This is an excellent overview of the Southern theatre of the American Revolution; one that includes all the major players, each leading into the next. There's Baron de Kalb, a German veteran who joined the American cause in 1777, fighting mostly in the South. Then at the Siege of Charleston, a brutal 42 days of bombardment, we meet Benjamin Lincoln and Gov. John Rutledge. Preventing support from Lieut. Col. Huger is Lieut. Banastre Tarleton, later known as "Bloody Ban." At the Carolinas border is Abraham Buford, whose forces would lose to Tarleton in the "Waxhaws Massacre." Between him, Patrick Ferguson, rank politics and state isolationism, the Americans are hard pressed to retrieve supplies. The Battle of Camden would be particularly devastating, but Francis Marion and his band of 25-30 men would be a scrappy thorn in the Loyalist side in the interim. The Battle of Kings Mountain and the Battle of Cowpens would come as surprising victories, with Nathaniel Greene now in charge of the "Southern Dept." Both proved significant in the lead up to the final Battle of Yorktown.

As Crawford acknowledges, many historians are understandably reluctant to acknowledge Southern revolutionary efforts. Crawford asserts that the Southern rebellion was based not in the preservation of slavery (that came later), but rather in defense of rights due as British subjects. They also called themselves "Whigs," not patriots in honor of those fighting a corrupt Parliament back in England. Still, it's a shameful contradiction of independence vs hundreds of thousands still in bondage. Loyalists also existed in far greater numbers in the South, resulting in an unrefined, plundering, neighbor-against-neighbor campaign that was wholly different from its northern counterpart. Tactics were unpredictable, messy, but effective. However, there are plenty of side skirmishes, dramatic encounters and first hand accounts that add a bit of flair to the narrative. With a lot of ground to cover, Crawford doesn't linger longer than necessary. This makes for an easy read for those who don't want heavy, academic dive. I thought the description of the Battle of King's Mountain was particularly well done!

4.5 / 5! Thank you Penguin Random House for approving my request on Netgalley!

This is a book that shines a light on the often overlooked Southern Theater of the American Revolution. Many books lately have been attempting the same thing, which is a good thing, but can prevent any one book from standing out from the crowd. This one takes its argument further by positioning the struggle between Loyalists and Patriots as America's first Civil War. It's convincing, and I hope more books, either by this author, or other historians, explore the same idea.

This book was well researched and contained a lot of detail on the players in the American Revolution in the South, to include Francis Marion, Daniel Morgan, John Laurens, Nathaneal Green, and Andrew Pickens. The author also provided detailed information on British leaders, such as Banastre Tarleton, who played a critical role in this campaign. The author supported the material with relevant politics as the war progressed throughout the southern campaign. I felt this book focused on people rather than battles. For example, there was more time spent on who owned slaves and how they felt about slavery than the actual siege of Yorktown. The actual battles fought at Cowpens and Ninety-Six felt glossed over. This created (for me) a difficult flow of information throughout the book. The author went forward and backward in time based on the person who was being discussed. The description of the book suggests Alan Pell Crawford's intent is to show the British surrender at Yorktown was the direct result of the southern campaign and to argue the battles fought south of the Mason-Dixon line between the loyalists to the Crown and the patriots who fought for independence can be attributed to America's first real civil war. The author did not successfully convince me of the first however did provide sufficient information to suggest the latter.

I thoroughly enjoyed this excellent history of the American Revolution in the South. Alan Pell Crawford is a very capable writer, with a huge gift for narrative. He isn’t a traditional historian, having worked as a journalist and speechwriter, and I think it shows favorably in how he structures this book. He weaves a compelling and well constructed history featuring numerous figures in disparate locations over a period of several years into a single seamless construct. Highly educational and immensely readable. I will seek out any book by Crawford.

I really enjoyed reading this book, it had everything that I was looking for in a history nonfiction book. The research was there and that it worked with everything that I wanted. I enjoyed getting to read about the American Revolutionary War and thought it worked well overall. Alan Pell Crawford has a great writing style and it was beautifully done.