revolution, 300 years ahead of schedule. War with Poland looms, but Bernie is more focused on a beautiful Russian noblewoman. Can he protect them both from the power struggles raging inside the Kremlin?

©2012 Eric Flint, Gorg Huff & Paula Goodlett (P)2012 Recorded Books

A Favorite Spin off

This is my favorite spin off from the 1632 series started by Eric Flint. I love the characters and the thoughtful way they get into and out of trouble as the book moves along. Eagerly anticipating the sequel!

Now that a few years have passed I have read this novel cover to cover multiple times, once ever 12-18 months. The story is a lot of fun with people working hard to make their corner of the world a better place using every practical means that is at their disposal, and inventing a few of their own as time goes on. The second book "1637 The Volga Rules" is nearly as much of a treasure and the third novel in the series "1638 The Sovereign States" is due to be published on September 1, 2023.

In anticipation I purchased the first two novels in Audible format and this one was a great listening experience. The narrator has a mellow voice that is easy to listen too and expresses the different characters well.

I love this series

I thought I could get this series in order, but between Audible not having all volumes, and the randomness of the volumes, that's impossible.

The premise is wonderful, a West Virginia town transplanted to 1633 Germany, during the 30 years war. You can't follow it in order, because the 30 years war was so fragmented, you study the Pope, Germany, Sweden, etc. all separately, there isn't a lot of continuity.

The characters are well done. The history, I don't know, I haven't really studied it. The suppositions are very interesting, and well done.

George Guidall is my second favorite narrator, and he does a great job keeping accents and characters straight, and helping me move with the story.

Fantastic Story

Eric Flint, et al, do it again with a great story, full of intrigue, well developed characters, and some twists in the curves of time in this alternative history of the 17th century.

A good entry in the Ring of Fire series

I loved the first book in this series. I also really, really liked the two sequels he wrote with David Weber. However, I have read one of the sequels that he co-wrote with Andrew Dennis and another he co-wrote with Virginia Demarce, and I found them mind-numbingly bad. So I hesitated a long time before plunking down my pennies for another sequel co-written with two people I'm unfamiliar with.

I'm happy to be able to report that I liked this entry into the series, and if Flint does anymore books with Huff and Goodlett, I will buy them without hesitation.

If you are new to this series, I don't recommend that you start with this book. I think you should start with the first book in the series, "1632." After that, it would have been nice to read the books in order of publication, but I can't recommend that due to the inferior writers he has teamed with in so many of them. So, I guess you'll just have to decide for yourself what order you will read them in.

This particular entry into the series deals with a young man from Grantville who is recruited by Russian spies to help them bring technology to Russia. I really knew nothing about Russian society before the Russian Revolution of 1917, so this book provided a real eye-opener into why they NEEDED a revolution. They really had a toxic society, and in the real world nothing much changed or improved for ordinary people for hundreds of years. In the Ring of Fire universe, that is changing.

George Guidall narrates and does his usual excellent job.

I recommend this book.

As good as 1632

What made the experience of listening to 1636: The Kremlin Games the most enjoyable?

The reader

What was one of the most memorable moments of 1636: The Kremlin Games?

The end

What about George Guidall’s performance did you like?

Very good

Any additional comments?

This new book was really good. I hope for a trilogy at least .

About time. Just about right

What made the experience of listening to 1636: The Kremlin Games the most enjoyable?

I have been waiting for audio versions of the book for some time now. The fact that I have it is wonderful.

What other book might you compare 1636: The Kremlin Games to and why?

It is similar to the other Ring of Fire Books and Grantville Gazette. There are something like 13 novels and 46 editions of the Gazette, of which 10 or so are in paper. The first 6 novels were recorded for the blind. There is a lot of territory to make up and us fans are chomping at the bit.

Any additional comments?

Not my favorite narrator, If it sounded more detailed I’d like him a lot more. The first five volumes done by Eric Sandvold at NLS are the benchmark for this series for those who have been reading these on audio who are blind or otherwise impaired. The sound quality is rough, mildly distorted and oddly mastered, no resonance, like it was squeezed out. If he is recording in a proper studio, something is wrong. Sometimes a mic, a wire and a recorder is all you need.

Love those Russians!

I have listened to the whole series. I have enjoyed them very much. My only complaint has been the DETAILED !!! descriptions of battles which I do not enjoy. This is the best so far, in many ways because they focus on the characters and not the battle scenes.

Entertaining and fun! Hope there is more to come!

A great set up for the Next

It starts pretty good, then goes into the development of multiple characters and how it impacts the "characters"...not just one main character, but three to four. Stories with in stories, which I like, but you can tell Eric did not write this book by himself. The different styles kind of jump out at you. However, then it all comes together for a super climax and setup for the next book"s". I will be getting the next one. Just wish audible would have provided books 3 through 9 too. Hopefully soon.

complex but well thought out

This saga reeally nocks it out of the park once again, George Guidal voices are spot on. I just love this series.

Probably the worst entry in the 1632 series

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

This was supposed to be a recap and continuation of the "Butterflies in the Kremlin" series of stories from the Grantville Gazette anthologies, but it completely butchered the story. Major characters and plot threads were completely rewritten.

Would you ever listen to anything by the authors again?

Oh, yes. I really enjoy most of the other novels and short stories in the series. I'm just extremely irritated with the way the effort to translate a good series of short stories into a novel was botched in this case.

Would you listen to another book narrated by George Guidall?

Yes. Most of the time I enjoy Mr. Guidall's work. My only beef with him, and most other narrators, is when they mispronounce words or names in the narrative. It's distracting. Mr. Guidall's most serious transgression, in this respect, is Capt.(later Col.) Alexander MacKay's last name. "Kay" is pronounced with a long "a", not a long "I"! Every time I hit one of these, my mind stutters and I miss a couple of words. Then I have to think about what's going on and reacquire the thread of the narrative.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Not really. Usually, Mr. Flint is more careful about keeping his secondary authors on track with the overall story lines.