FEBRUARY 2008 REVIEWS:

TI MARIE
Valerie Belgrave, iUniverse, 2007, $18.95, pb, 294pp, 9780595440429
    Growing up on a plantation in Trinidad, Eléna is sheltered from the war-torn Caribbean of the 1790s, as well as from atrocities against Africans, Indians, and those of mixed race like herself. Still, no matter how liberal Trinidad may be, Eléna is dismayed when she falls in love with a white British aristocrat, Barry Wingate, knowing such a love could never survive outside the protective bubble of her island. As revolution and war suddenly plunge that island into chaos, she realizes that that love—and she herself—may not survive at all.
    The melting pot of races and cultures and the progressive thinking of the characters feel appropriate to the setting, where diversity was vital for survival in an area of radical upheaval. Race issues are not minimalized but instead used to illustrate the times and highlight the conflict. Historical information is given in abundance, but not heavily enough to drown the prose. The plot and subplots are well-developed and interwoven at a steady, exciting pace. Eléna is a little too perfect, a true romance heroine, while Barry is brooding yet sensitive, a true romance hero; but each has enough foibles to make them come alive. The supporting characters are complex and appealing with stories of their own, and the reader roots for them as much as for the protagonists.
    Ti Marie was commercially published in the UK and Trinidad and is now published by the author for a US audience. Romance fans will enjoy the exotic setting and the refreshing prominence of characters of color, as well as the passionate love. The romance does not overwhelm the book, however, and readers of Caribbean or military history will find much to pique their interest. This author loves her setting, and it shows. -- Heather Domin

THE SEVERAN PROPHECIES: A Novel of the Roman Empire
David Chacko, Foremost Press, 2007, $18.97, pb, 434pp, 9780978970468
    Using the destruction of the Druids, namely the prophecies of one Druid to the Roman emperor Caracalla, as the prologue to the story, this book is about the rise and fall of the glory of the Roman Empire in the late 2nd to the early 3rd centuries. It tells of the assassination of Caracalla, how a questor named Marcellus Decimus Julius was given the task of safeguarding the emperor’s family, and how a young boy named Varius was given the task to restore his family’s dynasty.
    The narrative is told throughout by Marcellus, and it is a bloody and unrelenting tale of intrigue, political maneuvers, and greedy friends and relatives. From Syria to various locales throughout the Roman Empire, the prophecy of the Blue Man regarding the family of Caracalla slowly marches to its gory and tragic end. The author draws the reader into Marcellus’s various encounters as he watches events unfold as the prophecy was told, and yet how little was truly known when the story is over. This is a very enchanting and wonderfully written novel. -- Brad Eden

THE WILLING WAR: A Novel of Maryland in the American Revolution
John Conradis, Fireside Fiction, 2007, $25.50, pb, 245pp, 9780788443800
    Christopher Sims is born into a Maryland tobacco-farming family, but the farm life doesn’t appeal. He dreams of bigger things, particularly living in a larger city with his beloved, Hannah Williams, an indentured servant who will not be released for two more years. As tensions between the colonists and the British begin to rise, Christopher finds himself becoming involved in the Patriot cause. Unfortunately, Hannah’s master, the Reverend Crabbe, is a staunch supporter of the British, and Patriot pressures force him to flee their small town—along with his family and their servants. Christopher’s quest to reunite with Hannah, and his growing zeal for the Patriot cause, are at the core of this novel.
    Conradis is skillful at blending the romance between the two main characters with plenty of action, espionage, and politics. Christopher Sims is an interesting character—a young man who has thought little about the “bigger picture” of the world, but who is forced by the events around him to envision larger possibilities for life. The regional approach to the era is fascinating, especially since the majority of the battles of the early Revolution were fought in New England rather than the mid-Atlantic states, so much of the fighting takes place offstage. The battle in Baltimore is more psychological, dealing with who can persuade others to take up their cause.
    The Willing War is the first volume in the Old Line Chronicles series, and given the open ending, it is also the beginning of a much larger story about Christopher, Hannah, and the birth of the United States. I look forward to reading what happens next in this engrossing saga. -- Nanette Donohue

A PERFECT TEMPEST
Susan F. Craft, iUniverse, 2006, $14.95, pb, 186pp, 9780595377404
    During the height of the Civil War, Deborah Winguard assists her father as a nurse in his Columbia, South Carolina, lunatic asylum, which also houses patients from the adjacent POW camp. The prison camp is run by a Confederate commander of Scottish birth, Captain Stephen McPherson, a brash figure who piques Deborah's curiosity. Unable to properly care for so many new patients, Deborah's father enlists the help of a Union doctor incarcerated in the camp. Aided by a racially and economically diverse group, Deborah soon becomes entangled in a scheme to free the officer—a dangerous plot that tests her loyalties to her family, her country, and her growing feelings for Captain McPherson.
    The heroine is described as a Confederate, but throughout the story she behaves more like a Union loyalist, and other characters suffer the same muddled motivations. Nobody owns slaves, nobody resents the enemy (to whom they refer as "Union officers," not "Yankees"), and everyone exhibits a progressive mindset in regard to race, gender, etc., that feels out of place in the context. Stereotypes about any time period are to be avoided, but here the reverse is stretched beyond the suspension of disbelief. The plot wanders in the beginning, leaving the central conflict unclear until nearly the halfway point. Historical information is given through dialogue rather than long passages of exposition, but the dialogue often feels awkward and unrealistic.
    Readers particularly interested in the time period and setting may enjoy the author's detailed descriptions and information, but those seeking a strong romance or gritty historical thriller may be left unsatisfied. -- Heather Domin

DEAD MEN’S DREAMING
Peter Hancock, Riobay Publishing, 2007, $32, pb, 256pp, 1876763620
    In 1694, Captain Dirk de Lange of the Dutch East India Company leads the merchantmen Ridderschap van Holland on a mission to discover the fate of the treasure-laden ship Gilt Dragon. He is beset from within by the treacherous conspirator Marten Hendricks and from without by the pirate ship Banshee. Complicating matters further is the Couper family, rich passengers De Lange has been compelled to take on board along with a mysterious Aboriginal woman and some inexplicable cargo.
    Hancock is a long-time newspaper journalist in Western Australia with an interest in Aboriginal culture. He has written a historical thriller filled with conspiracy, murder, mysterious artifacts, lost treasure, and pirates, taking the real-life disappearance of the Ridderschap van Holland and the Gilt Dragon as a launching point for a compelling fictional drama. In the Australian Southlands where the Gilt Dragon was eventually found, Early European explorers reported meeting light-skinned Aboriginals with the extra fingers characteristic of old Dutch bloodlines. Hancock takes a free hand in dramatically imagining how this came to be and what happened to the treasure ship, the rescue ship, and the pirate ship that each departed the same port in pursuit of the same riches never to be seen again. The result is fast-paced and a lot of fun. Pirate fiction rarely takes us Down Under, which gives this book a fresh twist.
    The larger-than-life characters seem authentic and the plot maintains a page-turning pace without being contrived. Essentially, Hancock makes excellent use of the blank canvas this unsolved mystery gives him. There is one pivotal sea battle that bogs down under excessive maritime terminology, but the rest of the book shines with a polish that makes me wonder why it wasn’t published in a more traditional fashion. Hancock has created a compelling antidote for anyone suffering from pirate withdrawal.
-- Robert Perret

THE LAST BOAT
Michael Hite, iUniverse, 2007, $16.95, pb, 238pp, 9780595420339
    Due to a recurring dream, Amelia Moorland knows that she will die before the end of the day on her one hundredth birthday. Time has run out. Amelia realizes that she must break the silence she has kept for the last eighty years about a tragedy that occurred on the cold water of the Nantucket sound or take the truth with her to the grave.
    In October of 1921, Amelia follows her life-long friend, Samantha Witherspoon, on to the Nantucket Ferry. Unseen by anyone else on board, Samantha ties her suitcase to herself and jumps overboard. Amelia jumps in after Sam to save her, but due to the weight of Sam’s luggage and her lack of will to live, Amelia fails.
    Amelia is rescued by the crew of the ferry, but the only one on board to see Sam go in is Amelia. Despite an official investigation and dredging of the Nantucket sound, no evidence can be found to support Amelia’s story, ruining her reputation. This is Amelia’s final chance to tell the whole story from her tumultuous childhood to the beginnings of her nursing vocation in the filed hospitals of World War I France and finally to the deck of a ferry on a cold autumn night in 1921.
    Michael Hite creates an excellent portrayal of an aging woman telling her story. The tale did get a little preachy on the political side, which did not seem to serve the storyline. There were also some errors on the military side regarding age, rank, and uniforms. However, these were minor points that did not detract from the story. This was an engaging read, capable of bringing a tear to the eye of readers with even the hardest of hearts. -- Michael Wilson

SHADES OF GRAY: A Novel of the Civil War in Virginia
Jessica James, Patriot Press, 2007, $27.99, pb, 532pp, 0979600006
    Shades of Gray is a classic tale of romance following the unlikely relationship between Alexander Hunt, a Confederate cavalry officer feared and respected for his unorthodox tactics and ferocity, and Andrea Evans, a transplanted Southern lady with a mysterious past who poses as boy to serve the Union army as a scout. Anyone who has skimmed a romance novel will recognize early on the archetype characters and where the story is ultimately heading. Despite, or perhaps because of the familiar pattern, the reader can feel the nail-biting tension as it builds between characters.
    The novel evokes the feeling of a period piece with its high action, drama, and melodramatic characters. The style of writing reflects the Civil War era as much as the content of the story. This is not a contemporary retelling of the Civil War as much as it is a sympathetic and loving portrait. Interpersonal conflict as well as battlefield conflict make the book a page-turner and quick read.
    The novel will appeal to romance readers and Civil War buffs, especially those sympathetic to the Southern side. Shades of Gray offers a more balanced and nuanced explanation of the Confederate cause that transcends the overly simplified view presented by today’s mass media.
–- Amanda Yesilbas

THE FADE-AWAY
George Jansen, Pocol Press, 2007, $17.95, pb, 233pp, 9781929763313
    At the turn of the 20th century, baseball was phenomenally popular, and any small town that could piece together nine players had its own team. Jansen’s fictional Port Newton, California, is no exception. The Port Newton team hasn’t done well in years—they’re mainly in it for the fun—but everything changes one foggy evening when Jack “Chief” Dobbs, a Native American pitcher, is fished out of the San Francisco Bay. Once he recovers from his injuries, the players realize that they’ve found a hidden treasure, and they draft him to play for their team.
    In addition to a wicked curveball and his trademark fade-away, Dobbs also brings with him some of the cheats that players of the time relied on to win games, thus changing the Port Newton baseball experience. With increased wins comes increased popularity, but at what price? Soon, the original Port Newton team finds that the game has changed, and there may not be a place for them any longer.
    Jansen has done a good job capturing small-town life in The Fade-Away. Though baseball is at the heart of this novel, it serves as a metaphor for the changes taking place in America as the 20th century began. The camaraderie of small-town life was slowly being replaced by urban anonymity, and celebrity culture was starting to take hold. Jansen doesn’t romanticize the setting or the era, describing scenes where Native Americans and African Americans are harassed simply for existing, and where prejudices are rampant.
    The game of baseball has changed significantly in the last century, going from a wholesome national pastime to a sport where performance-enhancing drugs are sadly the norm, and Jansen’s novel presents a miniature version of how victory—rather than having a good time—became the driving force behind the sport. This entertaining, enjoyable, and fast-paced read will appeal to baseball fans as well as readers who enjoy humorous fiction.
–- Nanette Donohue

TWO BROTHERS: One North, One South
David H. Jones, Staghorn Press, 2008, $24.95, hb, 317pp, 9780979689857
    Walt Whitman is well known as a great American poet, but few know of his compassionate visits to military hospitals during and after the U.S. Civil War. Two Brothers is based on Whitman’s encounters with William and Clifton Prentiss, two Maryland brothers who fought on opposite sides during the war. Whitman spoke extensively with William during the final days of his life, learning about his experiences fighting for the Confederacy. Whitman then shares this information with Clifton Prentiss, who is in the same hospital recovering from injuries sustained in the same battle.
    While the book is mainly about William Prentiss’s experiences, there are also flashes of other peoples’ lives present: mainly the Cary sisters, who were the toast of Richmond during its years as the Confederate capitol. The sections about the Cary sisters often serve as entertaining interludes between the battles, and they describe what the Confederate home front was like for women of means. The Carys were very resourceful, aiding the troops in any way they could, including smuggling supplies from Maryland to Virginia across the Union blockade.
    Two Brothers is so grounded in fact that it sometimes reads like narrative nonfiction or, at times, a textbook about the Civil War, rather than a biographical novel. The plot is very linear, following the war’s timeline from the early battles to the surrender at Appomattox and beyond. Military maneuvers are often described in detail, including both the big-picture view of the war and the personal view of individual troops. Maryland was a battleground state during the Civil War, with residents’ loyalties torn between North and South, but the Prentiss brothers’ story is unique in that it was well documented.
An appendix provides fascinating excerpts from some of Jones’s research, including quotes from contemporary accounts of the Prentiss brothers’ story. Jones makes good use of this source material, crafting a novel with strong appeal for military history buffs. -- Nanette Donohue

CIBOLERO
Kermit Lopez, iUniverse, 2007, $13.95, pb, 182pp, 059543567X
    While he is traveling on business, Antonio Baca’s farm is attacked and his daughter Elena is kidnapped by a band of Texas Rangers who are tracking a runaway slave through New Mexico. To rescue his daughter, Antonio takes up his retired spear from his cibolero, buffalo hunting days and starts a pursuit across the llano, the high plain of New Mexico. While journeying, Antonio recalls his past and how the world he has known in New Mexico has been changing with the encroaching Americans.
    The story presents an interesting and overlooked culture of the Southwest and explicitly describes a brutal and ugly period of American expansion and policy. The existence and life of the Mexican buffalo hunters are probably unknown, yet should be interesting to many. Also, American actions in the Southwest are painted with an eye-opening and disturbing clarity that does much to counter the glorified cowboy history of the West. The New Mexican view of American conquest adds a new layer and understanding to the history of the Southwest.
    At times, though, the author goes too far in stereotyping to make his point and comes too close to declaring all whites are bad and all Hispanics are good. The relationship of the Spanish to the Native Americans is conveniently glossed over to maintain the victim status of the New Mexicans.
    Overall, this book does fill a gap in the historical experience of New Mexico and does a lot to overcome the glorified fiction of the old west by replacing it with a blood-stained truth. The novel is fast paced and has a valuable point of view. –- Amanda Yesilbas

THE HOLY WELL
Colin Macpherson, Mopoke Publishing, 2007, $29.75, pb, 391pp, 9780980350104
    This fascinating novel portrays the lives of two men from two different time periods: Bren from the late Bronze Age, who lives in a thatch-roofed crannog in the Scottish Highlands; and James, a 20th-century Scot living in the working-class suburb of Melbourne. The one thing that binds the two together is a holy well that both discover during their respective centuries. The water in this ancient and mysterious artifact not only provides wisdom and healing to its users, but glimpses of a higher reality as well. As the reader follows the two characters through their lives and trials in relation to the well, aspects of higher issues such as life beyond death, the purpose of life, and ethics related to power and knowledge are mulled over and examined.
    The author does a wonderful job of guiding the reader between the time periods, interspersing tales of early man with modern-day flight and intrigue. The characters are brought to life through their generosity and kindness towards others, and the epilogue is a tribute to that effect all of which makes this novel a great read. -- Brad Eden

BONES OF THE DEAD
Elle Newmark, iUniverse, 2007, $16.95, pb, 247pp, 9780595417391
    Venice of the late 15th century is a vibrant city of bacchanalian revels, saintly monasteries, and narrow, chaotic streets filled with exotic goods and cultures, intrigue, and death. Luciano, a young orphan of Venice, is amazed at his good fortune in being plucked off the streets to become a chef’s apprentice. Luciano has no idea of the education he is about to receive. Word spreads through the city that an ancient book of potions and alchemical secrets has made its way to Venice, and the city is turned upside down by gossip, the dreaded Cappe Nere, and the corrupt Pope’s Swiss Guard in the search for eternal life and wealth. As Luciano learns trade secrets from his maestro, Chef Ferrero, he also finds himself in the center of a firestorm.
    Bones of the Dead combines the ingredients that stir the passions of readers: loneliness, love, corruption, the desire for power, the quest for knowledge, and the sensuality of food. This vibrant novel never falters, and Elle Newmark’s skill is as palpable as the sounds, smells, and tastes of the kitchens of Venice that she magically brings to life. Luciano’s narrative voice is genuine, and the reader feels, tastes, and learns with him; every word reveals a new sensation to the reader’s palate.
    Bones of the Dead is as captivating as the streets of Venice itself, and readers will delight in a newfound appreciation of food, as well as a shared hunger for knowledge that should never be sated. –- Catherine Perkins

THE CONFESSION OF PIERS GAVESTON
Brandy Purdy, iUniverse, 2007, pb, 186pp, $13.95, 9780595455232
    Piers Gaveston sits in Scarborough Castle in 1312 Yorkshire, England, waiting for the rescue he knows will never come. Sensing his end is near, he sits down to write the story of his life, a story he knows no one will believe since he is certain to be as reviled in death as he was in life. The story he tells is as different from the histories as night and day: the story of a traumatized and molested child, taught to live by the motto "sex is survival" and use his beauty to keep himself alive. He is a young man seduced by the Prince, not the reverse, who spends his life in a whirlwind romance he cannot control, caught between Edward's deluge of affection and England's flames of hate.
    It is a daring undertaking to humanize one of English history's most despised figures, even within the realm of fiction. Purdy's Gaveston is so opposite from the historical record as to be too perfect—her Piers is a sensitive, philosophical soul, noble and artistic, who laments the honors the king thrusts upon him and chides him to pay attention to his queen. Likewise, her Edward II is an effusive and silly man, often approaching caricature. Nevertheless, her story is engaging and well told, and it accomplishes its goal of setting the imagination to work. History is written by the victor, not the defeated, and different perspectives are fertile ground for storytelling.
    The story told here is a tragic, theatrical romance, one that entertains as well as posing the central question of fictional biography: what if? How that question is answered is up to the reader. -- Heather Domin

A WARRANT FOR MRS. LINCOLN
Nancy Schleifer, Xlibris, 2007, $21.99, pb, 275pp, 9781425728458
    Helen Waite, a poor girl from Chicago, seems destined to a bleak future, living in poverty and discouraged from pursuing her interest in the law by the oppressive mores of the mid-19th century. Tragedy consumes Helen’s family and all of America in the 1860s and ‘70s through the Civil War, the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, and the destruction of Chicago in the Great Fire of 1871. From the fire of destruction comes new opportunities, and Helen faces a choice between love and a promising and unique career in law. Helen’s experiences are presented alongside the life of Mary Todd Lincoln, through flashbacks of Mary’s early life and of her hardships during the mid-1870s, including being put on trial and committed to a insane asylum by her greedy son, Robert.
    Helen’s life in the law leads her to witness Mary Lincoln’s trial and commitment, as well as the terrible conditions that women were subject to as the “property” of men. Schleifer’s novel weaves fiction seamlessly into history, as Helen encounters historical figures such as the Lincolns, Myra and Judge James Bradwell, Susan Anthony, and others. History is respected in the novel, and the research is diligent and well-documented. The novel reveals the author’s narrative skill and sympathy for her characters, which are given energy and life in the novel, but Schleifer’s talent is most evident in her development of Helen and Mary Lincoln. The personality of Mary Lincoln is a challenge to present, as historical accounts vary, but the author shows Lincoln’s warmth, nervousness, dedication and love for her husband and her children, sometime irrational behavior, and the immense sorrow she faced with fairness and empathy.
    Equally impressive is Schleifer’s presentation of the laws of the day. The complicated legal morass that surrounded the “place” and “purpose” of women and perceptions of insanity are illuminated, yet her explanations feel natural to the uninitiated and not at all pedantic. A Warrant for Mrs. Lincoln presents a vibrant picture of mid-19th-century law, love, and life.
-– Catherine Perkins

CHASING THE WIND
Helena Schrader, iUniverse, 2007, $30.95, pb, 618pp, 9780595444717
    This nonstop-action, war novel begins in May 1940, and follows the lives of both British and German characters, ending with the crucial Battle of Britain. The story starts with Flying Officer Robin Priestman, as a group of flyers take to the air to bomb German bridges and military installations in France. Despite his credible service with a fighter squadron in France, Priestman must go to Training Command, where he eventually falls in love with a girl from the Salvation Army.
    The story then switches to Klaudia von Richthofen, a naïve recruit to the Luftwaffe Women's Auxiliary. Klaudia allows herself to be seduced by a dashing Stuka-Group commander and then falls under the spell of Baron von Feldburg. The telling of Klaudia’s story enlightens readers to the women’s movement and their importance to the war effort, adding interest and more historical detail to the already dense plot.
    Besides Robin and Klaudia, readers meet a German wingman and several other interesting characters. Schrader masterfully relates the personal side of war from both sides. While the sheer number of scenes and people results in vague and undeveloped characters, and can be overwhelming and difficult at times to follow, the intricate historical detail and humanity portrayed makes this greatly researched WWII novel worth a read. Full of adventure, fighting, and romance, Chasing the Wind will appeal to all World War II fans.
-- Rebecca Roberts

ANGEL’S DAUGHTER, Book Two of the Angel Trilogy
B.J. Scott, AuthorHouse, 2005, $14.95, pb, 251pp, 1420875175
    Corporate intrigue, kidnapping, and revenge are featured in Angel’s Daughter, a post California gold-rush tale centered on the Connelly family. Kathleen Connelly rules the Connelly transportation empire, whose crowning asset is the Sierra and Western railroad. But the Big Four railroad executives at Central Pacific covet Connelly’s intra-state railroad lines. Kathleen’s married daughter, Megan Daley, becomes the means to the hostile takeover’s end.
    A rapid pace distinguishes Angel’s Daughter as the story moves from San Francisco to Hong Kong and back. Mid-19th century California railroad construction and operation provide a background for this family saga. Megan Daley, her husband, sister, and brother-in-law all form part of Kathleen Connelly’s organization. When Megan is shanghaied, her powerful family pursues her, while their enemies in San Francisco take advantage of the Connellys’ distress to further their acquisitive aims. In this second book of a trilogy, the Connelly women must face down a Hong Kong Triad abroad and robber barons at home.
    Angel’s Daughter is an incident-rich adventure story set in a time of singular economic and social change in the California of 1867. -- Eva Ulett

SECRETS AND SACRIFICES
Diane Wylie, Vintage Romance Publishing, 2006, $17.29, pb, 352pp, 0978536851
    Compelled by her desire to stay with her husband Joshua, Charlotte “Charlie” Garrett disguises herself as a man and enlists in the Twenty-Fifth Virginia Infantry during the Civil War. She is a natural with a rifle and becomes a sharpshooter. When her husband is killed soon after their first battle, Charlie mourns privately but continues to fight to avenge his death. She quickly becomes acquainted with Captain Daniel Reid, the Army surgeon attached to her unit, and the attraction is instant. When Daniel finds out about Charlie’s disguise, he offers to help her escape before the other men find out.
After her escape, Charlie finds herself helping slaves escape via the Underground Railroad. Despite her Confederate sympathies, Charlie is against the cruel treatment of slaves, and she longs for a world where people treat each other with dignity and respect. She journeys home and reunites with her family, including her two brothers, who are also veterans of the war. Throughout her journey, she longs for Daniel, wishing that they could reunite, but unsure of how the war will affect their lives.
    Wylie’s battlefield scenes are grisly and realistic, but not gratuitous, and her research into the battlefield medical technology of the era is fascinating. Many scenes are set in battlefield hospitals, and Daniel often has to improvise when instruments, bandages, or anesthesia are not available. Charlie is often conflicted about the war—though she sympathizes with the issue of states’ rights, she sees slavery as cruel and unethical, hence her desire to assist runaway slaves.
    At times, the coincidences seem a little too convenient—Charlie and Daniel keep running into each other at the most opportune moments, just in time to save each other—but this is still a sweet, sensual, and entertaining historical romance with just enough suspense to keep the reader guessing.
-– Nanette Donohue

CHILDREN'S AND YOUNG ADULT NOVELS

RIDE THE DESPERATE TRAIL: A Free Anderson/Parks Scott Novel
Mike Kearby, Trail's End Books, 2007, $20.00, pb, 188pp, 9780978842277
    Free Anderson and his young wife Clara are just trying to make a living off their new homestead in North Texas when ex-slave Free and his friend, former lieutenant Parks Scott, kill an outlaw who has brutally beaten one of the town's residents. The outlaw's brother, Tig Hardy, kidnaps Clara, leading Free and Parks on a desperate chase through west Texas in an effort to free her before she is killed.
    In this, the second book of a trilogy and the sequel to Road to a Hanging, author Mike Kearby paints a picture of cultures in conflict that sometimes rings true. The action is quick and conversations are brief. Most of the action takes place in the sparsely populated regions of Texas, so most of the characterization focuses on the principal characters. It is an enjoyable read, apart from one unbelievable plot device used near the end of the book.
    This series was intended for young adults, and I think this makes for a fairly good introduction to the western genre and the challenges faced by settlers on the American frontier. Ages 12+. -- Rob Amend

AMBUSH AT MUSTANG CANYON: A Free Anderson/Parks Scott Novel
Mike Kearby, Trail's End Books, 2007, $18.00, pb, 196pp, 9780978842208
    In the year 1874, the United States government began a military campaign against the Comanche, Kiowa, Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes to force them off the plains and onto reservations. Former Civil War compatriots Parks Scott and ex-slave Free Anderson find themselves drawn into the conflict when they accompany army scouts to warn an outpost of buffalo hunters of an impending attack by the native tribes. Although Free had been considered a friend of the Kiowa, his efforts to protect the buffalo hunters result in his being declared an enemy of the plains tribes. When a U.S. army colonel compels the men to aid in the army's search for the tribes' camp, Parks and Free find themselves in a difficult situation as they have no desire to participate in the upcoming battle at Palo Duro Canyon.
    This is the third and final installment of the Anderson/Scott trilogy, which began with Road to a Hanging and Ride the Desperate Trail. The book, written for young adults, is fairly well written and moves along at a brisk pace, focusing on action rather than expansive characterization. Kearby makes a point in each book to emphasize what he refers to as a "clash of cultures," but the books are a bit thin on presenting the cultures of the various participants. The book includes a glossary of phrases used throughout the book and a discussion guide.
    Although every effort has been made to promote the book as a commentary on culture conflict in the American West, the constant reference to "Indians,” "hostiles,” and "savages" places this series more in the category of the traditional western novel. The lack of cultural depth to the story does little to support the educational goals of the discussion guide. Apart from these shortcomings in purpose, the story is engaging, and it may appeal to fans of the traditional western genre. Ages 12+. -- Rob Amend

SPOREVILLE: The Wellborn Conspiracy
Paul Marlowe, Sybertooth, 2007, $10.95/C$11.50/£6.95, pb, 215pp, 9780973950540
    This historical fantasy novel is set in a small fishing village on the Bay of Fundy in August 1886. Fifteen-year-old Elliott Craven arrives in Sporeville with his father, who has come to be the new doctor. Once settled in the doctor’s house Elliott’s father gives him a present of a telescope to help to make up for dragging him to Sporeville. Elliott goes up to the roof to try it out. He sees people walking as if in a trance, and they are all flocking in the direction of the lighthouse.
    What is going on? Elliott’s new friend Paisley DeLoup has also seen the nightly wanderings, and she is also eager to learn more. Together they work to solve the mystery. They discover the truth about the evil scientist Professor Strange and put themselves in great danger. The ending paves the way for the next book in the series.
    The author captures something of the ambience of the time. There are the descriptions of the gaslights, the uncomfortable ride in the coach, and the details of the working of an early camera, to give just a few examples. But more historical detail could have been given. This book definitely needs some historical notes, though there are none in the book.
    But there are historical notes—masses of them—on an accompanying website. These notes are fascinating and show the vast amount of research behind this book. Particularly interesting is the large section on 19th-century medicine. This seems to be something of a new trend. Many publishers are banishing historical notes from books but, instead, authors are starting to put them online.
    Sporeville is an exciting, well written, fast paced story which captures the atmosphere of the times.  But the book should be read in conjunction with the accompanying website. Young adult. -- Mary S. Moffat

HIGH SPIRITS
Dianne K. Salerni, iUniverse, 2007, $20.95, pb, 352pp, 9780595423507 
    This is a fictionalised account of the Fox sisters and the beginnings of the spiritualist movement. It is told in the first person by the middle sister, Maggie, with the occasional contribution from her younger sister Kate.
    This is a story of trickery and deception. It all starts as a simple prank which gets out of hand as Kate and Maggie convince the neighbourhood they can communicate with the dead. Then Maggie and Kate’s elder sister, Leah, arrives. She is in a difficult position, being divorced at a time when this puts her outside respectable society. Leah sees a chance to mend her fortunes and she seizes it. She organises paid spirit circles and her finances are soon on a sound footing. But soon there is danger as well as success when the Fox sisters are accused of being frauds, or worse, witches.
    Then there is a change in the narrative. The second half of the book charts Maggie’s ill-fated romance with the Arctic explorer Elisha Kent Kane.
    A lot of research has gone into this book, and it gives a detailed account of the early days of spiritualism. It also gives a good picture of the attitudes of the times. For example, no matter what one thought about communicating with the spirits, it was not considered proper for men and women to be together in a darkened room. And it is her treatment by society which gives Leah her incentive.
    It comes with a short historical note, a reference list of books and an aid for teachers in the form of questions for discussion by a class. But there is far more historical information on the accompanying website.  This is a massive site with mini-biographies of all the main characters.
    A well researched book for young adults. -- Mary S. Moffat

REACHING SHORE
Mary Wimmer, Goblin Fern Press, 2007, $9.95, pb, 345pp, 9781595980632
    In 1860 the steamship the Lady Elgin sank during a storm in Lake Michigan after being rammed by another ship. Over three hundred people lost their lives, and one thousand children were orphaned. This tragedy is described from the viewpoints of two seventeen-year-old girls from Milwaukee—Maggie in the present day and Fiona in 1860.
    Maggie chooses the sinking of the Lady Elgin for her history project, and we learn about it as we follow her during her research.
    Then through the eyes of Fiona in 1860 we get a fuller picture. Fiona stays at home to look after the family shop while others in her family go on the excursion. It was to be partly a pleasure outing with music and dancing followed by a political rally. As word of the disaster leaks out, we share the desperation of the families of those aboard as the search for survivors gets underway. Later there is the poignant description of the funerals. Then questions start to be asked. Was it really an accident or was it deliberate?
    This book also gives a very clear picture of the Irish-American community. Fiona’s family came from Ireland at the time of the potato famine, and they lived in desperate poverty before they established themselves. At the present time the lives of Maggie and her family revolve round the Irish Cultural Centre. Maggie plays the violin and her younger sister, Rose, is a step dancer.
    It comes with a historical note, and a web site is under construction. This book is sold in Irish Fest bookstores. It is a deeply researched account of the second greatest tragedy on the Great Lakes with believable characters who bring the suffering home to the reader,and give insight into the lives of the Irish-American community. Young adult. -- Mary S. Moffat

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