Book Review: Grey Tide in the East
Author: Andrew J. Heller
Publisher: Strict Publishing International
Reviewing Author: Avery Abernethy
Grey Tide in the East is a short (164 page) World War One alternative history book. The movement towards war is unchanged from history up until the day before the German right flank is scheduled to cross the Belgian border in hopes of outflanking the French army and capturing Paris. Kaiser Wilhelm abruptly changes his mind about the war plans due to the almost certainty that the United Kingdom would enter the war if Germany violated Belgian neutrality. Instead, the majority of the Imperial German Army is packed into trains and sent to East Russia to fight the invading Russian army.
Even casual readers of the history of World War One understand that the mobilization timetables of the major armies were almost unstoppable once they were put into action. Those largely unfamiliar with the conflict could read Tuchman’s The Guns of August or Keegan’s The First World War to get an understanding of the importance of pre-war plans and mobilization schedules. The logistical operation to mobilize and move huge Corps on a fixed rail net was massive. In Grey Tide in the East the Kaiser orders Moltke to change the entire pre-war strategy at the almost the last possible moment.
