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Britannia Fist From Civil War to World War An Alternate History Peter G Tsouras Books

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Britannia Fist From Civil War to World War An Alternate History Peter G Tsouras Books

I'm a fan of alt-history, and this one seems to be a good start to a planned series. As with all good alt-history stories, an important fact is "changed" and results in a vastly different outcome. In this case, it's the destruction of a British-built ship ordered by the CSA which leads the Brits to side with the South against the North in our Civil War.

The characters (mostly "real" people) are well established and devloped. The writing is clear and compelling. If I had a little bone to pick, it would be that the plot developments are a bit obvious.

Tsouras is an excellent craftsman (far better than some of the hacks who are better know in this genre) and I look forward to the next in the series


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Britannia Fist From Civil War to World War An Alternate History Peter G Tsouras Books Reviews

I am a fan of alternate history as long as it is at least semi-realistic. Britannia's Fist fits the bill for me. Drawing on real life events during the American Civil War the author tweaks history just enough to draw Great Britain into the ACW on the side of the South. The action takes place on land, at sea and (in the second volume) in the air. Not to mention back alley skulduggery with the likes of John Wilkes Booth. I found it a very quick paced book with plenty of action. In fact, I liked it so much I immediately downloaded the second volume "A Rainbow of Blood" which is even better. I can't wait for the final part of the trilogy to come out.
Now the negatives I down loaded the book to my iPad and had the usual issues with how a book's text is reproduced that some may blame on bad editing. Also, the book could use some editing. I also wasn't thrilled with the way the maps are displayed, though, in fairness, this is true of every e-book I've read.
All in all, I found it very difficult to put down and eagerly await the final installment.
I really enjoyed this book. Tsouras does a really good job of introducing characters and rounding out their background. It makes them feel very real and not just faceless placeholders in the story. I felt the story was thoroughly though through and well based on actual events in history. The author did a good job of showing how a very small change in events can spiral into disaster pretty easily.

The story centers around an actual historic event where a British shipyard was constructing warships for the Confederate States against the objections of the US Government. In reality, the British government halted the release of the ships at the last moment, averting a potential provocation towards the US Government. In the world of Brittania's Fist, things don't go exactly as expected and the world is plunged into a true World War...
Dispite the excellent detail of this alternate history, I have to agree with previous negative reviews. The primise of a US Navy that goes to war with England over a fear of the Confederate Laird Rams and yet sinks two of the most powerful British dreadnaughts a few weeks later with that same fearful navy is laughable at best. Dalgrehn's guns were good only at close range, while the British ships were armed with powerful long range weapons with vessels capable of choosing where any action would be fought. Plunging fire would have obliterated the U.S coastal ironclads with their thin armored decks. The Alligator failed historically but becomes key to victory for the USN and a brigade of Maine regiments defeats a division of British Regulars...really? Irish militia do the same a bit later because the Britiish are surprised by canister fire...really? I hope part two is better but I don't recommend this work for any history buff interested in plausible alternate scenarios.
I almost gave this series a pass. Writers of alternative history seem to ride on each other's coat tails a lot. Harry Harrison decides to write an Alternative History of the Civil War, and the next thing you know, Harry Turtledove, Robert Conroy and even (shudder) Newt Gingrich is doing it. Newt Gingrich decides to write an Alternative History of Pearl Harbor, and the next thing you know, Robert Conroy, Harry Turtledove and everybody else is also writing alternative histories of Pearl Harbor. It's almost as bad as the Hollywood movie studios who, when one studio decides to make a movie about volcanos, the other studios follow suit. Then some studio decides to do a Wyatt Earp movie, so all the other studios make one, too. And, to be honest, I only knew of Peter Tsouras as a consultant on various History channel programs. So I did not really know what to expect.

Britannia's Fist proves to be a well-written and immaculately researched book. So well researched that the author presents fictional documents and photographs so well done they appear genuine. And rather than focusing on Robert E. Lee and General Grant, the book presents many more obscure characters like Colonel Woolsey and General Meagher. The author also chooses a more obscure point of history as his divergence point. Rather than lighting upon the Trent incident, as most other AH Civil War writers have done, Mr. Tsouras guides us along a path of increasing tensions as Britain continues its subtle, covert support of the Southern Confederacy. Tsouras brings to light many acts on the part of the English that have been lost to history or dismissed by historians over the years not only overtly building commerce raiders for the Confederacy, but allowing Confederate ships to openly use English ports at home and abroad for resupply and rest and recreation while forcing Union ships to leave port after only 24 hours, supplying men and equipment for Confederate ships, and the like.

The break comes when a Union warship intercepts an English-built Confederate ram and pursues it into an English port. Three English warships come to the support of the ram, and the resulting battle is an embarrassment to the British. Although the Union ship is lost, it manages to defeat the ram and two of the three English ships before it goes down. The English Parliment is more outraged by the embarrassing loss of the battle than by the fact that the battle took place, and declares war on the United States.

In the meantime, the Copperhead movement in the Northern States take an ominous shape, and attempts to arm and liberate Confederate prisoners of war from camps in the Midwest. Union armies have to be diverted from the field of battle to put down this uprising.

The book ends with a rousing sea battle as the British attempt to break the blockade at Charleston. And it is in the sea battles where Peter Tsouras shines. Union ironclad monitors slug it out with an overwhelming force of wooden ships of the line. Tsouras even throws the semi-submersible Davids into the battle, which were even more obscure weapons of war than the Confederate submarine Hunley. I have never read better or more exciting descriptions of naval warfare. You will do yourself a disservice if you give this series a pass. The naval combat alone is worth the price of admission.

Although I dearly love Harry Harrison's Union in Peril trilogy, Britania's Fist is the best and most realistic Alternative History of the Civil War yet written. I highly recommend it to fans of the genre.
I'm a fan of alt-history, and this one seems to be a good start to a planned series. As with all good alt-history stories, an important fact is "changed" and results in a vastly different outcome. In this case, it's the destruction of a British-built ship ordered by the CSA which leads the Brits to side with the South against the North in our Civil War.

The characters (mostly "real" people) are well established and devloped. The writing is clear and compelling. If I had a little bone to pick, it would be that the plot developments are a bit obvious.

Tsouras is an excellent craftsman (far better than some of the hacks who are better know in this genre) and I look forward to the next in the series