I often like to give authors whose first book I didn’t like a second chance. There are many times that authors I like write books I don’t like. For instance, I just can’t get into Charles Stross’ Bob Howard series, but I enjoy several of his other books. When I read Paul McAuley’s The Quiet War, I liked the ideas, but felt the story just didn’t work (my review). So when I say McAuley’s latest book, Cowboy Angels, I decided that I should give McAuley another try. So was my second try at McAuley any better than the first try?

In general, no. The book suffers a lot of the same problems, with McAuley throwing out great ideas, but the story not really hanging together well. I believe he needs a much better editor to help him pull the story together better, so that his stories can match the great ideas he has. So what is Cowboy Angels.

Adam Stone is a retired agent for The Agency (a version of the CIA). Before he retired, he was in a group that went to alternate Earth’s to overthrow governments to set them free. But, after testifying against The Agency in a scandal that results in the project being canceled, Stone goes off to help out a friend’s family in a wilderness alternate Earth. Stone’s dragged back in when his ex-partner Tom Waverly goes rogue and starts killing the same woman across multiple Earths.

Stone gets paired up with Waverly’s daughter Beverly and goes on a wild trip across multiple Earths through Turing gates (Turing came to England after WWII in this Earth) and there is a subplot with a time key that will let people travel in time (which allows Tom to show up again after he dies). Beverly comes across as very confused since I’m never quite sure whose side she’s on. But the problem is that, other than Stone, we really aren’t sure who’s side anyone is on. The story gets confusing as it travels back and forth all over itself in multiple Earths and multiple times.

The writing itself is a bit weird as well. It reads at times as if it were written by a naive liberal who doesn’t know how conservatives think or by a conservative who is naive about how liberals view conservatives. It comes across as violent and ultra-patriotic and critical of those views as well.

Overall, it’s a very mediocre book with a good set of ideas buried within it. The general idea of a US Government going across multiple Earths trying to fight wars against governments they aren’t interested in. The book could have and should have been a much better book than it is. Overall I love McAuley’s ideas, but his execution needs a better editor. Mildly recommended for good ideas, but try not to think about the plot too much.