American Empire: The Victorious Opposition by Harry Turtledove
This is the latest in Harry Turtledove's saga that began with How Few Remain, which involved the premise that the Confederacy had, in fact, won the civil war. This, in turn, led to the Great War series, in which World War I was fought not in Europe, but here in North America, with the USA versus the CSA. The CSA in this version of history, took the part of Germany, starting a war with the USA, and eventually losing it. Harsh reparations and forced cession of land as spoils led to the same deep-seated resentment that created the Nazi party, which, in this particular novel, takes the form of the Freedom Party, whose leader, a bitter ex-sergeant named Jake Featherston, has justed been elected President of the Confederacy. In the CSA under the Freedom Party, it is blacks instead of Jews who are persecuted, and Featherston's hatred and oppression of them appears to mirror Hitler's hatred for the Jews.
From what I've read so far, this is as intriguing and well-researched as anything by Turtledove, who holds a PhD and a professorship in history is widely regarded as the master of the alternate history genre. I would recommend the entire series to anyone who has ever wondered "what if...?"
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