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Benjamin January #8
Dead Water
Nineteenth-century New Orleans is a blazing hotbed of scorching politics and personal vendettas. And it's into this fire that Benjamin January falls when he is hired to follow Oliver Weems, a bank official who has absconded with $100,000 in gold and securities. But it's more than just a job for January. The missing money is vital to the survival of the school for freed slaves that he and his wife Rose have founded.
Following the suspected embezzler—and the money—onto the steamboat Silver Moon, January, Rose, and their friend Hannibal Sefton are sworn to secrecy about the crime until they can find the trunks containing the stolen loot. And then the unexpected happens: Weems is found murdered and suddenly the job of finding the pirated stash grows not only more difficult—but more deadly. There is no shortage of suspects—from the sinister slave-dealer to the bullying steamship pilot to the suspiciously innocent "lady" with connections to every river pirate in the riotous port of Natchez-Under-the-Hil—who all seem to have something to hide.
Now, with time running out, January seeks clues wherever he can find them--and allies among whoever can help. Working in tandem with a young planter named Jefferson Davies, he must uncover the dark web of corruption, betrayal, and greed that has already cost one man his life...and, if he can't catch a brutal, remorseless killer, will soon cost January and his friends theirs.
Following the suspected embezzler—and the money—onto the steamboat Silver Moon, January, Rose, and their friend Hannibal Sefton are sworn to secrecy about the crime until they can find the trunks containing the stolen loot. And then the unexpected happens: Weems is found murdered and suddenly the job of finding the pirated stash grows not only more difficult—but more deadly. There is no shortage of suspects—from the sinister slave-dealer to the bullying steamship pilot to the suspiciously innocent "lady" with connections to every river pirate in the riotous port of Natchez-Under-the-Hil—who all seem to have something to hide.
Now, with time running out, January seeks clues wherever he can find them--and allies among whoever can help. Working in tandem with a young planter named Jefferson Davies, he must uncover the dark web of corruption, betrayal, and greed that has already cost one man his life...and, if he can't catch a brutal, remorseless killer, will soon cost January and his friends theirs.
416 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published August 3, 2004
33 people are currently reading
547 people want to read
About the author
Barbara Hambly
205 books1,587 followersaka Barbara Hamilton
Ranging from fantasy to historical fiction, Barbara Hambly has a masterful way of spinning a story. Her twisty plots involve memorable characters, lavish descriptions, scads of novel words, and interesting devices. Her work spans the Star Wars universe, antebellum New Orleans, and various fantasy worlds, sometimes linked with our own.
"I always wanted to be a writer but everyone kept telling me it was impossible to break into the field or make money. I've proven them wrong on both counts."
-Barbara Hambly
Ranging from fantasy to historical fiction, Barbara Hambly has a masterful way of spinning a story. Her twisty plots involve memorable characters, lavish descriptions, scads of novel words, and interesting devices. Her work spans the Star Wars universe, antebellum New Orleans, and various fantasy worlds, sometimes linked with our own.
"I always wanted to be a writer but everyone kept telling me it was impossible to break into the field or make money. I've proven them wrong on both counts."
-Barbara Hambly
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews
June 30, 2011
3.5 stars. A good entry in this captivating historical mystery series. Benjamin and Rose are on a steamboat headed up the Mississippi River investigating a theft at first, then later the requisite murder. This is one of those nice little murder mysteries in a contained environment, with a handy map of the riverboat included.
As you'd expect with Hambly, there are interesting details about river travel in the 1830's. During this off-season trip on a low river, the boat is taking passengers and cargo north, including human cargo chained to the deck between the stacks of wood needed to feed the boilers. For the sake of expediency Benjamin is posing as a slave of his frail, opiate-addicted, erudite friend Hannibal.
A young Colonel Jefferson Davis is a fellow passenger and proves helpful in the murder investigation. I wouldn't have minded this fairly subtle insertion of a famous figure so much if the author hadn't felt the need for Benjamin to observe at least twice that Davis had the makings of a good politician.
The ending would make this book a good series finale, and indeed I see that there was a six year gap before the publication of the the next one. I'm glad there are more, though!
As you'd expect with Hambly, there are interesting details about river travel in the 1830's. During this off-season trip on a low river, the boat is taking passengers and cargo north, including human cargo chained to the deck between the stacks of wood needed to feed the boilers. For the sake of expediency Benjamin is posing as a slave of his frail, opiate-addicted, erudite friend Hannibal.
A young Colonel Jefferson Davis is a fellow passenger and proves helpful in the murder investigation. I wouldn't have minded this fairly subtle insertion of a famous figure so much if the author hadn't felt the need for Benjamin to observe at least twice that Davis had the makings of a good politician.
The ending would make this book a good series finale, and indeed I see that there was a six year gap before the publication of the the next one. I'm glad there are more, though!
August 9, 2021
Okay... Sigh...
I really don't want to get into a cultural appropriation argument, but, this book is damned problematic. Should a white woman be writing a book about the racial problems of a black man? Maybe yes, maybe no, but THIS book is a massive problem, and that problem is Jefferson Davis. The book has him (you know, future president of the Confederate States of America?) as an honorable, just man, who treats black people with kindness and respect. I just can't, can't read that without thinking, what the hell is the writer doing? What is her agenda? And would a black writer ever, EVER do that? And then the afterword explains that, yes, the character was Jefferson Davis, and explicitly states that he was always kind to his slaves. That is, to me, stomach-turning. But also damned confusing, because every book in the series has driven home that slavery is always bad, now we have this? The god-father of American slavery was a nice guy, and hey, wasn't he swell to his slaves?
No. That's just grotesque. What is and isn't cultural appropriation, that's not for me to say; but having Ben January respect a man who owned black slaves and perpetuated slavery is point-blank grotesque, and I can't read these books anymore.
I really don't want to get into a cultural appropriation argument, but, this book is damned problematic. Should a white woman be writing a book about the racial problems of a black man? Maybe yes, maybe no, but THIS book is a massive problem, and that problem is Jefferson Davis. The book has him (you know, future president of the Confederate States of America?) as an honorable, just man, who treats black people with kindness and respect. I just can't, can't read that without thinking, what the hell is the writer doing? What is her agenda? And would a black writer ever, EVER do that? And then the afterword explains that, yes, the character was Jefferson Davis, and explicitly states that he was always kind to his slaves. That is, to me, stomach-turning. But also damned confusing, because every book in the series has driven home that slavery is always bad, now we have this? The god-father of American slavery was a nice guy, and hey, wasn't he swell to his slaves?
No. That's just grotesque. What is and isn't cultural appropriation, that's not for me to say; but having Ben January respect a man who owned black slaves and perpetuated slavery is point-blank grotesque, and I can't read these books anymore.
April 19, 2009
Have there really been 8 of these? I love this character and the historical setting of New Orleans and its odd race relations. I haven't read any of her fantasy. I wonder if I would like it as well.
March 15, 2010
Benjamin January and his charming wife Rose are in trouble: the bank they entrusted their savings to has been robbed, leaving them and the other investors penniless. But the president of the bank has made Benjamin an offer he can't refuse: the opportunity to hunt down the thief and recover the gold before anyone is the wiser. So Benjamin and Rose, with their opium-addicted friend Hannibal Sefton, hop on a steamboat headed upriver along with the suspect and a host of other unusual characters. But not only do they have the theft to worry about, but also slave-stealers, amorous minxes (for which Hannibal is always a target), blackmailers, and the possibility that voodooienne Queen Regine has put a curse on Ben.
A delight, as always, to dip into Hambly's detailed recreation of pre-Civil War New Orleans. My only disappointment: no Abishag Shaw! I do love that unkempt Kaintuck!
A delight, as always, to dip into Hambly's detailed recreation of pre-Civil War New Orleans. My only disappointment: no Abishag Shaw! I do love that unkempt Kaintuck!
July 26, 2016
Loved the story and the progression of the protagonist's life in these novels. The writer stays on point with her character portrait. This was a very good plot, a page turner. The last BJ novel I read was slow and kind of hard to get through. I thought maybe Miss Hambly had tapped out on her Benjamin January muse but I am glad to see she had not. Dead Water is one of my favorites to date. Kept me wanting to read more about this interesting fictional character, his family and friends. Great ending too, one that will make you definitely read the next BJ novel.
April 14, 2021
This was one of the best books in the series to date. Ben, Rose, and Hannibal become passengers on a steamboat to try and recover money stolen from their bank. Along the way, they meet with mayhem and make the acquaintance of Abolitionists and the opposite of an abolitionist, a young planter by the name of Jefferson Davis. I think this will be a foreshadowing of future books in the series as we move closer and closer to the Civil War.
September 8, 2016
The pacing of this book was really off-putting. I just couldn't get into it.
November 22, 2016
Another good read, this time set on a steamboat on the Mississippi.
December 23, 2022
Once again, I think The Other One wrote this, at least the first half. Hannibal quotes only Shakespeare, swear words are once again profligate, and the plot is more straightforward than usual. When Hambly writes, she uses obscure and indigenous words to set the tone. They were missing. In the hands of The Other One, Ben's rosary is a talisman, not an expression of actual faith. The real Hannibal quotes things I don't recognize in languages I don't know. He has three Latin quotes toward the middle of this book and nothing else. Abishag Shaw is again absent, I suspect because The Other One doesn't understand the character. Who does, though? While no other books were published the same year, she was working on The Emancipator's Wife, which published the next year, and Circle of the Moon. Again, I find no online evidence that she uses a ghost writer, but the stylistic differences are there.
The real question is if the pattern repeats with the next two books - she writes, then The Other One - will I continue to read them? I love Ben because he is a hero, a man of principle and hope, even when the world beats him down. The Other One too often gives in to anger in the prose, anger that reads from the author, not the character. It removes the objectivity that drew me to Ben January. Yes, he has a lot to be angry about, but he doesn't waste time on it. He lives in spite of it and he does the right thing never expecting accolades. The Other One is a good writer, but I don't like the feeling that I'm being lied to.
The real question is if the pattern repeats with the next two books - she writes, then The Other One - will I continue to read them? I love Ben because he is a hero, a man of principle and hope, even when the world beats him down. The Other One too often gives in to anger in the prose, anger that reads from the author, not the character. It removes the objectivity that drew me to Ben January. Yes, he has a lot to be angry about, but he doesn't waste time on it. He lives in spite of it and he does the right thing never expecting accolades. The Other One is a good writer, but I don't like the feeling that I'm being lied to.
January 12, 2025
In many ways this novel could've been a good wrap to the Ben Janvier series, which went on a hiatus for 6 years after this one. The end of the novel would make a series conclusion feel apt. As a lover of Herman Melville's *Confidence-Man*, it was fun to see that novel's influence on the steamboat setting & characters of this mystery.
However, as other reviewers have noted, Hambly's insistence on celebrating Jeff Davis as a 'good' slaveholder is distasteful. In one way, Hambly seems to insist on this lionizing out of a desire to complicate her representations of slavery, which is understandable, and I do think Hambly's prior novels in this series *Sold down the River* & *Days of the Dead* offer interesting portrayals of slavery, confinement, & other forms of coercive labor. In another way though, Hambly's choice just is a risk that historical fiction & historical mysteries always run of romanticizing & fetishizing the past, & it's a risk that the Janvier series cannot escape where almost every entry has Janvier improbably going undercover as a slave yet always escaping permeant enslavement.
However, as other reviewers have noted, Hambly's insistence on celebrating Jeff Davis as a 'good' slaveholder is distasteful. In one way, Hambly seems to insist on this lionizing out of a desire to complicate her representations of slavery, which is understandable, and I do think Hambly's prior novels in this series *Sold down the River* & *Days of the Dead* offer interesting portrayals of slavery, confinement, & other forms of coercive labor. In another way though, Hambly's choice just is a risk that historical fiction & historical mysteries always run of romanticizing & fetishizing the past, & it's a risk that the Janvier series cannot escape where almost every entry has Janvier improbably going undercover as a slave yet always escaping permeant enslavement.
May 8, 2019
This was an excellent mystery with several surprising twists. I find that I am always frightened for Jaanuary, who, though he is a free man, is always in danger from unscrupulous men who want to sell him into slavery. The author certainly conveys the horrors of slavery. As a young child, I read slanted history about this institution. It is unpleasant to read the truth, even in a work of fiction.
May 17, 2021
The Benjamin January series has become an old faithful for me. This was a good one, and could have been a solid series ender. Happily, 5 years after this was published, Hambly picked up the series again, so I have more to look forward to.
This time, January and Rose take on bank thieves and find themselves crossing paths with travellers on the Underground Railroad. It was interesting, and the characters were as well developed as ever.
I liked it.
This time, January and Rose take on bank thieves and find themselves crossing paths with travellers on the Underground Railroad. It was interesting, and the characters were as well developed as ever.
I liked it.
October 7, 2021
This was an odd sort of book. I had big problems with the basic premise, that a bank is robbed in 1836 New Orleans and the bank manager hires Ben, a black man in pre-civil war America, to follow the money up the Mississippi on a riverboat to get it back. That strikes me as ludicrous. But the story itself is excellent and the final solution is elegant, so I just enjoyed the story and ignored the premise as best I could.
May 11, 2020
While this series as a whole has been a favorite, this one stands out. At first, the trip upriver on a steamboat with Hannibal posing as Ben's master felt pretty familiar (though with Rose along this time), but as it turned out, the plot was twisty and turn-y and the mystery's solution was absolutely perfect.
December 12, 2021
I like the Benjamin January books. The story telling is great and the characters are real people.
But this one was, I felt, unnecessarily convoluted. I think it could have reached the same conclusion without all the side trips. On the other hand, I like a straight forward story without a lot of side stories. Just me.
But this one was, I felt, unnecessarily convoluted. I think it could have reached the same conclusion without all the side trips. On the other hand, I like a straight forward story without a lot of side stories. Just me.
January 22, 2023
An exciting adventure. I loved the riverboat setting and the way January had to pretend to be Hannibal’s slave, while investigating the theft.
There was a level of confusion, with so many differing characters with unknown motives, but everything worked out very satisfactorily in the end.
There was a level of confusion, with so many differing characters with unknown motives, but everything worked out very satisfactorily in the end.
May 8, 2017
Fast-paced and gripping. I loved the plot's structure and the way Hambly used the book's setting, and as always I adore the relationship between the lead characters.
June 15, 2017
It seemed that the plot was harder to follow than in her previous novels.
June 10, 2018
Love the steamboat setting. The mystery is just as tangled up as usual but I think it worked pretty well Ony lost track of a couple of characters which is pretty amazing for this series.
July 26, 2019
4.5 stars
Read
August 4, 2021Barbara Hambly loves to make Hannibal suffer and I for one applaud this decision
July 7, 2024
This series is an essential part of reading United States history. Barbara Hambly weaves in real history (as someone who reads a lot of North American history) into these very entertaining stories.
These books illustrate a depth to the presence of slavery (in the South & outwards) in the mid-19th Century. The period between the War of 1812 & the Civil War is underrepresented in most discussions of United State History.
Memorable characters, nice complex story lines.
These books illustrate a depth to the presence of slavery (in the South & outwards) in the mid-19th Century. The period between the War of 1812 & the Civil War is underrepresented in most discussions of United State History.
Memorable characters, nice complex story lines.
April 18, 2021
Okay, this absolutely my last Ben January. I keep thinking they’re going to get better.but they don’t.
December 27, 2012
I have enjoyed Hambly’s books since reading her vampire work Those that Hunt the Night years ago, and picked this up because I enjoy Civil War period books. I was not disappointed. This book kept my attention from the very first page. The cast of characters was so well drawn they seemed like real people, and the book more of play I was watching than a novel, because I could imagine it so effortlessly.
I was unsure at first if I was going to identify with January as a protagonist, having never read any of the previous books in this series, which is not supernatural other than references to voodoo. But I entered into the story with no problem understanding his previous history with the “catch up” provided by the author in the first chapter. January is a likable character: an educated man who while qualified as a doctor can’t find many people who will accept his services due to his color. He was smart, savvy, daring, and extremely likable while being responsible, loyal, and honorable, traits that aren’t often found in a protagonist without a rash of one liners, or some other tendency to trip themselves up. In every situation, he always acted with reason, and he learned from his mistakes, something I liked very much. Rose, his wife, was also likable, very smart, and their interplay made me smile. Colonel Davis, Hannibal, Cain, and the others that helped January in his quest were all excellent, though my favorite was Hannibal, whose sense of humor was amusing, especially in quoting Latin in the face of several death threats.
The plot was excellently drawn, and I confess to being always one step behind in my calculations of where the money was, and who was murdering people on the boat. When everything was revealed, I wanted to applaud! Everything was explained, and fit together perfectly like the intricate puzzle it was, and yet nothing felt contrived, forced, or anything but realistic. I really liked the ending, except it left me wanting to read the next book! I also confess to having completely missed that Coronel Davis was THE Jefferson Davis, though the appendix by the author explaining a little of the history of steamboats and Davis finally clued me in.
Overall opinion: The best historical mystery I have read in years!
I was unsure at first if I was going to identify with January as a protagonist, having never read any of the previous books in this series, which is not supernatural other than references to voodoo. But I entered into the story with no problem understanding his previous history with the “catch up” provided by the author in the first chapter. January is a likable character: an educated man who while qualified as a doctor can’t find many people who will accept his services due to his color. He was smart, savvy, daring, and extremely likable while being responsible, loyal, and honorable, traits that aren’t often found in a protagonist without a rash of one liners, or some other tendency to trip themselves up. In every situation, he always acted with reason, and he learned from his mistakes, something I liked very much. Rose, his wife, was also likable, very smart, and their interplay made me smile. Colonel Davis, Hannibal, Cain, and the others that helped January in his quest were all excellent, though my favorite was Hannibal, whose sense of humor was amusing, especially in quoting Latin in the face of several death threats.
The plot was excellently drawn, and I confess to being always one step behind in my calculations of where the money was, and who was murdering people on the boat. When everything was revealed, I wanted to applaud! Everything was explained, and fit together perfectly like the intricate puzzle it was, and yet nothing felt contrived, forced, or anything but realistic. I really liked the ending, except it left me wanting to read the next book! I also confess to having completely missed that Coronel Davis was THE Jefferson Davis, though the appendix by the author explaining a little of the history of steamboats and Davis finally clued me in.
Overall opinion: The best historical mystery I have read in years!
March 21, 2010
This is the most recent in Hambly series of historical mysteries featuring a free black guy in New Orleans in the early 19th century. I enjoy the books a lot, but we're at the point where the series is being stretched a little thin. Oh, and this book features something that makes my Top Ten Annoying Things That Can Happen in Novels list. There's one recurring character who is living among the dregs of society in New Orleans, but who originally came from an upper class background back in Europe. How he got from point A to point B has yet to be revealed (I suspect it will be a book of its own eventually). Throughout the series, one of the markers that demonstrates his uppercrust education is that he will quote Shakespeare and classical sources. In this book, which I think is about the 7th in the series, every time the character speaks he starts off with some pithy reference to Hamlet or whatever. It's on EVERY PAGE. Okay, we get that he has a classical education! Anyway, in this book, Benjamin January and his cohort need to solve a bank robbery and follow the thief up the Mississippi as passengers on a river boat, January posing as the slave of the aforementioned Quotation Guy. Lots of keen information about riverboats, including all the domestic details about say, what one would eat for dinner. Always love that.
Grade: B-
Recommended: I continue to recommend this series to anyone who likes historical mysteries, but with the caveat that they're the kind where the main characters cross paths with actual famous historical people, to the point where it's a little coincidental that they would encounter quite so many. I know a lot of people find that annoying and distracting. Very quick reads, and the crimes are serious but for the most part, not described in gory graphic detail, which I add for people like me who are easily squicked out. They're not sanitized, but not salacious either.
Grade: B-
Recommended: I continue to recommend this series to anyone who likes historical mysteries, but with the caveat that they're the kind where the main characters cross paths with actual famous historical people, to the point where it's a little coincidental that they would encounter quite so many. I know a lot of people find that annoying and distracting. Very quick reads, and the crimes are serious but for the most part, not described in gory graphic detail, which I add for people like me who are easily squicked out. They're not sanitized, but not salacious either.
July 1, 2022
Dead Water
Things are looking good for Rose and January, they have bit of breathing room form the treasure they found, a house, if a bit tattered at the edges and students for Rose’ school. Then the news comes and it is not good.
Their money and most of the rest has been stolen from the Bank of Louisiana an if they don’t get it back everything they worked for will go up in smoke. But there’s a problem, to find their money and get the bank’s funds back, they’ll have to go up river into slave country.
Little bespectacled Rose is fairly safe, not strong enough for field work and blind slaves don’t bring much on the market, even if they can be made to see with glasses. Ben is another case completely. Big and strong there are many who will see him as a field hand sent for God straight to their pocketbook.
To be as safe as he can be, January enlists the aid of his fiddler pal Hannibal, to act as his owner and this settled the trio head up river and into danger.
Barbara Hambly creates a rich world full of intimate knowledge about the river, steamboats, slavery and for extra flavor, lying, thieving, murder and mystery all get stirred into this jumbo.
Watch for a future leader to make a neat cameo and of course the details of steamboat travel are juicy enough for any historian.
And the rituals and traditions of burial in a land where digging graves cannot happen will fascinate those who do not know about the secrets of New Orleans funerals.
This is a delightful entry into a consistently superior series and leaves the reader thirsting for the next chapter.
You can’t go wrong with January so settle back and turn the lights down low and let the heat and the humidity of New Orleans before the war send you off on a grand adventure.
Things are looking good for Rose and January, they have bit of breathing room form the treasure they found, a house, if a bit tattered at the edges and students for Rose’ school. Then the news comes and it is not good.
Their money and most of the rest has been stolen from the Bank of Louisiana an if they don’t get it back everything they worked for will go up in smoke. But there’s a problem, to find their money and get the bank’s funds back, they’ll have to go up river into slave country.
Little bespectacled Rose is fairly safe, not strong enough for field work and blind slaves don’t bring much on the market, even if they can be made to see with glasses. Ben is another case completely. Big and strong there are many who will see him as a field hand sent for God straight to their pocketbook.
To be as safe as he can be, January enlists the aid of his fiddler pal Hannibal, to act as his owner and this settled the trio head up river and into danger.
Barbara Hambly creates a rich world full of intimate knowledge about the river, steamboats, slavery and for extra flavor, lying, thieving, murder and mystery all get stirred into this jumbo.
Watch for a future leader to make a neat cameo and of course the details of steamboat travel are juicy enough for any historian.
And the rituals and traditions of burial in a land where digging graves cannot happen will fascinate those who do not know about the secrets of New Orleans funerals.
This is a delightful entry into a consistently superior series and leaves the reader thirsting for the next chapter.
You can’t go wrong with January so settle back and turn the lights down low and let the heat and the humidity of New Orleans before the war send you off on a grand adventure.
June 24, 2024
I read the next two books in this series, and am thrilled to report Barbara Hambly has hit her stride! Books #7 and #8 are skillfully plotted and fast-paced while still including fascinating historical elements and insight. Book #7 took Benjamin January, Rose and Hannibal out of New Orleans and into post-colonial Mexico of the General Santa Anna era (who remembers the Alamo?) We get a peek into the deeply divided world of Mexico City, with its strict social hierarchies and its own struggles with race, class and culture, plus a cool dose of pre-Columbian mythology. Book #8 brought us back to New Orleans where a nefarious bank heist lands our heroes in the locked-room setting of a Mississippi River steamboat.
These books absolutely nail the balance of plot, character development and history. Hambly never lets the horrors and lasting trauma of slavery drop off the radar, even as she adds complications and complexity, such as Ben's deeply colorist mother who herself owns slaves, or the guest appearance of a young Jefferson Davis in Book #8, who comes across more positively than the general historical record allows.
While it'd be hard to jump into the series at this point, I think dabblers could easily read #2 and then skip to #5 to hit the high point of the past four books. Very much looking forward to Book #9!
These books absolutely nail the balance of plot, character development and history. Hambly never lets the horrors and lasting trauma of slavery drop off the radar, even as she adds complications and complexity, such as Ben's deeply colorist mother who herself owns slaves, or the guest appearance of a young Jefferson Davis in Book #8, who comes across more positively than the general historical record allows.
While it'd be hard to jump into the series at this point, I think dabblers could easily read #2 and then skip to #5 to hit the high point of the past four books. Very much looking forward to Book #9!
September 11, 2011
Much improved over Days of the Dead. Thank goodness that side trip to Mexico is over and we can get back to concentrating on Benjamin and Rose. This time out the couple, with their fiddler friend Hannibal(much less annoying here than in Days of The Dead), board a steamboat in search of an embezzler. Much like an Agatha Christie novel, many characters are introduced, all whom seem to have secrets to keep. The fun is trying to figure out which secrets pertain to the embezzled cash and a related murder. Once again the historical detail is impeccable and the writing makes the reader feel as if they are on the steamboat with the characters. Lots of well drawn supporting characters make this one of the better of the series and much more enjoyable than the terrible trek to Mexico in the book before it.
May 12, 2017
This is the first of the Benjamin January books that I have read, but it won't be the last.
Set in 1830s New Orleans (a period I am studying), the book involves free man of color January being hired by the Bank of Louisiana to find the gold that one of its officers has embezzled.
This is a dangerous proposition for January and his wife, Rose, because they have to get on a steamship that is leaving New Orleans and headed to parts of the country where there are no free blacks to speak of.
Hambly's historical detail and storycraft are impeccable; she keeps you involved at every turn of the page. Everyone has something to hide, and sometimes the apparent heroes turn out to be villains.
I enjoyed this book a great deal and will seek out more of the series.
Set in 1830s New Orleans (a period I am studying), the book involves free man of color January being hired by the Bank of Louisiana to find the gold that one of its officers has embezzled.
This is a dangerous proposition for January and his wife, Rose, because they have to get on a steamship that is leaving New Orleans and headed to parts of the country where there are no free blacks to speak of.
Hambly's historical detail and storycraft are impeccable; she keeps you involved at every turn of the page. Everyone has something to hide, and sometimes the apparent heroes turn out to be villains.
I enjoyed this book a great deal and will seek out more of the series.
June 25, 2012
Hambly finally cannot resist the temptation to have her main character rub elbows with a major historical figure. She even has January save the person’s life, ensuring history will plod on as written, rather than taking any sort of dramatic left turn.
It’s an exciting riverboat adventure involving stolen gold (and lots of it), river pirates, the Underground Railroad, slave stealers, and even a dueling match, but I wasn’t quite as sucked in as I was with earlier adventures – for some reason this cast of characters never really gelled with me. Less main character might have been better.
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