From Publishers Weekly
This concluding sequel to Dietz's Deathday (2001) contains the same wide cast of characters whose recognizability (burnt-out pro, canny vet, manipulative pol with sincere heart, etc.) is balanced by their better-than-average depth of portrayal. Yes, Alexander Franklin is a devious politician with ambitions. But he is also an African-American U.S. president who mourns his wife's death and is willing to accept a reputation as a collaborator in order to organize the resistance movement against the insectile Saurons. Yes, the more noble humans and equally enslaved Ra 'Na defeat the arrogant Saurons in the end. But not everyone is motivated by selfless ideals, and even the good guys around Franklin make a hard (and immoral) choice, using the Saurons to decimate the white supremacists who also fight to overthrow the aliens. The author includes some interesting speculation on the nature of race relations and class divisions, giving his Saurons three separate genetic castes operating in a rigid social hierarchy. The commentary on human race relations is full of satiric insight. Surprisingly, this tale of worldwide alien invasion centers on only four locales. The sense of confinement, however, does help build an atmosphere of captivity, which aids considerably in reader identification with the plight of the human characters. Unfortunately, Dietz's plot-central alien reproduction seems unlikely, while his humans are rarely confronted with the problems of reconciling their real differences of belief.Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.


Book Description
William Dietz returns to the world of DeathDay with EarthRise, as Alex Franklin, the puppet president in the service of the occupying Saurons, experiences a change of heart-and transforms from a collaborator into a secret agent in an underground war of resistance.


About the Author
William C. Dietz is the author of over 20 science fiction novels, including By Blood Alone and By Force of Arms. Dietz has been variously employed as a surgical technician, college instructor, news writer and television producer.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"It took three days for the Saurons to destroy the great cities of the world, wrapping the earth in a blanket of fire and ash. More than three billion people perished under the alien assault. But the invaders stopped short of complete annihilation. They needed survivors. They needed slaves." "Jack Manning was one of them. Forced into an uneasy alliance with the enemy, he rose from Sauron slave to Chief of Security in a government instated to ensure human cooperation. But Manning's heart has always been with the rebels. He knows the purpose behind the construction of the oppressive alien temples - incubators for a new generation of Saurons that will one day make the takeover of Earth complete. Unless someone fights back." Spearheading the movement with Manning is President Alex Franklin - a seeming puppet of the Saurons who's decided to start pulling his own strings. A revolution cloaked in deepest secrecy has begun as two secret agents recruit for an underground war. And the ultimate battle for supremacy is about to be waged.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly