Red Gambit

'Red Gambit' is a series of alternate history military fiction novels written by British author Colin Gee. It deals with an invasion of Western Europe by the forces of the Soviet Union at the end of World War II. Its storyline runs from June 12, 1945 to October 1947.
The Books
To this date, the series is presently six volumes, with a seventh on the way:
*Opening Moves
*Breakthrough
*Stalemate
*Impasse
*Sacrifice
*Initiative
*Endgame
All the book titles are derived from standard chess terms.
The Red Gambit series is Colin Gee's first attempt at writing, and covers a renewed war in Europe, one that is initiated by the Soviet Union.
The Western Allies are caught unprepared and both ground and air forces take heavy hits as the Red Army moves inexorably westwards.
The series is written as a history, using fictional and real life characters to describe the events of 1945 through to 1947.
Events are seen through the eyes of the soldiers who fight, the generals who issue orders, and the civilians who suffered from all sides.
Battle scenes are brutal and frequent, describing war at its most horrible.
Leading characters start to emerge and persist through the volumes, although heroes and villains alike, perish as the fickle finger of fate selects them ahead of others.
Each book is also supported by a separate biography set, so that the reader may establish the fate of even the most minor characters. These biographies also contain additional information on RG events, map sets, and items of general interest.
List of major fictitious characters
* Miles Ernest Dryden . British Naval Officer, POW.
* Ernst-August Knocke. Ex-Waffen-SS panzer officer, 2nd SS.
* Tatiana Nazarbayeva. GRU Officer.
* Marion J. Crisp. US Paratroop officer, 101st US Abn.
* Christophe Lavalle. Foreign Legion officer, Legion Corps D’Assaut.
* John Ramsey. British infantry officer, Black Watch.
* Rolf Uhlmann. Ex-Waffen-SS panzer officer, 5th SS.
* Vladimir Stelmakh. Junior Soviet tank commander, 6th GIBTR.
* Arkady Yarishlov. Soviet tank brigade commander, 2nd Gds Tank Cps.
* Vladimir Deniken. Soviet infantry officer, 36th Gds Rifle Cps.
* Gennadi Chekov. Soviet engineer officer, 14th Gds Eng Btn.
* Simon Tremayne Haines. British tank officer, 16th/5th Lancers.
* Ostap Shandruk. Ex-Waffen-Grenadiere-der-SS officer, 14th SS.
* Georges de Walle. Deputy Chief of Bureau Central de Renseignements et d’Action.
* Anne-Marie de Valois. Special Operations Group, Bureau Central de Renseignements et d’Action.
* Johannes Braun. Ex-SS-Panzer RSM, 5th SS
* T.N. Artem’yev. Soviet infantry officer, 34th Gds Rifle Cps.
* Sacha Istomin. Red Air Force officer, 21st Gds Bomber Air Rgt.
* Mikhail Kalinin. Red Navy officer, Submarine ShCh-307.
* Lukas Barkmann. US Ranger officer, 2nd Rangers.
* Samuel Rossiter. USMC Officer, OSS.
* William Towers. US Infantry Officer, 90th US Inf Div.
* Werner von Scharf-Falkenburg. German Infantry Officer, 266th Inf Div.
* Hermann Peter Keller. German Infantry Senior NCO, 266th Inf Div.
* Tsali Sagonegi Yona. US NCO, 12th US Armored Division.
List of original quotes
* Chris Coling - "The allocation of blame often has more to do with your availability than your culpability." Stalemate, Chapter 101
* Ernst-August Knocke - "A moment of luck, good or bad, often plays a greater part in our destiny than hours of design." Opening Moves, Chapter 23
* Georges De Walle - "Deception, in order to be fully effective, must be practised upon friend and enemy in equal measure." Opening Moves, Chapter 52
* Samuel Rossiter - "To betray, you must be trusted, so who’s to blame? You, for doing what you needed to do, or them, for believing you in the first place?" Stalemate, Chapter 94
* Chris Coling - "There is no worthy man who has not once dreamt of himself in the jaws of danger, in order to triumph in the face of insurmountable odds. We, each of us, envy the brave the opportunity fate casts before them to prove their worth; those so exposed envy us the safety of our dreams." Breakthrough, Chapter 74
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