Forstchen, William R
Entry updated 30 October 2023. Tagged: Author.
(1950- ) US history professor author who has generally concentrated on series, beginning with the Ice Prophet sequence – Ice Prophet (1983), The Flame upon the Ice (1984) and A Darkness upon the Ice (1985) – set in a Ruined Earth venue at some point in the future after an ecological Disaster has caused the planet to become icebound. In this world technology has, according to the orthodox sf assumptions, been foolishly banned, and the eponymous prophet heralds a revival of science; but the intricacies of the realpolitik which doom him personally, and the beauties of the ice world itself, go some way to keep the sequence from being unduly familiar. The Gamester War novels – The Alexandrian Ring (1987), The Assassin Gambit (1988) and The Napoleon Wager (1993), all assembled as The Gamester Wars (omni 1995) – show a similar competence and a whole-hearted involvement in the most far-reaching dictates that Space Opera can demand on those who treat its premises seriously, featuring a race of intergalactic overlords who permit the citizens of Earth and many other planets to engage in vast Game-World-like conflicts and to import, through Time Travel, figures like Alexander the Great to fight wagered wars on the enormous ringworld that serves as arena. The Crystal series, written with Greg Morrison – The Crystal Warriors (1988) and The Crystal Sorcerers (1991) – is fantasy. The Lost Regiment sequence – beginning with Rally Cry! (1990), and ending with Down to the Sea: A Novel of the Lost Regiment (2000) – reworks the basic structure of the Gamester War books, this time from the perspective of a Civil War Union troop transported through time to a medieval planet secretly dominated by remote aliens. The Star Voyager Academy sequence, comprising Star Voyager Academy (1994), Article 23 (1998) and Prometheus (1999), Into the Sea of Stars (1986) is a singleton; the Wing Commander titles, beginning with Wing Commander: Heart of the Tiger (1993) with Christopher Stasheff, are tied to the combat-based Videogame (see also Space Sim).
Forstchen's collaborations with the US Republican Congressman Newt Gingrich (whom see) begin with 1945 (1995), a Hitler Wins tale in which Germany confronts America after its 1945 victory in Europe; and continue with the Gettysburg trilogy comprising Gettysburg: A Novel of the Civil War (2003), Grant Comes East (2004) and Never Call Retreat (2005), presenting an Alternate History of the Civil War extrapolating – as is Ward Moore's seminal Bring the Jubilee (November 1952 F&SF; exp 1953) – from General Robert E Lee's victory at the Battle of Gettysburg. Forstchen alone is a genre writer of shining efficiency, and is technically capable of the most ambitious work. [JC]
see also: Games and Sports.
William R Forstchen
born Millburn, New Jersey: October 1950
works
series
Ice Prophet
- Ice Prophet (New York: Ballantine Books/Del Rey, 1983) [Ice Prophet: pb/Darrell K Sweet]
- The Flame upon the Ice (New York: Ballantine Books/Del Rey, 1984) [Ice Prophet: pb/Darrell K Sweet]
- A Darkness upon the Ice (New York: Ballantine Books/Del Rey, 1985) [Ice Prophet: pb/Darrell K Sweet]
Gamester Wars
- The Alexandrian Ring (New York: Ballantine Books/Del Rey, 1987) [Gamester Wars: pb/Don Dixon]
- The Assassin Gambit (New York: Ballantine Books/Del Rey, 1988) [Gamester Wars: pb/Don Dixon]
- The Napoleon Wager (New York: Ballantine Books/Del Rey, 1993) [Gamester Wars: pb/David Mattingly]
- The Gamester Wars (New York: Ballantine Books/Del Rey, 1995) [omni of the above three: Gamester Wars: hb/Don Dixon and David Mattingly]
Crystal Warriors
- The Crystal Warriors (New York: Avon Books, 1988) with Greg Morrison [Crystal Warriors: pb/Joe DeVito]
- The Crystal Sorcerers (New York: Avon Books, 1991) with Greg Morrison [Crystal Warriors: pb/Joe DeVito]
Lost Regiment
- The Lost Regiment #1: Rally Cry! (New York: Penguin/Roc, 1990) [Lost Regiment: pb/Sanjulian]
- The Lost Regiment #2: Union Forever (New York: Penguin/Roc, 1991) [Lost Regiment: pb/Sanjulian]
- The Lost Regiment #3: Terrible Swift Sword (New York: Penguin/Roc, 1992) [Lost Regiment: pb/Sanjulian]
- The Lost Regiment #4: Fateful Lightning (New York: Penguin/Roc, 1993) [Lost Regiment: pb/Sanjulian]
- The Lost Regiment #5: Battle Hymn (New York: Penguin/Roc, 1996) [Lost Regiment: pb/Sanjulian]
- The Lost Regiment #6: Never Sound Retreat (New York: Penguin/Roc, 1998) [Lost Regiment: pb/Sanjulian]
- The Lost Regiment #7: A Band of Brothers (New York: Penguin/Roc, 1998) [Lost Regiment: pb/Sanjulian]
- The Lost Regiment #8: Men of War (New York: Penguin/Roc, 1999) [Lost Regiment: pb/Sanjulian]
- Down to the Sea: A Novel of the Lost Regiment (New York: Penguin/Roc, 2000) [Lost Regiment: pb/Sanjulian]
Wing Commander
- Wing Commander: End Run (New York: Baen Books, 1994) with Christopher Stasheff [tie to the computer game Wing Commander: pb/Paul Alexander]
- Wing Commander III: Fleet Action (New York: Baen Books, 1994) [tie to the computer game Wing Commander: pb/Paul Alexander]
- Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger (New York: Baen Books, 1995) with Andrew Keith [tie to the computer game Wing Commander: pb/]
- Wing Commander: The Price of Freedom (New York: Baen Books, 1996) with Ben Ohlander [tie to the Videogame Wing Commander: pb/]
- Wing Commander: Action Stations (New York: Baen Books, 1998) [tie to the computer game Wing Commander: pb/Paul Alexander]
- Wing Commander: False Colors (New York: Baen Books, 1998) with Andrew Keith [tie to the computer game Wing Commander: misascribed to William H Keith Jr on cover: pb/Gary Ruddell]
Star Voyager Academy
- Star Voyager Academy (New York: Baen Books, 1994) [Star Voyager Academy: pb/Gary Ruddell]
- Article 23 (New York: Baen Books, 1998) [Star Voyager Academy: pb/Gary Ruddell]
- Prometheus (New York: Baen Books, 1999) [Star Voyager Academy: pb/Gary Ruddell]
Gettysburg
- Gettysburg: A Novel of the Civil War (New York: St Martin's Press, 2003) with Newt Gingrich [Gettysburg: hb/Don Troiani]
- Grant Comes East (New York: St Martin's Press, 2004) with Newt Gingrich [Gettysburg: hb/Don Troiani]
- Never Call Retreat (New York: St Martin's Press, 2005) with Newt Gingrich [Gettysburg: hb/Don Troiani]
Pacific War
- Pearl Harbor: A Novel of December 8th (New York: St Martin's Press, 2007) with Newt Gingrich [Pacific War: hb/Shasto O'Leary Soudant]
- Days of Infamy (New York: St Martin's Press, 2008) with Newt Gingrich [Pacific War: hb/Shasto O'Leary Soudant]
One Second After
- One Second After (New York: Tor/Forge, 2009) [One Second After: hb/]
- One Year After (New York: Tor/Forge, 2015) [One Second After: hb/]
- The Final Day (New York: Tor/Forge, 2017) [One Second After: hb/Trevillion/Thinkstock]
individual titles
- Into the Sea of Stars (New York: Ballantine Books/Del Rey, 1986) [pb/Don Dixon]
- Magic: The Gathering: Arena (New York: HarperCollins, 1994) [tie to the Collectible Card Game: pb/Kevin Murphy]
- 1945 (New York: Baen Books, 1995) with Newt Gingrich [hb/Gary Ruddell]
- The Four Magics (New York: Baen Books, 1996) with Larry Segriff [tie to the Collectible Card Game: pb/Darrell K Sweet]
- Shattered Light 3: Catseye (New York: Pocket Books, 1999) with Jaki Demarest [tie: based on the CD/ROM computer Game: pb/David A Cherry]
- Star Trek: The Next Generation: The Forgotten War (New York: Pocket Books, 1999) [tie to Star Trek: The Next Generation: pb/]
- Honoured Enemy (London: HarperCollins/Voyager, 2001) with Raymond E Feist [Rift: Legends of the Riftwar: hb/Geoff Taylor]
- We Look Like Men of War (New York: Tor/Forge, 2002) [hb/Rick Reeves]
- Pillar to the Sky (New York: Tor, 2014) [hb/Paul Youll]
- 48 Hours (New York: Tor/Forge, 2019) [hb/]
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