A. R. Arias

It's the summer of 1863 and Virginia Mae Mercy lived in Geneva, Kansas but she had always dreamed of starting over someplace else. Unhappy with her life and marriage to Private Daniel (Birdy) Steppenship she wished him dead, shortly after this happens her father is also killed and she decides she needs to take her eight year old daughter Triste and Rusty, Triste's beloved dog and head off to Idaho for that new beginning. They meet up with some other travelers and because of the fear of renegade Indians they form a wagon train and start on the journey west, but before they reach their destination their fears are realized and they are captured by a band of Indians. Will anyone from the wagon train survive?

There were many facets to the character of Virginia Mae Mercy. She was a woman who knitted socks for the soldiers, she was married to Birdy but was unsure of who Triste's father was, Virginia thought it might be Birdy but it might have been the preacher or even her own father. While I could easily understand why she wanted to find a new beginning, it really didn't seem like the wisest decision especially so shortly after delivering babies not to mention the Indian issues. I was also a bit surprised that she left her mother Hattie behind.It was said that Triste was born with a slow brain but she was such a sweet girl and I hoped that her gift with animals would have been explored a bit more because it sounded intriguing. It was sad that she had to leave her pony Teddy behind.I always enjoy when an author includes a dog in a story and with this story we had Triste's loyal dog Rusty. I loved the historical aspects of this novel, from the civil war references to the Indian problems to the journey westward made for an interesting story.

For me "A Death For Beauty," was in some instances dark and often sad but the characters really touched my heart and stayed with me long after the final pages of the story.… (more)

I initially had a difficult time getting into this novel. I found it a bit hard to follow, with the different characters and background storylines. However, once I started the second half of the novel, I had trouble putting it down. This second part is essentially a captivity narrative (think Mary Rowlandson's narrative written in 1682). It is also reminiscent of James Fillimore Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans, as it is exciting, dramatic, and has many twists and turns. It also portrays Native Americans in a mostly negative light, which I realize was the author's intent but still bothers me some. Still, I would recommend reading this novel for this second half alone.

The amount of research that Alberto put into this novel is obvious. It is a certainly well thought out and well executed story. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in American history (Civil War era) and anyone who likes reading about the role of women in American history.

(also, thanks to Alberto for sending this to me - I really enjoyed it!)… (more)