Description de l’éditeur
The author of The Overmountain Men and The Canebrake Men continues his Tennessee Frontier Trilogy as the American Revolution rages in the wilderness.
Two years after the colonies declare their independence, the American and British armies fight a seemingly endless series of bloody battles in the east. But on the Tennessee frontier, the war is fought by far fewer rules of engagement. In the wilderness, those who strike silent and swift win the day, every tree or rocky hill might hide an enemy waiting with bullet and blade, and a painless death is a rare gift.
It is in this chaotic land that frontiersman Joshua Colter leads the newly formed Patriot Rangers militia against both the hated British and their Cherokee and Chickamauga allies. The war has already cost all sides a great deal in blood and betrayal. But for Joshua, the war is about to bring the pain of his own past into the conflict as old enemies return to exact their revenge . . .
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This predictable sequel to The Overmountain Men is set on the Tennessee/Carolina frontier during the American Revolution. Joshua Colter, his family, neighbors and enemies suffer the usual trials of revolutionary frontier living (Indian raids, war with the English, famine and sickness), celebrate the usual frontier events (births and marriages) and dream the usual frontier dreams of wilderness, peace and good hunting. The plot ranges over the lives of a host of characters, from the patriot Colters to the troubled Tory Brecht family--struggling for survival--with some emphasis on Joshua's complex relationship with the widow of John Hawk, his Indian friend turned enemy, whom he killed. Certain characters are potentially interesting, particularly Pontius Pilate, an escaped slave who becomes a legend among the Indians when he swears to avenge the death of a thief who had been his ally; but rather than animating the story, Judd too often resorts to telling the reader what to feel with comments like ``It was to be the last real happiness she would know in a long time.'' The result is a readable genre piece that leaves one indifferent.
