WI: "Lest Darkness Fall" bought from Harry Turtledove's bookstore before he buys it

Harry Turtledove has said several times that his inspiration to write Alternate history was a copy of L Sprague DeCamp's "Lest Darkness Fall" in his local bookshop. What would have become of the genre of alternate history without the author who made it popular?
 
He'd go on to write Byzantine Empire inspired fantasy, which is (let's not beat about the bush) his true literary calling.

As for the AH genre, I'm sure it'd be less popular, but then you've got people like Stirling who can fill the "poorly written sex scene" void left by Turtledove.
 
He'd go on to write Byzantine Empire inspired fantasy, which is (let's not beat about the bush) his true literary calling.

Actually, he wouldn't. According to the introduction of the edition I have, Turtledove says it was Lest Darkness Fall that got him interested in Byzantine history in the first place. I think he was studying to be a chemist before that.
 
Actually, he wouldn't. According to the introduction of the edition I have, Turtledove says it was Lest Darkness Fall that got him interested in Byzantine history in the first place. I think he was studying to be a chemist before that.

I read that in the opening to the anthology "Best Alternate History Stories of the 20th Century."

Do we know any other authors that could take his place.
 

Abhakhazia

Banned
I read that in the opening to the anthology "Best Alternate History Stories of the 20th Century."

Do we know any other authors that could take his place.

Maybe Robert Conroy, but he's gone off the deep end lately. Even Turtledove, in all his parellelisms and crappy sex scenes would never go as far as Nazi Canada.

Stirling really couldn't do AH the same as Turtledove, because he blends fantasy into his AH stories, which I don't like, while Turtledove just blends random stuff from OTL into his stories.
 
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