Book 1

Of Tangible Ghosts

by L. E. Modesitt, Jr.

Published 1 October 1994
Alternate universe SF from the author of the Recluse fantasy series. The ghost of a murdered music professor appears to Johan Eschbach, a former minister of state, now working as a professor at a university, setting in motion a chain of events that involves Eschbach in a deadly struggle for the ultimate superweapon--an electronic control of the spirits of the dead.

Book 2

L.E. Modesitt, Jr., has gained a legion of devoted fans for his science fiction as well as his epic fantasy novels. The Ghost of the Revelator is one of the best displays yet of his ability to blend dramatic, imaginative stories with rigorous social and scientific extrapolation. Doktor Johan Eschbach (the central character of Modesitt's popular alternate history SF novel, Of Tangible Ghosts) had hoped for a quiet life in retirement from the intelligence service, teaching environmental science at the University of New Bruges and living with his new wife, the vocalist Llysette du Boise. Llysette, a refugee from the burning remains of France, would herself like little more than to resume her singing career and forget her time in the prison camps of the Hapsburg Empire. But an unusual invitation from the Mormon nation of Deseret inexorably drags Johan back into the spy business, though he isn't quite sure why or for whom. It quickly becomes apparent that he is being used as a pawn in a deadly game of international maneuverings that are leading the world closer to war.

Book 3

Johan Eschbach, Professor of Environmental Science and semi-retired secret agent, and his lovely wife, the world-renowned singer Llsette, return for another adventure, this time in Russia, during the long "white nights" of the summer. Their world is an intriguing alternate present in which many things are changed. What we know as the eastern U.S. is the nation of Columbia, and Russia is still ruled by the Czars. Llysette is being sent by the Columbian government on a cultural exchange mission to St. Petersburg. Johan will, of course, accompany her, allowing him to work behind the scenes on the oil concession in Russian Alaska that Columbia so desperately needs. But even the oil shortage will fade to insignificance when Johan discovers what new weapons technology the Russian are developing, a threat even more fearsome than the atomic bombs of Austro-Hungary.

Books 1-2

Ghosts of Columbia

by L. E. Modesitt, Jr.

Published 1 June 2005
Now for the first time in one big volume, two complete novels of Dr. Johan Eschbach, professor at a small college in the northeast and secret agent for the government of Columbia. There is no USA, and Columbia shares the continent with Quebec, New France (Medico), Deseret, and Russia (in Alaska). It is an alternate history, reality shaped by the fact that ghosts are not mere superstitions, but have a literal physical reality - and political implications - because crimes can haunt, and the ghosts of crimes are visible to others.