V-S Day

Did You Know?

• The novel evolved from Steele's 1988 novelette 'Operation Blue Horizon,' which he later rewrote as 'Goddard's People' (1991) and then expanded into a screenplay in 1997 before turning it into V-S Day.
• Steele first got the idea for the story while researching his first book, Orbital Decay (1989), when he found references to Sänger's space bomber.

Plot introduction

In late 1941, Hitler grows impatient with Wernher von Braun's delayed V-2 rocket development. Hermann Göring proposes shelving the V-2 in favor of Eugen Sänger's Silbervogel spaceplane, which Hitler orders built upon learning it could bomb America from space. By early 1942, the French Resistance uncovers the German plans and alerts the Allies. President Franklin D. Roosevelt suspends the Manhattan Project and assigns Robert H. Goddard to design the X-1 interceptor. The narrative alternates between the German and American teams working under extreme pressure in 1942, and a 2013 reunion of Goddard's secret 390 Group survivors, where journalist Douglas Walker interviews members about declassified events.

Background

The Silbervogel design in V-S Day is based on an actual 1944 proposal by Eugen Sänger and Irene Sänger-Bredt for a sub-orbital bomber capable of striking the United States and returning to Europe, though the Third Reich shelved the plan. Steele first explored the concept in the 1988 novelette Operation Blue Horizon, later rewriting it as Goddard's People (1991). His 1995 novel The Tranquillity Alternative drew on the same alternate history.

Critical reception

Michael M. Jones, reviewing at Tor.com, called V-S Day thoughtful and fascinating, praising Steele's historical research and his integration of the story into the cracks of established history. Jones also commended the handling of technical content, noting Steele's approachability and love for mechanics reminiscent of Heinlein. David Marshall of the San Francisco Book Review found the concepts clever and full of possibilities, but considered the novel a less than riveting read with little sense of threat.

He observed that both teams build a plane that works perfectly the first time, which he felt reduced tension, and gave the book three out of five stars. Russell Letson in Locus described V-S Day as a fully formed historical-procedural WWII drama, contrasting it with the earlier Goddard's People, which he saw as minimally fictionalized journalism. Letson noted that the book focuses more on rival programs and new technologies than on characters, and that the outcome is no surprise given the 2013 interviews.

Mark Yon at SFF World found the novel great fun, enjoying the unraveling of what is real and almost-real. He noted that Goddard is driven by patriotism while von Braun is driven by fear, and concluded that although the story wraps up quickly, the general feeling is one of satisfaction, recommending it to fans of 1950s science fiction films.