The ''Axis of Time'' trilogy is an alternative history series of

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

s written by

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

n journalist and author John Birmingham, from Macmillan Publishing. The novels deal with the radical alteration of the history of World War II and the socio-historical changes that result when a technologically advanced naval task force from the year 2021 is accidentally transported back through time to 1942. The early chapters of the first book in the trilogy, ''Weapons of Choice'', are set in the near future.

Plot

In 2021, a radical Islamic terrorist movement has declared a global

jihad Jihad (; ar, جهاد, jihād ) is an Arabic word which literally means "striving" or "struggling", especially with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it can refer to almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with Go ...

against the West and established a Caliphate in Indonesia, initiating a wholesale slaughter of Chinese nationals there. In response, a US-led multinational task force of advanced warships and submarines sails to Indonesia to launch a counterattack against the Caliphate forces and retake the archipelago. With the fleet is a research vessel, the ''Nagoya'', which is testing top-secret weapons and stealth systems that use the latest developments in quantum physics. As the task force lies at anchor off the coast of East Timor preparing for deployment, the ''Nagoya'' conducts a full-scale test of its new systems but there is a catastrophic accident—the experiment generates a massive rift in the time-space continuum, completely destroying the ''Nagoya'' and sending most of the fleet back in time to 1942. Many of the 2021 ships materialize in the middle of the US fleet that is steaming to engage the Japanese at the Battle of Midway, including one vessel which materializes into the structure of a 1942 ship, with horrific results. When the mystery fleet suddenly appears, the Americans mistake them for the enemy (due to the presence of Japanese vessels in the 2021 fleet) and they begin firing on them. With the crews of the 2021 fleet rendered helpless by "transition sickness", the computerized battle systems on their ships automatically activate, inflicting heavy damage and thousands of casualties on the 1942 fleet until the two forces work out what has happened and halt the battle. As the nature of the event dawns on the two fleets, the two commanders strike an uneasy truce and the combined fleet heads back to Pearl Harbor. The Americans then launch an intensive study into the 2021 fleet's futuristic computer and weapons technology, as well as the wealth of historical information which describes their own future – although many items of technology from the future fleet are stolen by unscrupulous sailors from 1942 and sold to the criminal underworld. Matters are further complicated by the fact that the chaotic nature of the Nagoya's "time bubble" has transported some 2021 ships to locations far from the main group, and these vessels variously fall into the hands of the Japanese, the Germans and the

Soviets Soviet people ( rus, сове́тский наро́д, r=sovyétsky naród), or citizens of the USSR ( rus, гра́ждане СССР, grázhdanye SSSR), was an umbrella demonym for the population of the Soviet Union. Nationality policy in th ...

. After the Japanese capture an Indonesian ship from the 2021 fleet, they discover what they did not know in the conventional version of history – that the US fleet had not been crippled by the Pearl Harbor attack, as they thought, and that the Americans have broken their military codes and are fully aware of the Japanese battle plans. Acting on these revelations, Admiral Yamamoto immediately turns his fleet around, and the Battle of Midway never takes place. Another vessel is captured by the Germans and as they learn more about the future outcome of the war they halt and abandon their ill-fated invasion of Russia and prepare for an all-out assault on the United Kingdom. Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin become allies and purge their military forces of anyone they believe to be a traitor. The series goes on to explore the far-reaching effects of the Transition, which radically alters not merely the balance of power between the Axis and the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

, but the entire course of WWII and global history. The Soviet Union uses the treaty with Germany to assemble a powerful and massive military and launch a large scale invasion into Asia and Eastern Europe, conquering a vast amount of territory. The plot shares a premise with the 1980 movie '' The Final Countdown'', about a modern

USN The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage of ...

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...

which travels back in time to just before the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. The plot also has similarities to that of the series '' Zipang'', about a Japanese missile destroyer transported back in time right before the Battle of Midway.

Books in series

* World War 2.1: '' Weapons of Choice'' (2004), * World War 2.2: ''

Designated Targets ''Designated Targets'' is a science fiction novel by Australian writer John Birmingham, the second volume of his alternate history Axis of Time trilogy. Plot summary It is September 1942, four months after the Transition. A cease-fire has b ...

'' (2005), * World War 2.3: '' Final Impact'' (2007), * '' Stalin's Hammer: Rome'' (2012), novella, * '' Stalin's Hammer: Cairo'' (2016), ebook only novella * '' Stalin's Hammer: Paris'' (2016), ebook only novella * '' Stalin's Hammer: The Complete Sequence'' (2017), , all three novellas (Rome, Cairo and Paris) have been repackaged as a single volume * An untitled work, beginning this history's WWIII, has been announced on John Birmingham's blog.

Allusions

Birmingham names several minor characters after contemporary nonfictional people: *

Venero Armanno Venero Armanno is an Australian novelist. He was born in Brisbane of Sicilian parents. He received a BA from the University of Queensland, and later an MA and PhD in Creative Writing from the Queensland University of Technology. Armanno comp ...

, Brisbane novelist. Appeared as Lieutenant Veni Armanno. *

Paul Brasch Paul Brasch is a stand-up comedian from Brisbane, Australia. He has appeared on ''The Midday Show'', ''Hey Hey It's Saturday'', The Comedy Channel's ''Headliners'' and '' Stand Up Australia'', and various other television shows, as well as a stint ...

, Brisbane comedian. Appeared as Major Paul Brasch. * Karen Halabi, a journalist who has written for the Sydney Morning Herald, appeared as Captain Karen Halabi, captain of HMS ''Trident'', a major character * Piers Akerman and Andrew Bolt, conservative Australian columnists. Appeared as

SAS SAS or Sas may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''SAS'' (novel series), a French book series by Gérard de Villiers * ''Shimmer and Shine'', an American animated children's television series * Southern All Stars, a Japanese rock ba ...

demolitionists. *

Dale Brown Dale Brown (born 2 November 1956) is an American writer and aviator known for aviation techno-thriller novels. At least thirteen of his novels have been ''New York Times'' Best Sellers. Early life Brown was born in Buffalo, New York, and w ...

, Tom Clancy, Stephen Euin Cobb, and Garth Nix - thriller writers appearing as counterboarding specialists aboard USS ''Leyte Gulf''. * Eric Flint (alternate history author) appeared as a

Secret Service A secret service is a government agency, intelligence agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. For ...

agent. The fictional town of Grantville, West Virginia, from his

1632 series The ''1632'' series, also known as the 1632-verse or ''Ring of Fire'' series, is an alternate history book series and sub-series created, primarily co-written, and coordinated by American author Eric Flint and published by Baen Books. The s ...

is referred to as Dan Black's home town. In addition, it was mentioned that 1632 and its sequels were turned into movies, directed by

Peter Jackson Sir Peter Robert Jackson (born 31 October 1961) is a New Zealand film director, screenwriter and producer. He is best known as the director, writer and producer of the ''Lord of the Rings'' trilogy (2001–2003) and the ''Hobbit'' trilogy ( ...

. *

William R. Forstchen William R. Forstchen (born October 11, 1950) is an American historian and author. A Professor of History and Faculty Fellow at Montreat College, in Montreat, North Carolina, he received his doctorate from Purdue University. He has published num ...

(sci-fi/alternate history author) referred to as a fringe 'professor' who wrote an underground bio of J. Edgar Hoover. * Bill O'Reilly and Jerry Springer are mentioned as both being United States senators in the 21st Century. *

Matthew Reilly Matthew John Reilly (born 2 July 1974) is an internationally bestselling Australian action thriller writer.
". Retrieved 10 ...

(Australian action/sci-fi author) appears as a lieutenant on the ''USS Leyte Gulf''. Redshirted. *

S.M. Stirling Stephen Michael Stirling (born September 30, 1953) is a Canadian-American science fiction and fantasy author who was born in France. Stirling is well known for his Draka series of alternate history novels and his later time travel/alternate his ...

(sci-fi/alternate history author) appeared as a Secret Service agent. His ''Draka'' series is referenced when one of the characters remarks that, with all the events of the past year, he would not be surprised to hear of a new race of super-Nazis arising in South Africa, and a second time when a character mentions that the ''Draka'' series has been turned into movies by

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...

. * Harry Turtledove, one of the most prominent

alternate history Alternate history (also alternative history, althist, AH) is a genre of speculative fiction of stories in which one or more historical events occur and are resolved differently than in real life. As conjecture based upon historical fact, altern ...

authors, appears as "Commander Turteltaub", an aide to

FDR Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

. The President at one point asks him whether the space lizards have invaded yet, a reference to Turtledove's ''Worldwar'' series. *

Mike Judge Michael Craig Judge (born October 17, 1962) is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, director and musician. He is the creator of the animated television series ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' (1993–1997, 2011, 2022–present), and the co-cre ...

, creator of ''

Beavis and Butt-Head ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' is an American adult animated series created by Mike Judge. The series follows Beavis and Butt-Head, both voiced by Judge, a pair of teenage slackers characterized by their apathy, lack of intelligence, lowbrow humor, ...

'', '' King of the Hill'', '' The Goode Family'' and '' Office Space'', commanding officer of the USS Hillary Clinton. * James H. Cobb,

Robert Dessaix Robert Dessaix (born 17 February 1944) is an Australian novelist, essayist and journalist. Biography Robert Dessaix was born in Sydney and adopted at an early age by Tom and Jean Jones, after which he was known as Robert Jones. Tom Jones, a ...

, and Jean-Paul Sartre are namesakes for naval ships. * Hillary Clinton is also the namesake of a naval ship, an American aircraft carrier. From the perspective of the series' 2021 setting, Clinton is a former President who led the country during a war and was later assassinated. * Phillip McGregor (co-author of ''Space Opera'' (FGU), ''Rigger Black Book'' #1 (FGU) and many other roleplaying games and supplements) appears as the Pilot of one of the Dakota gunships used to decimate German Paratroops taking part in Operation Sea Dragon, a thank you for helping provide the author with some historical background material as part of a discussion on the book on the soc.history.what-if usenet newsgroup. * Tim Horan and

Peter FitzSimons Peter John Allen FitzSimons (born 29 June 1961) is an Australian author, journalist, and radio and television presenter. He is a former national representative rugby union player and has been the chair of the Australian Republic Movement sinc ...

(former rugby union players and in 'fitzys' case also journalist and author) appear as Australian military personnel * The French ship

, actually an Australian novelist, was commanded by René Goscinny with First Officer

Albert Uderzo Alberto Aleandro Uderzo (; ; 25 April 1927 – 24 March 2020), better known as Albert Uderzo, was a French comic book artist and scriptwriter. He is best known as the co-creator and illustrator of the ''Astérix'' series in collaboration with Re ...

, the creators of '' Asterix''. * SAS Troopers Peter Hamilton (a British science-fiction writer) and

Sir Vivian Richards Sir Isaac Vivian Alexander Richards (born 7 March 1952) is an Antiguan retired cricketer who represented the West Indies cricket team between 1974 and 1991. Batting generally at number three in a dominant West Indies side, Richards is widely ...

(one of the greatest cricketers of all time). * Colonel Harry Windsor of the British SAS ( Prince Harry) appears as himself, obviously in no need of

tuckerization Tuckerization (or tuckerism) is the act of using a person's name (and sometimes other characteristics) in an original story as an in-joke. The term is derived from Wilson Tucker, a pioneering American science fiction writer, fan and fanzine editor ...

. *

Rosanna Natoli Rosanna Natoli is an Australian politician and former television presenter. She is currently the mayor of the Sunshine Coast Region, having been elected at the 2024 Queensland local elections. Politics In December 2023, Natoli announced she wou ...

is a reporter/presenter for Channel Seven News Queensland

. Was a 21st Century reporter murdered in Hawaii by a Japanese officer. * Gia Dimarco, a female pornographic actress. Is a lieutenant in the USN, stationed in the USN Hillary Clinton. * Arthur Clarke, a predominant science fiction writer, is referred to as Private Clarke during the invasion of Normandy. Birmingham names at least one place (USSR Demidenko facility) after controversial Australian journalist and author Helen Darville, who won several major literary awards for her book ''The Hand That Signed the Paper'', written under the pseudonym Helen Demidenko. Darville initially presented herself as being of Ukrainian ancestry but this was subsequently exposed as a hoax.

Adaptation

In September 2021, it was announced Luke Sparke is developing a television adaptation through his Sparke Films banner.

References

External links