The Fires of Pride

This book has a darker tone than its predecessor, and is much more violent. Picking up where Sands left off, the reader is carried along by events leading to ever greater Rebel desperation which builds until the siege of Fort Fisher finally ends. Most frustrating, from the Rebel point of view, has got to be the inexplicable Braxton Bragg. He struck me as being as much, if not more of an antagonist than the Yankees. Will Cushing's exploits are nicely told here, especially his daring raid on a Rebel ironclad and his first attack of fear when the sailors attack the fort. The author does an amazing job of making you feel like you're there, in the midst of the gunfire and carnage. No punches are pulled here, whether the scene is a surgeon's room ankle deep in gore or is a Yankee surge of bodies soaking up minie balls right outside the sandy ramparts of Fort Fisher. This is a fantastic story, and even though it's a big book, I was reluctant to finish the last page.