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'Hambly's brilliantly crafted eighth historical brings the antebellum South so alive you could swear the author traveled back in time to observe her settings firsthand. This riveting novel of suspense is sure to win Hambly many new fans.'
Nineteenth-century New Orleans is a blazing hotbed of scorching politics and
personal vendettas. And it's into this fire that Benjamin January falls when he
is hired to follow Oliver Weems, a bank official who has absconded with $100,000
in gold and securities. But it's more than just a job for January. The missing
money is vital to the survival of the school for freed slaves that he and his
wife Rose have founded.
Following the suspected embezzler--and the money--onto the steamboat Silver
Moon, January, Rose, and their friend Hannibal Sefton are sworn to secrecy about
the crime until they can find the trunks containing the stolen loot. And then
the unexpected happens: Weems is found murdered and suddenly the job of finding
the pirated stash grows not only more difficult--but more deadly. There is no
shortage of suspects--from the sinister slave-dealer to the bullying steamship
pilot to the suspiciously innocent "lady" with connections to every
river pirate in the riotous port of Natchez-Under-the-Hill--who all seem to have
something to hide.
Now, with time running out, January seeks clues wherever he can find
them--and allies among whoever can help. Working in tandem with a young planter
named Jefferson Davies, he must uncover the dark web of corruption, betrayal,
and greed that has already cost one man his life...and, if he can't catch a
brutal, remorseless killer, will soon cost January and his friends theirs.
If you liked Dead Water, try these:
by Robert Stone
Published 2004
A psychological thriller of razor-sharp intensity: mysterious, erotic, and deeply readable.
by Edward P. Jones
Published 2004
A black farmer, bootmaker and former slave becomes proprietor of his own plantation, as well as of his own slaves, in this ambitious, luminously written novel that ranges seamlessly between the past and future and back again to the present. Excerpt contains content exclusive to BookBrowse.