The Scarlet Patch

by Bruce Lancaster

Death-Swift, sudden and violent De Merac watched his two guards, waiting for the chance to break free. One of the men suddenly prodded the mare with his bayonet. She wheeled with a whinny of pain and clamped her jaw about the guard's face. There was a horrible, strangling gound and the man was a limp gray sack, shaken and tossed by the crazed animal. The second guard dropped his saber and screeched in terror. Acting quickly, De Merac picked up the fallen saber and looseed a savage back-handler at the soldier who fell coughing and clawing. Then he sprang into the saddle, quirted the mare and charged back to the bloody hell of the battlefield... Here is the cruelty and the glory... the intrigue and the heroism of the most vicious war America ever fought. Here is the story of Jean de Merac who fought his way along the savage path that led from Bull Run to Gettsburg-to a war-torn city and the love he had searched a lifetime for.

477 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 1977

About the author

Bruce Lancaster was born in Worcester, Massachusetts on August 22, 1896. He served in the U.S. Army along the Mexican border in 1916 and later in France. After the war he returned to school and received a B.A. from Harvard in 1918. He worked in administration and sales for nine years, after which he served in the U.S. Foreign Service as Vice-Consul to Kobe, Japan (1928-1932). Following his return to the United States he became assistant secretary to the board of governors of the Society of New York Hospitals, and began to write the novels which would make him famous. Most of his works are historical novels, including Guns of Burgoyne, Trumpet to Arms, and Blind Journey. He has also written historical non-fiction, such as From Lexington to Liberty (1955).

Reviews

[Frannie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good Revolutionary War story. No sex, no mush, and as minimal violence and bad language. This is not a romance in the true sense of the word . . . it is a "war story" with romance as a sidebar.