Never Call Retreat

Lee and Grant, The Final Victory

By: Newt Gingrich, William R. Forstchen

Narrated by: Boyd Gaines

New York Times bestselling authors Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen conclude their inventive trilogy with Never Call Retreat, a remarkable answer to the great "what if" of the American Civil War: Could the South have indeed won?

After his great victories at Gettysburg and Union Mills, General Robert E. Lee's attempt to bring the war to a final conclusion by attacking Washington, D.C., fails. However, in securing Washington, the remnants of the valiant Union Army of the Potomac, under the command of the impetuous General Dan Sickles, is trapped and destroyed. For Lincoln there is only one hope left: that General Ulysses S. Grant can save the Union cause.

It is now August 22, 1863. Lincoln and Grant are facing a collapse of political will to continue the fight to preserve the Union. Lee, desperately short of manpower, must conserve his remaining strength while maneuvering for the killing blow that will take Grant's army out of the fight and, at last, bring a final and complete victory for the South.

Pursuing the remnants of the defeated Army of the Potomac up to the banks of the Susquehanna, Lee is caught off balance when news arrives that General Ulysses S. Grant, in command of more than seventy thousand men, has crossed that same river, a hundred miles to the northwest at Harrisburg. As General Grant brings his Army of the Susquehanna into Maryland, Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia maneuvers for position. Grant first sends General George Armstrong Custer on a mad dash to block Lee's path toward Frederick and with it control of the crucial B&O railroad, which moves troops and supplies. The two armies finally collide in Central Maryland, and a bloody week-long battle ensues along the banks of Monocacy Creek. This must be the "final" battle for both sides.

In Never Call Retreat, Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen bring all of their critically acclaimed talents to bear in what is destined to become an immediate classic.

©2005 Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen (P)2005 Audio Renaissance, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishers, LLC

Critic reviews

"A swiftly paced and authentically grounded novel....The authors' research is impeccable, and their presentation brings events down to a personal level, and, as in any good alternate vision of history, the reader is left believing it could really have happened this way." (Booklist)

Never Call Retreat

Newt is a great historian and his books are wonderful. This one is no exception. I highly recommend it as a thought provoking read using alternative history.

Incredible imagination

This is a great 'alternative' ending to the Civil War. It reads so true with historically correct personalities, some who survived the actual war don't survive the book. The book is also breathtaking in its geographic accuracy. I happen to be in the area while listening to the book and was able to drive around some of the battle sites....and they are in real life as described in the book.

Excellent book.

Great content, excellent presentation. It brings you side by side with the characters as they struggle through the war.

It did not end in 1863.

I understand that it is a novel, but it is billed as Historically accurate fiction. I have read many Historically accurate books about the Civil War, but this book only served as an avenue to confuse those who are not totally current on Civil War History.

America

Timing of the book is right on. This country is the greatest country in the world. Not easy but worth saving.