Déviation: What If? Stories of the French

Roman legionaries retreat in the face of victories by the Gauls; Duke William of Normandy encounters a would-be assassin; the French leaders of the First Crusade face disaster; ignored, Joan of Arc is offered help; in Islamic France people gather for an anniversary; Napoleon Bonaparte is put on trial for his association with Robespierre; reports are delivered on use of a new weapon in the Peninsular War; discussions are held following the French victory over Prussia; King Charles XI commemorates the defeat of the revolution; in 1916 the front at Verdun is under threat of collapse; in 1941 Marshal Pétain faces the wrath of the legitimate government; the assassination of President Charles De Gaulle brings danger to Paris; in Soviet France a political commissar is concerned about a gathering and modern day detectives from France and Breizh begin to investigate a brutal crime on the border.

These and other stories all feature in Alexander Rooksmoor’s latest book - ‘Déviation: What If? Stories of the French’. It is a collection of 21 short stories about different paths that could have been followed in French history. Some of the differences featured would only have impacted on a few individuals, but many would have had vast implications for France, Europe and the wider World. These stories are bound to both fascinate and entertain anyone interested in how French history could so easily have turned out differently.

NOTE: Unlike a number of Alexander Rooksmoor’s books, this one contains stories, not chapters of historical analysis of potential counterfactuals. Please ensure that this is the type of book you want before buying it.

This revised edition of the book contains dynamic links between the stories and historical notes to provide background on them.

Alexander Rooksmoor is the author of a number of popular counterfactual books. His publications draw on over twenty years’ experience in researching and teaching history and discussing ‘what if?’. He has even longer experience in writing fiction. This background has enabled him to produce stories that are both liable to intrigue you and to provoke you to think.