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Now, don't get me wrong, but in the past I have always said to people that say the Japanese are so brilliant - 'if they were so clever, why did it take two atom bombs before they surrendered?' Shows how simplistic and naive I could be. The situation by 1945 was for more complex and difficult to understand than a simple military option. In hindsight, one can see that the US HAD to finish the war before the Soviets gobbled up the Far East as well as Europe. In addition, it was thought by most military experts (except MacArthur) that American casualties would be huge and unacceptable to the US public and, of course, affect President Truman's re-election possibilities. Thank goodness Hirohito showed the fortitude to speak up and say 'stop'. But...and here is the twist - what if the attempted coup to contain the emperor and continue the war had succeeded?  Here is where Robert Conroy comes in. His recent book '1945' postulates that the war in the Pacific was not halted after Nagasaki and the the invasion of Japan was to go ahead. This is easily a book on a par with his prior efforts in '1862' and '1901', which also reside on my bookshelf. The characters, both fictional and real, combine to make a very realistic feel to the story of the triumphs and tragedies of this brutal time. It also clearly shows the major cerebral differences between the Western mind and the Japanese mindset of Bushido. It clearly shows that, with no common ground, hatred overcomes understanding. Hey! That's deep. In my opinion, Mr. Conroy is perhaps overtaking Mr. Turtledove as the alternative history writer to watch. I will be looking out for his new book, '1942', sometime in February next year. Banzai!