In this stunning, unforgettable novel, Jeff Shaara carries us back thirteen years before the Civil War, when that momentous conflicts most familiar names are fighting for another cause, junior officers marching under the same flag in an unfamiliar land, experiencing combat for the first time in the Mexican-American War. BRILLIANT DOES NOT EVEN BEGIN TO DESCRIBE THE SHAARA GIFT.--Atlanta Journal-Constitution SHAARA RELIES ON THE HISTORY BEHIND THE MEN AND THEIR CAMPAIGNS TO TELL THE TALE. . . . Most poignant of all is the appearance of so many characters who will fight under opposing flags 13 years later. Stonewall Jackson shows up as a humorless young lieutenant with a spiritual reverence for his artillery, and Ulysses S. Grant awkwardly meets Robert E.] Lee. . . . The salvaging of such episodes from history is ultimately a patriotic task, deserving of gratitude.--The Washington Post Book World COMPELLING . . . THRILLING . . . Shaara briskly drives the U.S. forces to Mexico City, building suspense at each battle, all towards the climactic storming of the gates of the capital. . . . He] has humanized the mythos of Lee as no one ever has and, in doing, makes an enduring contribution to literature.--Civil War Book Review SHAARA, AS USUAL, IS AT HIS BEST IN ACTION AND CONFRONTATION AND IN EVOKING HOW IT FELT TO BE THERE.--The Philadelphia InquirerAbout the AuthorJeff Shaara is the New York Times bestselling author of A Chain of Thunder, A Blaze of Glory, The Final Storm, No Less Than Victory, The Steel Wave, The Rising Tide, To the Last Man, The Glorious Cause, Rise to Rebellion, and Gone for Soldiers, as well as Gods and Generals and The Last Full Measure--two novels that complete the Civil War trilogy that began with his fathers Pulitzer Prize-winning classic, The Killer Angels. Shaara was born into a family of Italian immigrants in New Brunswick, New Jersey. He grew up in Tallahassee, Florida, and graduated from Florida State University. He lives in Gettysburg.