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Matt Hawkins #2
Abolition of Evil
They are the richest family in America that nobody has ever heard of, with a net worth of over $100 billion. Their privately held company has secretly been shaping public opinion and influencing elections for decades—and eliminating politicians who stand in their way. They are finally on the verge of achieving their lifelong goal: a covert takeover of the United States government. But the potential revelation of a centuries-old family secret threatens to sabotage their subversive plans.
Meanwhile, Matt Hawkins discovers lost field notes written by Meriwether Lewis during the historic Lewis and Clark Expedition. In them, Lewis claims a seemingly impossible discovery. Hawkins follows a trail of clues—from the Spanish conquistadors to a legendary tribe of invincible black Indians to the hallowed halls of Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello. His pursuit of the truth leads him out of the past and headlong into the center of a modern-day political conspiracy—whose outcome just might determine the fate of America’s democracy.
Meanwhile, Matt Hawkins discovers lost field notes written by Meriwether Lewis during the historic Lewis and Clark Expedition. In them, Lewis claims a seemingly impossible discovery. Hawkins follows a trail of clues—from the Spanish conquistadors to a legendary tribe of invincible black Indians to the hallowed halls of Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello. His pursuit of the truth leads him out of the past and headlong into the center of a modern-day political conspiracy—whose outcome just might determine the fate of America’s democracy.
- GenresHistorical Fiction
321 pages, Paperback
Published June 27, 2016
78 people are currently reading
331 people want to read
About the author
Ted Richardson
5 books17 followersFollow the author at: www.facebook.com/AuthorTedRichardson
Ted’s fascination with American history was planted in his early childhood. He grew up the youngest of five children in a New England family with roots that literally dated back to the Mayflower’s arrival in 1620. His mother’s side of the family (at least that’s how the story goes) can be traced to a man named William Brewster who arrived on the Mayflower and became the senior elder of the original colony and an advisor to the first Governor William Bradford.
With five children and a limited budget, Richardson family vacations usually involved piling into the family’s ’67 Ambassador Wagon and hitting the road. Destinations had to be no more than six hours away—because any longer than that and all hell would break loose in the back seat! If you took a compass and drew a six-hour radius from Ted’s childhood home, it would cover an area from Maine to Virginia – which included most of the places that gave birth to our country. The family traveled north to places like Sturbridge Village, Plymouth Plantation, and Lexington and Concord—where the ‘first shot heard around the world’ was fired. Traveling south, they visited Colonial Williamsburg, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. As you might imagine, it didn’t take Ted long to become hooked on American history.
Fast forward a few decades. After more than twenty-five years as a business professional, Ted finally parlayed his fascination with American history and love of a good mystery into writing his own works of fiction. Geronimo’s Gold is the third installment in the Matt Hawkins historical mystery series. His first novel, Imposters of Patriotism was released in June 2014 to enthusiastic reviews. Abolition of Evil followed in June 2016.
Ted’s fascination with American history was planted in his early childhood. He grew up the youngest of five children in a New England family with roots that literally dated back to the Mayflower’s arrival in 1620. His mother’s side of the family (at least that’s how the story goes) can be traced to a man named William Brewster who arrived on the Mayflower and became the senior elder of the original colony and an advisor to the first Governor William Bradford.
With five children and a limited budget, Richardson family vacations usually involved piling into the family’s ’67 Ambassador Wagon and hitting the road. Destinations had to be no more than six hours away—because any longer than that and all hell would break loose in the back seat! If you took a compass and drew a six-hour radius from Ted’s childhood home, it would cover an area from Maine to Virginia – which included most of the places that gave birth to our country. The family traveled north to places like Sturbridge Village, Plymouth Plantation, and Lexington and Concord—where the ‘first shot heard around the world’ was fired. Traveling south, they visited Colonial Williamsburg, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. As you might imagine, it didn’t take Ted long to become hooked on American history.
Fast forward a few decades. After more than twenty-five years as a business professional, Ted finally parlayed his fascination with American history and love of a good mystery into writing his own works of fiction. Geronimo’s Gold is the third installment in the Matt Hawkins historical mystery series. His first novel, Imposters of Patriotism was released in June 2014 to enthusiastic reviews. Abolition of Evil followed in June 2016.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 22, 2016
The historical part of this novel is the most important impetus of the thrilling side of it.
First the question of black Conquistadors is not a real problem since the Spaniards arrived from Spain with black slaves integrated in their administration and military forces even at high levels of responsibility. Those slaves were from the Mali empire of the 15th century, a Muslim empire that kept the majority of the population out of Islam and sold them regularly as slaves to Northern African Muslim countries and later, when the Portuguese and Spaniards arrived, to the Spaniards. These slaves were slaves in Spain. They were Christianized, educated and integrated in society, in fact in some big aristocratic or military families as administrators or officers. They accepted their lot easily since the choice was between that type of slavery and the slavery they would endure in Northern African Islamic countries where they would be banned from Islam and kept down at very low levels of responsibility, if not castrated level to the abdomen on their passage from Mali to Libya with at least a 50% chance to die. These domestic or military moved to the Americas along with their owners. Cortez had his own Spanish Black slaves. These slaves were married and may have had families of their own.
This first introduction of slavery in the Americas was to be soon followed by the Transatlantic slave trade. But these slaves will be brought under the strict rule of the Spanish Catholic Church and the Inquisition, not to mention the Spanish Crown of course. The three agreed on several elements. The black slaves had to be Christianized. They had to be married, and they were married to the Mexican women who survived the slaughter of Mexican men in Mexico very systematically. They had to be guaranteed by their owners one full day of matrimonial duties every week, no matter what. And they had to be provided with proper conditions to take part in the religious rites, masses, and the festivities of the church like Nativity, Passion and Assumption, plus some other less important celebrations. They also had to be provided with a special consecrated piece of land for their dead to be buried. That had no equivalent with what Protestants and first of all the English did in America.
Thus Black Conquistadors are not at all surprising. That some of these black conquistadors may have gathered around them slaves trying to escape the haciendas, farms or whatever other activities, especially from the English territories, is not surprising. That they integrated the Indian tribes is not surprising either since we know for one that escaping slaves in Florida and other territories were welcomed by Indian tribes because of the skills they had learned when slaves. They were at once married in the tribe. They were called maroons. So it is perfectly plausible, even if fictional, that a whole group of several hundred black people could have regrouped somewhere in America, in Indian territory, and adopted some Indian mode of living. They were probably well trained in military arts and probably equipped with rifles and the technology to produce ammunitions, or connections to buy them.
This integration of black slaves in Indian society is well known and today with DNA we could know the exact proportion. We know it is high though no systematic study has been done. YET. And now American citizens can declare two ethnic origins more and more people declare themselves with Indian and black ancestry, or any other combination.
The second element, and this one will surprise you, is the fate of this hypothetical black tribe in Montana. It was exterminated by US military forces, apparently artillery, on the order from Thomas Jefferson, one of the Founding Fathers and the third President of the USA. This might be a surprise even if many details about Jefferson are perfectly correct and attested. Jefferson was a slave owner and as such did not give the blacks much value, except ancillary. But would he have ordered a complete genocide of this black tribe is very surprising though of course hundreds of black slaves died every week in the USA from all kinds of violence not to speak of the systematic use of girls and women but also boys and men as tools for reproduction as for females and pleasure at times sadistic as for males. That makes such a possible genocidal action quite possible after all and the Founding Fathers were no saints, far from it and by “men” they meant exclusively “white men” even if some might have thought, in the deep back of their minds, that women and colored people, blacks and Indians, might also be human beings, but that was not the dominant position and the Indian genocide all along the 19th century, then the cultural Indian genocide all along most of the 20th century could be considered in phase with this extermination of a few black Indians who could be blocking one economic trail that had become crucial and strategic to the USA.
But that is only the wrapping up of the story. The story itself is a thriller connected to old historical events and particularly the Lewis and Clark Trail that is well known of all Americans. It also deals with the Blackfeet reservation in Montana, and this one is also well known. Montana and the Dakotas are important today for Indian culture especially with the building of the Crazy Horse Memorial in South Dakota, next door to the Shrine of Democracy and along with an enormous Indian Cultural Center and Indian University. But the thriller concerns a present time triplet of brothers, one being cast away by the other two.
The two dominant brothers are businessmen who have kept their business non-public, meaning not quoted in the Stock Exchange and thus invisible to the public and mostly invisible to other services. But these two brothers, these two economic tycoons have political ambition and they want to “give America back” to those who deserve to have it, that is to say the financiers, the industrialists, the business people who have made America great. You can of course see some allusion to the situation in the USA when the book came out some time before the presidential election. Unluckily on that point the book is wrong. The FBI did not hassle the business candidate. And the business candidate did not have to use assassinations and other shady manipulations to get to his goal.
That’s where the book is short. It is a lot easier today to use social networks to build discontentment into protest votes especially when on the other side the opponent cannot use these same social networks and does not have the necessary connections with influential shadowy groups who can amplify the campaign. Let me be clear: Trump is the first president who was elected thanks to social networks articulated on the deep discontentment of many people who had not seen their hopeful expectations be fulfilled. Social networks plus frustration is the winning ticket in today’s democracies. It won in Great Britain. It won in the USA. Luckily it failed in Hungary and it failed in Austria. But it won in Italy though it failed in Spain and is failing in Greece. And the next stops are France and Germany. The author seems to be under the illusion that the New York Times is the acme of information, revelation and political consciousness. He has it wrong. Today that role is fulfilled by social networks. Facebook is billions of times more effective than the New York Times, even if in New York it is only millions of times.
But apart from this shortcoming, the book is interesting and even rather thrilling, though I do not like the TV technique of “Two days earlier,” in other words flashbacks. They work very well on TV but not so well in a book.
Dr. Jacques COULARDEAU
First the question of black Conquistadors is not a real problem since the Spaniards arrived from Spain with black slaves integrated in their administration and military forces even at high levels of responsibility. Those slaves were from the Mali empire of the 15th century, a Muslim empire that kept the majority of the population out of Islam and sold them regularly as slaves to Northern African Muslim countries and later, when the Portuguese and Spaniards arrived, to the Spaniards. These slaves were slaves in Spain. They were Christianized, educated and integrated in society, in fact in some big aristocratic or military families as administrators or officers. They accepted their lot easily since the choice was between that type of slavery and the slavery they would endure in Northern African Islamic countries where they would be banned from Islam and kept down at very low levels of responsibility, if not castrated level to the abdomen on their passage from Mali to Libya with at least a 50% chance to die. These domestic or military moved to the Americas along with their owners. Cortez had his own Spanish Black slaves. These slaves were married and may have had families of their own.
This first introduction of slavery in the Americas was to be soon followed by the Transatlantic slave trade. But these slaves will be brought under the strict rule of the Spanish Catholic Church and the Inquisition, not to mention the Spanish Crown of course. The three agreed on several elements. The black slaves had to be Christianized. They had to be married, and they were married to the Mexican women who survived the slaughter of Mexican men in Mexico very systematically. They had to be guaranteed by their owners one full day of matrimonial duties every week, no matter what. And they had to be provided with proper conditions to take part in the religious rites, masses, and the festivities of the church like Nativity, Passion and Assumption, plus some other less important celebrations. They also had to be provided with a special consecrated piece of land for their dead to be buried. That had no equivalent with what Protestants and first of all the English did in America.
Thus Black Conquistadors are not at all surprising. That some of these black conquistadors may have gathered around them slaves trying to escape the haciendas, farms or whatever other activities, especially from the English territories, is not surprising. That they integrated the Indian tribes is not surprising either since we know for one that escaping slaves in Florida and other territories were welcomed by Indian tribes because of the skills they had learned when slaves. They were at once married in the tribe. They were called maroons. So it is perfectly plausible, even if fictional, that a whole group of several hundred black people could have regrouped somewhere in America, in Indian territory, and adopted some Indian mode of living. They were probably well trained in military arts and probably equipped with rifles and the technology to produce ammunitions, or connections to buy them.
This integration of black slaves in Indian society is well known and today with DNA we could know the exact proportion. We know it is high though no systematic study has been done. YET. And now American citizens can declare two ethnic origins more and more people declare themselves with Indian and black ancestry, or any other combination.
The second element, and this one will surprise you, is the fate of this hypothetical black tribe in Montana. It was exterminated by US military forces, apparently artillery, on the order from Thomas Jefferson, one of the Founding Fathers and the third President of the USA. This might be a surprise even if many details about Jefferson are perfectly correct and attested. Jefferson was a slave owner and as such did not give the blacks much value, except ancillary. But would he have ordered a complete genocide of this black tribe is very surprising though of course hundreds of black slaves died every week in the USA from all kinds of violence not to speak of the systematic use of girls and women but also boys and men as tools for reproduction as for females and pleasure at times sadistic as for males. That makes such a possible genocidal action quite possible after all and the Founding Fathers were no saints, far from it and by “men” they meant exclusively “white men” even if some might have thought, in the deep back of their minds, that women and colored people, blacks and Indians, might also be human beings, but that was not the dominant position and the Indian genocide all along the 19th century, then the cultural Indian genocide all along most of the 20th century could be considered in phase with this extermination of a few black Indians who could be blocking one economic trail that had become crucial and strategic to the USA.
But that is only the wrapping up of the story. The story itself is a thriller connected to old historical events and particularly the Lewis and Clark Trail that is well known of all Americans. It also deals with the Blackfeet reservation in Montana, and this one is also well known. Montana and the Dakotas are important today for Indian culture especially with the building of the Crazy Horse Memorial in South Dakota, next door to the Shrine of Democracy and along with an enormous Indian Cultural Center and Indian University. But the thriller concerns a present time triplet of brothers, one being cast away by the other two.
The two dominant brothers are businessmen who have kept their business non-public, meaning not quoted in the Stock Exchange and thus invisible to the public and mostly invisible to other services. But these two brothers, these two economic tycoons have political ambition and they want to “give America back” to those who deserve to have it, that is to say the financiers, the industrialists, the business people who have made America great. You can of course see some allusion to the situation in the USA when the book came out some time before the presidential election. Unluckily on that point the book is wrong. The FBI did not hassle the business candidate. And the business candidate did not have to use assassinations and other shady manipulations to get to his goal.
That’s where the book is short. It is a lot easier today to use social networks to build discontentment into protest votes especially when on the other side the opponent cannot use these same social networks and does not have the necessary connections with influential shadowy groups who can amplify the campaign. Let me be clear: Trump is the first president who was elected thanks to social networks articulated on the deep discontentment of many people who had not seen their hopeful expectations be fulfilled. Social networks plus frustration is the winning ticket in today’s democracies. It won in Great Britain. It won in the USA. Luckily it failed in Hungary and it failed in Austria. But it won in Italy though it failed in Spain and is failing in Greece. And the next stops are France and Germany. The author seems to be under the illusion that the New York Times is the acme of information, revelation and political consciousness. He has it wrong. Today that role is fulfilled by social networks. Facebook is billions of times more effective than the New York Times, even if in New York it is only millions of times.
But apart from this shortcoming, the book is interesting and even rather thrilling, though I do not like the TV technique of “Two days earlier,” in other words flashbacks. They work very well on TV but not so well in a book.
Dr. Jacques COULARDEAU
August 16, 2017
Abolition of Evil by Ted Richardson Review
History at its finest!
They are the richest family in America that nobody has ever heard of, with a net worth of over $100 billion. Their privately held company has secretly been shaping public opinion and influencing elections for decades—and eliminating politicians who stand in their way. They are finally on the verge of achieving their lifelong goal: a covert takeover of the United States government. But the potential revelation of a centuries-old family secret threatens to sabotage their subversive plans. Meanwhile, Matt Hawkins discovers lost field notes written by Meriwether Lewis during the historic Lewis and Clark Expedition. In them, Lewis claims a seemingly impossible discovery. Hawkins follows a trail of clues—from the Spanish conquistadors to a legendary tribe of invincible black Indians to the hallowed halls of Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello. His pursuit of the truth leads him out of the past and headlong into the center of a modern-day political conspiracy—whose outcome just might determine the fate of America’s democracy.
What did I like? I just came back from New York state after an extended stay and I visited so many historical sites that I will never be able to name them all. This book struck a chord with me and I most certainly enjoyed it and could not lay it down. I started it one evening and had to force myself to go to sleep but I was at it first thing in the am. I love Matt…. He is such a character all by himself. I have not read the other books but you can bet that I will be. I am also native American although not from the North. There is really no difference in the Reservations from one area to another and even though it made me sad it is so true that it hurts to hear of them in that condition. Growing up I also knew a Big Tom and he also passed away too early in his life, but not like this one. I would give anything to follow Matt around and be involved in his excitement. I have visited the area that he lived but seeing it through his eyes made it even more appealing.
What will you like? As I stated above you are going to Love Matt and the excitement that he gets into. All the characters are very well developed and have lots of interesting things going on about them. Of course, Matt’s is the best or at least for me anyway. The storyline is very exciting and even more interesting if you really like history like I do. I was very impressed with the amount of real history that was included in and enjoyed the fabrications too. Ted is a great story teller and you will enjoy his books from the first to the last page. I received this from the author for an honest review with no other compensation.
History at its finest!
They are the richest family in America that nobody has ever heard of, with a net worth of over $100 billion. Their privately held company has secretly been shaping public opinion and influencing elections for decades—and eliminating politicians who stand in their way. They are finally on the verge of achieving their lifelong goal: a covert takeover of the United States government. But the potential revelation of a centuries-old family secret threatens to sabotage their subversive plans. Meanwhile, Matt Hawkins discovers lost field notes written by Meriwether Lewis during the historic Lewis and Clark Expedition. In them, Lewis claims a seemingly impossible discovery. Hawkins follows a trail of clues—from the Spanish conquistadors to a legendary tribe of invincible black Indians to the hallowed halls of Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello. His pursuit of the truth leads him out of the past and headlong into the center of a modern-day political conspiracy—whose outcome just might determine the fate of America’s democracy.
What did I like? I just came back from New York state after an extended stay and I visited so many historical sites that I will never be able to name them all. This book struck a chord with me and I most certainly enjoyed it and could not lay it down. I started it one evening and had to force myself to go to sleep but I was at it first thing in the am. I love Matt…. He is such a character all by himself. I have not read the other books but you can bet that I will be. I am also native American although not from the North. There is really no difference in the Reservations from one area to another and even though it made me sad it is so true that it hurts to hear of them in that condition. Growing up I also knew a Big Tom and he also passed away too early in his life, but not like this one. I would give anything to follow Matt around and be involved in his excitement. I have visited the area that he lived but seeing it through his eyes made it even more appealing.
What will you like? As I stated above you are going to Love Matt and the excitement that he gets into. All the characters are very well developed and have lots of interesting things going on about them. Of course, Matt’s is the best or at least for me anyway. The storyline is very exciting and even more interesting if you really like history like I do. I was very impressed with the amount of real history that was included in and enjoyed the fabrications too. Ted is a great story teller and you will enjoy his books from the first to the last page. I received this from the author for an honest review with no other compensation.
May 30, 2017
Author Ted Richardson has followed his debut novel with an even better ABOLITION OF EVIL. Although the books definitely stands alone, I enjoyed it more I think because I liked Richardson's debut novel so much. Instead of Relotuionary war and a secret surrender docuemnt, historian Matt Hawkins has come across a previously unknown diary of Meriwether Lewis during a solo "side trip" north. The plot moves very fast, with many twists and turns. Richardson does an amazing job mixing far history 1803, with not-so-distant history 1963, and present day Savannah, Oklahoma City, and Montana. The author have continued to develop the interesting historian Matt Hawkins, but has also added some equally intriguing new characters in this second installment. Incredible murder mystery involving corrupt Indian Reservation bureaucrats, and corrupt billionaire fat-cats. The final confrontation between the good guys and the bad guys at the end of this book is truly unique is being suspenseful, riveting, and breathtaking. Indeed, it kept me up when I should have gone to bed. I will forward this to my daughter and immediately look for the third book in the Matt Hawkins Series.
May 5, 2018
Another historical what if.
I love the way the author uses a plausible possibility, turns it, mixed with facts, into an absorbing adventure story. This one seems all too real as it reflects much of our current political situation.
I love the way the author uses a plausible possibility, turns it, mixed with facts, into an absorbing adventure story. This one seems all too real as it reflects much of our current political situation.
June 7, 2018
Suspenseful
It was hard to put this book down once I started reading it. I enjoy reading a book when I you can't guess the ending, and the ending was full of unexpected and exciting twists and turns. I recommend it to anyone who likes a good mystery and suspenseful book.
It was hard to put this book down once I started reading it. I enjoy reading a book when I you can't guess the ending, and the ending was full of unexpected and exciting twists and turns. I recommend it to anyone who likes a good mystery and suspenseful book.
August 2, 2019
Could not stop reading it
When I started reading I got so interdependent stopping was not going to happen until I finished it. Although it is fiction, it seemed so believable.
When I started reading I got so interdependent stopping was not going to happen until I finished it. Although it is fiction, it seemed so believable.
February 23, 2017
I am a HUGE American history (well, any history, really) fan, so when author Ted Richardson contacted me and asked if I’d be interested in reviewing his book The Abolition of Evil, was immediately intrigued – how many novels have YOU encountered that tie together billionaires with secrets, political drama, Lewis and Clark, and conquistadors?? My review copy was graciously provided by the author in exchange for my honest review.
The book description can be read on Amazon or the author’s website. I won’t rehash that – I’ll tell you why the description is only the beginning of what should catch your eye about this book (and Richardson’s other(s) in the series)… Let’s start with the characters – anyone who reads my reviews knows I am a fanatic for great characters. I like them well-developed, complex, and human. Richardson’s Matt Hawkins, the protagonist in this great series, is one such character. But he’s not the only one – the book is populated with them… Even the passing-glance characters (who, incidentally, often wind up being not so by the time the story plays out a bit) are multi-faceted and interesting to read. Some of that, for me, is probably due to the subject matter Richardson so adeptly introduces into the world of fiction. He’s one of a few authors I’ve come across who seems to delight in fashioning fascinating stories out of what would otherwise seem to be relatively obscure bits of Americana (example: black conquistadors – I have a father who is obsessed with American history AND pirates/explorers in all forms and loves talking about both, and I had nary an inkling such a group existed). He layers his history and his fiction deftly, placing just enough of each on the spoon at each bite to ensure you work your way through the entire presentation…
I must admit, there were a few points where the story got a little slow for me. There is a lot of detail here, and sometimes it felt a little dense. But by the time I reached the end, I came to the conclusion that it was all probably necessary to fully flesh out the history and the mystery in equal parts. This is the second in the Hawkins series; I didn’t know this when I agreed to the review. It’s a good thing, because I’m OBSESSIVE about reading series books in order, and I probably would have respectfully declined this one had I known. I didn’t realize it until I was probably a quarter of the way through this one – and not because of any failing or confusion in the story, but rather because I found myself curious as to whether there might be other books by the author and thinking that several of the backstory allusions would lend themselves to a fascinating book of their own (turns out, they do and have – it’s called Imposters of Patriotism, and is on my To Be Read list now). The ending quite strongly suggests there is way more in store for Mr. Hawkins – and Mr. Richardson (one volume – A Nation of Hucksters – is excerpted at the end of this one). I, for one, am delighted and looking forward to reengaging with both in the future!
The book description can be read on Amazon or the author’s website. I won’t rehash that – I’ll tell you why the description is only the beginning of what should catch your eye about this book (and Richardson’s other(s) in the series)… Let’s start with the characters – anyone who reads my reviews knows I am a fanatic for great characters. I like them well-developed, complex, and human. Richardson’s Matt Hawkins, the protagonist in this great series, is one such character. But he’s not the only one – the book is populated with them… Even the passing-glance characters (who, incidentally, often wind up being not so by the time the story plays out a bit) are multi-faceted and interesting to read. Some of that, for me, is probably due to the subject matter Richardson so adeptly introduces into the world of fiction. He’s one of a few authors I’ve come across who seems to delight in fashioning fascinating stories out of what would otherwise seem to be relatively obscure bits of Americana (example: black conquistadors – I have a father who is obsessed with American history AND pirates/explorers in all forms and loves talking about both, and I had nary an inkling such a group existed). He layers his history and his fiction deftly, placing just enough of each on the spoon at each bite to ensure you work your way through the entire presentation…
I must admit, there were a few points where the story got a little slow for me. There is a lot of detail here, and sometimes it felt a little dense. But by the time I reached the end, I came to the conclusion that it was all probably necessary to fully flesh out the history and the mystery in equal parts. This is the second in the Hawkins series; I didn’t know this when I agreed to the review. It’s a good thing, because I’m OBSESSIVE about reading series books in order, and I probably would have respectfully declined this one had I known. I didn’t realize it until I was probably a quarter of the way through this one – and not because of any failing or confusion in the story, but rather because I found myself curious as to whether there might be other books by the author and thinking that several of the backstory allusions would lend themselves to a fascinating book of their own (turns out, they do and have – it’s called Imposters of Patriotism, and is on my To Be Read list now). The ending quite strongly suggests there is way more in store for Mr. Hawkins – and Mr. Richardson (one volume – A Nation of Hucksters – is excerpted at the end of this one). I, for one, am delighted and looking forward to reengaging with both in the future!
August 21, 2016
Historical fiction at its best!
My thanks go out to Ted Richardson for my free copy of this book.
Meriwether Lewis, of The Lewis and Clark Expedition into the newly purchased Louisiana Purchase, died on October 11, 1809 at the Grinder's Stand on the Natchez Trace south of Nashville. His death was generally accepted as a suicide, but circumstances surrounding his death leave a question mark in history.
Ted Richardson builds around the controversy surrounding the death of Lewis. When Lewis died, he left behind his journals from the Expedition. But there are missing journals. A man like Meriwether Lewis documented the day by day discoveries for his report back to President Thomas Jefferson, and would not have missed a period in July 1906…
1973. Two Native American boys find an old Conquistador helmet near Ghost Ridge on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation in Montana. Sometime later a man in a new Cadillac shows up on the reservation and purchases the helmet.
Present Day: Matt Hawkins lives in Savannah, Georgia. Matt found fame when he discovered a surrender letter written by George Washington at a time when the Revolutionary War was going badly for the Americans. Recovering a piece of history that many might not have wanted uncovered was all in a day’s work for Matt and his then girlfriend, Sarah Gordon. The two have recently parted ways…
Now, another mystery falls into his lap. His friends; James Fox and Buzz Penberthy, the Executive Director and the President General of the Society of the Cincinnati have a find for him.
Some of Meriwether Lewis’ Expedition notes have been recovered, in a desk that once belonged to Captain William Clark. There is mention of the Conquistador helmet and even a drawing in the notes. The notes also mention a tribe of Black Indians who have a village near present day Ghost Ridge in Montana. As these people are lost to history, the friends mount a search to find what really happened.
They run into trouble in the form of Spate Industries, who own the mining and oil rights to that part of the Reservation. They will allow no one to go there, and it soon develops that they are deadly serious about “No Trespassing!” But their secrets run far deeper than anyone could imagine…
This story will hook the reader and keep him or her glued to the text until the last sentence! With a masterful mixture of history, conspiracy, and mystery, Richardson serves up a masterpiece! It is cleverly cut with flashback scenes that show the secrets as they happened in real time. It was one of the best Historical Fiction novels I have ever read! Thanks for contacting me with this book, Mr. Richardson. It is wonderful, and I truly mean that!
I give the book five stars plus…
Quoth the Raven…
My thanks go out to Ted Richardson for my free copy of this book.
Meriwether Lewis, of The Lewis and Clark Expedition into the newly purchased Louisiana Purchase, died on October 11, 1809 at the Grinder's Stand on the Natchez Trace south of Nashville. His death was generally accepted as a suicide, but circumstances surrounding his death leave a question mark in history.
Ted Richardson builds around the controversy surrounding the death of Lewis. When Lewis died, he left behind his journals from the Expedition. But there are missing journals. A man like Meriwether Lewis documented the day by day discoveries for his report back to President Thomas Jefferson, and would not have missed a period in July 1906…
1973. Two Native American boys find an old Conquistador helmet near Ghost Ridge on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation in Montana. Sometime later a man in a new Cadillac shows up on the reservation and purchases the helmet.
Present Day: Matt Hawkins lives in Savannah, Georgia. Matt found fame when he discovered a surrender letter written by George Washington at a time when the Revolutionary War was going badly for the Americans. Recovering a piece of history that many might not have wanted uncovered was all in a day’s work for Matt and his then girlfriend, Sarah Gordon. The two have recently parted ways…
Now, another mystery falls into his lap. His friends; James Fox and Buzz Penberthy, the Executive Director and the President General of the Society of the Cincinnati have a find for him.
Some of Meriwether Lewis’ Expedition notes have been recovered, in a desk that once belonged to Captain William Clark. There is mention of the Conquistador helmet and even a drawing in the notes. The notes also mention a tribe of Black Indians who have a village near present day Ghost Ridge in Montana. As these people are lost to history, the friends mount a search to find what really happened.
They run into trouble in the form of Spate Industries, who own the mining and oil rights to that part of the Reservation. They will allow no one to go there, and it soon develops that they are deadly serious about “No Trespassing!” But their secrets run far deeper than anyone could imagine…
This story will hook the reader and keep him or her glued to the text until the last sentence! With a masterful mixture of history, conspiracy, and mystery, Richardson serves up a masterpiece! It is cleverly cut with flashback scenes that show the secrets as they happened in real time. It was one of the best Historical Fiction novels I have ever read! Thanks for contacting me with this book, Mr. Richardson. It is wonderful, and I truly mean that!
I give the book five stars plus…
Quoth the Raven…
September 2, 2016
Abolition of Evil by Ted Richardson reminds me of David Balducci’s novels. My blood pressure rose alarmingly high during the final scenes of the novel when the good and bad meet on the battlefield. The scene where a scraggly group Indians appear on the mountain ridge to help Max and his friends evolves many fond memories of the western genre. The story centers on the discovery of a Spanish helmet, a lost tribe of “black” Indians, and secret discs developed by Thomas Jefferson. The story races from Georgia to Montana, and the reader learns of the Spate Brothers attempt to control the United States. Max and his friends battle evil to protect the American principles of equality and liberty. Richardson presents a song strong in imagery. The scene in the cave at the end of the novel rivets the reader to other findings of mass destruction, and the possibility that the American people meekly follow a charismatic leader. Abolition of Evil shows that evil must constantly be fought.
September 26, 2016
What a great read!!! Great fictional spin on Lewis & Clark. Well-told mystery taking place in various places around Glacier National Park; particularly interesting since I live in Missoula, MT. I would definitely recommend this book to read; finished it in one day; it was that good. Looking forward to reading other books by this author.
December 14, 2016
Fantastic Revisionist Historical Thriller
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September 5, 2016
An exciting read!
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