A Victorian Science Fiction Series
The Victorian
War of the Worlds
Adaptations
A series of literary pastiches set in 1898 — exploring the Martian invasion through the eyes of those who fought, endured, and survived. History, horror, and heroism collide in this acclaimed series by C. A. Powell.
About the Series
When Mars Came to Queen Victoria's Empire
Authentic Victorian World
Meticulous research brings 1890s Britain to life — from the fog-drenched streets of London to the grandeur of the British Empire at its height.
The Martian Threat
Reimagined Martian war machines, heat-rays, and black smoke rendered with terrifying detail through the eyes of those who lived — and died — through the invasion.
Human Stories at the Core
Beyond the spectacle lies a deeply human story of courage, loss, and what it means to be alive when civilisation itself hangs by a thread.
The Complete Six-Book Series
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All Six Books at a Glance
The Last Days of Thunder Child
Book One of the Victorian War of the Worlds Series
1898. As strange cylinders fall upon England and towering Martian tripods lay waste to Victorian Britain, the fate of the nation is witnessed from two starkly different vantage points. Aboard the ironclad H.M.S. Thunder Child, officers and seamen of the Royal Navy prepare to face an enemy beyond human understanding. Sea and shore are drawn together as invasion becomes annihilation, and duty demands the ultimate sacrifice. A respectful pastiche of H. G. Wells' The War of the Worlds, told in the measured voice of a fading empire at the brink of extinction.
- Paperback & eBook
- Amazon Verified Purchase
Paperback
£9.99
eBook
£4.99
Available on Amazon. Worldwide delivery.
The Last Days of Chivalry and Entitlement
Book Two of the Victorian War of the Worlds Series
1898. As Martian tripods advance and Britain collapses into chaos, a quiet Dorsetshire village faces the coming invasion. Smoke rises from the ruined coastal towns. The last trains carry away women and children. Too old to flee and unwilling to yield, the remaining villagers form a citizens' militia, arming themselves with three field guns and a fierce sense of duty. With the enemy closing in, they resolve to defend the railway station at all costs — knowing their stand may be futile, but believing it must be made.
- Paperback & eBook
- Amazon Verified Purchase
Paperback
£9.99
eBook
£4.99
Available on Amazon. Worldwide delivery.
The Last Days of the Wake Men
Book Three of the Victorian War of the Worlds Series
1898. As the Martian war machines continue their relentless advance across England, a man awakens from a long slumber to find his world utterly transformed. The familiar streets of Victorian Britain are now a wasteland of ash and ruin. In this third instalment of the series, the human cost of the invasion is laid bare — through the eyes of one ordinary man navigating an extraordinary apocalypse.
- Paperback & eBook
- Amazon Verified Purchase
Paperback
£9.99
eBook
£4.99
Available on Amazon. Worldwide delivery.
The Last Days of the Fighting Machine
Book Four of the Victorian War of the Worlds Series
1898. Scattered across a devastated England, survivors cling to hope amidst the ruins of civilisation. In this fourth chapter of the series, a collection of accounts — diaries, letters, and testimonies — paints a mosaic portrait of humanity under siege. Each voice is distinct; each story, unforgettable. Together they form a tapestry of courage and despair in the shadow of the Martian occupation.
- Paperback & eBook
- Amazon Verified Purchase
Paperback
£9.99
eBook
£4.99
Available on Amazon. Worldwide delivery.
The Last Days of Purgatory
Book Five of the Victorian War of the Worlds Series
1898. The red weed spreads across the land, choking rivers and consuming the countryside as the Martian grip on Earth tightens. But whispers of resistance grow louder. In this fifth instalment, those who survived the initial onslaught begin to organise — daring to believe that humanity might yet endure. A story of resilience, sacrifice, and the indomitable human spirit.
- Paperback & eBook
- Amazon Verified Purchase
Paperback
£9.99
eBook
£4.99
Available on Amazon. Worldwide delivery.
The Last Days of the Four Horsemen
Book Six of the Victorian War of the Worlds Series
1898. The Martians are gone — but the world they leave behind is shattered beyond recognition. In this concluding volume of the series, the survivors of the invasion face a new and daunting challenge: rebuilding a civilisation from the ashes. What does it mean to be human when everything you knew has been destroyed? A powerful and moving finale to the Victorian War of the Worlds saga.
- Paperback & eBook
- Amazon Verified Purchase
Paperback
£9.99
eBook
£4.99
Available on Amazon. Worldwide delivery.
Reader Reviews
What Readers Are Saying
"I loved this book, the Author describes Victorian Britain so well you can actually imagine being there. Wonderful characters with great names like Perry, Jolly and Pickles. Most of all the author captures the British spirit of survival and fighting to the end. A great read Mr Powell, a true masterpiece."
— Sheila
Verified Purchase · Kindle Edition
"A really nice read from start to end. Written so well that I could visualise all the characters in my mind as soon as they were introduced. An interesting, typically British story of the underdogs taking on the might of the Martians. Just wish I had a hardback copy."
— Al211
Verified Purchase · Paperback
"Exploring the last days of the Thunder Child through the eyes of believable and well described characters was, in my opinion, an inspired idea. As a great fan of TWOTW in its many forms — literary, visual and musical — I think this book was a well thought out addition and I enjoyed it tremendously."
— CheshireKing
Verified Purchase
The Modest Conflict Series
Book 1 of 3: Modest Conflict Series
The Red Baron's Sky
A WWI aerial adventure
The Red Baron's Sky
Modest Conflict Series — by C. A. Powell
Air Mechanic First Class Maloney was far too enthusiastic for his own good.
On the ground, he was invaluable — a gifted mechanic working tirelessly on the squadron's battered F2B biplanes. But war has little patience for preference.
When the squadron suddenly finds itself desperately short of flight observers, the decision is made for him. Ordered into the cockpit as an acting observer, Maloney is thrust into a world of open skies, enemy fire, and split-second decisions — a world where knowledge may mean survival, and hesitation can be fatal.
On the day he turns twenty, Maloney will take to the air. It will be a birthday he will never forget.
- WWI Aviation
- Historical Fiction
- 20 Nov. 2023
- Paperback
Available on Amazon. Worldwide delivery.
Book 2 of 3: Modest Conflict Series
The Valiant Crew of the Resilient French Tank
A WWII adventure set at Dunkirk
The Valiant Crew of the Resilient French Tank
Modest Conflict Series — by C. A. Powell
It is late May 1940 and Dunkirk is surrounded.
One small pocket of British artillery are by a section of coast in Belgium. Engulfed by the enemy forces, the gunners are presented with a glimmer of hope.
Belgium has fallen. France is about to. Yet all the stubborn gunners know they must go for their one outrageous chance.
The opportunity grows with the arrival of a French Char B1 that can face the demands that their quest has in store for them. A battle against odds and a clock that is running out of precious time. Can the combined British and French plan work? Will the thick armoured tank play its part?
- WWII Historical Fiction
- Dunkirk 1940
- May 2023
- Kindle & Paperback
Available on Amazon. Worldwide delivery.
Book 3 of 3: Modest Conflict Series
Déjà vu McGrew and his Tank Crew
A WWII tank crew story set in 1945
Déjà vu McGrew and his Tank Crew
Modest Conflict Series — by C. A. Powell
Sergeant McGrew is a rough-cut man from Belfast.
His crew are everything to him. New recruits are regarded with superstition. There are reasons why.
Four of the five-man crew have been with the tank commander for over four years. McGrew and his surviving troopers have witnessed many traumatic events, including the tragic deaths of various friends along the bloody journey through World War II — from North Africa, Italy and finally Northern Europe.
It is now early February 1945, a few days prior to the Reichswald Forest Campaign. They have a new recruit and once again the superstitious feelings of dread and loss begin to grow. Are the veterans going to witness another recruit perish before the finishing line of a costly war? Or will the likeable young trooper make it?
- WWII Historical Fiction
- Reichswald 1945
- February 2021
- Kindle & Paperback
Available on Amazon. Worldwide delivery.
Other Novels by C. A. Powell
A New Standalone Novel
THE KIND ELEPHANT MEN
The Abstract Art of a Murderer
THE KIND ELEPHANT MEN
The Abstract Art of a Murderer — by C. A. Powell
Early November 1918.
Whispers of armistice drift through the mud and tortured landscape. In a waterlogged trench on the Western Front, exhausted veterans cling to the fragile hope that the guns will soon fall silent.
Then the unexpected new replacement arrives. One look at the pale, slack-faced newcomer and something ancient stirs in all. An omen of ill favour made from stagnant anaemic flesh. Almost immediately, the fatigued soldiers call him "the jinx."
Even the kindest old hands — men who have shared their last cigarette with strangers — find themselves recoiling from the lad's vacant stare. The abhorrence thickens among all, and when the mystery is stripped away, a problem needs to be dealt with pragmatically.
- 274 Pages
- Historical Thriller
- Western Front — 1918
- Kindle & Paperback
Hardcover
£13.99
Paperback
£10.99
eBook
£4.99
Available on Amazon. Worldwide delivery.
A Dark Fairy Tale
Never Let Them Kiss You
A Dark Fairy Tale
Never Let Them Kiss You
A Dark Fairy Tale — by C. A. Powell
In the heart of a ferocious winter blizzard...
England's New Forest lies frozen and silent. Yet amid the howling wind and driving snow, summer flowers suddenly burst into radiant bloom — only to wither and die moments later.
The late Mr. Ballantyne insisted he knew the reason: the fleeting, luminous presence of strange little fairy folk.
No one believed him. Until now.
- 251 Pages
- Dark Fantasy
- New Forest, England
- Kindle & Paperback
Paperback
£9.99
eBook
£4.99
Available on Amazon. Worldwide delivery.
A Dark Ages Adventure
Saxon Quest
Calamity in the Dark Ages
Saxon Quest
Calamity in the Dark Ages — by C. A. Powell
567 AD. A Brythonic king dies without an heir.
He leaves a realm in West Britain unprotected. The inhabitants of a neighbouring Gwessie Saxon kingdom see a chance to invade.
This bold undertaking appears straightforward to the invaders — however, the fixations of intoxicated and audacious men do not always deliver the desired outcome when up against cold reality.
- Dark Ages Historical Fiction
- 567 AD
- West Britain
- Paperback
Available on Amazon. Worldwide delivery.
A Historical Novel
The Black and Tan Summer
Ireland's turbulent year of 1920
The Black and Tan Summer
Ireland's Turbulent Year of 1920 — by C. A. Powell
Ireland: Summer of 1920.
Father John wanted to keep his village of Cafgarven free from trouble — but the surrounding countryside was in the grip of a rebellion against Great Britain's Crown forces.
He found himself caught up in the horrid conflict of tit-for-tat murder when two individuals from either side of the struggle came to him for help. One was a rebel from a decimated flying column; the other was a young English Black and Tan.
- Historical Fiction
- Ireland 1920
- Irish War of Independence
- Kindle & Paperback
Available on Amazon. Worldwide delivery.
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