A fine historical novel of the Civil War
348984
A captivating novel based on historical events surrounding the Battle of Franklin (Tennessee)  at the end of the Civil War. The main character (Carrie McGavrock) was a real woman whose plantation house was commandeered as a field hospital for Confederate battle casualties, of which there were thousands. Most of the others characters are fictional, but the house and adjacent cemetery are real and can be visited today. (The blood stains which remain on the floors - I saw them - are chilling reminders of what occurred in that house 150 years ago.)
2417594
This is a well researched and worthy piece of historical fiction which might occasionally strain credulity vis a vis certain things with Karen and Bobby and Karen and Bobby but which never loses sight of the horrors of the siege of Leningrad.  There have been other recent novels of Americans stuck in the USSR; this one stands square among them.  The characters, especially Karen, are nicely written and while more emotion might have elevated it, the book is fine as it is.  THanks to Netgalley for the ARC.  Try this one if you like this genre.
2549784
How Few Remain (1997) is a science fiction novel about a timeline where the South won the Civil War.  A courier lost a copy of General Robert E. Lee's Special Order 191, showing the entire disposition of his forces, in the Confederate camp in Frederick, Maryland, but a Rebel infantryman noticed his dropped message and returned it to him.  The Southern forces went on to win the battle at Hagerstown and the war.

In this novel, two decades later, Colonel George Armstrong Custer is chasing Kiowas to the south of Fort Dodge, Kansas.  The indians are making for the Indian Territory border, where they will be off limits to the Union forces.  However, Custer decides that they are not going to stop this time, but continue to pursue the savages across the border, but encounters a Confederate cavalry squadron at the border.  Custer exchanges several pleasantries with the Confederate Captain, including a few "You started it" remarks from each side, and returns to Fort Dodge.

Elsewhere, Abraham Lincoln is presenting a speech in Denver with a Marxist theme.  Samuel Langhorne Clemens is writing editorials about Maximillian selling the provinces of Chihuahua and Sonora to the Confederacy for three million dollars.  Theodore Roosevelt is running a ranch in Montana Territory.

The conflicts between the USA and the CSA haven't disappeared, but have only been allowed to stew awhile.  Mounting frustration in the North has brought a Black Republican back into office, the first since Lincoln, and he is talking tough.  War seems inevitable.

The novel hinges on a historical event that allowed McClellan to defeat Lee at Antietam.  Without prior knowledge of Lee's dispositions, however, McClellan probably would not have maneuvered the Confederate forces into the pocket between Antietam creek and the Potomac.  Lee had planned on passing through Hagerstown into Pennsylvania and then hitting the railroad bridge across the Susquehanna, as he actually did a year later.  With the disposition of McClellan's troops at that time, and with Jeb Stuart at hand, Lee may well have defeated McClellan as he had so many times before.  This time, however, the loss could have been a disaster for the North, for Lee was poised to cut off the Union troops in the field and threaten Washington, thereby forcing the Union into a cease fire and, if nothing else, a defacto truce.

This story sets the stage for the author's subsequent novels in this timeline:  the Great War series and the American Empire series.  While none can really determine the exact path that a timeline will follow at a divergence point, the author has used existing political trends and personalities to shape a new and different future.  Such alternate histories provide a new look at the way history actually happened, separating the ephemeral trends from the fundamental movements in social affairs.  This author is one of the very best at such works.

Recommended for Turtledove fans and anyone else who enjoys playing "what if" with American history.

-Arthur W. Jordin
78898
As a history buff, this novel gave me a new look at the Civil War; I can hardly wait to read the next book in the series.
4086948
I really enjoyed this book and what I learned about the Civil War as fought in Virginia.  The characters were many and well developed, as they survived the problems of war, food shortages, Indians, death, survival, and much more.
3822025
A fine window into a Union family during the Civil War. The editors, descendants of the subjects, obviously worked long and hard to bring this labor of love together. Highly recommended for Civil War history completists and anyone else who appreciates the drama and intricacy of the story of a family while under the strain of a war that devastated so much of their country.
4437390
If you enjoy the Civil War period and want something interesting, but not a tale of combat, try out this mystery.  It was well written with credible characters that represented the times.  The plot was surprising to the finish.
2849122
This is as much a cutting edge literary endeavor as it is a civil war novel. Slightly before the Civil War started a parable of four blind men touching different parts of the elephant and then arguing over what they saw was brought to Europeans by Rudyard Kipling. Out of the same concept perhaps, some of the Confederate soldiers referred to being in combat as "Seeing the Elephant". With this story Shelby Foote endeavored to avoid giving us the chessboard overview of the battlefield and instead offer us glimpses of what the indvidual participants might have seen. The result is a too fast and barely coherent a glimpse into the action on the battlefield, which is perhaps even more than what an average combatant perceives from the battle in which they take part. It is not for nothing that terms such as "Fog of war" and "Controlled chaos" have been invented by mankind in describing battle.
  Because of that, much of the criticism that Shelby Foote draws for this novel is undeserved. In his own words, the story is not about people, it's about the Battle of Shiloh. The real beauty of this is that Foote has painstakingly researched the lives of its participants and the book is more about their lives than it is about troop movements on the battlefield. Few people realize that terms such as "Aircraft" and "Electric Current" are contemporaries of the Civil War, and Shelby Foote does an admirable job illustrating the modernity of the thinking of the Civil War's participants in words and deeds that historically occured during the battle of Shiloh with such skill, that we take it for granted that those characters are just like us, the modern people.
  The book's only shortcoming is that it lacks a good sense of geography and terrain. The woods and the peach orchards and the sense of place are mere abstractions, as are distances and the surroundings. Because of that we tend to get lost in the biographies of the people rather than on the battlefield about which the novel was written.
4405437
I enjoyed this book as I have the others in the series.  Ginny Dye manages to bring to life the characters and the times of the Civil War.  I was not able to spare much reading time during the course of this book, and perhaps because I had to pick it up and put it down often, I had a bit of difficulty keeping up with the various characters and situations as they changed often.  I'm looking forward to Volume 6!
4785465
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1975, Michael Shaara's "The Killer Angels" is considered by many the best Civil War novel ever written. I don't know if I'd go that far, but it's certainly an impressive war story, set as it is at Gettysburg on those three fateful days in the summer of 1863. Shaara has composed a narrative that shifts back and forth from the officers and infantry fighting under Meade and the men serving under Lee. Readers may be surprised to find that only about one-third of the novel deals with the actual battle. Mainly the story is the contemplation, philosophic and prosaic, of soldiers on either side; and there are many musings on the strategy and significance of war. (The title is a cynical reference to Hamlet's observation that man is "in action how like an angel".) Contrasted with the battlefield are the unavoidable personal conflicts: Longstreet's grave disappointment in and disapproval of Lee's decision, and Jeb Stuart's court martial being demanded by his angry peers. A lighter element is provided by a British observer, puzzled and sometimes appalled by American customs -- for instance, shaking hands. In the book's afterward, we learn this Victorian returned to England, predicting a certain victory for the Confederacy. Gettysburg was, of course, the beginning of the end for the South. As Shaara depicts the conflict (and there are almost 20 maps to help the reader keep his bearings), the Confederacy made itself vulnerable time and again, at the siege of Little Round Top or during Pickett's catastrophic charge. (The great irony of Gettysburg is that the Rebels were attacking from the North while the Yankees were defending in the South.) Both the battle sequences and the campfire scenes are flavorfully written; and, for the receptive reader, Shaara makes this critical episode in American history thoughtful as well as visceral.
437729
Meghan Gorecki crafts an engaging Civil War story that shouldnt be missed.  The novel follows two families dealing with the rules of society, relationships and matters of faith, in addition to, the impact of war.  These strong characters add depth to the story and are not easily forgotten.  I think that it is important to read about our countrys past in order to face our future.  Golecki reminds us that hardship and difficulties are real, but they need to be faced.  Also that perseverance is still possible today.  I simply want to hear more of this story.  I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher.  All opinions in this review are my own.
4952252
Promise of Glory is a historically accurate novel of the battle of Antietam and the invasion of Maryland by Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia in 1862.  The novel begins with Lee's decision to move his army north, and is told from the perspective of various general officers of both northern and southern armies.
  The author has also taken the time to put the battle of Antietam in its proper historical context-- with detailed accounts of the move northward by the Confederate army, as well as the taking of Harper's Ferry and the battle of South Mountain.  Readers who know Civil War history will appreciate the attention to historical detail throughout the novel.  They will also gain an appreciation for why Lee chose to stand at Sharpsburg, Maryland instead of taking the logical step of falling back across the Potomac River and avoiding the battle.
  C.X. Moreau delivers a very readable, and believable, account of what it must have been like to march in either army during 1862.  His portrayal of the various officers and men that appear in the novel ring true, and his descriptions of battle scenes are well done.  Of particular interest is the author's potrayal of the various officers, and their relationships and friendships that existed before, during, and perhaps after the conflict.  Moreau seems to have gone the distance in exploring the depths of their associations and putting himself in their place as the battles took shape and men began to fall on both sides.  The novel is as much about the dynamic at work between  these officers and their men, and their fellow officers on both sides of the field, as it is about the actual historical events.  In the end Moreau leaves it up to the reader to determine just what glory is to be found at Antietam.
  All in all a very enjoyable read and one thoroughly worth the price of admission.
558906
This was a fantastic book set in 1864, but the Civil War is background, intruding in the lives of characters like a fog of malice. Set in a Hudson river town growing rich off the war, with colorful and real characters, Irish immigrants, Dutch businessmen , free Blacks, veterans of the Indian wars out west, all drawn together for good or bad because of the discovery of a Mastoden skeleton with a murderous mountain lion thrown in with the violence of a Country coming to terms with itself. At first I was put off by the description on the book flap, what a mistake , this ranks up there with the best historical novels that I've read.
265065
Well written historical novel that provides insight into the political, economic and cultural issues that resulted in the Civil War.  Doesn't spend a lot of time about the major battles.
534688
Most of the popular books about the Civil War which I have read give short shrift to the "March of Sherman" through the South. Utilizing historical fiction, Shaara provides an interesting and entertaining perspective on Sherman's "March." It also includes the story of a "freed" slave who follows the army after it passes through his Georgia plantation, an interesting perspective. An excellent read, as are all of Shaara's books.
4923582
In Guns of the South, a group of South African white supremacists travel back in time to alter the course of history.  Specifically, they provide the AK-47 rifle to Robert E. Lee, and such a modern weapon was bound to change things.  The novel begins just before the Virginia overland campaign of Ulysses Grant in 1864, and the battle of the Wilderness has a different ending.  The book details the scenario of the Confederates getting the upper hand in the U.S. Civil War, and the fallout from that.
Many major figures are portrayed, and despite being somewhat hokey at times, it is a fair and probing depiction of Civil War characters such as Grant, Lincoln, Judah Benjamin, Nathan Bedford Forrest, Jefferson Davis, Ben Butler, and most prominently of all, General Lee himself.  Lee is portrayed as an honorable man who is thrust into roles he does not desire, yet fulfills his duty to the best of his abilities.
The slavery issue is a major theme in the book, as the South Africans (known as the Rivington men, since that fictional North Carolina town is their home base), want to make white domination a world trend that will last into the future.  The post-war scenario creates conflict with that issue, and the whole novel is an intriguing alternative history.
The viewpoint of North Carolina sergeant Nate Caudell is another theme in the book, and the view of an ordinary soldier in the midst of the Wilderness campaign is one of the better sections.  So the perspectives of those in power and the common man are both presented.
Finally, I have read a lot about the Civil War, but somehow I didn't get the significance of a certain Northerner who moves to the South after the war, and eventually joins their army.  If the name Henry Pleasants means anything to a Civil War reader, he is in this book and you can take a guess at what kind of unique military operation he gets involved in.
2269513
ON SECRET SERVICE is the first book I've read by John Jakes. I must say that I'm impressed. The thorough knowledge and understanding of the Civil War period displayed by Jakes in this book is impressive. The literary portraits he draws of relatively little-known, but real, historical figures such as Alan Pinkerton, Lafayette Baker and Elizabeth Van Lew, combine with his well-constructed fictional characters to pull the reader into the story. His sense of the public moods of the times and his use of arcane historical detail, such as the use of balloons for surveillance, lends the story added interest and greater credibility.
With all of these strengths, however, the book also has a certain melancholy inevitability about it. In spite of all the effort and all the suffering of the hero, Lon, President Lincoln still ends up dead at the hands of John Wilkes Booth. Nothing  can change that. Moreover, the romance between Lon and Margaret follows a rather predictable course. Finally, when all is said and done, everyone ends up deeply scarred by their experiences in the War. As fitting as this probably is, it is nice to feel that the survivors are headed for happier lives once the War is over, but one of the final images is of Margaret crying as she and Lon leave Washington to go west.
ON SECRET SERVICE is an excellent book in many ways. The quality of the writing is first rate, the characterization is good, and the historical detail is fascinating. There is plenty of action and it holds your interest all the way. But, in the end, Lincoln still dies. This isn't the author's fault, but the inevitability of it, and the mundane romantic storyline, hold my rating to four stars. Good, but not quite great. I do recommend it, though, especially for Civil War buffs.