(Rating: PG-13) The Thirteenth novel in the "Tropical Frontier" series, The Last Caloosa is, in addition, the Third and final novel in the "Indian Fighter" sub-series.
The proverbial fork in the road: which path to follow? Bridges burned. No turning back. One can never know to where a single, momentary decision might lead, whether it be to a good place, or to a very, very bad place, indeed, to the gates of Hell themselves.
Tim Robinson is a third generation Floridian, his grandfather having taken up a 100 acre homestead on Cape Canaveral in 1924. It was his grandfather and father who instilled in him a love for everything Florida. Tim grew up in West Palm Beach, halfway between saltwater Lake Worth and freshwater Lake Mangonia, where he spent his childhood and youth traipsing through the woods or biking over to the beach or taking in the wonders of Florida in some fashion or another. He lives with his wife, Connie, on a small farm in Indiantown, Florida.
As usual, Mr. Robinson's knowledge of the Florida frontier and his skill at telling a great story have created another wonderful story. We learned how the American Indians were pursued throughout the state and murdered with abandon by the US Armies. The Indians who lived in the Everglades were not always hunted because of their knowledge of the swamp and the fact they had learned how to get along with the white settlers. Not trust but get along with. This story follows the white settler families of Prescott, Thomas, Tuckers, and the Seminoles that lived nearby. Everything seemed to be going smoothly until Dr. Thomas' wife became too close to one Seminole child named Little Chief. This ended badly for everyone. Again, another wonderful story as told by a great writer.
This is a story about little chief, a young Indian boy accused of raping a white woman during war. I Sat on the edge of my seat for the entire book hoping little chief would get away knowing in the end that he would not.
It was so refreshing to read another novel in this series. Robinson does such a a wonderful job writing about life in the 1800s in Florida and all the difficulties settlers encountered. This story centers around Doc Thomas Brown, his wife Florence, and a younger Indian Little Chief. When Little Chief is accused of breaking laws, everyone is in shock and Little Chief has to decided what course of action is best for his survival and future. The novel includes some favorite characters from earlier stories, such as Ma and Luke Tucker and Jubal Prescott.
Although this book is in a series, it is also a stand alone book. It’s centered around Little Chief, a young Indian man that grows up without his real parents because they were killed when he was very young. He grows up to be a good person that gets along well with the white men despite the horrors he witnessed of white men killing his family. Little Chief has a good life and is soon to be married to a lovely Indian girl, but his life takes a terrible turn when he is accused of raping a white woman, the wife of the man he admires most in the world.
This is my first book by Tim Robinson. He has a knack for telling a story. In this particular story there are no winners. Thanks to our government which pits us against each other we make rash irreversible decisions, and everyone's lives is changed forever.
I love reading about history as much as I love seeing it. The story was realistic about the 1800’s and what happened durning war times. Well written and can’t wait to read more from this author.