Can you suggest a couple of books to better understand this specific issue about the war?
No I can't. I have read a lot of history books over my life, but I didn't find any of this information in any of them. They simply omitted any mention of the war fleet, and Lincoln's efforts to coerce the South. What I learned about this part of history I found in numerous sources. I found bits and pieces here and there, but never a complete history of what happened.
The bits and pieces I did learn often came from books. Admiral David Dixon Porter did write at least two books on his experiences with the war, and his analysis about what would have happened had the mission to Charleston had proceeded as it was envisioned came from his Memoirs on the war.
The financial information about who was producing the European trade value was from the book "Southern Wealth and Northern Profits" by Thomas Prentice Kettell.
A lot of the information comes from telegraphs, messages and letters from both the Union side and the Confederate side during the war.
It comes from a lot of different sources, but i've never seen anyone piece it all together the way I often attempt to do. Perhaps *I* should write a book on it. :)