Review: Compelling must-read historical fiction
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 08 27, 2013
I wasn't sure whether I would like this book. After all, being British, I knew very little about the American Civil War, other than that President Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes-Booth whilst at the theatre, the one undisputed historical fact of the time.However John Holt's evocative prose and meticulous research drew me in and I read the whole book in two sittings. The one nit-pick I have was the common mistake in Chapter nineteen where it should read hanged by the neck until dead, not hung, and think Mr Holt should have known better, although I know how hard editing your own work can be.This book looks at a what if scenario, what if Lincoln's Generals had conspired to bring about his death and the desperate rebels had entered into the theft of gold bullion to secure arms from a not immediately obvious source. It is a compelling story and one can't help wondering how different the world would be today had things really happened that way.Against this extremely credible plot, The Thackery Journal is a very human story of loyalty, love and friendship and how war tests it to the limits of destruction. The strength and fragility of the human spirit endures but at what cost?Once again John Holt has given us a truly wonderful book which I will not hesitate to recommend to everyone, although John Holt's name alone should serve as a recommendation. I am waiting for the English Civil War version now, John.Grab this book and read it until your Kindle battery runs out, then buy the paperback. Well worth anyone's time and money, whichever side of the conflict you would have been on.