What do you think?
Rate this book
The Plainsmen #11
A Cold Day in Hell
After a terrible summer of blood and fire, scout Seamus Donegan finally has reason to his wife, Samantha, has given birth to his first son. But the time to celebrate new life is short . . . for the old business of death continues. Phil Sheridan has gathered his officers at Fort Laramie for a war council to prepare the winter campaign. His capture Crazy Horse, the elusive Sioux warrior chief whose exploits have put the U.S. cavalry to shame. Sending his scouts ahead—men such as Seamus Donegan and the legendary Yellowstone Kelly—Sheridan will march his armies north into the valley of the Red Fork of the Crazy Woman Creek . . . and into a battle that will prove as brutal and bitter as the killing winter winds.
Praise for Terry C. Johnston
“Johnston is an authentic American treasure.” —Loren D. Estleman, author of Edsel
“Terry C. Johnston has emerged as the great frontier historical novelist of his generation.” —Paul Andrew Hutton, author of Phil Sheridan and His Army
Praise for Terry C. Johnston
“Johnston is an authentic American treasure.” —Loren D. Estleman, author of Edsel
“Terry C. Johnston has emerged as the great frontier historical novelist of his generation.” —Paul Andrew Hutton, author of Phil Sheridan and His Army
512 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1996
17 people are currently reading
119 people want to read
About the author
Terry C. Johnston
77 books102 followers Terry C. Johnston was born January 1, 1947 in Arkansas City, Kansas.
Nineteen publishers rejected Johnston's first novel, Carry the Wind, before it was printed in 1982. However, this first novel was to gain the honor of receiving the Western Writers of America Medicine Pipe Bearer's Award for best first fiction. Johnston is known for his eye for historical detail, and he is a stickler for accuracy. He is known for traveling and exploring down known and unknown dusty roads during the hot summer months, and traversing slippery, muddy roads and hiking through snow to stand upon a historical sight that he would tell his readers in an upcoming book. "Parking in the lower lot, I trudged up the hill to reach the spot where Colonel John Gibbon's infantry waited out the last hours before their attack on the unsuspecting camp. Standing there in the icy snowstorm I was totally overwhelmed by the sight of those skeletal cones of lodgepoles standing stark against the low, gray sky . . ." Some of the sites that he would stand upon were known to the world like the Little Big Horn Battlefield and others would be obscure to the average reader like the Weippe Prairie north of Lochsa. He is known to combine "a roaring good tale with fascinating insights into the lives and times of his principal characters, generally managing to employ his extensive knowledge to enhance a story rather than intrude upon it" (Whitehead, 1991). Johnston would say that he considered himself "not a literary writer but a storyteller." His desire was to reach and teach thousands if not millions of readers about the early western frontier.
He accomplished part of this goal, not only through his books, but through discussions given to elementary children, lectures at symposiums, and historical one-week tours "during which you will re-live the grit and blood, the tears and tragedy of the great Indian Wars." He would blend historical fact with human emotion to re-create the past during his historical tours each summer. One presentation he gave to a fourth grade class was about the Plains Indian culture. He held a discussion with a Honors English class in Castle Rock middle school about "research, writing, and editing that goes into producing two historical novels each year, when compared to their "term papers." He gave keynote speeches at seminars and lectures at symposiums. He traveled all around Montana to sign books for fans, and he signed the books at the local Albertson's in each town. He held radio interviews that "took me into cities, talking before audiences, I never would have managed to reach otherwise."
Nineteen publishers rejected Johnston's first novel, Carry the Wind, before it was printed in 1982. However, this first novel was to gain the honor of receiving the Western Writers of America Medicine Pipe Bearer's Award for best first fiction. Johnston is known for his eye for historical detail, and he is a stickler for accuracy. He is known for traveling and exploring down known and unknown dusty roads during the hot summer months, and traversing slippery, muddy roads and hiking through snow to stand upon a historical sight that he would tell his readers in an upcoming book. "Parking in the lower lot, I trudged up the hill to reach the spot where Colonel John Gibbon's infantry waited out the last hours before their attack on the unsuspecting camp. Standing there in the icy snowstorm I was totally overwhelmed by the sight of those skeletal cones of lodgepoles standing stark against the low, gray sky . . ." Some of the sites that he would stand upon were known to the world like the Little Big Horn Battlefield and others would be obscure to the average reader like the Weippe Prairie north of Lochsa. He is known to combine "a roaring good tale with fascinating insights into the lives and times of his principal characters, generally managing to employ his extensive knowledge to enhance a story rather than intrude upon it" (Whitehead, 1991). Johnston would say that he considered himself "not a literary writer but a storyteller." His desire was to reach and teach thousands if not millions of readers about the early western frontier.
He accomplished part of this goal, not only through his books, but through discussions given to elementary children, lectures at symposiums, and historical one-week tours "during which you will re-live the grit and blood, the tears and tragedy of the great Indian Wars." He would blend historical fact with human emotion to re-create the past during his historical tours each summer. One presentation he gave to a fourth grade class was about the Plains Indian culture. He held a discussion with a Honors English class in Castle Rock middle school about "research, writing, and editing that goes into producing two historical novels each year, when compared to their "term papers." He gave keynote speeches at seminars and lectures at symposiums. He traveled all around Montana to sign books for fans, and he signed the books at the local Albertson's in each town. He held radio interviews that "took me into cities, talking before audiences, I never would have managed to reach otherwise."
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
June 15, 2023
Picked a new paperback copy of this up cheap not knowing it is part of "The Plainsmen" series. No problem as this was a great read. Johnson knows his history. I'll now have to start this series from the beginning.
April 18, 2021
The winter campaign of 1876 where Crook plans to push the Indians on the reservation. The Cavalry has not been fairing well with Custer, the year before, and a couple of draws. The Army needed some wins. The chief opponents were the Sioux, but they had strong allies with the Northern Cheyenne. Johnston weaves his fictional character Seamus Donegal into the script with the names of others who were in fact there. This is good historical fiction. You are there on the battlefield where the temperature the day of battle with the Northern Cheyenne topped out at 13 below zero. He covers two battles in this campaign. You are there as General Mackenzie starts to his fall. You are there when Crazy Horse refuses aid to the Northern Cheyenne and becomes an enemy to many Native Americans. You get both sides. The author intersperses his chapters with characters on both sides. He has done quality research even if it is a bit long.
December 25, 2017
I felt this was one of the better books. I liked the way it went from the soldier to the Indians views.
December 9, 2016
A dramatization of a harsh, brutal winter campaign where men are not only pitted against each other but against the elements as well. The description of the dead draped over mules and becoming frozen in that position is particularly appalling. The suffering of the horses and mules is made clear too.
But it is the relentless policy of the subjugating the Native peoples that is the crux of what the author is writing about, the inevitable destruction of a culture. Kind of apropos what with the Standing Rock demonstrations going on right now.
Johnston does a nice job of incorporating and bringing to life a number of historical personalities in his story. Frank Grouard, George Crook, Ranald McKenzie, John Bourke, Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull to name a few. Of course, the story is seen through the eyes of his main protagonist, the scout Seamus Donegan.
But it is the relentless policy of the subjugating the Native peoples that is the crux of what the author is writing about, the inevitable destruction of a culture. Kind of apropos what with the Standing Rock demonstrations going on right now.
Johnston does a nice job of incorporating and bringing to life a number of historical personalities in his story. Frank Grouard, George Crook, Ranald McKenzie, John Bourke, Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull to name a few. Of course, the story is seen through the eyes of his main protagonist, the scout Seamus Donegan.
March 23, 2014
The book that got me hooked on Terry C Johnston. It is an incredible story that is incredibly told by a master storyteller.
October 17, 2016
Like the title says a Cold Day in Hell. Plan on reviewing whole series when finished.
April 29, 2017
Well-paced and decriptive.
Also includes a cold-eyed view amid the fighting of an Army officer using the matter of appropriating a chief's horse to outman his peer before superiors; mundane human relations.
Also includes a cold-eyed view amid the fighting of an Army officer using the matter of appropriating a chief's horse to outman his peer before superiors; mundane human relations.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews