The British Are Coming, Y'all!

Truth and Lies in History: The Story of Columbus in America

Relevant History welcomes Elizabeth Zelvin, a New York City psychotherapist whose latest contemporary mystery, Death Will Extend Your Vacation, is the third in the series featuring recovering alcoholic Bruce Kohler. Her short stories about a young marrano sailor on Columbus's first voyage have appeared in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine. Her YA novel about the second voyage is currently making the rounds. Three of Liz's short stories have been nominated for the Agatha Award and another for the Derringer Award. Liz has just released a CD of original songs, Outrageous Older Woman. For more information, check her author web site. Liz participates in group blogs at Poe's Deadly Daughters and SleuthSayers.

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I never expected to write historical fiction, but I woke up in the middle of the night about four years ago with a character knocking on the inside of my head and demanding to be let out so insistently that I had to tell his story. This was Diego, a young marrano sailor on Columbus's first voyage in 1492. I eventually wrote two stories that both appeared in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine: "The Green Cross," which was nominated for an Agatha Award for Best Short Story, and "Navidad." But Diego wasn't through with me, and he and his younger sister Rachel are the protagonists of Voyage of Strangers, a Young Adult novel set during the second voyage, from 1493 to 1495, that is still seeking a home.

How can I explain how Diego got into my head (unless you conclude I was channeling a real person, which I sometimes almost believe)? I knew what anybody knows about Columbus: a Genoese sponsored by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain, he sailed west across the Atlantic, seeking a trade route to Asia, and found the Americas. He had three ships: the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria. Because I'm Jewish, I knew that the Jews were expelled from Spain on the very day that Columbus sailed: August 3, 1492. I knew that the marranos were the secret Jews who converted in order to save their lives and homes, otherwise forfeit to the Inquisition and the Crown. I knew that Europeans didn't believe the earth was flat, as I'd learned in school in the 1950s, and that there has been some recent speculation that Columbus and some of his crew might have been Jewish. In terms of the emotional truth of the characters I created, although I have fortunately experienced minimal anti-Semitism in my own life, I know how it feels to live as an outsider in a Christian society.

I had a stroke of luck in that the primary sources on Columbus and his voyages are few. We have portions of his own log book of the first voyage and a letter he wrote to the King and Queen to report his discovery; his biography, written by his son; a book by a Spaniard, Bartolomé de las Casas, an early settler in the New World who became violently opposed to the enslavement of the native Taino population; a letter from a childhood friend of Columbus (the only other Italian involved in the discovery) on the second voyage, with a smug, self-congratulatory description of how he raped a young Taino woman; and a description of the Taino beliefs by a friar who also participated in the second voyage.

Here are some of the things I learned in the course of my research for the stories and especially the YA novel:

• Columbus lied. He kept two records of the fleet's day to day progress, one that he believed was accurate and a more optimistic one that he told the sailors, so they would not get too discouraged. Modern navigation has revealed that the lies were in fact closer to accurate.
• Although Italian-Americans celebrate Columbus Day, this story is not about Italians. There were no Italians other than Columbus on the first voyage and his brothers and his buddy the rapist on the second. The story of the discovery is about Spain, its desire for wealth and expansion, and its determined persecution by expulsion, enslavement, and genocide of all who were not Christian, including the Jews, the Taino, the Moors, the Guanche of the Canary Islands, and the Roma.
• The Santa Maria never made it home. She ran onto shoals on a calm, moonlit night off Hispaniola on Christmas Eve, 1492, when the whole crew was asleep after a drunken three-day party with the Taino. 
• No way was Columbus Jewish. His own writings are infused with his devout Catholicism. Nor were the crew. Eighty-seven of the ninety men on the first voyage are known to history by name. Most came from the fishing village of Palos. Only three were even close to jailbirds (another apocryphal tale). One proponent of Columbus's Jewishness were a respected Jewish scholar who claims Columbus was seeking a homeland for the Jews (not likely for several reasons); the other was an anti-Semitic Spanish fascist writing in 1939 (in the context of Franco's alliance with Hitler), who argued that Columbus's greed for gold indicated he must have "Jewish blood." 
• It's not primarily disease that killed off the Taino, as is often said. They were systematically slaughtered and enslaved from the second voyage on. By 1496, one-third of them were already dead. Many committed suicide (with cyanide extracted from their staple food, the yuca) rather than be killed or captured by the Spaniards. Early in 1495, 1,500 of them were rounded up, 500 of the "best" loaded into the holds of the returning ships, and the others handed over to the settlers as slaves. By the time the ships made landfall, 200 were dead.

What makes me so self-confident in my conclusions and interpretations? A whole body of speculation and opinion has been built on the slim foundation of the handful of primary sources. Each historian chose what to believe and what not to believe, and so do I. A recent PBS special trotted out the story that the navigational genius on the first voyage was not Columbus, but Martín Alonso Pinzón, the captain of the Pinta. The primary source for that is legal documents prepared for a suit the Pinzón family brought against Columbus—which they lost. So says historian and naval man Samuel Eliot Morison, who in his own sailboat followed the course of all four voyages, using Columbus's log as a guide. He says Columbus was the navigational genius, and I choose to believe him.

*****

A big thanks to Elizabeth Zelvin. To someone who contributes a comment on my blog this week, she'll give away an advanced review copy of her contemporary mystery Death Will Extend Your Vacation in trade paperback format or a copy of the Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine issue that includes her Agatha award-nominated short story about Diego and Columbus, "The Green Cross." Winner's choice! I'll choose the winner from among those who comment by Sunday at 6 p.m. ET. Delivery is available in the U.S. and Canada.

*****

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The Winner of Murder Manhattan Style

Ramona DeFelice Long has won a copy of Murder Manhattan Style by Warren Bull. Congrats to Ramona!

Thanks to Warren Bull for an entertaining look at the impulsive side of Abraham Lincoln. Thanks, also, to everyone who visited and commented on Relevant History this week. Watch for another Relevant History post, coming soon.

*****

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Abraham Lincoln's Duel

Relevant History welcomes back Warren Bull, award-winning author of two novels on Kindle about Abraham Lincoln as an attorney (Abraham Lincoln for the Defense and Death in the Moonlight), plus a collection of historically-themed short stories, Murder Manhattan Style. His Young Adult novel, Heartland, about a family living in "Bleeding Kansas," is available on Kindle and, in paperback, from Avignon Press. His short stories have been published in several anthologies and other venues including Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, Sniplits, The Back Alley, and Mysterical-E. For more information, check his web site and group blog.

*****

As unlikely as it sounds, Abraham Lincoln was once involved in a duel…almost. In the early morning of September 22, 1842 Lincoln crossed the Mississippi river to a small island named "Bloody Island" where he was prepared to meet James Shields who had challenged him to a duel that could prove fatal to either or both of men.

Although Lincoln and Shields were members of different political parties, they worked harmoniously together in the state legislature. They found a practical way to get needed legislation that helped save state banks during a dire financial situation. 

However, when Shields became state auditor, he made a series of decisions that many thought were foolish. For example, he issued a proclamation that county tax collectors should only accept gold and silver in payment for taxes and school debt. Lincoln and others thought that was especially hard on the indigent who had limited access to hard cash.

Lincoln wrote a number of anonymous letters to a newspaper editor using his well-honed sarcasm and satire to criticize his political opponent. Possibly in an effort to impress Mary Todd, the critique quickly turned from the political to the personal. Mary Todd and her friend Julia Jayne began sending anonymous letters of their own, which further upped the ante, and the level of venom, referring to Shields at one point as, "…overly pompous, a hypocrite and a liar." 

Other letters followed recounting fictitious social situations and painting Shields as wholly inadequate with the ladies. 

Lincoln told the newspaper editor not to mention the role of the two women. When Shields demanded to know who had written the letters, the editor gave Shields only Lincoln's name. Shields was appalled that his former friend had been responsible for such insulting, outrageous allegations. He sent Lincoln a letter demanding an immediate retraction of all charges. Lincoln reacted to the hostile tone of the letter by refusing to apologize until Shields sent a more "gentlemanly" epistle. Shield's response was to challenge his political rival to a duel.

Although dueling was illegal in Illinois, it was still actively practiced. Anyone refusing to defend his honor would be considered a coward by the general public, which could end a political career.

As the challenged party Lincoln had the right to set the conditions for the conflict. He made the strangest demands for any duel any time and anywhere. Lincoln insisted on a combat "pit" ten feet across by twelve feet long with a board hammered sideways into the middle of the fighting ground that neither man could step over on pain of death. He also insisted on "Cavalry Broadswords of the largest size" as the weapons. This gave Lincoln at 6' 4" a tremendous advantage over Shields who was 5' 9" tall.

Both stubborn and brave Shields accepted the conditions and showed up for the confrontation.

Lincoln demonstrated his advantage by hacking away at branches of a Willow tree on Shield's side of the pit but well beyond Shields' reach. Their seconds worked out a settlement in which Lincoln admitted authorship (including for the letters he had not written) and stated he "…had no intention of injuring your [Shields] personal or private character or standing as a man or a gentleman." By some accounts, by the time Lincoln and Shields returned to the Illinois side of the river they were already joking with each other about the cancelled swordfight.

Despite the risk of bloodshed and the absurdities involved, there was a lesson to be learned. Lincoln was never again as reckless or as harsh in his criticism of others. He became more aware of the possible consequences of intemperate language. He and Shields renewed their friendship and remained close for the rest of their lives. Shields later served as a Brigadier General in the Union Army.

Over time Lincoln became increasingly embarrassed about the duel. Later in life he refused to even discuss it.

*****

A big thanks to Warren Bull. He'll give away a paperback copy of Murder Manhattan Style to someone who contributes a comment on my blog this week. I'll choose the winner from among those who comment by Sunday at 6 p.m. ET. Delivery is available within the U.S. only.

*****

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The Winner of The Hanover Square Affair

Jolie Beaumont has won a copy of The Hanover Square Affair by Ashley Gardner. Congrats to Jolie!

Thanks to Ashley Gardner for an excellent overview of the crime-fighting agencies operating in Regency London. Thanks, also, to everyone who visited and commented on Relevant History this week. Watch for another Relevant History post, coming soon.

*****

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Crime Fighting in Regency London

Relevant History welcomes historical mystery author Ashley Gardner, pen name for New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jennifer Ashley. She has published nearly 40 novels and a dozen novellas since 2002. Her novels have been nominated for numerous awards, including RT BookReviews Reviewer's Choice award for Best Historical Novel (which she won for The Sudbury School Murders). She has penned seven novels and a novella (thus far) in the Captain Lacey Regency Mystery series. When not writing books, Ashley enjoys cooking, hiking, and building dollhouses and dollhouse miniatures. For more information, check her web site and author blog, and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

*****

One reason I enjoy writing historical crime fiction (and indeed, reading it) is that I'm fascinated by crime detection before fingerprinting, DNA tests, police databases, and other modern technology. I'm even more fascinated by the people who did this crime detecting, often very well and with good results.

My mystery series (The Captain Lacey Regency mysteries, beginning with The Hanover Square Affair) is set in London in 1816 and beyond. This period predates Robert Peel's 1829 police reform that established a regular police force.

In my time period, 1816, several bodies of men worked under different jurisdictions to solve crimes and arrest criminals: The Watch, the Runners, and the Thames River Police. The City of London (the square mile) had its own constables, who didn't much like interference from those patrolling the rest of metropolitan London.

The most famous of the pre-Peel police are the Bow Street Runners. In my series, Captain Lacey's former sergeant, Milton Pomeroy, becomes one of these elite patrollers, loves getting his convictions, and often calls upon Gabriel Lacey, now a private citizen, to help him out.

A short history of the Bow Street Runners: In 1750, Henry Fielding, magistrate of the Bow Street house (as well as the author of Tom Jones), put in motion a plan to employ six permanent constables at the Bow Street magistrate's house. Unlike parish constables, who took up constable duties for a year (or paid others to do it for them), "Mr. Fielding's People" would be more or less permanent employees.

The first Runners (who were not called "Runners" until about 1790) were not paid a salary or stipend; they received rewards for the conviction of criminals. They did not patrol, but investigated crimes that were reported to them.

Sir John Fielding, Henry Fielding's half-brother, took over the Bow Street office in 1754 and remained there until 1779. Blind since the age of 20, Sir John Fielding took "Mr. Fielding's People" and built them into an elite, highly respected detective force.

Under Sir John, the Runners were paid a salary in addition to collecting rewards; the magistrates began to receive stipends and sit regular hours. The Bow Street office also began to be used as a clearinghouse for information. Newssheets and journals (including The Hue and Cry or Weekly Pursuit, established by John Fielding in 1772), listed information on wanted criminals and stolen property, and was distributed throughout the country.

A quote from the Weekly Pursuit:

John Godfrey, pretends to be a clergyman, middle-sized, thin visaged, smooth face, ruddy cheeks, his eyes inflamed, a large white wig, bandy-legged, charged with fraud at Chichester.

Bow Street Runners were allowed to pursue criminals or track down missing persons outside of London, something that parish constables or the Watch could not do.

In 1792, the Middlesex Justices Act established seven magistrates houses in addition to Bow Street. Each house had three magistrates and six constables (called Runners in Bow Street—in other houses they might be referred to as Runners, constables, or officers).

The Runners issued warrants for arrest, brought in suspects, and investigated reported crimes. They did not patrol or walk a beat—the Runners only investigated or arrested a suspect once someone (usually the victim or friend/family of the victim), arrived at the magistrate's office to report a crime.

Runners/constables at the magistrates' houses were often hired by victims of crimes to hunt down offenders, or to find missing persons. Runners also continued to be given rewards by the magistrates' office for the conviction of criminals. They were rewarded only when the suspect was convicted of a crime, not simply caught and arrested (although private citizens could pay the Runner for bringing a suspect to the magistrate).

Each magistrate's house by 1815 employed foot patrollers who assisted the magistrates and the Runners. The foot patrollers actually patrolled in the streets of metropolitan London, while mounted patrollers covered the roads leading to London.

Another branch of crime fighters that greatly interests me is the Thames River Police. In The Glass House (Book 3 of the Captain Lacey Regency Mysteries), I introduce a Thames River Policeman who asks Captain Lacey to help him identify a body pulled out of the river.

The Thames River Police, sometimes called the Marine Police, or simply, the River Police, was sponsored and formed in 1798 by West India merchants and based at Wapping New Stairs. The Marine Police would patrol the Thames River and prevent theft from the merchantmen and docks along the river as well as the warehouses in which goods were stored.

The new police were so successful that, in 1800, the merchant companies (including the East India Company, the West India merchants, United States traders and others), backed a bill to let the government take over the running of the operation. Patrick Colquhoun, a magistrate who had many ideas for police reform, lobbied the government and persuaded them to bring the Thames River Police under their jurisdiction.

The Thames River Police continued to operate throughout the Regency and were incorporated into Robert Peel's metropolitan police in 1839. (Note that though the metropolitan police began in 1829, but the Thames River Police ran under the old system until 1839.)

And the Watch? The much-maligned Watch was created in the late 17th century in London and its boroughs. Unlike the magistrate system, which was set up and regulated by the Home Office, each parish within London was given full control over their Watch. Each parish decided how many men to hire, how much to pay them, how much to supervise them, and what the watchmen would do.

The quality of the Watch in any given part of London depended, of course, on the financial ability of that parish. The Watch system was completely replaced in 1829–30 by the new constables of the Metropolitan Police.

I thoroughly enjoy researching crime-fighting in Regency London—there is much more to it than the little bit I've touched on here, but I hope I've provided an interesting overview.

*****

A big thanks to Ashley Gardner. She'll give away a print or electronic copy of the first Captain Lacey mystery, The Hanover Square Affair (re-released edition) or the newest book, A Death in Norfolk, to someone who contributes a comment on my blog this week. I'll choose the winner from among those who comment by Sunday at 6 p.m. ET. International delivery is available.

*****

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Happy Friday the 13th! Camp Follower is Free!

It's Friday the 13th, your lucky day! Camp Follower is free in Kindle format 13 April from Amazon. Free today only. This stand-alone historical mystery/thriller is the third book of my "Mysteries of the American Revolution" trilogy and was nominated for the Daphne du Maurier Award and the Sir Walter Raleigh Award. Download a copy for yourself now!

A deadly assignment. A land poisoned by treachery and battle. She plunged in headfirst.

Late in 1780, the publisher of a loyalist magazine in Wilmington, North Carolina offers an amazing assignment to Helen Chiswell, his society page writer. Pose as the widowed, gentlewoman sister of a British officer in the Seventeenth Light Dragoons, travel to the encampment of the British Legion in the Carolina backcountry, and write a feature on Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton. But Helen's publisher has secret reasons for sending her into danger. And because Helen, a loyalist, has ties to a family the redcoats suspect as patriot spies, she comes under suspicion of a brutal, brilliant British officer. At the bloody Battle of Cowpens, Helen must confront her past to save her life.

(Feel even more lucky today when you visit the book bonanza where Camp Follower is one of about 100 free ebooks showcased. But hurry! They're free today only!)

UPDATE: Huzzah! Camp Follower is #2 for Historical Mysteries and #3 for Spy Stories & Tales of Intrigue. Thank you!

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Paper Woman: Available in Paperback + ebook Price Slashed to 99 Cents

Paper Woman: A Mystery of the American Revolution is now available in paperback form as well as an ebook. Want an autographed bookplate for Paper Woman or my other books? Email your name and address to suzanneadair (at) gmail (dot) com.

And check out the ebook price of Paper Woman, slashed to 99 cents for a limited time in Nook, Kindle, and other formats!

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The Winner of The Wedding Shroud

Beverle Graves Myers has won a copy of The Wedding Shroud by Elisabeth Storrs. Congrats to Beverle!

Thanks to Elisabeth Storrs for a fascinating look at Etruscan afterlife. Thanks, also, to everyone who visited and commented on Relevant History this week. Watch for another Relevant History post, coming soon.

*****

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The Realm of the Dead: Afterlife in the Ancient World

Relevant History welcomes historical fiction author Elisabeth Storrs, who has written The Wedding Shroud, first book in a trilogy set in early Roman times. She was inspired to write the novel after seeing a sixth-century BCE sarcophagus depicting a man and wife in a tender embrace. Discovering the story behind the couple led her to the mystical Etruscan civilisation and the inspiration for her story. She lives in Sydney with her husband and two sons. The Wedding Shroud was published in Australia/NZ by Murdoch Books and is available as an ebook worldwide. The sequel is due to be published in 2012/13. For more information, check her web site and author blog, and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

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The ancient Greeks believed in an underworld to which the souls of the dead journeyed. It was known by names such as Hades or Erebus, which have become synonymous with the concept of 'Hell.' The Underworld was a structured place. The souls of the dead were sent to various realms based on how they were judged: blameless heroes to Elysium, the evil to Tartarus and those who were neither good nor bad to the Fields of Asphodel. To safely travel from the world of the living to that of Hades, the soul needed to cross the Styx (the River of Hate) on a boat steered by a grim ferryman known as Charon. The cost of the trip was a gold coin and it was the custom of mourners to place one in the deceased's mouth to ensure safe passage.

Although the Romans came to adopt a belief in Hades in imperial times, the religion of early Rome did not envisage that an individual would experience an afterlife. Instead it was believed that the souls of the dead joined an amorphous mass of spirits known as the Dii Manes or the 'Kindly Ones.' The name is ironic because these spirits were considered fearful and needed to be placated by the relatives of the deceased in case they rose to torment them. Calling them a flattering name was therefore an attempt at appeasement.

Of course a belief in an afterlife is common to many ancient societies. My research revealed another civilisation existing in Italy from archaic times with a complex codex, which provided guidance on how a person could live forever. That civilisation was Etruria, and its people were known as the Etruscans.

The Etruscans were a race that lived in the area of Tuscany, Umbria and Lazio but whose influence spread from the Po Valley in the north to Campania in the south. They were the sworn enemies of the Romans, whose fledging republic was still scrapping with its Latin neighbours while the Etruscans were establishing a trade empire across the Mediterranean. Indeed, the Romans were as austere and insular as the Etruscans were sophisticated and cosmopolitan.

Although recent archaeological digs are revealing more about the Etruscans, they have often been dubbed 'mysterious' because none of their literature has survived other than remnants of ritual texts. Most of what we know about them is from Greek or Roman historians (their enemies) who wrote centuries after Etruria had been destroyed. However, we can gain a glimpse of their own perspective through their fantastic tomb art which also serves as a rich vein of inspiration for episodes within my books. In fact a good deal of what is known about Etruscan architecture and daily life comes from their incredibly ornate tombs which replicated the houses of the living with their lintels and doorframes, tables and couches—even clothes hanging from hooks on the walls. Treasure was also included together with all the necessities to ensure a comfortable life such as plates and utensils and food, and a host of slave statuettes to serve the spirits of the dead.

From this funerary art it is apparent that the Etruscans' afterlife was not so much an underworld as an 'Afterworld' or 'Beyond.' In this realm, the character of Charon also appears. He is known as 'Charun' and is a gatekeeper rather than a ferryman. The dead were also met at the entrance to the Beyond by a winged demoness named Vanth. One tomb painting depicts her as wearing a tiny pleated skirt, short hunting boots and a baldric crossing bare breasts. An eye is painted upon each arch of her wings. The two snakes twisting around her hint at her potential menace should she deny assistance to the traveller. She is often portrayed as holding a key and a torch to guide the dead. In one tomb she is shown holding a scroll of names, which suggests there may have been some form of judgment day as was the case in Hades.

The souls of the Etruscan dead faced a perilous journey over land and sea where monsters and other demons lurked. The fiercest of these was the winged Tuchulcha with its donkey's ears, vulture's beak, grey-blue rotting flesh, and two spotted snakes coiled around its arms. And the final destination should such terrors be overcome? A sumptuous banquet with their ancestors.

The fear that the soul might fall prey to such dangers led the Etruscans to perform rigorous rituals and sacrifices to enable them to transform into lesser gods known as Dii Animales. Achieving such a status ensured their place at the banquet and possibly gave them the chance to return to receive ritual honours and assist their descendants.

The belief that blood sacrifice was necessary to placate the anger of the dead and to protect their souls in the transition to the afterlife led to dark practices. In the 'Phersu' game a masked man would set a slavering hound onto a hooded prisoner to rip the victim apart. This type of human sacrifice was later adopted by the Romans in lavish gladiatorial games held to celebrate the funerals of the powerful.

The heroine of The Wedding Shroud is a young Roman girl, Caecilia, who is married to an Etruscan nobleman to seal a truce between their warring cities. The lure of obtaining immortality in the afterlife tempts her to question her own people's belief in the bleak world of the Kindly Ones. In time, though, Caecilia comes to realise there is a price to be paid to obtain salvation. This dilemma is only one of the conflicting moralities and beliefs with which she must struggle when determining whether her future lies with Rome or Etruria.

As for the philosophy of an afterlife it is interesting to consider that modern man, whether religious or sceptical, still questions what lies beyond the grave and whether judgment awaits there.

*****

A big thanks to Elisabeth Storrs. She'll give away a copy of her ebook, The Wedding Shroud, to someone who contributes a comment on my blog this week. I'll choose the winner from among those who comment by Sunday at 6 p.m. ET. The ebook is available for Kindle and Kobo.

*****

Did you like what you read? Learn about downloads, discounts, and special offers from Relevant History authors and Suzanne Adair. Subscribe to Suzanne's free newsletter.

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Happy Spring Equinox! Camp Follower is Free!

Camp Follower is free in Kindle format 20 - 21 March from Amazon. Free on Tuesday and Wednesday. This stand-alone historical mystery/thriller was nominated for the Daphne du Maurier Award and the Sir Walter Raleigh Award. Download a copy for yourself now!

A deadly assignment. A land poisoned by treachery and battle. She plunged in headfirst.

Late in 1780, the publisher of a loyalist magazine in Wilmington, North Carolina offers an amazing assignment to Helen Chiswell, his society page writer. Pose as the widowed, gentlewoman sister of a British officer in the Seventeenth Light Dragoons, travel to the encampment of the British Legion in the Carolina backcountry, and write a feature on Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton. But Helen's publisher has secret reasons for sending her into danger. And because Helen, a loyalist, has ties to a family the redcoats suspect as patriot spies, she comes under suspicion of a brutal, brilliant British officer. At the bloody Battle of Cowpens, Helen must confront her past to save her life.

UPDATE:  0825. Top 100 -- YES! We did it! Camp Follower is ranked #78 in the Kindle Store, #1 in Spy Stories & Tales of Intrigue, and #2 in Historical Mysteries! Thank you!

*****

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