Purgatory's Shore: Artillerymen - Book 1 focuses on what is referred to as the 1847 Americans, a group of people who were transferred to this unusual Earth during the Mexican-American War. While primarily made up of military personnel on their way to reinforce their compatriots at Vera Cruz, Mexico, the collection of troops that find themselves in a strange new world aren't exactly a single cohesive unit. Instead they are a mix of military branches, each with a collection of regulars and volunteers. There is already friction between each branch, and within those branches, friction between those that are career military and those that are just in it until the fight is over. So if someone doesn't find a way to take control over the lot of them, then their lives in the jungles of the Yucatan are going to be nasty, brutish and short.
That's where Captain Lewis Cayce comes in. While not technically in command of any group that was headed to Vera Cruz, by the time the dust settles, he is the highest ranking person left, and immediately begins to bring the disparate collection of troops in line. Cayce has a reputation among the men, as many have heard of his deeds at Palo Alto and the battles since, but he has been standoffish since he got on the boat and he has made no attempt to get to know any of the people around him.
While Cayce is in command, he quickly establishes a preliminary command structure that includes Captain Giles Anson, a Texas Ranger that heads a group of well-seasoned volunteers with a reputation that rivals Cayce's own. While Anson and Cayce might butt heads occasionally, when the two of them learn just what a mess the Americans have found themselves in, they agree that it's best to show a unified front.
The first few days in the strange jungle quickly show the Americans that this world is not like their own. Not only do they find themselves on land where there should be water, but the creatures that hunt them are nothing they've ever seen before. The only word they can ascribe to the giant lizards is "dragon," but even these great beasts are nothing compared to the unusual indigenous people they soon stumble upon.
When out scouting, some of Cayce's fledgling forces get attacked by a strange combination of lizardmen, called Grik, and humans, called the Holcano Indians. The initial fighting is fierce but the scouts are soon helped by another group of locals, and among them is a race of catlike people called Ocelomeh. When the Grik and Holcanos are rebuffed, a new alliance starts to take seed. Varaa-Choon, the warmaster for the helpful Ocelomeh, approaches Cayce and asks for his aid in defending their city, Uxmal. It seems that the small force of Grik and Holcanos that they faced was only a scouting party of its own, and a larger force is about to attack Uxmal. In part as repayment for saving his men's lives and in part because of the stories he hears from his scouts about these enemies, Cayce and the 1847 Americans march to Uxumal and prepare to defend the jungle city.
What Cayce doesn't quite realize is that the opposing forces are just a piece of a greater whole, and behind the savage creatures they have been attacking is The Holy Dominion, a massive theocracy with a twisted version of Christianity that controls most of Mexico. The events in Purgatory's Shore are clearly the start of a much larger engagement.
Overall, Purgatory's Shore: Artillerymen - Book 1 does what it needs to. It kicks off a new series of events in the alternate Earth Anderson has built up, and he's done so in a way to start shedding light on some of the lesser explored parts of his world. He starts this series off with some interesting characters that look to be on a path that, as far as I can tell, has only been hinted at in the existing series. These should all be details that fans of the Destroyermen series will want to read. If you are such a fan, then definitely look into adding Purgatory's Shore to your library, as this book is more of what you like.
Unfortunately, despite several attempts to get into Destroyermen, and now reading Purgatory's Shore, I can now, definitively say, this series is just not for me. I've tried ... several times. I've come to realize the level of military minutiae that Anderson puts into his books just doesn't strike a chord with me. During the heat of battle, his characters will think about the differences between the types of firearms they are using or other details that just don't appeal to me. When not in the heat of battle though, I really enjoy Anderson's character development and story arcs. Unfortunately, the very action-packed nature of these books means that the sticking points for me show up often. I wish Anderson the best of luck with continuing this series and fleshing out his great world, but I am going to have to bow out.
