Griffin Barber – författare

The Ring of Fire Series Returns with Conflict and Intrigue in the Middle East! The more things change, the more they stay the same. . . .Jahanara Begum is on pilgrimage, a journey and rite every Muslim must essay if able. The uptimers of the USE Mission are escorting the princess in her travels to Jeddah before returning home, their mission accomplished and allies made of the court of Dara Shikoh, having helped to place him on the Peacock Throne. But the pilgrimage is only the public-facing reason for her departure from Agra. In reality, the Begum Sahib is also carrying her love child off to Jeddah in hopes of giving birth in secrecy. Everyone outside the Mission and her most loyal followers must be kept ignorant of the impending birth, a feat which would be hard enough if her brother hadnt saddled her with the presence of her great aunt and frequent adversary, the sometime-empress Nur Jahan. If the presence of her most brilliant adversary in her court wasnt enough, a Mughal princess abroad is an important figure, and the political situation in the Hijaza complex of relations between Ottoman Bey, Sharif of the Hijaz, the Bedouin, and Persian interestsis about to boil over. Can Jahanara Begum and her USE allies safely navigate the power politics of the Pilgrims Passage?

The cover story from this issue is set in the Mughal subplot of 1632 to celebrate the upcoming August release of 1637: Pilgrim's Passage.When the Bell Went Silent - Griffin Barber and Chuck ThompsonA Break In the Clouds - George McClellan GrantRumors on the Rialto - Jack CarrollShut Up and Train More - Owain AlexanderWho Killed Snow White, Part 1 - Pascal DurandThrough the Eyes of a Canine - Cray Dimensional"e;Bell and Rope"e; By Chuck Thompson & Griffin Barber - The USE has made a staunch ally of Sultan Dara Shikoh, ruler of India's Mughal Empire, a land rich in resources the space-time-displaced Americans badly need and are willing to trade up-time technology for. John Ennis, a road works crew chief with a score of talents and the sultan have become close friends, brothers in arms. The sultan has tasked John with helping construct a fleet of timberclad warships to protect the empire's coasts and rivers from various threats, but one enemy, an ancient and insidious evil, has plans to thwart that effort with violence!"e;A Break In The Clouds"e; By George McClellan Grant - The people of Grantville face many challenges in their new existence, and quickly identify one that has far reaching impact on nearly every aspect of their lives. Efforts begin to tackle this problem using up-time know-how, but it turns out to be a group of brilliant down-timers who make accomplishing the critical task of weather prediction possible."e;Rumors On The Rialto"e; By Jack Carroll - Various European powers have begun to notice that the USE has a strange knack for gaining access to important information at a great distance much more rapidly than a pigeon could carry it. They are aware that the new science of radio is part of that equation, but it seems there is more to it than the Americans are telling them. Retired Venetian physician and Grantville trained ham radio operator Dottore Cosimo van Castre may prove to be the man with the answers."e;Shut Up and Train More"e; By Owain Alexander - The Grantville County Volunteer Fire Department is small, and needs new equipment they can never get, but it's full of heart and determination despite all the setbacks. These dedicated men and women are the humble real life heroes who will go against all odds to keep the people safe, when disaster strikes they are always the first to arrive."e;Who Killed Snow White"e; By Pascal Durand - While young Prince Georg Friedrich of Waldeck found Grantville's many miraculous features fascinating, nothing astounded him more than learning his great-great-grand-aunt Margaretha von Waldeck was famed in their literature, having provided the real life model for the legendary Snow White, a story distorted by time and perhaps subterfuge. Now the prince feels it his duty to separate the myth from the truth, embarking on a quest to learn his ancestor's true fate."e;Through The Eyes Of A Canine"e; By Cray Dimensional - Young Hilde flees an angry mob of villagers with her faithful dog Bruno. She has been accused of burning a neighbor's wheat field, but the voices in her head can't agree if she is innocent or not! Hilde will surely be burned as a witch, but fortunately the town of Grantville lays in her path and she will find her answers there, along with the help and understanding she so desperately needs.