Stars in Their Courses

The Appomattox Saga #8

by Gilbert Morris

Seeking an escape from the monotony and drudgery of days-on-end army life, Frank Rocklin, an actor, approaches his commanding general with a bold plan to spy on Vicksburg and assess its military condition. Vicksburg is the last major Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi. This mission lays the groundwork for a proposition from Allan Pinkerton, the head of the Federal Secret Service. Pinkerton wants to send Frank and an acting troupe to the South, where Frank can pick up valuable information to help the Northern war effort. While the Confederate Secret Service may pose a threat to Frank, the real danger could come from the women closest to him.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Christian Fiction, Fiction, Christian, Civil War, Historical, Romance

350 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 1995

About the author

also published under the name Gilbert L. Morris

Gilbert Morris was one of today's best-known Christian novelists. He lived in Gulf Shores, Alabama, with his wife, Johnnie. He is the father to Lynn Morris and Alan Morris

Series:
* Adventures of Kerrigan Kids
* American Century
* Appomattox Saga
* Barney Buck
* Bonnets and Bugles
* Cheney Duvall, M.D. (with Lynn Morris)
* Cheney and Shiloh: The Inheritance (with Lynn Morris)
* Chronicles of the Golden Frontier
* The Creole (with Lynn Morris)
* Danielle Ross Mystery
* Daystar Voyages
* Dixie Morris Animal Adventures
* Far Fields (with Robert Funderburk)
* House of Winslow
* Jacques and Cleo: Cat Detectives
* Katy Steele Adventures (with Alan Morris)
* Lady Trent Mystery
* Liberty Bell
* Lions of Judah
* Lone Star Legacy
* Omega (with Lynn Morris and Alan Morris)
* The Price of Liberty (with Robert Funderburk)
* Reno Western Saga
* Seven Sleepers
* Seven Sleepers: The Lost Chronicles
* Singing River
* Spirit of Appalachia (with Aaron McCarver)
* Too Smart Jones
*

Reviews

[Faith]

Another winner from my fave author :)

[Heather Burdge]

So far my least favorite in the series. I thoroughly enjoy Gilbert Morris series. But I don’t like when he gets so far in a series he forgets his own made up family tree. Every time it referred to Clay as Franks uncle or Suzanna as his grandmother my teeth would grate. Which probably didn’t help my rating. It would’ve been interesting if the one before this would’ve hinted that Frank was in town because it took place simultaneously with the 7th in the series. Oh well. On to the next one.

[Summer Reading]

Not my favorite in the series, despite the Shakespeare references, but good nonetheless. I enjoyed Frank's story and how the overlap between this book and the previous one was handled. I thought the romance was a little weak, and, as I've noted about previous books, some modern readers may dislike the way the slavery issue is handled.

The crew visits a slave market, and it is condemned as evil, as it should be. But in another place, one of the characters says that not all slave holders treat their slaves badly. No one in the text points out that even good treatment cannot compensate for the lack of freedom. I don't think the statement is meant to be an exoneration. It is treated more as a statement of fact from one character's observations, but it is in the story, and it may not sit well with some readers.

[Natalia]

Last book...

[Darlene Wilson]

Frank Rocklin avoids formal conscription into the Federal army only to serve the North as a spy in a theater troupe touring behind enemy lines. Family loyalties are torn as they accuse him of being a Southern sympathizer. But will his love for a Southern actress or his duty to his country prevail?