William R Forstchen Books In Order

Ice Prophet Books In Order

  1. Ice Prophet (1983)
  2. The Flame Upon the Ice (1984)
  3. A Darkness upon the Ice (1985)

Gamester Wars Books In Order

  1. The Alexandrian Ring (1987)
  2. The Assassin Gambit (1988)
  3. The Napoleon Wager (1993)

Crystal Books In Order

  1. The Crystal Warriors (1988)
  2. The Crystal Sorcerers (1991)

Lost Regiment Books In Order

  1. Rally Cry (1990)
  2. The Union Forever (1991)
  3. Terrible Swift Sword (1992)
  4. Fateful Lightning (1993)
  5. Battle Hymn (1997)
  6. Never Sound Retreat (1998)
  7. A Band of Brothers (1999)
  8. Men of War (1999)
  9. Down to the Sea (2000)

Star Voyager Books In Order

  1. Star Voyager Academy (1994)
  2. Article 23 (1998)
  3. Prometheus (1999)

Legends of the Riftwar Books In Order

  1. Honoured Enemy (2001)

Gettysburg Books In Order

  1. Gettysburg (2003)
  2. Grant Comes East (2004)
  3. Never Call Retreat (2005)
  4. The Battle of the Crater (2011)

Pacific War Books In Order

  1. Pearl Harbor (2007)
  2. Days of Infamy (2008)

George Washington Books In Order

  1. To Try Men’s Souls (2009)
  2. Valley Forge (2010)
  3. Victory at Yorktown (2012)

John Matherson Books In Order

  1. One Second After (2009)
  2. One Year After (2015)
  3. The Final Day (2017)

Novels

  1. Into the Sea of Stars (1986)
  2. The Gamester Wars (1995)
  3. 1945 (1995)
  4. The Four Magics (1996)
  5. We Look Like Men of War (2001)
  6. At The Water’s Edge (2005)
  7. Firestorm (2005)
  8. Valley Of The Shadow (2005)
  9. Pillar to the Sky (2014)
  10. 48 Hours (2019)

Novellas

  1. Doctors of the Night (2011)
  2. Day of Wrath (2014)
  3. Twin Flame (2017)

Non fiction

  1. It Seemed like a Good Idea… (1988)
  2. Hot Shots (2000)
  3. Honor Untarnished (2003)

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William R Forstchen Books Overview

Rally Cry

When Union Colonel Andrew Keane led his blue coated soldiers aboard the transport ship, he could not have foreseen that their next port of call would be neither in the North nor the South, but on an alternate world where no human was free. Storm swept through a space time warp, Keane’s regiment was shipwrecked in an alien land, a land where all that stood between them and destruction was the power of rifles over swords, spears, and crossbows. Into this serfdom ruled by nobles and the Church, Keane and his men brought the radical ideas of freedom, equality, and democracy and a technology centuries ahead of the world they must now call home. Yet all their knowledge and training might not save them from the true rulers there creatures to whom all humans were mere cattle, bred for sacrifice!

Terrible Swift Sword

Stranded on a distant world ruled by alien creatures, Union Colonel Andrew Keane and his regiment must rely on a brute force when a human traitor among them gives the aliens the secret to air power.

Fateful Lightning

Lost in another world and time, a regiment of Union soldiers find themselves part of a tactical retreat from the onslaught of the mysterious Merki hordes, reenacting the classic Russian retreats from the French and Germans.

Battle Hymn

A regiment of American Civil War soldiers is swept from the battlefields of Earth to a distant alien world, where they face a wave of terror with only their ideals to save a fledgling human republic.

Never Sound Retreat

It has been 10 years since a group of American Civil War soldiers was swept away from the battlefields of Earth to a distant world where the only place for a human is as a slave to an alien race. But even though they are far from home, the members of the Union 35th Main regiment still embody the radical ideas of democracy and freedom and they’re willing to lay down their lives rather than sound retreat! Ads in ‘Locus’.

A Band of Brothers

In the ten years since his regiment was transported to an alien world, Commander Andrew Keane has bravely fought time and time again for humanity’s freedom. But after he is injured in battle, his confidence is shaken, and his ability to lead is damaged. Seeing their leader struck down also takes its toll on Keane’s men, who have followed him to hell and back. Now, with the Human Republic weakened, their sinister enemies the Bantags offer a truce to the two halves of the Republic one that would guarantee safety for one nation, and seal the doom of the other! Now, Keane must face his demons, or the dream of freedom will be lost forever.

Men of War

This final novel in The Lost Regiment series finds Colonel Andrew Keane and the soldiers of his 35th Maine preparing to wage war against the alien hordes for the last time…
Series 8Praise for The Lost Regiment series: ‘First rate storytelling.’ Ray E. Feist, New York Times bestselling author’A parallel world of majestic sweep and gripping inten sity.’ L. Sprague de Camp’The Lost Regiment series moves like a bullet.’ Locus’Science fiction lovers will cheer.’ Boy’s Life’A Civil War Series with a Twist.’ Washington Post’One of the most intriguing writers today in the field of historical and military science fiction.’ Harry Turtledove

Down to the Sea

In the aftermath of Gettysburg, the 35th Regiment of the Union Army were pulled through a time warp, leaving them stranded in a strange alien word. Now it’s time for exploration and to discover a way to survive…

Honoured Enemy

As the Riftwar tears Midkemia apart, enemies trapped in the frozen Northlands must trust each other to stay alive…
. In the sprawling, embattled land of Midkemia, fate can form strange alliances. Nine years into the bloody and ongoing Riftwar, Dennis Hartraft’s Marauders are cold, hungry, and exhausted. Having only just survived a disastrous encounter with their sworn enemy, the Tsurani, the soldiers are headed for a frontier garrison, where they will be able to rest and recover. But Hartraft’s company arrives at the same time as a Tsurani patrol, and both sides discover the stronghold overrun by a migrating horde of dark elves called moredhel, a foe so deadly and vicious the bitter enemies must band together and fight as one. But can their hatred for their mutual enemy overcome their distrust of each other? As the two groups, bound to each other by their common foe, make their way across the unknown Northlands to freedom, they have to struggle with not only the elements and the enemy, but also their consciences. For, with both sides carrying painful scars from past wars, each man must ask himself what is more important: one’s life or one’s honor?

Gettysburg

The Civil War is the American Iliad. Lincoln, Stonewall Jackson, Grant, and Lee still stand as heroic ideals, as stirring to our national memory as were the legendary Achilles and Hector to the world of the ancient Greeks. Within the story of our Iliad one battle stands forth above all others: Gettysburg. Millions visit Gettysburg each year to walk the fields and hills where Joshua Chamberlain made his legendary stand and Pickett went down to a defeat which doomed a nation, but in defeat forever became a symbol of the heroic Lost Cause. As the years passed, and the scars healed, the debate, rather than drifting away has intensified. It is the battle which has become the great ‘what if,’ of American history and the center of a dreamscape where Confederate banners finally do crown the heights above the town. The year is 1863, and General Robert E. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia are poised to attack the North and claim the victory that would end the brutal conflict. But Lee’s Gettysburg campaign ended in failure, ultimately deciding the outcome of the war. Launching his men into a vast sweeping operation, of which the town of Gettysburg is but one small part of the plan, General Lee, acting as he did at Chancellorsville, Second Manassas, and Antietam, displays the audacity of old. He knows he has but one more good chance to gain ultimate victory, for after two years of war the relentless power of an industrialized north is wearing the South down. Lee’s lieutenants and the men in the ranks, embued with this renewed spirit of the offensive embark on the Gettysburg Campaign that many dream ‘should have been.’ The soldiers in the line, Yank and Reb, knew as well that this would be the great challenge, the decisive moment that would decided whether a nation would die, or be created, and both sides were ready, willing to lay down their lives for their Cause. An action packed and painstakingly researched masterwork, Gettysburg stands as the first book in a series to tell the story of how history could have unfolded, how a victory for Lee would have changed the destiny of the nation forever. In the great tradition of The Killer Angels and Jeff Shaara s bestselling Civil War trilogy, this is a novel of true heroism and glory in America s most trying hour.

Grant Comes East

Grant Comes East, the second book in the bestselling series by Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen, continues the story of a Confederate victory at Gettysburg. The first book examined the great ‘what if’ of American history: Could Lee have won the Battle of Gettysburg? A Confederate victory, however, would not necessarily mean that the Southern cause has gained its final triumph and a lasting peace. It is from this departure point that the story continues in Grant Comes East, as General Robert E. Lee marches on Washington, DC, and launches an assault against one of the largest fortifications in the world. Across 140 years, nearly all historians have agreed that after the defeat of the Army of the Potomac at Gettysburg, the taking of Washington, DC, would end the war. But was it possible?Lee knows that a frontal assault against such fortifications could devastate his army, but it is a price he fears must be paid for final victory. Beyond a military victory in the field, Lee must also overcome the defiant stand of President Abraham Lincoln, who vows that regardless of the defeat at Gettysburg, his solemn pledge to preserve the Union will be honored. Lincoln will mobilize the garrison of Washington to hold on no matter what the costs. At the same time, Lincoln has appointed General Ulysses S. Grant as commander of all Union forces. Grant, fresh from his triumph at Vicksburg, races east, bringing with him his hardened veterans from Mississippi to confront Lee. What ensues across the next six weeks is a titanic struggle as the surviving Union forces inside the fortifications of Washington fight to hang on, while Grant prepares his counterblow. The defeated Army of the Potomac, staggered by the debacle dealt at Gettysburg, is not yet completely out of the fight, and is slowly reorganizing. Its rogue commander, General Dan Sickles, is thirsting for revenge against Lee, the restoration of the honor of his army, and the fulfillment of his own ambitions, which reach all the way to the White House. All these factors will come together in a climatic struggle spanning the ground from Washington, through Baltimore, to the banks of the Susquehanna River. Once again, Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen create a brilliant story of how the Civil War could have unfolded. In Grant Comes East, they use their years of research and expertise to take readers on an incredible journey.

Never Call Retreat

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.

The Battle of the Crater

With The Battle of the Crater, New York Times bestselling authors Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen take readers to the center of a nearly forgotten Civil War confrontation, a battle that was filled with controversy and misinterpretation even before the attack began. Drawing on years of research, the authors weave a complex narrative interweaving the high aspirations of African American troops eager to prove themselves in battle and the anxiety of a President who knows the nation cannot bear another major defeat. June 1864: the Civil War is now into its fourth year of bloody conflict with no end in sight. The armies of the North are stalled in fetid trenches outside of Richmond and Atlanta, and the reelection of Abraham Lincoln to a second term seems doomed to defeat a defeat that will set off the call for an end to the conflict, dismembering the Union and continuing slavery. Only one group of volunteers for the Union cause is still eager for battle. Nearly two hundred thousand men of color have swarmed the recruiting stations and are being mobilized into regiments known as the USCTs, the United States Colored Troops. General Ambrose Burnside, a hard luck commander out of favor with his superiors, is one of the few generals eager to bring a division of these new troops into his ranks. He has an ingenious plan to break Fort Pegram, the closest point on the Confederate line, defending Petersburg the last defense of Richmond by tunneling forward from the Union position beneath the fort to explode its defenses. Burnside needs the USCTs for one desperate rush that just might bring victory. The risks are high. Will Burnside be allowed to proceed or will interference from on high doom his plan to failure? The battleground drama unfolds through the eyes of James Reilly famed artist, correspondent, and friend of Lincoln, who has been employed by the president to be his eyes and ears amongst the men, sending back an honest account of the front. In so doing, he befriends Sergeant Major Garland White of the 28th USCT regiment, an escaped slave and minister preparing his comrades for a frontal assault that will either win the war, or result in their annihilation. The Battle of the Crater is Gingrich and Forstchen’s most compelling fact based work yet, presenting little known truths, long forgotten in the files of correspondence, and the actual court of inquiry held after the attack. The novel draws a new and controversial conclusion while providing a sharp, rousing and harshly realistic view of politics and combat during the darkest year of the Civil War. This must read work rewrites our understanding of one of the great battles of the war, and the all but forgotten role played by one of the largest formations of African American troops in our nation s history.

Pearl Harbor

‘A Thrilling Tale of the Attack That Marked America’s Darkest Day’ W.E.B. Griffin President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s speech on December 8, 1941, lasted a mere six and half minutes. But his words and tone in a monologue that would later be named the Infamy Speech sent ripples into a nation and a world that continue even today. The historical implications that emerged from the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor were unprecedented, launching America not only into the depths of a dangerous war, but forever altering the safety and comfort of everyday living. December 8th became a day of speaking out publicly and declaring war; of action, battle, plotting, and victories. This date’s significance is resonant and profound as an indelible moment in American history. Fresh from their series on the American Civil War, bestselling authors Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen now launch a new epic adventure by applying their imaginations and knowledge to the ‘Date of Infamy’ the attack on Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harbor covers the full spectrum of characters and events from that historic moment, from national leaders and admirals to the views of ordinary citizens caught in the chaos of war. From the chambers of the Emperor of Japan to the American White House, from the decks of aircraft carriers to the playing fields of the Japanese Naval Academy, this powerful story stretches from the nightmare slaughter of China in the 1930s to the lonely office of Commander James Watson, an American cryptographer, who suspects the impending catastrophic attack. It is a story of intrigue, double dealing, the horrific brutality of war, and the desperate efforts of men of reason on both sides to prevent a titanic struggle that becomes inevitable. Gingrich and Forstchen’s now critically acclaimed approach, which they term ‘active history,’ examines how a change in but one decision might have profoundly altered American history. In Pearl Harbor, they pose the question of how the presence of but one more man within the Japanese attacking force could have transfigured the war. More than a retelling, the book also serves as a potent warning, valid still today as an example of what happens when communications and understanding breaks down, and a nation is ill prepared for the onslaught that might ensue. A compelling, meticulously researched saga, Pearl Harbor is also a novel of valor about those who took part in this cataclysmic moment in world history. It inaugurates a dramatic new Pacific War series that begins with the terrifying account of the day that started it all. Praise for Pearl Harbor: ‘A politician and a novelist, each an accomplished historian in his own right, are emerging as master authors of alternative history. In this ‘what if’ treatment of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Newt Gingrich and William Forstchen combine their talents to make the diplomacy as suspenseful as the combat, even for readers who know what happens next or think they know. The authors’ mastery of both the broad sweep of events and the details of naval war and military technology give their counterfactual scenarios an unusual degree of plausibility, concluding with a version of the Japanese attack that guarantees a fictional Pacific war even more terrible than the one that began on December 7, 1941.’ Dennis Showalter, former president of the Society of Military Historians ‘The book is not only a great read, it is a fascinating historical story that applies today in Iraq as it did in the Western Pacific in the late ’30s and ’40s.’ Captain Alex Fraser Ret. ‘Gingrich and Forstchen have done it again. Building on their successful collaboration on their Civil War trilogy that so skillfully combined real history with fiction, they have with Pearl Harbor happily inaugurated another new series. You will not want to put it down, but when you finish you will look, as I do, with great anticipation to the next book.’ Chief of Police William J. Bratton, Los Angeles Police Department ‘Masterful storytelling that not only captures the heroic highs and hellish lows of that horrific day which lives on in infamy it resonates with today’s conflicts and challenges.’ William E. Butterworth IV, New York Times Best selling Author of The Saboteurs

Days of Infamy

Absolutely brilliant! Fast paced and filled with tension and suspense. Every page resonates with the momentous events and great personalities of World War II and scenes so carefully crafted you feel like you re there. This is a must read for all who look at history and wonder: What if Oliver North, Lt. Col., USMC Ret., host of War Stories on the Fox News ChannelIn 2007, bestselling authors Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen launched a new epic adventure series about World War II in the Pacific, with their book Pearl Harbor: A Novel of December 8th, 1941, which instantly rocketed to the New York Times bestseller list. Gingrich and Forstchen’s now critically acclaimed approach, which they term active history, examines how a change in but one decision might have profoundly altered American history. In Pearl Harbor they explored how history might have been changed if Admiral Yamamoto had directly led the attack on that fateful day, instead of remaining in Japan. Building on that promise, Days of Infamy starts minutes after the close of Pearl Harbor, as both sides react to the monumental events triggered by the presence of Admiral Yamamoto. In direct command of the six carriers of the attacking fleet, Yamamoto decides to launch a fateful third wave attack on the island of Oahu, and then keeps his fleet in the area to hunt down the surviving American aircraft carriers, which by luck and fate were not anchored in the harbor on that day. Historians have often speculated about what might have transpired from legendary matchups of great generals and admirals. In this story of the aftermath of Pearl Harbor, the notorious gambler Yamamoto is pitted against the equally legendary American admiral Bill Halsey in a battle of wits, nerve, and skill. Days of Infamy recounts this alternative history from a multitude of viewpoints from President Roosevelt, Prime Minister Churchill, and the two great admirals, on down to American pilots flying antiquated aircraft, bravely facing the vastly superior Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft. Gingrich and Forstchen have written a sequel that s as much a homage to the survivors of the real Pearl Harbor attack as it is an imaginative and thrilling take on America s entry into World War II. Praise for the first book in the Pacific War Series, Pearl Harbor:’A thrilling tale of American’s darkest day.’ W.E.B. Griffin’Masterful storytelling that not only captures the heroic highs and hellish lows of that horrific day which lives on in infamy it resonates with today’s conflicts and challeneges.’ William E. Butterworth IV, New York Times bestselling author of The Saboteurs’A politician and a novelist, each an accomplished historian in his own right, are emerging as master authors of alternative history. In this what if treatment of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Newt Gingrich and William Forstchen combine their talents to make the diplomacy as suspenseful as the combat, even for readers who know what happens next or think they know.’ Dennis Showalter, former president of the Society of Military Historians’This book is not only a great read, it is a fascinating historical story that applies today in Iraq as it did in the Western Pacific in the late 30s and 40s.’ Captain Alex Fraser, USN Ret.

To Try Men’s Souls

After two bestselling series examining the Civil War and WWII, Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen have turned their sharp eye for detail on the Revolutionary War. Their story follows three men with three very different roles to play in history: General George Washington, Thomas Paine, and Jonathan Van Dorn, a private in Washington’s army. The action focuses on one of the most iconic events in American history: Washington cross ing the Delaware. Unlike the bold, courageous General in Emanuel Leutze s painting, Washington is full of doubt on the night of December 25, 1776. After five months of defeat, morale is dangerously low. Each morning muster shows that hundreds have deserted in the night. While Washington prepares his weary troops for the attack on Trenton, Thomas Paine is in Philadelphia, overseeing the printing of his newest pamphlet, The Crisis. And Jonathan Van Dorn is about to bring the war to his own doorstep. In the heat of battle, he must decide between staying loyal to the cause and sparing his brother who has joined up with the British. Through the thoughts and private fears of these three men, Gingrich and Forstchen illu minate the darkest days of the Revolution. With detailed research and an incredible depth of military insight, this novel provides a rare and personal perspective of the men who fought for, and founded the United States of America.

Valley Forge

In To Try Men’s Souls, New York Times bestselling authors Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen cast a new light on the year 1776 and the man who would become the father of our nation, George Washington. Valley Forge picks up the narrative a year after Washington’s triumphant surprise attack on Trenton, and much has changed since then. It s the winter of 1777, and Washington s battered, demoralized army retreats from Philadelphia. Arriving at Valley Forge, they discover that their repeated requests for a stockpile of food, winter clothing, and building tools have been ignored by Congress. With no other options available, the men settle down for a season of agony. For weeks the dwindling army freezes under tents in the bitter cold. Food runs out. Disease festers. The men are on the point of collapse, while in Philadelphia the British, joined by Allen van Dorn, the Loyalist brother of the dead patriot, Jonathan van Dorn, live in luxury. In spite of the suffering and deceit, Washington endures all, joined at last by a volunteer from Germany, Baron Friederich von Steuben. With precious few supplies and even less time, von Steuben begins the hard task of recasting the army as a professional fighting force capable of facing the British head on something it has never accomplished before and in the process he changing the course of history. Valley Forge is a compelling, meticulously researched tour de force novel about endurance, survival, transformation, and rebirth. It chronicles the unique crucible of time and place where Washington and his Continental Army, against all odds, were forged into a fighting force that would win a revolution and found the United States of America.

One Second After

New York Times best selling author William R. Forstchen now brings us a story which can be all too terrifyingly real…
a story in which one man struggles to save his family and his small North Carolina town after America loses a war, in one second, a war that will send America back to the Dark Ages…
A war based upon a weapon, an Electro Magnetic Pulse EMP. A weapon that may already be in the hands of our enemies. Months before publication, One Second After has already been cited on the floor of Congress as a book all Americans should read, a book already being discussed in the corridors of the Pentagon as a truly realistic look at a weapon and its awesome power to destroy the entire United States, literally within one second. It is a weapon that the Wall Street Journal warns could shatter America. In the tradition of On the Beach, Fail Safe and Testament, this book, set in a typical American town, is a dire warning of what might be our future…
and our end.

1945

‘1945’ takes as its departure point from actual history the idea that the US did not fight against Germany after Pearl Harbour. The authors have created a whole new course of history, starting in 1945 with Na*zi Germany controlling all Europe except Britain. The hero must foil a Na*zi plan.

We Look Like Men of War

Named a Best Book for Teen Readers by the New York Public Library ‘I was the son of a slave, as was my father before me, but I shall die a free man…
‘ Thus begins the poignant story of Samuel Washburn, born a slave in 1850. Unfortunate circumstances cause him and his cousin to be the butt of a young master’s cruelty. Eventually they fight back and have to flee North for their freedom, only to return South to fight for the lar ger cause that they hunger and thirst for: freedom. Though still a boy, Sam becomes a regimental drummer with a ‘colored regiment.’ He sees action in the Wilderness campaign, Fredericksburg, and Petersburg, as well as at the bloody Battle of the Crater in July of 1864, offering a unique perspective on the carnage of the political disagreement that was known as the War Between the States.

It Seemed like a Good Idea…

Throughout the annals of history, the best of intentions and sometimes the worst have set in motion events with a vastly different outcome than originally intended. In this entertaining, fact filled chronicle, William Forstchen and Bill Fawcett explore the watersheds of history that began as the best of ideas and ended as the worst of fiascoes. A Holy War The Medieval Crusades for religious liberation become centuries of slaughter and destruction. Sibling Rivalry Leif Erikson spares his sister’s life and delays the discovery of the New World for five hundred years. Big Guns Emperor Constantine XI refuses to buy a new supercannon that would let him dominate his enemies, so its creator sells the cannon to the Turks, who then crush Constantinople. With casual wit and subtle insight, It Seemed like a Good Idea…
tucks tongue in cheek and rides out the fiascoes of history.

Hot Shots

Known as the ‘Forgotten War,’ the Korean War heralded a new era of warfare one where countries from around the world struggled over the fate of a relatively small peninsula jutting into the Sea of Japan. Between 1950 and 1953, more than fifty thousand Americans gave their lives in pursuit of democracy for the Korean people. The Korean War was also the proving ground for post World War II aviation, when the first generation of jet aircraft took to the skies to tangle in deadly combat. It was the battlefield of Sabres and MiGs, American Hot Shots and Communist Honchos. And more than ever before, control of the skies meant victory or failure in the ground war raging below. Now, fifty years after the war’s outbreak, Hot Shots captures the voices of the original top guns, the pilots who flew Mustangs, Sabres, and Shooting Stars and confronted a superior number of enemy aircraft. Among the men who tell their stories are Lieutenant Colonel Duane E. ‘Bud’ Biteman, one of the first fliers in the war; Lieutenant General Frederick ‘Boots’ Blesse, double ace who led efforts to refine tactical training for the new jet pilots; Colonel Cecil Foster, who fought in one of the longest running air to air jet encounters; and Colonel Harold Fischer, a double ace flier who was captured behind enemy lines and held as a POW until 1955, two years after the official end of the war. Editors Chancey and Forstchen combine these compelling firsthand accounts with dozens of never before published photographs of air force pilots at work, as well as a history of the major events of the war. Hot Shots brings to vivid life the risk, dedication, and bravery of these forgotten heroes. May their sacrifice not be in vain.

Honor Untarnished

What the bestsellers Flags of Our Fathers was to Iwo Jima and Duty to the mission of the Enola Gay, Honor Untarnished is to the World War II tour of duty of young graduate of a West Point. Whether it was fighting Rommel’s fierce Afrika Korps hitting the beaches of Normandy on D Day, surviving the Battle of the Bulge, or just being in the next room during the infamous ‘slapping incident’ of Blood n Guts General George Patton, Donald Bennett experienced the fiery crucible of World War II and survived to tell about it. As a recent graduate of West Point, First Lieutenant Bennett was given the charge of training inexperienced and scared recruits, and leading them into battle against the Axis forces. From orientation at Fort Sill, Oklahoma through the fiercest battles of the war right up to the liberation of the death camps and our complicit confrontation with the Soviet Union over Eastern Europe, Don Bennett, not yet thirty, preserved the honor of the corps, and the liberty of the free world. Lindbergh, Patton, Bradley, and Eisenhower are just names in a history book to most but to Don Bennett they were personal acquaintances. This is the story of D Day, the Bulge, and the rest of the war. It differs from many recent books on similar events…
because Don Bennett was actually there!

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