Ghost Riders (Ballad Series)

In 1861 the Civil War reached the mountainous South - where the enemy was your neighbor, the victims were your friends, and the wrong army was whichever one you joined. When Malinda Blalock's husband, Keith, joined the army, she dressed as a boy and went with him. They spent the war close to home in the North Carolina mountains, acting as Union guerilla fighters, raiding the farms of Confederate sympathizers and making as much trouble as they could locally. As hard riding, deadly out-laws, Keith and Malinda avenged Confederate raids on their kin and neighbors. McCrumb also brings to her story the larger-than-life narrative of the historical political figure Zebulon Vance, a self-made man and Confederate governor, who was from the mountains and fought for the interests of Appalachia within the hierarchy of the Confederacy. Linking the forces of historical unrest with the present-day stories of mountain wisefolk Rattler and Nora Bonesteel, McCrumb weaves two overlapping narratives. It is up to Nora Bonesteel and Rattler to calm the Civil War ghosts who are still wandering the mountains, and prevent a clash between the living and the dead.

From AudioFile

When, in 1862, war reaches southern Appalachia, Union sympathizer Keith Blalock is drafted into the Confederacy. His wife, Melinda, disguises herself as his brother and enlists to be near him. Simultaneously, in 2003, the reenactment of an especially violent battle raises the angry spirits of Confederate soldiers. Dick Hill and Susie Breck share the narration, giving honest treatment to real and fictional characters alike. They're most effective as Keith and Melinda; Zebulon Vance, who rises to the state legislature and Congress before becoming governor of North Carolina; and "seers" Nora Bonesteel and young Rattler, who try to placate the "ghost riders." Sharyn McCrumb's Civil War epic intercuts historical figures with present-day reenactors and harsh facts with magical realism, presenting a tale that both informs and entertains. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

About the Author

Sharyn McCrumb is the author of several bestselling novels, including The Rosewood Casket, She Walks These Hills, and The Ballad of Frankie Silver, which was nominated for a Southeast Booksellers Association award. She has received awards for Outstanding Contribution to Appalachian Literature and Southern Writer of the Year. Her books have been named notable books of the year by both The New York Times and Los Angeles Times. She lives in Virginia.

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