The Sergeant's Lady

By Miles Hood Swarthout

Book Overview

Deep in the untamed Southern Arizona Territory, the United States Army embarks on a final campaign to rid the area of the remaining Apache warriors and capture and kill their famed war chief Geronimo. Legendary for their relentless battle tactics and astounding survival skills, the Apache make a fearsome enemy, able to cut down man, woman, and child in silence, and transverse undetected throughout the rocky terrain. General Nelson A. Miles is determined to bring a swift end to the war against the Apache. He is also a seasoned Indian fighter, having defeated the Comanche, Sioux, and Cheyenne to the sound of his creed: "Always advance." On his side is Sergeant Ammon Swing and a unique, experimental communications system designed to keep the brigade alert to surrounding dangers. Caught in the middle of the Army and the Apache is Jacob Cox, a rancher trying to bring peace and a new life to his hard patch of land, and to his sister, Martha. Martha is a woman perfectly suited to her wild new home, able to shoot down an Indian and match wits with any soldier. In the unforgiving desert and treacherous mountains of the Arizona frontier, an unexpected love grows between Martha and Sergeant Swing. The affair leads Martha, her brother, and the army towards a harrowing encounter with the Apache, where some will meet their ends with the blast of a shotgun, while others will rise to become honored heroes.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0765305062
• ISBN13: 9780765305060
• Release Date: February 2003
• Publisher: Forge Books
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.6" x 1.1" x 5.7"

Customer Reviews

Transported to the Wild West

I found "The Sergeant's Lady" to be a fast and lively read. It really transported me to a different time and place. Not being familiar with this genre, I was impressed with the detail and accuracy of the descriptions of everything from the most mundane activites of the common soldier to the exciting and horrific battle scenes. I cared about the characters in the novel and felt, by the end of the story, that I had come away with a better understanding of both the cavalry and the Indian warriors and the hardships they had to endure. I wholeheartedly recommend "The Sergeant's Lady".

Old traditions, new stories

Miles Hood Swarthout comes by his western sensibilities honestly: His father, Glendon Swarthout -- author of "The Shootist" and "Bless the Beasts and the Children" -- was in the vanguard of the "new" western literary novelists who blended history, landscape and character in a fresh way.Miles' new novel, "The Sergeant's Lady," is literally in that tradition, based upon one of his father's stories. It has all the hallmarks of a good, traditional western adventure, and the literary flourish of contemporary western writers. His beautiful writing and fast-paced action-adventure take us back to those golden days of yore, when good stories had both.For fans of the Old West, the Indian Wars, or just good fiction, this is a marvelous addition to your bookshelf.

Those Apaches!

Apache Indian warriors were among the greatest mounted fighters of the 19th -- and perhaps any other -- century. In attacking they shot under the horse's neck, holding themselves on the horse with their left foot. It was impossible to catch an Apache, unless you were another Apache. They were also at or near the top of the list when it came to stealing and marauding. For a vivid picture of this dramatic and murderous tribe, read Mile Hood Swarthout's book, The Sergeant's Lady, a skillful elaboration of a short story written by Miles' father, Glendon Swarthout, famous for his stories of the American West.Published by Forge, the book is a fast and fascinating read, giving a vivid picture of America's Southwest in the era after the Civil War. T. R. Kennedy, Prof. Emeritus, Mich. State University

All That and More

Other reviewers and readers have aptly summarized the plot and basic ingredients of Miles Swarthout's "Sergeant Lady." I know reviewers have been ask to focus on content. As a writer and a teacher of writing, I may, however, have yet another perspective about the "contents" of the novel. I believe I know substance and style in all genres and forms of writing whether it appears in a novel, a poem or a drama. Certainly, the best of writing in any form contains the elements of the others. Swarthout's novel manages to do this. It has moments of thought provoking, sensory imagery of poetry as well as the solid, vital characters and action so important to drama. Content and form are solidly merged, individual sentences and paragraphs flow, quicken and then burst into emotions and actions. Dramatically, the characters' actions are true to their personalities. Finally, while all this is quite literary, readers, including high school students from very diverse backgrounds, simply like a good story. Let's hope "The Sargeant's Lady" is not too narrowly perceived as just a "Western," but is also seen as a human drama with a wide appeal, a great book and one with the visual aspects and drama just meant for movie-making. .....Member of the National Writing Project, Endowment of Arts and Humanities.

Time bases quickly with this western tale

I am not very familar with the genre of the western tale but I much enjoyed this story set late in the days of the American Indian wars. The back drop of the work appears historically accurate and well researched. The story itself combines romance and adventure--a beautiful woman, the U.S cavalry and the Apache Indians--and makes a good effort to portray the character of a couple of important personalities of Arizona in the 1880's, General Nelson A. Miles and Naiche, son of Cochise. Time passes quickly reading this novel.