Isabelle Lawrence

Oh, ugh. The historical information - clothes, buildings, food and so on - are probably entirely accurate (the Colonial Williamsburg historical park approved the book). The events are probably heavily modified, to make the (I presume fictional) blacksmith's son Ben, the protagonist, a pivot point for so many of them. Unfortunately, the author spent so much time on that that characterization, motivation, and plot kind of got left out. It's a herky-jerky set of events and interactions, without much continuity; things that are vitally important in one scene get entirely ignored shortly thereafter, then reappear as important later on. Characters act as necessary for the scene they're in, again without much continuity. I did manage to finish it; I wouldn't read it again.… (more)