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Never Call Retreat: Lee and Grant: The Final Victory Hardcover – June 18, 2005

by Newt Gingrich (Author), William R. Forstchen (Author), Albert S. Hanser (Consultant Editor)

534

Book 3 of 3: The Gettysburg Trilogy

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New York Times bestselling authors Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen conclude their inventive trilogy with this 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 Forstchen bring all of their critically acclaimed talents to bear in what is destined to become an immediate classic.

Book 3 of 3

The Gettysburg Trilogy
Print length

512 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Thomas Dunne Books
Publication date

June 18, 2005
Dimensions

6.4 x 1.52 x 9.5 inches
ISBN-10

0312342985
ISBN-13

978-0312342982
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Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

The former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives and his historian coauthor conclude their best-selling trilogy offering an alternate history of the Civil War. As was true of its predecessors, this is a swiftly paced and authentically grounded novel; this installment covers the end of the terrible North-South strife. In the previous volumes in the trilogy, Gettysburg (2003) and Grant Comes East (2004), the authors invented an alternative to how the Battle of Gettysburg was fought and won (in their version, the South won that battle) and offered a plausible consequence of the Confederate victory: namely, an advance on Washington, D.C. Now, the authors move up Lee's actual April 1865 surrender to August 1863 and, in the process, create quite realistic and creative actions and movements for each side leading up to the war's blessed end--with Lee realizing the futility of further Southern persistence. Again, as in the previous volumes in the trilogy, 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. Brad Hooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author

NEWT GINGRICH is the author of several bestselling books, including Gettysburg and Grant Comes East. Mr. Gingrich served in Congress for twenty years and is a former Speaker of the House, in which capacity he was named Time magazine’s Man of the Year in 1995. He is a member of the Defense Policy Board and the U.S. National Security Commission, and he is the longest-serving teacher of the Joint War Fighting course for Major Generals. He is also the CEO of the Gingrich Group, a communications and consulting firm. Mr. Gingrich resides in Virginia with his wife, Callista. He has two daughters and two grandchildren.

WILLIAM R. FORSTCHEN, PH.D., is a professor of history at Montreat College in Montreat, North Carolina. He received his doctorate from Purdue University and specialized in the American Civil War. He is the author of more than forty books, including the award-winning We Look Like Men of War, a young-adult novel about an African-American regiment that fought at the Battle of the Crater; it is based upon his doctoral dissertation and was published by St. Martin’s Press. Dr. Fortschen has been a lifelong reenactor of the Civil War. He resides near Asheville, North Carolina, with his wife, Sharon, and daughter, Meghan.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Thomas Dunne Books; First Edition (June 18, 2005)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 512 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0312342985
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0312342982
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.95 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.4 x 1.52 x 9.5 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #980,912 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #3,028 in Alternate History Science Fiction (Books)
- #9,345 in War Fiction (Books)
- #10,809 in Contemporary Literature & Fiction

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Albert S. Hanser
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William R. Forstchen
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William R. Forstchen has a Ph.D. from Purdue University with specializations in Military History and the History of Technology. He is a Faculty Fellow and Professor of History at Montreat College. He is the author of fifty books including the New York Times bestselling series One Second After, the Lost Regiment series, and the award-winning young adult novel, We Look Like Men of War. He has also authored numerous short stories and articles about military history and military technology.
Dr. Forstchen's interests include the Civil War, archaeological research on sites in Mongolia, and the potential of space exploration. As a pilot he owns and flies an original World War II "recon bird." Dr. Forstchen resides near Asheville, North Carolina with his dog Maggie.
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Newt Gingrich
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NEWT GINGRICH is the former House Speaker and 2012 Presidential Candidate. Gettysburg, Pearl Harbor and To Save America: Stopping Obama's Secular-Socialist Machine are three of his 14 New York Times bestsellers. He is a regular guest on national political shows.
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Joseph Harris

A great conclusion to a great Alternet History Series !!!!!

Reviewed in the United States on December 24, 2012

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After reading this book I have to say that this is perhaps the best alternet history series I have ever read. Mr. Gingrich has written an ending that is both satisfying and fulfilling to the reader. I find that this series contains enough facts to make it believable as history that could have been and the events really could have happened during the Civil War. The critical question of the series is could the Confederacy have won the Civil War if Lee had listened to Longstreet and not Pickett at Gettysburg? Would a more calculated and cautious approach have carried the day in the long term or was a side with fewer resources but better management destined to defeat? As any consultant can tell you, it is possible to acquire management and turn around any effort, and Lincoln did that admirably by bringing Grant east, firing the cronies in the War Department, and launching a brilliant plan to trap Lee between the Catoctin Mountains, and the Potomac and Monocacy rivers. The book shows how the overwhelming resources of an industrialized country, which seemingly mends its wounds effortlessly, correctly characterizes the Union by focusing on the seemingly unending supply of goods, arms, railroads, industrial capabilities and manpower. With such resources it seems inevitable that the South would surely lose in any type of protracted conflict. The writers masterfully created this atmosphere.

The South, on the other hand, more than makes up for the ample resources of the Union through its spirit to persevere and through its superiority in leaders in its Army, with Lee being the standard for which generals of both sides strive to attain. The sheer personality of its generals and fighting spirit of its soldiers carries the Southern efforts to victory time and again.

But `time' is the enemy in this scenario. Both sides stand to lose the cause because of the passage of time. Although endowed with unlimited resources, the Union is riddled with political strife and division between its political parties. The losses on the battlefield erode the will to continue as the opposing parties use each loss as leverage to condemn the other and concede to enter into peace negotiations with the South. Lincoln finds himself in the unique position of knowing he can win the war but realizing the political opposition and public opinion are unwilling to pay the price for such a victory, regardless of the overwhelming advantage of the North's unlimited resources.

But Lee on the other hand finds himself virtually victorious on the field of battle time and again but in the process loses the ability to sustain the campaign because of the dwindling of manpower resulting from his victories. What good is it to win all the battles and in the end have no army left to claim the final victory.

On top of that , the writers were masterful in accounting for the battles and maneuvers of the armies, bringing personalities to life and illustrating the horrendous manner in which war was waged in 1863. In today's age where even the loss of one soldier is newsworthy, and the loss of 1,000 brings a clamor of public opinion that can turn the tide of support, battles were measured in losses in the tens of thousands. For example, the Battle of Antietam is estimated to have had over 23,000 casualties in a single day.

The writers masterfully present a plausible accounting of horrifying fighting and complex maneuvering in battle after battle. Eventually, the cost of such great conflict brings the story to an end that is indeed plausible and, in my opinion, accurate. This is an alternative history that should cause any Civil War history buff to wonder. I'm glad I chose to read the book. If youre a civil war buff you should read all three books in this trilogy you will enjoy them. (it is critical that you read all three of the books of the trilogy to appreciate this work. )

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Jonathan Weller

A great and rather complex finish to a terrific series

Reviewed in the United States on March 9, 2017

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Never Call Retreat: Lee and Grant: The Final Victory: A Novel of the Civil War by Newt Gingrich William R. Forstchen is the last entry into their impressive trilogy of the American Civil War. As one may expect the majority of the twists and turns of the book, there are definitely surprises that will either have you screaming hooray! Or they will have you intently scratching your head in confusion.

This book picks up after the almost total destruction of the Union Army of the Potomac at Gunpowder River, Maryland, in the late summer of 1863. The Army of the Susquehanna under U.S. Grant have now started moving south to confront an even more emboldened Robert E. Lee and his vaunted Army of Northern Virginia, and are seeking what aims to be the final slugfest of the bloodiest war in American history.

Like clockwork Lee moves out from Baltimore to engage Grant as far east from the city as possible, and has all the intentions of hammering Grant as he did Sickles and Meade before. As the reader may expect, however, Grant is not Meade or Sickles, and has some major plans of his own for that wily old fox ‘Marse’ Bob. This leads the two into a knockdown, throwback street fight that the world had never seen previously. This is essentially the spring 1864 campaign taking place in August/September of 1863.

The books weaves its way through multiple plot twists and shocking surprises, and all the while keeps the reader anxiously turning the pages and biting their fingernails. In the end, however, Lee is defeated and the country is once more realigned as it always should have been. Appomattox takes place almost two years earlier than it originally happened, and like at Appomattox Grant shows Lee all the military respect that one would expect from two outstanding American generals.

This entry into the trilogy is often the favorite for most readers of the series; to me, though, I found that this book stretched even the bounds of alternative history at points. Don’t get me wrong, the book is well written and researched, but there is simply too much that happens too quickly when considering the abilities of the mid-nineteenth century. It is highly doubtful that either of these armies could have sustained what they did over the course of several months and still had the stamina to fight to the death along the banks of the Monocacy River in Maryland.

What makes it all the harder to believe is that Lee knew he was the heart and soul of the Southern cause, so why would he bleed out his army in the hopes of besting Grant? The argument goes something like this: Lee knows that he has effectively destroyed two Federal armies during the summer of 1863, and he believes that all it will take is one more decisive blow to end the war. The problem with this argument, however, is that Gingrich and Fortchen spend the previous two books explaining how destruction of the Federal armies would never mean the end of the war. So the question becomes why would Lee now decide to rest all hope on this one last showdown? He has already figured out that Lincoln will not surrender to the South, and breaking through to Washington D.C. is no option, so why risk your whole army on a gamble?

Though this may be probable given Lee’s proclivity to military gambles, the state of his army after such hard campaigning makes it hard to believe he would have risked all just to destroy Grant in September of 1863. The best bet would have been to retire all the supplies then accumulated in Baltimore and the surrounding countryside, move that stock to Richmond, and then take his army back to Virginia to live and fight another day. This, however, does not happen, and the end comes precipitously along the banks of a little known river in western Maryland.

While I have my complaints with the book, overall it is great to read and wonder “what if.” The writing as usual is top-of-the-line and the story is addicting. The characters are well developed and easy to connect with, allowing the reader to become invested in the story quickly and conclusively. For any fans of the Civil War this book is must read, and that is an understatement to be truthful. I am a huge Civil War guy and this series was everything advertised and more.

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Brian

condition/pricing

Reviewed in Canada on March 16, 2019

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In good used condition. Satisfactory in every well with bargain pricing.

Mr. D. J. Walford

An Excellent Conclusion...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 8, 2015

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This is a fine conclusion to Gingrich and Forstchen's trilogy and certainly describes an outcome that is not necessarily predictable. I was greatly impressed, yet again, with their novels on the US Civil War.

August, 1863: The scene is set for a major show down at Monocacy Creek in central Maryland between General Ulysses Grant's forces and General Robert Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. The winner takes all and the survival of the Union hangs by a thread as both armies battle it out over a hot week in August. Ultimately, by a slim yet convincing margin, Grant, Lincoln and the Union are victorious. Something you probably suspected anyway, but by no means expected.

The authors have written an intelligent trilogy. As I've mentioned in earlier reviews, this isn't just a 'southern win' alternate history. Gingrich and Forstchen keep it real, acknowledging the fact that a Gettysburg victory for the Confederacy would not effectively compensate for a chronic lack of men and materials. Ultimately, the war would be too much for the South to win; a simple lack of resources was a severe handicap to Lee and the other Confederate Generals.

I would recommend all three novels. Plenty of battle scenes, military planning, political maneuvering and human interest. Excellent entertainment.

Terry Hannan

Another very impressive alternative and thoughtful history of the Civil ...

Reviewed in Australia on August 11, 2015

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Another very impressive alternative and thoughtful history of the Civil War. The suggestion that the loss by the Union forces at Gettysburg was a direct cause of the defeat of the Confederate forces, and the surrender of General Lee to General Grant, some 2 years before the actual end of the conflict is both provocative but believable given the events described. It is more than feasible that victory at Gettysburg followed by a defeat at Washington and further conflict with Union forces would have decimated Lee's Army of North Virginia to the point where they were unable to continue the fight. Another well researched and written 'history' of what could have happened in 1863.

Simona

A Fantastic Read…

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 30, 2022

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A fascinating alternative look at what could have happened if events had turned out differently.
Extremely well written and an interesting close study of the key characters involved in the American Civil War.
I’d thoroughly recommend all 3 books in this trilogy.

RayCraig

Top quality miltary-historical fiction

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 4, 2020

Verified Purchase

A near perfect conclusion to the trilogy. Very well written characters and the military scenario was highly plausible.
Really enjoyed the whole series.

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