I realised about halfway through World War 3.2 that I couldn’t finish the story in 3.3. I didn’t even have space in this most recent book to check in on Lonesome Jones. He just gets a few call-outs by other characters. And even though there is a whole ‘nother war in the Pacific and North Asia, we didnt see any of that either. (At least Jones got to kick some ass in 3.1).
So, yeah, I had to accept there would be a lot more AoT coming.
Random House made it easy for me by taking over two years to edit the final Cruel Stars novel. I had quite a bit of time sitting around twiddling my thumbs to ponder stuff like this. Below is a character list from my planning sheet for the series.
There are mild spoilers, mostly about who gets to feature… (You can skim down to the illustration if you want to skip any potential narrative surprises). The point is, never mind the narrative quality, check out the length!
📖 Canonical Roster for World War 3Primary Narrator Clusters
1. Kolhammer vs. McCarthy + the Cabal
• Phillip Kolhammer: President of the United States, the central “rumble seat” narrator anchoring the war. Balances domestic political warfare with the global Soviet threat.
• Joe McCarthy + the Cabal: Industrialists, media barons, fossil-fuel magnates — reactionary forces who reject the uptime future. Antagonists Kolhammer must face directly.
• Lavrentiy Beria (contextual antagonist): Never in the same room as Kolhammer, but his Soviet war machine is the environmental challenge Kolhammer’s presidency must confront.
2. Harry / Julia / Dan (Espionage & Triangle)
• Prince Harry Windsor: British SAS commander, high-profile royal, deeply enmeshed in both politics and espionage.
• Julia Duffy: Former journalist, now recuperating in London. Caught between love, loyalty, and survival.
• Dan Black: Fallen man tied to Ali Moertopo. Competitor for Julia’s heart and partner/rival to Harry.
3. Ivanov / Charlotte / Ali Moertopo (Ukraine & SE Asia Ops)
• Pavel Ivanov: Russian Spetsnaz officer, probably off to Ukraine. Insider’s view of the Eastern Front.
• Charlotte François: Adoptive daughter of Margie François, the new “female ass-kicker” narrator. Action-oriented POV bridging espionage and military.
• Ali Moertopo: Indonesian president, and fave. Regional powerbroker linking SE Asia politics with covert action.
• Arc: A multi-theater covert ops storyline, spanning Ukraine and SE Asia, tied into Dan’s hunt for Bremer.
4. Jane Willet & the AUKUS Submarine Program (Pacific-SE Asia Theater)
• Jane Willet: Former HMAS Havoc commander, now running AUKUS’s submarine program. A mobility role, moving between Australia, forward bases, and capitals.
• Rachel Nguyen: Vietnamese-Australian officer, potentially drawn from Weapons of Choice, folded into Willet’s circle.
• Ali Moertopo (overlap): Key link between Willet’s naval theater and Ivanov/Charlotte’s SE Asian ground politics.
• Arc: The Pacific war — bottling up Soviet naval forces, ground wars in Japan and Korea, submarine warfare.
5. General J. Lonesome Jones – Europe (Command Arc)
• J. Lonesome Jones: African American general now leading Allied/NATO forces in Europe.
• Arc: Faces brutal military crises on the ground and systemic racism undermining his command. A double-front war: Soviets abroad, prejudice at home.
6. Boosfeld / Geert Venstra / Jack – Europe (Ground Combat Arc)
• Boosfeld: German soldier, morally complex POV — survival, complicity, redemption.
• Geert Venstra: Dutch artilleryman, representing occupied Europe’s soldiers. Pragmatic, grounded tactical view.
• Jack: WWII veteran, back for round two. A generational symbol, embodying the link between the “Good War” and this darker conflict.
• Arc: The soldier’s-eye view of the European front — mud, blood, and personal bonds across nations.
7. Slim Jim Davidson / Maria O’Brien / Lou “Buster” Cherry (Alt-History / Conspiracy)
• Slim Jim Davidson: Criminal-turned-magnate, head of Davidson Enterprises
• Maria O’Brien: Former USMC officer, moral center compromised, now tied to Slim Jim’s empire.
• Buster Cherry: Detective, resurrected in WW 3.2. Noir POV into the underworld of the Transition.
• Arc: Corporate empire, black ops, conspiracies — the shadow war beneath the open conflict.
8. Jack Kerouac & Elvis Presley – Cultural Wildcards
• Jack Kerouac: Drifter, podcaster-before-podcasting, oral historian of the Transition. Chronicler of America’s counterculture.
• Elvis Presley: Spooked by visions of his future, he volunteers early for the army. A young soldier whose arc intertwines with Jack (WWII vet).
• Arc: Cultural resonance. Kerouac plugs into McCarthy/Slim Jim threads, Elvis joins the ground war arc. Mythic Americana.
Legacy / Secondary Returnees
• Captain Margie François: Charlotte’s adoptive mother, medical/command perspective. Even a cameo gives readers a hit of continuity.
• Sub-Lieutenant Masayo Miyazaki: Japanese officer from JDS Surinui. Potential Japanese ground-level narrator for the war in Japan.
• Chief Petty Officer Vincente Rogas: Ex-SEAL, now tied to Slim Jim/Ivanov. Link character across clusters.
• General Douglas MacArthur: Brought back to Pacific command. A foil for Willet? Grandiose, arrogant, but not yet disgraced.
You are spoiler-safe from this point on…
There’s no way I can give this story or those characters their due in one book. Based on my planning so far, I think I’ll need to go all the way to WW 3.8.
Plus, I was very happy with those Studs Terkel ‘extracts’ so I’m going to have to come up with something like that for each of the next books.
Suggestions welcome.