Genre: Non-fiction
Publisher: Holt, Henry, & Company, Inc, 2011
Pages: 336
Rating: Highly Recommend
Synopsis: The anchor of The O'Reilly Factor recounts one of the most dramatic stories in American history—how one gunshot changed the country forever. In the spring of 1865, the Civil War finally comes to an end after a series of incredibly bloody battles. President Abraham Lincoln's generous terms for Robert E. Lee's surrender are devised to fulfill Lincoln's dream of healing a divided nation, with the former Confederates allowed to reintegrate into American society. One man and his band of murderous accomplices, perhaps reaching into the highest ranks of the U.S. government, are not appeased.
In the midst of the patriotic celebrations in Washington, D.C., John Wilkes Booth—charismatic ladies' man and impenitent racist—murders Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theater. A furious manhunt ensues and Booth immediately becomes the country's most wanted fugitive. Lafayette C. Baker, a brilliant but enigmatic New York detective and former Union spy, unravels the string of clues leading to Booth, while federal forces track his accomplices. The thrilling chase ends in a fiery shootout and a series of court-ordered executions—including that of the first woman ever executed by the U.S. government, Mary Surratt. With an unforgettable cast of characters, vivid historical detail, and page-turning action, Killing Lincoln is history that reads like a thriller.
Review: This certainly does read like a thriller. I could not put it down. I expected to like it; I didn't expect it to be one of the best books I've read this year.
I've studied the Civil War, Lincoln's presidency, and reconstruction extensively since high school history class, and then again as a history major in college so the fact that I still found this to be a page turner, even knowing as much as I do about this period and person, speaks to how well the story is told.
The only question that remains is why did I wait so long to read it?
No comments:
Post a Comment