Cornwell, Bernard. Rebel. NY: Harper Collins, 1993. 416 pages. (Historical Fiction)
Rebel is the first of the four book Starbuck Chronicles by Bernard Cornwell. The books are set in the American Civil War and follow a rebellious young Nathaniel Starbuck. Nate, runs away from his well-to-do family in the North following a scandalous relationship with a French actress, and finds himself in the center of Richmond after the fall of Fort Sumter. He seeks the help of a friend’s father who owns an entire county in Virginia. The man is Washington Faulconer, and he is raising his own legion of southern men to go and fight the Yankees. Nate Starbuck is enlisted and appointed as one of Faulconer’s aids. It seems like Nate is just joining with southern forces to spite his abolitionist, preacher father. After a long time of preparing and training on both sides, battle finally breaks out in the battle of Bull Run, also referred to as the battle of Manassas Junction. The battles have vivid, realistic description. You can almost see it all happening right in front of you. The book also seems pretty accurate based on what I have researched about this time period. There are some historical characters that make appearances throughout the book.
Rebel is the first of the four book Starbuck Chronicles by Bernard Cornwell. The books are set in the American Civil War and follow a rebellious young Nathaniel Starbuck. Nate, runs away from his well-to-do family in the North following a scandalous relationship with a French actress, and finds himself in the center of Richmond after the fall of Fort Sumter. He seeks the help of a friend’s father who owns an entire county in Virginia. The man is Washington Faulconer, and he is raising his own legion of southern men to go and fight the Yankees. Nate Starbuck is enlisted and appointed as one of Faulconer’s aids. It seems like Nate is just joining with southern forces to spite his abolitionist, preacher father. After a long time of preparing and training on both sides, battle finally breaks out in the battle of Bull Run, also referred to as the battle of Manassas Junction. The battles have vivid, realistic description. You can almost see it all happening right in front of you. The book also seems pretty accurate based on what I have researched about this time period. There are some historical characters that make appearances throughout the book.
Read through as Nate leads the Faulconer Legion through the carnage of battle. I thought that this was a terrific example of Civil War historical fiction. Cornwell tells a captivating story full of adventure and attitude. I particularly enjoyed the portrayal of the turmoil that occurred during the period of time before the first battle. It is also interesting how Nate grows as a character throughout the novel. He is not someone that I could really relate to in the beginning because he seemed like a spoiled brat who never really thought things through. I will definitely be looking for the three other books in the series to see how Nate develops.
Reviewed by: SuperReader22
Reviewed by: SuperReader22
