18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The finale of the trilogy does not dissapoint., July 26, 2006
Never Call Retreat is the third and final book of an alternative Civil War history, co-authored by Newt Gringrich and William Forstchen. This book continues the exciting and well thought out trilogy that is the new pinnacle for the small but growing mini-genre of Civil War fiction.
The book continues in the exact same style as its predecessors, accentuating character relationships between the top generals of both sides (Lee, Grant, Longstreet, President Lincoln, etc). We also get the standard two or three other characters from both sides who are given major chapter time and are interesting everyday characters who are caught up in the action. The other major strength of the book is the fictional tactical moves both sides make and the description of the action. You can tell a lot of homework was done prior to this series.
Overall this was a fantastic series and I enjoyed equally as much as Shaara's series even though it's tough to compare since one is alternative history while the other is a fictional account of actual events. Most importantly, Gingrich and Forstchen clearly have a love and respect for the history of the Civil War and it shows through in the actions and stoicism of his characters and setting. They create the awe and grandeur that is associated with great Civil War media and they are clearly fanatical about all the major characters.
Bottom Line: Obviously should not be read without reading the prior two. A fantastic conclusion to the series.
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A controversial AH, but an excellent story, August 21, 2006
NEVER CALL RETREAT is the concluding novel of Newt Gringrich and William Forstchen's trilogy about an AH timeline in which Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia effectively destroys the Union's Army of the Potomac at Gettysburg.
The historical question NEVER CALL RETREAT addresses is whether or not a great Confederate tactical victory at Gettysburg would have been a strategic victory of sufficient magnitude to enable the Confederate States to win the Civil War. Gingrich and Forstchen answer: "Not necessarily." After all, the North still has a huge superiority in population and resources, and in the aftermath of the Gettysburg defeat Union General U.S. Grant has been summoned from the West to take command of the Eastern Theater a year earlier than he otherwise would have been.
If there is a weakness in the book, it is lack of attention to the political realities of the war. The rout of the Union Army of the Potomac at Gettysburg would have had a shock value many times more intense than the Tet Offensive did in Vietnam. Could the North, already tiring of the war, have possibly maintained the political will to continue it in the aftermath of a debacle at Gettysburg? Gingrich and Forstchen do not address this political reality.
Nevertheless, NEVER CALL RETREAT is an excellent read not only because it addresses some of the AH issues of a Confederate victory at Gettysburg, but also because it is well researched and written. Even if you don't agree with all the AH extrapolations you will find it to be thought-provoking and entertaining.
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Btw. I've written my own novel
Fire in the Heartland that explores the political aspects of the Civil War. It's a strong complement to "battlefield" novels like Newt's Gettysburg series.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Those believing Lee's victory at Gettysburg seals the war are in for a bloody surprise, December 16, 2007
William R. Forstchen and Newt Gingrich continue and end the marvelous Civil War alternate-history trilogy in the same style and sensitivity shown in the previous two volumes. As with the previous two, battle scenes can sometimes be compared to a Steven Pressfield novel, and the emotion and drama is more potent and straining than the previous two novels.
After all but destroying the remnants of the Army of the Potomac along Gunpowder River, Lee is alerted to the Army of Susquehanna under Grant moving from Pennsylvania and attempting to enter Virginia. Rapid maneuvering brings the Army of Northern Virginia to cut them off near Frederick, Maryland, more specifically on the banks of Monocacy Creek.
What transpires is a week-long battle that would make the two month earlier battle of Gettysburg-Union Mills look like a bloody skirmish.
Several well-known American heroes end up dying in the battle who would not have in real history, and others surviving, but each one is done in a surprising, never needless manner. George Armstrong Custer sacrifices his life to seeing the bridges over Monocacy Creek destroyed, severing the Confederate's chance to storm into Frederick unopposed.
While the battle is unfolding, many obstacles stand in the path of a clear victory for Lee, including an unknown saboteur sabotaging locomotives outside of Baltimore, needed to rush the Army of Northern Virginia to Frederick, as well as the removal of the Washington Garrison, now commanded by Winfield Scott Hancock, to march along the Potomac and secure the river to prevent Lee from escaping into Virginia, and the remaining 10,000 of the Army of the Potomac snatching back Baltimore while Lee is fully engaged at Monocacy Creek.
Since it's no secret that the book ends with Lee's defeat, I should say that that defeat does not come anywhere near lightly. The final scene on the battlefield is a heartwrenching one in which the surrounded Army of Northern Virginia, in one last desperate attempt to break free, aims to attack Grant head-on and escape through the Cacoctin Mountains. Just as they are about to charge, Grant's infantry move aside, to reveal fifty artillery cannons pointed directly at Lee's army. He has no choice but to surrender.
From start to finish, heroes are recognized on both sides of the conflict, and in battle lulls, there are times when Confederates and Federals behave more like long lost friends than enemies, just as in history. Heroes are made out of Confederates and Federals alike, including US politicians like Elihu Washburne, CS politicians like Judah Benjiman, and others.
Even if it weren't alternate history, this book and the other two would have been classics in Civil War literature. I am certain of that.
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