The Confederate Computer

Stephen Sulkey

In the summer of 1863, a single bullet kills Colonel Joshua Chamberlain at Gettysburg—and changes the course of history. The Confederacy wins the Civil War, the United States is absorbed into a new Southern nation, and slavery survives into the modern age. By 2001, the Confederate States of America has become a powerful global empire of fifty-two states, governing through tradition, racial division, and an increasingly ruthless central authority. Thomas Mann is a hard-drinking New York Times reporter and a Southerner by birth, accustomed to living with the contradictions of his country. But after returning from a bloody revolt in Puerto Rico, he is approached by a frightened abolitionist carrying a mysterious message. Before Mann can learn more, the man is dead. Drawn to Washington by the promise of a story that could shake the nation, Mann meets the intelligent and captivating Laura Dane and is pulled into a secret struggle against forces willing to kill anyone who threatens the established order. Pursued by a relentless assassin and agents of the government, Mann must uncover the truth before it disappears forever. What begins as an investigation soon becomes a fight for survival—and a journey that forces Mann to decide whether he will merely report history or risk everything to change it.