Review: Interesting Take on China vs. the World
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 02 20, 2014
I didn't read the first volume, and in all honesty I had some difficulty with the premise of "Winter Kill 2" that might have been lessened if I had.  A Chinese plan to bring about a nuclear winter and emerge a winner is hard to swallow, but that is behind its titular invasion of Australia.  Other pieces of the plan are dealt with in passing: occupation of Korea and Indonesia and the less challenging invasion of NZ.  China's lack of strategic mobility assets is dealt with by utilizing civilian air and sea transports, a vigorous use of inserted SOF, and removal of allied satellites.  A decade-long nuclear winter is initiated by a massive nuclear exchange between the US and Russia that China is behind.  The Chinese role is eventually revealed, but there does not seem to have been anything left in the arsenals with which to retaliate!  For me, there was a fundamental disconnect between the massive destruction from the initial nuclear exchange -- 90 percent of the allied populations killed, industry, agriculture, and leadership centers destroyed -- and the focus on a rather traditional military campaign aimed at the subjugation of Australia.That is not to say that the storyline and characters (Australian, American, Chinese, and Indian) aren't interesting, though the 3 1/2 years covered by the book and its episodic structure are rather daunting.  The author's interest in global economic collapse is touched on, there is insurgency and counter-insurgency are covered at the individual level, there is a peculiar episode involving the journey of a unique vessel, and so on.  In other words, the author's impressive  imagination coupled with his careful research comes very close to running away with the book.  There is too much here for a single volume, IMHO.I enjoyed a great deal of Mr. Skellig's description of events despite my strong reservations about the premise.  However, the recurring dissonance of massive nuclear war as backdrop for a focus on a campaign in Australia was too much for me.