This historical fiction western begins in 1825, when Richard is a young Boston gentleman attending Harvard. He is a talented and bright student studying philosophy. Richard can quote all of the greatest philosophers and he knows what is real and what is right. He is the only son of wealthy businessman Phillip Hamilton. His mother is deceased, having died during childbirth and Richard has essentially been raised by their servant, Jeffry. How is a story set in the city of Boston able to become a historical western? It begins when Phillip decides that it is time for Richard to take some responsibility, ends his financial support for the Harvard education, and sends Richard on a business trip to St. Louis - the edge of the wild frontier.
The Morning River: Sage of the Mountain Sage, Book One: A Classic Historical Western Series
Thank goodness I was on vacation when I started this book (this series of four books)! I read the series across a handful of days; including the one day that I forced myself to finally close my kindle at 3:30 am. I resumed reading immediately after breakfast the following day.
Richard begins his trip west to St. Louis with his father's bag of bank notes. He expects to make the long journey to St. Louis, make the business transaction, and return to Boston.
The chapters take us from Richard's journey to Heals Like A Willow. Her people are the Dukurika (Shoshone), the sheepeaters of the high mountains. She had married her husband, a Ku'chendikani, and lived with their tribe. We meet her as she is burying and mourning her husband and son high on a rocky slope, during a blowing snow. We later learn that she is a very powerful woman, a medicine woman, and breaks some of her People's important traditions and expectations about a woman's role in their society. However, she continues searching for what is real and what is right.
While Phillip is right, and Richard's entire world has been limited to their home, the city, and the university I was immediately concerned that sending Richard on such a journey with such a large amount of money was a very risky idea. During Richard's long journey on the river, he is aloof and stand-offish. He is not impressed by the cities and towns along the way. He looks down his nose at the people he sees in boats, on the riverbanks, and on the farms along the way. Richard was amazed at the river he traveled on but uncomfortable when he stared into the deep forests.
"... he'd watched the forest as it passed, uneasy at what might lurk in those dim shadows. Like a child hearing the ghouls in the winter wind."
During brief conversations with another gentleman, Mr. Eckhart, on the steamboat, we begin to see Richard's thoughts. When Mr. Eckhart observes that Richard may not have the ambition and character needed for frontier life, Richard responds:
"My duty, sir, is to go to Saint Louis, see to some arrangements, and return to Boston with the greatest dispatch. Thereafter, I shall retire to the university and never again endure such bad food... ill company, or the human dregs such as you see floating along on flatboats"
It is a wonder that Richard doesn't make enemies when he repeatedly and snobbishly refers to others as "animals". Oh wait, he does make enemies.
Richard arrives in St. Louis with plans of finishing this errand for his father then returning to Boston to begin courting the beautiful Laura Templeton. He has written letters to her along the journey.
But there is trouble in St. Louis. Big trouble. Life-threatening and life-changing trouble that irrevocably changes Richards life. If he survives, it is very unlikely that he will ever return to Boston.
Travis Hartman, a rugged frontiersman who is disfigured from a bear attack has partnered with long-time friend Dave Green in a business plan. They are planning an illegal trip up the Missouri River, in a keelboat, to the Upper Yellowstone River to open a trading post. During this time of unrest between the Indian tribes and each other, and the tribes and whites, permits are required to do such a thing. But Dave Green has a dream and a plan.
It is up this river and on the frontier that the lives of Richard and Heals Like A Willow, surrounded by the likes of Hartman and Green, converge. Will they collide and self-destruct or join forces and survive.
This series kept me engrossed. It was not only entertaining but educational (I had no idea how Keelboats were moved upriver) it was also thought-provoking. How do we decide what is right and wrong? And who is right? Who are the animals and who are civilized?
While many descriptions in the book are beautiful (descriptions of the people, the land, the settings) and took me to those places, it was also a time period set during a great deal of violence. There are plenty of "mature" and difficult scenes, words, and themes in this book. However, it was the reality of those times.
If you begin The Morning River, book 1 in the series, and have any inkling that you like the story, I highly recommend buying the next 3 books. I do not recommend jumping into the series somewhere in the middle or end. I wish that these 4 books had been kept in one single book (I read somewhere that the series began as either one or two books - I don't recall which - but had been separated out into 4 somewhere along the way. I would have preferred it to be one volume).
I would like to tell you more about the characters. And about the parts of the story that made me laugh and made me cry. I would like to discuss the "right", the "wrong", and how God does or doesn't work in our lives, based on the story. But telling any of those things would create spoilers and I don't want to do that. I can say that this story and these characters (and the people the characters represent from our history) will be with me for a very long time.
Thank you W. Michael Gear for writing this bit of history in this way.
You can find there series here: The Morning River: Sage of the Mountain Sage, Book One: A Classic Historical Western Series
Wow! Clearly, this series is very captivating and detailed! I do love a book series that grabs me, pulls me in and holds on even after I have finished reading. I gave just enough information to leave me intrigued and interested to see how the lives all tie together. Like in real life, you never know exactly what is around the next bend.
ReplyDeleteDawn Rae, what an excellent and thought-provoking review you have written of this book series. I am not usually a fan of westerns or even of historical fiction, for the most part, but your words have really drawn me into this story. I have also always been fascinated with stories involving our Native Americans, so there is that part to pursue in this series. And I have a feeling that Richard's dad knew what he was doing when he sent his son on this journey. Richard obviously needs some 'real life' experiences to knock some of the ego out of his personality and begin to see the world and other people as it really is. Well done! A most excellent book review.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a really gripping series, Dawn Rae. I want to see Richard’s ego and prejudices taken down a peg or three, but I also fear the harshness of those lessons on one so ill-prepared to learn them. Heals Like a Willow has an intriguing name and I want to learn more about her. Thank you for this excellent review.
ReplyDeleteThis series sounds so very captivating and clearly is a book that is hard to put down! The fact that you were still thinking about the characters and the story after you finished the book says a lot. I love a novel that has that effect on the reader. Thank you for an excellent review and your recommendation.
ReplyDeleteI know I could get into these books and that is a good thing. Take me away to an adventure somewhere, anywhere and let me dive into the surroundings. It sounds like something I could read into the wee hours of the morn as well. Okay, it's going on my list of Books to read soon. I'm sure with your excellent synopsis, I will get right into them. Thanks Dawn Rae for putting these on my radar.
ReplyDeleteIf you're thinking about the characters after reading the book, then yep, it's a good one! This sounds like an excellent book - I love historical fiction, especially when it's turned into a good movie - everytime I read these reviews on books centered around historical fiction, they sound so good that I want the movie version too.
ReplyDeleteThis series sounds really intriquing. Thanks for your excellent review.
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