SAVANNAH Georgia, 1864: Sherman™s army marches inexorably from Atlanta to the sea. In its path:  the charming old city of Savannah, where the Lester ladies”attractive widowed Sara and  her feisty twelve-year-old daughter Hattie”struggle to save the family rice plantation.   When Sherman offers the conquered city to President Lincoln as "a Christmas gift,"  Hattie and the feared general find themselves on a collision course that will astonish both  of them. In this rousing new tale, "the godfather of the historical novel" (Los Angeles  Times) tells a story of battlefield danger, wartime romance, and indomitable courage.   The rich cast of characters includes a corrupt judge who positively exudes Dickensian  wickedness; a fast-talking, piano-playing reporter from New York; a pair of thwarted  young lovers; a raffish Indiana cavalryman; a valiant former slave who practices birdcalls  with surprising results; and a whole carpet-bagful of rascals, rebels, and real soldiers who  marched with Sherman. Together they bring to life an almost forgotten moment in the Civil War”a season of  simmering hostilities, rising hopes, and empty stockings”perhaps the most strife-torn yet  heartwarming Christmas in all of American history.