What do you think?
Rate this book
Hearts Touched by Fire #2
Unconditional Surrender
Confederate Major Charles Silvers has had enough war. After two years of fighting, his view of a glorious Southern victory over the North has lost its luster and been replaced by a burning desire to return home to Virginia and life as it used to be, before the war. When he meets Sarah Lawrence during the siege on Vicksburg, Mississippi, he is convinced the blond-haired beauty could fill the void in his life—but what he does not know is that this Southern belle isn’t what she appears to be…
Tortured by memories of the night in 1860 when masked bushwackers torched her Mississippi home and killed her father, Sarah escaped the South. Now, however, she’s back and seeking revenge. As one of the best spies in the Union Army, she’s in a unique position to get her wish. For her, a Confederate Major, even a devastatingly handsome one, is just the tool to obtain the information the Union needs—even at the cost of her heart.
Tortured by memories of the night in 1860 when masked bushwackers torched her Mississippi home and killed her father, Sarah escaped the South. Now, however, she’s back and seeking revenge. As one of the best spies in the Union Army, she’s in a unique position to get her wish. For her, a Confederate Major, even a devastatingly handsome one, is just the tool to obtain the information the Union needs—even at the cost of her heart.
- GenresHistorical Romance
436 pages, ebook
Published September 4, 2017
About the author
Gina Danna
22 books226 followersA USAToday Bestselling author, Gina Danna was born in St. Louis, Missouri, and has spent the better part of her life reading. History has always been her love and she spent numerous hours devouring historical romance stories, always dreaming of writing one of her own. After years of writing historical academic papers to achieve her undergraduate and graduate degrees in History, and then for museum programs and exhibits, she found the time to write her own historical romantic fiction novels.
Now, living in Texas, under the supervision of her three dogs, she writes amid a library of research books, with her only true break away is to spend time with her other life long dream – her Arabian horse – with him, her muse can play.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
October 15, 2017
The Civil War changed not only the men fighting but their women as well. People became different people,some not even knowing themselves anymore or liking who they had become. How could they not change with all the war put them through,it was one hardship after another,just a battle for survival.I enjoyed feeling as if I were an observer of the going ons of the war.
I will be looking out for more books by this author. I very much enjoyed Unconditional Surrender.
Pub Date 04 Sep 2017
Thank you to NetGalley and The Bitter End Publishing for a copy of the book for an honest review.
I will be looking out for more books by this author. I very much enjoyed Unconditional Surrender.
Pub Date 04 Sep 2017
Thank you to NetGalley and The Bitter End Publishing for a copy of the book for an honest review.
October 3, 2017
I was grateful to receive a free copy of Unconditional Surrender in exchange for an honest review. The book was a little slow to begin with a lot of history and little character development. However, once the author, Gina Danna, got past the history development the story picked up its pace, and I actually had a difficult time putting the book down. I enjoyed the characters Sarah and Charles, and then there was Kenny. Kenny definitely kept it interesting. The only real issue I had were the editing errors which detracted from the story. Hopefully the editor will take another look, before the book is released to the public. I would recommend this book especially if you enjoy the civil war error.
January 5, 2018
Well written book with great storyline and plot. A sweet book that has great romance. The story is true to it's time period and the language is also. I like when an author has made research about the time period they want to write the story in.
I love the couples journey towards their HEA. There is drama, family issues, passion, emotions and some twists. Instant attraction. I like the supporting characters. I like stories where the POV changes.
Nice chemistry and passion. I like the main characters and how they develop. The story flows nicely and it is very captivating from first to last chapter.
A new author for me but she surprised me with her writing. Absolutely not the last book I will read from her.
The author has delivered a story that is worth the read!
I voluntarily reviewed this Advanced Reader Copy of this book.
I love the couples journey towards their HEA. There is drama, family issues, passion, emotions and some twists. Instant attraction. I like the supporting characters. I like stories where the POV changes.
Nice chemistry and passion. I like the main characters and how they develop. The story flows nicely and it is very captivating from first to last chapter.
A new author for me but she surprised me with her writing. Absolutely not the last book I will read from her.
The author has delivered a story that is worth the read!
I voluntarily reviewed this Advanced Reader Copy of this book.
September 5, 2017
I'm not the biggest fan of historicals, but these characters drew me in from the beginning. I was never sure whether to cheer Sarah on or Charles since they were on opposing sides though both wanted the same thing in the end. I'm so glad this was a HEA.
I loved the sweeping landscape and could almost hear the cannons fire with how close some of the fighting took place. But what I enjoyed most was the twists and turns within the story that brought the Civil War and how deeply it effected not just the country but how it touched each person's life.
I loved the sweeping landscape and could almost hear the cannons fire with how close some of the fighting took place. But what I enjoyed most was the twists and turns within the story that brought the Civil War and how deeply it effected not just the country but how it touched each person's life.
September 18, 2017
After two years of fighting Confederate Major Charles Silvers has had enough of the war he’s ready to return home to Virginia. Sarah Lawrence is out for revenge after her father was killed and her Mississippi home was torched. She’s also one of the best spies in the Union Army has so she’s in a unique position to get her wish. Charles meets Sarah Lawrence during the siege on Vicksburg, Mississippi. He sees his encounters with Sarah as a way to carry on with his life and fill the emptiness he feels left by all the fighting during the war, but little does he know she’s not what she pretends to be. Sarah uses the devastatingly handsome Major Charles to get the information the Union needs and continue on her mission of revenge. What she doesn’t expect is to lose her heart to a Confederate. A wonderful story of the hard times during the Civil War, love story between a southern woman brave enough to spy for the Union and the southern Confederate Major the enemy she can’t deny.
This is my honest opinions after I voluntarily read a copy of this book that was provided to me with no requirements for a review.
This is my honest opinions after I voluntarily read a copy of this book that was provided to me with no requirements for a review.
July 26, 2018
Four stars for an engaging story but one star for ATROCIOUS editing. I don't think I have ever read a book with more mistakes in it. There are typos, spelling errors, extra words or missing words on nearly every page! As much as I wanted to know how the story ended I almost stopped reading because the volume of errors was making me so angry. Every error would pull me out of an otherwise enjoyable story. This book had a better story than the first in the series but at least the first one was edited properly. I don't plan to read the third.
As for the story itself, I was fascinated by Sarah Lawrence, a woman working as a spy during the Civil War. It was also common for slaves or free blacks, posing as slaves, to work as spies as well. I appreciated the author's look at both sides of the conflict and how even those fighting were often conflicted about what they were fighting for.
As for the story itself, I was fascinated by Sarah Lawrence, a woman working as a spy during the Civil War. It was also common for slaves or free blacks, posing as slaves, to work as spies as well. I appreciated the author's look at both sides of the conflict and how even those fighting were often conflicted about what they were fighting for.
July 30, 2018
Solid 4
Conditions of war for any reason leaves both sides losing in the long run. Women spies such as Sarah Lawerence in this novel was more common than most think. Her Union Major, who also was her enemy was her weakness as they fell in love as the war marched on. Their lives continued to become untwined and strengthened their appreciation for each side of the war. A very good book about the Civil War and the fight for and against slavery.
Conditions of war for any reason leaves both sides losing in the long run. Women spies such as Sarah Lawerence in this novel was more common than most think. Her Union Major, who also was her enemy was her weakness as they fell in love as the war marched on. Their lives continued to become untwined and strengthened their appreciation for each side of the war. A very good book about the Civil War and the fight for and against slavery.
October 21, 2022
Great Part 2
What a great story. Charles and Sarah The Blue and the Grey or the North and South. I really loved their story of compromise but no surrender. Book 1 is such an epic but this continuation is really.good.
What a great story. Charles and Sarah The Blue and the Grey or the North and South. I really loved their story of compromise but no surrender. Book 1 is such an epic but this continuation is really.good.
September 8, 2025
Intriguing!
The suspense kept me wanting to read more! Excellent read! At times I questioned the stance of the author and wanted to stop reading but was so intrigued that I had to finish.
The suspense kept me wanting to read more! Excellent read! At times I questioned the stance of the author and wanted to stop reading but was so intrigued that I had to finish.
January 28, 2022
Exvellent!
Love the civil war novels, !ove the history of that time period. The author did a great job writing and recreating events of the times.
Love the civil war novels, !ove the history of that time period. The author did a great job writing and recreating events of the times.
February 22, 2022
awesome book
This and the first book were awesome reads. I couldn’t put the book down. The author kept you on the edge of your seat.
This and the first book were awesome reads. I couldn’t put the book down. The author kept you on the edge of your seat.
July 8, 2025
The Key to the South
Awesome book and great character's. I loved all the running the women soy did for General Grant. She was a great undercover officer.
Awesome book and great character's. I loved all the running the women soy did for General Grant. She was a great undercover officer.
September 10, 2021
The Key to the South: An American Civil War Novel: Hearts Touched by Fire Book 2 is by Gina Danna. This is a fantastic series and one that you simply cannot put down. You find yourself back in antebellum Virginia and Louisiana with the Silvers family and the Fontaine’s family. You ride with the armies of the North and South and share some of excitement and horror of war.
Charles Silvers is an officer in the Confederate Army. He hasn’t been home nor heard from anyone in some time. Then he learns that his sister Emma is at Jack Fontaine’s Father’s place in Louisiana. While on official duty to take correspondence to another General, he makes a side trip to see his sister. He finds out that she is there with his nephew, Jack’s son with Caroline, and that his Mother, Caroline, their older sister, and Father are all gone as is their plantation at Rose Hill. He learns that Emma’s husband is also gone and that she traveled with Jack, his injured father, Emma’s slave Tilly, and the baby to Louisiana to safety and that she has married Jack. It is here Charles meets Sarah Lawrence, a true southern belle and he instantly falls madly in love with her although he knows he has nothing to offer her now. Jack, however, warns him that Sarah is not what she seems to be.
Early the next morning, he leaves to return to his post. He finds Sarah on the side of the road with her carriage in the ditch. He helps her get it out and then insists that he escort her to her friend’s home near New Orleans. He finds her behavior a little odd; but helps her anyway. Her friends insist he spend the night since the Northern army is in the area. On the way the next morning, he finds himself captured and sent to a Northern prison where he learns what Hell on earth is like.
Will Charles survive the brutal prison? Will he discover what Jack meant about Sarah?
Charles Silvers is an officer in the Confederate Army. He hasn’t been home nor heard from anyone in some time. Then he learns that his sister Emma is at Jack Fontaine’s Father’s place in Louisiana. While on official duty to take correspondence to another General, he makes a side trip to see his sister. He finds out that she is there with his nephew, Jack’s son with Caroline, and that his Mother, Caroline, their older sister, and Father are all gone as is their plantation at Rose Hill. He learns that Emma’s husband is also gone and that she traveled with Jack, his injured father, Emma’s slave Tilly, and the baby to Louisiana to safety and that she has married Jack. It is here Charles meets Sarah Lawrence, a true southern belle and he instantly falls madly in love with her although he knows he has nothing to offer her now. Jack, however, warns him that Sarah is not what she seems to be.
Early the next morning, he leaves to return to his post. He finds Sarah on the side of the road with her carriage in the ditch. He helps her get it out and then insists that he escort her to her friend’s home near New Orleans. He finds her behavior a little odd; but helps her anyway. Her friends insist he spend the night since the Northern army is in the area. On the way the next morning, he finds himself captured and sent to a Northern prison where he learns what Hell on earth is like.
Will Charles survive the brutal prison? Will he discover what Jack meant about Sarah?
February 26, 2022
Nesta ficção baseada em fatos históricos, acompanhamos o romance de Charles e Sarah em meio ao conflito.
Lutando em lados opostos, Charles e Sarah se veem diante de um dilema: se apaixonar pelo inimigo.
Ele a serviço do exército Confederado, ela como espiã para o exército da União,
Em meio a luta pela abolição e por territórios os dois teem que lutar pelas suas vidas e com os conflitos pessoais.
História que me agradou bastante, principalmente por conhecer fatos ocorridos em 1863, como o uso de escravos e mulheres para a prática de espionagem.
Os escravos, pois acreditava-se que por não terem instrução, podia-se conversar perto deles sobre quaisquer assuntos que os mesmos não entenderiam.
Já as mulheres, não entendiam de política, portanto eram consideradas "inofensivas".
Entre as espiãs mais renomadas, a autora cita, Rose O'Neal Greenshow, Belle Boyd e Elizabeth Van Lew, que atuaram ativamente durante a guerra civil.
Escrita fluída, com ação, estratégias de guerra e um romance como pano de fundo.
Lutando em lados opostos, Charles e Sarah se veem diante de um dilema: se apaixonar pelo inimigo.
Ele a serviço do exército Confederado, ela como espiã para o exército da União,
Em meio a luta pela abolição e por territórios os dois teem que lutar pelas suas vidas e com os conflitos pessoais.
História que me agradou bastante, principalmente por conhecer fatos ocorridos em 1863, como o uso de escravos e mulheres para a prática de espionagem.
Os escravos, pois acreditava-se que por não terem instrução, podia-se conversar perto deles sobre quaisquer assuntos que os mesmos não entenderiam.
Já as mulheres, não entendiam de política, portanto eram consideradas "inofensivas".
Entre as espiãs mais renomadas, a autora cita, Rose O'Neal Greenshow, Belle Boyd e Elizabeth Van Lew, que atuaram ativamente durante a guerra civil.
Escrita fluída, com ação, estratégias de guerra e um romance como pano de fundo.
January 2, 2019
Confederate Major Charles Silvers has had enough war. After two years of fighting, his view of a glorious Southern victory over the North has lost its luster and been replaced by a burning desire to return home to Virginia and life as it used to be, before the war. When he meets Sarah Lawrence during the siege on Vicksburg, Mississippi, he is convinced the blond-haired beauty could fill the void in his life—but what he does not know is that this Southern belle isn’t what she appears to be…Tortured by memories of the night in 1860 when masked bushwackers torched her Mississippi home and killed her father, Sarah escaped the South. Now, however, she’s back and seeking revenge. As one of the best spies in the Union Army, she’s in a unique position to get her wish. For her, a Confederate Major, even a devastatingly handsome one, is just the tool to obtain the information the Union needs—even at the cost of her heart.
This was a great story set in a time period I don’t get to read very often. There was a lot of interesting history added to make the book even better. Sarah is a strong female character and probably one of my favorites. I look forward to reading more from this author.
**I voluntarily read and reviewed this book
This was a great story set in a time period I don’t get to read very often. There was a lot of interesting history added to make the book even better. Sarah is a strong female character and probably one of my favorites. I look forward to reading more from this author.
**I voluntarily read and reviewed this book
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews