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Title details for The Smoke at Dawn by Jeff Shaara - Available

The Smoke at Dawn

A Novel of the Civil War

#3 in series

by Jeff Shaara
ebook
1 of 1 copy available
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1 of 1 copy available
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER 
Jeff Shaara returns to the Civil War terrain he knows so well, with the latest novel in the series that started with A Blaze of Glory and A Chain of Thunder. In The Smoke at Dawn, the last great push of the Army of the Cumberland sets the stage for a decisive confrontation at Chattanooga that could determine the outcome of the war.
 
Summer, 1863. The Federal triumph at Vicksburg has secured complete control of the Mississippi River from the Confederacy, cementing the reputation of Ulysses S. Grant. Farther east, the Federal army under the command of William Rosecrans captures the crucial rail hub at Chattanooga. But Rosecrans is careless, and while pursuing the Confederates, the Federal forces are routed in north Georgia at Chickamauga Creek. Retreating in a panic back to Chattanooga, Rosecrans is pursued by the Confederate forces under General Braxton Bragg. Penned up, with their supply lines severed, the Federal army seems doomed to the same kind of defeat that plagued the Confederates at Vicksburg. But a disgusted Abraham Lincoln has seen enough of General Rosecrans. Ulysses Grant is elevated to command of the entire theater of the war, and immediately replaces Rosecrans with General George Thomas. Grant gathers an enormous force, including armies commanded by Joseph Hooker and Grant’s friend, William T. Sherman. Grant’s mission is clear: Break the Confederate siege and destroy Bragg’s army.  Meanwhile, Bragg wages war as much with his own subordinates as he does with the Federals, creating dissension and disharmony in the Southern ranks, erasing the Confederate army’s superiority at exactly the wrong time.
 
Blending evocative historical detail with searing depictions of battle, Jeff Shaara immerses readers in the world of commanders and common soldiers, civilians and statesmen. From the Union side come the voices of Generals Grant, William Tecumseh Sherman, and George Thomas—the vaunted “Rock of Chickamauga”—as well as the young private Fritz “Dutchie” Bauer. From the Rebel ranks come Generals Bragg, Patrick Cleburne, and James Longstreet, as well as the legendary cavalry commander, Nathan Bedford Forrest. A tale of history played out on a human scale in the grand Shaara tradition, The Smoke at Dawn vividly recreates the climactic months of the war in the West, when the fate of a divided nation truly hangs in the balance.
 
Praise for The Smoke at Dawn
  
“Civil War history fiends will be riveted.”—Parade
 
“A beautifully written novel . . . Shaara once again elevates history from mere rote fact to explosive and engaging drama.”—Bookreporter
 
“Shaara’s mastery of military tactics, his intimate grasp of history, and his ability to interweave several supporting narratives into a cohesive and digestible whole . . . will appeal to a broad range of historical- and military-fiction fans.”—Booklist
 
“Top-notch . . . As with the best historical war novels, knowing the ultimate outcome of the bitter fighting is not a bar to engagement.”—Publishers Weekly

  • Creators

  • Series

    Civil War in the West

  • Publisher

  • Awards

  • Release date

    June 3, 2014

  • Formats

    • Kindle Book

    • OverDrive Read

      • ISBN: 9780345527431

    • EPUB ebook

      • ISBN: 9780345527431
      • File size: 5002 KB

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      June 30, 2014
      Shaara's third volume of four focusing on the "âWestern' theater of the Civil War," after 2013's A Chain of Thunder, is a top-notch war novel. As in his previous books, whether about the Civil War, the Revolutionary War, or the two World Wars, he manages to make the minutiae of troop deployments and battlefield tactics absorbing even for the non-buff. This series is especially appealing for its look at an obscure yet crucial juncture: the 1863 "campaign around Chattanooga," which here is portrayed as a bellwether of the Confederacy's ability to prevail in the wider conflict. Along well-known figures such as Grant and Sherman are involved, Shaara primarily enables the reader to experience the hell of war through the lower ranks, such as sniper Fritz Bauer. As with the best historical war novels, knowing the ultimate outcome of the bitter fighting is not a bar to engagement.

    • Booklist

      June 1, 2014
      Shaara's third installment of a four-volume set, taking place in the often neglected western theater of the Civil War, continues to shine a light on a number of the grittiest campaigns and battles of that horrendous conflict. The dramatic events taking place around Chattanooga in the fall of 1863 are chronicled through the eyes of both historical and fictional characters involved in the planning and execution of a series of pivotal martial maneuvers. Under siege at Chattanooga, several Federal armies under the brilliant leadership of the recently promoted Ulysses S. Grant combine in an effort to break the Confederate stranglehold on their critical supply lines, as the fates of both the Union and the Confederacy hang in the balance. Shaara's mastery of military tactics, his intimate grasp of history, and his ability to interweave several supporting narratives into a cohesive and digestible whole as he revisits a catastrophic period in U.S. history will appeal to a broad range of historical- and military-fiction fans.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)

Formats

  • Kindle Book
  • OverDrive Read
  • EPUB ebook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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