It is 1942 and America is Under Seige - an Editorial Review of "Wolves at the Gate: Guerilla War"

Book Blurb:

The year is 1942 and America is under siege.

After invading the Hawaiian Islands and South Carolina, the Axis are on the move. Field Marshal Erwin Rommel’s panzer army blitzes north to capture Washington D.C. and force a United States surrender, while the Japanese land on the west coast to make their own territorial claims on America. Guerrillas rise up against the invaders, buying General George Patton’s Third Army time to prepare a desperate counterattack.

The invasion tore Jim Fraser from his wife Florrie and their twin daughters. Doubting his family survived the lost battle for Charleston, all that sustains Captain Fraser is fighting for the men of his Baker Company, as they resist a relentless enemy driving them ever farther away from their homes. Meanwhile, Florrie and her girls embark on a journey across the occupied zone to reach Free America, but the closer they get to safety, the more dangerous the war becomes.

The shattering second novel of an epic series re-imagining the Second World War, Wolves at the Gate: Guerrilla War tells the story of the Frasers and America’s struggle for survival.

Look for the Wolves at the Gate: Guerrilla War audiobook at Spotify or your other favorite retailers.

Book Buy Link: https://geni.us/Wc8aHM

Author Bio:

Bart Stark is a U.S. Army paratrooper and a combat veteran, who later entered a life of crime as a prosecutor and defense attorney. Now, Bart is beginning the third act of his life as a novelist.

After leading a vagabond life which took them across America and Europe, Bart and his wife settled in the highlands of Panama. His favorite pastime is hiking his dogs in the jungle and daydreaming dystopian futures for his characters.

Editorial Review:

Title: Wolves at the Gate: Guerilla War”

Author: Bart Stark

Rating: 4.0

“Wolves at the Gate (2 book series)” by Bart Stark is an alternative historical novel set in 1942. It depicts a fictional scenario where Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan successfully invade and occupy parts of the United States during World War II. The book explores the collapse of conventional battle lines, as war rages on American soil, forcing soldiers and civilians alike into guerrilla resistance, occupation and survival. It profoundly examines themes of moral compromise, the psychological toll of guerrilla warfare, the tragic costs of collaboration, and the struggle to preserve family and humanity amidst unprecedented brutality.

“No way, no how could they sail to the States without a great deal of help. “OK, OK, let’s just assume the Germans could get here,” second-year man Dave Shaw postulated. “Who would win between the German Army and the U.S. Army?” All the future Army officers unanimously agreed Americans were better soldiers. Billings submerged that bravado with some more cold water. “Gentlemen, the German Army has nearly four million men.” “Mother Mary! That’s nearly the population of my New York City,” Doug O’Malley exclaimed.”

This moment creates a nostalgic, almost innocent atmosphere, where VMI cadets are discussing war hypothetically, untouched by its true costs. They have no idea that their speculative debate will soon become a devastating reality in an alternative timeline. By opening with the debate on whether an invasion could succeed, and who would win, the reader senses early on that the novel will explore the gap between theoretical military power and actual wartime experience. In so doing, it primes the reader to expect a story where deeply held assumptions will be tested to their limits.

“With a passing order to his aide that he was not be disturbed, Major General Masaharu Homma strode into his office and slammed the door. The officer quickly stripped out of his dress uniform, spattered with the blood and brain matter of the now deceased governor, and put on the field uniform hanging in the closet… The program to place local Japanese in positions of authority was running smoothly, while the Army and the Kempeitai secret police were under strict orders to avoid friction with the other residents. He was under no illusion the people of these islands loved their new overlords, but an uneasy peace was achieved.”

This passage gives depth to Homma, a major general and supreme Japanese occupation commander of Hawaii who is frustrated after the assassination of the newly appointed Japanese Governor. You sense that all he has been building towards has suddenly been shattered by a single bullet, and he is now being driven towards harsh reprisals. The description of his soiled dress uniform is deliberately graphic, and grounds political loss in physical horror. The reader senses that what will follow will be driven by a mixture of duty and wounded pride, as well as the brutal logic of occupation, a logic that might transform the ‘uneasy peace’ into open repression.

“Colonel-san, is it correct my son Joji is here?” “Sir, I believe the traitor Tanaka and the Sniper have misled my son. Joji is young and Foolish, but has always been dutiful. Please…” “This is your son’s confession. It appears he was a more than willing participant in these crimes.” “Your son was executed as a traitor two days ago.” Sumida frowned. The father fought to maintain his demeanor… “Because of your loyalty, you may take the body of your son.”

This scene is a study in tragic irony, guilt and the brutal cost of collaboration. You feel a father’s anguish as his effort to do his duty while protecting his son ends up becoming the very instrument of the latter’s destruction. Joji was not a soldier but a young Japanese-American (Nisei) living in Pupukea, Oahu, who, although his father embraced the Japanese occupation, remained fascinated by American culture and opposed the occupation’s brutality. His death was a consequence of the unforgiving nature of the guerrilla war, a war that is not romanticized here; instead shows the innocent swept up in its violence.

Stark allows this story’s action scenes to unfold in short, punchy paragraphs that accelerate the pace, and in quieter moments that slow down to allow emotional weight to land. The prose uses military terms that ground the plot in authenticity, while the dialogue sometimes unfolds in broken or accented English to denote foreignness. Stark’s idea to divide the book into parts introduces multiple perspectives, while building towards a simultaneous climax in the final section. The novel shines especially in its incorporation of a wide cast, who include real historical figures who lend it authenticity. Its strength lies in its world building within a familiar alternate history, and multi-threaded narrative which will especially appeal to readers who enjoy “what if” scenarios grounded in war history. “Wolves at the Gate (2 book series)” might just be what you need if you have ever wondered how ordinary Americans might survive a full-scale invasion of their homeland.

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