James D. Brewer

Tom Worthington comes alive in this biography. He is an heroic figure with at least one tragic flaw. He is one of those sad characters who, despite his best efforts, just can't succeed. All his life he watched men with less education and fewer talents receive the opportunities he longed for and believed he deserved. He couldn't see how unlikeable he made himself. When the time came that he really was very unjustly treated, there was no one remaining who would listen to his defense. Because show more of Worthington's portrayal, this was a captivating read even for a non-historian, and well worth the effort. show less

This is a fictional historical mystery, set seven years after the end of the Civil War on the Mississippi. A paddle ship captain, Luke Williamson, learns that his partner perished when his ship went down in deep water with no good explanation for the tragedy. Masey Baldridge, a former southern soldier, is an insurance investigator who is looking for answers. In the midst of many interesting historical lacunae, a fine mystery, a bit of suspense, and several really fine characters, some of the show more realities of Southern recovery from the devastation of the war are uncovered. Interest in Bewer's series might be rekindled with the recent publication of other Civil war and post Civil war novels written from the Southern viewpoint. (Galveston, PG Nagle; The Homecoming, Raine Cantrell) show less