Fiction about small American wars that had a big impact on the country's history.
French and Indian War of 1754 to 1763
The Last of the Mohicans
By Cooper, James Fenimore
Cooper's most enduringly popular novel combines heroism and romance with powerful criticism of the destruction of nature and tradition. Set against the French and Indian siege of Fort William Henry in 1757, The Last of the Mohicans recounts the story of two sisters, Cora and Alice Munro, daughters of the English commander, who are struggling to be reunited with their father. They are aided in their perilous journey by Hawk-eye, a frontier scout and his companions Chingachgook and Uncas, the only two survivors of the Mohican tribe. But their lives are endangered by the Mangua, the savage Indian traitor who captures the sisters, wanting Cora to be his squaw. In setting Indian against Indian and the brutal society of the white man against the civilization of the Mohican, Cooper, more than any author before or since, shaped the American sense of itself as a nation.
Publisher: n/a
|
9780140390247
|
Paperback
Northwest Passage
By Roberts, Kenneth
Told through the eyes of primary character Langdon Towne, much of this novel centers around the exploits and character of Robert Rogers, the leader of Rogers' Rangers, who were a colonial force fighting with the British during the French and Indian War.
Structurally, Northwest Passage is divided into halves. The first half is a carefully researched, day-by-day recreation of the raid by Rogers' Rangers on the Indian village at Saint-Franois-du-Lac, Quebec (or Saint Francis, to the Americans troops), a settlement of the Abenakis, an American Indian tribe. The second half of the novel covers Rogers' later life in London, England and Fort Michilimackinac, Michigan. Roberts' decision to cover the novel's material in two distinct halves followed the actual trajectory of Rogers' life.
Publisher: n/a
|
9781582882666
|
Book
The Frontiersmen
By Eckert, Allan W.
The frontiersmen were a remarkable breed of men. They were often rough and illiterate, sometimes brutal and vicious, often seeking an escape in the wilderness of mid-America from crimes committed back east. In the beautiful but deadly country which would one day come to be known as West Virginia, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, more often than not they left their bones to bleach beside forest paths or on the banks of the Ohio River, victims of Indians who claimed the vast virgin territory and strove to turn back the growing tide of whites. These frontiersmen are the subjects of Allan Eckert's dramatic history. Against the background of such names as George Rogers Clark, Daniel Boone, Arthur St. Clair, Anthony Wayne, Simon Girty and William Henry Harrison, Eckert has recreated the life of one of America's most outstanding heroes, Simon Kenton.
Publisher: n/a
|
9780945084914
|
Paperback
Bellewether
By Kearsley, Susanna
"The house, when I first saw it, seemed intent on guarding what it knew; but we all learned, by the end of it, that secrets aren't such easy things to keep." It's late summer, war is raging, and families are torn apart by divided loyalties and deadly secrets. In this complex and dangerous time, a young French Canadian lieutenant is captured and billeted with a Long Island family, an unwilling and unwelcome guest. As he begins to pitch in with the never-ending household tasks and farm chores, Jean-Philippe de Sabran finds himself drawn to the daughter of the house. Slowly, Lydia Wilde comes to lean on Jean-Philippe, true soldier and gentleman, until their lives become inextricably intertwined. Legend has it that the forbidden love between Jean-Philippe and Lydia ended tragically, but centuries later, the clues they left behind slowly unveil the true story. Part history, part romance, and all kinds of magic, Susanna Kearsley's latest masterpiece will draw you in and never let you go, even long after you've closed the last page.
Publisher: n/a
|
9781492637134
|
Paperback
War of 1812
The Solitary Envoy
By Bunn, T. Davis
Book 1 of Heirs of Acadia, continuing the story told in the bestselling Janette Oke and T. Davis Bunn Song of Acadia series. Erica Langston's comfortable home and loving family living near Washington, D.C., carry no outward hint of the sorrows and fears faced by her Acadian forebears, but she will soon discover that similar determination and fortitude will be required of her. When the British once again invade the nation's capital and leave death and destruction in their wake, Erica is left to deal with the creditors circling around the crumbling family business. It seems her only recourse is to travel to England to collect on outstanding debts held in British banks. Arriving in London at the home of the United States ambassador, Erica is gradually immersed in a secret mission that brings her face-to-face with her most feared and reviled enemy.
Publisher: n/a
|
764228625
|
Hardcover
Fire Along the Sky
By Donati, Sara
With epic sweep and breathtaking adventure, Sara Donati’s bestselling saga of an Early American family’s struggle for survival in the Northeast wilderness continues with the story of an indomitable woman and an unforgettable journey of redemption across a young nation threatened by the flames of war. The year is 1812 and Hannah Bonner has returned to her family’s mountain cabin in Paradise. But Nathaniel and Elizabeth Bonner can see that Hannah is not the same woman as when she left. For their daughter has come home without her husband and without her son…and with a story of loss and tragedy that she can’t bear to tell. Yet as Hannah resumes her duties as a gifted healer among the sick and needy, she finds that she is also slowly healing herself.
Publisher: n/a
|
9780553582772
|
Book
A Darker Sea
By Haley, James L
The second installment of the gripping naval saga by award-winning historian James L. Haley, featuring Commander Bliven Putnam, chronicling the build up to the biggest military conflict between the United States and Britain after the Revolution - the War of 1812. At the opening of the War of 1812, the British control the most powerful navy on earth, and Americans are again victims of piracy. Bliven Putnam, late of the Battle of Tripoli, is dispatched to Charleston to outfit and take command of a new 20-gun brig, the USS Tempest. Later, aboard the Constitution, he sails into the furious early fighting of the war. Prowling the South Atlantic in the Tempest, Bliven takes prizes and disrupts British merchant shipping, until he is overhauled, overmatched, and disastrously defeated by the frigate HMS Java. Its captain proves to be Lord Arthur Kington, whom Bliven had so disastrously met in Naples. On board he also finds his old friend Sam Bandy, one of the Java's pressed American seamen kidnapped into British service. Their whispered plans to foment a mutiny among the captives may see them hang, when the Constitution looms over the horizon for one of the most famous battles of the War of 1812 in a gripping, high-wire conclusion. With exquisite detail and guns-blazing action, A Darker Sea illuminates an unforgettable period in American history.
Publisher: n/a
|
9780399171116
|
Book
Whispers from the Shadows
By White, Roseanna M.
This exciting and adventurous romantic spy novel is the second book in a new series from Roseanna M. White. Whispers from the Shadows combines fascinating cloak-and-dagger secrets with a tale of love and intrigue during the War of 1812. Treachery causes Gwyneth Fairchild's world to crumble. The daughter of a British general, she barely saves her life by fleeing London aboard a ship to America. Her goal is to find refuge with the Lane family in Maryland, having been told by her father she could implicitly trust Winter and Bennet Lane, even though their nations are once again at war. After meeting their son, Thad, she wonders how safe she truly is when she discovers that the Lanes trade in a dangerous commodity―espionage. Not long after Gwyneth finds refuge in his city, Thad Lane experiences the tug of love, though he fears it may blur lines of loyalty.
Publisher: n/a
|
9780736951012
|
Paperback
Crimson Harvest
By Dunlap, Phil
In the Indiana Territory at the beginning of the War of 1812, a powerful war chief of the Shawnee tribe clings desperately to his hold on all the lands he sees as his. He has a hatred for the American settlers that he sees as invaders. He sides with the British in the conflict and musters his warriors to battle. But Indians don't utilize battle lines like the British, instead they fight from the element of surprise, attacking without warning. In one such attack, the Shawnee swooped down on a small settlement, striking cabins where peaceful settlers went about their daily routines. In one afternoon, many men, women and children were killed, murdered at the hand of savages and scalped for the five-dollar bounty offered by the British. For Bran Campbell, a young frontiersman, saving lives of the settlers is of paramount importance. But he finds his growing love of a young woman he saved from Shawnee raiders has the potential to change his future altogether. It is a future he covets with growing eagerness.
Publisher: n/a
|
9781432834159
|
Hardcover
Mexican-American War of 1846 to 1848
A Sinister Splendor
By Blakely, Mike
Pairing extensive research with a brilliance for reviving the past in gripping narrative, Spur Award-winning author Mike Blakely has penned an epic, historical novelization of the Mexican-American War in A Sinister Splendor1845. Texas joins the union. Mexico threatens war over the disputed Texas border. But much more than the Rio Grande Valley lies at stake -- expansionists dream of an America that sprawls all the way to the Pacific Coast. Can a conflict with an already war-torn Mexico satisfy this lust for territory? President James K. Polk sends troops the Texas border to test Mexico's appetite for war. General Zachary Taylor, known as "Old Rough and Ready," leads the invasion south. A 24-year-old lieutenant named Ulysses S. Grant gets his first taste of battle.
Publisher: n/a
|
9780765328380
|
Hardcover
St. Patrick's Battalion
By Thom, James Alexander
They were proud and doomed, Irish rogue cannoneers under a green silk banner, fighting against their former comrades-in-arms to defend Catholic Mexico against the invading U.S. Army. Their choices were to win, die in battle, or hang as deserters. To the Mexicans they were heroic saviors, but they were seen as despicable traitors by the West Point officers who faced their grapeshot and cannonballs on every major battlefield Matamoros to Mexico City. Survivors of the Irish battalion's deadly gunnery would later lead armies against each other in Civil War, many of them - Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson, Braxton Bragg - ironically deemed the same sort of traitors. This astonishing true tale from an almost forgotten war is told through the eyes of two boys who know and admire the idealistic Irish leader John Riley: an Army camp errand boy who keeps a diary, and a Mexican military school cadet whose widowed mother becomes the Irishman's tragic lover.
Publisher: n/a
|
9780979924071
|
Paperback
A Line in the Sand
By Lacy, Al
The Kane Legacy: faith, love, courage, and strength. In nineteenth-century Texas, theyre going to need it. In 1835, Alan Kane and his family come to the Circle C Ranch in Texas, little dreaming what the future holds in both blessing and danger. Beautiful Julia Miller, daughter of a Louisiana plantation owner, has captured Alan's heart, but he hardly dares to hope for her hand. Then Colonel William Travis calls for the men of Texas to rally against Mexico's General Santa Anna. Full of honor and courage, brothers Alan and Adam join up with Jim Bowie to do their part. The plan centers on holding a Franciscan mission known as the Alamo and soon includes Davy Crockett and his Tennessee Mounted Volunteers. As battle looms, what is God's purpose for the Kane men? Can they share their eternal hope with men ready to die for Texas? Will brotherly bonds overcome a jealous secret in the face of death? And just what will endure of the Kane legacy?
Fiction about small American wars that had a big impact on the country's history.
French and Indian War of 1754 to 1763
The Last of the Mohicans
By Cooper, James Fenimore
Cooper's most enduringly popular novel combines heroism and romance with powerful criticism of the destruction of nature and tradition. Set against the French and Indian siege of Fort William Henry in 1757, The Last of the Mohicans recounts the story of two sisters, Cora and Alice Munro, daughters of the English commander, who are struggling to be reunited with their father. They are aided in their perilous journey by Hawk-eye, a frontier scout and his companions Chingachgook and Uncas, the only two survivors of the Mohican tribe. But their lives are endangered by the Mangua, the savage Indian traitor who captures the sisters, wanting Cora to be his squaw. In setting Indian against Indian and the brutal society of the white man against the civilization of the Mohican, Cooper, more than any author before or since, shaped the American sense of itself as a nation.
Northwest Passage
By Roberts, Kenneth
Told through the eyes of primary character Langdon Towne, much of this novel centers around the exploits and character of Robert Rogers, the leader of Rogers' Rangers, who were a colonial force fighting with the British during the French and Indian War. Structurally, Northwest Passage is divided into halves. The first half is a carefully researched, day-by-day recreation of the raid by Rogers' Rangers on the Indian village at Saint-Franois-du-Lac, Quebec (or Saint Francis, to the Americans troops), a settlement of the Abenakis, an American Indian tribe. The second half of the novel covers Rogers' later life in London, England and Fort Michilimackinac, Michigan. Roberts' decision to cover the novel's material in two distinct halves followed the actual trajectory of Rogers' life.
The Frontiersmen
By Eckert, Allan W.
The frontiersmen were a remarkable breed of men. They were often rough and illiterate, sometimes brutal and vicious, often seeking an escape in the wilderness of mid-America from crimes committed back east. In the beautiful but deadly country which would one day come to be known as West Virginia, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, more often than not they left their bones to bleach beside forest paths or on the banks of the Ohio River, victims of Indians who claimed the vast virgin territory and strove to turn back the growing tide of whites. These frontiersmen are the subjects of Allan Eckert's dramatic history. Against the background of such names as George Rogers Clark, Daniel Boone, Arthur St. Clair, Anthony Wayne, Simon Girty and William Henry Harrison, Eckert has recreated the life of one of America's most outstanding heroes, Simon Kenton.
Bellewether
By Kearsley, Susanna
"The house, when I first saw it, seemed intent on guarding what it knew; but we all learned, by the end of it, that secrets aren't such easy things to keep." It's late summer, war is raging, and families are torn apart by divided loyalties and deadly secrets. In this complex and dangerous time, a young French Canadian lieutenant is captured and billeted with a Long Island family, an unwilling and unwelcome guest. As he begins to pitch in with the never-ending household tasks and farm chores, Jean-Philippe de Sabran finds himself drawn to the daughter of the house. Slowly, Lydia Wilde comes to lean on Jean-Philippe, true soldier and gentleman, until their lives become inextricably intertwined. Legend has it that the forbidden love between Jean-Philippe and Lydia ended tragically, but centuries later, the clues they left behind slowly unveil the true story. Part history, part romance, and all kinds of magic, Susanna Kearsley's latest masterpiece will draw you in and never let you go, even long after you've closed the last page.
War of 1812
The Solitary Envoy
By Bunn, T. Davis
Book 1 of Heirs of Acadia, continuing the story told in the bestselling Janette Oke and T. Davis Bunn Song of Acadia series. Erica Langston's comfortable home and loving family living near Washington, D.C., carry no outward hint of the sorrows and fears faced by her Acadian forebears, but she will soon discover that similar determination and fortitude will be required of her. When the British once again invade the nation's capital and leave death and destruction in their wake, Erica is left to deal with the creditors circling around the crumbling family business. It seems her only recourse is to travel to England to collect on outstanding debts held in British banks. Arriving in London at the home of the United States ambassador, Erica is gradually immersed in a secret mission that brings her face-to-face with her most feared and reviled enemy.
Fire Along the Sky
By Donati, Sara
With epic sweep and breathtaking adventure, Sara Donati’s bestselling saga of an Early American family’s struggle for survival in the Northeast wilderness continues with the story of an indomitable woman and an unforgettable journey of redemption across a young nation threatened by the flames of war. The year is 1812 and Hannah Bonner has returned to her family’s mountain cabin in Paradise. But Nathaniel and Elizabeth Bonner can see that Hannah is not the same woman as when she left. For their daughter has come home without her husband and without her son…and with a story of loss and tragedy that she can’t bear to tell. Yet as Hannah resumes her duties as a gifted healer among the sick and needy, she finds that she is also slowly healing herself.
A Darker Sea
By Haley, James L
The second installment of the gripping naval saga by award-winning historian James L. Haley, featuring Commander Bliven Putnam, chronicling the build up to the biggest military conflict between the United States and Britain after the Revolution - the War of 1812. At the opening of the War of 1812, the British control the most powerful navy on earth, and Americans are again victims of piracy. Bliven Putnam, late of the Battle of Tripoli, is dispatched to Charleston to outfit and take command of a new 20-gun brig, the USS Tempest. Later, aboard the Constitution, he sails into the furious early fighting of the war. Prowling the South Atlantic in the Tempest, Bliven takes prizes and disrupts British merchant shipping, until he is overhauled, overmatched, and disastrously defeated by the frigate HMS Java. Its captain proves to be Lord Arthur Kington, whom Bliven had so disastrously met in Naples. On board he also finds his old friend Sam Bandy, one of the Java's pressed American seamen kidnapped into British service. Their whispered plans to foment a mutiny among the captives may see them hang, when the Constitution looms over the horizon for one of the most famous battles of the War of 1812 in a gripping, high-wire conclusion. With exquisite detail and guns-blazing action, A Darker Sea illuminates an unforgettable period in American history.
Whispers from the Shadows
By White, Roseanna M.
This exciting and adventurous romantic spy novel is the second book in a new series from Roseanna M. White. Whispers from the Shadows combines fascinating cloak-and-dagger secrets with a tale of love and intrigue during the War of 1812. Treachery causes Gwyneth Fairchild's world to crumble. The daughter of a British general, she barely saves her life by fleeing London aboard a ship to America. Her goal is to find refuge with the Lane family in Maryland, having been told by her father she could implicitly trust Winter and Bennet Lane, even though their nations are once again at war. After meeting their son, Thad, she wonders how safe she truly is when she discovers that the Lanes trade in a dangerous commodity―espionage. Not long after Gwyneth finds refuge in his city, Thad Lane experiences the tug of love, though he fears it may blur lines of loyalty.
Crimson Harvest
By Dunlap, Phil
In the Indiana Territory at the beginning of the War of 1812, a powerful war chief of the Shawnee tribe clings desperately to his hold on all the lands he sees as his. He has a hatred for the American settlers that he sees as invaders. He sides with the British in the conflict and musters his warriors to battle. But Indians don't utilize battle lines like the British, instead they fight from the element of surprise, attacking without warning. In one such attack, the Shawnee swooped down on a small settlement, striking cabins where peaceful settlers went about their daily routines. In one afternoon, many men, women and children were killed, murdered at the hand of savages and scalped for the five-dollar bounty offered by the British. For Bran Campbell, a young frontiersman, saving lives of the settlers is of paramount importance. But he finds his growing love of a young woman he saved from Shawnee raiders has the potential to change his future altogether. It is a future he covets with growing eagerness.
Mexican-American War of 1846 to 1848
A Sinister Splendor
By Blakely, Mike
Pairing extensive research with a brilliance for reviving the past in gripping narrative, Spur Award-winning author Mike Blakely has penned an epic, historical novelization of the Mexican-American War in A Sinister Splendor1845. Texas joins the union. Mexico threatens war over the disputed Texas border. But much more than the Rio Grande Valley lies at stake -- expansionists dream of an America that sprawls all the way to the Pacific Coast. Can a conflict with an already war-torn Mexico satisfy this lust for territory? President James K. Polk sends troops the Texas border to test Mexico's appetite for war. General Zachary Taylor, known as "Old Rough and Ready," leads the invasion south. A 24-year-old lieutenant named Ulysses S. Grant gets his first taste of battle.
St. Patrick's Battalion
By Thom, James Alexander
They were proud and doomed, Irish rogue cannoneers under a green silk banner, fighting against their former comrades-in-arms to defend Catholic Mexico against the invading U.S. Army. Their choices were to win, die in battle, or hang as deserters. To the Mexicans they were heroic saviors, but they were seen as despicable traitors by the West Point officers who faced their grapeshot and cannonballs on every major battlefield Matamoros to Mexico City. Survivors of the Irish battalion's deadly gunnery would later lead armies against each other in Civil War, many of them - Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson, Braxton Bragg - ironically deemed the same sort of traitors. This astonishing true tale from an almost forgotten war is told through the eyes of two boys who know and admire the idealistic Irish leader John Riley: an Army camp errand boy who keeps a diary, and a Mexican military school cadet whose widowed mother becomes the Irishman's tragic lover.
A Line in the Sand
By Lacy, Al
The Kane Legacy: faith, love, courage, and strength. In nineteenth-century Texas, theyre going to need it. In 1835, Alan Kane and his family come to the Circle C Ranch in Texas, little dreaming what the future holds in both blessing and danger. Beautiful Julia Miller, daughter of a Louisiana plantation owner, has captured Alan's heart, but he hardly dares to hope for her hand. Then Colonel William Travis calls for the men of Texas to rally against Mexico's General Santa Anna. Full of honor and courage, brothers Alan and Adam join up with Jim Bowie to do their part. The plan centers on holding a Franciscan mission known as the Alamo and soon includes Davy Crockett and his Tennessee Mounted Volunteers. As battle looms, what is God's purpose for the Kane men? Can they share their eternal hope with men ready to die for Texas? Will brotherly bonds overcome a jealous secret in the face of death? And just what will endure of the Kane legacy?