No Less Than Victory: A Novel of World War II

With "No Less Than Victory", Jeff Shaara has completed his WWII trilogy. Covering from the Battle of the Bulge to the end of the war, Shaara has given a good feel for this period. As before, Shaara has covered a major battle, Battle of the Bulge, from several perspectives. Using the personal, tactical, and strategic view points, he has woven an interesting tale. New to this novel, is the perspective from the enemy's point of view through the eyes of von Rundstedt and Speer. It added to the story and brought to life the conflicts of personalities on the German side. I found this a good read. It was refreshing to look at the Battle of the Bulge from of the perspective of the retreating units at the beginning of the battle and not from the overworked perspective of the 101st. The book is a fitting capstone to his trilogy and would recommend it to anyone.

The book is an excellent read. I started with the Killer Angel's which was written by Shaara's father. Then I read all of Jeff's work which included historical novels on the Revolutionary War, Mexican-American War, Civil War, WWI and now WWII. These are great because they include actual historical figures with some fictional ones surrounding actual events. These are great books for history and non-history buffs.

World War II has ravaged Europe under the onslaught of Hitler's forces, but his grip is weakening. Allied troops have begun to press him back, leading him to undertake desperate measures. Author Jeff Shaara takes up the final installment of his World War II trilogy --- begun with THE RISING TIDE and THE STEEL WAVE --- and brings to a close one of the most harrowing moments the world has known. NO LESS THAN VICTORY opens in November 1944, highlighting the buildup to the start of the Ardennes Offensive, also known as the Battle of the Bulge. Hitler is now desperate to splinter the Allied forces so that his army can retake Antwerp. The Allies, under the command of Eisenhower, turn the tide against Hitler, and his dream begins to unravel. Hitler's own leaders have seen the folly of the plan, particularly Gerd von Rundstedt. The elder Field Marshal, the oldest of Hitler's commanders and a soldier long before many fighting under him were born, had devised his own scheme that Hitler refused. Since the failed assassination, Hitler held little trust in his men, though he knew he needed them to carry out his plans. Failing in Ardennes, some of the inner Nazi circle begin to plot Germany's postwar future even as Hitler defiantly screams that he will not hear talk of defeat. He makes it clear that his battle is to the end, which comes sooner than later. With Russian troops pressing from the east and with continuing losses on the western front, Hitler commits suicide. Meanwhile, the Americans sweep into the German countryside and uncover the most savage secret of Hitler's machinations: the camps. The horror of the Holocaust comes to the fore, and Shaara very deftly walks into this grievous crime with a clinical eye and a compassionate heart. The result is simply powerful. One does not need to imagine the view of walking into Ohrdruf in April 1945 because Shaara, through meticulous research and exceptional skill as a storyteller, puts you in that moment, and you see all of it as Eddie Benson sees it. That is the great success of NO LESS THAN VICTORY, much as it has been for the previous works in this saga. Shaara has taken the words and memories of those who fought and crafted them not into a dry historical text, but into a living and actionable event of intensity and passion. The battle sequences rage, and the reader is caught up in the explosive panic of war, yet all of this is tempered by the quieter introspections of the primaries: Eisenhower and Patton, von Rundstedt and Speer, Benson and Buckley. The stories of the men behind the men are no more valuable in Shaara's telling than those who carry the guns, ride the bomber planes, or man the tanks. Ultimately, there is not much to uncover in terms of revelations or new insights into these events, but that is hardly the point. Rather, NO LESS THAN VICTORY is the final piece of an exceptionally crafted puzzle. While the story may not be wholly new, it is magnificently told in a way that rekindles a love

I think this book was the best of the series. In his usual style of "historical fiction" Mr. Shaara takes us through the European theatre in WWII as seen through the eyes of its generals, politicians and, the parts I found most interesting, the soldiers themselves. This is solid storytelling, primarily focusing on the Battle of the Bulge, as seen through the eyes of the grunts, and as managed by the generals on both sides of the fence. Unlike the authors other books, this book has less characters (or so it seemed at least) which I find to be more appealing and less confusing. Even though it's always fun to read about the clashes between Montgomery and Patton the story focuses on Private Eddie Benson and his experiences at "mud level". The reader's journey through the eyes of Benson, while peeking in the minds of the generals is a winning combination which makes the story more personal and engrossing. Even though I have heard many people who condemn the oxymoron called "historical fiction" it has worked for me personally. Because of Mr. Shaara's Civil War books I read many other historical books and biographies of the characters I was interested in - so as you can see, I think that writing about history on a grounded, personal level has many benefits especially for those who don't' find history as fascinating as I do. My only comment is that I think it would be wonderful if Mr. Shaara could provide some pictures of the personalities involved so we can see what they look truly look like (instead, for example, picture George C. Scott as General Patton or Ike as the President).

I admit my bias up front on this review. I really enjoy Jeff Shaara's books. He is my favorite author in the historical fiction genre. I pre-ordered this book, and I cannot tell you how excited I was when it arrived at my door on the day of its release. So that's my bias. I don't think Jeff Shaara writes a bad book. I found this book very different from the previous two of the WWII trilogy. Compared to those novels and many of his others, No Less Than Victory stood out to me for how few characters Shaara utilized to tell this story. He mainly follows Eddie Benson's journey through just prior to the Battle of the Buldge to the conclusion of the war in Europe. Dwight Eisenhower, George Patton, Albert Speer, and German Field Marshall van Rundsteldt also play focal roles in the story; yet Speer doesn't appear until the final 3 chapters, just as van Rundsteld exits the novel. The focus on Benson, in my opinion, made the story very good. I have read many books on WWII and found Stephen Ambrose's Band of Brothers to be one of the best I have read on the Battle of the Buldge. I worried about how Shaara would approach this portion of the war with so much out there on this topic. His solution was to tell a very personal story of a private as he made his way through the end of the war in Europe. The first 100 pages contain almost no battle scenes, which is atypical of Shaara. One of his strengths is writing battle scenes. He departs from his strength, and I think the book is better for it. Instead of actual battle scenes, Shaara provides a gripping account of what it must have felt like for a private from Missouri to struggle through Hitler's Watch on the Rhine assault. You could feel Benson's anxieties, his fears. You could empathize with him. That's what made this story different than many of the other novels in this genre. It was personal. And I thought it was great. On Shaara's website, he has alluded in the past that this will not be a trilogy but a series of four WWII books. He leaves No Less Than Victory with a quote about the war in the Pacific. That's his next stop. I can't wait until that books is written and published. No Less Than Victory, in my opinion, is the best of Shaara's WWII efforts. It might not be up to par with the books that I consider his best (Glorious Cause, To the Last Man, Last Full Measure), but I really enjoyed this book.