***** Stunning Recount —– Review contribution by Charles Breakfield
Wow, what a fantastic tale! This historical fiction tale is about the exploits of the 9th Battery of the Massachusetts Light Artillery and the critical role, they played in the battle of Gettysburg. Author David H. Jones has learned the fine art of delivering a history lesson; make it personal.
History lessons tend to be a bit dry and slow, recounting places, dates, and civil war events but Jones was clever enough to build the characters of the 9th Battery BEFORE launching into the horrific battle events.
Captain Bigelow gets asked to replace the 9th Battery Captain and restore morale in the demoralized and under-trained troops. The characterization of soldiers based on actual letters and artifacts from the period, the sagging morale of the 9th, and the new fire-breathing Captain, are all expertly woven together to build a great story on historical events.
The reader gets transported back in time to feel, hear, and sense the emotions of an army light artillery group shaping up to fight in a world drawn by horses. Be prepared for an immersive experience that lets you see what life was like in seven short months before being told
“Hold at All Hazards” as the rebel troops surround your artillery group at one of the most critical battles in United States history. This book becomes an experience for the reader.
I recommend this well-written historical fiction to anyone who wants to travel back in time. Well done David H. Jones.
David H. Jones is author of a historical fiction titled Hold At All Hazards: Bigelow’s Battery At Gettysburg, July 2, 1863 to be released by Casemate Publishers in August 2021. His previous novel, Two Brothers: One North, One South told the story of the Prentiss brothers of Baltimore who chose opposite times and were mortally wounded moments and yards apart during the Breakthrough Battle at Petersburg on April 2, 1865. Years of research and discovery of two Confederate forts near Pamplin Historical Park helped create the essential authenticity of his writings. Always intrigued by history, he also spearheaded the placement of the 6th Maryland Infantry (US) monument on the Breakthrough Trail at Pamplin Historical Park and oversaw reconstruction of Prickett’s Fort (a pre-Revolutionary War refuge fort) near Fairmont, West Virginia. A graduate of Kentucky Military Institute and Babson College, a former Navy officer, entrepreneur and business executive, he currently resides in Denton County, Texas.
