Chickahominy Fever: A Civil War Mystery

By Ann McMillan

Book Overview

"In June 1862, Union forces have Richmond under siege. Brigadier General Henry Wise brings a letter to Confederate President Jefferson Davis that details the weak spot in the city's defenses. The letter is thought to have been destroyed, but it is stolen - taken by a servant who has trained all her life for such a chance. Unaware of this new danger, the city carries on tending to the wounded from the battle of Seven Pines and the thousands of new casualties from the battles of the Seven Days." "Confederate nurse Narcissa Powers is trying to help a woman locate the body of her soldier son, while free black herbalist Judah Daniel is searching for the mother of a black infant found abandoned at St. John's Church. In the chaos that has besieged Richmond, the fates of these two prove difficult to discover." "As the stolen letter makes its way to the heart of Richmond's Unionist network, Narcissa and Judah Daniel find their individual quests converging in an underground, high-stakes political operation that could change the course of the war. The fates of both sides, Union and Confederate, rest on the letter. But lofty political goals are on a collision course with human hopes and fears. The bonds of family and friendship strain until they break apart in one night of violence, betrayal, and murder."--BOOK JACKET. Book jacket.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0142004561
• ISBN13: 9780142004562
• Release Date: May 2004
• Publisher: Penguin Group
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 4.2" x 7.0"

Customer Reviews

Awesome book!

I enjoy reading history and I love a good mystery. So when I find a book that combines the two, it's a double bonus for me! I happened to pick up Chickahominy Fever: A Civil War Mystery by Ann McMillan without knowing anything about this book, and I was pleased to find that it is awesome! Chickahominy Fever takes place in Richmond, Virginia in 1862. A letter detailing the weaknesses in Richmond's defenses is given to Confederate President, Jefferson Davis. It is then smuggled out of his house by a servant who was planted there by Louisa Ferncliff, a prominent Richmond abolitionist. But strange things are happening around Ferncliff's Mansion, and when a dead man and a small baby are discovered in the churchyard next door, Narcissa Powers suspects a connection. Powers is a nurse at Chimborazo Hospital, where she also must deal with a patient who disappears, stolen morphine, and her own case of malaria. How these threads all come together is true genius. Ann McMillan weaves true facts into Chickahominy Fever, which show that she has done her research. At the beginning of the book, the relatively unknown Bobby Lee has just taken over for the Confederates, while George McClellan is still bumbling his way through the war. The city is still dealing with the effects of the battle of Seven Pines, and will face the Seven Days Battle. But what makes Chickahominy Fever truly a gem is McMillan's eloquent writing. From the first page, I knew that I was in for something special: "Jefferson Davis squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them. To his good eye, the black marks seemed to wriggle and jump. The man's stern, bony face was strong-willed, but his eyes were disobedient servants. At last he brought his hand up and held them shut." Also, the ending is just superb! My only suggestion for interested readers would be to start this series at the beginning. McMillan's characters, Narcissa Powers, Judah Daniel, Brit Wallace, and Cameron Archer, appear in all of them and it will make it easier to figure out what is going on in Chickahominy Fever if you read Dead March first.

Just what I expected

I love Civil War Mysteries and this one did not dissappoint

Another terrific mystery

Ann McMillan continues her poignant, thrilling mystery series with this book, her fourth. Always a clever plotter and a careful researcher, she grows bolder with her use of major historical figures, and to good effect. "Chickahominy Fever" opens at night in Confederate President Jefferson Davis's office. The Union army is nearing Richmond's door. Before the first scene is done we have a wonderful slice of Davis's tortured character, a keen sense of the political and philosophical pressure applied by a former Virginia governor now commanding troops, and the beginnings of a spy plot that propels the story to its remarkable finish. McMillan navigates with practiced sureness among the whites, slaves and free blacks of Civil War Richmond. She takes us from the wards of Richmond's sprawling Chimborazo hospital to the chaotic battlefields of the 7 Days, from high-society parlor rooms to life among working blacks. Her major characters, already cherished from the earlier books, continue to evolve and fascinate. And once again she populates the book with a memorable secondary cast. Another terrific mystery. Can't wait for the next.